Chapter 44 — I can’t help but do it with you
A bar in Zhi’an—five people sat together in one of the booths.
They were all in pairs, leaving only one person in the middle, feeling like a bright, flashing lightbulb. His eyes full of resentment, he shot a glare at the couple on his left, and didn’t spare the pair on his right either.
“You guys, seriously…”
He clenched his jaw for a long moment before finally spitting out, “You’re unbelievable.”
“When I invited you, none of you could make it. But now that you’re here—every single one of you shows up with your partner.”
He pointed at them dramatically. “You’re just bullying me for being single, huh?”
Watching Xiang Weishi’s sulking face, Wen Qi laughed so hard she nearly doubled over. Turning to Nan Xu, she said between bursts of laughter, “See, I told you, didn’t I? Hahaha!”
Nan Xu’s eyes curved with her smile, warmth flooding her chest. For a moment, it felt like she was back in their school days—Wen Qi teasing Xiang Weishi, while she and Xie Hejing just watched and laughed from the sidelines.
Xiang Weishi took a deep swig of his drink. “Unbelievable. I came here for a drink, not to watch a live romance show.”
At that, Wen Qi laughed even harder. She turned around, meaning to say something to Wei Qingxuan, but suddenly stumbled a little.
Wei Qingxuan, who had been watching her the whole time, reacted instantly—his hand slipped around her waist to steady her.
“Careful,” he murmured.
Wen Qi just grinned, unbothered, and planted a quick kiss on his cheek before tilting her chin at Xiang Weishi. “A romance show? Please. We’re way sweeter than that.”
Xiang Weishi: “…”
Wei Qingxuan’s eyes were full of affection. He peeled a grape and offered it to Wen Qi, but she wrinkled her nose and turned away—she’d never liked fruit.
Still smiling, Wei Qingxuan brushed a loose strand of hair from her face, his tone gentle as he coaxed, “Be good. Eat a little fruit. I’ll take you to buy a plushie later.”
Xiang Weishi: “…”
If someone could just tell him where to buy a bomb, he’d happily blow this couple up.
Meanwhile, Nan Xu found herself watching Wei Qingxuan more closely. His voice was calm and clear, carrying an easy gentleness that made people feel at ease.
Back in their high school days at Zhi’an No.3, she’d interacted with him a few times—back then, he’d been distant and aloof, hard to approach. She never expected him to change this much.
Sensing her gaze, Wei Qingxuan turned and met her eyes; they exchanged a polite greeting.
Beside her, Xie Hejing’s gaze immediately darkened. The moment he saw Nan Xu smile at Wei Qingxuan—even if it was just out of courtesy—something sharp and possessive flared in his chest.
He slid an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close, making her look at him instead.
Nan Xu blinked, surprised. She hadn’t expected him to get jealous over this, and asked in confusion, “What’s wrong?”
Xie Hejing pointed at his face.
Thinking something was stuck there, Nan Xu leaned in and looked carefully, her brow furrowed. “What’s on your face?”
Xie Hejing: “…”
He sighed, realizing she’d never figure it out unless he said it outright.
“Missing a kiss.”
Only then did Nan Xu finally realize—Xie Hejing’s expression just now wasn’t “there’s something on my face,” but rather “come kiss me.”
She bit her lip and whispered, “There are a lot of people here. Let’s wait until we’re home.”
Xie Hejing lowered his gaze. If she wouldn’t kiss him, then he’d just do it himself.
He reached out, tilted her chin up, and pressed a kiss to her lips. Thinking of how she’d smiled at someone else earlier, he gave her lip a small, punishing bite.
If it weren’t for the fact that Nan Xu embarrassed easily, he probably would’ve kissed her much deeper.
When he finally let her go, her cheeks were flushed and her eyes glistened faintly.
At that moment, Xie Hejing suddenly regretted coming out at all—they should’ve just stayed home together.
It was her first time being kissed in front of so many people. Nan Xu’s body felt hot all over, and the blush crept all the way to the tips of her ears.
She gave his chest a light smack—not hard, but enough to make his heart tremble. With a teasing smile tugging at his lips, he looked at her.
“What are you doing? I told you, wait until we’re home,” she said, frowning slightly.
Xie Hejing arched a brow. “So if we go home, I get to kiss you?”
“No—no more kissing,” Nan Xu muttered, turning her face away.
“Then I’ll just kiss you here,” he said.
Seeing him lean in again, Nan Xu quickly blurted out, “Fine—I’ll let you, I’ll let you!”
Joy flared across Xie Hejing’s face like a spark catching flame. His smile reached his eyes as he took her hand and turned to Xiang Weishi.
“See? No reality show could ever be sweeter than us.”
