Chapter 293 Don’t move while you’re still hungover!
It was already late, and Cen Lian was drunk again. Jiang Chenyu had no way of sending her back to the Cen family while she was drunk.
It was not convenient to take her back to Tanxiyuan, so he had to take her to his large flat in the city center.
When the car drove into the underground garage, Cen Lian'an's head was already tilted towards the window, his breathing even and long.
Jiang Chenyu turned off the engine but did not get out of the car immediately.
He turned sideways and stared at her sleeping face in the dim light of the garage.
Her eyelashes cast fine shadows on her face, her cheeks were a faint pink from the effect of alcohol, and her lips were slightly parted in a silent invitation.
Jiang Chenyu's Adam's apple rolled, and he reached out and gently tucked her scattered hair behind her ears.
The moment his fingertips touched her earlobe, he quickly withdrew his hand as if he had been burned.
"An An..." he called softly, with a tenderness in his voice that he himself didn't even notice.
Jiang Chenyu's original intention was to wake her up, but his voice was so gentle that he was afraid of disturbing her sweet dream.
Cen Lian frowned in his sleep and shrank unconsciously into his seat, showing no sign of waking up.
Jiang Chenyu looked at him lovingly and shook his head, unbuckled his seat belt and got out of the car, walked around to the passenger side and gently opened the door.
He hesitated for a second, then put one hand through her knees and the other hand on her back, carefully picking her up.
This was not the first time Jiang Chenyu held her, but she was still as light as ever, as if he was not holding anything.
Cen Lian'an was a pretty good drinker, so he didn't make a fuss with him and leaned his head naturally on his chest. The faint scent of shampoo in her hair mixed with the sweet aroma of plum wine penetrated his nostrils.
Jiang Chenyu tightened his arms, afraid of waking her up, but also afraid of hugging her too tightly and making her uncomfortable.
During the dozens of seconds that the elevator was rising, Jiang Chenyu's eyes never left her face.
He recalled the sudden kiss in the car just now, and the soft touch of his lips seemed to still remain.
It was the intimacy he had always dreamed of but never dared to hope for, yet it happened under such circumstances.
With a "ding" sound, the elevator reached the top floor.
Jiang Chenyu carried Cen Lian out of the elevator and struggled to enter the password with one hand at the door.
The moment the door opened, the sensor light in the living room automatically lit up, and warm yellow light filled the entire space.
Jiang Chenyu's apartment is decorated in a simple and warm style. There is a piano next to the beige sofa and several landscape oil paintings hang on the wall.
He walked straight towards the bedroom, but stopped at the door.
After hesitating for a moment, he turned around and put Cen Lian on the sofa in the living room.
"Hmm..." Cen Lian let out a dissatisfied hum the moment he lost the warm embrace, and his body curled up unconsciously.
Jiang Chenyu quickly brought a blanket from the bedroom and gently covered her with it.
He squatted beside the sofa, looking at her uneasy sleeping posture, frowning slightly.
Under the influence of alcohol, her breathing became heavy and beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.
"Water..." Cen Lian murmured in his dream, his dry lips trembling slightly.
Jiang Chenyu immediately got up and went to the kitchen to pour a glass of warm water, and then found some hangover medicine from the medicine box.
When I returned to the living room, Cen Lian had already turned over and half of the blanket had slipped off.
He gently lifted her upper body and let her lean on his arms.
"An An, drink some water." He coaxed her in a low voice, putting the rim of the cup close to her lips.
Cen Lian drank a few sips in a daze, and his brows relaxed a little.
Jiang Chenyu took the opportunity to put the pill into her mouth and fed her some water to ensure she swallowed it.
After doing all this, he breathed a sigh of relief, but was reluctant to let her go immediately.
The moonlight poured in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, giving Cen Lian'an's profile a silver edge.
Jiang Chenyu's eyes traced her outline, from her full forehead to her small nose, and then to the pair of lips that haunted his dreams.
