Thirsty Skin - Chapter 38

Chapter 38 – “Want To Learn How To Swim? I Can Teach You”

Zhu Chizhou has never seriously considered his sexual orientation because he has never liked anyone.

It’s just that heterosexuals account for a larger proportion of the population, so in terms of probability, he is more likely to be a straight man. He has always thought so.

And now, a low-probability event seems to have occurred.

Along the way, Zhu Chizhou was engaged in philosophical thinking, such as how to naturally and unpretentiously show Lin Wan that he was not actually a straight man.

However, Lin Wan did not mention what happened last night from the time he got out of the car until he finished his meal. Moreover, as if he was afraid that Zhu Chizhou would bring it up, he kept talking to Zhu Chizhou about work. Ultimately, Zhu Chizhou had no chance to express his sexual orientation to Lin Wan until he got home.

When Zhu Chizhou returned to work on Monday, he was in low spirits because he read the thirsty skin therapist operating manual that Yan Lu sent him too late the night before. After lying down, his mind was still restless and he did not fall asleep until two or three in the morning.

After forcing himself to finish the regular meeting, he went to the tea room to grind a cup of coffee. When he returned to his workstation, he saw the WeChat icon flashing in the lower right corner of his computer.

He didn’t think too much and just opened it, and the dialog box with Lin Wan popped up.

Chibi Maruko: 〖Are you feeling unwell?〗

There were people coming and going around Zhu Chizhou. He quickly closed the chat window as if he was guilty. He looked up and glanced at the director’s office. He saw Lin Wan staring at the computer expressionlessly, his frameless glasses slightly reflecting the white light from the screen.

Zhu Chizhou replied via mobile phone: 〖No.〗

After a moment, Lin Wan also lowered his head and picked up his cell phone: 〖I noticed that you don’t seem to be in good spirits.〗

Zhu Chizhou: 〖I slept too late yesterday.〗

Chibi Maruko-chan: 〖There’s nothing to do today, you can go back to sleep.〗

Zhu Chizhou’s heart skipped a beat. Is this the convenience gained after establishing a physical relationship with the Boss?

Director Lin, who always had high standards and strict requirements, actually opened a backdoor and let him skip work!

Zhu Chizhou replied very principled: 〖I will go to Ri’an Xinke for a meeting with Brother Ang in the afternoon.〗

Chibi Maruko: 〖What time in the afternoon?〗

Zhu Chizhou: 〖At three.〗

Chibi Maruko-chan: 〖There’s still time. Go to my house and take a nap. The password is 513826.〗

Lin Wan’s home is very close to the company, only about ten minutes’ drive away.

Lin Wan had read this password to him once before, and he had been curious for a long time: 〖Which one is your birthday, 513 or 826?〗

Chibi Maruko-chan: 〖Neither.〗

Zhu Chizhou looked up again and heard Lin Wan say in her heart, 【It’s my parents’ birthday.】

Lin Wan turned off his phone and put it aside, which was a signal that he didn’t intend to continue the conversation.

Zhu Chizhou did not reply either. He put down his phone, took a sip of coffee, and opened the document to look at the information about bionic skin.

The operating manual that Yan Lu had given him said that the need for physical contact in the skin thirst syndrome is mostly psychological, but in the case of acute symptoms, physical comfort of the surface skin can also have a relieving effect, such as soft fabrics, pillows, or other warm objects.

Lin Wan had an acute attack before the investment decision meeting. Fortunately he was there that day. What if he was not there?

So Zhu Chizhou thought that if he could make a pillow out of simulated skin, it might be able to help Lin Wan deal with emergencies.

The problem now is that the cost of bionic materials is too high. It costs more than one million to make a slightly larger pillow. Even if Zhu Chizhou is willing to pay for it, Lin Wan will not agree. Therefore, Zhu Chizhou wants to help Li Yanli reduce the production cost as soon as possible.

It just so happens that reducing costs is also an important short-term goal for the company, so today they went to Ri’an Xinke for a meeting to discuss this issue.

It was almost six o’clock when the meeting ended. Zhu Chizhou called Lin Wan openly under the pretext of work.

Lin Wan quickly picked up the call: “Are you done over there?”

Zhu Chizhou asked: “Are you still in the company?”

“Well,” Lin Wan said, “I still have some things to deal with.”

“Then I’ll come back and report to you on the meeting.”

Zhou Yuang, who was standing beside him, was shocked. He grabbed Zhu Chizhou’s arm and whispered to stop him, “No, no, no! I’m going to pick up my girlfriend! Can you, a single dog, stop being so stubborn?!”

Lin Wan also said on the phone: “We can talk about it tomorrow, you guys go home first.”

Zhu Chizhou ignored him and insisted, “This matter is urgent. I want to talk about it today.”

Zhou Yuang punched Zhu Chizhou, and Zhu Chizhou gave him a calming look, “Brother Ang is still in the company discussing technical details with them, I’ll come back to find you first.”

Lin Wan said, “Okay.”

After hanging up the phone, Zhou Yuang was suspicious: “What do you want to do?”

Zhu Chizhou straightened his tie and said solemnly: “I want to be an outstanding employee.”

When he returned to the company, Lin Wan was still sitting in the office. The brilliant sunset shone through the floor-to-ceiling windows onto his desk, leaving a gentle orange-red light and shadow.

