Chapter 52: The Enchanting Swimmer

Chapter 52: The Enchanting Swimmer

Chen Wan hesitated, then slowly turned around.

"Chen Wan," Zhao Shengge accused him, "You’re just going to watch and then leave?"

"..."

Zhao Shengge leaned against the edge of the pool and beckoned him over.

Chen Wan clearly felt his blood and certain parts of his body begin to burn. He kept his composure as he walked to the edge of the pool. Unaccustomed to looking down at Zhao Shengge, he crouched down, forcing a smile as he complimented him: "Zhao Shengge, you swim so fast."

He raised an eyebrow: "You watched?"

Chen Wan, feeling guilty, gave an awkward smile and said, "What brings Mr. Zhao here to swim?" After all, it was Li Shenghui’s domain.

Zhao Shengge looked at him for a moment, then said in a low voice, "He sent two people to my room."

It was both a gesture of flattery and a test. If Zhao Shengge accepted and brought them back to Haishi, their partnership could grow stronger and more enduring with a lover’s influence.

Zhao Shengge did not accept, so coming to swim in the pool was another way to show his trust and reassurance.

Many things go unsaid; every gesture carries a hidden meaning that both sides grasp.

Chen Wan paused for a moment, then nodded in understanding: "Oh."

"..."

Zhao Shengge's brows were wet, making them appear even darker. He raised an eyebrow, revealing a youthful air that was usually impossible to see, and demanded confidently: "Time me, will you?"

Chen Wan rested his head on one hand, his eyes held a softness he wasn’t aware of, and said, "Sure."

Zhao Shengge slipped off his watch and tossed it to him.

Chen Wan caught it steadily.

Zhao Shengge shook the water droplets from his hair, put on his goggles, and submerged into the water like an arrow shot from a bow.

His pale skin flashed like a streak of white light beneath the dark blue water, like a ghostly apparition. Zhao Shengge had already swum far, completing a hundred meters, using freestyle on the way out and butterfly stroke on the way back, highlighting the power and agility of his core.

Chen Wan's face was hidden in the night, his expression unreadable. For a moment, his mind was suddenly transported back to the spring sports meet during his sophomore year in high school.

Chen Wan was not a student of Yinghua’s main campus, and their competitions were separate. For the 100-meter butterfly stroke final, Chen Wan went to great lengths to sneak into the main campus’s swimming pool.

In the second semester, Zhuo Zhixuan went on an exchange, and Chen Wan couldn't get a ticket. Yinghua had always been rigidly hierarchical, with the main campus and the branch campus clearly demarcated. Only a few facilities were shared, and branch students couldn't sneak in.

Initially, Chen Wan planned to post an online ad to rent a student ID, but no main campus student needed the money. So, he turned his attention to the volunteer positions.

However, he didn't expect that for a competition with Zhao Shengge, there would be no shortage of volunteers.

Ultimately, Chen Wan risked punishment by having a main campus-style student ID custom-made online and spent his childhood savings from collecting bottles to hire a cash-strapped computer science student from the black market to forge the chip in the card, slipping into the final venue.

The swimming pool was packed, and Chen Wan's arm was even scratched by an overly excited girl's manicure, but he didn't have time to care because he was also very excited, though he kept it hidden.

The prodigy lived up to expectations and won the championship. Zhao Shengge's strong and perfect physique and posture remained in the dreams of countless girls.

In high school, Chen Wan was already adept at moving unnoticed. He stealthily entered Zhao Shengge's locker room and left a bouquet of white peonies and pink hydrangeas, along with a card with an ordinary message: "Good luck in the competition."

After the award ceremony, Chen Wan wanted to confirm if his flowers had been received. When the crowd had mostly dispersed, he sneaked back into the venue and happened to witness someone confessing to Zhao Shengge.

Undoubtedly, Zhao Shengge refused, his attitude distant and cold: "Sorry, I don’t feel that way about you."

So, Chen Wan wouldn’t go to confess.

Why bother hitting a wall with no hope?

For a broken head or a heart of ashes?

Chen Wan believed it was enough to give what he wanted, whether it was blessings or a bouquet. Zhao Shengge didn’t need to know the sender, just that he was loved and admired.

