The Epoch of Miyu

After waking up early, Xu Miyu discovered that Star City was overcast again today.

It had been overcast for several consecutive days, signaling the imminent arrival of this year's autumn rainy season.

Upon going out, Xu Miyu further noticed that it wasn't just overcast—it was also raining, and it didn't look like it would stop anytime soon. She hurried back to her dorm to grab an umbrella.

When Xu Miyu reached the top floor of the hotel, she was surprised to find that Ji Feng's appearance this morning was somewhat different from usual. In the past, by the time she arrived at the hotel, Ji Feng had already finished washing up and changed his clothes.

But today, he was still wearing his bathrobe, his hair was somewhat disheveled, and he looked rather listless, slumped in the sofa as if eating poison while having plain congee for breakfast.

Xu Miyu quietly asked Xue Rui what was wrong with Ji Feng.

Xue Rui whispered to her, "Boss Ji had insomnia last night."

Xu Miyu thought, so even the wealthy suffer from insomnia.

She had assumed that someone as rich as Ji Feng lived a carefree life, with the biggest daily worry being how to avoid meals as unappetizing as chicken feed, or how to put on a mocking face to taunt someone they might run into.

She then heard Xue Rui whispering to her again, "Star City is about to enter the autumn rainy season in the next couple of days. Boss Ji always suffers from consecutive nights of insomnia as soon as the autumn rainy season starts. When he can't sleep, his temper gets bad. Mi Yu, you should be careful these next few days."

Xu Miyu thought to herself that Ji Feng's temper wasn't exactly great even when he wasn't suffering from insomnia.

But she kept her complaints to herself, maintaining a respectful and earnest expression as she thanked Xue Rui for the reminder.

Just as she turned around, she met Ji Feng's narrowed gaze.

That feeling of having her inner thoughts seen through once again clogged Xu Miyu's throat, making her breath catch for a moment.

For Ji Feng, the nights during the autumn rainy season were particularly unbearable.

Every year when this time came, as soon as the rain started, he would become restless and suffer from insomnia, lying awake night after night.

This season felt like the darkest period of his life.

When he was eight years old, on a night just like this during the autumn rainy season, he witnessed his father's infidelity and his mother's hysterical side. From then on, the home that had once felt warm to him no longer felt like a home.

He still remembered that year's autumn rainy season, which drizzled on and off for almost a month. It was on one of those damp, cold rainy nights that his father didn't come home. His mother held him as they sat on the sofa waiting. He watched her make call after call, her expression growing increasingly grim, her usually gentle demeanor gradually turning livid and even ferocious.

He was a little scared, but exhaustion eventually overpowered all other emotions, and he fell asleep without realizing it.

At some point, his mother shook him awake. Glancing outside, the sky was still as dark as thick ink.

His mother's expression seemed off. She woke him up, not letting him sleep any longer, and told him that she had argued with his father, who refused to come home, and now only he could go and bring his father back.

His mother assured him confidently that his father would come home for the sake of his son.

Later, when he looked back, he realized that her confidence was nothing more than self-deception.His mother drove through the rain, taking him to a location. She then gave him a more specific address and said: Your father is inside there. Go find him and bring him home.

Then his mother sent him out of the car.

The rainy night outside was indescribably damp and cold, and an umbrella couldn't block much of the drizzle. He was completely enveloped in the wet, gloomy rain, his whole body feeling uncomfortably sticky and unpleasant.

Summoning his courage, he walked to the address his mother had given him. It was a beautiful garden house. Gathering more courage, he knocked on the door and saw his father. At the same time, he also saw another woman.

That was the first time he realized that his father no longer completely belonged to him and his mother's family. He turned and left immediately.

Back in the car, he told his mother that he couldn't bring his father back. He wanted to go home.

But his mother suddenly became hysterical, telling him to go back and find him again. If he didn't bring his father home tonight, none of them would go home, and no one would sleep.

In the end, he didn't go looking for his father again. He didn't want to beg his unfaithful father for anything. The one who had done wrong wasn't him—it was his father. There was no reason for him to bow his head and plead with his father.

