Shen Li stopped coughing and casually lifted his gaze. His fingers unconsciously rubbed the side of the cup.
Ning Zhiyuan bit her lip and stared at him without blinking.
Dark circles lingered beneath her eyes.
She looked as though she hadn’t slept well.
Why was Yuanyuan here?
Hadn’t she gone to see Pei Jin?
“Yuan…”
Before he could finish speaking, Ning Zhiyuan suddenly threw her arms around him.
Clang!
The cup fell to the floor.
Shen Li’s eyes widened.
He froze completely, as if someone had struck an acupoint and rendered him immobile.
“You scared me…”
Ning Zhiyuan tightened her arms around him.
She held him so tightly, as though she were clutching her most precious doll.
She had thought she was about to lose him.
The previous night, when she had seen Shen Li unconscious in the back seat of the car, her fear of losing him had overwhelmed her fear of hospitals.
Her mind had gone completely blank as she climbed into the vehicle and followed him.
Only now, seeing him awake again, did she finally feel the reality of surviving a disaster.
The tremble in her voice, tinged with tears, struck directly at Shen Li’s heart.
It felt as though his heart were breaking apart.
Scared?
How could his life or death possibly frighten Yuanyuan?
The only person she cared about was Pei Jin.
Perhaps she was worried that because he had collapsed on the very night she went to see Pei Jin, Father Ning would blame her.
Or perhaps she feared the Shen family would direct their anger toward the Ning family, or even toward Pei Jin.
He should push away this embrace that clouded his judgment.
Yet through the thin hospital gown, he could feel her warmth.
He could smell the fragrance of her hair.
Soft strands brushed lightly against his wrist.
His heart began pounding uncontrollably.
His senses were being consumed.
His reason swallowed whole.
Greedily, Shen Li wrapped his arms around her in return.
Patting her back gently, he comforted her in a soft voice.
“Don’t be afraid… I’m fine…”
He was fine.
So no trouble would fall upon Pei Jin.
Under the soothing sound of his slightly hoarse voice, Ning Zhiyuan’s tense emotions gradually settled.
Thank goodness.
They were both still alive.
The smell of disinfectant and the endless white surroundings reminded her where they were.
She didn’t want to stay another second.
“I want to go home.”
Inside the car, Ning Zhiyuan leaned weakly against the window.
Her face was pale, and her fingers tapped nervously against the frame.
A trace of hesitation flickered through Shen Li’s eyes.
Not far away, a petite figure watched the departing vehicle with curiosity.
“Xiaoxiao, what are you looking at?”
Bai Cuilan’s chronic back pain had flared up again. Holding a bag of medicine, she nudged Bai Xiaoxiao with her elbow.
“I think I just saw Ning Zhiyuan.”
Bai Cuilan’s expression changed.
“That’s impossible. Doesn’t she hate hospitals?”
Jealousy surged in Bai Xiaoxiao’s eyes.
Pulling out her phone, she dialed a number.
“Brother Pei Jin…”
When they returned to the Shen family villa, several large suitcases were still sitting conspicuously in the living room.
Seeing them, Shen Li frowned.
“Aunt Wang, why hasn’t the luggage been put away yet?”
Aunt Wang glanced at Ning Zhiyuan, then at Shen Li.
She remained silent.
Ning Zhiyuan immediately grabbed Shen Li’s arm and complained,
“She won’t let me stay in the same room as you.”
Stay in the same room.
Was that what he thought it meant?
Sharing a bed?
It was something so absurd that even in his dreams, he wouldn’t dare imagine it.
Shen Li could hardly believe his ears.
His mind stalled completely before finally finding his voice.
“Don’t be ridiculous. Aunt Wang, move the luggage to the third floor.”
Ning Zhiyuan immediately protested.
“I want to share a room with you!”
“No.”
As Aunt Wang began moving the luggage, Ning Zhiyuan tried to stop her.
Before she could, Shen Li caught hold of her arm.
She couldn’t break free.
All she could do was watch as Aunt Wang and Assistant Qi carried her boxes upstairs.
At dinner, Ning Zhiyuan refused to speak to Shen Li.
Neither of them said a word throughout the meal.
Shen Li understood exactly why she was angry.
Allowing her to stay here was already his limit.
Sharing a room was something he simply could not accept.
Even though he believed Yuanyuan was enduring all of this for Pei Jin’s sake.
She didn’t need to go this far.
After dinner, they each returned to their own rooms.
