“Did you miss me?” The man’s breathing was heavy, his voice husky.
He was bare-chested, his broad back taut and well-defined. His handsome features were sharp and striking, as though sketched in charcoal.
The veins on the arm resting around the girl’s waist stood out faintly, hinting at the powerful strength beneath.
Wen Shiqing whimpered softly without saying a word, tiny kitten-like cries escaping her throat.
Xie Yucheng turned his head and sucked and nipped at her tender earlobe, his large, heated palm gently stroking her waist.
His deep, rich voice came with warm breath against her ear.
“Say you missed me, and I’ll let you go.”
The girl’s skin was smooth and fair, her waist slender as a willow. Her long hair cascaded down her shoulders like a waterfall, while her delicate, graceful curves were unmistakable beneath the thin nightgown.
The room was filled with the sweet fragrance emanating from her, making the entire space warm and fragrant.
The two of them were pressed closely together—one as strong and formidable as steel, the other as soft as a piece of tender tofu.
Her earlobes were sensitive. After only a few moments, she could no longer endure it and collapsed helplessly into his arms.
Wen Shiqing let out a soft whimper, two teardrops squeezing from her beautiful eyes.
“I missed you…” Her voice was delicate, the last syllable trembling.
Xie Yucheng gave a low chuckle, tightening his arm around her and pulling her firmly against him. He lowered his head and licked away her tears, his hoarse voice almost burning with heat.
“I was lying.”
His thin lips crushed against hers. He pried open her teeth and plunged inside, his forceful, domineering kiss stealing away all her breath.
The unmistakable sounds of their kiss echoed intimately in her ears. The girl’s cheeks flushed red with embarrassment and indignation, her heart trembling.
The kiss traveled from her chin down to her fair, slender neck. The intense masculine scent surrounding Xie Yucheng enveloped her. His teeth gently grazed and nipped at her skin, leaving every place he touched burning like wildfire.
The next second, Wen Shiqing’s body suddenly left the ground as he swept her up and tossed her onto the bed.
She reacted quickly and tried to crawl toward the edge of the bed, but her delicate ankle was suddenly caught. He dragged her back toward him.
Unable to restrain himself, he lowered his head and kissed her little mouth.
Her long, slender neck, delicate collarbones, and fair shoulders were all subjected to his attention…
He tasted her sweetness with almost savage intensity.
After a long while, Wen Shiqing was left weak-limbed from his kisses, her expression hazy. She pressed both hands against his chest and pleaded softly.
“Don’t… please. I really can’t today…”
Xie Yucheng suppressed his hurried breathing and stopped, keeping her enclosed within his arms.
“Give me one kiss willingly, and I’ll let you go.”
She furrowed her delicate brows and pouted, her soft little fists pounding against his shoulder.
“You’re lying again.”
“I’m not. I mean it.” His dark eyes were deep and solemn, the corners of his thin lips curling slightly. He looked completely serious.
Wen Shiqing blinked her long lashes. After a couple of seconds, she closed her eyes and gently tilted her face upward, pressing her lips against his.
Her lashes trembled slightly, and her fair, rosy skin was as flawless as fine jade.
Xie Yucheng’s throat tightened. It seemed as though all the blood in his body had begun to boil. He suddenly gripped her neck and kissed her deeply, his kiss overwhelmingly possessive.
In the darkness, Wen Shiqing heard the distinct click of a belt buckle.
The man’s voice was hoarse, his low, uneven breathing brushing against her ear.
“With you being this willing, how could I possibly let you go?”
Several months earlier.
Jicheng, the transportation department of a state-owned factory.
Dressed entirely in black, Xie Yucheng casually slung a black briefcase over one shoulder. A Marlboro cigarette that had never been lit hung from his lips as he strolled out of Manager Zhang’s office in the transportation department.
He turned right at the end of the corridor and headed straight for the finance office.
“Reimbursement!”
He leaned lazily against the doorway of the finance office and knocked on the door, a carefree smile playing on his face. There was an effortlessly roguish charm about him.
