Duan Yiheng carried Lin Xi inside, feeling that even the bright lights along the streets on the way back couldn't compare to the single lamp in their home. Sister Mei heard the commotion and came out of her room. Duan Yiheng caught a glimpse of her out of the corner of his eye and quickly gave her a look to go back inside.
If she came out and started asking all sorts of questions, given their shameless behavior, Lin Xi would be mortified. At the top of the stairs, Duan Yiheng patted Lin Xi's lower back: "Why aren't you asleep yet?" Lin Xi hugged him and whispered,
"I promised Sister Mei I'd go to sleep at midnight, but then you came back." Duan Yiheng carried her up to the third floor, and Lin Xi swung her legs: "Aren't you tired?" Duan Yiheng smiled: "Dealing with a bunch of people at the company is tiring, carrying you upstairs isn't."
Entering the bedroom, Duan Yiheng directly pressed Lin Xi onto the bed, but didn't move. His warm breath brushed against Lin Xi's neck, and Lin Xi stroked his short hair, knowing he was very tired. "Go take a shower first," Lin Xi said gently. "Want some late-night snack?"
"No, thank you," Duan Yiheng said, burying his face in her neck. "Could you get me some clothes?" "Okay," Lin Xi readily agreed. "Get up first, you're squashing me." Duan Yiheng turned his head and kissed Lin Xi's ear. "I'm going to the bathroom first."
Lin Xi got up and belatedly realized that Duan Yiheng had gone to her bathroom. Was he planning to sleep here tonight? Lin Xi went to get him pajamas. When she got his underwear, she was too embarrassed to look, so she just wrapped it up in the pajamas. Lin Xi didn't knock and went straight into the bathroom, saying,
"I brought you your clothes, I put them outside." Duan Yiheng had just turned off the water, grabbed a towel, wrapped it up casually, and came out. Seeing this, Lin Xi blushed and left the bathroom. She had only been lying in bed for a few minutes when Duan Yiheng came over.
Lin Xi looked at him, half-covered by the blanket, and silently paced back into the bathroom. Duan Yiheng smiled and got into bed, lying down close to Lin Xi. Lin Xi gave a soft hum, "You clearly wanted to sleep here, but you didn't say anything, just stared at me." "Come here."
Duan Yiheng tightened his grip on Lin Xi's waist, pulling her into his arms. "Even though I didn't say anything, you made room for me." Lin Xi: "That's because I saw you were too tired." "Having a girlfriend is great." Duan Yiheng chuckled, "Someone cares about you."
Lin Xi cupped his face and rubbed it: "I want to visit Grandma tomorrow, are you coming?" Duan Yiheng: "I'll come over after get off work tonight to have dinner with you. When are you coming?" "Since you said so, then this afternoon, I'll have lunch with Grandpa."
Lin Xi said. Duan Yiheng responded heavily and closed his eyes. Whenever Lin Xi slept with Duan Yiheng at night, she rarely went to bed later than him. Usually, Duan Yiheng would wait until she fell asleep before going to sleep himself.
They only exchanged a few words today, but Duan Yiheng fell asleep. Lin Xi lay in his arms, in a position that was somewhat uncomfortable. But afraid of waking Duan Yiheng, she stubbornly remained still. When she woke up the next day, half of her body was numb.
And the other side of the bed was empty and cold. Lin Xi calmed herself down and went downstairs in her slippers. Just as Sister Mei was about to go upstairs to wake her, she saw Lin Xi and hurriedly said, "You're up? Come and have breakfast." Lin Xi glanced towards the dining room: "Where is he?"
"The master left early this morning," Sister Mei said. "But he said he'd have breakfast before leaving, so don't worry." Lin Xi wasn't quite used to Sister Mei calling Duan Yiheng "master." She smiled and said,
"I'm going to the North Courtyard for lunch, I'll go out again this afternoon, and I'll come back with him tonight." Sister Mei responded, "You keep calling him 'he, he, he' all the time, it's not good. Either call him by his name or call him 'Big Brother,' it's all the same, just a form of address."
