Feng Lin paused for a second. “If you don’t sleep soon, I’ll throw you out.”
Xia Xunqian looked up at Feng Lin with sleepy eyes and asked in a calm voice, “Sir, do you like that smart and beautiful woman from earlier?”
Feng Lin: “That’s none of your business.”
Xia Xunqian didn’t give up. “What do you think of me, Sir?”
Feng Lin’s gaze softened slightly at her words.
“Hard to take care of,” he said.
His deep, magnetic voice sounded nice. Xia Xunqian remembered it for a long time.
A faint shine appeared in Xia Xunqian’s eyes. “Not hard to take care of…”
He slowly sat up, no longer wanting to sleep.
Sitting half-upright on the bed, Xia Xunqian kept holding Feng Lin’s finger and didn’t let go.
Supporting himself with his hand, he slowly leaned closer. His thin body swayed.
He had always known what he wanted.
A lonely boat without a sail is hard to row.
Xia Xunqian’s palm was warm. As he got closer to Feng Lin, an invisible magnetic force seemed to twist and bind them together. Their breaths mixed, no longer just their own.
Feng Lin noticed the faint scent of orange leaves on Xia Xunqian.
He couldn’t deny it.
Feng Lin admitted that Xia Xunqian knew exactly how to seduce.
He understood boundaries and measured them perfectly.
Feng Lin’s long black eyes flicked. He reached out and held Xia Xunqian’s jaw, gently tracing and stroking it.
“Xia Xunqian, do you know you’re being flirtatious right now?”
Xia Xunqian didn’t pull away. He looked straight at Feng Lin, his eyes full of emotion. The mix of innocence and desire was clear.
“Sir… do you really not like me?” Xia Xunqian asked.
Feng Lin smiled slightly. He knew Xia Xunqian’s personality. Daring to say this, daring to show his neck—inside, Xia Xunqian was more scared than anyone.
Even the powerful Feng Lin was terrified in his heart.
But Xia Xunqian dared to ask anyway.
Feng Lin chuckled lightly, squeezing Xia Xunqian’s jaw a little tighter.
“Xia Xunqian, if you want to seduce someone, wait until you’re better. What if you faint on the bed?”
His deep voice sank into Xia Xunqian’s ear.
Between them, it felt like the storm itself was moving.
Xia Xunqian’s eyes flickered mischievously. He lifted his gaze and stared at Feng Lin’s lips.
Without warning, he leaned forward and kissed those thin lips.
His tongue brushed lightly, then pulled back immediately.
“I won’t die.” Xia Xunqian wrapped around Feng Lin’s fingers.
His words carried a faint orange leaf scent and were incredibly bold.
“Now that you’ve opened this body to me, I’ll only let you touch me from now on…”
Feng Lin suddenly grabbed Xia Xunqian’s wrist tightly.
“How old are you to say something like this? Who taught you?!”
Xia Xunqian’s expression changed slightly. His brows furrowed, and his body subtly recoiled.
“Pain…”
Feng Lin loosened his grip slightly.
He let go of Xia Xunqian’s hand, preparing to stand, but Xia Xunqian grabbed it again.
He lowered his gaze, pressing his lips together.
“No one taught me…”
“Sir… don’t leave…”
After being scolded, Xia Xunqian became much more obedient.
Feng Lin stood.
“I can tell you never wanted to sleep!”
Xia Xunqian immediately fell back and closed his eyes.
“I am sleeping.”
“Going to sleep…”
Feng Lin was almost amused by Xia Xunqian’s sudden movements and nearly laughed.
He realized he had never fully understood Xia Xunqian’s nature.
For the next while, Xia Xunqian just held Feng Lin’s hand tightly without moving.
Half an hour later, Xia Xunqian fell into a deep sleep.
Feng Lin touched his forehead—no drop in fever.
An hour later—still no change.
Two hours later—the heat finally lessened slightly.
When Feng Lin left Xia Xunqian’s room, it was already 1 a.m.
He rubbed his wrist as he walked to the main house.
On the way, he met the butler coming to turn off the lights. The butler noticed Feng Lin smiling faintly after leaving Xia Xunqian’s room.
Seeing him rubbing his wrist, the butler stepped closer worriedly.
“Third Master, is your hand okay?”
