He was slightly out of breath as he spoke.

Yu Qiao's straight back stiffened instantly. She blinked guiltily, not daring to turn on the light. She felt her ears burning and didn't move her feet. She barely managed to utter three words through clenched teeth: "Nowhere."

"Cough cough cough..." Shen Zhao slowly stood up, leaning against the wall. He was only wearing a thin white silk nightgown with a low neckline that revealed a large area of ​​his collarbone. He coughed a few times, his peach blossom eyes tinged with black, staring straight at Yu Qiao's back: "You smell of sweat."

"What did you go to do?"

A crack appeared on Yu Qiao's expressionless face as she raised her arm in disbelief and sniffed it.

It really does smell of sweat.

She opened her mouth, trying to brush it off: "Exercise."

"Exercising?" Shen Zhao chuckled softly, turning on the light and instantly brightening the room. "Exercising, yet you're dressed so conservatively, like a bandit?"

My gaze drifted to her hat, where her long, black hair was casually rolled into a low bun.

Her fair skin was tinged with a thin layer of red, and most importantly, Shen Zhao's dark gaze lingered on a bloodstain on Yu Qiao's neck.

"You went to kill someone?" he asked, frowning. Although Yu Qiao was thin, she was surprisingly strong, and there was no smell of blood on her, only this small bloodstain.

"No, no! No, I didn't kill anyone!" Yu Qiao's eyelids twitched wildly, and she suddenly felt a darkness before her eyes, along with a feeling of weakness in her legs. Images of a wedding banquet, a fire, and a man whose face she couldn't see grabbed her hand and told her to run quickly flashed through her mind.

Yu Qiao swallowed, breaking out in a cold sweat.

"Yu Qiao." Shen Zhao slowly approached Yu Qiao, stretched out his hand, his fingertips tinged with broken bluish-white, and moved closer to the bloodstains on her neck.

How could you—

Yu Qiao suddenly turned around, her gaze wary and slightly fierce as she stared at Shen Zhao, grabbing his hand: "What are you going to do?!"

She seemed to be in a state of stress; whenever someone approached her, she would subconsciously show a fierce expression, looking like she was about to fight.

What exactly did she go through to become so extreme?

Shen Zhao stared blankly at Yu Qiao's fierce eyes, then paused and said softly, "Yu Qiao, let go."

"..." Yu Qiao's eyelashes trembled, her tense nerves gradually relaxed, she pursed her lips nervously, her beautiful big eyes looking at him expectantly, and then she let go of him.

Seeing the red marks on Shen Zhao's wrist from her grip, Yu Qiao lowered her head, her slender shoulders drooping, and said in a muffled voice, "I'm sorry, I hurt you."

Shen Zhao raised an eyebrow, raised his wrist, and said righteously, "Then rub it for me."

"oh."

Yu Qiao took Shen Zhao's hand and gently stroked his delicate, swollen wrist with her rough fingertips.

Shen Zhao's hands were beautiful, with delicate, smooth skin, white with a cool sheen, and well-defined joints and long, slender fingers.

At this point, his wrist was swollen high, which looked quite frightening.

Shen Zhao lowered his eyes and stared at her slowly trembling eyelashes. Her red lips were slightly parted because of her panting. He was very close to her and could clearly see the fine white down on her skin.

She was slender and thin, with an excellent figure. Beads of sweat glistened on her skin, sliding down her elegant jawline, across her long neck, and then disappearing into her light-colored undershirt.

Shen Zhao's Adam's apple bobbed as he bent down and leaned close to her ear, his hot breath hitting her earlobe.

Yu Qiao's eyes narrowed suddenly, and she gripped his hand tightly again.

This time, Shen Zhao did not cry out in pain.

Instead, in a hoarse voice and a commanding tone, he said, "Yu Qiao, let's kiss."

! ! ?

Yu Qiao's eyes widened.

Is this some kind of perk?!

