Definitely a dead act.

Jiang Yibai said, "It's charged," but his arm remained wrapped around Lin Xiyan's waist, showing no sign of loosening. His newly "charged" purple eyes shone startlingly, like a leopard stalking its prey as they roamed over Lin Xiyan's still-flushed face. What churned within them was no longer exhaustion, but a deeper, possessive satisfaction and... a hint of cunning, exploitativeness.

Lin Xiyan felt uncomfortable being stared at by him. Her fingers curled up unconsciously and pressed against his chest, trying to create some distance: "...It's time to go back..."

"Back where?" Jiang Yibai raised his eyebrows, and his fingers restlessly drew circles in the depression of his lower back spine, bringing a slight itch and tremor.

"It's time to get off work..." Lin Xiyan's voice became increasingly quiet, almost drowned out by the pounding of his heartbeat. He always felt that this posture was too dangerous. Although the door was closed, what if...

"Yeah, time to get off work." Jiang Yibai nodded obediently, the subtle curve at the corner of his mouth deepening. Instead of letting go, he suddenly pulled his arm back, completely eliminating the already small distance between them. His other hand suddenly slid down, around the bend of Lin Xiyan's legs.

Lin Xiyan felt her body lose balance instantly, her scream stuck in her throat, and as the world spun around, she was already being steadily picked up by Jiang Yibai!

It was like holding a child, one hand supporting his back, the other hand holding his knees, easily holding him in his arms. Lin Xiyan was light, so Jiang Yibai held him effortlessly, even having enough room to lift him up to make him more comfortable.

“Jiang Yibai!” Lin Xiyan was so frightened that her soul was about to be ripped out of her body. Her cheeks flushed red as she struggled with her hands and feet. “Put me down! This… this is a hospital!”

His voice was so flustered that he clasped his hands against Jiang Yibai's shoulders, his legs kicking feebly in the air. This was too much! Even if no one was around, this was still his workplace! Was he going to be able to live here anymore?

"Don't move." Jiang Yibai's voice was low and contained a hint of warning. He tightened his arms around her and lowered his head to rub his chin against his burning forehead. His tone softened again, and he spoke coquettishly and confidently, "I just want to hug you. It's been a long time since I hugged you."

His breath caressed the top of Lin Xiyan's head, carrying an unmistakable attachment. All of Lin Xiyan's struggles, faced with the words "It's been a while since I last hugged you," were like a popped balloon, instantly deflated. He remained frozen in Jiang Yibai's arms, his heart pounding, embarrassed and anxious, but he no longer had the strength to push him away.

Just then—

"Knock, knock, knock!" The door of the consultation room was knocked three times, neither light nor heavy. Without waiting for a response from inside, the door handle was turned open with a "click".

"Xiyan! Are you leaving or not? I see your light's still on..." Lu Panji's signature, highlighted head popped in, his voice booming with the relief of someone off duty. However, when he took in the scene inside the consultation room, the rest of his words seemed to be snipped off by an invisible pair of scissors, becoming stuck in his throat.

His eyes were wide open, his mouth opened into an O shape, and he froze at the door, as if struck by lightning.

He saw his cool and quiet friend, Lin Xiyan, being held tightly in the arms of a tall, straight-backed man with long hair, earrings, and glasses, almost too handsome, in an intimate, princess-like embrace. Lin Xiyan's face flushed red, her eyes frantic, her hands resting limply on the man's shoulders, a look of both resistance and acceptance (in Lu Panji's opinion). The stranger, with his head slightly tilted, stared expressionlessly at the uninvited guest at the door with those cold, violet eyes, even through the lenses.

The air was dead silent.

Time seemed to stand still.

Lu Panji's brain CPU seemed to have burned out. He blinked again and again, trying to understand the surreal scene before him.

The moment Lin Xiyan saw that it was Lu Panji, his mind went dark and his vision went black. Shame washed over him like a tsunami. He buried his face in the crook of Jiang Yibai's neck, wishing he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into, or just faint.

Jiang Yibai felt the person in his arms stiffen instantly and then bury their head like an ostrich. His brows furrowed slightly, and he became even more displeased with the stunned "light bulb" at the door. He glanced coldly at Lu Panji, his eyes clearly meaning: What are you looking at? Get lost.

Lu Panji was so frightened by this look that he finally recovered from his petrified state. He gasped, pointed at Jiang Yibai with trembling fingers, and stammered, his voice cracking with shock:

"Jiang, Jiang Jiang Jiang Brother?! You you you... why are you here?! And you're still holding... holding Xiyan?!"

He finally recognized him! This infuriatingly handsome guy with a chilling aura that could freeze a fly to death—wasn't he Jiang Yibai, the photographer from a distant land who had Lin Xiyan glued to his chest?! When did he come back?! And with that long hair and those jingling things in his ears...what a dramatic change in style! And most importantly—in broad daylight, in a hospital consultation room, giving her a princess hug?! Is this something a carbon-based creature could do?!

