4 Solicitation

Returning to the rented room, Lu Mi closed the door behind him and hurriedly took off the coat draped over his shoulders, tossing it onto the cabinet as if some fierce beast might leap out at any moment.

He stared at the coat belonging to Shen Tan for a long while before slowly sliding down against the door. He hugged his knees tightly, burying his face in their crook. The effort to maintain a calm expression finally gave way; his lips pressed tightly together, eyes wide and trembling, his eyelids fluttering uncontrollably. His breathing was uneven, unable to settle into a normal rhythm.

Everything that had happened tonight was still vivid in his mind, and it had completely strayed from his expectations.

He had originally thought he might never leave that restaurant, but unexpectedly, the person Lu Nande referred to was Shen Tan.

Although Shen Tan’s behavior didn’t exactly mark him as a good man, at least he wasn’t like the person Lu Nande had sold him to.

Lu Mi wasn’t a fool; he knew what Lu Nande’s departure meant. Lu Nande had already sold him off long ago. The so-called arranged marriage was probably just a pretense.

What kind of man in his fifties, with a vile character, would choose to marry him? Most likely, it was just a game to him.

Lu Nande didn’t care whether he lived or died.

Nor did Lu Mi. He only wanted to save the company.

He knew what he was facing.

Yet he was still afraid. He was terrified.

But now, that person was Shen Tan.

Lu Mi didn’t know how Shen Tan would treat him. He said they were going to get married, but was it really true? He had told Lu Mi to move in with him.

The fear was still unknown.

What did Shen Tan want? What was someone like Shen Tan hoping to gain from him?

Lu Mi touched his face.

Apart from his face, it seemed there was nothing else worth anything.

They were the same.

Shen Tan and that man in his fifties.

But now, at least, he was still alive.

Then he would live well.

Lu Mi closed his eyes, braced himself against the door, and stood up. His legs felt weak, so he could only slowly walk into the bedroom.

The apartment Lu Mi rented was small. Since starting college, Lu Nande had never given him living expenses; tuition and daily costs were earned by Lu Mi through part-time work. The apartment had only one living room, one bedroom, and one bathroom. The bedroom was small, furnished only with a bed and a computer desk, holding an old desktop computer.

Behind the desk was a window, through which he could see the street outside the complex.

Lu Mi looked out and just caught sight of Shen Tan’s car passing by.

Frozen for a moment, Lu Mi hurriedly sat down, opened his laptop, and launched the streaming software.

Suddenly, numerous private messages flooded in.

“Hello, streamer Mi Lu, are you interested in going pro? Our team is recruiting trainees. Contact me if interested.”

Shuimu: “Not streaming again today, Mi Lu little brother!!!”

This message was from one of Lu Mi’s streamer friends.

Lu Mi was now a sophomore. Shy and taciturn by nature, he was unsuited for jobs that required daily interaction with people; streaming was the perfect fit for him.

He played the hottest MOBA online game at the moment, Destination.

He never showed his face and rarely spoke, but thanks to his excellent skills and occasionally pleasant voice—a clean, soft youthful tone—he had gained some fans. The guaranteed monthly income was enough to pay his rent, tuition, and living expenses.

Two days ago, after Lu Nande called him home, Lu Mi took leave from streaming without saying when he would return.

Scrolling up, he saw Shuimu almost daily asking if he would stream.

Lu Mi quickly replied, “I will stream today.”

That time was exactly when Shuimu would be live. After sending the message, Shuimu didn’t immediately reply, and Lu Mi was about to continue reading his fans’ messages when several messages from guild management popped up.

“I saw you online! Why didn’t you reply to me?”

Lu Mi looked at the previous messages from the manager.

“You took leave without consulting me? You won’t get the full attendance bonus this month!”

“How about duo queue with A Mo? Can you stop refusing every time? Both you and A Mo are part of our guild. You know how hot it is to ‘ship’ people these days, right? Are you really planning to stay lukewarm forever? We can’t support little streamers with bad attitudes! If you want to make money, behave yourself this time. A Mo has already agreed.”

A Mo was a major streamer in their guild. Once, Lu Mi happened to queue with him in random matches. Whether by guild arrangement or A Mo’s own will, in that game Lu Mi played jungle and A Mo played support. Normally, A Mo should have followed the marksman, but in that game, A Mo stayed close to Lu Mi. They played a famous couple’s hero combo, which naturally attracted quite a bit of attention.

After the game, Lu Mi’s stream gained many new viewers, and A Mo invited him for another match.

Lu Mi refused without hesitation.

He didn’t like teaming up with others for ranked matches. Even with Shuimu, who was close to him, they seldom played ranked together.

Somehow, news of Lu Mi refusing A Mo got back to guild management, who promptly contacted him, hoping he would “bind” with A Mo.

“Binding” was obviously about faking romantic intimacy.

Competition in streaming was fierce. Even a big streamer like A Mo had to find ways to generate hype.

But Lu Mi disliked that.

He had deliberately ignored management’s requests before, but they hadn’t given up.

After hesitating a moment, Lu Mi typed: “Sorry, I’m already married. It’s inconvenient to flirt with others.”

The manager quickly replied: “Married? You’re only nineteen. Married? Why lie to me? It’s not like we’re asking you to flirt! Can’t you act?”

The manager was angry.

If he wanted to lie, he could have chosen a better excuse.

Although the legal marriage age had recently been lowered to nineteen to encourage marriage rates, hardly anyone got married so young, unless from destitute families selling their children.

When the guild first signed Lu Mi, it was because of his potential—good skills and a pleasant voice—but after two years, he still had no fame.

Naturally, the guild didn’t want to bother with an unknown streamer like him, but when A Mo offered to help promote him, they paid attention.

