Chapter 13

Chapter 13: Sitting on His Lap "Do you want to consider living together?" The man easily wrapped his arms around her, his pleasant woody scent enveloping her entirely. Nan Shu's limbs froze. She didn't dare move a muscle, sitting straddled across Xie Zeyan face-to-face, her face nearly pressed against his chest. The man's chest was scorching hot, like a warm stove, burning Nan Shu's face until it grew even more flushed. At a loss, she shifted slightly. The sleeping man sensed it. The next second, the force around her waist suddenly tightened, and she sank down again. This time, the two of them were almost perfectly pressed together. So close that she could hear Xie Zeyan's heart beating rapidly. Thump, thump. Almost at the same frequency as hers. After what felt like an eternity, the constricting force finally loosened a little. Nan Shu caught her breath and gently pushed against Xie Zeyan's shoulder. "Xie Zeyan, wake up." The man's eyes slowly opened. Before he could even see who was in his arms, he caught the familiar scent on her first, then realizing what had happened, he abruptly withdrew his hands. "Sorry." Xie Zeyan's voice was slightly hoarse. His gaze dimmed. "I was dreaming just now." "It's... it's fine." Nan Shu's cheeks were crimson. Flustered, she scrambled off Xie Zeyan's lap, meeting the man's misty eyes. Those peach blossom eyes were deep as a pool, the slight bags beneath them tinged with the faintest red. This was the first time Nan Shu had seen a man right after waking up, and it was honestly... a little too alluring. She turned her face away, shifting her gaze, only to land inadvertently on the man's collar. The top button of his shirt was undone, and two clear red marks stood out on his pale collarbone. They must have been left when her fingertips accidentally grazed him as he pulled her into his arms. Anyone who didn't know better would think the two of them had been doing something bold and scandalous in public. Nan Shu's thoughts tangled into a mess of yarn, her cheeks burning even more fiercely. Xie Zeyan re-buttoned his shirt, his breathing still heavy and deep. "I'll step out for some air." The door closed, and the sound of his footsteps gradually faded. Nan Shu walked into the bathroom and splashed cool water on her face. She replayed the scene from just now, the warm sensation seemingly still lingering on her skin, ripples spreading through her heart one after another. She cupped another handful of cold water over her face, pressing down the last trace of heat in her chest. ... Dawn light crept in, a streak of orange cutting through the pale gray sky. Xie Zeyan stood at the end of the corridor. The two glass windows were pushed open, and the morning breeze carried a chill as it blew toward him, yet the girl's fragrance seemed to linger at the tip of his nose. The jasmine scent on her—he knew it better than anything. After going abroad, he could only fall asleep with that scent every night. She would often appear in his dreams. Sometimes it was just a silent replay of the first time he saw her; sometimes he was sitting in a classroom, watching her walk past the corridor with a smile, her high ponytail swinging behind her. But this time in his dream, her presence was stronger than ever before. He dreamed she had thrown herself into his arms, and he instinctively wanted to hold on tight. After all, in a dream, he shouldn't have to hold back so much. • Xie Zeyan never came back, and Nan Shu assumed he had gone to work. A nurse came by in the middle of the day. Huituichang's condition had improved, and once the doctor came in later, they would do a full re-examination. If all went well, he could be discharged today. Meanwhile, Liang Jiayi, having heard that her godson was sick, sent several WeChat messages asking about the situation. Nan Shu replied to reassure her. As she exited the chat, a WeChat message from Liang Xubai popped up at the top of her phone. Liang Xubai: [Nannan, which hospital are you at right now?] Nan Shu typed out a reply to Liang Xubai, and out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of Xie Zeyan walking in carrying a serving of wonton soup. He hadn't left after all? Nan Shu froze for a moment. The instant her gaze met the man's, her mind inevitably drifted back to this morning's events. It was still so embarrassing. Her ears tinged pink, and she hastily lowered her head. A slender hand appeared in her field of vision. Xie Zeyan held the wonton soup out to her. "Eat breakfast first." Nan Shu kept her eyes lowered. "Thank you." She took it and saw the name on the packaging—it turned out