Feng Lin frowned and, after a moment, said two words:
“Numb hand.”
Butler: “……It’s probably just pressure.”
“Ah,” the butler chuckled. “Nothing serious. Just rub it a bit more and it’ll be fine.”
Covering his mouth, he coughed lightly. “Master, well… when you carry someone, you don’t have to hold them so tightly with one hand.”
Feng Lin: “????”
Feng Lin: “…………”
Feng Lin wasn’t the type to explain himself. When he thought explaining would cost more than staying silent, he didn’t waste time.
Only foolish people would do that.
For anything, Feng Lin treated it like business: strict rules, profit above all.
His sharp gaze fell on the butler. “You even tell me what to do now?”
The butler stepped back half a step. “I-I wouldn’t dare.”
Seeing the butler trying not to laugh, Feng Lin frowned. “Funny?”
The butler: “……” He dared not laugh, but holding it in made his mouth hurt.
For a moment, he thought of all the embarrassing moments of his life.
A few seconds later, he couldn’t hold it anymore and laughed, even turning around.
For someone like Feng Lin, who had always been self-centered and strict since childhood, this was really funny.
The butler swallowed. “…Done for.”
…………………………
The next day, when Xia Xunqian woke up, he felt about eighty percent better.
He was still wearing Feng Lin’s shirt. Xia Xunqian lifted the sleeve and sniffed it, a warm, gentle look in his eyes.
He pushed open the door and saw someone sitting under the pomegranate tree outside. Smiling faintly, he walked toward the table there.
Seeing clearly, Xia Xunqian stopped mid-step.
The area under the tree was quiet. Normally, the butler would listen to Xia Xunqian’s words and know where to place his meals without being told.
But today, a woman was sitting at the table.
She wore a long black-and-red dress. Her jet-black hair was pinned up, a style mixing modern fashion with a classical late-Republic elegance.
She looked like a woman who had experienced a lot.
When she saw Xia Xunqian, her face was calm, and the faint smile on her lips wasn’t friendly.
“…Madam Xue, good morning,” Xia Xunqian greeted her respectfully.
In the past few days, he hadn’t seen the lady of the Feng family.
This woman looked about forty-five or forty-six, well-maintained, even her nails polished, with a cold, commanding aura that few could match.
And now she had deliberately come to see him. She could only be Madam Xue, the wife of Old Master Feng.
Madam Xue’s eyes scanned Xia Xunqian up and down.
The young man’s features were unusually beautiful, even for a girl, with a small black mole on the bridge of his nose, captivating anyone who looked.
“What? You got up, but can’t wear clothes properly? Someone seeing you might think you ran out from someone else’s bed.”
Her gaze was dark, her words sharp and critical.
“I’ll go change!” Xia Xunqian said and quickly went inside to change out of Feng Lin’s shirt. The courtyard was usually empty, so he felt bold.
Meeting Madam Xue today was unexpected.
When he came out again, he was wearing a well-fitting long-sleeve shirt.
Xia Xunqian walked up to Madam Xue and politely asked, “…Madam, is there something you need from me?”
Madam Xue pointed to the chair beside her. “Sit.”
Xia Xunqian obediently sat down.
He politely poured a cup of tea for her.
The woman pushed it aside with her finger, coldly watching him. “I always speak directly. Even though Old Master is gone, as the legitimate wife of the Feng family, my words still carry weight.”
“Please speak,” Xia Xunqian replied respectfully, always courteous to elders.
Madam Xue’s eyes sharpened. “You were brought here by the Third Master, right?”
Xia Xunqian rubbed the teacup in front of him, looking down. “Yes.”
“What does he treat you as?” Madam Xue asked coldly.
Xia Xunqian’s eyes darkened. “I don’t know.”
Madam Xue laughed lightly. Her years of experience taught her when to hold back her sharpness. “I don’t know the friendship between your father and Feng Lin’s father. The Feng family estate is large, it can take care of women, but not men.”
“You can be under Feng Lin’s protection, but I’ll find you a place outside Beijing to live. You can’t stay here.”
Her tone left no room for negotiation—clearly an order to leave.
Xia Xunqian’s fingers clenched tightly, his palm aching slightly. “Is… this Master Feng’s idea?”