Xiang Weishi’s expression twisted like all his features were trying to flee his face.
How could he have forgotten about this pair? This walking explosion of sweetness.
He might as well have refused to drink with them tonight—at least then he could’ve stayed a peaceful, solitary man.
Why had he ever been stupid enough to post that moment to his Moments?
Then, as a thought struck him, he asked the question that had been bugging him most: “You two never said—when did you start dating?”
He’d been so busy lately that he hadn’t had time to ask about Nan Xu and Xie Hejing’s relationship.
Who would’ve thought that these two quiet people—by the next time he saw them, they’d already be together?
Nan Xu froze, unsure how to respond.
Xie Hejing, however, smiled easily. “You’ll find out in a month.”
Xiang Weishi frowned, about to ask why he had to wait a whole month.
But Wen Qi smoothly changed the subject. “Xiang Weishi, if you’re that curious, I can tell you how long I’ve been with Wei Qingxuan.”
Xiang Weishi: “…”
“I don’t want to know.”
He glared at all four of them in turn. To hell with it—may you all explode together.
Looking at his indignant expression, Nan Xu suddenly remembered the time he found out she was living at Xie Hejing’s place.
That was two weeks before the college entrance exams. Her guitar had broken, and she needed to go to the music shop to find Cheng Jia.
But Cheng Jia’s schedule was always packed—either performing or teaching—so the two could only arrange to meet on one of the rare, relaxed weekends.
Nan Xu had told Zhang Huiwan and Xie Hejing in advance that she’d be going out over the weekend. When the time came, she slung her guitar over her shoulder, said goodbye to them both, and headed out.
Coincidentally, that same weekend, Xiang Weishi had been insisting on going to Xie Hejing’s place to play video games.
He’d realized that for almost a whole year, every single time he brought it up, Xie Hejing always turned him down flat.
So today—no matter what—he was going!
And sure enough, when he mentioned it again, Xie Hejing rejected him once more.
Xiang Weishi immediately lost it. For half an hour straight, he kept nagging in Xie Hejing’s ear—asking if there was something fishy going on, if their brotherhood still meant anything, and whether playing a simple game together was suddenly forbidden.
After half an hour of relentless pestering, Xie Hejing was finally driven to his limit. Thinking Nan Xu wouldn’t be back anytime soon, he reluctantly agreed.
What he didn’t expect was that, on her way to the music shop, Nan Xu got a message from Cheng Jia saying something urgent had come up, so her guitar repair had to be postponed.
So Nan Xu turned back halfway.
She’d stayed up late studying the night before and was feeling drained, so she didn’t bother going anywhere else.
When she got home, neither Xie Hejing nor Zhang Huiwan were there. She cooked herself a simple bowl of noodles—it didn’t taste great, but she still finished it bit by bit.
After sitting downstairs for a while, drowsiness crept up on her, and she went upstairs to rest.
By the time Xie Hejing and Xiang Weishi arrived, Nan Xu was already asleep in her room.
When she groggily woke, she heard the sound of a video game coming from downstairs.
Guessing that Xie Hejing must have come home, she suddenly remembered noticing earlier that the kitchen faucet was leaking.
Without thinking much of it, she pushed open her door and stepped into the hallway. From there, she saw Xie Hejing sitting alone in the living room, staring intently at the game screen.
Raising her voice, she called out, “Brother, the kitchen faucet—”
Right at that moment, Xiang Weishi came out of the kitchen, happily holding a big slice of watermelon.
“Xie Hejing, this watermelon—” he began, but as soon as he heard a girl’s voice from upstairs, he froze and looked up.
Nan Xu, hearing a man’s voice from the kitchen, turned her head—and the two locked eyes.
“Ah!!!” Nan Xu’s heart nearly stopped on the spot.
“Holy crap, holy crap, holy crap—” Xiang Weishi stammered, repeating the same phrase over and over, louder each time.
The watermelon slipped from his hands and hit the floor with a splat, but he didn’t even notice. He just kept mumbling, “Holy crap, holy crap… Am I hallucinating?”
Both of them stood there frozen until Xie Hejing was the first to react.
He didn’t say a word, just glanced at Nan Xu.
She was wearing a nightdress. The summer heat in Zhi’an was sweltering, and since Nan Xu couldn’t stand the warmth, she always changed into a light dress to sleep. It wasn’t exactly modest.
Nan Xu, however, didn’t notice anything unusual. Her mind was entirely on one thing—why on earth was Xiang Weishi in their house?
Xie Hejing, on the other hand, immediately dropped his controller and dashed over to Xiang Weishi, covering his eyes in one swift move.
Feeling Xie Hejing’s hand over his face, Xiang Weishi said, “Wait—you see it too, right? Am I hallucinating, or am I dreaming?”
