Chapter 131 The Unromantic Bad Man
The first light of dawn.
Sunlight streamed into the bedroom through the blackout curtains.
Qu He was half-asleep when she was awakened by a rustling sound next to her.
She struggled to open her eyes and vaguely saw Zhuang Bieyan leave the bedroom with a bulging bag. A short while later, when he came back in, his hands were empty.
She turned over sleepily, wanting to continue sleeping, but her back was pressed against a warm chest.
Zhuang Bieyan lay on his side, reached out from behind, his fingers cool from washing, and mischievously pinched and shook her chin, saying, "Time to get up."
"Wait a little longer. Experts say that people need to get enough sleep." Qu He slapped his hand away and acted like a spoiled child.
Zhuang Bieyan chuckled silently, "Who was it that held my hand last night, repeatedly telling me, 'Zhuang Bieyan, you must wake me up before you leave tomorrow morning!'"
He deliberately imitated Qu He's confident tone from last night, with an upward inflection at the end, sounding both sarcastic and strange.
Qu He was so annoyed by his imitation that she was half-awake and punched him with her fist. "Shut up! If it weren't for you, I would have gotten up a long time ago."
Two days ago, Professor Qi Mo emailed him, asking her to attend an important art exhibition in China on her behalf, followed by a dinner party.
Qu He had planned to get up early and dress up nicely, but Zhuang Bieyan kept her up late last night, leaving her exhausted and barely able to lift her arm.
Zhuang Bieyan smiled, the sound of his laughter echoing against her back.
He sat up straight, grabbed her hands without a word, and scooped her limply off the bed. "I've already called a stylist and makeup artist to come over, and I've ordered your favorite lunch for noon. I'll have the driver take you there this afternoon. Is that enough sincerity?"
Qu He barely opened one eye, raised her hand to brush the hair from her face, and glanced at him. "When a man is quiet, he must be up to something. Why is he being so considerate all of a sudden?"
Zhuang Bieyan ruffled her messy hair, got up, and got out of bed to get dressed.
Without his support, Qu He became a boneless mollusk again, collapsing back onto the bed.
But this time, his sleepiness had already been completely dispelled.
She lay on her side, quietly watching Zhuang Bieyan tie his tie.
The bedroom's automatic curtains sensed the sunlight and slowly drew the sheer curtains. He stood in the gentle light, his body seemingly gilded, every movement so elegant and composed.
What could be more pleasing to the eye than waking up in the morning to see a handsome man?
Thinking back to last night when he nervously showed her his less-than-perfect, real self, and remembering what he said to her as he held her at the end of the night…
"I used to always want to show you the good side of things, but now I want you to know even the less respectable and most secret aspects of my life."
In the past, Qu He always felt that there was an invisible veil and an inscrutable chasm between her and Zhuang Bieyan.
But after last night, it seemed that the veil had been blown away a bit, and the chasm was being slowly filled by some kind of warm feeling, and they were getting closer and closer.
All his kindness and thoughtfulness in the past vividly surfaced in my mind, melting into my heart like candies.
A sweet joy filled my chest, almost overflowing, making my heart swell with sweetness.
On this warm, sunny morning, Qu He was absolutely certain that she had completely fallen in love with this man.
She couldn't help but suppress the wildly upturned corners of her mouth, pulled the blanket over her head, and in her own private space, covered her burning cheeks and laughed silently and unrestrainedly, even her toes curling up because of this pure joy.
After Zhuang Bieyan finished tying his tie and turned around, what he saw on the bed was a bundle wrapped tightly in a blanket that was shaking incessantly.
He frowned, walked over, and lifted the blanket.
Qu He was enjoying the bliss of first love all by herself when suddenly a handsome face appeared before her.
The smile on her lips froze instantly.
There was already little air under the blanket, and she was a little short of breath from laughing for so long, so her face was red. Now that he had caught her red-handed, she was even redder.
"What are you doing?" She tried to pull the blanket over herself guiltily, but the man's strength was far beyond her ability to resist.
The blanket remained completely still.
Zhuang Bieyan poked her flushed face with his finger and teased, "Why is your face so red? Hmm?"
"Is it hot? Can't it be hot?"
"Yeah?"
Qu He remained defiant, and with a sudden burst of confidence, she pulled hard on the blanket, catching herself and the blanket off guard.
Zhuang Bieyan was pulled off balance and fell onto him.
The two were very close, their noses touching, and his breath fell on her neck and shoulders, making her feel a little ticklish.
Zhuang Bieyan's gaze changed instantly, from initial mockery to gradually becoming intense and deep. His gaze moved down from her eyes and landed on her slightly parted lips in surprise.
