Chapter 25

At this moment, time seemed to be crawling unbearably slowly.

Her heart pounding like a drum, Sheng Huaixi kept her original posture. Her eyes were clear, and she didn’t dare make a single unnecessary move.

At the same time, thoughts raced through her mind.

She held her breath for a long time, counting exactly ten seconds in her head. When the silence returned to her ears, Sheng Huaixi slowly lifted her gaze.

Jiang Chao’s sleeping face was obedient and peaceful; her breathing remained deep and steady. The name she had just murmured was nothing more than a dream murmur.

It was a dream...

The potential crisis was averted, and a faint trace of regret suddenly flickered in Sheng Huaixi’s heart. Her eyes fixed darkly on the person on the bed.

Just now, she had been thinking that if Jiang Chao really woke up and found her, then what came after would only be natural to finish. There was nothing wrong with that.

Anyway, Jiang Chao would never leave her alone.

In the quiet room, Sheng Huaixi’s smile was especially unrestrained, full of certainty and audacity.

After staring for a while, the emotions held in her chest slowly settled. She brushed her fingertips over Jiang Chao’s cheek.

"Why were you calling so softly in your dream?"

Thinking of what had just happened, Sheng Huaixi murmured softly, a faint hint of jealousy spilling out, her gaze bright as her lips once again kissed down with possessive delight.

Perhaps because of Jiang Chao’s soft call just now, Sheng Huaixi’s heartbeat was racing. Her emotions were unusually stirred up, urging her on like mad, making her actions increasingly bold.

There was even a trace of deliberate madness in it, as if she wanted to wake Jiang Chao from her sleep.

"So fragrant." Sheng Huaixi bent lower, the bridge of her nose lightly brushing the fabric over Jiang Chao’s chest as she moved slowly downward. Her trembling breath was scorching hot.

The misty warmth that rose to her face trembled in circles, hot enough to burn. Sheng Huaixi’s gaze grew darker.

Night was the best cover for desire.

Sheng Huaixi’s greed was no longer concealed at all; the longing in her eyes carried a fixation, as if she wanted to burn Jiang Chao down to nothing, her obsession almost delirious.

Her desire was thick with madness, her reddened pupils trembling in layers, carrying a chilling darkness as a smile bloomed on her face.

In the stillness, the low sound Sheng Huaixi deliberately drew out carried an intimate, licking undertone.

The little bed bore the weight of that slanted, heavy heat.

"Chaochao, you have to like me a little faster..."

When she straightened up, Sheng Huaixi stared at Jiang Chao for a long time. Her tongue lightly swept across her lips; her face was flushed, her breathing uneven.

The figure kneeling by the bed remained motionless for a long time, her gaze greedily roaming over every inch, as if she could never look long enough.

She was like a stubborn, single-minded tree, standing there in her obsession.

Only when the dim border between night and dawn slowly spilled into the room, and pale, fog-like light pierced through the curtains, driving away the room’s whole night of decadent cedar scent, did the shadow of the tree finally melt away under the light.

*

White sheer curtains drifted slowly in the breeze, lifting over the wooden floor and carrying in fresh air.

A new day had arrived.

Jiang Chao was still sunk deep in her dream. A soft blush colored her cheeks; the fingertips she stretched out beneath the blanket seemed to be pushing something away in refusal.

Her head turned restlessly too, as if she were avoiding something.

"N-no... don’t..."

"Stop... not allowed..."

Her lips parted and Jiang Chao’s face flushed red as she kept murmuring resistance, her voice soft and wavering.

It didn’t sound like rejection so much as she was acting spoiled with someone in her dream.

"Dong—" the clock struck on time.

"Aaaah, no kissing there!"

Jiang Chao screamed and bolted upright in bed. Her glossy black hair was in disarray against her shoulders, her face both embarrassed and panicked, and her thighs instinctively pressed together.

The resistance brought on by the dream was fully on display in reality.

Looking at the familiar bedsheets in front of her, Jiang Chao covered her face to block her view. Misty moisture still lingered in her eyes, and the tips of her ears were bright red with embarrassment.

Everything from the dream flashed through her mind one by one, vivid and clear!

Her hand touched her cheek; it was burning hot. Jiang Chao grabbed a stuffed toy, buried her face in it without hesitation, and let out a miserable cry.

How could she, how could she have such a wet dream about Sheng Huaixi!

"Argh!" Jiang Chao rolled her face back and forth, imagining herself as a road roller, trying to crush every frame of the images in her head and shove them all out.

But her brain was determined to work against her.

As her cheeks rolled back and forth, the erotic memories in Jiang Chao’s mind seemed only to gain a halo, each scene becoming even clearer.