So he and his mother stood off in the rainy night, staying awake all night.

That night's continuous drizzle became like a curse, deeply etched into his mind. That sticky, gloomy feeling made him unable to sleep peacefully every year when this season came. As soon as darkness fell, he would remember his unfaithful father, his other garden house home, his hysterical mother, and her hoarse voice saying no one would sleep.

Last night, as soon as darkness fell, the gloomy rain began to patter down. He immediately couldn't sleep, no matter how much strong alcohol he drank or how intensely he exercised—all his usual methods for dealing with the autumn rainy season failed completely.

When morning came, he hoped for clear weather, to see some sunlight, thinking he might be able to catch up on sleep during the day. But he was disappointed—it was another overcast day. Even the stock market showed more promise than the weather outside; after continuous declines, there was always a turnaround, but the sky outside remained completely overcast.

During breakfast, he was still thinking about what method he could use to make himself fall asleep.

A glance caught Xu Miyu and Xue Rui standing nearby, speaking quietly.

Her posture, demeanor, and the respectful expression on her face were all impeccable.

But through her perfect outward appearance, he could almost see her heart mercilessly mocking him.

He couldn't help but let out a derisive laugh.

This wasn't the first time he'd discovered that she had quite a duplicitous inner world. So she wasn't completely honest through and through—in her heart, she dared to think and dared to curse.

Thinking this, Ji Feng suddenly called out to Xu Miyu.

"Xu Miyu, come here."

Xu Miyu immediately walked over respectfully, cautiously asking what instructions he had.

Ji Feng's tone was flat, as if stating something very simple, telling Xu Miyu: "I didn't sleep well last night. Today during the day, you need to find a way to make me fall asleep and catch up on rest."

"..."

Xu Miyu was momentarily speechless.

"If you can't do it, I'll send you back to the executive level early and hand you over to your supervisor."

"..."

Xu Miyu thought that Ji Feng might just be the kind of person called a cultured scoundrel.

This request was truly unreasonable and downright scoundrel-like.

*Although she felt Ji Feng was being unreasonable and demanding the impossible, an arm could never twist a thigh. Xu Miyu had no choice but to suppress her indignation, extinguish any thoughts of talking back or resisting, and help Ji Feng figure out ways to make him fall asleep.

Soothing music—ineffective. Warm milk—ineffective. Calling the recreation department staff to give him a foot massage—ineffective...

Xu Miyu had considered trying to massage Ji Feng herself, but she had injured her hand while cutting beef the night before and couldn’t exert any strength, so she had to abandon the idea.

After all methods proved futile, Ji Feng’s patience wore thin. His face darkened, his words grew increasingly harsh, and his commands became more and more tormenting.

Xu Miyu almost wanted to grab a stick and knock Ji Feng out cold.

She restrained herself, striving to meet Ji Feng’s endless, tormenting demands.

Yet, for some reason, the more obedient she was, the more it seemed to provoke Ji Feng. It was as if her forbearance fueled his desire to suppress and torment her.

His words became so offensive it felt like he was deliberately picking a fight.

“Is this all you’re capable of? You can’t even help someone sleep?” Ji Feng continued to mock her.

Xu Miyu took a deep breath and told herself to endure, not to argue.

But inwardly, she couldn’t help retorting—Shouldn’t sleeping be something you control yourself? What does your insomnia have to do with my capabilities? So unreasonable!

“How many years did you spend as a housewife? You didn’t even have to work, and you still couldn’t figure out something as simple as sleep?” Ji Feng’s mockery intensified.

Xu Miyu silently took another deep breath.

—How shameless! What did housewives ever do to you? Who said being a housewife means you have to study this? What… absurd logic!

“What, you don’t agree with what I’m saying?”

Xu Miyu suppressed the rebellious emotions boiling inside her and replied calmly, “Not at all.”

—Oh, I absolutely disagree! So much so that I feel like pouncing on you, hitting you, and biting you!