He remembered the innocent expression on her face when she said, "He was so handsome when steering with one hand, it was unfair," and his heart beat wildly uncontrollably.
"Cen Lian! I'm done... I can't live without you anymore." Jiang Chenyu's voice was so low that even he could hardly hear it.
Cen Lian didn't respond of course, but found a more comfortable position in his arms and let out a contented sigh.
Jiang Chenyu smiled bitterly, carefully put her back on the sofa, and covered her with the blanket again.
He got up and went to the bathroom to wring out a wet towel. He came back and squatted beside the sofa, gently wiping the sweat from her forehead and the water stains from the corners of her mouth.
As the towel slid across her flushed cheeks, Cen Lian suddenly grabbed his wrist.
"Don't go..." she said vaguely, her eyes still closed.
Jiang Chenyu froze in place, his eyes fixed on her slightly flushed face, afraid that she would call out the name he didn't want to hear.
Fortunately, after a while, Cen Lian'an's hand slowly loosened and he fell asleep again.
Jiang Chenyu breathed a sigh of relief and continued to wipe her cheeks and neck.
She didn't have to call him by his name, but he was worried that she would call another man's name.
It is said that people speak the truth when they are drunk. The name of the person she called out when she was drunk and her mind was completely empty was the person she was really thinking of.
After doing all this, he bent down and carried him from the sofa into the guest bedroom.
But he did not leave, and sat by the bed, watching over her.
The clock on the wall showed one in the morning, but he had no desire to sleep.
Every time Cen Lian turned over or made a sound, he would immediately look up to make sure she was okay.
After an unknown amount of time, Jiang Chenyu's head began to fall down little by little.
He tried hard not to fall asleep, but he couldn't resist the tiredness in the end and leaned on the bed and closed his eyes.
——
The next morning.
Cen Lian was awakened by a sharp headache.
She frowned and opened her eyes, the unfamiliar ceiling instantly waking her up.
There was soft bedding beneath her, and a faint scent of cedar lingered on her pillow. It was a double bed, but she was the only one lying on it.
She carefully raised herself up, and immediately felt dizzy.
There was a half-full glass of water and two hangover pills on the bedside table, and the condensation at the bottom of the glass sparkled in the morning light.
The room was spacious, with beige curtains letting in the faint morning light, illuminating the simple outlines of the furniture.
The fragments of last night's memories gradually came together: the restaurant, the plum wine, Jiang Chenyu's burning gaze... and that kiss with the scent of wine.
Cen Lian suddenly covered his mouth, and his fingertips touched his dry lips.
Oh my god, she actually... kissed him!
A rustling sound came from the right.
Only then did Cen Lian notice that Jiang Chenyu was sitting in the armchair beside the bed, asleep with his head tilted to one side.
Two buttons of his white shirt were undone, revealing the clear lines of his collarbone. His usually meticulously kept hair now hung messily in front of his forehead, and his long eyelashes cast fan-shaped shadows under his eyes.
Cen Lian held his breath.
The morning light outlined his straight nose and jawline, and the stubble on his chin made him look less distant than usual.
His right hand was still holding the phone, and his left hand hung at his side, with his long fingers slightly curled.
As if possessed by a ghost, she gently lifted the quilt and stepped barefoot on the cold wooden floor.
The hangover made her movements a little slow, but curiosity drove her to tiptoe closer to the sleeping person.
When he was three steps away, the scent of cedar mixed with a faint smell of disinfectant hit him in the face.
This was a smell that belonged only to Jiang Chenyu, reminding her of how he had video-called her yesterday while wearing a white coat.
Cen Lian squatted down, within arm's reach of him so that he could hear his breathing.
His eyelashes were trembling, and he seemed to be sleeping uneasy.
Cen Lian recalled the turbulent look in his eyes when he confessed his love to her last night, and the restrained gestures he made when he helped her into the car.