Sheng Huaixi supporting herself over her, half-dressed, stroking her cheek and asking in a sultry voice, "Do you want to do it with me?"

Sheng Huaixi sitting on her waist, her eyes full of seduction as she guided Jiang Chao’s wrist upward, making her touch her there.

And the most absurd of all: Sheng Huaixi kneeling on the bed, eyes narrowed like a fox, leaning toward her with a point of her finger and asking, "Can I eat it? It’s very juicy."

"Argh—!"

Jiang Chao covered her face. The blush on her cheeks was spreading uncontrollably fast, racing over her entire body.

How could she dream of sleeping with Sheng Huaixi? How could she have the nerve for that!

And not only had she dreamed it, Sheng Huaixi had even seduced her to the extreme in the dream, asking whether she wanted to give her...

"Jiang Chao, you must be crazy."

Looking at the completely flushed version of herself in the phone camera, Jiang Chao solemnly delivered this diagnosis.

As her gaze shifted again and she saw the reflection of her face and neck as if she were in the middle of a fever, Jiang Chao flopped back in irritation.

Why had she had such a dream...

Staring blankly at the ceiling, Jiang Chao could not understand at all why this dream had appeared.

Even if it was because her emotions had swung too much yesterday, shouldn’t she have been scared into having a nightmare instead?

During the day, she and Sheng Huaixi had gone through such a dangerous situation. Clearly, she had been frightened to the point that even her heart was trembling.

There was no way Sheng Huaixi had secretly slipped into her room at night and used some kind of hypnosis on her, right.

Thinking of this absurd possibility, Jiang Chao couldn’t help but curve her eyes in a smile. "Impossible."

Lying quietly on the bed, after a long while, Jiang Chao’s emotions finally calmed from stunned disbelief.

A low sigh full of helplessness drifted through the room.

Jiang Chao thought that she would rather have a nightmare where Sheng Huaixi terrified her in her sleep than a dreamy, lingering spring dream with Sheng Huaixi.

"Knock, knock, knock."

A few low knocks suddenly sounded on the door, making Jiang Chao jump. She turned her head toward the doorway, her gaze sharpening.

The very person she had just been thinking about reminded her through the door, "Jiang Chao, if you’re awake, get up and wash up for breakfast. We’ve got the day off today."

Damn; she’d forgotten they had a day off today!

The chaotic thoughts in her head vanished in an instant. Jiang Chao sprang up in a panic and hurriedly answered, "Coming right away!" She scrambled out of bed to find her slippers.

After quickly brushing her teeth, washing her face, and choosing clothes, Jiang Chao looked at herself in the mirror and suddenly felt a little nervous.

How was she supposed to face the protagonist of her spring dream?

"Jiang Chao, are you still not done?"

Sheng Huaixi’s voice came again. Jiang Chao held her breath, looking in the mirror like someone about to charge onto a battlefield and fight a war whose outcome was unknown.

"Coming!" she answered, and walked over.

Sheng Huaixi was bent over in the kitchen, taking something out. Jiang Chao seized the chance, quickly crossed the kitchen entrance, and went to her seat.

Her ears twitching, Sheng Huaixi listened to Jiang Chao’s hurried footsteps; her eyes narrowed slightly, and the motion of reaching for the jam slowed.

Could Jiang Chao have discovered the traces she had left behind last night? Or had she, in that moment last night, actually been awake?

A trace of hesitation flashed through her mind. Sheng Huaixi took the jam and walked out of the kitchen, quietly studying Jiang Chao.

She was looking down, absentmindedly scrolling through news on her phone. She wasn’t lifting her bright eyes to say playful things as she usually did, and her posture wasn’t as lazy as before either; instead, she was sitting very properly.

Something was off.

Sheng Huaixi sat down. Not once did she meet Jiang Chao’s eyes, just kept holding her phone and scrolling through messages, as if deliberately avoiding her.

"I heated the milk; drink it slowly first. I’m making jam sandwiches now. There’s ham and fried eggs on the table; eat some if you want."

Jiang Chao put down her idle phone and obediently picked up the milk.

Her thick black lashes rested on her eyelids, the corners of her eyes drooping obediently, and she stared at the table without moving. She drank the milk slowly, her hair glowing dimly in the light.

Too obedient.

A dark glimmer flashed quickly through Sheng Huaixi’s eyes. The force with which she squeezed the jam packet unconsciously tightened, and she lowered her gaze to take a slice of bread and lay it flat in her palm.

Her thoughts slowly turned, and the atmosphere fell into silence.

The soft sounds of sipping milk and squeezing the jam packet alternated, oddly in sync.