Xie Hejing had no intention of replying to Xiang Weishi. Instead, he simply looked up and motioned for Nan Xu to go back to her room.
Catching his meaning, Nan Xu, though a little worried about how Xiang Weishi might react, trusted that nothing would go wrong with Xie Hejing there.
She gave a quick nod and bolted upstairs without looking back.
Meanwhile, Xiang Weishi was still muttering to himself, half in shock. “Am I dreaming? I must be dreaming. No, no—maybe I’m hallucinating…”
Clearly, the scene he’d just witnessed had been too much for him to process.
He had just seen Nan Xu, Nan Xu, standing on the second floor of Xie Hejing’s house—in a nightdress.
How was that even possible? These two barely exchanged ten sentences at school!
The world had officially gone insane.
“Xie Hejing, why are you covering my eyes?” Xiang Weishi’s voice rose in panic. “Didn’t you see who was upstairs just now?”
He tried prying Xie Hejing’s hand away, but since Nan Xu hadn’t yet reached her room, Xie Hejing held firm, even against Xiang Weishi’s full strength.
About ten seconds later, once they heard the soft click of Nan Xu’s door closing, Xie Hejing finally released him.
Light returned to Xiang Weishi’s world. He spun around immediately. “Why the hell did you cover my eyes? Don’t think I didn’t see her—that was Nan Xu!”
Xie Hejing stayed silent.
But he didn’t deny it either.
Xiang Weishi’s hand trembled as he pointed at him. “You—you two…” He gestured toward the second floor. “You’re living together?!”
Xie Hejing’s gaze remained calm as he corrected him. “She’s staying here temporarily. She’s just boarding at my place.”
Xiang Weishi’s eyes widened even more. “Boarding at your place? That means—she’s been living here for a year?!”
Xie Hejing gave a faint “mm” in response.
At that, Xiang Weishi felt like his entire worldview was collapsing. No wonder he’s changed so much this past year!
Home every day on time, hardly playing games, not going to bars anymore—he’d practically turned into every parent’s dream child.
Within an hour, Wen Qi had heard the news too. She went absolutely wild, spamming Nan Xu with messages faster than Nan Xu could even reply.
Downstairs, Xiang Weishi was interrogating Xie Hejing.
Upstairs, Wen Qi was interrogating Nan Xu.
By the end of that day, the two of them were forced to confess everything that had happened over the past year.
. . . . .
Later that night…
“Xie Hejing, Wei Qingxuan, why aren’t you two drinking?” Xiang Weishi asked, slurring a little as he raised his glass.
Seeing that neither of them moved, he turned to Nan Xu and Wen Qi instead. “Forget them, they’re no fun. Come on, let’s drink!”
Wen Qi complained that the small glasses were too boring and swapped hers out for a big tumbler, filling it to the brim before downing it in one gulp.
Nan Xu didn’t usually drink much, but maybe she got caught up in their energy—or maybe the chaos of the day had loosened her up—because she too drank half a glass in one go.
Xie Hejing and Wei Qingxuan exchanged a look across the table. Sitting on opposite sides, they both sighed helplessly and shook their heads.
In this house, it seemed, there was no way both of them could drink. Someone had to stay sober.
After another hour, the two of them finally forced an end to the drinking session. If they hadn’t stopped, there was no way all three of them would have made it out of the bar without being carried.
Xie Hejing called a car for Xiang Weishi and led Nan Xu over to the car.
Nan Xu, slightly tipsy, was unusually obedient. She didn’t speak much on her own and preferred to stay quietly by his side. Every now and then, some amusing thought would cross her mind, and a faint smile would appear on her face.
At this moment, whatever Xie Hejing asked her to do, she did willingly.
He pushed her into the back seat and reminded her, “If you feel sick, just throw up in the car. Don’t hold it in.”
Nan Xu shook her head. “I can’t throw up in the car. That’s not hygienic.”
The “drunkard” even cared about hygiene. Sitting in the driver’s seat, Xie Hejing smiled. “Then where do you want to throw up?”
“I don’t want to throw up yet,” she grinned. “My tolerance has improved.”
Xie Hejing: “….”
The car didn’t head toward the resort, but instead drove toward a neighborhood Nan Xu had never been to before.
She clutched the door, peering out the window. “Where are we going?”
Hearing her question, Xie Hejing raised an eyebrow. Good—she wasn’t completely drunk.
“Home.”
“This isn’t the way to home,” Nan Xu said, struggling to keep her eyes open and figure out where they were.
“To our home,” Xie Hejing added after a brief pause, “temporarily.”
Ever since Nan Xu agreed to try being with him for a month, Xie Hejing had wasted no time renting this apartment and getting everything ready inside.