“Really? I can hear you cursing me in your heart. What, brave enough to curse silently but not to say it out loud?”

—This was outright provocation now.

Xu Miyu swallowed her pride and said, “I’m sorry, Mr. Ji. If I’ve given you that impression, it’s my fault.”

“Hah.” Ji Feng let out a cold laugh as he looked at her. “I don’t feel your apology is sincere. Apologize again.”

Xu Miyu took a deep, deep breath.

Xue Rui, standing nearby, grew anxious and couldn’t understand why Ji Feng was so determined to pick on Xu Miyu today. During the autumn rainy season, his insomnia always made him irritable, but never to this extent. It almost seemed intentional.

He wanted to speak up for Xu Miyu, but the moment he opened his mouth, Ji Feng shot him a glare and snapped, “Shut up.” Then, turning back to Xu Miyu, he continued with a mocking tone, “Apologize again.”

Xu Miyu struggled to suppress the rebellious urge that was on the verge of erupting. She took a deep breath and apologized once more, “I’m sorry, Mr. Ji. It was my mistake.”

But Ji Feng was not satisfied. Instead, his mockery took on a sarcastic edge. “You’re not wrong. How could you possibly be wrong?” He paused, then shifted his tone. “Then tell me, what exactly were you wrong about?”"……" Xu Miyu felt she was just one step away from exploding. She had never met anyone as unreasonable and unforgiving as Ji Feng!

She restrained herself fiercely and admitted her mistake with difficulty: "I was wrong... I shouldn't have made you feel like I was saying bad things about you in my heart."

"Didn't you?" Ji Feng immediately retorted sarcastically.

"...No, I didn't," Xu Miyu defended herself.

"Heh," Ji Feng sneered coldly, "Do you think only you know whether you said it or not? Am I blind or stupid, unable to see or feel it?"

"……" Xu Miyu had no choice but to apologize while swallowing her pride, "I'm sorry, Mr. Ji. Please calm down. It's all my fault, okay? As long as you can calm down, you can punish me however you want."

"Is that so?" A hint of malice seeped into Ji Feng's raised tone. "I'm in a bad mood today. Kneel down and apologize to me, otherwise I won't be able to calm down."

The moment Ji Feng made this demand, its excessive nature stunned both Xu Miyu and Xue Rui.

"Boss..."

Xue Rui wanted to plead for leniency again, but Ji Feng shot him a sharp glare, warning him: "Shut up and get out!"

Xue Rui didn't dare make another sound.

Ji Feng looked back at Xu Miyu: "Since you can endure so many things, one more act of kneeling to admit your mistake shouldn't be a problem."

Looking at Ji Feng's full of mockery face, listening to his extremely excessive words, and feeling his superior provocation and contempt for others' dignity, the resistance and rebellion churning in her heart could no longer be suppressed. They surged up to her throat together.

"Mr. Ji, don't you think you're going too far? Yes, even if I did complain about you in my heart, is that illegal? You control everything under heaven and earth, and now you want to control what people think in their hearts too? Is it my fault, or are you being too controlling, too domineering, too excessive? I can endure many things, but I won't endure this time! I know you're very powerful, that one word from you can decide whether I stay or go, but I absolutely will not kneel down to apologize to you today! At worst, I'll quit! So what if I quit?" Xu Miyu said all this in one breath. She was so agitated that even her face turned red.

It seemed like she had never been this brave at work before, never been able to stop swallowing her anger and pour out all the words she wanted to say and resist in her heart.

Although she felt a little regretful after saying it, not knowing what consequences she would face, it still felt incredibly satisfying. So this was how liberating it felt to vent resistance instead of constantly suppressing it!

After finishing her speech in one go, Xu Miyu let her hands hang at her sides, clenched into fists, straightened her chest, raised her head slightly with her chin up, like a martyr going to the execution ground, waiting for Ji Feng to pronounce her sentence.