"Did you dream about me doing something to you last night?"

"Cough, cough, cough—"

The milk in Jiang Chao’s mouth went down the wrong way at the sudden question. She looked up in shock, not expecting Sheng Huaixi to toss out such a line without warning.

Could her guilty expression really be that obvious?!

Sheng Huaixi had only taken this short time over breakfast to look at her, and she could already tell something was wrong.

Thinking of what she had dreamed about last night, heat rushed from Jiang Chao’s ears to the back of her neck. She felt terribly guilty and didn’t dare speak.

She turned her head away from Sheng Huaixi’s ambiguous gaze and leaned over to pull a tissue free, wiping awkwardly at her mouth.

"Oh, so you really did dream about me," Sheng Huaixi said with a muffled laugh, though there was no smile in her eyes.

Hearing that, Jiang Chao wiped even more diligently, as if she meant to scrub the wood grain off the table.

"W-what nonsense are you talking about! I slept perfectly all night. I woke up and it was already daylight!"

Sheng Huaixi stopped moving and slowly swept her gaze over Jiang Chao’s expression.

Jiang Chao lowered her head, concentrating on wiping away the milk spilled on the table. She rolled the tissue over and over, wiping again and again.

The blush left over from coughing still colored her face, and her long lashes trembled rapidly; she didn’t dare look up at her.

Not fear, but guilt, as if Jiang Chao herself had done something bad and was afraid of being found out.

She was indeed hiding something from her; it just wasn’t the dream talk she had let slip last night.

For a moment, Sheng Huaixi didn’t know whether she should be happy or not.

Jiang Chao hadn’t discovered what she had done last night, but what exactly had Jiang Chao dreamed about that made her feel guilty the moment she saw her?

Her sharp teeth worried at her lip, and Sheng Huaixi felt frustrated, irritated that Jiang Chao was hiding one thing from her.

Even more, Jiang Chao hadn’t looked at her even once today because of that dream.

The Sheng Huaixi in the dream had done something bad; why should she be dragged down and not even get a single look from her?

Feeling annoyed, a deep, gloomy shadow slid through Sheng Huaixi’s eyes, and the wrist holding the jam tensed.

"You’ve been sitting there for so long and haven’t lifted your head to say a word to me. What, after doing just fine last night, you’re afraid to look at me again today?" Sheng Huaixi said coldly.

"Who’s afraid to look at you!"

Hearing the faint mockery in Sheng Huaixi’s tone, Jiang Chao’s brows shot up and she looked over at once. She stopped wiping, and after meeting Sheng Huaixi’s smiling eyes, shame and irritation flashed through her heart.

She’d been teased again.

"Mm, thank you, Miss Jiang, for gracing me with a look."

Sheng Huaixi curved her lips slightly, unabashedly blooming into a beautiful smile.

Meeting that brilliant gaze, the restless irritability in Sheng Huaixi’s heart was slowly smoothed away; she had been soothed.

Lowering her eyes, Sheng Huaixi held the jam in one hand and the bread slice in the other, focused on making breakfast for Jiang Chao. The golden bread slice rotated smoothly, and the jam was drawn into a perfect S-shaped line.

Jiang Chao puckered her lips; she didn’t want to say how perfunctory Sheng Huaixi sounded, like she was teasing a child at home during New Year.

With nothing else to do, and no one messaging her on an early morning like this, Jiang Chao rested her chin in her hand and watched Sheng Huaixi.

Although she was unquestionably a crazy woman, what remained beyond dispute in Jiang Chao’s mind was Sheng Huaixi’s gorgeous face.

Every morning, just seeing Sheng Huaixi’s face for a few moments made her feel much better.

And that dazzling smile just now had nearly blinded her.

Blinking, Jiang Chao watched Sheng Huaixi’s movements and suddenly felt that something was off. She stared for a while longer, then her pupils widened in surprise. "Sheng Huaixi, you’re left-handed."

No wonder something had looked awkward; it turned out Sheng Huaixi held the bread and jam with the opposite hand.

"Yeah, I was born that way." Sheng Huaixi kept her focus on the bread slice in front of her. After a pause, she looked up at Jiang Chao and added, "But I’m also very good with my right hand."

Is that so? Jiang Chao nodded, not understanding why Sheng Huaixi had specifically emphasized that to her.

"How convenient."

Jiang Chao looked enviously at Sheng Huaixi’s nimble hands.

To be able to use both hands interchangeably; that sounded so nice. When she was little and had to copy homework as punishment, she had envied left-handed people the most, thinking it must be wonderful to be able to write with both hands.

Although now that she was grown up, she knew that wasn’t possible.