Qu He felt the warmth in his gaze.
Her heart pounded like a drum. She tilted her head back slightly, closed her eyes, and waited for his kiss to fall.
Zhuang Bieyan lowered his head, his breath growing closer, but at the last moment he suddenly turned his head and gently kissed her burning face.
He chuckled and affectionately pinched her nose. "What are you thinking about, you little rascal?"
Qu He: "...!!!"
A surge of immense shame and anger welled up inside her, and she lay on the bed, taking several deep breaths in her fury.
This man is quite cunning.
She kicked him away, calling him an "unromantic bad man."
Zhuang Bieyan was amused by her exasperated appearance and laughed out loud. "Now you're a bad man? Who was it yesterday who said 'The Zhuang I like has never been so perfect...'"
Halfway through his sentence, Qu He covered his mouth with both hands and glared at him irritably, "Zhuang Bieyan, you're really annoying!"
Zhuang Bieyan stopped teasing her, kissed her palm, and got out of bed to put on his coat.
Qu He's eyes darted around, and she inadvertently noticed that the style of tie he was wearing today was one she had never seen before.
"Come here a little." She beckoned to him.
Zhuang Bieyan obediently bent down and leaned closer to her.
Qu He reached out and grabbed his tie, gently pulling him closer to her.
She looked at it carefully; it was indeed new, and... it didn't have the familiar swallow pattern.
A thought struck her, and she withdrew her hand, asking seemingly casually, "Why are you wearing this tie today?"
Zhuang Bieyan's expression flickered slightly, but it vanished in an instant. He picked up the tie and asked, "What's wrong with this tie?"
Qu He didn't reveal the secret about the swallow pattern, thinking it was better that Zhuang Bieyan didn't tie it, so as not to be bothered by it.
She shook her head, her tone light, "It's nothing, I'll wear this one from now on, it looks better than the previous one."
"Okay, I'll do as you say." Zhuang Bieyan nodded.
The two fooled around on the bed for a while, but Tan Cong called to urge them to leave, and Zhuang Bieyan reluctantly went out.
Not long after, Qu He also got up.
The makeup artist and costume designer I had arranged arrived shortly afterward.
She was going to an art exhibition in the afternoon, and the stylist chose a pure white halter-neck satin dress for her.
The dress seemed tailor-made for her, perfectly accentuating her waistline.
The makeup artist styled her hair into a bun, leaving a few loose strands cascading lazily beside her ears, and paired it with a pair of pearl earrings, making her look elegant and pure.
When she came out in this dress, the stylist was amazed and couldn't help but praise her, "President Zhuang was right, this dress really suits you."
Qu He lifted the hem of her skirt, somewhat surprised, "He chose this?"
"Yes," the stylist nodded. "The dress is the latest style that President Zhuang specially brought from France today. Just as he said, this dress is perfect for you."
Qu He felt embarrassed by his words, her cheeks flushed slightly, and she shyly touched her pearl earring.
After the makeup and styling were finished, it was almost noon when Zhuang Bieyan arranged for someone to bring lunch.
After lunch, the driver was already waiting downstairs on time.
She is a calm and capable female driver.
After she got into the car, the driver handed her a bag and said with a smile, "President Zhuang specifically instructed that the air conditioning in the exhibition hall is quite strong, so this is a shawl prepared for you."
Qu He thanked her and accepted it. After feeling the softness inside, she couldn't help but smile.
The exhibition hall wasn't far; it was less than a 20-minute drive to the destination.
After getting out of the car, the female driver also got out and took the bag from her hand, keeping a distance behind her.
"President Zhuang instructed me to accompany you today. Don't worry, I will wait at a safe distance. Just call me if you need anything."
Qu He nodded, feeling incredibly touched by his thoughtfulness and consideration.
She handed over the invitation at the door.
Upon entering, one finds that many guests have already arrived.
This exhibition combines oil painting with ceramics. Many young artists and well-known senior artists arrived one after another. When they heard that she was attending on behalf of Teacher Qi Mo, they all came forward to greet her in a friendly manner.
The atmosphere was harmonious and elegant.
The grand finale featured Master Luo Tongliang, a ceramic artist of equal renown to Qi Mo.
Qu He followed the crowd, intending to go up and greet her, but after taking only a few steps, her gaze froze when she saw the person next to him.
Beside Master Luo Tongliang, Yan Shu, dressed in a black Hepburn-style long dress and wearing a bowler hat, stood there smiling, holding the master's arm.
One black and one white.
Two figures stared at each other from a distance in the crowd.
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