As soon as those words left his mouth, Song Qiuyu’s heart began to race.
She pressed the pillow against her face and took a deep breath.
Slowly, she revealed her moist, swollen, almond-shaped eyes.
Biting her lip, she whispered, “Installments!”
Jiang Xiao looked at her for a few moments and stopped.
Song Qiuyu froze, suddenly feeling a sense of emptiness.
She rubbed her eyes with the back of her slender hand and said tentatively, “I won’t back out of my debt, but let’s count it in installments!”
“And what if I refuse?”
Jiang Xiao took the opportunity to pull her up from the bed and turned her around.
Two sturdy arms wrapped tightly around her slender waist from behind.
“Since you don’t want to look at my face so much, would you prefer this?”
With that, he lowered his gaze and kissed the back of her neck.
“Ugh!”
Song Qiuyu was held tightly.
Jiang Xiao’s teasing became more intense, so much so that her entire body trembled and went soft.
She suddenly felt that all her exercise from the end of the semester combined didn’t compare to her current fatigue.
She would rather—run outside all night!
But it felt so…
She cut off her own thoughts, too ashamed to admit the truth.
She buried her head in the pillow and let the person behind her continue.
As she held the pillow over her face, she felt like she was suffocating. She threw her head back, gasping for air.
Then, she saw the man behind her—utterly serious and focused.
Sweat glistened on his handsome face, which was flushed a deep, shy red. Clearly, they were the same in many ways.
Song Qiuyu’s pupils dilated. A surge of inexplicable thoughts and emotions welled up within her as she briefly recalled the past.
Could her past self have ever imagined that her future self would be chased by Jiang Xiao like this to collect a debt?
It was shameful, yet happy.
‘Jiang Xiao really likes me. Fortunately, I happen to really like him too.’
Their eyes accidentally met.
Jiang Xiao dithered for a moment and hugged her waist even tighter, his strength making it feel as if he wanted to rub her into his very soul.
At the same time, he leaned down for a deep kiss, unable to stop himself from teasing her even more fiercely.
“Mmmn!”
Song Qiuyu let out a small whimper of surprise.
Her pupils contracted sharply, and crystal tears began to spill from the corners of her eyes.
Her toes curled, and even the soles of her feet turned a bright red. Her heart beat so fast that her mind went blank, leaving her unable to think.
The kiss was exceptionally brief. Jiang Xiao pulled away and looked deep into her eyes.
Song Qiuyu lowered her gaze.
The atmosphere was ambiguous and messy, just like their relationship—already entangled, inseparable, and whole.
Taking another look at him made her heart soften.
She pursed her lips and hesitated for two seconds before tilting her face up.
She voluntarily kissed the corner of his mouth, her eyes misty with tears as she looked at him with a smile.
“I really can’t do anything about you. Have it your way, but only… mm… only this once!”
It wasn’t just about this specific thing.
She felt that at this moment, she would do anything for Jiang Xiao.
No matter how troublesome his demands were, she would follow his lead.
‘I know how dangerous this line of thinking is, but my thoughts are already out of my control.’
Hearing this, Jiang Xiao froze for a moment.
Then, he gritted his teeth and kissed her again, becoming entangled with her once more. At this moment, they both felt as if they owned the entire world.
“Qia’er, I like you so much!!”
“I… I also… mmm!”
Before she could finish, her lips were captured from behind again. Feeling a bit disgruntled, she poked Jiang Xiao’s sturdy arm with her clean fingertips.
As if he had been poked in the heart, Jiang Xiao let out a low chuckle. He intentionally sped up, pressing his lips behind her ear. He spoke in a deep voice, “Song Qiuyu… do you like it?”
“?”
Song Qiuyu froze. Her mind roared, and her pupils suddenly shrank.
For a moment, she was both ashamed and indignant.
Yet, the person behind her mischievously nibbled on her earlobe, continuing his actions with a lower, huskier voice.
Immediately afterward, a white light flashed before her eyes. Her head slumped to the side as she fainted.
