Jiang Li slept lightly.
When dawn was just breaking, she felt movement beside her. She slowly opened her eyelids, and in the darkness, she could see the man dressing himself methodically.
His fingers were well - defined, long and three - dimensional, like the hands of a pianist.
When fastening the buttons, faint blue veins stood out on the back of his hand, exuding an ascetic charm.
Just like when they used to be together.
Jiang Li felt a bit dazed and almost forgot she was in Flower City. In her daze, she called out his name, "Xiao Yanzhi..."
The man who was dressing at the foot of the bed paused and slowly turned around.
Xiao Yanzhi's eyes were deep, and his gaze fell on her face.
"You woke up quite early."
Jiang Li's skin was extremely fair, her lips were rosy and shiny, and her long hair was casually draped behind her. Her just - awakened appearance was rather hazy.
She was definitely a natural beauty without makeup.
Jiang Li rubbed her eyes, propped herself up on her upper body, and leaned lazily against the headboard. Her eyes were charming and blurred. "Where are you going?"
After shouting all night last night, her voice still had a hoarseness from the lingering passion.
Xiao Yanzhi said flatly, "I'm going to find Yaoyao."
Jiang Li's fingertips stiffened.
This sentence seemed to be a switch, instantly pulling Jiang Li out of her drowsiness. It was like being splashed with cold water on a winter day, making her wide awake.
She silently turned over and curled herself up in the quilt.
"Don't bother to see me off."
Her voice came out from under the quilt, a bit muffled, and it was hard to tell her mood from her tone.
Xiao Yanzhi picked up the suit jacket he had casually thrown on the ground last night. Looking at the wrinkles on it, he frowned slightly, patted it twice, and put it on.
He fastened the last button of his suit, stood beside the bed, and his eyes were cold.
"I don't want anyone to know what happened last night."
He paused while tidying his cuffs, then added, "Especially Yaoyao."
Jiang Li almost laughed out of anger.
He was the one who had slept with her, and now he was the one who wanted to act as if nothing had happened.
She deliberately didn't reply.
Xiao Yanzhi stood beside the bed for a while, then turned around, opened the door, and walked out.
It was not until she heard the hotel room door lock that Jiang Li poked her head out from under the quilt. There was not a trace of emotion on her face.
She found that she didn't care about Xiao Yanzhi as much as before.
Even the few words he had just said seemed to have no effect on her, as if they had nothing to do with her.
Having been completely woken up, Jiang Li ran her hands through her fluffy hair and dragged her almost - broken body into the bathroom step by step.
---
After taking a hot bath, the fatigue and exhaustion from last night were somewhat alleviated. While blow - drying her hair, she picked up her phone.
[Song Yu: May you be happy in the new year.]
Jiang Li glanced at the time. It was exactly the message sent at midnight last night.
He was quite considerate.
Jiang Li's lips curved slightly. She tapped a few times on her phone and replied to him, thanking him for his blessing.
Several other friends also sent New - Year greetings, and she replied to them one by one.
Due to family reasons in the past, Jiang Li didn't have many friends, but she did have a few close ones.
After blow - drying her hair, Jiang Li remembered that she had to accompany Xiao Yanzhi to discuss a cooperation in the evening. She casually put on a light makeup and picked out a suitable outfit.
When she was almost ready, she looked at the time and found that it was still early.
She could take a stroll around Flower City.
However, as soon as she opened the door, she ran into Xiao Yanzhi.
"Come with me." Xiao Yanzhi's cold and clear voice rang out, without a hint of warmth.
Jiang Li didn't know what was going on, but she followed him to his room reluctantly.
As soon as she walked in, she heard faint sobs, intermittent.
Qin Yaoyao was crying again.
Jiang Li's eyebrows furrowed instantly, and she turned around to leave.
"Explain it to Yaoyao before you go." Xiao Yanzhi grabbed her wrist. His cold face seemed to be covered with a layer of frost.
It was as if he was scrutinizing a sinner who had made a mistake.
Jiang Li was dragged in front of the sofa in the suite. The coffee table was already piled up with used tissues. Qin Yaoyao was still crying, her eyes red and swollen.
If you didn't know better, you'd think she had suffered some great injustice.
Jiang Li felt a bit annoyed. She pressed her eyebrows. "What's wrong this time?"
Qin Yaoyao looked up, her red - rimmed eyes staring at her. "Sister Jiang Li, did you lie to me last night? Was A Yan in your room?"
Jiang Li was about to admit it, but immediately, a cold look was cast at her from the side, clearly warning her not to talk nonsense.
"... No, you're overthinking it."
Qin Yaoyao was stunned for a couple of seconds. She glanced at the bite mark on Xiao Yanzhi's neck, and tears welled up in her eyes again. "If A Yan wasn't in Sister Jiang Li's room, then why is there a mark on his neck?"
Jiang Li subconsciously turned her head and glanced at Xiao Yanzhi's neck. Sure enough, there was a small red mark.
It was small but very obvious.
Jiang Li: ...
She admitted that in the heat of the moment last night, she really couldn't control herself and couldn't help biting his neck.
But who would have thought that Xiao Yanzhi was so careless and didn't even know to cover it up?
Her brain raced for a few seconds, and then she looked completely calm. "Actually, General Manager Xiao has urticaria. You misunderstood him."
Ur... Urticaria?
Such an answer not only stunned Qin Yaoyao but also made Xiao Yanzhi look at her in a strange way.
Jiang Li opened her eyes and remained calm. "General Manager Xiao has been busy with work for years. He usually lacks sun exposure and has an irregular diet, so he often has urticaria attacks."
"Moreover, the climate in Flower City is very different from that in North City. It's reasonable for him to be acclimatized."
Jiang Li turned to look at Xiao Yanzhi and then said indifferently, "Go downstairs and buy some anti - inflammatory medicine. It will go away soon."
It sounded quite reasonable.
Hearing this, Qin Yaoyao also looked up at Xiao Yanzhi, her eyes full of doubt. "A Yan, is that true?"
Xiao Yanzhi: " ... Yes."
Hearing their answers, Qin Yaoyao first sized up the expressions on their faces. She was half - convinced by this explanation.
However, she soon stopped crying and smiled. She stepped forward and hugged Xiao Yanzhi's arm, rubbing against him affectionately. The tears in the corners of her eyes were still there.
"A Yan, since you have urticaria, why didn't you tell me earlier? You made me misunderstand you for so long."
Then she became worried again. "In that case, let's go buy the medicine quickly. Don't wait for it to get worse later."
Xiao Yanzhi stared at Jiang Li. The emotions in his eyes were obscure. He suddenly let out a cold snort.
Then he lowered his eyes. When he spoke to Qin Yaoyao, his voice was very gentle. "Okay."
After finally seeing off these two, Jiang Li heaved a sigh of relief.
She was just about to turn around and go back to her room when unexpectedly, these two came back.
"Sister Jiang Li, I remember you said last time that this was also your first time in Flower City, right?"
Looking at the smile on Qin Yaoyao's face, Jiang Li replied perfunctorily, "It's my first time. Why?"