Chapter 1: …Do You Know How to Kiss?

I was crouched over my usual pile of recyclables when I suddenly spotted Mrs. Chen—the woman who was practically my sworn enemy at the recycling station—walking out of a massage parlor.

Her face was flushed and blissful, like she’d just won the lottery.

She glanced around furtively before leaning close and whispering, “Xiao An, a woman has to know how to take care of herself.”

I shot her a cold look.

Take care of myself? Seriously?

Just yesterday, she was fighting me over a plastic bottle in the exact same trash bin!

As someone with an extremely high level of professional pride, I decided I absolutely could not let her beat me at anything.

That evening, I took a deep breath and nervously stepped into that massage parlor for the visually impaired.

The owner, a man in dark sunglasses, sat behind the counter and looked me up and down.

“First time here?”

“Yes.”

I nodded obediently.

He immediately broke into a smile.

“Relax. I guarantee you’ll remember your first visit for the rest of your life.”

Instead of reassuring me, that only made me more nervous.

He then led me down a winding staircase that seemed to twist through a maze.

The moment he opened the door, I found myself staring at a lavish room glowing beneath dazzling lights.

A whole line of young men stood neatly in front of me. Tall, fit, and full of youthful energy.

I stared until my eyes nearly crossed before swallowing hard.

“They’re… they’re all mine?”

The owner rubbed his hands together, his eyes narrowing with a sly smile.

“As long as you’ve got the money, the whole world can be yours.”

I immediately rummaged through my pockets and pulled out a fistful of crumpled bills. With complete confidence, I slapped them onto the table.

“Is this enough?”

The smile vanished from the owner’s face at lightning speed.

“Please leave. Even looking costs money.”

The young men immediately looked at me with undisguised disdain.

Within seconds, they had scattered, rushing toward the wealthier women instead.

I stood there, so embarrassed I wanted nothing more than to dig a hole and crawl into it.

And then, just as I was about to make my escape, a young man in a black tank top suddenly knelt in front of me and gently began massaging my calf.

From where I stood, all I could see was his perfectly straight nose and the firm expanse of his chest barely visible beneath his collar.

I immediately pointed at him.

“How much for him?”

The owner glanced over, his expression filled with regret.

“This kid’s a little slow. He doesn’t know how to take the initiative, either. No one’s picked him yet. Still brand-new, straight out of the box.”

“…”

The owner continued, “Two hundred for the night.”

“Fifty.”

“…One hundred.”

“Then forget it. I don’t want him.”

But the moment I finished speaking, the young man suddenly froze.

He lifted his head and looked at me.

There was a tiny scratch on his handsome face, and beneath his chin was a cartoon Band-Aid.

His eyes looked exactly like those of a puppy abandoned by its owner in the rain.

My heart instantly melted.

I gritted my teeth.

“Sixty. That’s my absolute limit.”

“Deal!”

The owner answered so quickly that I suspected he’d been afraid I’d change my mind.

He even casually stuffed a few free “raincoats” into my hands before eagerly shoving both of us out the door.

The young man obediently followed behind me.

The entire way home, he kept tightly clutching the hem of my shirt.

When we finally reached my shabby little rental, which was barely ten square meters, I pointed toward the bathroom.

“Go take a shower.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

He obediently went inside.

But after waiting and waiting, I still didn’t see him come out.

Worried, I pushed the door open to check on him.

Under the shower, he was scrubbing himself so hard that his skin had turned red.

The moment he saw me, he hurriedly explained, “Sis, I’m not dirty. I’m really clean. Please don’t hate me.”

Through the hazy steam, his silhouette was only vaguely visible.

I took one quick glance and immediately turned my head away.

Not because I was being polite.

I was afraid that if I looked for even a few more seconds, I would lose every last shred of self-control.

I covered my nose and forced myself to stay calm.

“I don’t hate you. I don’t, okay? Take your time.”

He blinked.

“Then… should I scrub your back for you?”

I stared at him.

“…”

Great.

Apparently, I was the one who needed a cold shower now.

The light in the tiny apartment was dim and yellow, casting everything in a hazy glow.

And yet, the freshly showered young man looked as bright and fresh as a peach picked straight from the tree.

Just looking at him was refreshing.

I propped my chin on my hand and studied him for a while before asking, “What’s your name?”

“My name is Xiao Jiu.”

“What can you do?”

Xiao Jiu thought about it for a moment, then honestly shook his head.

“I’m kind of stupid. I only know how to give massages.”

With that, he knelt beside me and earnestly began massaging my legs, working his way from my calves up to my knees.

His technique was still a little clumsy, but his attitude was impeccable.

He was hardworking, obedient, and incredibly attentive.

After a while, he looked up at me.

“Are you comfortable, sis?”

I reached out and lightly pinched his cheek, deliberately teasing him.

“Want to learn how to do something else?”

Xiao Jiu blinked at me.

His eyes were so clear and innocent, like a puppy who’d just heard its name being called.

I couldn’t help laughing.

“For example… do you know how to kiss?”

His face instantly turned bright red.

After a few seconds of hesitation, he leaned over and gently pressed his lips to my cheek, light as a butterfly brushing over water.

I couldn’t stop myself from laughing.

“Not there.”

I pointed at my lips.

“Here.”

Xiao Jiu stared at me for several seconds.

Then he carefully lifted my face, his movements so gentle it was as if he were holding something fragile.

His voice was slightly hoarse, but surprisingly pleasant to listen to.

“Sis… like this?”

Before I could answer, his seriousness completely caught me off guard.

Sure enough, stupid people had their own way of learning.

Once they figured something out, they learned with an almost terrifying amount of dedication…

That night, the drafty little apartment remained as cold and breezy as ever.

Only sometime around midnight, half-asleep, I vaguely felt someone wrapping their arms tightly around me.

They were warm.

And they took up quite a lot of space.