Lin Xi felt embarrassed for a moment: "He probably doesn't like me calling him 'Big Brother.'" "Then just call him by his name, call him that more often, and you'll get used to it," Sister Mei suggested. Lin Xi nodded; she would try her best.
Back then, to avoid giving Sister Mei away, she always called Duan Yiheng "Big Brother" in front of her. Now, this change of address wasn't just a matter of words; it signified a shift in her status.
Lin Xi ate slowly and deliberately, then strolled around the yard twice. Around ten o'clock, she suddenly received a message from Sun Wenxin. She asked, "Secretary Lin, aren't you coming to work?" Lin Xi replied, "Yes, I am. My parents aren't feeling well, and you all probably know what happened at the company. President Duan has other arrangements." Sun Wenxin: "I thought you weren't coming. May I ask, are you going to headquarters to be President Duan's secretary?" Lin Xi: "Probably not." Sun Wenxin sent her a fawning emoji: "You scared me to death! I thought all the connections I'd worked so hard to get on good terms with were gone." Lin Xi chuckled and asked, "How's the company lately?" Sun Wenxin: "The internal announcement has been released. It seems like leadership changes are too far removed from our lives. Everyone's talking more about your relationship with President Duan and Manager Chen's situation." Lin Xi paused, holding her phone. She hadn't heard from Chen Jingyi since that day. Given her vengeful nature, knowing that Ke Yu was behind her mental illness, she would absolutely not let Ke Yu off the hook. But she made no move. Just in case, she knew Duan Yiheng had someone following Chen Jingyi, but there was no news from Duan Yiheng.
Has Chen Jingyi really resigned herself to her fate? Lin Xi was somewhat skeptical; Chen Jingyi was like a wild weed, impossible to extinguish or quench. She immediately ended her chat with Sun Wenxin, glanced at the time, and called Duan Yiheng. Duan Yiheng didn't answer, so Lin Xi knew he was busy.
About five minutes later, he called back. The phone rang, and Lin Xi heard Duan Yiheng ask, "What's wrong?" Lin Xi said, "Is Chen Jingyi still being followed?" Duan Yiheng said, "Yes, why do you ask?" Lin Xi:
"I was just asking casually. Logically speaking, she's not the type to give up so easily." Duan Yiheng: "Maybe she's up to something." Lin Xi: "We can't have someone following her forever, can we?" "She hasn't left City B, and I'm still worried."
Duan Yiheng said, "I also want to know what will become of her and Ke Yu." With the focus shifting, it's now up to Chen Jingyi to make a choice. "I understand," Lin Xi said. "Don't forget to eat while you're busy. I'm going to the North Courtyard to keep Grandpa company now."
Duan Yiheng responded and hung up. At lunchtime, Lin Xi noticed that Grandpa ate very little. She didn't ask in front of him, but instead asked Uncle Deng. Uncle Deng said, "He said he didn't have much of an appetite. I suggested we go to the hospital, and he even got angry."
Lin Xi was genuinely surprised: "He got angry?" Uncle Deng: "He's probably just in a bad mood. Don't worry too much, I'll be with him the whole time." Lin Xi knew Uncle Deng was devoted to the old man, and she trusted him, so she nodded:
"Thank you for your help with Grandpa. I have to go out tonight. Please tell Grandpa I'll have dinner with him tomorrow." Uncle Deng: "Okay." Before going to the alley, Lin Xi went to the flower shop first.
It's impolite to come empty-handed. The old lady didn't lack anything, but she loved flowers. The old lady was a little surprised to see her come alone. After learning that Duan Yiheng would be arriving soon, she and Lin Xi arranged the flowers, then turned and went into the kitchen to busy themselves.
Lin Xi followed to help. After working for over an hour, they prepared four dishes and a soup. Around seven o'clock, Duan Yiheng still hadn't arrived. Just as Lin Xi was about to make a call, her phone rang. Lin Xi answered happily, "Where are you?" "Sorry, I can't go."
Duan Yiheng's tone was low and soft, "You and Grandma eat first, and don't leave after you're done. I'll come pick you up." Lin Xi was a little disappointed, but not much. Knowing he was busy, she smiled and told him to go ahead and do his work.