Chapter 54

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Jian Yan woke up in the middle of the night, her body nestled in He Xiu’s embrace as his arms wrapped around her tightly. Although her position made her blush, she felt a slight wave of relief to be under the cover of the night.

Jian Yan hadn’t had any condoms at her place, so last night, He Xiu had pulled out at the final moment. Even though she was very brave yesterday night, she felt a little ashamed of herself upon recalling it in retrospect. She gazed at He Xiu for a while before finally withdrawing her gaze and wriggling herself free to go to the bathroom.

He Xiu hooked her around the waist and drew her back just as she moved. He seemed to be talking to himself as he murmured, “Don’t leave.”

Thanks to her movement just now, Jian Yan’s lower back ached once again. She wrinkled her brows and rapped He Xiu with her fist. “Let me go. I need to use the toilet.”

This time, He Xiu woke up. His eyes drowsily opened and fell upon the person in his embrace. “Mn?”

“I need to use the bathroom. Let me go.” Jian Yan repeated herself.

“Mn…” He Xiu heard her clearly this time but still wasn’t willing to let her go. “Can you? Do you need me to help you?”

Jian Yan: “…”

If her body wasn’t aching everywhere at the moment, she absolutely would have kicked him off.

“Thank you for your kindness.” Jian Yan struggled free of his embrace and slipped into her plush slippers to go to the bathroom. When she emerged, He Xiu was staring up at the ceiling, lost in thought.

Jian Yan quickly crawled back into bed and covered herself with the comforter. “Why aren’t you sleeping?”

“I can’t sleep without you in my arms.” He Xiu drew her into his embrace upon saying this. “Holding you is very comfortable.”

“…Hehe.”

He Xiu seemed to truly be very comfortable as he nuzzled her body with contentment. “To be holding you like this to sleep…it’s okay even if we’re not doing it.”

“…” Then who the fuck was working her body hard last night?

He Xiu slowly closed his eyes, his breathing becoming soft and even as well. “Sleep, good night.”

“…Good night.”

This time, Jian Yan slept until dawn. When she opened her eyes once again, He Xiu had already left her side. She sat up and unhurriedly washed up. After pulling on a wool sweater, she walked downstairs.

He Xiu was in the kitchen preparing breakfast. Jian Yan checked the time—9:00AM. He Xiu glanced in the direction of the living room when he sensed her presence and said, “Breakfast is almost ready; you should take a seat and wait.”

“Oh.” Jian Yan sat in a chair and propped her chin with both her hands to gaze at He Xiu bustling about in the kitchen. He Xiu’s movements were very skilled. Simply watching him indicated he was someone who frequently cooked. He could even prepare several dishes at the same time with methodical precision.

The breakfast he made was even more sumptuous than what Jian Yan had prepared last time. Staring at the table overflowing with food, Jian Yan felt the ache in her body lessen significantly. He Xiu was very concerned about her body; although he had restrained himself immensely last night, that had still been, after all, Jian Yan’s first time. He was afraid of hurting her. “If you feel uncomfortable anywhere, you must tell me.”

“…Got it.” Jian Yan bit into a delicate sandwich and drank some warm milk.

“I just pressed a lot of fruit juice, but I think it’s better if you drink something warm.” He glanced at Jian Yan’s less-than-half-full glass of milk while he spoke. “Do you want some more milk?”

“Mn, yes.” Jian Yan handed over the glass to him, allowing him to pour her some more.

Eldest Master He did so without any complaints, even deriving some happiness from the service.

Naturally, after eating breakfast, He Xiu was also in charge of cleaning up. Jian Yan curled comfortably into the sofa as she listened to him chatter away. “Don’t draw today; just stay home and rest well. I’ll come over at noon and bring lunch for you along the way.”

“Oh, then buy some fruit along the way.”

“What do you want to eat? There’s still oranges and lemons in the refrigerator; do you want apples?”

“Nope, I don’t like eating apples. Mn… Buy some dragon fruit, the ones with a red heart. Ah, those strawberries we plucked from the garden last time is also good. I want to eat strawberries again.”

He Xiu replied, “We’ll go pick strawberries again another day. Today, I’ll buy strawberries for you.”

“Then buying two strawberry cakes from the dessert parlor shouldn’t take much extra effort.”

He Xiu broke into laughter. “Do you still want to eat lunch?”

“I am; cake is afternoon dessert!”

Although He Xiu’s mouth told her she ate too much, he still bought everything she wanted without exception at noon—in addition to several small pastries.

Jian Yan was very satisfied. “It seems that when you previously said you wanted to wait upon me, it really wasn’t just a casual frivolous remark. Since it’s like this, I need to work even harder to earn money to support the family. Ah, I’ve been lazy the whole morning; I need to earnestly draw in the afternoon!”

“Out of the question.” He Xiu didn’t even need to think to overrule her. “In the afternoon, you continue to rest at home. I can both wait upon you and support the family.”

“…Then what else can I do?”

He Xiu beamed. “Enjoy life.”

Jian Yan: “…”

Out of the question; how could her moral integrity fall from grace to such an extent?!

But it didn’t matter if she fell from grace for two days.

She laid on her stomach on the sofa and ate strawberry cake. Occasionally, she would pound her lower back. After He Xiu saw this, he asked her, “Your lower back is aching?”

