Chapter 34 Kissing They mingled together, isolated from the world.
Qin Man didn't wake up until noon the next day. She got up and drank some water, but her nose felt like it was stuffed with cotton, and she couldn't breathe at all.
Feeling unwell, Qin Man lay back down in bed, too exhausted to get up and continue living her life.
She heard Jiang Xuchi coming upstairs, covered her ears, and turned over.
Jiang Xuchi opened the door, and she crawled into bed.
"woke up?"
How did he know that he was overheard just because he was taking a sip of water?
A cold hand reached in and touched her forehead.
"She has a fever."
"That's because your hands are too cold," Qin Man retorted in a muffled voice.
“Your voice sounds all sticky and muggy,” Jiang Xuchi said, taking two coats out of the closet and pulling her out of bed. “Get up and get dressed. We’re going to the hospital.”
Qin Man was taken to that private clinic by Jiang Xuchi. The ear thermometer showed 38 degrees Celsius, so he prescribed antipyretics and sent her home to continue sleeping.
Qin Man spent two days in a daze before slowly recovering.
She has always been in good health and rarely gets sick since childhood. Even if she feels terrible this time, she should recover from a cold in no more than two days.
She even didn't want to recover too quickly, because Jiang Xuchi took such good care of her.
One day at noon, she woke up with no appetite and, to her dismay, wanted to drink the porridge from that shop in Chengxiyuan. Jiang Xuchi traveled across most of the city and returned carrying two insulated lunchboxes.
That porridge can only be bought at the store in Chengxiyuan; there's no delivery service, and even if you call, it can't be delivered in time, so Jiang Xuchi drove there himself to buy it.
There's always a glass of warm water placed by her bedside every night, which Qin Man can reach every time she wakes up.
Jiang Xuchi also moved a humidifier and an air purifier to the bedside to ensure humidity and air quality.
At that moment, she was lying in bed bored and unable to sleep, so Jiang Xuchi lowered the screen and watched a movie with her using a projector.
Qin Man suddenly realized that Jiang Xuchi was also a thoughtful and considerate person.
Although he still speaks very little, he does things perfectly.
As she thought about it, she remembered the kiss from the night before last.
It felt really good to kiss him.
She was so good to him that she forgot what kind of person Jiang Xuchi was.
"What are you thinking about?"
A soothing romantic movie was playing on the projector, with no exciting scenes; it was so pure and innocent that it was almost boring.
Qin Man was distracted and was caught red-handed by Jiang Xuchi.
"It's nothing..." Qin Man couldn't help but rub her face and asked a very direct question, "Jiang Xuchi, do you like me?"
Jiang Xuchi had his arm around her waist, his head tilted towards her. Hearing this, he didn't move or react.
"...Jiang Xuchi?"
He patted the back of her head. "Focus on the movie."
Qin Man didn't ask any more questions. His avoidance of the question made her lose face, and she began to regret asking it.
The silence became even more awkward after she asked that question.
She couldn't stay any longer.
Qin Man slapped his hand back, threw away the small blanket covering her, and jumped out of bed.
Jiang Xuchi bent his elbow, grabbed her waist, and forcibly pulled her back.
Are you angry?
Qin Man didn't speak, but gave him a look that said, "What do you think?"
Jiang Xuchi pinched her chin, forcing her to turn her head.
He aimed a kiss at her lips.
Qin Man was kissed in his arms and turned over, naturally lying down on the bed.
"I... um, I still have a cold!"
The film suddenly ended, and the credits started rolling with white text on a black background, followed by the final background music.
The entire room was dimly lit, with all the light coming from the image on the projection screen.
A long time passed, and both of them were panting.
Jiang Xuchi grabbed her fidgeting hand and laughed, "I just wanted to kiss you, why are you touching me like that?"
Qin Man clenched her fist and punched him in the chest.
She had no idea that Jiang Xuchi was actually a good candidate to become a monk.
It started to rain lightly outside, but the two people inside were unaware of it.