Xue Rui also didn't dare to breathe heavily beside them. He had never seen Ji Feng bully someone like this, nor had he seen anyone resist Ji Feng's bullying like this. Today, both of them seemed to be showing their extremes.

Like Xu Miyu, he waited for Ji Feng to angrily pronounce Xu Miyu's sentence.

But the next moment, to the surprise of both Xu Miyu and Xue Rui, Ji Feng actually smiled.

Although it was a very faint smile, with only a slight upward curve at the corners of his mouth. But he was indeed smiling.

"Xu Miyu, it's a good thing you didn't actually kneel down to apologize. If you could even endure that demand, I would truly look down on you."

Xu Miyu froze at his words.

This outcome was far too different from what she had expected...While she stood frozen, Ji Feng leaned back on the sofa, adjusted his robe collar, and said deliberately: "Xu Miyu, I want you to understand today that what I despise most are cowardly people—those who are always submissive, never learn to say no to others' demands, and will do things despite feeling utterly miserable inside. Also remember, I detest anyone who doesn't know how to demand compensation. So you'd better learn not to work for free and know how to ask for payment. Working without reward isn't kindness—it's cowardice at its core. The most useless people in society are the cowardly, and in my view, cowardice is more terrifying than wickedness." He looked straight at Xu Miyu, enunciating each word clearly: "Because villains harm others, while cowardice harms oneself."

Xu Miyu stood utterly stunned.

So... was Ji Feng actually teaching her to learn resistance just now?

After a long silence, she murmured softly: "Thank you, Mr. Ji."

Ji Feng raised an eyebrow: "For what?"

Xu Miyu pressed her lips into a slight smile and told him: "Thank you for not actually making me kneel."

Seeing her smile, Ji Feng suddenly let out a soft chuckle.

"But you still need to find a way to make me fall asleep, otherwise I really will send you back to Feng Kaixin for disposal."

"..."

Xu Miyu thought, how could some people be so peculiar, always making one's gratitude toward them last less than three seconds.

Xu Miyu racked her brains for solutions and even searched online for various sleep aids, but none of these methods worked for Ji Feng.

Ji Feng's wide-open eyes now clearly showed visible red veins from sleep deprivation.

Xu Miyu privately consulted Xue Rui: "How about... we drug him?"

Xue Rui shook his head: "It won't work."

Xu Miyu asked: "Is the medication ineffective?"

Xue Rui explained: "He finds medicine tastes bad and refuses to take it due to picky eating."

"...Oh, I see." This was the first time Xu Miyu had heard of someone being picky about medicine.

"How has Mr. Ji managed to get through this period every year?" she couldn't help asking Xue Rui.

Xue Rui told her: "Every year around this time, he's pretty much in this half-dead state until the rainy season ends and he fully recovers. That's why our CEO Ji usually avoids major business deals during the autumn rainy season. Outsiders could never figure out why—the reason is simply that he lacks sleep and has low energy."

As Xue Rui spoke while shaking his head, Xu Miyu listened while clicking her tongue in amazement.

Then they continued brainstorming solutions together.

Eventually, it seemed they had tried every possible trick, yet the result was as if they hadn't tried anything at all—completely ineffective.

All three of them couldn't help feeling somewhat desperate, as if they could only resign themselves to fate and let nature take its course.

Xu Miyu just hoped Ji Feng wouldn't exhaust himself to death before the autumn rainy season passed.

With poor sleep at night and inability to nap during the day, Ji Feng's appetite deteriorated along with everything else. At noon, he barely ate anything and had Xue Rui clear the plates.

When he lay on the recliner by the living room window, his entire being appeared faint and listless.

Xu Miyu's compassion for the vulnerable began twitching uncontrollably again inside her. This usually domineering and proud man had been completely defeated by insomnia—it was truly unbearable to witness.She couldn't help asking Ji Feng, "Isn't there anything that makes you unbearably sleepy?"

Ji Feng half-lifted his eyelids and looked back at her. "Is there anything that makes you unbearably sleepy?"