Standing inside the spotless guest room, Ning Zhiyuan felt no happiness whatsoever.
Shen Li lived on the second floor.
She was one floor above him.
With his busy work schedule, even if he wasn’t deliberately avoiding her, meeting him wouldn’t be easy.
She had moved all the way here.
Was she supposed to spend her days like the Cowherd and Weaver Girl, separated and longing from afar?
After showering, the itching on her skin returned.
Yesterday, shortly after applying the ointment, her clothes had gotten wet, forcing her to bathe and change.
Today, by the time she remembered the medicine, Shen Li’s condition had worsened and she had been distracted by his coughing.
The hot water had only made the itching worse.
Holding the tube of ointment, Ning Zhiyuan hurried downstairs.
She would definitely find a way to sleep in the same room as him.
When Shen Li heard the knock and opened the door, he found Ning Zhiyuan standing outside in a white nightgown.
She had thick hair.
Fair skin.
Delicate, beautiful features.
Her eyes and brows looked as though they had been painted by an artist.
She resembled a life-sized doll.
“What is it?”
Ning Zhiyuan refused to answer.
Instead, she raised the tube of ointment for him to see.
Making it clear that she still hadn’t applied it today.
Apply medicine.
The phrase instantly triggered Shen Li.
Had Pei Jin applied her medicine last night too?
Had he touched her skin the way Shen Li had?
Had his heart raced because of her as well?
Had they done anything else?
Jealousy burned through him.
Things he had once endured now felt increasingly unbearable.
His emotions were slipping out of control.
But intimate acts between people in love were perfectly natural.
Shen Li blamed everything on himself.
It was his fault for crossing the line first and helping Yuanyuan apply the ointment.
Having briefly possessed something that was never meant to belong to him, he had become dissatisfied.
Unwilling to let go.
“Have the housekeeper do it.”
Ning Zhiyuan pressed her hand against the door before he could close it.
“I don’t like her.”
You don’t like the housekeeper.
And you don’t like me either.
The only person Yuanyuan likes is Pei Jin.
“Then have the person you like do it.”
With a little force, Shen Li shut the door.
Leaning against it, he covered his eyes.
Only now did he realize that rejecting Yuanyuan hurt far more than he had imagined.
He didn’t know how long he stood there.
At first, he could hear her kicking the door in frustration.
Eventually, everything became quiet.
The violent ache in his chest slowly gave way to numb silence.
Dragging his legs, now stiff from standing too long, he slowly moved toward the sofa.
A message from the housekeeper appeared on his phone.
Mr. Shen, Miss Ning won’t let me get close to her.
What if the marks remained because she refused to apply the medicine?
That afternoon he had noticed that the marks on her body had barely faded.
Pei Jin really didn’t care enough about her.
No.
He needed to check on her.
Shen Li immediately stood up.
The dizziness in his head made him stagger several steps.
Then the tiny spark of hope was extinguished by reason.
Yuanyuan had probably gone to find Pei Jin again.
No matter how inadequate Pei Jin might be, she still loved him.
Shen Li sat back down.
Just then, Assistant Qi called.
“Boss, there’s something I’d like to tell you.”
“What is it?”
“Yesterday I spoke to Miss Ning too harshly in the heat of the moment. I know I was wrong. I was just too worried…”
Shen Li listened absentmindedly.
“Two months’ salary deduction. Don’t let it happen again.”
“It won’t happen again, I promise.”
Assistant Qi finally breathed a sigh of relief.
After everything that had happened, his opinion of the young lady had completely changed.
She didn’t seem quite as heartless toward the boss as he had thought.
She had even declared today that she wanted to stay in the same room as him.
Who knew?
Maybe one day she would become his boss’s wife.
He definitely couldn’t afford to offend her.
“By the way, Boss, last night was really thanks to Miss Ning. The doctor said if she’d brought you in any later, the consequences would’ve been unimaginable.”
Shen Li froze.
“Didn’t Yuanyuan go to see Pei Jin last night?”
“Impossible. Miss Ning was the first person to discover you unconscious. She rode with you to the hospital and stayed by your side all night. She didn’t have time to see anyone else.”
Shen Li slowly lowered the phone.
Then he strode to the door and twisted it open.
The moment the door swung open, Ning Zhiyuan, who had fallen asleep leaning against it, toppled forward.
His reflexes kicked in instantly.
Bending down, he caught her in his arms before she could fall.
Half-asleep, Ning Zhiyuan found a comfortable position against his chest.
Then she rubbed her head lightly against him.