to be the shop she used to frequent in high school. Back then, the cafeteria food at school was barely edible, so she and Liang Jiayi often went to nearby places for better meals. The wonton shop was their most frequent stop. Come to think of it, since transferring schools, she had never been back to that wonton shop. Once, when she was posting on social media, she had shared a photo of wontons she'd cooked herself, captioned: [After all these years, I still miss the wontons from the shop outside my high school.] She never expected Xie Zeyan to happen to buy them for her. She opened the packaging. The wontons floated in the soup, topped with chopped scallions, dried shrimp, and seaweed, the aroma wafting up. Her stomach seemed to awaken at the smell. Nan Shu rubbed her empty belly, scooped up a wonton, and as she brought it to her mouth, she stole a glance at Xie Zeyan. Xie Zeyan's expression remained unchanged, as if he had already moved past the little incident from that morning. Even though she had just told herself to stay calm, seeing how quickly Xie Zeyan had turned the page, Nan Shu still felt an inexplicable tightness in her chest. That was her first hug, after all. Nan Shu managed to talk herself into being annoyed, stabbing viciously at a small wonton. "Plotting murder against a wonton?" Xie Zeyan's lips quirked slightly. Nan Shu: "..." Fine, he had been unconscious in his dream at the time, probably mistaking her for a body pillow. Considering he had helped her out so much, she'd temporarily forgive him. Nan Shu lowered her head and continued eating. Before long, the sound of a door opening reached her ears. A man in a white t-shirt with refined features walked in, also carrying a takeout bag. "Brother Xubai?" Nan Shu put down her spoon and waved at the person by the door. Liang Xubai approached, and seeing that Nan Shu was already eating breakfast, set the xiaolongbao he was carrying on the table. "I felt terrible for missing your call yesterday. I don't have work this morning, so I hurried over to check on Huituichang." His gaze unconsciously drifted to the extraordinary, distinguished man sitting beside Nan Shu. Liang Xubai turned his head and asked her, "And this is?" Nan Shu introduced him: "This is Xie Zeyan." Then she introduced Liang Xubai to Xie Zeyan: "This is my best friend's older brother, Liang Xubai." Liang Xubai remembered that time at the bar when he'd overheard Nan Shu and Liang Jiayi talking about him. Later, when he'd gone to Zong Yi about the apartment rental, he'd recalled that Zong Yi and Xie Zeyan were close acquaintances. He politely extended a hand. "Hello." Xie Zeyan's expression was indifferent, his black suit exuding an overwhelming sense of pressure. He raised his hand and gave a low acknowledgment. It was obvious that Xie Zeyan didn't want to engage with him, and Liang Xubai certainly wasn't about to invite rejection. He walked over to the hospital bed, played with Huituichang for a moment, then said to Nan Shu, "I figured you'd have trouble getting breakfast at the hospital, so I brought you some xiaolongbao. But it seems I was a little late." The atmosphere with three people was more awkward than with two. Xie Zeyan and Liang Xubai sat on either side of Nan Shu, watching her eat breakfast, neither of them saying a word. Nan Shu didn't dare make a sound either. She could only keep her head down and eat her wontons. Before long, the wontons in her bowl were gone, and all she could do was scoop up the soup with her spoon, sip by sip. Finally, a nurse knocked on the door of the ward. "Room eleven, Huituichang, you can come out for your examination now." "I'll take Huituichang," Xie Zeyan said. In the blink of an eye, Huituichang was already in Xie Zeyan's arms. Liang Xubai stepped forward. "I'll take Huituichang instead." "I've taken care of Huituichang for a while and I'm more familiar with him. I'll take him," Xie Zeyan said coldly. "Is that so?" Liang Xubai pushed up his glasses on the bridge of his nose. "When Nannan first found Huituichang, we took him together to get dewormed and vaccinated. Shouldn't I be the one more familiar with him?" Liang Xubai's voice was gentle, his tone unhurried, but the repeated use of "Nannan" made it clear to Xie Zeyan what he meant. He frowned slightly. Why did it feel like there was gunpowder in the air? As Huituichang's only family member, Nan Shu's radar began to sound. Could these two really like Huituichang that much? Surely they weren't going to fight over him, were they? The nurse tapped the door again. "Hurry it up, please. Either of you gentlemen is fine." Seeing the