Chapter Forty-Three

Late at night, the moon quietly hid behind the clouds, and the yellowish glow of the moonlight scattered across a pretty face by the window.

Lu Runxu came out of the bathroom and looked at the person curled up in a ball on the bed wrapped in a doll. His smile deepened.

It's been two years since Xing Bei agreed to marry him, but he always feels insecure and afraid that one day she will suddenly leave.

Now he clearly understands Xing Bei's feelings for him, and he has watched her go from falling in love at first sight to entering his life and loving him.

He once read a sentence in a book: "If you are willing to wait, he will come back one day."

Now he has finally gotten his wish and met the girl he had liked for many years.

Lu Runxu walked to the bedside and picked up his phone from the cabinet. The topic of "Mrs. Lu, Perle" continued to escalate. The person by the bed unconsciously moved, and Lu Runxu noticed out of the corner of his eye that the blanket had been kicked off.

He turned his gaze back to the phone screen, his slender fingers tapping rapidly across it. After finishing editing, he casually tossed the phone aside, lifted a corner of the blanket, lay down, and stretched out his long arm to pull the person back into his embrace.

Xing Bei turned over groggily and snuggled into the warm embrace until she found a comfortable position before settling down. Lu Runxu looked tenderly at the person in his arms and gently kissed her forehead.

In the dead of night, a simple confession quickly went viral, sparking a surge in discussion.

—No way, no way, the wife I like is really Mrs. Lu.

—I was wondering why the style of the author's previous updates suddenly became sweeter; it turns out she's in a relationship, and we didn't even notice.

—The main reason is that the chibi characters drawn by my wife are so cute that no one would know that it is President Lu.

—What have we done to deserve this? We are so fortunate to have Mrs. Lu "feed" us!

—Mrs. Perle, you know I've been following you for a long time, please be sure to post more beautiful photos so we can feast our eyes.

—No, you guys who got into this industry early are eating so well. Mrs. Perle is practically the queen of queens in my eyes. I'm totally worshipping her.

—Look, a photo of her sketching outdoors. She's sitting there quietly and exudes charm. And that cool vibe, her gaze is like she's looking at a pile of trash. I'm totally in love with it!

—Doesn't it feel so youthful? Summer, under a big tree, art students sketching, love at first sight—it's like a scene from a novel.

—Mrs. Perle, just dump Mr. Lu, I'm willing to be your dog.

—Ahhh, this is practically to the point where I want to call her "Mom"! I'm instantly in love, and I'd follow Mrs. Perle for the rest of my life.

—What's that saying on the internet again? A husband's looks are a wife's glory. I think Perle is just as good, and she even seems to be overshadowing President Lu.

—Female Alpha, Male Alpha, could you please use your hardworking hands to write some fanfiction? I'd love to read it!

Secretary Lin looked at the comments below, her mouth practically splitting into a wide grin. She quickly retweeted President Lu's Weibo post to complete her task, then continued scrolling through the comments section, occasionally adding a like.

Right now, the "F4 who champion male virtue" is also quite a hot topic.

—So that's why I said Lu Runxu had a self-inflicted injury scheme; turns out he wanted to make it public. He's got some tricks up his sleeve.

—I never expected that a normally respectable person would resort to such shady methods.

—I wonder if there's a saying online: "The status of the first wife, the behavior of the mistress."

—Hahahaha, Mu Rong summed it up perfectly.

—@Murong, I heard from people in the industry that your wife is pregnant?

—How is that possible? I don't know who said she wasn't his type, how could she get pregnant so quickly?

—Whoever said I don't like my wife, those were just youthful folly and don't count.

—Oh my, that's a slap in the face, and you're still young and arrogant.

—Pshaw, it's impossible to reason with a bunch of guys who don't have wives.

—And Lin Zhuochi, at least I married him and slowly coaxed him into marriage, but you, you haven't even given birth yet.

—No, I've only been abroad for a few years, how did you two get married?

—I suddenly remembered there's an elderly person living alone here, how pitiful.