"Open your mouth." Shen Zhao stared straight at her, lowered his head, pressed his forehead against hers, wrapped one arm around her waist, and kissed her.

Yu Qiao's eyes sparkled, and she couldn't wait to wrap her arms around his neck. Not high enough, she lifted her foot and stepped on Shen Zhao's instep, then tiptoed towards his peony-like lips.

She had specifically learned from television, and although she was still a bit awkward, she was very bold.

Shen Zhao was like a blank slate in this regard; he never looked at anything and this was his first time kissing a girl.

The initiative was in Yu Qiao's hands.

Yu Qiao imitated what she saw on TV, reaching down with her hand.

It's huge.

Yu Qiao was stunned. She opened her eyes stiffly and stared at Shen Zhao.

Shen Zhao's forehead was covered in sweat.

Their lips were still pressed together.

He gritted his teeth: "Yu! Qiao!"

Yu Qiao put down her hand and instead covered Shen Zhao's eyes, her voice soft and sweet: "Don't be angry."

Damn those porn movies, she'll never watch them again!

Their breaths overlapped again.

After an unknown amount of time, Shen Zhao held Yu Qiao tightly, his head nestled in her neck, breathing heavily, and asked in a harsh voice, "How are you so skilled?!"

"Yu Qiao, you idiot, have you kissed someone else before?!"

"No, oh, no, don't overthink it," Yu Qiao explained hastily, holding up three fingers to swear, "I only kissed you."

"Then you..." Shen Zhao was half-believing, half-doubting. He squeezed her hand, sullen and annoyed, and asked, "Why are you even more..."

He hesitated to speak, finding it difficult to bring up the subject.

Yu Qiao tilted her head and asked curiously, "And what?"

"You...you even know the techniques." The fine veins on Shen Zhao's neck were clearly visible, and the tips of his ears were red as he squeezed her hand tightly.

Yu Qiao suddenly realized: "Oh, I learned this from watching TV."

This is the day we've been waiting for.

After thinking for a moment, Yu Qiao pushed Shen Zhao away, tilted her head back, and kissed Shen Zhao's red lips again.

He smiled, his eyes narrowed: "Young Master, your face is so red, so cute."

Shen Zhao's face burned even hotter. He hadn't forgotten the important matter. He lowered his head and asked again, "You still haven't told me where you went?"

"He went outside." Yu Qiao shuddered, her eyes darting around as she gave an ambiguous answer.

He was determined to get to the bottom of things: "What were you doing outside?"

"Get to work."

"What kind of work?"

"Hard work."

"..." Shen Zhao was annoyed, his tone harsh: "Yu Qiao! Are you going to talk or not!"

Yu Qiao stared at him, then suddenly laughed, like a lovesick fool: "Young Master, you look handsome even when you're angry."

Shen Zhao: ...

Seeing his cold face, Yu Qiao scratched her head in confusion, thought it over and over, and finally slowly explained, "I went to beat someone up."

Shen Zhao raised an eyebrow.

"That Yuan Jiang," Yu Qiao said, downplaying the issue, "I just happened to be passing by and saw her harassing an innocent man, so I generously stepped in to help!"

"Are you injured?" Shen Zhao's handsome brows furrowed, his long fingers tracing the thumb-sized bloodstain on Yu Qiao's neck.

"No." Yu Qiao's eyes sparkled as she clenched her fists. "I'm super strong. I'll pin her down and beat her up."

"You're really amazing, Yu Qiao."

They've already kissed, yet they're still calling each other by name?

Yu Qiao said unhappily, "Don't call me Yu Qiao anymore."

"What's it called?" Shen Zhao was completely confused.

Yu Qiao pouted and frowned, thinking seriously for a while, when suddenly her eyes lit up: "Lower your head."

"Hmm?" Shen Zhao obediently bent down and lowered his head, listening attentively.

“Between boyfriend and girlfriend, of course you should call each other—” Yu Qiao took another step closer, stood on tiptoe, and whispered in his ear, “Baby.”