tense standoff between the two, Nan Shu stepped in to smooth things over, saying to Xie Zeyan, "Let Brother Xubai go." After all, Xie Zeyan had already been running around with her and Huituichang all night. She didn't feel right asking more of him. "Fine." Since Nan Shu had spoken, what could Xie Zeyan say? He let go, his lips pressed into a straight line, his voice lower than it had ever been. Nan Shu inexplicably caught a hint of... hurt? on his face. Liang Xubai curved his lips into a smile and took Huituichang from Xie Zeyan's hands. Huituichang's paws reached out, and he pounced into Liang Xubai's embrace. Man and dog followed the nurse and walked off. The ward, which had been lively just moments ago, was now left with only Nan Shu and Xie Zeyan. The silence was deafening. Nan Shu broke out in a cold sweat. She pushed the xiaolongbao on the table toward him and gently poked Xie Zeyan's shoulder. "You haven't had breakfast. Want a few xiaolongbao to tide you over?" "No." "Oh." Nan Shu sheepishly pulled the xiaolongbao back. Xie Zeyan's phone buzzed. He glanced briefly at the lit screen and answered Cheng Jingyan's call in the hallway. "What's going on with Zong Yi? He sent me a message in the middle of the night, and now he's not replying. He didn't get into trouble, did he?" Xie Zeyan was already feeling irritated, and his tone came out sharp and clipped: "He got kicked out." Zong Yi had gone to his girlfriend's place after the welcome dinner last night, reeking of alcohol. She'd been disgusted and thrown him out, flowers and all. Of course, he'd managed to weasel his way back in eventually. "I see." Cheng Jingyan suddenly understood. "Honestly, those two—they fight over every little thing, big fights every few days, yet somehow their relationship is rock solid. No matter how much they argue, they never break up." Listening to the man on the phone ramble on, Xie Zeyan's irritation only grew. He pressed his temple and told Cheng Jingyan to get to the point. "Just asking on my dad's behalf—about that south city project, does Mingyu..." Xie Zeyan's replies were all brief. "No, still thinking it over." "Mm." "Got it. We'll talk later." His words drifted into Nan Shu's ears, fragmented against the empty, echoing space. Kicked out, still considering, talk later. So Xie Zeyan had been kicked out by his landlord? Nan Shu was taken aback, but quickly pieced together clues from earlier events. Xie Zeyan was very familiar with that cramped duty room at Siji—now that she thought about it, he must have stayed there quite a bit. And in yesterday's phone call, there was a lot of background noise on his end—clearly he wasn't at home. He'd said he was fine and not busy. If he wasn't busy late at night and wasn't home, what other reason could there be? It was all because he had nowhere to stay! Now everything made sense. Nan Shu's heart suddenly felt like it was being squeezed by a large hand, aching for Xie Zeyan. The former young master of the Xie Group—had he really fallen to this? When she'd been looking for a place, her standards had already been set pretty low, and it had still taken her a full week or so. Not to mention Xie Zeyan, who was used to luxury and would find it hard to adjust to less. With his standards for finding a place, it would probably take months. Besides, Xie Zeyan had several jobs and side gigs—he probably couldn't spend days searching from morning to night like she had. A thought suddenly crossed Nan Shu's mind. Jingyuan Huating should be able to meet Xie Zeyan's requirements quite well, right? The neighborhood was excellent in both location and environment—one of Jingjia's upscale residential areas. And she happened to have a spare guest room. "If I were you, I'd take advantage of the fact that the school heartthrob Xie is down on his luck right now and just trick him into coming home with you." Liang Jiayi's joking words from that day kept circling in her mind. ... When Xie Zeyan came back from his phone call, he saw Nan Shu propping her chin on her hand, lost in thought. Nan Shu looked up. Maybe it was psychological suggestion, but she genuinely felt that Xie Zeyan radiated a sense of homelessness and solitude from head to toe. "Xie Zeyan." She called out to him, hesitated for a moment, then finally spoke: "Do you not have a place to stay?" Xie Zeyan's expression stiffened slightly, wondering how Nan Shu had suddenly come to that conclusion. Nan Shu turned her face away awkwardly, speeding up her words: "I don't mean anything else by it. I just wanted to say, if you don't have a place to stay..." "Would you consider moving in with me?"