—……What do you mean? Are you looking down on me? I still have Ah Yi with me.

—Don't even think about it. Shang Yichen has a white moonlight, and I heard he'll be returning to China soon. You're really a pitiful, lonely old man.

The next second, "You have been kicked out of the group chat by the group owner" appeared on Lin Zhuochi's screen.

Lin Zhuochi: "..." Very well, I've been kicked out of the group chat twice in one day.

*

Vertical day.

Xing Bei woke up around noon. She groggily opened her eyes and looked out the window. She stayed in bed for a while before getting up.

The moment her feet touched the ground, a wave of soreness washed over her, and she sat back down on the edge of the bed, supporting her lower back.

Last night's kiss was supposed to be innocent, but I don't know when it started to get out of control. From the sofa to the bathroom, I was exhausted but also felt great.

She was rather pretentious, but Lu Runxu was a bit of a weirdo who especially enjoyed watching her cry, and he had a lot of tricks up his sleeve. Sometimes she couldn't help but wonder if Lu Runxu had gone to study for a further education.

After washing up, Xing Bei slowly walked downstairs. Aunt Huang was in the living room putting the fresh red plums she had bought that morning into a vase.

Seeing her get up, he quickly got up and headed to the kitchen: "Xiao Bei, wait a minute, I'll go to the kitchen right away to make you lunch."

Xing Bei looked at the bright red plum blossom on the table and inexplicably thought of what happened last night. She looked away and walked towards the kitchen.

"Aunt Huang, make some extra, I'll bring it over to Lu Runxu later." Xing Bei leaned against the door, smiling at Aunt Huang.

Lu's Group.

The vice president handed over the signed documents and looked at the person opposite him with a kind expression: "President Lu, it's almost noon, how about we have lunch together?"

Secretary Lin, standing to the side, immediately saw through what the vice president was thinking. Without even guessing, she knew he had been sent by that group of gossipy people outside to gather information.

Lu Runxu glanced up indifferently, and the next second his phone rang. Secretary Lin secretly rejoiced when she saw the contact name.

"Wait a moment, I need to take this call from my wife." Lu Runxu picked up his phone and walked to the window.

He arrived shortly afterward, and Secretary Lin could clearly see the happiness on her boss's face.

Why are you so happy? Is Madam coming to the company?

The next second, Lu Runxu's slightly smug voice came through: "I'm sorry, my wife was worried that I wouldn't be used to eating out, so she wanted to bring me food herself."

Watching the hurried figure leave, Secretary Lin twitched his lips. Was this still the stern-faced boss he usually knew?

The barely concealed tone of pride suggested that he had received praise from his master and was eager to tell the whole world.

Downstairs, Xing Bei sat quietly to one side, feeling a gaze upon her at any moment.

She looked over and her eyes met those of the young girl in front of the counter. The girl lowered her head shyly when she realized she had been caught peeking.

"Ding-dong—" The elevator doors opened, and Lu Runxu stepped out and immediately saw the person sitting on the sofa. He smiled and ran towards Xing Bei.

Xing Bei had just stood up when someone hugged her tightly, causing her to take two steps back due to the force.

Lu Runxu nuzzled against her neck: "Why are you here?"

Seeing the young girl secretly watching them, Xing Bei shyly pushed Lu Runxu away, saying, "Mind your image, we're at the company."

"No." Lu Runxu shamelessly kissed her lips, looking at the person in his arms with arrogance, "You are my wife, what's wrong with me hugging and kissing you?"

Xing Bei looked at his shameless appearance and smiled helplessly, handing him the things in her hand: "I've brought you food. Don't eat out these next few days, I'll bring it to you."

Lu Runxu took the lunchbox: "Aren't you going to eat with me?"

Xing Bei thought Lu Runxu meant she hadn't eaten, so she smiled and said, "No need, I ate at home."

After she finished speaking, she saw that Lu Runxu did not answer and was staring at her with a very aggrieved expression. Xing Bei instantly understood his little scheme.

She poked Lu Runxu's arm hard with her finger: "Let's go, I want to spend more time with A-Xu today."

