Xu Zhiyuan was awakened by the heat.
Drowsily opening her eyes, the first thing she saw was a wall of flesh.
Still not fully awake, her mind remained hazy and confused. Puzzled, she reached out and placed her hand on this wall of flesh, discovering that it actually felt quite nice—though the temperature was a bit too high, radiating warmth. Pouting, she pushed against the wall of flesh with all her might, trying to shove it away.
But after a couple of pushes, it didn’t budge. Unhappy, she let out a soft whimper and decided to retreat backward instead.
If she couldn’t push it away, couldn’t she just avoid it?
Just as she was about to withdraw her hand, a large hand grasped hers.
Who was it?
Xu Zhiyuan looked up in confusion and saw a face magnified before her eyes.
“Ah!”
Startled, Xu Zhiyuan jerked her head back, instantly snapping awake. Looking more closely, she realized it was He Jiayu.
Huh? He Jiayu was still here? And why were they so close? How had she ended up lying in He Jiayu’s arms?
He Jiayu couldn’t help but laugh at this moment. Xu Zhiyuan’s hand resting on his chest could clearly feel the vibrations from his ribcage, pulsing rhythmically through her palm and into her heart.
“You…”
“Scared?” He Jiayu used his other hand to gently rub the back of her head, soothing her.
Xu Zhiyuan’s expression just now had been utterly adorable.
Xu Zhiyuan’s face immediately flushed red. “A little,” she added defensively. “You’d be scared too if you opened your eyes and saw a magnified face right in front of you.”
“That’s my fault. I got too close to you.” He Jiayu released her hand and pinched her cheek.
Though Xu Zhiyuan was thin, her face had a certain plumpness to it, soft and squishy to the touch. He Jiayu couldn’t resist giving it another gentle stroke.
Xu Zhiyuan grabbed his hand to stop him from causing more mischief. “I need to get up.”
“Alright, go ahead.” He Jiayu’s voice was lazy. “Go brush your teeth and wash your face. It’s getting late.”
Xu Zhiyuan climbed out of bed and checked her phone, realizing it was already past ten o’clock.
“Don’t you have to go to work today?”
“I’ll go in the afternoon,” He Jiayu said. “I just got back; I need some time to adjust to the jet lag. Besides, after being away on a business trip for so long, I should spend some time with my wife, right?”
Looking into his smiling eyes, Xu Zhiyuan once again felt her heartbeat falter, and her face flushed involuntarily.
“I… I’m going to brush my teeth.”
With that, she turned and hurried into the bathroom, her retreating figure seeming somewhat flustered, her gait a bit unsteady.
He Jiayu chuckled softly, then couldn’t help but reflect on whether he had gone a bit too far the night before.
But his physical desires had overridden his rational mind, as if he suffered from skin hunger. The moment he touched Xu Zhiyuan, he lost control, unable to resist drawing closer, wanting more, wishing he could merge her into his very bones and blood.
(Author’s Note: Isn’t it just that he’s been abstinent for too long and went wild the moment he got a taste of meat?)
When Xu Zhiyuan came out, He Jiayu pulled her back onto the bed.
Xu Zhiyuan widened her eyes nervously. “What are you doing?”
He Jiayu chuckled softly. “Nothing much. Just giving you a massage.”
“No need, I’m fine.”
In truth, she wasn’t fine at all. In fact, she felt even worse than the first time, experiencing the sensation of her body being run over by a truck.
Earlier in the bathroom, she had almost stumbled and fallen.
Could He Jiayu not tell she was just being stubborn? He pressed her down to lie on the bed, then freed one hand to massage her.
Xu Zhiyuan struggled briefly, but finding it useless and noticing He Jiayu’s pressure was just right—relieving much of the soreness in her legs and waist—she stopped resisting and gradually relaxed.
Unaware and unable to see, Xu Zhiyuan, now enjoying herself, didn’t notice the darkening gaze in He Jiayu’s eyes behind her. She adjusted her posture, resting her chin on her folded hands, then noticed something on her wrist and moved again.
“Is this a gift you bought for me?” She raised her right hand.
She had only noticed the sudden appearance of a yellow crystal bracelet adorned with diamonds on her wrist while brushing her teeth—playful yet elegant.
He Jiayu continued his movements without pause. “Mm, do you like it?”
“I do,” Xu Zhiyuan affirmed, her tone bright and cheerful. “It’s very pretty.”
Seeing her happy and satisfied expression, He Jiayu’s lips unconsciously curved upward.
Half an hour later, the two went downstairs together.
It was almost eleven o’clock. Lunch was still being prepared, but breakfast had been kept ready. Considering they would also have lunch soon, Nanny Zhang, with their consent, brought them milk and toast to tide them over, along with a bowl of bird’s nest soup for Xu Zhiyuan.
Xu Zhiyuan had long been hungry. This time, she didn’t wait for He Jiayu and sat down to eat the toast right away. Only after finishing a slice did she feel revived.
He Jiayu leisurely walked over and sat opposite her, sipping his milk while watching her.
Though Xu Zhiyuan’s movements weren’t particularly elegant, in his eyes, every gesture exuded a charming liveliness—natural and unpretentious. The more he watched, the more he liked it.
“Last time, we agreed I’d help with the accompaniment. Shall we practice a bit later?” He Jiayu suggested.
“Sure, I’ve already prepared the piano score,” Xu Zhiyuan replied. “There’s another piano score I’m still revising, but I’ll leave it to you to play as well.”
Since she had already brought out Jay Chou’s “Nocturne,” of course, “Nocturne” had to be included too.
Although her piano skills were quite basic, her understanding of piano scores was relatively deep. Perhaps it was a benefit of transmigration—her memory was far better than in her previous life.
Even so, reproducing the piano score wasn’t simple. Without a system, she had to rely entirely on her memory, which required time to recall, search for melodies, and gradually record and adjust them.
He Jiayu looked at her in surprise. “You composed a piano piece too?”
This was different from creating pop music. He Jiayu felt he still didn’t know Xu Zhiyuan thoroughly enough, and he had never heard that she could compose.
He sensed that Xu Zhiyuan had secrets.
Noticing He Jiayu’s probing gaze, Xu Zhiyuan tensed inwardly. “Since I can write songs, is it strange that I can write piano music?”
It was indeed strange. Writing songs was one thing, but piano music was different.
Seeing her guilty expression and shifting eyes, He Jiayu became even more convinced she had secrets.
However, since these secrets didn’t affect him much, He Jiayu lost interest in probing further. After all, who didn’t have one or two secrets?
Seeing Xu Zhiyuan begin to fidget, He Jiayu finally showed an expression of admiration and gave her a thumbs-up. “I still underestimated you. You can even compose piano pieces—you’re really amazing.”
Xu Zhiyuan’s face flushed.
No one knew she had copied works from the real world, not written them herself, but she still felt ashamed.
“It’s… it’s nothing,” she said, avoiding He Jiayu’s gaze. “Let’s hurry up and eat. After we finish, we’ll go familiarize ourselves with the sheet music.”
Seeing her guilty little expression, He Jiayu couldn’t help but smile.