But that didn’t stop Jiang Chao from envying it. At any rate, having one more hand to help was still useful.

Whether cooking or eating, it would all be convenient.

Especially for someone like Sheng Huaixi with an injured right hand; anything her right hand could do, her left hand could do just as well.

At Jiang Chao’s comment, Sheng Huaixi’s wrist paused slightly, then continued as if nothing had happened; only now did the smile at the corner of her mouth deepen.

Sheng Huaixi nodded in agreement. "Mm, I think so too."

With her eyes curved, Jiang Chao kept watching Sheng Huaixi with her chin propped up.

She discovered one of Sheng Huaixi’s little quirks, or perhaps it counted as a compulsion: every curve she drew with the jam had to have the exact same angle.

Three slices in a row, all of them identical; unlike Jiang Chao, whose wrist would shake nonstop and whose pursuit of perfection would be cut short halfway through.

A perfect, hands-on genius with obsessive tendencies.

Jiang Chao went momentarily blank, then suddenly felt that the series of descriptions in her head seemed oddly familiar.

Like the murderers in the American dramas she always watched.

Her mouth twitched. Reasoning forward and backward, the more labels she stacked on Sheng Huaixi, the more she felt Sheng Huaixi fit the profile, almost to a frightening degree.

Rubbing her forehead, Jiang Chao patted her face and rubbed away the goosebumps on her arms, determined to extinguish the strange ideas in her head.

She wasn’t very brave; if she kept thinking about it, she was liable to scare herself to death first.

"What are you doing? You’ve slapped your face red. Does it hurt?" Sheng Huaixi handed the sandwich she’d finished to Jiang Chao.

Jiang Chao took it and bit down without hesitation, shaking her head to show she was fine.

"Alright, then eat slowly." Sheng Huaixi lowered her head and continued making one for herself.

The sweet aroma of jam spread in her mouth, and the familiar sweetness made Jiang Chao forget her troubles. She squinted happily, her head bobbing from side to side in delight.

After a few bites, Jiang Chao watched Sheng Huaixi squeeze jam onto the bread slice in front of her. She paused mid-chew, doubt flashing in her eyes.

"Sheng Huaixi, didn’t you say you don’t like sweets?"

"You remember that?"

The smile on Sheng Huaixi’s face visibly softened; her long lashes lowered pleasantly, and her movements quickened.

"Of course I remember. You said it on the day you joined, and I even said I’d treat you," Jiang Chao replied quickly after biting into her jam sandwich, strongly objecting to Sheng Huaixi’s suspicion that she’d forgotten.

"That was my first day at work, of course I’m not going to forget something that happened that day."

Mentioning joining the company made Jiang Chao blink, and she suddenly remembered something.

When she’d joined, she’d gotten a rookie welcome milk tea. Then what about Yuan Bai, the one who had arrived later? Had she gotten a newbie gift from Sheng Huaixi too?

Jiang Chao thought carefully for a moment and realized she truly had no memory of that happening.

Never mind, she could ask Yuan Bai later.

Jiang Chao put the matter aside and looked curiously at Sheng Huaixi.

If she’d said she didn’t like sweets, why had she suddenly decided to make a jam sandwich now?

"Because this is what you like to eat." Sheng Huaixi pinched the sandwich, lifted her eyes to answer, and her gaze was deep.

Jiang Chao’s chewing stopped. A blush slid down the back of her neck, and the words rolled around on her tongue for a long time before she only managed a dry, "Oh."

A low laugh brushed past her ear.

Jiang Chao didn’t dare look up, just focused on eating her sandwich.

*

After the car came to a smooth stop in the parking space, the two of them got out and headed toward the elevator.

Halfway there, Sheng Huaixi suddenly stopped. Jiang Chao turned back to look at her, blinking in confusion.

"Wait, I forgot something."

"What is it? Is it important? Should I go back and get it?" Jiang Chao said, reaching for the car keys in her pocket as she prepared to turn back.

Sheng Huaixi stopped her with a hand and shook her head. "It’s important, but it’s something you carry with you. No need to go back."

Something she carried with her?

Doubt floated up in Jiang Chao’s eyes. She looked down at herself, still not understanding what Sheng Huaixi meant.

"Morning concern." Sheng Huaixi narrowed her eyes, amusement slowly blooming in her gaze. "You forgot to give it to me."

"..."

Jiang Chao had nothing to say.

She tried to find a trace of embarrassment on Sheng Huaixi’s face. Unfortunately, aside from her beauty and that cheerful smile, she saw nothing else.

What Jiang Chao found baffling was that the first feeling rising in her heart after hearing such an absurd request from Sheng Huaixi was not anger.