Even before Xing Bei and Lu Runxu were on the phone, someone had already tipped them off in the company gossip group. When Lu Runxu led Xing Bei in, everyone watched them go in with expectant eyes.

Xing Bei had already anticipated this situation while in the elevator, but seeing so many eyes staring at her still startled her.

She tidied her stray hairs behind her ear, flashed a standard smile at the people staring at her, and someone exclaimed "Wow!" and others joined in, instantly making the area outside the office lively.

Lu Runxu merely glanced at them indifferently and did not stop them, which made Xing Bei feel a little embarrassed.

"This is Mrs. Lu. She's absolutely gorgeous. She's even prettier than some celebrities."

"I originally thought that President Lu would like the kind of well-behaved look, but I didn't expect him to be such a cool and sassy older sister."

"Just like what's said online, she's at the level where she can call me 'Mom,' I'm going to love her."

"I'm a huge fan of Mrs. Perle. Can I exchange my year-end bonus for one of her autographs?"

“I’m also a fan of Mrs. Perle. Maybe we should ask Secretary Lin to put in a good word for me.”

Upon entering the office, Xing Bei immediately lay down on the sofa, covering her face with her hands and muttering softly, "This is so embarrassing. Maybe I shouldn't come here again."

Lu Runxu placed the lunchbox on the table, sat down beside her, and removed her hands from her face: "You can't do that. My sister said she would bring me food. How can you go back on your word?"

Xing Bei knew that every time he called her "sister," he was trying to seduce her, but she just couldn't resist falling for it.

She raised her hand and gently poked Lu Runxu's face, conceding, "I won't go back on my word."

While Lu Runxu was having lunch, Xing Bei wandered around his office. Lu Runxu's office was very simple, with a wall of books behind his desk.

Xing Bei looked around and sat down at Lu Runxu's office. Her gaze swept across the room and she saw a photo frame on the desk.

The person in the photo has red hair, just like the real person, but looks relatively young. The flowing hair gives off a strong sense of aloofness. If the hair were black, the person would look more like a female protagonist in a melodramatic coming-of-age novel.

She had posted this photo on Weibo before, but it had been set to be visible only to her followers a long time ago. Seeing it again now still makes her feel a little disoriented.

She held it up to her eyes and looked at Lu Runxu across from her: "Ah Xu, I didn't expect you to like me so much."

Lu Runxu looked up at what she was holding, smiled slightly, and readily admitted, "Yes, I really like you, sister."

In the afternoon, the sun slowly emerged from the clouds, and a ray of light shone through the glass window onto the floor.

As Xing Bei left the company, she thought of an oil painting she had done a long time ago. She realized that she hadn't done a proper oil painting at home in a long time, so she decided to go to the mall to buy some art supplies.

After shopping around, besides buying paintbrushes, she also picked out several outfits, some of which were couple's items, which she planned to wear when she and Lu Runxu returned to Qingyang.

After handing the things to the driver, she went to sit in the Cloud Cafe for a while.

She hadn't opened Weibo all day, but as soon as she did, messages started popping up like crazy, leaving her speechless.

No, what divine law did she trigger this time? Why are there so many messages?

After reading half of the private messages, she finally understood that Lu Runxu had made it public the night before, and she was already asleep from exhaustion at that time.

She exited the chat window, opened the trending topics list, and the news about her and Lu Runxu going public was still trending. She randomly clicked on a topic.

Lu Runxu's account was the first to pop up—

Lu Runxu V: Winter is a good season for love.

Xing Bei paused as she looked at the photo on the screen, her smiling eyes instantly turning cold.

Xing Bei was very familiar with the photos on the screen. During that time, she was in a bad mood, so she went to a highly-rated scenic spot to sketch. She only told her two best friends about it and didn't even post it on social media.

How could Lu Runxu possibly have this photo?

It's impossible for them to meet in such a coincidence, in such a strange place. What an amazing fate!

*

Lu Runxu wasn't very busy at work today. He finished get off work in a few minutes and went home. As usual, he looked towards the sofa, but this time he was surprised to find that the person who usually loved to watch dramas on the sofa wasn't there.