But Zhao Shengge misunderstood. He picked up the bouquet that Chen Wan had clumsily arranged for three hours and handed it to the confessor in front of him, saying, "Take the flowers back, thank you, but please don’t send any more."

Gentle and polite, yet cruel.

Hidden in the shadows, Chen Wan opened his mouth anxiously but couldn’t speak. He had no right or reason to stop it—after all, he shouldn’t have been there in the first place.

The confessor, for some reason, didn’t explain, and Chen Wan watched as the person took his flowers and left.

A few days later, Chen Wan heard rumors from the main campus that Zhao Shengge had given flowers to someone else.

Chen Wan felt like he’d eaten an unripe plum—sour and bitter, lingering on his tongue long after he swallowed it.

Those were the flowers he’d given Zhao Shengge.

But Chen Wan knew how to make peace with himself. At least he knew it was a misunderstanding; otherwise, he might have been more heartbroken upon hearing the news.

The concerns of his youth were far behind him. At seventeen, Chen Wan lived under someone else’s roof, surrounded by predators, enduring humiliation and surviving in the cracks. He never imagined he’d one day watch Zhao Shengge swim in an infinity pool.

There were no other spectators, just him.

Zhao Shengge had already reached the shore. He lifted his head, pushing back his hair, revealing his striking, cold features. Like a lion shaking off water after a win, he radiated a captivating handsomeness in the night.

He asked Chen Wan, "How much?"

Chen Wan hesitated, feeling guilty. He had been so engrossed that he forgot to stop the timer.

Chen Wan glanced down and casually gave a time.

Zhao Shengge raised an eyebrow, calling him out directly, "Chen Wan, you didn’t press the timer, did you?"

Not long ago, he had just competed with Shen Zongnian and others. Even at his best, he hadn’t broken one minute and eight seconds. After drinking tonight, the one minute and five seconds Chen Wan gave was clearly fabricated.

"You didn’t watch properly," Zhao Shengge took off his goggles, his sharp eyes unusually dark, his voice deep. Yet, Chen Wan inexplicably sensed a tone he couldn’t quite place—he dared not interpret it as a close complaint, let alone a coquettish one.

Chen Wan became flustered and uneasy.

"Hmm?" Zhao Shengge urged him for an explanation, as if scolding him for not properly timing him.

Chen Wan was on the shore, slightly higher, but he looked down at him with sincere eyes and said earnestly, "I was watching carefully."

Zhao Shengge tilted his head, seemingly enjoying the sight of his flustered yet earnest demeanor.

During the day, such a calm and decisive person, with a Beretta Rose hanging at his waist, now seemed like a loyal little animal, completely at his mercy.

Chen Wan was nervous. The ripples on the pool’s surface seemed to ripple straight into his eyes, giving him a sense of delicate softness and unease.

His smile seemed calm and natural, but his eyes begged, "Please, let me off the hook."

Chen Wan was always meticulous, but these occasional moments of nervousness and vulnerability hit Zhao Shengge like a bullet straight to the heart.

His heart started beating irregularly; the faster it pounded, the calmer Zhao Shengge grew. He asked in a deep voice, "If you were watching, why didn’t you take notes?"

Chen Wan gave a sheepish grin, "I was so focused I forgot to take notes."

He sensed Zhao Shengge’s displeasure and instinctively tried to smooth things over, "Do you want to continue swimming? Let’s swim two more laps—I’ll make sure to take notes this time."

Zhao Shengge looked at him for a while and asked, "Do you want to watch?"

Chen Wan nodded.

Zhao Shengge then said, "I’m not in the mood to swim anymore. Maybe next time."

"..." Chen Wan felt a bit regretful.

Zhao Shengge asked, "Got any water?"

Chen Wan looked around but didn’t see any. Under the large sun umbrella, there were some fruits.

"How about a coconut instead?"

Zhao Shengge said that would be fine.

Chen Wan got up, grabbed a coconut, stuck a straw in it, and brought it to the poolside. He crouched and handed it to Zhao Shengge with both hands.