As they walked upstairs, they happened to meet the elderly man from across the hall coming down. Seeing Xie Hejing helping Nan Xu, he kindly asked, “Is your wife drunk?”
At the word “wife,” Xie Hejing’s lips curved into a small smile. “Yes, she’s happy today and had a little too much to drink.”
“Oh, you’ll need to take good care of her, or she’ll wake up with a headache tomorrow morning.”
Xie Hejing nodded. “Thank you, sir.”
He opened the door and helped her onto the sofa, then turned to close it. But when he looked back, Nan Xu was no longer on the sofa.
His brow furrowed, and he hurried to search, circling the apartment—still no sign of her.
His heart thumped in panic, until he turned and saw the guest room door ajar. Inside, Nan Xu had made herself comfortable, standing at the bedside, staring at a painting.
It was the one she had painted during her business trip.
“That’s mine! Hehe,” she said cheerfully.
Xie Hejing exhaled in relief, walked over, and took her hand. Pretending to scold her, he said, “If you don’t behave and wander around, I’ll leave you here all alone.”
Hearing this, Nan Xu looked up slowly, a small smile curling at the corners of her mouth. “You wouldn’t… You’ve never abandoned me.”
Her voice was a little slurred, but Xie Hejing could still make out what she was saying.
He was genuinely worried that if he looked away for even a second, she might wander off. Simply looking around was fine, but if she touched some electrical appliance… the danger level would spike immediately.
So he put on a serious expression, a little stern: “Maybe this time it will happen.”
Nan Xu pouted. “You can’t say that. When you were drunk before, I never left you.”
Her eyes were misted over, slightly unfocused, her voice soft and a little aggrieved.
Xie Hejing couldn’t stay stern any longer. He rubbed the top of her head. “Alright, I won’t leave you,” he said, then smiled. “Have you ever seen me drunk before?”
He squinted slightly, his breath deepening.
Nan Xu really thought about it for a moment, shaking her head. “No… What are you like when you’re drunk?” she asked.
“I… can’t help but want to make…”
Love with you.
Seeing her glistening, wet-eyed look, Xie Hejing didn’t finish the sentence. He wanted to, but when sober, he could restrain himself. Drunk… that was another matter entirely.
Nan Xu’s foggy brain didn’t catch on. “What do you want to do with me? Why won’t you say it?”
Xie Hejing placed a cup of honey water in front of her. “Drink this.”
Warmth radiated from his palm. Nan Xu took the cup and sipped lightly.
“Why won’t you answer me? Do you not want to talk to me anymore?”
Only then did Xie Hejing notice that when Nan Xu was drunk, she spoke less to others—but more to him. That realization lifted his mood immensely.
But he didn’t show it. Instead, he said, “Too lazy to talk to a ‘drunkard.’”
He grabbed a pair of pink slippers from the door, kneeled on one knee, lifted her foot, and began removing her shoes and socks.
Nan Xu frowned slightly, looking a little wilted. “Do you hate me now?”
Xie Hejing ignored her nonsense and went on to the other foot.
Receiving no reply, Nan Xu pressed her lips together and said softly, “Then I hate you too.”
Xie Hejing’s nerves jolted—he absolutely couldn’t hear that. He quickly finished with her shoes and made her sit on his lap. “You can’t hate me.”
She looked up. “Why not?”
Xie Hejing’s lips curved gently. “Because you have to like me.”
With that thought in mind, he coaxed softly, “Nan Xu, say it after me… say you like me.”
Feeling dizzy, she turned her head away. “You won’t answer my question, so I hate you.”
Xie Hejing’s hand tightened. This girl had a good memory even when drunk.
Clearly, if he didn’t answer her question, there’d be no moving on to anything else.
He sighed helplessly. “There’s so much I want to do with you, but I’m afraid I might hurt you if I do it while drunk.”
Nan Xu blinked slowly, unsure whether she had even understood.
Assuming she was just sleepy, Xie Hejing let her lean against him and gently pressed on her temples, letting her rest in his embrace.
The gentle, clean fragrance of Nan Xu’s hair drifted to his nose, even with a slight hint of wine, it wasn’t unpleasant. The longer the hug lasted, the more obvious the warmth in his arms became.
Like a slow, flowing current, that warmth spread through Xie Hejing’s heart, bringing him a sense of fulfillment he had never felt before.
The person in his arms stirred. Nan Xu lifted her head, only to realize that from this angle, all she could see was Xie Hejing’s jaw.
She cupped his head with her hands, gently tilting it downward, then lifted her slightly drunken eyes to meet his.
“Bro… no, Xie… Xie Hejing, I actually… kind of want to see… what you’re like when you’re drunk.”