Chapter 104: Office Romance

Chapter 104: Office Romance

New week, new grind.

Liu Hai’s confession to Jiang Xun had elicited almost no surprise, so he and Jiang Xun agreed to keep it quiet for now. He wanted to shock the others first.

His first target was Xiao Jin, who was always a good sport.

Having been stuck in the lab for who knows how many weekends without a break, Xiao Jin had just enjoyed a rare weekend off, but she looked even more exhausted than usual.

She was yawning while making coffee, her eyes barely open.

Liu Hai crept up behind her and greeted, "Good morning, Xiao Jin."

"Morning," Xiao Jin yawned again. "Want some coffee, Liu Hai? A proper office worker should learn to whip themselves into shape. It’s about time you learned to drink this bitter little black pick-me-up."

"No, no!" Liu Hai shook his head frantically, backing away. "I won’t touch that stuff!"

Xiao Jin had no choice but to take a big gulp herself, letting out a bitter breath. "Whew! Another day!"

"What’s wrong with you?" Liu Hai asked curiously. "Shouldn’t you have rested well over the weekend?"

"Ugh, according to my original plan, I was supposed to sleep in, then go for a slow jog, watch a movie in the afternoon, meet up with long-lost friends in the evening, and then have a picnic at the wetlands park on the last day to recharge and enjoy a much-needed break…" Xiao Jin’s tone grew heavier as she spoke. "But instead, I spent the whole weekend binge-watching shows, reading novels, and gaming. So guilty."

"Then last night, I realized I’d wasted another weekend and tossed and turned, unable to sleep. So I ended up gaming nervously and stayed up late again."

Liu Hai stared at her in shock. "..."

"Waaah!" Xiao Jin seemed to plunge into deep self-loathing. "I’m a terrible adult with zero self-control!"

Liu Hai patted her shoulder. "Maybe you just overscheduled?"

"It was supposed to be a rest day. Next time, just write ‘only do things that make me happy.’ Wouldn’t that make the day before work a little more enjoyable?"

"Playing games and watching shows on your day off isn’t some cardinal sin, right? You only feel like you wasted time because you expected yourself to do ‘more meaningful’ things."

"Liu Hai—" Xiao Jin was deeply comforted. She leaned on him, tearing up. "Waaah, I feel so much better now!"

"Right? Hehe!" Liu Hai chuckled before suddenly realizing—wait, he’d spaced on something.

He was supposed to scare her!

Now, Liu Hai had missed his chance to surprise her, but the Seal King wasn’t done yet.

His eyes darted around before he cleared his throat. "Ahem, actually, I have a secret to tell you."

Xiao Jin immediately straightened up. "What is it? Any movement on the proposal front?"

"Ah, no, not that." Liu Hai thought for a moment. "Guess I forgot to propose to Jiang Xun again these past couple of days."

"It’s fine, there’s always next time." Xiao Jin comforted him in return. "So, what’s the secret?"

Liu Hai cleared his throat solemnly. "Actually, I’m not a mermaid. I’m a Seal Spirit."

He watched Xiao Jin’s reaction closely.

"Huh?" Xiao Jin, who was sipping her coffee, didn’t skip a beat. She replied offhandedly, "Oh, well, I’m a ‘sea monkey.’ Not the starfish kind, the primate kind. A monkey from the sea."

Liu Hai blinked in confusion. "Huh? Is that a real thing?"

"Hahaha, who knows? Maybe prehistoric ones existed. Didn’t they say life began in the ocean?" Xiao Jin grinned cheekily. "Anyway, no matter what species you are, Liu Hai babe, Xiao Jin loves you!"

"Xiao Jin!" Liu Hai teared up, completely forgetting his original plan to scare her.

And even if Xiao Jin wasn’t scared, he still had other targets!

Liu Hai turned his attention to A Yu next.

"Good morning." A Yu smiled when he saw Liu Hai. "Dragging yourself to work again today? What a trooper."

"Not really." Liu Hai humbly replied. "It’s just what an office worker should do!"

"Oh, right, A Yu, I have a secret to tell you."

"What is it?" A Yu leaned in slightly, ready to listen attentively.

Liu Hai lowered his voice. "Actually, I’m not a mermaid. I’m a Seal Spirit."

A Yu’s gaze, which had been idly fixed on the floor, shifted to Liu Hai’s face. Liu Hai was staring at him expectantly.

A Yu said, "Oh."

Liu Hai was crestfallen. "Huh? That’s it?"

A Yu chuckled and ruffled his hair. "Did you clear it with the boss? Then he must’ve told you—we already knew."

"Even if you all knew, shouldn’t you at least react when I say it outta nowhere?" Liu Hai gestured, looking downright offended by the lack of response.

"Hmm—" A Yu offered a suggestion. "Why don’t you go find Dr. Feng Yan? He’d probably have a more surprising reaction."

"Really?" Liu Hai lit up, looking eager.

"Yeah." A Yu nodded. "At the very least, it’d be more interesting than ours."

"Then I’ll go find him!" Liu Hai made a beeline for the door, but A Yu called him back.

Liu Hai turned around, puzzled. "What’s up? Do you have work for me? I can finish it first before going to see him!"

"No." A Yu, eagle-eyed as ever, stared at the ID badge hanging around Liu Hai’s neck. "The one around your neck… isn’t that the boss’s ID badge?"