Aunt Huang came out of the kitchen and saw the puzzled look on Lu Runxu's face. She pointed upstairs and said, "Xiao Bei has been in the study all afternoon."

He spent the whole afternoon in the study. Did he discover something?

Lu Runxu handed the camellias he had bought on the way to Aunt Huang and hurriedly went upstairs. When he got to the door, he saw a slender figure tiptoeing and stuffing books onto the bookshelf.

Her long, silver-white nightgown swayed gracefully around her feet as she tiptoed, and her pretty face was flushed with rouge from the effort of placing the book down.

Xing Bei looked at the books on the bookshelf, which she couldn't fit in for a long time, and felt a little irritated. Just as she was about to throw the books on the table, something cold suddenly pressed against her back.

The book in her hand was taken away and put back in its original place, which startled Xing Bei.

She turned around and glared at the person in front of her with displeasure: "You walk so quietly, are you trying to scare me to death?"

Lu Runxu lowered his eyes, his alluring fox-like eyes curving slightly, and leaned down to look her in the eye: "Why are you so eager to learn today, sister?"

The sudden closeness made Xing Bei instinctively step back, but there was a bookshelf behind her, and she had nowhere to hide. Those fox-like eyes just stared at her with a smile.

Under the bright white light overhead, Lu Runxu's face was clearly visible to her, and the faint smile on his lips gave him the look of a well-behaved puppy.

Meeting those bright, sparkling eyes, Xing Bei automatically pictured the vibrant red plum blossom in the living room, and she felt an urge to paint that blossom onto Lu Runxu's face.

Just imagining it in my mind is already amazing.

She was the kind of person who would go wherever her thoughts took her, and at this moment she was trying to figure out how to make Lu Runxu willingly act as her human canvas.

Looking at her malicious smile, Lu Runxu instantly guessed that she was up to no good. The next second, Xing Bei wrapped her arms around his waist, and a look of surprise flashed in Lu Runxu's eyes.

"Why are you being so proactive today, sister?" Lu Runxu asked knowingly with a smile, his hands already wandering beneath him.

Having shared a bed for so long, Xing Bei knew exactly what he wanted to do. Before she could stop him, Lu Runxu flipped her over and pinned her against the bookshelf.

Xing Bei struggled a couple of times, but the other person pressed even closer, his large hands gently grasping her slender waist. Even through her clothes, Xing Bei could clearly feel Xiao Lu's temperature rising.

"Lu Runxu, this is the study."

A soft laugh came from behind him, and a gentle, deep voice spoke unrestrained words: "I haven't tried the study yet. Since you've invited me so warmly today, how could I, Lu, refuse?"

Xing Bei rolled her eyes speechlessly. Who invited him so enthusiastically? He would say anything shameless just to satisfy his own desires.

Glancing at the tools lying to the side, Xing Bei forcefully pushed away the person behind her: "Wait, I have a request."

Lu Runxu stepped back a little, staring at the person in front of him with interest: "What are the conditions?"

Xing Bei's smile deepened in her bright peach blossom eyes as she raised her hand and twirled it in front of his chest: "Be my human canvas for once."

"A human figureboard?" Lu Runxu chuckled. "I didn't expect my sister to be so good at this. I guess I'm just not very knowledgeable."

Xing Bei chuckled dryly and actually became polite to him: "Not at all, how could my little tricks compare to President Lu's?"

Lu Runxu released her completely and nodded in agreement: "That's true."

Xing Bei: "..." She's really starting to identify with herself.

While waiting for Lu Runxu to change his clothes, Xing Bei prepared the paints she needed. Luckily, she had picked up a set of watercolors when she bought the paints earlier that day.

After mixing the paint, Xing Bei pulled Lu Runxu to sit on a chair to the side. Lu Runxu waited quietly, and out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a red plum blossom on the desk, its color bright red and delicate.

So I had this idea in mind all along. No wonder I was so cooperative just now and even made some demands of him.

