Chapter 99: Reading Novels After Work

"Stop staring at it. You've been in the restroom for so long—if you don't get back soon and the boss notices, you'll be in real trouble," his colleague urged.

"But I haven't finished this part yet. There's just a little left," Xiang Song replied, a hint of reluctance in his voice.

There wasn't much left of this chapter, and he really wanted to finish reading before leaving. Otherwise, even if he went back, he'd be preoccupied with thoughts of the story.

"You really should head back now, Old Xiang. You've been slacking for half the morning. It's time to get some work done. As for the novel, you can read it at lunch. If you get caught, losing a bit of money is nothing, but losing your job is serious," his colleague said.

Those words jolted Xiang Song. It made sense.

The novel wasn't going anywhere—he could read it anytime he wanted. But if he lost his job, that would be a real problem. It wasn't so easy to find work these days, and Xiang Song was quite satisfied with his current job; he had no intention of changing it.

"Alright, I'm coming out now," Xiang Song said.

The two of them put on the act of just having finished in the restroom, washed their hands, and left together.

Back at their desks, both pretended to focus on their computers, but their minds inevitably drifted back to the novel.

Finally, lunchtime arrived. Xiang Song hurried through his meal in the cafeteria and returned to his desk, intending to pull out his phone and continue reading.

But everyone else was working, and Xiang Song felt embarrassed to read a novel in plain sight.

It was indeed lunchtime, but if the boss saw him reading when everyone else was working, there would be no way to explain himself.

Suddenly, Xiang Song thought of the restroom.

It was truly the perfect place—a sanctuary for slacking off. Elsewhere, getting caught by the boss meant a stern scolding, but running into the boss in the restroom was a non-issue. After all, everyone had to use the bathroom sometime.

He made his way to the restroom, found a stall, locked the door, and took out his phone to continue reading.

At last, he could catch up on the plot that had been occupying his mind.

Initially, Xiang Song had planned to read just a little and head back. But the story was too gripping—just as one scene ended, the next began, and he found himself unable to stop.

As he was reading, someone entered the stall next door. Xiang Song paid it no mind; restrooms were busy places.

Suddenly, he heard an exclamation from the next stall: "Damn, it ends right here? The Dragon Child has just been born, what's there to be scared of!"

Xiang Song's heart skipped a beat. He recognized the voice.

It was his boss!

Even through the partition, he was sure of it. After all, every time he was scolded, it was that very voice—etched into his memory.

His boss was reading the same book?

Xiang Song was amazed by the novel's popularity—even his boss was hooked. Judging by his boss's reaction, he'd just hit a cliffhanger.

That agony of being cut off at a climax—Xiang Song knew it all too well.

But with his boss in the next stall, it would be disastrous if he made himself known.

Then, an idea struck him. He disguised his voice and said, "Hey brother, are you reading the villain story too?"

"Yeah, you too?" the boss replied.

"That's right, though I'm reading a bit slower. Judging by what you said, did you just hit a cliffhanger at the dance climax?" Xiang Song asked.

"Yeah, it was just getting good, and then it ended. It's so frustrating," the boss said.

"Why not just drop a Golden Alliance reward? The author will definitely release more chapters," Xiang Song suggested.

"That's not a bad idea. But I can't afford a Golden Alliance; a Silver Alliance is doable," the boss replied.

Xiang Song smirked to himself. "Silver Alliance works too; either way, there will be bonus chapters."

There was no further response. After a moment, Xiang Song saw a Silver Alliance treasure chest float across his screen.

He knew his boss must have just sent a Silver Alliance reward.

He also quietly memorized his boss's username.

Having egged his boss into giving a Silver Alliance, Xiang Song felt greatly satisfied. It was as if all the frustration he'd felt from his boss before had evaporated.

He was delighted.

Soon after, he heard his boss flush and leave.

Xiang Song didn't give it much thought—after all, the boss had a private office; why not read there? If he'd come to the restroom, he must have genuinely needed to.

Hearing his boss's footsteps fade away, Xiang Song prepared to leave as well. He'd been gone long enough. Any longer would cause trouble.

He pushed open the stall door, stepped out, and found his boss standing outside.

Their eyes met, and for a moment, neither spoke.

Xiang Song was so embarrassed his toes could have dug a three-bedroom apartment in the floor. His mind raced—how could he break the awkward silence?

"That was you just now, wasn't it?" the boss asked.

"Uh... uh..." Xiang Song hesitated, thinking how to reply.

"I thought that voice sounded familiar," the boss said.

"Alright, it was me," Xiang Song admitted, resigned.

No chance to deny it—it was settled just like that.

What else could he say? Whatever would come, would come. He'd accept the consequences.

"At work, you should focus on work. You can read novels after hours," the boss said.

"Yes," Xiang Song replied, lowering his head.

"Alright, get back to work," the boss said.

Xiang Song was surprised. That was it? Just like that?

"Boss, aren't you going to say anything else?" Xiang Song asked.

"Say what? Fire you?" the boss replied.

"No, no, not at all," Xiang Song shook his head furiously.

"Alright then, get back to work," the boss said.

"Thank you, boss," Xiang Song said, a bit moved that his boss hadn't pursued the matter.

As he walked toward the door, just as he was about to step out, the boss suddenly added, "By the way, leave on time today—don't stay late. I have a feeling there might be a lot of bonus chapters today. Go home and read your novel. Oh, and don't tell anyone."

"Yes, boss, I understand," Xiang Song quickly replied.

Back at his desk, his colleague leaned over and asked, "Old Xiang, I just saw the boss head to the restroom. Did you run into him?"

"No, really? The boss went to the restroom?" Xiang Song feigned innocence.

His colleague nodded, sighing at Xiang Song's good luck.

...

Jiang Zheng stretched, loosening his stiff body.

Today had been his most productive day of writing yet. From the moment he woke up until now, aside from eating and using the restroom, he had hardly taken a break.

He was almost finished. Checking his progress, he was quite pleased.

He had pulled ahead of second place by nearly half a million votes in the monthly rankings. The rewards were too many to count: several Silver Alliances, one Golden Alliance, and countless other gifts.

Subscriptions were soaring—average subscriptions had surpassed two hundred thousand and were still climbing.

Jiang Zheng glanced at the nearly two hundred thousand words he had in reserve and cracked his neck.

Today, he would release them all!