Looking at the manager’s messages, Lu Mi lowered his eyes and pressed his lips.

He truly wasn’t good at, nor did he like socializing, let alone pretending to flirt with someone else.

For some reason, Lu Mi thought of Shen Tan.

He instinctively looked down at his right hand.

At the restaurant, Shen Tan had held his right hand for a long time, leaving faint red marks that had now faded.

But the feeling remained.

Shen Tan’s palm was rough, warm, and strong.

When he gripped Lu Mi’s hand, Lu Mi couldn’t break free.

A numbness crept into his hand; his body trembled slightly, and he came back to himself just as more scolding messages from the manager arrived. He wanted to reply that he really was married.

Though not officially registered, his spouse was likely a terrifying person.

Because of Shen Tan, Lu Mi didn’t want to fake flirtations with others.

He feared angering Shen Tan.

With a man like Shen Tan, Lu Mi could guess the consequences of making him angry.

Whatever Shen Tan wanted to do to him, Lu Mi couldn’t resist and could only obey.

Before he could reply, his phone vibrated suddenly.

He instinctively turned to glance.

The screen lit up with a new message.

“I’m Shen Tan. Forgot to ask, is there anything you need me to buy?”

Stunned for a few seconds, Lu Mi hesitated before replying, “Nothing, Mr. Shen.”

He didn’t dare to have any requests.

At the Lu family home, the room Lu Mi stayed in had been converted from a storage room—small, with only a narrow hard bed and a tiny, high window.

After school, he used to bring a small stool to sit by the bed for his homework.

But he had grown used to it.

His current rented room was similarly small with a hard bed.

He had no demands for living space; as long as he could sleep, it was fine.

He just didn’t know what kind of place Shen Tan would have him live in.

Would it be a storage room or something else?

“Any requirements for the bed? I personally prefer bigger, softer beds,” Shen Tan’s message came quickly. Lu Mi remembered he said he had another dinner engagement.

Yet Lu Mi didn’t dare ask why Shen Tan had time to message him and instead typed confusedly, “What do you mean?”

“Do you think we need to sleep separately?” Shen Tan’s tone sounded unfriendly.

Lu Mi immediately recalled Shen Tan’s intimidating face and quickly replied, “Sorry, Mr. Shen, I didn’t realize.”

It wasn’t that he didn’t realize, but that he didn’t dare to confirm.

Sleeping with Shen Tan.

Lu Mi lowered his eyes, fingers nervously tracing the phone screen.

Shen Tan, phone in hand, leaned against the sofa. On the laptop in front of him, the restaurant’s surveillance footage still played. After he left, Lu Mi sat alone, visibly more relaxed.

But Shen Tan guessed Lu Mi must now be panicked and helpless.

Like a small animal trembling after the terrifying beast it feared finally left, only for the beast to return.

Shen Tan curled the corner of his mouth.

“I thought you didn’t want to sleep with me. Since you agreed, any requirements about the bed?”

Seeing Shen Tan’s new message, Lu Mi’s heart sank bit by bit.

Though prepared, he couldn’t help but panic at such a blatant hint.

Moreover, Shen Tan said “agreed” without actually asking for his opinion.

And he didn’t need his opinion.

Lu Mi: “None.”

“Anything else?”

Lu Mi wanted to throw the phone aside but had to reply, “No.”

This time, Shen Tan didn’t respond immediately. Lu Mi breathed a short sigh of relief, but his anxiety remained.

He looked up just as Shuimu replied to his message.

Shuimu: “Then why haven’t you started streaming yet?”

Lu Mi instinctively wanted to say “soon,” but hesitated.

In his freshman year, he had rented this place specifically for streaming. He could have saved on utilities by streaming at the Lu home, but Lu Nande would never allow it.

So after moving in with Shen Tan, would he still be able to stream?

If not, he would lose his income, couldn’t pay tuition or even eat.

He didn’t expect Shen Tan to pay his tuition or living expenses.

Other than himself, Lu Mi knew he couldn’t rely on anyone.

But secretly streaming behind Shen Tan’s back was unrealistic.

They had to sleep together.

Lu Mi streamed at night; he couldn’t explain to Shen Tan why he spent so much time at the computer playing games.

Streaming required a powerful computer.

When he wanted a computer for streaming, he had no choice but to ask Lu Nande.

Before moving out, he remembered his second brother had a barely used, well-equipped computer.

But Lu Nande refused.

With no other options, Lu Mi had to find another way.

Fortunately, luck or perhaps his appearance helped him rent his current apartment. The landlord had gone abroad and lent him the computer since it wasn’t in use.

Of course, he couldn’t take it along when moving.

So if he wanted to continue streaming, he had to buy another computer.

But his savings only covered living expenses.

It seemed he had to ask Shen Tan for help.

But what if—

They were going to sleep together, and Shen Tan had already asked about this.

Biting his lip, Lu Mi finally summoned courage and tentatively messaged, “Mr. Shen, may I have a computer?”

“What do you want it for?” Shen Tan replied quickly, as if deliberately leaving him hanging before.

But the answer was as expected.

No agreement.

Lu Nande had asked the same question before.

Lu Mi never told Lu Nande his true purpose. Lu Nande wouldn’t have supported or understood him.

Shen Tan probably didn’t play games and wouldn’t understand either.

Still, if he wanted to keep streaming, this was the only option.

He had to get Shen Tan’s approval.

“I want to stream games. May I, Mr. Shen?”

Shen Tan put down the documents in his hand.

They contained records of Lu Mi’s schools, his situation in the Lu family, including his work as a game streamer.

The files had long been in Shen Tan’s possession.

If he wanted to check, everything was there.

After a moment, Lu Mi’s phone lit up again.

Shen Tan: “Of course you can. Whatever you want, I’ll give you.”