But after only a few seconds, she suddenly woke up.
She opened her misty eyes, and the first thing she saw was Jiang Xiao’s slightly smiling face.
Song Qiuyu was stunned.
“Do you not like it?” Jiang Xiao asked, looking a bit disappointed.
“Don’t call me that!” Song Qiuyu strained her neck to emphasize.
“But Song Qiuyu is Xi’er, and Xi’er is Song Qiuyu. Or would you rather I call you Little Fallen Leaf, Baby, Darling… Wife?” Jiang Xiao listed her nicknames like they were precious treasures.
“None of them…”
Before she could finish, his teasing intensified. It was so overwhelming that her eyes grew wetter and her body trembled. She obediently shut her mouth.
Jiang Xiao hummed for two seconds and closed his eyes. He kissed her forehead and lowered his voice. “Qia’er, are you satisfied now?”
“Mm,” Song Qiuyu responded mopingy.
In the midst of their tender, ambiguous entanglement, she couldn’t help but hug Jiang Xiao tightly. Then, she let out a small grunt and mischievously bit his left shoulder.
Jiang Xiao was taken aback. Looking down, he saw that although she was biting him, she didn’t dare to use much force. She was like a little cat, nibbling gently with no threat at all, only serving to increase the pressure he felt.
As a result, his teasing became even more intense, and she cried even harder.
The bad woman was still a bad woman.
The pure boy might still be pure at heart, but he was no longer the little boy who could be easily toyed with by a bad woman.
No one knew how much time had passed.
If calculated by the number of times Song Qiuyu had fainted, it had likely been about three hours.
Throughout it all, Jiang Xiao was fully committed.
“What do you want for a late-night snack?”
Jiang Xiao held Song Qiuyu, who had just showered and woken up again.
He opened the refrigerator door to find it packed with all sorts of ingredients.
There was no doubt that Song Qiuyu’s dad and mom had prepared them specifically before they left.
“Thirsty… I’m so thirsty. Jiang Xiao, water…”
Song Qiuyu didn’t seem to care about her parents’ thoughtfulness.
She felt like a puddle of mush, simply clinging to the person beside her. The scent on him made her feel very at ease.
“Alright!”
Jiang Xiao took out some ingredients, closed the fridge, and immediately carried her to the sofa. He wrapped her in a blanket before pouring some hot water.
He blew on it and took a small sip to confirm the temperature was right. Then, he handed the water cup to her. “Here, water.”
“Thank you…”
Song Qiuyu’s head was spinning. she took the water cup with both hands.
“Wait for a little bit. The food will be ready soon!”
Jiang Xiao stroked her fluffy hair. Because of his teasing, her hair was a mess, with several strands sticking up on the top of her head like cowlicks. After smoothing it a few times, he didn’t manage to push them back down; instead, even more hair started sticking up.
“Mm!”
Actually, she wasn’t that hungry.
Holding the water cup, Song Qiuyu took small sips of the hot water. Her delicate body curled up inside the blanket.
Faced with the small, damp spots on the fabric, she could only try her best to ignore them and focus on drinking.
Jiang Xiao gave her burning face one last pinch before reluctantly heading into the kitchen.
While drinking water, Song Qiuyu stared blankly at the busy figure in the kitchen.
Her heart stirred.
If she could, she really wished she wasn’t just sitting on the sofa waiting, but could go into the kitchen and cook with him.
After all, Jiang Xiao was the guest, and he should be the one who needed rest the most. Unfortunately, her physical condition didn’t allow it.
She couldn’t help but sigh.
‘Come to think of it, why doesn’t Jiang Xiao look tired at all? Is he faking it again? After all those times, how could he not be tired? Hmph, what a poser.’
Jiang Xiao worked quickly.
“Delicious!”
Song Qiuyu picked up her chopsticks and took several large bites of cheese ramen.
Although she already knew Jiang Xiao was a good cook, she hadn’t expected him to make ramen this well.
‘Is there anything he can’t do well?’