“Oh, Young Master Xie, back from a trip?” Sister Zhang, the supervisor of the office, teased him.
Sister Lan, the accountant responsible for processing drivers’ reimbursements, smiled and nodded toward him.
“The forms are over there. Fill them out first.”
Xie Yucheng tucked the cigarette behind his ear and walked into the room. He dropped himself into a chair beside an empty desk and laughed.
“No rush.”
His voice was low and magnetic, like a magnet itself. It carried a faint electric quality that inexplicably made one’s heart tingle.
To his left sat a young girl who had just arrived at the finance department as an intern.
Clearly seeing him for the first time, she stole several glances at Xie Yucheng from the corner of her eye and couldn’t help blushing.
The man’s profile was sharply defined. His lashes hung slightly lowered, his brow ridge high, the bridge of his nose straight, and his features deep and striking. His Adam’s apple was prominent.
Whenever he turned his head, his sharp, handsome eyes came into view. When he smiled, the corners of his lips lifted ever so slightly, while his dark eyes were deep and captivating.
Xie Yucheng pulled open the zipper of his black briefcase and took out a beautifully packaged bar of soap with Russian writing on it. He handed it to Sister Zhang across the desk.
“Here. I heard you mention this brand of soap last time, so I specifically brought one back for you.”
Sister Zhang’s eyes lit up. She hurriedly accepted it. The rich fragrance of the soap drifted through the wrapping paper and reached her nose, making her grin from ear to ear.
“Oh, you’re such a thoughtful boy~ How much was it?”
Xie Yucheng gave a roguish smile and waved his hand.
“Talking about money would ruin the relationship.”
He then pulled a copy of Industrial Accounting from his bag and placed it on Sister Lan’s desk.
“Sister Lan, I asked a friend to help me find the book you wanted. Is this the one?”
Sister Lan put down her pen, delight flooding her eyes. She picked up the book and examined it from every angle.
“Yucheng, how did you manage to find this? You can’t even buy this book on the market anymore.”
Xie Yucheng raised an eyebrow.
“As long as I got the right one.”
Warmth spread through Sister Lan’s heart as she lovingly ran her fingers over the book.
Next, the man pulled out several pieces of chocolate and handed them to the new girl beside him, a teasing smile hanging on his lips.
“Imported from Germany. Give them a try.”
The young girl’s face immediately turned red all the way to her ears.
“Thank you,” she murmured.
Xie Yucheng sat down casually at the desk and finally got down to business. He pulled a stack of receipts from his pocket and lowered his head, filling out the reimbursement forms one by one.
His handwriting was bold and powerful. Every stroke carried the same sharpness and wild confidence as the man himself.
Xie Yucheng was a permanent truck driver in the transportation department of a large state-owned factory. The job had been arranged for him by his father, Xie Guoli.
Xie Guoli had once been a long-distance truck driver here. At the time, Xie Yucheng had just graduated from high school and spent his days fooling around in the city with a group of friends.
That year, Xie Guoli happened to break his leg in an accident while on duty and could never drive again, leaving him permanently disabled. The factory paid him compensation and arranged for him to retire early.
Before leaving, Xie Guoli had his son take over his position at the factory.
The salary could be a little over a hundred yuan at the low end and as much as two hundred at the high end. In an era when the average monthly wage was only thirty or forty yuan, it was an enviable profession—a classic “iron rice bowl.”
But Xie Yucheng wasn’t satisfied.
From the window of the finance office, he could see the Yellow River JN162 truck parked in the factory grounds. The truck was massive and imposing, with a ten-ton load capacity. It had traveled with him for more than a month and was currently being inspected by colleagues from another department.
No matter how much he loved gripping that steering wheel, the truck still belonged to the state.
He could spend an entire month driving a government-owned truck, eating and sleeping on the road, and at most earn a little over a hundred yuan in wages.
But things would be different if he had a truck of his own.
Being an independent truck driver was where the real money was. He could earn several hundred to more than a thousand yuan a month.
Xie Yucheng dreamed of owning his own truck.