Xu Miyu thought for a moment before replying, "There actually is! Back in college, every time I listened to foreign language audio, I would inevitably get drowsy."

As she recalled the memory, she couldn't help but smile.

"It wasn't just me—all my classmates were the same. Later, whenever we couldn't fall asleep, we'd put on headphones and listen to some language exercises or foreign language articles. Within five minutes, we'd be fast asleep."

Ji Feng narrowed his eyes as he watched her smile.

Suddenly, he gave an order to Xue Rui, who was sitting in front of the coffee table reviewing documents for him. "Go get the documents from my bedroom desk." Then he instructed Xu Miyu, "Pull up a chair and sit across from me."

Xu Miyu was a bit confused but obediently went to move a chair over to the huge floor-to-ceiling window, placing it opposite Ji Feng.

"Too far. Move it closer," Ji Feng said again.

Xu Miyu shifted the chair a bit closer to him.

"Still too far. Move it again."

Xu Miyu moved it again.

"Move it again! What, are you afraid I'll eat you? You're not that appetizing." The sarcasm had already begun.

Xu Miyu put some effort into it and moved the chair very close to Ji Feng—so close that she was sitting right across from his recliner, as if they were about to start chatting like old friends.

This distance finally satisfied Ji Feng. But Xu Miyu felt awkward, unsure of what he actually intended.

Surely he didn’t really want to chat with her like old friends?

Xue Rui quickly returned with the documents and handed them to Ji Feng. Ji Feng took them and began flipping through them while telling Xue Rui, "Go back to what you were doing."

Xue Rui returned to the sofa and continued working.

As Ji Feng flipped through the stack of documents, he asked, "Which foreign language audio made you the sleepiest?"

"English," Xu Miyu replied.

Ji Feng paused his search, then reached out and pulled a document from the stack, handing it to Xu Miyu.

Xu Miyu took it and looked down—it was an English research report.

"Read it," Ji Feng commanded succinctly.

Only then did Xu Miyu understand why he had made her sit so close.

She held the document and began reading. When she encountered words she didn’t quite recognize, she substituted them with "hmm." The first page was full of professional terminology, so she ended up saying "hmm" quite often. All the "hmm-ing" didn’t make Ji Feng sleepy—instead, it amused him.

He chuckled mockingly, "Are you afraid I’m not awake enough, so you’re trying to add some humor to stimulate me?"

Xu Miyu felt her cheeks grow warm and softly said, "Sorry."

—But with so many technical terms, and it being her first time encountering them, wasn’t it normal not to know them? Why mock her for it?

"Speak your mind, don’t say one thing and think another," Ji Feng said bluntly.

Xu Miyu thought back to the reasoning Ji Feng had taught her earlier. She spoke her mind directly.

"The first page is full of professional terms I’ve never encountered before, so I don’t know many of them. That’s why I’m struggling a bit... But why does that deserve mockery?"

Ji Feng raised an eyebrow and glared. "So what’s in your mind is full of grievances, huh?"

Under his glare, Xu Miyu felt like shrinking into her shell and almost blurted out another apology.Ji Feng withdrew his gaze, settling into a more comfortable position in the lounge chair, and instructed Xu Miyu: "Flip further back. Find a page with fewer unfamiliar words to start reading."

Xu Miyu immediately turned the pages. After skipping two or three pages, she scanned the text and found the number of obscure words had significantly decreased for her. She began reading.

After reading two pages, Xu Miyu realized Ji Feng hadn't interrupted to nitpick for quite some time.

She paused her reading and glanced up at Ji Feng.

What she saw left her somewhat astonished.

Ji Feng had actually fallen asleep in the lounge chair!

She glanced at Ji Feng, then looked down at the English document in her hands, suddenly feeling a bit displeased.

She had tried so many methods to keep him awake, yet he only fell asleep after she read two pages of English.

Was her English reading really that much like chanting sutras?!

While she was silently complaining, she noticed Ji Feng opening his eyes again.

He took a moment to gather himself, then seemed surprised: "I fell asleep just now? So listening to sutra-style English really works."

