Ji Huanlan grabbed her handbag the moment she saw it. “Huo Huo, I’m heading out first. Handle the rest for me.”
“Understood. Does Chairman Ji need me to arrange a ride?”
Ji Huanlan walked toward the elevator as she spoke. “Shen Xi is coming to pick me up.”
Wang Huo smiled. “Very well.”
At the main entrance of Xinggang Fengtou.
A matte gray Rolls-Royce was parked by the roadside with its hazard lights flashing.
After arriving, Shen Xi quietly watched the building before him, neither impatient nor urging her.
Before long, employees began filing out of the company entrance one after another.
Soon, a strikingly eye-catching figure emerged from the crowd.
Guan Qi couldn’t help but compliment, “President Shen, the madam is truly beautiful.”
Shen Xi looked at the woman walking toward him.
She moved with purpose, every step carrying her unique presence—a world apart from the disheveled, frail woman he’d seen at the hospital that day.
Shen Xi gave his affirmation: “Mm.”
She was indeed beautiful.
Though she shared the same face as Ji Yaoqing, her beauty was striking. Character could transform a person.
Ji Huanlan guessed this was his car and headed straight for it.
Guan Qi stepped out first and opened the door ahead of time.
Many people noticed their new boss getting into a luxury car.
Once inside, Ji Huanlan caught the faint scent of fir wood—refreshing and pleasant.
She was about to greet Shen Xi when she received a phone call.
The woman was discussing business matters, which might well involve company secrets—not something others should overhear.
Shen Xi signaled the driver to stop, and Guan Qi understood.
He got out, walked around the rear of the car, and prepared to escort Shen Xi out, planning to return once Ji Huanlan finished her call.
Just as Shen Xi was about to step out, his wrist was caught.
He turned around.
The woman was looking at him. “You’re not an outsider. No need to step away.”
Not an outsider…
Shen Xi didn’t leave, but he truly didn’t listen to what Ji Huanlan was saying.
Not for any particular reason—his heart was a little unsettled, and he couldn’t focus.
The car continued toward Shen Zhai.
The call lasted over twenty minutes. When it ended, Ji Huanlan was somewhat exhausted, her expression less than bright.
Shen Xi snapped back to attention and asked, “The Marriott project?”
Ji Huanlan looked up. “You know people at Marriott?”
Shen Xi didn’t answer, only asking, “Marriott recently launched an amusement park project. Your company wants to invest?”
Ji Huanlan didn’t hide it. “Mm. Marriott’s project is substantial. If I secure it, it’ll shake up those damn old-timers.”
Hearing her choice of words, Shen Xi couldn’t help but chuckle.
Ji Huanlan was too preoccupied with the project on her hands to notice.
Back at Shen Zhai.
Ji Huanlan dove straight into work the moment she walked in—meetings, organizing documents—her eyes growing weary.
When she went to brew a cup of coffee and returned, she found a document on the desk titled “Marriott Investment Attraction Business Plan.”
She didn’t think twice about it.
Shen Xi must have had it delivered.
She took a sip of coffee, mulled it over, then sent a message.
In the study.
“That concludes the meeting.”
The executives on the video call were all bewildered. This early?
Because Shen Xi had seen the message Ji Huanlan sent—
“Once you’re done, come back to the room and rest early.”
For some reason, today he simply wanted to turn in early.
But before returning to the room, Shen Xi had Guan Qi help him with his washing and acupuncture treatment first.
He seemed unwilling to let Ji Huanlan take care of him that way.
Ji Huanlan had just lain down, not yet asleep, still looking at something on her tablet when she saw him come in.
“Can you manage on your own?”
He had changed into his pajamas, presumably already showered.
The wheelchair reached the bedside, and Shen Xi, familiar with the routine, transferred himself onto the bed with ease.
Only his calves lacked sensation; his thighs were still quite strong. He must have done plenty of training, as there was no sign of muscle atrophy in his lower legs.
His physique…
Was indeed enticing.
Noticing that rather scorching gaze, Shen Xi said, “Like what you see?”
Ji Huanlan leaned against the headboard, her chestnut-brown hair cascading down, a black sleeveless nightgown hugging her striking figure. She lounged lazily, her brows and eyes relaxed and alluring, a faint smile curving her lips.
That look in her eyes—indescribably seductive.
“Very much.”
He possessed an indisputably handsome face.
Shen Xi lay flat on his back, perfectly proper, but didn’t pull up the blanket.
“Then take your time looking.”
He actually lay there letting her have her fill.
Ji Huanlan didn’t know where the laughter came from.
The sound of a woman’s teasing, tantalizing laughter filled the air, tingling and numbing.
Shen Xi turned his head away, not looking at her.
The tablet was set down. Ji Huanlan shook out the blanket and set it aside, and then…
Shen Xi abruptly looked downward.
The woman was using her pale, slender, beautiful fingers to massage his calves.
“No need, Guan Qi already—”
Ji Huanlan sat cross-legged, her long hair reaching her waist, exceptionally graceful.
“Massaging more often is always beneficial.”
Her voice was soft, gentle, carrying the coolness of the moonlight.
At this moment, Ji Huanlan looked every bit the virtuous wife.
Shen Xi’s lashes trembled slightly, his breathing growing uneven.
She had never even asked whether his legs might recover, or whether there were any other aftereffects.
“We need to go back to the Ji family tomorrow,” Ji Huanlan spoke up on her own.
This would be the traditional third-day return visit.
Shen Xi draped the back of his hand over his forehead. “Want me to go with you?”
Originally, Ji Huanlan hadn’t planned on it, but if she went back alone, the Ji family members would start speculating that her relationship with Shen Xi wasn’t actually good, and they’d stir up trouble again.
Ji Huanlan asked, “Are you willing to come with me?”
Shen Xi closed his eyes. “Don’t ask if I’m willing. If you want to do it, I’ll go with you.”
It felt as though a soft feather had fallen onto the very tip of her heart—neither heavy nor light, yet impossible to ignore.
After massaging for over ten minutes, Ji Huanlan covered Shen Xi with the blanket before lying down herself.
She was emotionally stable, considerate enough, and had been dutifully playing the role of wife these past two days, all while managing her own career.
Most importantly, she wasn’t clingy, didn’t cause trouble, and there seemed to be an unspoken, inexplicable understanding between them.
Truly, perfect to the extreme.
The light went out, and the room fell into brief darkness.
Soon, moonlight crept in, casting a patch of light and shadow on the floor.
Neither of the two in bed was asleep, their breathing rhythms alternating, distinctly audible.
Ji Huanlan thought of something. “Do I… sleep still?”
She didn’t know if she moved around in her sleep, and Shen Xi’s legs weren’t in good condition—what if she accidentally kicked him…
In Shen Xi’s mind, he couldn’t help but recall the woman who had pressed herself against the very edge of the bed last night.
“Perfectly fine.”
Whether he was just saving her face, Ji Huanlan didn’t press further.
The work pressure was heavy, her nerves exhausted, and soon she fell asleep.
But Shen Xi couldn’t sleep.
He had just been about to drift off when he felt the mattress beside him sink slightly.
And then, a blanket was tossed over him.
Shen Xi: …
Ji Huanlan kicked off the blanket.
Revealing a pair of beautiful legs that would make any man covet them.
Shen Xi sat up, picked up the blanket, and covered her again.
So much so that for the next hour or so, Shen Xi felt very busy.
Busy covering Ji Huanlan with the blanket over and over again.
And surprisingly, the action repeated who knows how many times, yet he didn’t find it annoying.