Not…
Can these stockings still be worn tomorrow?
Song Qiuyu gritted her teeth, slipping off her skirt and stockings. At the same time, several images kept flashing through her mind.
She didn’t know how others would react in this situation, but for her, it was truly baffling.
Her reaction was way too intense, thankfully Jiang Xiao probably hadn’t noticed.
Otherwise, how could she possibly explain it?
If she said she didn’t mind being kissed by him—at least physically, it felt quite pleasant?
What kind of scumbag girl statement was that!
But then again, Jiang Xiao was genuinely a bit terrifying at that moment. If he hadn’t stopped halfway, who knew what they might have done right there on the stage.
The Opera House was such a sacred place, comparable to a Western church or an Eastern Daoist temple or Buddhist monastery.
On stage…
Yeah… that probably would’ve been too crazy.
Song Qiuyu bit her lip and bent slightly forward, stretching out her two long, fair, and slender legs. She tossed the dirty clothes like a hot potato into the nearby laundry basket.
Even though this wasn’t the first time she’d experienced something like this, tonight’s events were excessively humiliating.
Thinking back to when she first wanted Jiang Xiao and Sang Tian to perform together, her heart involuntarily thumped wildly.
Had she taken on too much for redemption—too many things she was burdened with and had experienced?
Her cherry lips parted as she exhaled a breath of warmth, then slipped off her white camisole and the fake chest piece.
The upper half didn’t need changing, but the stockings definitely needed washing. She could only pray they’d dry in time for tomorrow.
[If they didn’t, she’d probably have to buy a new pair at the supermarket.]
Tilting her head, Song Qiuyu looked at the girl in the mirror, her cheeks flushed, and her gaze involuntarily dropped. She bit her lip.
She wondered if she fell asleep like this, would she dream of Jiang Xiao? Would he pin her down and tease her cruelly again?
Warm water sprayed down from the showerhead. Her beautiful eyelashes lowered as she absentmindedly began to carefully wash her body.
But then again, she was the one who’d been forcibly kissed by Jiang Xiao. Maybe that was something to be thankful for.
After all, with Jiang Xiao’s aggressive approach, he probably would’ve scared Sang Tian off and left a bad impression!
She was fine with it, because deep down she understood Jiang Xiao’s nature and wouldn’t hate him for it.
What she needed to do was simply tell Jiang Xiao he didn’t need to take responsibility, just give some appropriate compensation…
It was just a kiss; to her, it was neither painful nor harmful. She wouldn’t lose a piece of herself because of it!
Jiang Xiao had only kissed Shen Xi’s lips, but she had happily toyed with Jiang Xiao, that innocent little virgin, for three whole years.
Heh heh heh.
She’d gladly accept Jiang Xiao’s upcoming compensation as a hard-earned fee for the time spent revolving around him.
Thinking this, she pursed her lips, squeezed some shower gel, lathered up a rich foam, and continued washing.
After finishing her shower and hanging up her clothes to dry, the dorm lights had already gone out.
But Song Qiuyu still couldn’t go to bed.
She needed to brush her teeth.
With a glance toward the bed next to hers, Song Qiuyu tilted her head back, took a sip of water, puffed her cheeks, and rinsed her mouth, spitting the water out.
She squeezed a pea-sized amount of toothpaste onto her toothbrush and quickly brushed.
Brushing teeth was normally the most ordinary thing, but under these circumstances—after being kissed by Jiang Xiao—it became complicated.
She should have hated this, and Jiang Xiao should have known she would.
But if she truly hated it, it would hurt Jiang Xiao’s feelings; if not, then that meant there was something wrong with her.
In the end, Song Qiuyu only brushed once.
Brushing too much would damage her teeth.
Holding her phone and earphones, she climbed into bed, then resolutely put on the earphones and began listening to English vocabulary.
She had already registered for this semester’s CET-4 English Test. Time was ticking, and it was about time to start making time for review.
English was the subject she had hated most since childhood and always scored worst in.
Study Method!
She still didn’t believe that sleeping with it playing would make her dream of Jiang Xiao!
[Of course, Song Qiuyu hadn’t forgotten her daily routine. Listening to English words, she opened QQ on her phone and switched accounts.]
[Jiang Xiao]: Xi’er, I miss you so much today.
Huh?
Just that one sentence?
Song Qiuyu glanced at the person on the bed next to her with mixed feelings.
She couldn’t understand why Jiang Xiao hadn’t mentioned the thing about being seduced by her for two days straight.
Damn it, she couldn’t ask either.
Frowning, she stared at Jiang Xiao’s message on the chat page, grabbed the keyword “today,” and fell into thought.
Did something special happen to Jiang Xiao today?
She didn’t quite understand.
If it were related to Tifa cosplay they’d done together, he wouldn’t have completely ignored Song Qiuyu.
She could only guess that he might have been busy practicing, which was why he only sent that one message. There was precedent for this during their previous video shoot.
Putting down her phone, she lay back on the bed and closed her eyes. The English words sounded like a lullaby, and she quickly and peacefully fell asleep.
Fortunately, although she dreamed of Jiang Xiao that night, he didn’t bully her. Instead, she dreamed back to middle school—happy times of attending classes and fooling around with him.
When she woke up, a smile still lingered on her face, and she couldn’t help but cherish those days when life was much simpler.
