Chapter 357: Nightmare’s 18 Techniques to Lull to Sleep (5)

Chapter 357: Nightmare's 18 Techniques to Lull to Sleep (5)

Jiang Zhuxiu's eyes darkened with concern.

He turned to look at Song Chuyi, who was still happily cracking sunflower seeds, showing no signs of sleepiness. A sense of helplessness washed over him again.

After a brief pause, he turned off his computer, stood up, and walked over to Song Chuyi.

He sat down beside him and extended his hand, palm facing up.

Song Chuyi hesitated for a moment before grabbing a handful of sunflower seeds and placing them in Jiang Zhuxiu's hand.

Jiang Zhuxiu picked up a seed, twisted it between his fingertips, and revealed the plump, white kernel inside.

He placed the kernel into a small dish beside him and quietly continued shelling the seeds without saying a word.

Song Chuyi's seed-cracking slowed down.

When Jiang Zhuxiu finished shelling the seeds in his hand, Song Chuyi grabbed another handful and handed it to him.

Jiang Zhuxiu hesitated briefly before accepting it and continued shelling.

When the small dish was filled with kernels, Song Chuyi picked it up and chuckled softly.

"Boss, are these for me?"

He held the dish with both hands, his eyes brimming with anticipation.

Jiang Zhuxiu responded softly, "Mm."

Song Chuyi let out a surprised gasp and poured them all into his mouth.

His cheeks immediately puffed up.

"So good," he chewed noisily, his puffed cheeks moving with a touch of lively charm.

Jiang Zhuxiu seemed to find this amusing. He extended his index finger and poked Song Chuyi's puffed cheek.

The softness surprised him.

He quickly withdrew his finger and lightly pursed his lips.

"I’m going to get some rest. How about you?"

Song Chuyi blinked, finished chewing the kernels in his mouth, and then spoke.

"I’ll stay with you."

A small smile played on his lips, as if he had found a way to make Song Chuyi sleep, and his mood improved significantly.

The two of them tidied up quickly and then lay down on the bed.

They kept a small distance between them.

But with only one blanket, the space in between was empty and slightly cool.

The lights were turned off, and the room plunged into darkness.

At 5 a.m., Jiang Zhuxiu closed his eyes.

Song Chuyi opened his round eyes, watching Jiang Zhuxiu sleep, and thought to himself.

The Nightmare was so into playing human that it even pretended to sleep.

But as for actually sleeping? Nah, definitely not.

After a while, Song Chuyi closed his eyes too.

Jiang Zhuxiu, lying next to him, seemed to notice he’d closed his eyes, his eyelashes trembling slightly before slowly opening them.

A shadow briefly passed over Song Chuyi.

But it vanished in an instant.

Jiang Zhuxiu’s brow furrowed deeply.

Song Chuyi was faking sleep.

He wasn’t sleeping at all.

Without humans sleeping, Nightmares can’t craft dreams, nor can they enter dreams, let alone feed on human negative emotions.

Jiang Zhuxiu’s throat moved as he swallowed, temporarily giving up the idea of entering Song Chuyi’s dream.

Humans can’t stay up forever.

As long as he keeps watching Song Chuyi, he will eventually fall asleep.

Once Song Chuyi sleeps, Jiang Zhuxiu can weave a nightmare, and then he can feed on his negative emotions.

For now, he’d have to wait.

He had all the patience in the world.

At exactly 8 a.m., Song Chuyi woke up and shook the equally pretending-to-sleep Jiang Zhuxiu beside him.

"Hey, Minister, rise and shine—time for work!"

Jiang Zhuxiu opened his eyes and responded with a low "Hmm."

Both looked well-rested, with rosy complexions and full of energy.

After breakfast, Song Chuyi hopped into Jiang Zhuxiu’s car and arrived at the company.

After Song Chuyi’s passionate confession to Jiang Zhuxiu in the meeting room yesterday, the whole R&D department knew they were dating.

Their colleagues shot them pitying glances.

Being in love, they must be so blissful they’re on the verge of sleep.

How utterly tragic.

"Sleep," a word that strikes fear into humans, has become the greatest curse.

Now, the worst insult is wishing someone would fall asleep, as there’s no more vicious curse than that.

Song Chuyi squirmed under the sympathetic stares from his colleagues, but Jiang Zhuxiu, however, stayed cool as a cucumber.

He had to admit, Jiang Zhuxiu’s human act was spot-on.

If only he were that convincing.

Song Chuyi thought to himself as another co-worker approached him.

"Song Chuyi, I went to the coffee lounge yesterday and got that brand of coffee you mentioned."

"I made two cups when I got back, but it didn’t do anything!"

The co-worker pointed to his rosy cheeks, "You wouldn’t believe it, I crashed at midnight yesterday."

"I slept straight through till five this morning! Waaah!"

The co-worker was on the verge of tears.

Song Chuyi: ...

"So, no nightmares then?" he asked.

The co-worker was stunned, then quickly realized.

"Right! I slept for five hours yesterday and didn’t have a single nightmare."

"No way!"

He was thrilled, like he’d just discovered something amazing.

"I didn’t have a single nightmare!"

"Haha! No nightmares at all!"

The co-worker jumped up, practically dancing as he rushed to tell the others.

Song Chuyi arched an eyebrow.

Getting five hours of nightmare-free sleep is definitely weird.

That’s not really the Nightmare Clan’s style.

Maybe the Nightmare Clan has their own turf, and since Jiang Zhuxiu’s around, they’re staying out of people’s dreams?

If that’s true, it makes sense why he didn’t have any nightmares yesterday.

Jiang Zhuxiu was busy messing with his head yesterday, after all.

From midnight to five, that’s when Jiang Zhuxiu was working on him.

Looks like we can try it again tonight, Song Chuyi thought.

The co-worker came rushing back, excitedly asking, "Song Chuyi, any nightmares last night?"

Song Chuyi gave a quick shake of his head.

The co-worker got even more pumped, "I asked around, and everyone said they slept great last night—no nightmares!"

As he talked, his eyes started to well up.

"Do you think the Nightmares are gone?"

He looked hopeful, like he was desperate for a 'yes.'

Song Chuyi's lips curled slightly as he glanced towards Jiang Zhuxiu's office and said, smiling, "Probably not, but the boss had a nightmare last night."

The colleague was stunned for a moment, then gossiped, "What nightmare did the boss have?"

At that moment, the door to the boss's office opened from the inside.

Jiang Zhuxiu stood at the doorway, looking cool and composed, and glanced over in their direction.

Song Chuyi met his gaze, and the smile on his lips deepened.

"Him? He just probably dreamed of me sitting beside him, munching on melon seeds and chatting."

The colleague looked baffled.

Not far away, Jiang Zhuxiu's brow furrowed slightly as he strode towards them with his long legs.

The colleague quietly made themselves scarce, leaving Song Chuyi alone to face Jiang Zhuxiu.

After Jiang Zhuxiu approached, he tapped his fingers on the desk, bent down, and got right up in Song Chuyi's face.

"Do you know what the punishment is for spreading gossip about your superior in the company?" Jiang Zhuxiu asked, his voice low and threatening.