They mingled together, isolated from the world.
...
After the ending theme finished playing, the projector went completely black.
Qin Man seemed to hear the sound of rain and Jiang Xuchi's footsteps on her neck.
She felt the changes in the person's body on top of her and said in a hoarse voice, "Jiang Xuchi, you might as well just suffocate."
Jiang Xuchi chuckled silently twice, his breath unusually warm.
He released her and rolled over to lie on his back to the side.
"Go to sleep," he said.
Qin Man felt sleepy, grabbed the blanket, turned her back to him, and prepared to fall asleep.
No matter how sleepy I was, I couldn't ignore the suppressed voices coming from beside me.
The rustling of the blankets, the slight vibrations of the mattress, the sound of rain, the noise of the air purifier, the steam rising from the humidifier...
She dared not make a sound, dared not move, and lay there stiffly until she slowly fell asleep.
Qin Man didn't sleep well and woke up in the middle of the night.
She turned over and met a pair of eyes.
Startled, she screamed and before she could react, she had already slapped Jiang Xuchi across the face. "Why aren't you sleeping!"
Jiang Xuchi leaned over and hugged her, saying, "I woke up as soon as you turned over."
Qin Man's heart pounded, and she belatedly realized that neither of them had been sleeping well these past few days.
Two days ago, Qin Man had a cold, and Jiang Xuchi would come upstairs to check on her from time to time. At that time, she was in a daze, and every time she woke up, it was because of the sound of Jiang Xuchi's footsteps coming upstairs.
Sometimes it was in the middle of the night, and Jiang Xuchi would even come over two or three times in the middle of the night.
He was suffering from insomnia, and she was ill and also suffering from insomnia.
How long will this continue?
Qin Man asked, "Are there still people online criticizing me?"
Jiang Xuchi nuzzled his head against her chest, hugging her like a child, and said, "I didn't see it."
Has Qin Chen contacted you?
"I've looked for it."
Qin Man was puzzled: "How come I didn't know?"
“He called to yell at me and even came downstairs specifically to beat me up, but he was taken away by a woman.”
Qin Man: "..."
Qin Chen, who fears nothing, is actually afraid of Gu Lingqing.
Thinking of Qin Chen and his rich wife, Qin Man also thought of Qu Lan.
"I want to see Mommy."
"Then let's wait until I wake up tomorrow..."
"I'm going now."
Jiang Xuchi turned over and sat up resignedly.
At four in the morning, Jiang Xuchi didn't plan to wake the driver. He pushed the motorcycle out and asked Qin Man, "Are you still brave enough to ride?"
"Now you're actually considering my feelings."
Without saying a word, Qin Man sat on the motorcycle, leaned on the front, and swayed the whole vehicle with her body weight, saying, "Now I don't think there's anything to be afraid of when riding a motorcycle."
It's strange, people say, that once a new wound appears, the old wound becomes insignificant.
Besides, this was the third time I had ridden his motorcycle.
She adapted quite well last time.
Jiang Xuchi gripped the handlebars and saw Qin Man lying there, refusing to move. He went over and patted Qin Man's bottom.
Qin Man exploded: "Your hands are always wandering around!"
"Do you know what I dreamed about yesterday?" Jiang Xuchi said.
"What?"
Jiang Xuchi tapped the front of the car with his fingers, "I dreamt that you were lying here, and I was behind you."
Qin Man was waiting for him to continue.
Jiang Xuchi fastened her helmet, saying as he did so, "Your moaning was so sweet that I woke up, so I had to go wash my underwear."
"..."
Qin Man was stunned for two seconds, completely unable to understand the meaning of his illogical words.
Jiang Xuchi smiled meaningfully.
"Don't you understand? You still tease me every day with this."
Even though Qin Man was slow to realize what he meant, she angrily shoved him, "Stop talking nonsense and take me to the hospital right now."
The two arrived at the hospital at five o'clock.
The corridor was quiet. A nurse pushed a disinfection cart past, glanced at the two of them, and then hurried past with her head down.