Zhu Chizhou knocked on the glass door, and Lin Wan put down the work in his hands and invited him to come in and sit down.

He briefly introduced the current development status of bionic materials to Lin Wan, and then told Lin Wan about the technical problems encountered by Ri’an Xinke: “We first need to ensure the elasticity and realism of the material. It may be difficult to achieve a significant reduction in costs in a short period of time.”

Lin Wan listened carefully and nodded, saying, “I have discussed this issue with Li Yanli before. It may take one to two years to truly achieve our cost expectations.”

Zhu Chizhou said: “I have an idea. I just had a brief chat with Li Yanli at the company, but I still want to hear your opinion.”

“Hmm?” Lin Wan looked at him with interest: “What are you thinking about?”

“I wonder if we can develop a hybrid material first, using some lower-cost alternatives, so that we can gradually reduce the cost while maintaining the texture.”

Lin Wan frowned and thought for a while. “I don’t understand technical stuff. How did you talk with Li Yanli? Does he think this plan is feasible?”

“He thinks it’s theoretically possible, but there’s no suitable alternative material available yet.”

“So what are your plans now?”

Zhu Chizhou said: “I plan to contact some influential laboratories in the field of materials science to see if they have any materials to recommend.”

Lin Wan didn’t have the resources in this area, but since Zhu Chizhou said so, he asked, “Do you have a way to contact him?”

Zhu Chizhou said: “I asked a friend to help me contact the two laboratories. My friend just sent me the latest research results of the two laboratories. I haven’t had time to read them yet. Can you take a look with me?”

Lin Wan was a little surprised why Zhu Chizhou was so concerned about this project that he even used his personal connections.

Zhu Chizhou is not in charge of this project, and they generally do not directly intervene in the technological innovation of the invested companies. They only provide some channels and financial support when necessary.

Zhu Chizhou works so hard, it seems like he plans to invest in related industries in the future. Lin Wan guessed that it might be related to Zhu Chizhou’s family business, so he didn’t ask any more questions, “Okay, send the information to my email.”

Zhu Chizhou walked around the desk and came to Lin Wan’s side. He leaned over and put his head close to Lin Wan’s to look at the computer screen. The setting sun quietly changed its angle, shrouding the figures of both people in orange-red light.

The document was a bit large and took a while to download, so both of them stared at the screen and waited patiently.

Zhu Chizhou felt warm, and as he was very close to Lin Wan, his body temperature was transferred, warming Lin Wan’s body as well.

Lin Wan leaned on the back of the chair and naturally moved closer to Zhu Chizhou. His shoulder gently pressed against Zhu Chizhou’s chest. Zhu Chizhou’s breath was on his face, and the pleasant smell of the boy lingered at his nose.

When the download progress bar on the computer screen reached 99%, Lin Wan’s cell phone suddenly rang. He moved aside from Zhu Chizhou and picked up the phone to answer it.

The surroundings were quiet, and Zeng Xubai’s voice came from the receiver of the phone: “Xiao Wanzi, look at the WeChat message I sent you!”

After the document was downloaded, Lin Wan opened it with the mouse and said, “I’m still working overtime, let me see it later.”

“Look, they’re still waiting for my reply,” Zeng Xubai said, “If you’re sure, you can start the class tomorrow.”

Lin Wan frowned: “What class?”

“Swimming lessons, didn’t you ask me to go swimming tomorrow? I thought since you almost drowned last time, I shouldn’t let you fumble around on your own, so I contacted a swimming club for you. The coaches there are all very good.” Zeng Xubai urged, “Hurry up and pick one and tell me. I carefully selected them for you. I’ll give you five minutes!”

Lin Wan had always refused private coaches because he hated physical contact with strangers, but the last drowning incident had indeed proved that it was not feasible for him to learn to swim on his own. Zeng Xubai had a point.

After hanging up the phone, Lin Wan put his phone on the table, opened WeChat, and saw the message Zeng Xubai sent him ten minutes ago.

Five photos, five male coaches in swimming trunks, all of them are tall and muscular.

In the first photo, the bronze-skinned man stood upright in front of the camera, his six-pack abs clearly visible.

In the second photo, the person has strong chest muscles and moist skin that reflects the light, which makes him look like a fitness influencer.

The person in the third photo is wearing black briefs, with a thin waist and broad shoulders, forming a beautiful inverted triangle.

The fourth photo was taken underwater, showing the coach stretching and showing his strong back and shoulders to the camera.

The coach in the fifth photo looks very manly, but because his face is too prominent, Zeng Xubai overlooks his weak physique.

Lin Wan read through the pages expressionlessly. 【I don’t want to choose any of them. If I wasn’t afraid of death, I would rather swim by myself.】

Lin Wan said to Zeng Xubai: 〖Whatever.〗

Zeng Xubai replied quickly: 〖The club owner said that No. 1 and No. 3 are both enthusiastic and gentle to the students. They will always accompany the students into the water, teach you step by step, and protect you from choking on water. Why don’t you just pick one of these two?〗

Lin Wan didn’t care and typed in the dialog box: 〖OK, I’ll follow your arrangements.〗

Before he clicked send, a big hand suddenly pressed down on the phone screen, and Zhu Chizhou’s slightly nervous voice sounded above his head: “If you want to learn how to swim… I can teach you.”