At this moment, his brows were slightly furrowed, and his lips were tightly drawn, as if he was maintaining that damn self-control even in his dreams.
She reached out her hand automatically, her fingertips hovering an inch above his cheek.
The morning light passed through her fingers, casting tiny spots of light on his face.
Just go down a little bit more and you can touch that warm...
"How long do you want to watch?" A low and hoarse voice suddenly sounded, and Cen Lian'an's hand froze in mid-air.
Jiang Chenyu opened his eyes at some point, and her panicked face was reflected in his dark pupils.
He remained in the same position without moving, only his Adam's apple rolled slowly.
"I..." Cen Lian took two steps back quickly, but his ankle was tripped by the edge of the bed.
As the world spun around her, a strong arm wrapped around her waist and she fell into a warm embrace.
Jiang Chenyu's breath sprayed on her ears, with a slight hoarseness from waking up in the morning, "How dare you move around like this when you're still hungover?" His palm was on her waist, and the heat burned her skin through the thin fabric.
Cen Lian tried to stand up in a panic, but his palm pressed squarely on his chest.
Through his shirt, she could clearly feel his suddenly accelerated heartbeat.
"S-Sorry!" She pulled her hand back as if burned, her cheeks burning red. "I just... wanted to check the time..."
Jiang Chenyu let go of his hand and slowly pulled his phone out of his pocket. "Six twenty." He looked up, his gaze grazing over her bare ankles. "The ground is cold."
These three words made Cen Lian jump back onto the bed as if he had been electrocuted, and he pulled the quilt over himself.
Jiang Chenyu stood up, and the wrinkles on the back of his shirt smoothed out with his movements.
He walked to the window and opened half of the curtains. The morning light immediately poured in, giving him a golden edge.
"Do you have a headache?" he asked with his back to her, his voice back to his usual cold tone.
Only then did Cen Li'an notice that his temples were throbbing. "It's, it's okay..."
Jiang Chenyu turned and walked towards the door, pausing at the doorframe. "There's a new toothbrush in the bathroom, and breakfast will be delivered in fifteen minutes. It's best to eat something and take a bath before going to bed."
After saying that, he closed the door and the footsteps gradually faded away.
Cen Lian let out a long sigh and buried himself in the pillow.
The sheets were filled with his scent, reminding her of the kiss from last night.
She actually did that kind of thing while drunk. Now he must think she is a frivolous woman.
A horrible face was reflected in the bathroom mirror.
Cen Lian splashed cold water on his cheeks, trying to wash away the remaining drunkenness and shame.
As she brushed her teeth, she noticed the men's skincare products neatly arranged on the shelf. The minty aftershave smelled just like him.
When she reluctantly walked out of the bedroom, porridge and side dishes were already on the dining table.
Jiang Chenyu changed into a gray sweater and was answering the phone on the balcony.
Through the glass door, the outline of his profile was particularly clear in the morning light, and the occasional frown when he spoke made him look serious and charming.
"Ask the vice president to preside over the academic seminar this morning. I have something else to do here so I won't go..." He hung up the phone and turned around, just in time to meet Cen Lian'an's gaze, which he had no time to dodge.
"Have breakfast." He pulled out a chair, his voice calm as if nothing had happened.
Cen Lian ate his porridge in small bites and stole a glance at the person reading a newspaper opposite him.
His fingers were long and clean, with the knuckles slightly raised when he turned the pages. This hand was used to hug her last night.
"There's a meteor shower today."
Suddenly, this sentence came from behind the newspaper. Cen Lian'an's spoon knocked against the edge of the bowl, making a crisp sound.
Jiang Chenyu put down the newspaper and looked at her calmly: "Suburban Observatory, 7pm."
He paused. "If your head doesn't hurt, I'll take you to see a doctor."
Cen Li'an's spoon fell into the bowl. Could she be drunk and talking nonsense?
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