Jiang Yibai didn't even bother to raise his eyelids, completely ignoring Lu Panji's shocked questions. He lowered his head and, in a voice only the two of them could hear, muttered to Lin Xiyan, who had buried her face in the crook of his neck, with a hint of dissatisfaction in his tone: "Noisy."

Lin Xiyan: "..." He now just wanted to disappear on the spot.

Seeing that Jiang Yibai ignored him completely, Lu Panji cast an incredulous look at Lin Xiyan, who seemed to be as invisible as she could be. He was heartbroken and said, "Xiyan! You, you just let him do this... this nonsense?! This is a hospital! My old swan!"

As he spoke, he covered his eyes pretentiously, but kept his fingers wide open. His eyes darted back and forth between Jiang Yibai and Lin Xiyan, with an uncontrollable smile on his face, a mixture of shock, excitement, and a weird "I bumped into it" look.

"Pretending to die... Absolutely pretending to die..." He muttered to himself in a low voice, winking in Jiang Yibai's direction, "You've been wanting to do this for a long time, right? While we're away, you come to the hospital and bully our Xiyan!"

He Yunling's voice suddenly came from behind Lu Panji, with a hint of confusion: "What's wrong? Why are you blocking the door?" He had just finished his work in the orthopedics department and was about to get off work.

Lu Panji seemed to have found his organization. He turned around suddenly, grabbed He Yunling's arm, and spoke excitedly incoherently: "Old He! Old He, look! Brother Jiang! He's back! He's holding Xiyan! Princess hug! In the consultation room! Oh my God!"

He Yunling stumbled as he was pulled, adjusted his glasses, and calmly peered into the consultation room. When he saw what was happening inside, even the usually calm He Yunling's eyes widened for a moment before returning to normal, though the corners of his mouth twitched uncontrollably.

He glanced at Lin Xiyan, who buried her face in Jiang Yibai's arms, feeling ashamed and angry, then glanced at Jiang Yibai, who had a look on his face that said, "It's only natural for me to hug my wife," and finally glanced at Lu Panji, who was so excited that he was about to jump up, and sighed helplessly.

"Yes, I saw it." He Yunling's tone was flat, as if the scene before him was just an ordinary one. "So, do you plan to keep this posture and wait for everyone in the hospital to come and see?"

Jiang Yibai finally spared the two people at the door a look, and said in a cold and hard tone: "You're in the way."

Lu Panji: “…” Damn!

He Yunling was very calm and pushed up his glasses. "If you want to reminisce about the past, go home. This is a work area, it won't have a good impact." He paused and added, "Besides, the cleaning lady will be here soon."

This sentence seemed to have some effect. Jiang Yibai frowned even more, obviously not wanting to be watched by more people. He lowered his head, leaned close to Lin Xiyan's ear, and asked in a whisper, "Let's go?"

Lin Xiyan now just wanted to escape from this planet immediately. Upon hearing this, she nodded very lightly in his arms.

After getting approval, Jiang Yibai no longer paid attention to the two "obstacles" at the door. He hugged Lin Xiyan, stretched out his long legs, and walked straight to the door.

Lu Panji and He Yunling subconsciously made way.

Jiang Yibai walked past them calmly, holding someone in his arms, not even a glance. Lin Xiyan, on the other hand, kept her face buried in Jiang Yibai's shoulder, not daring to look up at the expressions of her two friends.

It wasn't until Jiang Yibai disappeared at the end of the corridor holding Lin Xiyan that Lu Panji suddenly came back to his senses. He patted He Yunling's back hard (almost giving him a stitch in the side), and excitedly lowered his voice:

"Oh my god! Did you see that? A princess carry! Straight away! Jiang Yibai! After not seeing him for a few years, his moves have improved even more! Is he afraid that others won't know Xiyan is his?!"

He Yunling rubbed his back, which was hurt by the slap. Looking at the empty corridor, he couldn't help but raise the corner of his mouth in a clear arc: "The evidence is conclusive."

"He's totally faking it! He's definitely faking it!" Lu Panji kept repeating excitedly, "He must have calculated that we'd come over after get off work! He did it on purpose! He absolutely did it on purpose!"

He Yunling was too lazy to pay attention to this guy who was in a crazy CP state, and turned to walk out: "Let's go, eat."

"Hey, wait for me!" Lu Panji hurried to catch up, still chattering, "No, we can't just let this go! Brother Jiang must treat us! A big meal! To comfort my frightened little heart!"

In the consultation room, only the bunch of white freesias forgotten on the coffee table remained, quietly emitting a light fragrance, witnessing the sudden, sweet and chaotic "attack" just now.

At this moment, the person who was "attacked" was being held tightly in someone's arms, walking through the crowd of people leaving the hospital and heading towards the private space that belonged to them.

Lin Xiyan buried her face in Jiang Yibai's neck, feeling his steady heartbeat and pace. She could still hear Lu Panji's exaggerated exclamations and teasing. The shame still burned, but a deeper, secret joy of being cherished and possessed quietly wrapped around her heart like a vine.

never mind.

Being carried around like this by him, it seems... not completely unacceptable.

As long as he is here.