But growing up had its benefits, too—she could now chase her own dreams!
In a good mood, she quickly sat up, tucked her phone into her pajamas pocket, and drew back the bed curtain. She planned to get up early and check on the stockings.
However, after grabbing the railing and stepping down two stairs, Jiang Xiao’s figure suddenly appeared on the balcony without warning.
Jiang Xiao obviously saw her, but whatever thoughts ran through him, his footsteps halted immediately as he entered the room.
“G-Good morning, Jiang Xiao.”
At the sight of Jiang Xiao, Song Qiuyu suddenly recalled the events at the Opera House yesterday, and her good mood evaporated.
But Jiang Xiao’s gaze remained on her. If her reaction was off, it might arouse his suspicion.
The thought of exposing her identity and likely suffering retaliation terrified her.
Her heart was still fine, but her legs went weak and trembled uncontrollably.
“Morning.”
Jiang Xiao acted as if nothing had happened yesterday—surprisingly normal and even greeted her cheerfully.
Hmm?
Seeing Jiang Xiao like this, could it be that after sleeping on it, he’d decided to just let the Opera House kiss go?
That way, it would be good for him, good for her, good for everyone. [That should be considered a good thing, right?]
Though she might not enjoy much more compensation from Jiang Xiao because of it.
Song Qiuyu smiled instinctively and tried to keep climbing down the stairs.
Suddenly, her foot slipped, and she fell, causing the earphones on her ears to fly off.
She reacted quickly, grabbing the stair railing to make sure she wouldn’t fall all the way down.
But then, her left side suddenly tensed as Jiang Xiao’s large hand grabbed her left waist, steadying her.
Jiang Xiao casually caught her fallen earphones, lowered his gaze, and looked at her shocked expression.
“You okay?”
Once Jiang Xiao made sure she was steady, he immediately released his grip and didn’t linger.
Looking closely into his eyes, Song Qiuyu felt nervous and didn’t dare blink.
When they kissed yesterday, they had been even closer than this.
No!
Was that something to be remembered? Forget it—must forget!
“I’m fine, thanks, Jiang Xiao!”
She adjusted her breathing and tried to act calm as she looked at the earphones resting in Jiang Xiao’s palm, reaching out to take them back.
But then Jiang Xiao, looking thoughtful, brought the white earphone closer to his own ear.
That white earphone still held the girl’s warmth and scent, the English words on loop hadn’t stopped playing.
Following the white cord, the vocabulary echoed clearly in both their earphones.
Song Qiuyu’s heart raced.
She watched Jiang Xiao’s action, puzzled.
This confusion only made her more awkward. But now, all she could do was cling to the staircase like a clumsy sloth and avoid making any sudden moves.
The next moment, Jiang Xiao said something surprising: “You listened to English words all night?”
“?”
Song Qiuyu widened her eyes, a little stunned. “Isn’t that obvious?”
“Hmm. The CET-4 is coming soon. I remember English was your least favorite subject in middle school. You always failed English.”
Jiang Xiao spoke as he reached out and took the other earphone out of her ear. “Don’t wear earphones too long; it can damage your hearing.”
“Mm.”
Song Qiuyu’s neck slowly flushed red.
Jiang Xiao’s fingers seemed to accidentally scratch her earlobe twice—it tickled…
Taking both earphones from Jiang Xiao, she quickly climbed down the stairs and slipped her feet into slippers.
Her earlobes still felt ticklish, so she hurriedly pinched them, hoping to relieve it.
Jiang Xiao tilted his head slightly and asked, “Are your ears bothering you?”
Song Qiuyu was momentarily stunned. Was it okay to say that Jiang Xiao’s finger touching her made her feel ticklish?
“I, I’m awake!”
Just then, Xie Zhuran’s loud morning declaration came from nearby.
“It’s a little uncomfortable, but nothing serious.”
Taking the opportunity, Song Qiuyu stowed away the earphone cords and turned off the English playback, then briskly walked onto the balcony.
Her departing figure looked like someone fleeing hastily in Jiang Xiao’s eyes.
Jiang Xiao pondered.
“Why are you guys up so early? If you’re this diligent, it just makes Lin and me look lazy.”
Xie Zhuran complained in mock annoyance.
Lin An pressed his forehead, sat up, and without responding, urged the bed next to his, “We’re starting filming today. Let’s move faster.”
“Okay.”
Xie Zhuran scratched his head, not insisting on a response.
At this moment on the balcony, Song Qiuyu took down the drying white stockings and pinched them.
They still squeezed out water.
Sure enough, one night was nowhere near enough for them to dry.
No choice—she’d have to buy another pair. Once she got her second bucket of gold, first step was renting a place; second step was buying a dryer.
She hung the white stockings back up to dry again.
Then she turned, reaching for her rinsing cup.
But the cup landed in her open palm by itself.
Of course, the rinsing cup didn’t move on its own; Jiang Xiao handed it to her.
Song Qiuyu revealed the same expression Jiang Xiao had given her before.
What was Jiang Xiao doing?
She didn’t understand.
Still, that hand took the rinsing cup firmly.
“Don’t look at me so surprised. If you can do it, why can’t I?”
Jiang Xiao opened her toothpaste, turned on the faucet, rinsed the toothbrush, and helped her squeeze the toothpaste out.