Swallow the Hook

Chu Yue was an orphan. He had a photographic memory and was exceptionally handsome. From childhood, he survived by fighting for territory and scavenging through trash, until Mr. Li began funding the orphanage, and he finally had enough to eat.

Li Zichu was the CEO of Shenghui Group, a heaven's favorite, lofty and untouchable.

Chu Yue had set his sights on him when he was very young, and never once thought he was unworthy of him.

So he spent a full ten years working toward his goal. After graduating from a top university, he successfully became Mr. Li's assistant, hoping to take advantage of being close by.

But on the eve of starting the job, he was diagnosed with brain cancer and told he had at most six months to live.

Chu Yue knew he shouldn't get any closer to Li Zichu, but he couldn't help himself. Like a fish that had willingly swallowed the hook, he kept putting it off, again and again, until he realized that Mr. Li seemed to have fallen for him.

At that moment, Chu Yue's first reaction was not joy, but regret.

He slapped himself hard, regretting that he had dragged Mr. Li into this.

Chu Yue remembered the evening Mr. Li confessed to him. The sunset clouds on the horizon were so thick they seemed ready to catch fire.

The usually elegant and dignified man crouched in front of him and asked gently, "What if I don't ask for forever, only for the present? Would that still be impossible?"

Chu Yue heard himself say, "It would still be impossible."

The first time Li Zichu saw Chu Yue in Zhichun Alley, he knew the boy liked him.

He was so much older than Chu Yue. If he pretended not to understand the affection in his eyes, wouldn't that be taking advantage of him?

Young people don't know how to hide their feelings. Watching Chu Yue pretend to be drunk and sneakily hug him like a little fox, then coax him into teaching him how to kiss... How could he not fall for him, time and time again?

Li Zichu thought that he and Chu Yue had understood each other without a word, and that their relationship had naturally come together.

He never expected Chu Yue to reject him. Chu Yue said he wanted to return to his hometown in Longjiang, and Li Zichu agreed.

When winter arrived, heavy snow fell in Longjiang. Li Zichu led a team there to provide disaster relief, thinking that wherever Chu Yue was, it would feel familiar, no matter how strange the place.

Only later did he learn that Chu Yue was not in Longjiang.

Stubborn, obsessive orphan uke × gentle, flirtatious CEO seme

One-on-one romance; BE warning!! (You can skip to the bonus chapters for the happy ending.)

Reader's Guide:

1. If you can't handle a bad ending, you can jump straight from Chapter 43 to the bonus chapters, which have a happy ending.

2. Because of the way the plot connects, two-thirds of Chapter 44 and Bonus Chapter 1 repeat the same events. Feel free to choose whether to read both.

Theme: Not everything can have a perfect ending. We can only do our best.