This is a VIP ward. Qin Man found the ward number and pushed the door open to go in.
Qu Lan was looking at the tablet with a blank expression.
Upon seeing Qin Man, she put the tablet aside and said, "Manman, did you run into anyone on your way here?"
Qu Lan was referring to those paparazzi.
Qin Weiguo is deeply embroiled in economic and political issues, and his downfall has brought to light a whole host of other problems. The capital and forces behind him are still being investigated, making this a very sensitive topic.
However, the actions of family members can be embellished by reporters and turned into sensational news headlines.
These past few days, Qu Lan has been hiding in the hospital, claiming to be unwell, while Qin Chen has been hiding in a place where no reporters can find him.
Qin Man recalled that she had just ridden on Jiang Xuchi's motorcycle and everyone was wearing helmets, so her face was not visible.
"No, I came up from the parking garage, there was no one else there."
Qin Man plopped down on the sofa next to the bed.
She watched a variety show on the tablet with Qu Lan for a while, then spaced out for a bit, and finally chatted about Qin Chen's recent situation for a couple of minutes before falling into a long, long silence.
It's hard to imagine that after such a tragedy, family members could sit face to face and have nothing to say to each other.
Qin Man was a little reluctant to leave, but given the atmosphere, she felt that staying would disturb Qu Lan's rest.
The sunlight outside the window grew brighter and brighter. Qu Lan said, "I should go to sleep."
As Qin Man stood up and walked out, she heard Qu Lan say again, "Don't trade your youth for someone's promise. Manman, your mother's example is a perfect example."
Qin Man nodded, pushed open the door and left, and saw Jiang Xuchi sitting on a bench in the corridor.
She wouldn't expect a promise from someone.
Qin Man thought that only what she held in her hands was real, while all the others were just sweet talk and empty words.
Those who mingle in the world of fame and fortune, few see through it all, and far too many are deceived and misled. She won't fall for that trick.
...
Jiang Xuchi fell asleep leaning against the bench.
Qin Man leaned in and examined him closely.
He has long eyelashes, fair skin, and strong, defined features; he is a very handsome man.
Qin Man remembered that he should be a year and a half older than her. She didn't know why he suddenly came back from abroad and even repeated a year.
Perhaps it has something to do with that illegitimate son named Jiang Chenyao.
If it were Qin Chen, and a child born out of wedlock suddenly appeared in his family and wanted to fight for his inheritance, she guessed Qin Chen would also angrily run back from abroad.
Jiang Xuchi suddenly opened his eyes. Qin Man was still imagining a little drama in her mind and didn't react. She stared blankly at him.
Jiang Xuchi laughed: "What are you looking at me for?"
Before Qin Man could speak, a kiss silenced her.
Jiang Xuchi leaned in and kissed her, then placed one hand on her waist and slowly pulled her into his arms.
This is a hospital corridor!
Qin Man didn't want to see news about Qin Weiguo's daughter seducing Jiang Shuhai's grandson on her public account; there were already enough negative topics about her.
Jiang Shuhai has been quite a hot topic lately, especially since his grandfather recently spent a fortune to buy a college student's graduation project, which even became a trending topic.
Qin Man pushed him away abruptly, her face flushed as she looked around. Finding no one there, she let out a long sigh of relief.
Jiang Xuchi: "Let's go. If we stay any longer, you'll get photographed."
"Did you do that on purpose?!" Qin Man's face was still red, and she immediately took out a mask and put it on.
Jiang Xuchi patted her waist, "Don't be nervous, there's no one around. Look how scared you are."
Qin Man rolled her eyes at him.
Jiang Xuchi put his arm around her, resting his chin on her shoulder and just smiling.
He just had a nightmare during his short sleep.
The moment he woke up from the nightmare, Qin Man suddenly appeared in his field of vision.
It felt good to see Qin Man as soon as he opened his eyes. Jiang Xu didn't think much about it and his body followed his desires.
He didn't expect that he would kiss her first.
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