“Mn, but it’s a bit better than this morning.”

“Let me give you a massage.” He Xiu sat beside her as he said this, his hands pressing down and kneading into her lower back. “Is this pressure okay?”

“Mn, very comfortable…” Jian Yan’s eyes became half-lidded by the pressure as she swallowed the piece of cake in her mouth. “Actually, my legs are considerably sore as well. Help me massage those areas too.”

He Xiu smiled lightly and agreed. “Okay.”

“Oh…” While Jian Yan enjoyed Eldest Master He’s service, she asked him, “Valentine’s Day is coming up. The department store should be very busy, right? How come you have so much free time?”

“I am simply extending my lunch break, that’s all. I’ll have to go back to work in a little while. I’ll come back tonight.”

“Ah? You’re coming over tonight as well?”

He Xiu couldn’t help but chuckle. “Who would cook for you if I don’t come?” He deliberately bent down after he said this to whisper into Jian Yan’s ear, “Don’t worry, I won’t be staying here tonight.”

Jian Yan: “…”

Seeing the light blush creep up her ears, a satisfied smile graced He Xiu’s face. “Do you have free time tomorrow? Go with me somewhere.”

“Where to?”

“You’ll find out when you get there.”

“…How can I pick out my clothes when you say that?”

He Xiu laughed. “It doesn’t matter. Anything you wear will be fine.”

He continued to massage Jian Yan’s lower back for a while before he had to return to the company. Jian Yan’s words were right; the department store, because of the promotional Valentine’s Day sale campaign, had been awfully busy these past few days, and his duties were just as numerous. At work, he was as productive and as efficient as possible so he could make time to keep Jian Yan company.

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Later that night, he ate dinner with Jian Yan before he had to return to work, staying busy right up until 10:00PM when the department store closed. To his surprise, He Jing Long was waiting in the drawing room when He Xiu returned home.

At present, He Jing Long and Zhao Ying Fang were taking turns staying in the hospital with He Chen. Normally when He Xiu returned to the mansion, he would see not a single person—of course, this might be because his stays in the mansion were very brief.

He Jing Long saw his return and said, “He Chen will be discharged from the hospital several days from now.”

“Mn.” He Xiu’s brows twitched lightly. He intentionally waited here just to tell me this?

Apparently seeing through his mood, He Jing Long laughed self-deprecatingly. “You’re rarely home nowadays; seeing you is not an easy task.”

He Xiu pursed his lips, silent. He took two steps in the direction of the stairs before stopping. He turned to glance back at He Jing Long. “Oh, that’s right. After Jian Yan and I marry, I will move out from here.”

He Jing Long stared at him blankly. A good while later, he asked, “You two are already thinking about marriage?”

“Mn, should be within this year.” He Xiu no longer seemed willing to speak, as he began ascending the stairs.

He Jing Long said from behind him, “This place is so big, there wouldn’t be any problems in Jian Yan coming here to live at all.”

“The place is very big, but I’m worried she wouldn’t be accustomed to its size,” he said, turning his head back to look at He Jing Long. “Zhao Ying Fang doesn’t like me anyway. With me gone, your daily life will be better.”

He Jing Long’s brows furrowed together. So many years had passed, yet He Xiu still acted as if they were strangers. He originally had fantasized that their relationship would perhaps improve with Jian Yan acting as a buffer between them once He Xiu married her. He didn’t expect He Xiu to be preparing to leave without even the slightest reluctance.

He naturally didn’t want He Xiu to leave, but he knew he could not force He Xiu to stay. With no other options, he stated, “Then I’ll gift you two a house. Consider it a wedding present.”

“No need, I already bought a house.”

“Then what else could I do for you two?”

“Nothing.” He Xiu stared at him, the indifferent light flashing through his eyes as cold as a river. “If you could have given my mother this kind of care back then, how good would that have been.”

He Xiu’s mother was He Jing Long’s eternal weakness. A mention of her silenced him.

He Xiu spoke no more and headed straight to his room.

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Jian Yan had spent the entire day at home and resting. The next day, her body had nearly recovered completely. When she woke up in the morning, she casually made herself breakfast as she waited for He Xiu to arrive.

Frankly speaking, she was a bit curious and had made many guesses. She even suspected that he intended to lead her straight to the Ministry of Civil Affairs.1 When she recalled that marriage necessitated a residence certificate, however, she tossed away this notion.

He Xiu called her and told her to come down after he arrived downstairs. Today, Jian Yan had deliberately worn low-heeled shoes, her footsteps graceful as she ran downstairs. He Xiu gazed at her as she entered the car, smiling while asking her, “Already able to run? It seems you’ve recovered pretty well.”

“…” She didn’t know why, but she kept feeling that his smile harbored evil designs. She coughed and deliberately shifted his attention. “Where are you taking me? Isn’t the dance tonight? Are we not going?”

“We are. We’ll be back by noon.”

“Oh.” Jian Yan nodded. “Then where are we going now? Don’t tell me you have another aunt?”

He Xiu couldn’t help but chuckle. “It’s not an aunt this time. I’m taking you to see my mom.”

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Author’s Note:

Expressing thanks to sponsors

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Notes:

1. To get married!!! OwO ?