"Huh?" Liu Hai looked down and found himself staring at the unsmiling Jiang Xun in the photo.

"Ah!" Liu Hai clapped his hands in realization. "I must’ve grabbed the wrong one in my hurry this morning!"

"Grabbed the wrong one…" A Yu’s eyes went wide. After being exposed to Xiao Jin’s shipping fanfics lately, he could instantly conjure up all the classic scenarios. On top of that, Xiao Jin’s go-to commentary—"Sure, I love reading about them doing things that can’t be aired, but I prefer the cozy moments after they’ve done it"—ran through his head, leaving only two words: "done it."

...No way around it, this screamed "they slept together" and grabbed the wrong pass in the morning.

A Yu ventured carefully, "Liu Hai, did you two… sleep together last night?"

Liu Hai answered like it was nothing, "Yeah!"

A Yu drew a deep breath. "Uh, same bed?"

Liu Hai cocked his head. "Yeah?"

A Yu didn’t press further.

First, it risked crossing into TMI territory. Second, he wasn’t ready to hear the answer.

Though it was always Liu Hai who was always the one clinging to the boss, if the boss really made a move, he still felt the boss would be the one to blame.

Liu Hai observed A Yu's expression. Although A Yu didn’t seem too surprised when he revealed he was a seal-being earlier, now he was clearly shocked.

...He didn’t know why, but at least he got a reaction.

Liu Hai left, satisfied.

After swapping back work badges with Jiang Xun and confirming there was no work left for him, he headed over to find Feng Yan in the neighboring lab.

From a distance, he spotted Feng Yan leaning against the lab door in a full seagull mascot suit and waved, calling out, "Feng Yan!"

"Yo," Feng Yan raised a hand in greeting. "How’s work?"

"Pretty good!" Liu Hai looked lively, still free of work fatigue.

He quickly approached and said in a hushed, mysterious tone, "I have a secret to tell you."

Before Feng Yan could divert the topic, Liu Hai suddenly announced, "Actually, I'm not a mermaid—I'm a seal-being."

Though Feng Yan was wearing the seagull costume, hiding his expression, the sudden shift in his posture suggested he had a reaction.

Feng Yan abruptly seized Liu Hai by the shoulders and said sternly, "What kind of nonsense is this?!"

Liu Hai brightened—finally! The reaction he’d been waiting for!

Feng Yan held him firmly. "Let me ask you—who am I right now?"

Liu Hai hesitated. "Feng Yan?"

He definitely hadn’t mistaken the person.

"No." Feng Yan’s seagull wings suddenly covered Liu Hai’s face as he said gravely, "Once I put on this costume, I *am* the seagull."

Liu Hai: "..."

"So, since you’re going by the title 'mermaid,' you’d better have conviction!" The giant seagull loomed over him. "Now, who are you?"

Liu Hai stuttered, "I’m... Liu Hai."

"Not your name," the seagull pressed closer. "I’m asking—*what* are you?"

Liu Hai stuttered even more. "A... seagull?"

"Wait, I’m a seal—"

"Hmm?" Feng Yan glared. "Say that again?"

Getting the hint, Liu Hai mumbled a correction, "I’m... a mermaid?"

"There we go." Feng Yan stepped back, satisfied.

Liu Hai: "But I—"

"Hmm?" Feng Yan shot him a warning look.

Liu Hai shut his mouth.

Fine. There’s no reasoning with a seagull zealot.

"That’s all you wanted to say?" Feng Yan leaned lazily against the lab door. "I thought you were going to say you’d proposed successfully."

Liu Hai mumbled, "Not yet..."

"Keep trying." Feng Yan waved him off. "Come tell me when you succeed."

Liu Hai walked off dejectedly. Though Feng Yan’s reaction was indeed unexpected, it wasn’t the kind he needed.

Next target...

He set his sights on the more straightforward one—Kong Tela.

Liu Hai poked around Kong Tela’s lab and keenly noticed the researchers seemed preoccupied. Kong Tela had returned to work but wasn’t in the lab. Someone told him he’d gone to see Jian Yu about something.

Eagerly, Liu Hai rushed to Jian Yu’s office—he could drop the bombshell on her too while he was at it!

Just then, Kong Tela emerged from Jian Yu’s office, done with his errand.

Liu Hai greeted him but noticed he looked upset. Concerned, he asked, "What’s wrong? Trouble?"

"Ah, Liu Hai." Kong Tela rubbed his temples. "Well... It’s been a mess lately. The lab keeps having interpersonal drama."

Liu Hai blinked. "Interpersonal issues?"

Kong Tela sighed. "Ugh, seriously, if they’d just keep it subtle enough not to affect work, I’d turn a blind eye..."

"Nothing major. Just two idiots in an office romance who threw lab equipment during a fight."

"Makes you wonder what’s wrong with them..."

Liu Hai was baffled. "Office romance?"

"Yeah." Kong Tela nodded. "To avoid this mess, our lab explicitly bans office romances, and yet they still pull this stunt... What’s with you?"

Liu Hai stared, shocked.

Author’s Note:

Liu Hai: [terrified] What office romance?!

I’ll take my time wrapping up the ending—probably within the next day or two. We’ll see if I can make it. [sunglasses]