Chapter 47 — Nan Xu, the night’s still long
The car stopped downstairs, and the two of them walked home side by side.
Xie Hejing naturally reached out and took Nan Xu’s hand, their fingers interlacing—his grip neither too tight nor too loose.
Nan Xu didn’t pull away, she even gave a gentle squeeze in return. A faint smile lingered between their eyes.
Under the streetlights, their shadows leaned close to each other, stretching softly along the ground.
When they reached the door, Xie Hejing stepped ahead to enter the passcode.
Casually, he asked, “How was the company team dinner?”
He took off his jacket and hung it up.
Nan Xu set down her bag, slipped on her house slippers, and walked inside. “It was nice,” she said. “The atmosphere was good, and I actually learned a few things.”
As Xie Hejing turned to close the door, he noticed Nan Xu’s pale pink handbag hanging next to his jacket. The strap dangled naturally, brushing lightly against the edge of his coat.
It was an ordinary scene—yet it made him smile unconsciously.
He had bought that bag for her and left it in the master bedroom closet, expecting she’d only find it later. He hadn’t thought she’d start using it so soon.
Not only that—her clothes, her shoes… almost everything she wore now had been chosen by him, carefully matched and prepared.
And now, all those things had been accepted by her, following her wherever she went.
A quiet, indescribable satisfaction rose in his chest.
Noticing that he had gone still, Nan Xu walked over and saw him staring blankly at the bag.
“What’s wrong?” she asked. “I changed outfits this morning and thought this bag looked nice, so I used it. Is there something wrong with it?”
“No,” he replied, turning away slightly. “You just said you learned something from the company team dinner?”
He paused for a moment, as if already guessing what she meant earlier when she’d made that cryptic comment in the car.
“Come on,” he said, his tone teasing. “What did you learn?”
Nan Xu bit her lip. During the second half of the event, Sister Zhang had been enthusiastically teaching her and another female colleague how to make men ‘please’ them.
To be honest, Nan Xu had no real experience in that area, so she’d listened without much reaction. Her colleague, however, had been full of curiosity, kept discussing it enthusiastically with Sister Zhang.
Nan Xu sat beside them, quietly absorbing bits and pieces of the conversation.
But now, standing in front of Xie Hejing, she couldn’t bring herself to repeat it word for word. Her face warmed with embarrassment.
She mumbled, “Just… some useful stuff, that’s all.”
Seeing her expression, Xie Hejing’s suspicion was confirmed. “So, you learned how to get a little more intimate with me, didn’t you?”
“Cough—cough—” Nan Xu choked on the sip of warm water she hadn’t yet swallowed, coughing uncontrollably.
Xie Hejing chuckled helplessly and patted her back. “What are you getting so worked up for?”
“How did you even know?” Nan Xu said hoarsely once she managed to breathe again.
How could he always guess everything so accurately? Sometimes she wondered if he had bugged her somehow.
“You make it too obvious,” he said, tilting his chin toward her. “Nan Xu, your thoughts are written all over your face.”
Frowning, Nan Xu touched her own cheek.
Was it really that obvious?
She didn’t think so.
It was certainly because Xie Hejing was so good at reading her.
“What exactly did you discuss? Were there any positions you liked?” Xie Hejing asked again.
In reality, most of the conversation was between Sister Zhang and another female colleague, and Nan Xu was mostly just listening in.
The main topic of those two was how the female colleague’s husband could please her, and Nan Xu certainly couldn’t repeat that. So, she chose a safe answer and said, “Yes, just hugging is enough.”
Hugging…
Xie Hejing nodded thoughtfully, his gaze gradually falling to Nan Xu’s legs.
“What are you looking at?” Nan Xu swallowed and asked.
“I’m considering the possibility of using hands while hugging,” Xie Hejing said with a serious expression.
Nan Xu’s throat tightened. How could Xie Hejing connect the two? She quickly said, “No, what I mean is just a simple hug. I prefer that position.”
“Alright then, come here,” Xie Hejing slightly raised his hand. “Let’s hug first. I’m going to take a shower later. Which room do you want to start in?”
“I…” Nan Xu bit her lip.
Sure enough, Xie Hejing was right. Nan Xu could talk about it, but when it came time to actually act on it, she would shrink back.
Xie Hejing didn’t give her a chance to hesitate. He walked over to Nan Xu in a few steps and reached out, scooping her up and holding her in one arm, letting her sit in the crook of his elbow.