"..."

Xu Miyu really wanted to throw the document in her hands right at Ji Feng's face without caring about the consequences.

Ji Feng leaned back deeper and more lazily into the recliner, then told Xu Miyu: "Keep reading."

Xu Miyu started reading again.

As Ji Feng listened, he actually fell asleep once more.

But whenever Xu Miyu stopped, he would wake up.

"Don't stop, keep reading. When you finish, go back to the beginning and start over."

Ji Feng gave the instruction easily, but Xu Miyu found it incredibly boring to read. She read the same document over and over until she had nearly memorized it.

Then, whenever she tried to stop—whether to drink some water, use the restroom, or move around the room—none of it was allowed.

As soon as she stopped, Ji Feng would wake up.

She wanted Xue Rui to take over the reading, but after Xue Rui read four or five pages in one go, not only did Ji Feng show no signs of drowsiness, he kept correcting Xue Rui's pauses and stresses.

Both Xu Miyu and Xue Rui were speechless.

It seemed it had to be her reading, and she couldn't stop...

Xu Miyu lost count of how many times she read through the document. In the end, she was dizzy, her vision blurred, and her tongue kept tripping over her teeth. She couldn't take it anymore and stopped completely.

Ji Feng woke up immediately.

But he seemed to have regained his energy; even the weariness in his voice was gone, replaced by vigor.

"Why did you stop again?"

Xu Miyu also lost her patience, unable to hold back any longer: "I've been reading all afternoon. I'm starting to feel nauseous just seeing English letters. I can't read for you all night, can I?"

Wasn't it a bit too much for him to keep holding her back just so he could sleep? She was also made of flesh and blood, and reading too much foreign language made her want to vomit.

Ji Feng thought for a moment, then asked Xu Miyu: "Can't you just wake up later tomorrow? I'll allow you to come in later tomorrow." After a pause, he added devilishly, "Come and read for me a bit more."

Xu Miyu quickly told him: "Tomorrow is the weekend, I'm off, and I have something to do tomorrow. I need to wake up early, so I can't stay up too late tonight."

Ji Feng immediately raised an eyebrow and asked: "What do you have to do tomorrow?"

Xue Rui, who had been standing by the whole time, was surprised.

Ji Feng never cared about what others had to do.

Xu Miyu looked at Ji Feng's calm face, waiting for an answer. It seemed as if he wouldn't let her go easily unless she gave a proper explanation or came up with a convincing excuse.

She had no choice but to say: "My eldest sister hasn't had much appetite lately and can only eat the braised beef I make. She asked me to go to her place tomorrow to help her prepare some stewed meat."

After hearing this, Ji Feng didn't rush to respond. Xu Miyu thought he would make things difficult for her again, forcing her to read English for another two hours before letting her go.

But after a moment of silence, Ji Feng said: "I've slept enough today. You can go." Xu Miyu quickly stood up, as if afraid Ji Feng would change his mind if she moved too slowly.

However, just as she reached the door, Ji Feng called out to her.

"Xu Miyu."

Xu Miyu paused in her steps, her heart sinking.She turned and asked with feigned composure, "Mr. Ji, is there anything else?"

Ji Feng leaned back in the recliner and lazily told her, "I want braised beef tomorrow too."

"...?"

Xu Miyu froze for a moment.

Xue Rui also froze.

They exchanged a quick glance—just now, without a doubt, that proud, cold-hearted walking sarcasm machine had actually opened his mouth to ask for food!

Xu Miyu hadn't actually wanted to go to her eldest sister's house, but her sister had pleaded with her over the phone, saying they'd finished the last batch of braised beef. Lately, she had no appetite for anything else and could only stomach braised beef. She begged Xu Miyu to come over and make some more.

Later, Xu Miyu thought she might as well go. She could take the opportunity to tell her sister about cutting ties with Jiao Xiumei and also advise her sister to wake up quickly and stop being brainwashed by their parents into becoming a sibling supporter.

All three sisters ought to have lives of their own.