Zhao Shengge didn’t take it. Instead, he propped himself up slightly and sipped directly from the straw in Chen Wan’s hand.

Chen Wan froze, a faint blush creeping up his ears. He leaned forward instinctively, bringing the coconut closer to Zhao Shengge to make it easier for him to sip.

But this also meant Chen Wan had to move closer to Zhao Shengge. Zhao Shengge’s handsome face loomed closer—his full, damp lips, the veins on his neck—it was overwhelming.

Chen Wan’s grip on the coconut was shaky. He fought the urge to reach out and touch him.

The night was eerily quiet. The sound of Zhao Shengge swallowing echoed in Chen Wan’s ears, his fingertips going pale.

The water was cool, but Zhao Shengge’s body radiated intense heat. Even without contact, Chen Wan felt his skin burn.

The urge to touch Zhao Shengge had never been stronger, peaking in that moment.

So close—his chin, Adam’s apple, arms—all the parts that had haunted Chen Wan’s dreams since adolescence—were even more tantalizing than he’d imagined.

Chen Wan’s breath quickened, his heart like a ripe fruit, nibbled by the night’s chirping insects until its sour core was laid bare.

Suddenly, Zhao Shengge grabbed Chen Wan’s trembling wrist, steadying him. Their fingers and wrists brushed, skin damp. He looked up lazily, his gaze drifting from bottom to top, and asked calmly, "What’s wrong?"

Chen Wan had endured for years; keeping his composure was second nature. He chuckled softly and teased, "Mr. Zhao, you just open your mouth and the food comes to you."

Even as he said this, Zhao Shengge noticed that Chen Wan had even knelt on one knee to make it easier for him to drink, his eyes deepening.

In his simple white shirt and black pants, Chen Wan knelt like he was proposing, his gaze tender, almost reverent, as if he’d wait forever for Zhao Shengge.

It seemed that as long as Zhao Shengge didn’t say he was done drinking, Chen Wan would keep holding the coconut without leaving.

Zhao Shengge gradually realized that Chen Wan seemed to have no bottom line when it came to him.

Zhao Shengge’s lips were moistened by the water, very red, opening and closing, "Chen Wan, let’s head straight to Feiling Island on the way back."

Chen Wan was startled. Feiling Island was the excuse Zhao Shengge had used to decline his request to follow him to Ting Island. He hadn’t expected the other to actually take it seriously. He asked, "Are you really going to have a team-building event?"

"..." Zhao Shengge closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them and said, "Fang Jian’s got overtime shifts because of the data. Xu Zhiying’s a workaholic—ask her if she’s up for a vacation with you."

Chen Wan's eyes widened slightly. Was it just the two of them going?

"Why?" Was it because Zhao Shengge couldn’t find anyone else to go with?

"Don't want to go with me?" Facing Chen Wan's slightly puzzled gaze, Zhao Shengge could have easily said something like "You've worked hard these past few days, take a break." It would have been simple to find a plausible excuse, but he didn't. He wanted Chen Wan to overthink, to feel unsettled.

He couldn't be the only one feeling restless and unsettled. Until now, he still couldn't detect any definite signals from Chen Wan. If before, Zhao Shengge had the last bit of patience to negotiate, probe, and engage with him.

But after tonight, no more.

Feiling Island was a resort for the wealthy in Haishi, but few knew that this particular island was privately owned by Zhao Shengge.

It didn’t matter if Chen Wan was unwilling to speak; Zhao Shengge would take the lead. If Chen Wan didn’t agree, they’d stay on the island until he did.

Zhao Shengge lowered his lashes, masking the shadow in his gaze.

"No!" Chen Wan’s eyes crinkled into a smile. "I want to go."

As it happened, he was only managing the major project with Minglong and had no other commitments.

Zhao Shengge gazed at Chen Wan’s slightly cheerful, unaware face and smiled gently.

He took Chen Wan’s wrist, giving it a gentle nudge, and said, "No more swimming." With a push of his arm, he surged out of the water with a splash, his movements fluid and elegant, like a sea creature rising from the depths.

As Zhao Shengge drew closer, in the instant their eyes locked, Chen Wan willingly surrendered his heart and soul, bowing at his feet.