This long-distance trip had lasted nearly a month, and there were countless expenses to reimburse, from meals and lodging to fuel and all sorts of other costs. By the time he finished filling out all the paperwork, it was almost quitting time.
He handed the reimbursement forms to Sister Zhang. She flipped through them briefly.
As usual, every expense was reasonable and compliant, and everything had been recorded carefully and in detail.
Although the boy from the Old Xie family appeared carefree and unruly in everyday life, he was meticulous and considerate when it came to doing things. Unlike the other drivers, he never tried to skim anything from the factory.
He neither took a penny more nor claimed a penny less. He had principles.
Sister Zhang didn’t even bother to inspect the forms closely. With one sweeping stroke, she signed her name.
Xie Yucheng then handed the signed documents to Sister Lan.
The normal quitting time was five-thirty, but once it reached five o’clock, Sister Lan stopped doing anything work-related. No matter who came to claim reimbursement, she wouldn’t process it.
The hands of the silver Seagull watch on Xie Yucheng’s wrist pointed to 5:28.
The stack of receipts sat beside her. Sister Lan thought nothing of it. She glanced at the total reimbursement amount, took the cash from the safe, counted it, and immediately reimbursed Xie Yucheng on the spot.
“Thanks.”
Xie Yucheng stuffed the money into his pocket.
“No need to be so polite.”
Sister Lan smiled and picked up her bag, ready to leave work.
Xie Yucheng went beneath the parking shed in the factory grounds and yanked the cover off his motorcycle in one motion. The rush of air sent a cloud of dust swirling.
It was a red Xingfu XF250. He hadn’t ridden it many times since buying it, so it still looked brand-new and incredibly cool.
He swung one long leg over the seat and rode out of the factory at full speed.
The wind whipped his jacket loudly behind him. The man was like a wild black panther as he sped past the old factory buildings and through the residential area of apartment blocks.
His perfect profile drew the attention of girls along the roadside, who all turned to look.
The Xie family lived in an alley in the northern part of the city. Every household in the alley had its own private courtyard.
Although the location was somewhat remote, the living conditions were much better than those in the apartment blocks in the city center.
Wen Shiqing sat outside the doorway, holding a little chick in her arms and basking in the sun.
Her mother, Yang Ying, was chatting with several neighborhood women beneath a large locust tree at the eastern end of the alley, while her stepfather, Xie Guoli, was reading the newspaper inside the house.
Suddenly, several short, loud blasts of a motorcycle horn rang out, followed by the noisy laughter and teasing voices of the women at the entrance to the alley.
“Oh, the handsome boy is back!”
“Yucheng, do you have a girlfriend yet? You’re not getting any younger. Auntie can introduce you to someone…”
Hearing the commotion, Wen Shiqing abruptly stood up. Holding the chick, she took several steps forward and craned her neck to look ahead.
A familiar handsome face suddenly appeared in her line of sight.
The man had a cigarette dangling from the corner of his mouth. His lips curled into a smile, his narrow eyes carrying a carefree, unruly charm as he turned his head and teased the women.
“What? Sixth Aunt, you missed me?”
“What’s a girlfriend? I’m still underage, you know. Why are you talking to me about that?”
Wen Shiqing stood awkwardly at the doorway.
Her pale yellow dress made her look like a pure little daisy. Her black hair was braided into two long plaits, and her skin was so fair that it seemed almost translucent, with tiny veins faintly visible beneath it. She looked so delicate that it seemed as though she might shatter at the slightest touch.
One hand clutched the hem of her dress tightly, while her heart pounded violently in her chest.
He had been gone for a full twenty-seven days.
When the motorcycle came to a steady stop in front of her, Wen Shiqing’s curled lashes trembled.
She timidly called out, “Brother.”
Her soft voice brushed against Xie Yucheng’s ear like a feather.
The man planted one long leg on the ground, the cigarette hanging loosely from his lips in a roguish manner. He raised an eyebrow lazily and stared at her with unmistakable amusement.
The girl standing before him truly was his stepmother’s biological daughter.
Those similar eyes and brows made him dislike her the moment he saw her.
