His head fell unexpectedly, and Yun Sheng stiffened all over.
She reached out and nudged his arm. “Wake up.”
But he didn’t move at all.
She looked down at his handsome face so close to hers. His lowered eyelashes hid those slightly indifferent eyes, his nose was tall and straight, a touch of crimson lingered at the corners of his eyes, his lips were clearly defined, and his brows were slightly furrowed, as if his headache hadn’t yet eased.
Her hand, which had been pushing him, paused slightly, and she ultimately gave up.
It was just that this posture was particularly intimate. She could even feel his warm breath against the nape of her neck.
In the years they had been apart, they had barely spoken a few words. Suddenly having such close contact made her stiff limbs unsure where to go.
But she also knew he definitely wasn’t doing it on purpose. He would never do anything inappropriate or have any improper thoughts.
They had grown up together since childhood, and he had always seen her as a younger sister.
The beginning of their relationship had also started with her secretly liking him first.
It began at that coming-of-age ceremony. Amidst the noisy crowd, her heart fluttered for the first time, and she thought she was sick.
Whenever he spoke to her, she would get distracted, her gaze instinctively drawn to his calm eyes, as if searching for that nonexistent touch of crimson at their corners.
When he came to pick her up from school, he would habitually take her bag for her. If his fingertips accidentally brushed against her palm, her heart would race.
Even when they shared a car and he suddenly leaned over to help her fasten her seatbelt, she felt her breath catch, her eyes darting around, too shy to look at him.
After he buckled her seatbelt, he asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
She tried to stay composed, but meeting his clear eyes, she felt that the messy thoughts suddenly welling up in her heart were utterly unforgivable.
“Why is your face red?”
Guiltily, she turned to look out the window and rolled it down. “It’s a bit hot.”
He rolled the window back up and turned on the air conditioning. “It’s sunny outside. Don’t open the window.”
Sitting in the enclosed car filled with cool air, her cheeks gradually cooled down.
But that faint, ambiguous atmosphere continued to envelop her. In the quiet car, she could hear her own heartbeat in her chest, each beat louder than the last.
Yun Sheng sat stiffly now. Qin Yanchuan, leaning on her shoulder, moved his head slightly, his bangs brushing against the nape of her neck. Her breath hitched.
She reached out and rolled down the car window.
The cold night wind rushed in, dispersing some of the lingering intimacy in the car. Only then did she feel she could breathe more easily.
“Feeling hot, miss? I’ll turn on the air conditioning,” the taxi driver said kindly.
It was early autumn, and the temperature in Jing City had already dropped. It wasn’t hot; in fact, it felt a bit chilly at night, so the driver hadn’t turned on the air conditioning.
Yun Sheng quickly replied, “No need, I just need some fresh air.”
“Your boyfriend drank a lot. The cold wind might not be good for him,” the driver kindly reminded her.
Yun Sheng choked for a moment and blurted out, “He’s not my boyfriend.”
The driver chuckled. “Oh.”
He had seen plenty of quarreling young couples like this and certainly wouldn’t argue with a passenger over such a thing.
But Yun Sheng felt as if a lump had stuck in her throat, suddenly unable to go up or down.
Finally, the taxi arrived at the entrance of Nanguo Mansion. Yun Sheng said a word to the security guard, who then allowed the taxi to drive in.The security at Nanguo Mansion is very strict; outside vehicles are never allowed to enter unless confirmed by the resident themselves.
Yun Sheng used to come here often in the past, and even after four years, the security guard still recognized her.
The taxi pulled up to a villa at the deepest part of Nanguo Mansion and stopped.
Yun Sheng helped Qin Yanchuan out of the car.
He was very heavy, pressing down on her so much that she couldn’t straighten her back. When they reached the door, she habitually pressed her own finger onto the fingerprint lock.
Only then did she realize she should have used his finger. She let go and was about to reach for his hand when she suddenly heard a “beep.”
The door opened.
Yun Sheng froze for a moment. He hadn’t deleted her fingerprint?
She turned to look at him. His eyes were still closed, and he showed no reaction.
