The Little Succubus's Hypnosis Manual - Chapter 10

Chapter 10: Pajamas – “Long time no see, little brother.”

When Xie Nanxing took a closer look, the mercury in the thermometer above Zhou Qiyue’s head was currently sitting at 20 degrees. According to the teacher, once it rose to 100 degrees, it meant the strategy was successful—and by then, he could go home!

“I… should I go buy you another one to make up for it?” Zhou Qiyue looked at the shattered remains in his palm, wearing a rare expression of confusion.

“No.” Xie Nanxing shook his head gleefully, practically clinging to Zhou Qiyue. He tentatively hooked his hand around Zhou Qiyue’s arm, but Zhou Qiyue quickly pulled away.

“We’re in public. Be more mindful,” Zhou Qiyue coughed lightly and said seriously.

Xie Nanxing glanced around and only then noticed how many people were watching them. To avoid misunderstandings, Zhou Qiyue immediately tugged Xie Nanxing toward the men’s clothing section.

Zhou Qiyue rarely visited shopping malls himself. Most of the time, the newest collections were sent straight to his house or custom-made. Today, he brought Xie Nanxing out only because he’d been cooped up at home for too long.

The racks were filled with seasonal new arrivals.

A sales assistant came up and asked who the clothes were for. Zhou Qiyue pointed at Xie Nanxing, and the assistant guided them to a suitable section and began selecting clothes for him.

Zhou Qiyue’s style was minimal—solid colors with no patterns. But the assistant picked vibrant and youthful styles for Xie Nanxing, in bright, saturated colors.

“He’s still young, with fair skin. These colors suit him well,” the assistant said with a smile.

Xie Nanxing leaned in to look at the clothes—there was a lemon-yellow hoodie and deep red utility pants. Zhou Qiyue immediately looked away in distaste, as though the colors were stabbing his eyes.

Unaware, Xie Nanxing held them up to himself. The assistant clearly had an eye for fashion, because even these “deadly” colors came to life on Xie Nanxing, making him look like a bright and cheerful college student.

Zhou Qiyue closed his eyes, and it dawned on him—judging by age, Xie Nanxing should be starting university now. That meant they had at least a five- or six-year age gap.

In the professional world, being twenty-five still counted as young, but in this moment, Zhou Qiyue suddenly realized—there was a generational gulf between them. People say two years is one generation gap. By that logic, they had nearly three generations between them.

Xie Nanxing, oblivious to Zhou Qiyue’s internal struggle, continued trying on clothes. The assistant was thrilled with such a pretty boy to dress up, like a doll, and wanted him to try every new arrival in the store.

When Xie Nanxing snapped out of it, he noticed that the thermometer above Zhou Qiyue’s head had secretly dropped two degrees.

He rubbed his eyes and stared wide-eyed—it had definitely gone down two notches.

He wanted to grab Zhou Qiyue’s collar and demand an explanation: What did I do wrong? Why did your affection drop?!

But he didn’t dare, so he asked carefully, “Not… good?”

Zhou Qiyue came back to his senses and looked at Xie Nanxing, who was now wearing a pale pink tracksuit that made him look two years younger.

“You look good,” Zhou Qiyue nodded.

Xie Nanxing racked his brain trying to figure out what caused the drop. In the end, he grabbed Zhou Qiyue’s sleeve and said, “You choose.”

Zhou Qiyue was holding a simple white hoodie and a pair of jeans. Xie Nanxing took them and ran to the fitting room. This outfit was safe and plain, but his beauty still made it hard to look away.

He came out and stood in front of Zhou Qiyue. Succubi had their own clothing preferences that didn’t align with human aesthetics, but if Zhou Qiyue liked it, then he liked it too.

With a sweet smile, he asked, “Is it nice?”

Zhou Qiyue pressed his lips together, not answering. Not nice. Xie Nanxing was better suited to more vibrant colors.

The assistant seemed to pick up on something and switched to lighter colors instead of bright, saturated ones—like beige and cozy, homey styles.

“How about this set?” she said, holding up a beige sweater to replace the white hoodie.

The sweater was long, covering half of Xie Nanxing’s butt. Its soft color and material made him look even more obedient and gentle.

“Pick some comfy ones he can wear at home,” Zhou Qiyue instructed. The assistant gave up on the bold styles and instead chose sweaters and sweatpants in soft fabrics.

At checkout, Zhou Qiyue still told the assistant, “We’ll take the other outfits he tried on earlier, too.”

“Right away, sir!” she beamed as she went to pack everything.

With bags in hand, Zhou Qiyue exited the store. Xie Nanxing tried to help carry a few, but Zhou Qiyue wouldn’t let him—telling him to enjoy shopping instead.

They went to the pajama store next, which was much easier to shop in. Xie Nanxing’s eyes were fixed on two matching pajama sets in the window.

“That’s a couple’s set,” the sales assistant told him. When she noticed Zhou Qiyue entering behind him, her tone shifted slightly, “We also have more couple styles—want me to show you?”

