Early in the morning, Xie Jingran woke up from the heat.
He was holding a warm little “heater” in his arms, soft and fragrant which made this man, whose body temperature was normally low, feel a near-addictive dependence. For the first time, he hadn’t been awakened by his biological clock.
Wait… in his arms?
Xie Jingran’s previously muddled mind cleared instantly, and he shot his eyes open.
In view was the girl’s fluffy black hair, a few strands mischievously brushing against his chin, tickling him.
His gaze shifted down to a fair, slender hand boldly slipping into the loose collar of his robe, resting against his collarbone.
As expected, her sleeping posture was as bad as ever.
Chu Anhe was hanging on him like a koala, her cheek pressed against his chest, one leg boldly draped across his waist and abdomen, sleeping soundly.
And he had grown used to this posture. Not only did he not push her off the bed, but his hand was also firmly gripping her waist, holding her close.
Xie Jingran lay stiffly on the pillow, listening to her steady breathing, sinking into deep self-doubt: Sometimes I really wonder… am I… a pervert?!
System: Good morning, host! Congratulations on completing the mission! Adrenaline surge detected; a normal morning physiological reaction has occurred.
“Quiet!” Xie Jingran ground his teeth, his ears uncontrollably red.
He was about to pull the lawless “octopus” off him when the person in his arms let out a dissatisfied murmur.
Half-awake, Chu Anhe felt something was wrong why was the mattress so hard? And why was there a heartbeat?
Half-dreaming, she instinctively squeezed the warm object beneath her hand.
Mmm… feels good—firm, elastic, smooth lines.
The next second, a muffled gasp came from above her head.
“Had enough?”
The man’s voice was hoarse from just waking, tinged with tension.
Chu Anhe’s eyes snapped open. Her gaze slowly moved upward, past the seductive Adam’s apple and sharp jawline, and finally met Xie Jingran’s deep, bottomless eyes. Her mind froze instantly.
Three seconds later, she sprang up like a spring, scrambling to the corner of the bed.
“I-I-I… didn’t mean it!” Chu Anhe’s face turned as red as a boiled shrimp. She babbled, “I thought it was a body pillow, teacher! Don’t deduct money from me!”
Xie Jingran stared at the suddenly empty space in his arms. The warmth lingering in his palm quickly dissipated, and an inexplicable twinge of disappointment crossed his heart.
After sleeping, she just ran. She sure was fast.
He sat up leisurely, the robe slightly open at the collar, revealing his exquisite collarbone and the red mark on his chest from her earlier “indiscretion.”
“Chu Anhe.” Xie Jingran crossed his long legs, leaning against the headboard, speaking in a cold, victimized tone. “Do you know how excessive you were last night? Constantly pressing down on me, your hands weren’t behaving either. I simply couldn’t resist your… barbaric sleeping posture.”
System: Host, are you forgetting your dignity? You were holding on tightly yourself!
“I-I’m sorry! I’ll take responsibility… no, I’ll be careful!”
Chu Anhe glanced at Xie Jingran, who looked so “mistreated” by her, recalling the awkward sensation from before, feeling utterly mortified.
She quickly climbed off the bed and rushed into the bathroom. “I… I’m going to school! I’ll be late for the 8 a.m. class!”
The door slammed behind her.
Xie Jingran watched her fleeing back, then glanced down at his still-racing heart. Frowning, he muttered, “Heartless little brat.”
System: Tsk tsk, host, your expression right now is exactly like a young wife abandoned after her first night.
On the road from the old residence, Chu Anhe’s heartbeat still hadn’t settled.
After the snowfall, the cold wind sliced through her, quickly dissipating the warmth on her face and chilling her back.
Returning from that dreamlike warm room to reality took only the time of a gust of wind.
At noon, 12:00, Haishi University cafeteria.
Chu Anhe deliberately avoided the crowd, sitting in the corner with two cheap steamed buns and a complimentary seaweed egg drop soup.
She lowered her head, scrolling through part-time job messages on her phone while mechanically nibbling on the slightly cold buns.
Although Xie Jingran had fully arranged the medical and hospitalization expenses for her mother and grandmother, and said that maintaining the marriage for two years would settle the debts, Chu Anhe still could not accept gifts outside the agreement with peace of mind. She stubbornly wanted to earn money and repay him gradually.
“Part-time… handing out flyers… tutoring…” Her fingers swiped across the screen, her eyes full of anxiety.
“Anhe? Why are you sitting here?”
Chu Anhe looked up, a little flustered, covering her tray slightly, and saw the student council president, Zhang Muyang.
Zhang Muyang was handsome, wearing branded sportswear, a popular sunny-type guy on campus. He frowned at her tray. “This isn’t enough nutrition. Your health is your capital. How can you do this? Come on, I’ll take you to the second floor for a clay pot meal.” He reached out to grab her arm.
“No, senior, I’ve eaten,” Chu Anhe instinctively turned aside, politely and distantly refusing, quickly clearing her tray to leave.
“Hey, don’t rush!” Zhang Muyang stepped in front to block her, feigning mystery. “Actually, I came looking for you. I have good news the provincial ‘Mingde Cup’ college debate competition is coming up. I want to invite you to join my team.”
Chu Anhe was uninterested, wanting only to leave. “Thank you for the offer, senior, but I’ve been busy recently and may not have time to prepare…”
“The championship prize is fifty thousand yuan.”
Zhang Muyang waved his palm in front of Chu Anhe’s eyes deliberately. “And I’m the team captain. The other two teammates are our department’s top student Li Xiang and the literary college’s talented Fang Wenxiu. With you, our lineup can definitely win. Splitting the prize, each of us gets over ten thousand.”
Chu Anhe froze mid-step.
Over ten thousand…
Her eyes lit up instantly. “Is it really fifty thousand in cash? When do we start training?”
Seeing her lively reaction, Zhang Muyang smiled even more. “I knew you’d be interested. Come on, let’s go to the library seminar room; I’ve prepared all the materials.”