She suddenly felt a sense of defeat, but also a sense of pride, and above all, satisfaction. Food after being exhausted was truly the best!
Jiang Xiao admired the way she ate heartily, a happy smile spreading across his face. While watching her, he also picked up his chopsticks and began to eat.
After all, if he didn’t eat, his Xi’er would worry and would definitely stop to urge him to eat. Even so, being urged to eat by Xi’er didn’t feel bad at all.
After finishing, Song Qiuyu subconsciously tried to get up from the sofa to clear the table and wash the dishes. However, she was pressed back down by Jiang Xiao the next second.
“Let me do it. Qia’er, you should rest!”
“Oh.”
Looking into his eyes, Song Qiuyu’s mind went blank. She forgot what she was going to say and simply responded dumbly.
Waiting wasn’t boring.
She clutched her small blanket and waited obediently for Jiang Xiao to return and carry her back to the room to sleep.
She truly felt that her current state was dangerous; because of Jiang Xiao’s gentleness, she couldn’t help but want to be lazy and rely on him more.
‘But I don’t want to become the kind of girlfriend who only knows how to rely on Jiang Xiao. So what if my legs are soft and my waist is sore? It’s not like I can’t walk!’
Just then, Jiang Xiao finished the dishes, dried his hands with a cloth, and walked back.
Song Qiuyu stared at him, biting her lip in thought. Then, she resolutely abandoned her initial plan. She simply blinked at him and said in a teasing, spoiled tone, “Jiang Xiao, carry me~”
As a girlfriend, she should act spoiled when she needed to! Jiang Xiao loved seeing it!
Sure enough, a smile curled at the corner of Jiang Xiao’s mouth. He picked her up from the sofa with a smile, but his long, slender fingers moved again, gently starting to take care of her once more.
“Ah!”
Song Qiuyu bit her lip, and her body trembled. “Jiang Xiao, what are you doing? It’s time to sleep!”
Jiang Xiao placed her back on the sofa and pulled the blanket away.
Lamenting how cute she was, he poked her cheek. “It’s still early. We’re just getting started.”
“Are… are you kidding me? No! I want to! Sleep!!”
At that moment, Song Qiuyu sensed a crisis. She pursed her lips uneasily and took a deep breath, quickly grabbing a corner of the blanket to jump off the sofa.
This crisis wasn’t just hers; it was Jiang Xiao’s too. Humans aren’t made of iron—how could he be so reckless? Just because she said he could do whatever he wanted, he took it literally?
‘No, brother. You need to be more calm. If you won’t think of yourself, think of the millions of descendants who just died…’
Before her toes could touch the floor, a shadow fell over her.
Her slightly parted lips were blocked, and Jiang Xiao began to rub against her, moving from gentle to heavy.
Song Qiuyu was helplessly caught in the tide Jiang Xiao had stirred up again. Like a small boat on the ocean, she couldn’t escape.
Slowly, she arched her bare feet, her toes trembling and interlocking.
‘Truly, I’ve lost to this guy. Fine, whatever. There’s no escaping today anyway, so I might as well give in. You’d better be grateful, Haki Xiao. In this whole world, I’m the only girl this obedient!’
Thinking this, she kissed him back.
The sky gradually brightened.
Jiang Xiao lay on his side, propping his head up with one hand. He quietly watched the person sleeping soundly on the pillow.
Hearing her light, shallow breathing, he slowly lowered his eyes, feeling a wave of emotion.
‘It’s not a dream. That’s good.’
This was a level of happiness that his self from three years ago wouldn’t have dared to imagine. Xi’er had really come back.
Seeing her suddenly turn over and face him with a posture of absolute trust and obedience, he couldn’t help but freeze.
He lay back down on the bed, not wanting to disturb her sleep.
He carefully held her, pressing his forehead against hers, intending to pretend to be asleep like this.
His heart rate was currently too fast for him to feel any warmth.
Just then, the abrupt sound of the doorbell from the entrance outside disturbed the peaceful beauty of the moment.