Xing Bei rested one hand on Lu Runxu's shoulder, carefully observing where to start.

This face, meticulously crafted by Nuwa, is flawless from any angle. Upon closer inspection, Xing Bei noticed a barely noticeable red mole beneath his eye.

Her slender fingertips gently brushed across the red mole, and a faint smile curved her lips.

The delicate pen tip gently touched the snow-white skin, and in an instant, a vibrant dawn red tinged the clear, fair skin.

As her slender, fair wrists gracefully traced the lines, the soft ink and tingling sensation gradually captivated the hearts of those beneath her.

The man in the chair leaned back lazily, his face handsome and beautiful, his fox-like eyes gazing affectionately at the beauty who was carefully painting on his face.

The thin nightgown draped between her thighs, revealing glimpses of her lower body; the silvery-white hem contrasted sharply with the dark blue robe.

Under the bright light, her beautiful face looked serious and focused, making her even more attractive than when she was smiling.

The entwined flower branches slowly descended along my neck, gradually forming a crimson scene, with clusters of delicate red plum blossoms blooming between my neck.

The red plum blossoms beside those fox-like eyes, which held a faint smile, were even more vibrant and alluring. Far from being overshadowed, they accentuated Lu Runxu's beauty, making him look like a red plum blossom fairy who had successfully cultivated herself.

Xing Bei finished the last stroke, put down her paintbrush, and looked at the red plum blossom on the table. Although it looked no different from the real thing.

It had been several years since I last picked up a brush to paint, and the paints weren't of very high quality. The details weren't handled properly, so I was only barely satisfied.

Xing Bei held up a full-length mirror she had prepared in front of him and looked at him expectantly: "How is it?"

Lu Runxu looked at the person in the mirror, slightly raised his chin to reveal his slender neck. The enchanting red plum blossoms started from the corners of his eyes, went down his slender neck, crossed and wrapped around his chest, each one more beautiful than the last, as if a red plum blossom had truly grown on his skin.

"I never knew you had such skills, sister." Lu Runxu looked up at her, his eyes full of smiles. "I wonder if you've ever painted like this for others before."

Xing Bei chuckled softly, her fingertips brushing over the most delicate and luscious petal at the corner of her eye. With a light touch, she moved her fingers down the branch, applying just the right amount of pressure. The person beneath her let out a soft groan, her eyes gradually turning red, and the desire in her eyes growing stronger. The entire red plum tree seemed to come alive.

Such a beautiful canvas for drawing the human body; it seems I can draw other things next time.

"Please, sister, be kind to me."

Xing Bei raised an eyebrow and smiled, her fingertips boldly moving downwards until they landed on a spot that was already standing upright, and she tapped it with a little force.

"Then we'll see if my younger brother can afford to buy enough."

As soon as she finished speaking, she was picked up and placed on the table, the icy touch instantly assaulting her entire body.

Xing Bei raised her hand to encircle Lu Runxu's neck and leaned in to kiss the red plum blossom at the corner of his eye.

Lu Runxu supported himself on both sides, cooperating with the movements of the person in front of him. Xing Bei was always coy in matters of the heart, so it was rare for her to be so proactive.

Today really broadened his horizons. After seeing this, he can let Mrs. Lu practice painting more.

Sometime later, the red plum blossom on the table was knocked to the ground, the exquisite vase was shattered, and a few petals on the branches were broken and scattered all over the ground. The moonlight outside the window quietly poured through the gauze window onto the water-reflecting floor.

Before the full-length mirror, two graceful figures intertwined, water droplets from their foreheads flowing down the branches, staining the petals little by little, making them even more red and alluring, as if they were breaking through the snow-white skin.

The other side of her neck was covered with dense red marks, intertwined with the messy red plum petals on one side, like withered flowers after being swept by wind and snow, giving it a unique charm.

A thin layer of mist clouded Xing Bei's eyes. Seeing this scene, she was extremely satisfied.

Unfortunately, this paint isn't waterproof. It seems I'll have to make some time to go back to Qingyang and ask her senior brother for some special paint.