Sure enough, the moment Jiang Che’s tone turned a little firmer, Su Qinghe was immediately subdued. She did not dare to say another word.
At times like this, he was too lazy to argue with her, so scolding her a little was the quickest way. The effect seemed pretty good.
Jiang Che pulled Su Qinghe into his bedroom. The room was spacious, decorated in a cold black, white, and gray minimalist style. He pressed her down to sit at the edge of the bed and said, “Sit properly. Don’t move around.”
After that, he went next door, carried over Su Qinghe’s bedding, and threw it onto the bed.
Outside the window, rain pounded against the glass with sharp crackling sounds. Thunder rolled one after another, rumbling endlessly.
Jiang Che quickly laid out his own floor bedding. When he turned around, Su Qinghe was still sitting stiffly at the edge of the bed.
He walked over, turned off the main light, and left only a dim, warm bedside lamp on.
“Lie down and sleep,” he ordered.
Only then did Su Qinghe carefully lift the blanket and lie down. She curled her body into a small, tight ball.
Jiang Che closed the door and lay down on his floor bedding.
For a moment, the room was filled only with the sound of wind and rain outside, along with their two different rhythms of breathing, one light and one heavy.
He stared at the ceiling with his eyes open, unable to fall asleep.
His mind wandered. If Lin Wanwan were here instead, she would probably have started complaining by now. She would say the thunder was too loud, accuse him of not being considerate enough, and then make a long list of demands.
But Su Qinghe…
She simply lay there quietly, her presence so faint that if not for the occasional sound of her breathing, Jiang Che might have doubted whether she was even still there.
He tossed and turned, thinking about many things.
He thought about Lin Wanwan and how his sincere feelings over the past two years had all gone to waste.
Then he thought about Su Qinghe.
This girl had suffered so much, yet she never made a sound, only silently endured everything.
She had once been a little princess cherished in her family’s hands. By nature, she should have been spoiled and bright, even a little willful.
Now, seeing her so humble and cautious made it impossible not to feel heartache.
Jiang Che’s thoughts were a mess. He did not know how long it took before he finally drifted into sleep.
But Su Qinghe, lying on the large bed, had not fallen asleep at all.
When she sensed the steady breathing coming from nearby, she knew Jiang Che had fallen asleep.
Slowly, she turned over. Her empty eyes faced in Jiang Che’s direction.
Jiang Che…
He was really so good to her.
He had saved her from those bad people.
He had bathed her, given her clothes to wear, given her food to eat.
He had even let her stay in his home.
Su Qinghe felt her nose sting.
In her seventeen years of life, she had never met anyone who treated her this well.
Not even her parents had ever shown her such warmth. From childhood, they had always been distant and indifferent, their attention focused entirely on her younger brother.
After the Su family went bankrupt, they had only cared about taking her brother and running away, leaving her alone at home to be bullied by relatives.
Only Jiang Che… only he was her only light, her only support.
She could not leave him.
In this lifetime, she could never leave him.
Thinking this, Su Qinghe carefully stretched out her hand. Her fingertips hovered and lightly touched Jiang Che’s face, feeling the warmth of his breath.
He was asleep.
He was very handsome. Truly good-looking.
Su Qinghe gazed at him blankly, recalling his face from memory. Her heart beat faster and faster.
He seemed… like her boyfriend.
No. He would become her boyfriend.
He could only be hers.
A faint, abnormal blush rose on the girl’s face.
She did not know whether it was because of her fever or because of the outrageous thoughts in her heart.
Su Qinghe quietly “looked” at Jiang Che for a long time.
Only when her eyes grew sore and drowsiness flooded her mind did she finally close them and fall into a deep sleep.
…
The next morning.
Jiang Che was woken by a series of clattering sounds.
He sat up and scratched his hair in confusion.
What was that noise?
Was Su Qinghe messing around?
He rubbed his eyes, lifted the blanket off himself, and climbed up from the floor bedding.
He walked out of the bedroom and headed straight toward the source of the noise.
In the kitchen, Su Qinghe stood helplessly by the sink.
On the floor at her feet lay an iron pot and several spatulas.
When she heard Jiang Che’s approaching footsteps, panic spread across her face.
She stretched out her hands, bent down carefully, and fumbled around on the floor, trying to pick up the scattered items.
Jiang Che quickly walked over. He first glanced at the kitchen utensils on the ground, then at Su Qinghe.
“You’re not hurt, right?”
He reached out, grabbed Su Qinghe’s arm, turned her around, and carefully checked her hands and feet.
Fortunately, she was not injured.
“Su Qinghe, what are you doing here?”
His tone was a little harsh, not because he was angry about being woken up, but because he was worried she might hurt herself by fumbling around like this.
Su Qinghe flinched in fright. Her body stiffened, and she answered softly, “I… I wanted to make you breakfast before you woke up…”
“I… I just feel like if I don’t do anything, it’s too… too unfair to you.”
By the time she finished speaking, her voice was so soft it was almost inaudible.
She lowered her head, looking pitiful and wronged. She gently bit her lower lip, and a faint mist gathered on her long eyelashes.
Every word she said was filled with self-blame. It was obvious she thought Jiang Che was scolding her.
Facing Su Qinghe like this, Jiang Che, who had not been angry to begin with, felt even more helpless.
He scratched his head awkwardly, wanting to say something to comfort her, but he had no experience, so in the end he could not come up with anything meaningful.
After all, when Lin Wanwan used to throw a tantrum, she only wanted to buy things. That had made Jiang Che think that comforting a girl just meant buying, buying, and buying.
With that thought, Jiang Che suddenly felt enlightened.
Right, just buy things.
He quickly bent down to pick up the kitchen utensils from the floor, then led Su Qinghe to sit on the living room sofa.
He first explained his thoughts clearly, “Su Qinghe, you don’t need to cook. You don’t need to do anything. I brought you home not to make you my maid.”
“I wasn’t angry just now. Maybe my tone wasn’t good and scared you, but I really wasn’t angry, and I wasn’t blaming you.”
Su Qinghe lowered her head and softly said, “Mm.”
But she still did not look happy.
Seeing her like this, Jiang Che knew it was time to implement his plan.
“Alright, you’re a patient right now. Resting and recovering well is the greatest way you can repay me, understand?”
Only then did Su Qinghe gently lift her head. A faint smile bloomed between her delicate brows and eyes.
“Mm,” she nodded obediently.
Jiang Che went to the refrigerator, took out bread and milk, and planned to use them to hastily settle their breakfast.
“After we eat, we’re going to the mall.”
Su Qinghe paused, the milk in her hand stopping midair. She looked blankly in Jiang Che’s direction. “Why are we going to the mall?”
“To buy you clothes,” Jiang Che replied. “You can’t keep wearing my shirt.”
“And your old clothes were all torn. I threw them away.”
When clothes were mentioned, Su Qinghe recalled what had happened last night, and her face flushed slightly.
She said softly, “No need. I… I don’t have money to buy clothes.”
“If you don’t have money, then you don’t. You don’t need to pay. I’ll buy them for you.”
The moment she heard that, Su Qinghe grew anxious and waved her hands repeatedly. “No, that’s not okay. You’ve already helped me so much. I can’t trouble you anymore.”
“How can that be…”
Jiang Che looked at her and sighed helplessly.
“Su Qinghe.”