Chapter 4: A Wild Night.

After booking my mother’s flight, I could still hear the absolute chaos coming from the room next door. All I wanted was to ask them to turn the volume down.

I stared at my tear-streaked reflection in the mirror, then casually tore off the black off-the-shoulder evening gown I’d been wearing, sending it straight into the graveyard of painful memories.

It had been a year since I’d dared to properly dress up.

Ever since Fu Ci had forced me to stay with him on the Shiao Peninsula, I’d lived by one simple rule:

The uglier I looked, the safer I was.

But tonight was different.

My long black hair was styled in loose waves, and the drab clothes I usually wore had been replaced by a blazing red spaghetti-strap dress.

The woman in the mirror smiled.

She looked so gorgeous that even I wanted to ask for her number.

I hurriedly threw on a windbreaker to avoid accidentally causing a homicide and headed straight for the most upscale nightclub in Hucheng.

The moment I walked through the door, I ordered eight male attendants in one go.

My requirements were simple:

Handsome. Abs. The kind of face that made you want to start making better life choices.

The guy at the front looked about thirty percent like Lin Xi and had a mouth as sweet as honey.

I pulled out a thick stack of cash and tucked it into his waistband.

“Xi Xi, take good care of me tonight. All this money is yours.”

He grinned like he’d just won the lottery.

“Don’t worry, sis. I’ll serve you with all my heart—and all my abs!”

Then he very sensibly added,

“But, uh… I’m not actually named Xi Xi. My name is A-Dong.”

I lightly punched him in the chest, smiling with complete disregard for the consequences.

“I decide what your name is. From now on, you’re Lin Xi. My little Xi.”

I wrapped my arms around “Little Xi” and downed one drink after another.

Once the alcohol had gone pleasantly to my head, I pushed him down onto the sofa and started telling him the story of “a friend.”

“My friend had it really rough…”

I hiccupped softly.

“She lost her father when she was only eighteen. Then some voice appeared inside her head and forced her to become someone’s caged bird…”

I laughed bitterly.

“But tonight, she’s finally free…”

My voice grew quieter.

“She just had to lose the love of her life in exchange.”

“Little Xi” remained perfectly professional, gently patting my back.

As I drifted toward sleep, I vaguely heard a familiar, deep voice.

“I won’t forgive you… unless you spend the rest of your life making it up to me, Wanwan.”

My body reacted before my brain could catch up.

Smack!

I gave him a spectacular slap.

“Don’t call me Wanwan! Fu Ci, you don’t deserve to!”

The next morning, I woke up with a headache that felt like someone had thrown a party inside my skull.

I opened the bedroom door—and nearly fell over.

In the unfamiliar house, Lin Xi was sitting at the dining table, calmly eating breakfast.

More importantly, his right cheek was swollen.

One look told me exactly whose handiwork it was.

“Lin Xi, your face…”

“Quiet.”

After a moment, he added,

“Eat your breakfast.”

I obediently lowered my head and spooned up some porridge while replaying the events of last night in my mind.

Eight handsome men → alcohol → “Little Xi”…

“Pfft!”

I nearly spit out my food.

“Lin Xi… last night… that guy…”

I stared at him in horror.

“Was that actually you?”

He didn’t answer.

He simply set his bowl down, put on his suit jacket, and prepared to leave for work.

But as he walked toward the door, I noticed that his ears were bright red.

And his steps were just slightly uneven.

No matter how much my little puppy had transformed into a cold, aloof CEO, deep down…

He was still my puppy.

I stood behind him, biting my lip to keep from laughing.

For the next two days, we lived together almost like we had back when we were students.

Eight years had passed.

Far too much had happened in that time.

Even though I’d accidentally spilled the entire plot while drunk that night, there was still an invisible wall between us.

Today, I went out to look for a place to live so I could bring my mother to Hucheng.

By the time I got back, it was already past ten at night.

On the way home, I’d picked up a bouquet of white roses on a whim, planning to put them in a vase to make the place feel a little less empty.

The moment I opened the door—

I froze.

Lin Xi was sitting on the sofa, his eyes fixed intently on me.

“Where have you been?”

I hugged the bouquet of white roses a little tighter, suddenly feeling guilty for no reason.

I walked over and obediently sat beside him.

“Lin Xi, what’s wrong?”

“I asked where you went.”

His voice was slow and deep.

I bit my lip, confused.

“I went looking for a place to live… I can’t stay here forever.”

Lin Xi’s gaze fell on the bouquet in my arms.

His expression immediately hardened.

His dark eyes seemed to gather the storm.

“So the person giving you white roses can stay by your side forever?”

His voice was laced with jealousy.

“What does Fu Ci have that I don’t? Why do you still want to go back to him?”

Two seconds later, I climbed straight onto his lap with the entire bouquet in my arms, wrapped my arms around his neck, and teased him.

“Lin Xi…”

I smiled.

“Are you jealous?”

He stiffened.

I quickly clarified,

“I bought these flowers myself. My mom is coming to Hucheng the day after tomorrow. If I don’t find a place, what are we supposed to do? Have the three of us sleep in the same bed?”

His expression softened.

He looked like he was finally beginning to relent.

I rarely sounded this serious.

My voice softened as well.

“But…”

I hesitated before looking into his eyes.

“If you don’t mind… I still want to stay with you.”

I gave him a small, almost shy smile.

“Is that too greedy of me?”

His answer wasn’t words.

It was a kiss.

He lifted my chin and kissed me, the familiar coolness of his breath slowly giving way to something warmer, more intense.

Our breathing grew uneven.

Against my lips, he whispered,

“It isn’t too much…”

His voice was low and almost fragile.

“Wanwan… don’t leave me again.”

He held me tighter.

“I was scared.”