“No need, just pick one in his size,” Zhou Qiyue declined immediately. But Xie Nanxing kept staring at that one pair in the window.

It was a pink and sky-blue set with little dogs and cats on it.

Zhou Qiyue’s lips twitched. If Xie Nanxing liked it, fine—they’d buy it. But he wasn’t going to wear it.

“If you like it, then get it. Two of the same size,” he told the assistant. But then Xie Nanxing suddenly said, “No.”

Zhou Qiyue had a bad feeling. Sure enough, Xie Nanxing said slowly and carefully, “You… wear with me…”

The sales assistant immediately broke into a knowing smile as she looked between them.

Xie Nanxing didn’t even realize he’d said something strange before Zhou Qiyue covered his mouth and whispered, “That’s a couple’s pajama set. Do you know what ‘couple’ means?”

Of course he knew. That’s exactly why he wanted to wear it with Zhou Qiyue.

He looked at him, confused as to why he was asking. Then he nodded seriously.

“You…” Zhou Qiyue had intended to explain how two men wearing couple pajamas in public wasn’t a great idea—but that one nod from Xie Nanxing shut him up.

“You know, but we’re not that kind of relationship. So we can’t wear them,” Zhou Qiyue said.

“Wear it!” Xie Nanxing insisted.

Maybe if they wore them, they’d become a couple. That’s what he thought.

“I already have a lot of pajamas.” There was no way Zhou Qiyue would wear something so childish—even if they were really dating.

Just as they were in a standoff, Zhou Qiyue suddenly saw a familiar face outside the window. That person had already stepped into the store before Zhou Qiyue could shield Xie Nanxing.

“Hey! Qiyue-ge, what a coincidence running into you here!” Shen Anchen greeted him first.

Xie Nanxing peeked curiously at Shen Anchen, but Zhou Qiyue immediately pulled him behind.

“Hm?”

There were more footsteps at the door. Someone else walked into the store behind Shen Anchen. Xie Nanxing peeked out again and sensed something was off.

“What a coincidence. We’re done shopping too, so we’ll be on our way,” Zhou Qiyue said without even glancing at the person behind Shen Anchen. He turned to the assistant, “That pajama set, get it in both our sizes.”

When Xie Nanxing heard he was buying it, he happily wiggled the hand Zhou Qiyue was holding.

Only then did Shen Anchen seem to notice the person behind Zhou Qiyue. He also glanced at the bag containing the couple’s pajamas.

“This… is this your boyfriend?” he blurted out in disbelief.

A man standing behind him snorted. Xie Nanxing looked over at the sound. The man wore a dark brown long coat over a black turtleneck and stood at a short distance, looking cold and aloof.

Something about him felt familiar to Xie Nanxing. Just then, the assistant handed him the packaged pajamas, and Zhou Qiyue grabbed his hand to leave the store.

As they passed the man, Xie Nanxing suddenly paused, sniffing at him.

Zhou Qiyue looked back, confused, while Zhou Shengyan let out a chuckle. “Long time no see, my good little brother.”

Xie Nanxing felt Zhou Qiyue’s grip on his hand tighten.

He clutched it back and tilted his head, comparing Zhou Qiyue and Zhou Shengyan’s faces.

Up close, their facial features were indeed very similar. Their clothing styles were also alike—it was no wonder they felt familiar.

But Zhou Shengyan carried the scent of another succubus.

Since arriving in the human world over half a month ago, Xie Nanxing hadn’t encountered any others.

Zhou Shengyan’s gaze landed on him, and upon seeing his subtle reaction, he chuckled.

“Little one, what do you see in him? I’m richer than he is. Why not consider being with me instead?”

“You—” Xie Nanxing barely got a word out before Zhou Qiyue yanked him behind forcefully. He stumbled, and Zhou Qiyue’s grip hurt.

“Gege…” Xie Nanxing whimpered softly. Zhou Qiyue loosened his grip slightly, but not enough for him to break free.

The two men locked eyes, the tension between them explosive.

“Keep our business between us. Don’t drag others into it,” Zhou Qiyue said through clenched teeth.

Zhou Shengyan, however, remained relaxed. His gaze lingered on Xie Nanxing behind Zhou Qiyue. He stepped forward, leaning in close to Zhou Qiyue’s ear.

“I can’t help it. I just love stealing your stuff.”

Zhou Qiyue’s expression darkened, his hand tightening into a fist at his side.

“Gege?” Xie Nanxing didn’t hear what was said, but he saw the veins in Zhou Qiyue’s neck bulging.

“It’s fine. Let’s go.” Zhou Qiyue took Xie Nanxing’s hand and led him away without a backward glance.

Shen Anchen chased after them but could only catch a glimpse of their retreating, hand-in-hand silhouettes.

He muttered to himself as he snapped a photo and sent it to someone in his contacts.

“Zhou Qiyue got himself a boyfriend? What about Shu Yun? I have to tell Shu Yun about this.”