He probably just forgot.
He’s usually so busy; how would he have time to bother with such trivial matters? She’s already gone abroad—it’s not like she’d sneak into his house in the middle of the night to steal anything.
Yun Sheng could barely hold on any longer. Without overthinking it, she helped him inside and placed him on the sofa.
She finally let out a sigh of relief, feeling instantly lighter.
Looking at his sleeping face, she whispered, “Then I’ll head home first.”
He didn’t respond, and it seemed he wouldn’t wake up anytime soon.
Yun Sheng thought for a moment, took the gift box containing a fountain pen from her bag, placed it on the coffee table, then picked up her bag and turned to leave.
Suddenly, her wrist was grabbed. She stumbled and fell back onto the sofa, nearly tumbling into his arms.
She quickly straightened her arms, sat up, and looked up in a panic, only to find him still deeply asleep, his brows tightly furrowed, his lips moving slightly.
“Don’t go.”
Yun Sheng stiffened, her mind thrown into chaos for a moment.
Did he mistake her for someone else?
“Brother Yanchuan, it’s Yun Sheng.”
She tried to pull her wrist free, but he didn’t budge.
His fingers were slender, and at this moment, they gripped her wrist tightly, his knuckles slightly white, showing no sign of loosening.
Just as they were locked in this stalemate, Aunt Zhao hurried out. “Miss Yun Sheng, what’s wrong with Sir…”
Yun Sheng used to come here often, so Aunt Zhao naturally remembered her.
Yun Sheng quickly explained, “He drank too much.”
Aunt Zhao said, “Then I’ll go make some sobering soup.”
Aunt Zhao turned and went into the kitchen to busy herself.
Yun Sheng still couldn’t free her hand, so she could only sit by the sofa and wait.
After ten minutes, Aunt Zhao came out with freshly brewed sobering soup.
Yun Sheng helped Qin Yanchuan sit up against the back of the sofa and brought the soup to his lips.
He didn’t open his mouth.
Yun Sheng said, “Drink this, and your headache will go away.”
She brought the soup closer to his lips again, and he finally opened his mouth slightly, swallowing the soup she offered.
Yun Sheng breathed a small sigh of relief.
Aunt Zhao took the bowl, glanced at Yun Sheng’s tightly held wrist, and said at the right moment, “Then I’ll be off now. Miss Yun Sheng, please take care of Sir.”
Yun Sheng paused. “But I…”
“I should have been off work a long time ago. I was waiting for Sir to come back so I could heat up his dinner. It’s already in the insulated box. If you’d like to eat, Miss Yun Sheng, you can just take it out from the kitchen.”
Aunt Zhao only came during the day to clean and occasionally help with cooking; she didn’t live here.
Qin Yanchuan preferred quiet and didn’t like to be disturbed.
As she spoke, Aunt Zhao took the bowl back to the kitchen and hurriedly left.
With the sound of the front door closing, the spacious villa fell into silence once again.
Yun Sheng: “…”
She tried to pull her wrist free again, but it was still no use.The phone in the bag rang.
She took the phone out of her bag, glanced at the caller ID, and her eyebrow twitched slightly.
She answered the call, trying to keep her voice as calm as possible. “Aunt Jin.”
“Shengsheng, why aren’t you back yet? It’s already ten o’clock,” Aunt Jin asked worriedly.
Yun Sheng tightened her grip on the phone. “Xiao Xi asked me out to play. I’ll be back a little later.”
“Where are you going to play so late at night?”
“A bar,” Yun Sheng added, “It’s opened by her friend. We’re going to show our support.”
“Then be careful. I’ll send the driver to pick you up.”
“No need, Aunt Jin. Xiao Xi will send me back later. Her family’s driver is waiting outside.”
Only then did Aunt Jin feel reassured. “Alright, don’t stay out too late.”
“Got it,” Yun Sheng nodded in agreement.
After hanging up the phone, Yun Sheng let out a sigh of relief, her palms now damp with sweat.
As she turned her head, she suddenly met a pair of calm, dark eyes.
Her gaze froze. “You’re awake?”