It was deep, deep helplessness!

She couldn’t help biting her lip, and when she spoke, she could feel her teeth grinding as the words forced themselves out.

"Sheng Huaixi, don’t you think it sounds ridiculous to say ‘morning concern’ out loud yourself?"

Sheng Huaixi looked as lovely as a peach blossom. "I don’t think so. It’s something that helps relax the nerves and wake me up."

Jiang Chao laughed in exasperation, turned to face Sheng Huaixi, and her expression clearly darkened as she hooked her small bag strap over her shoulder and lifted her chin at her.

"Morning news starts at six. So for your little morning concern, does that mean every morning after I finish washing up I have to turn around and give you a kiss? Might as well make it an all-in-one good-morning kiss."

At Jiang Chao’s angry words, Sheng Huaixi patted her shoulder and shook her head first. "That’s overdoing it."

Before Jiang Chao’s expression could ease, Sheng Huaixi pressed her lips together and continued, "But if you’re willing, I can help you squeeze your toothpaste and stand beside you while you brush."

"You—dream on!"

The two words were squeezed out harshly through Jiang Chao’s teeth. She turned and walked off, not wanting to spare Sheng Huaixi another unnecessary glance.

Jiang Chao had already figured it out then—

the angrier she got, the brighter Sheng Huaixi’s smile became; giving her even one more look was just carrying out Sheng Huaixi’s so-called morning concern.

She wasn’t going to give her that.

If she opened the door to this morning concern, then when Sheng Huaixi came home she might add an evening concern too...

The strange atmosphere from last night’s bed flashed through her mind. Faced with Sheng Huaixi’s all-over pressure and the calm way she did such terrifying things, Jiang Chao had no resistance at all.

So, move fast!

The black trench coat was lifted by the wind stirred up by Jiang Chao’s brisk steps, full of menace.

And compared to the slow pace behind her, the figure leaving in haste had a faint air of fleeing in panic.

Sheng Huaixi stared for a while at Jiang Chao’s huffing back as she left, a trace of soft amusement flickering in her eyes before she lifted a foot and followed.

Her heels tapped the floor unhurriedly. The person walking ahead had already disappeared from sight.

Sheng Huaixi’s ears twitched. Only Jiang Chao’s footsteps remained, but the elevator had not yet made a sound to indicate it was starting.

A faint smile curved her lips. Sheng Huaixi turned the corner at her own pace.

The bright elevator stood wide open—

As expected, the one who had hurried ahead was standing inside with an expressionless face, her fingertip pressed straight onto the open-door button, the green light glowing steadily.

"Assistant Jiang, how thoughtful."

Sheng Huaixi smiled brightly as she walked into the elevator and gave Jiang Chao a light compliment.

Jiang Chao snorted and turned her neck away, pretending not to see the woman whose whole body seemed to have the word smug written all over it.

The elevator doors slowly closed and began to rise.

Her neck had been twisted for too long and felt a little sore. Jiang Chao glanced sideways and caught Sheng Huaixi’s profile in the reflection: upright, elegant.

A beige long-sleeved shirt suited her beautifully, and the suit jacket she was carrying over one arm matched it perfectly, giving her an easy, gentle grace.

And those dark gray high-waisted straight-leg trousers were tailored just right, showing off a pair of long legs.

What a great figure.

Jiang Chao looked at that exquisite back as she sighed inwardly, all while distractedly thinking about Sheng Huaixi’s schedule.

Aside from the mountain of work, Sheng Huaixi was basically glued to her.

Busy with work during the day, busy with her after work. So where did Sheng Huaixi even find the time to work out and keep that figure?

Jiang Chao’s thoughts wandered, yet her gaze was still glued to Sheng Huaixi’s lower back.

The figure before her swayed, and Jiang Chao suddenly recalled the contents of her dream...

Her waist was delicate and especially fair; the thin layer of skin would flash blindingly white with even the slightest movement. And she, seemingly unable to stop herself, had reached out and squeezed it.

That soft, narrow waist could be fully circled with one arm, held tight in her embrace, at her mercy, to do whatever she wanted.

Her tongue unconsciously licked across her lips, and Jiang Chao felt like she could still remember that sensation.

The curve at the corner of Sheng Huaixi’s mouth lifted slightly; amusement flickered in her eyes.

Caught a little cat peeking.

"If you like it, do you want to wrap your arms around me and touch?"

Her ears twitching, Jiang Chao went rigid all at once. Her heart pounded like a drum as she looked at Sheng Huaixi in panic.

Why did the words Sheng Huaixi said sound exactly the same as in her dream?!