His gaze fell upon the little chick in her arms.
Its entire body was covered in soft yellow down, its timid eyes and tiny beak making it look surprisingly similar to her.
Xie Yucheng lifted his chin, his lazy, deep voice drifting through the air.
“What? You gave birth to it?”
Wen Shiqing’s face instantly turned bright red at his teasing.
She hurriedly shook her head.
“No, Brother. It wasn’t me. It was Ali.”
Ali?
The hen she had raised for more than two years.
She fed it diligently every day, gave it medicine whenever it got sick, and kept its coop cleaner than her own room. She treated that hen like a precious treasure.
The corner of Xie Yucheng’s mouth twitched.
She had actually explained it so seriously.
He was just about to speak when he suddenly sensed a sharp gaze coming from behind him.
His tongue pressed against the back of his teeth. He gave a disdainful scoff and crooked his index finger at the girl.
“Come here.”
It was an unmistakable command.
Wen Shiqing obediently took a step forward and moved closer to him.
The man’s large hand suddenly pressed against the back of her neck. He leaned down toward her ear.
They were so close that Xie Yucheng could clearly see the fine layer of down covering her skin.
The faintly bitter scent of tobacco mixed with the crisp, clean fragrance emanating from the man, like a winter forest, completely enveloping Wen Shiqing.
The sense of pressure was overwhelming.
Her breathing stopped, and she didn’t dare move.
His warm breath brushed against her ear, and her earlobe visibly turned bright red.
Xie Yucheng caught sight of approaching footsteps from the corner of his eye. He glanced coldly at her and spoke in a deliberately cruel tone.
“You’re just like your mother. Neither of you is any good. Why are you pretending to be some innocent little rabbit?”
The posture between them was intimate and suggestive, yet his words were like invisible knives, stabbing into Wen Shiqing’s heart inch by inch.
The gentle curve of her lips froze.
She was used to it.
Over the years, the vicious things he said had already torn her apart a thousand times over.
“Nannan!”
Yang Ying stepped forward and pulled her daughter away, then put on a fake smile as she said to Xie Yucheng, “Hurry inside. Your father has been talking about you for days.”
She had never liked this stepson.
Eight years ago, when she had just married Xie Guoli, Xie Yucheng had already shown his disgust and resistance toward her.
He didn’t like her, and she didn’t like him either.
As her daughter grew older, she became even more wary of the two of them having contact.
Xie Yucheng knew exactly what she was thinking. He gave her a slanted glance, treating her as though she were nothing more than air.
He didn’t bother responding.
He leaned the motorcycle against the wall, stepped past the two of them, casually slung the black briefcase over his shoulder, and swaggered into the house.
“Nannan, what did he say to you just now?”
Yang Ying pulled her daughter aside.
Yang Ying was from Suzhou and spoke with the soft, lilting accent characteristic of the region. Her speech was gentle and melodious, and Wen Shiqing had inherited the same manner of speaking from her.
She was ten years younger than Xie Guoli and still looked young and beautiful. She dressed fashionably, changing her clothes every day. Her hair was styled in the popular “shou shou ting” perm of the time, giving her an appearance that was both graceful and alluring.
Aside from preparing the family’s three meals each day, she spent most of her time going out and enjoying herself.
Xie Guoli rarely controlled her. As long as she kept the household chores in order, he was satisfied.
Wen Shiqing lowered her eyes, her long lashes gently curled.
“He didn’t say anything.”
“Listen to your mother. Don’t get too close to him, understand? He’s full of bad habits, and he has such an awful, stubborn temper. After all these years, no matter how good anyone is to him, it’s useless. He’s a stone that can never be warmed.”
“Mom, Brother isn’t the kind of person you said he is.”
Seeing her daughter defend her stepson, Yang Ying poked her forehead with one finger, her tone full of exasperation.
“Brother, brother, brother. Does he even treat you like a sister? Don’t humiliate yourself by throwing yourself at him.”
Wen Shiqing smacked her lips, stunned for a moment, then carried the little chick into the courtyard.
She didn’t want to be his sister.