Nan Xu’s body swayed, feeling suddenly lifted high. She wanted to get down, but Xie Hejing wouldn’t let her have her way.
Nan Xu could only remain obediently in Xie Hejing’s arms.
Noticing that Xie Hejing was heading toward the master bedroom, Nan Xu called out, “Wait a moment, didn’t you say you were going to take a shower?”
“I know. I’ll take you to the master bedroom to shower first. I guess you don’t want to shower with me right now. Or I can take you to the guest room,” Xie Hejing smiled. “Let’s go.”
As soon as he finished speaking, he lifted Nan Xu slightly and turned to head toward the guest room.
Nan Xu’s heart instantly leaped. She braced herself on Xie Hejing’s shoulder and stopped him: “I’m not going there. I’ll shower in the master bedroom.”
“Didn’t you say we should take things slowly?”
“Yes, I did, but your shrinking back always makes me want to speed things up. Nan Xu, if you keep hiding, I’ll go straight to the last step. Don’t cry then.”
Nan Xu was startled. How could someone be so amenable one second and so forceful the next?
Not hearing Nan Xu’s reply, his tone softened: “If you really want to take it slow, you can’t retreat, understand?”
Nan Xu opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but then realized that since things had already come to this point, trying to avoid it would just seem pretentious—she might as well go with the flow.
“I understand.”
The fragrance of Nan Xu was all over Xie Hejing, more intense than ever before. Thinking about what they were about to do, a surge of passion rose up.
As they walked, Nan Xu would rub against him, and the temperature between them gradually rose.
Stopping at the door of the master bathroom, Xie Hejing paused and lowered his head. He was truly at his limit.
Nan Xu was still in his arms, unsure what had gotten into him all of a sudden—he’d frozen completely. She shifted her still-free leg a little and asked softly:
“What’s wrong?”
Her small movement made Xie Hejing’s nerves jolt. He muttered hoarsely, “Don’t move.”
Panting, he finally set her down.
Hearing his deep, heavy breathing, Nan Xu frowned slightly. “Why do you sound so tired? Am I really that heavy?”
Xie Hejing took a step forward, closing the distance until Nan Xu’s back nearly touched the bathroom door.
She flinched, lifting her gaze to meet his. His dark eyes were locked on her, and the intensity in them instantly made her tense.
Sure, she’d told herself not to back away—but they weren’t seriously about to shower together, were they? She hesitated, her voice small. “Why are you still here? Aren’t you going to take your shower?”
His Adam’s apple bobbed hard, desire surging up only to be forcibly restrained. It felt like he was spending every bit of self-control he had on this girl.
Clenching his jaw, he exhaled slowly, then leaned down to brush a kiss against the corner of her lips. “What’s there to be afraid of? I just wanted to kiss you.”
Nan Xu’s hands clenched instinctively. Her gut told her that look in his eyes just now hadn’t been about just a kiss.
She’d seen many sides of Xie Hejing, but never that one—the kind that looked one second away from losing control.
“After you finish showering, wait for me in my room,” he said, voice low. “Give me about an hour and a half to calm down.”
He paused, then added with quiet menace, “If you’re not in the guest room when I come out… Nan Xu, trust me—you don’t want to hear what comes next.”
The warning in his tone made Nan Xu nod quickly, not daring to argue.
Then something clicked. An hour and a half?
Her showers only took forty minutes at most. She tilted her head up and asked, “Brother, are you really that meticulous? Why does it take you longer to shower than me?”
Xie Hejing braced one hand against the bathroom door behind her, his teeth grinding faintly. “I have things to do.”
“What things?”
Is he doing a full-body skincare routine or something?
Nan Xu hesitated, wondering if she should do one too. That would mean putting on a face mask… Did Xie Hejing even prepare one for her?
“You really want to know?” he murmured, his breath growing heavier.
Before she could react, he caught her earlobe between his teeth, stopping her from pulling away. His voice was low and rough, whispering something that made her entire face flush scarlet from her ears to her cheeks.
Xie Hejing had never said something like that to her before. Hearing it now left her completely tongue-tied.
“You… you…”
She couldn’t even get a full sentence out.
A faint, husky laugh escaped his lips. “I won’t close the door later. If you want to watch—come in.”
Then, before leaving, he bit her lower lip lightly.
Nan Xu couldn’t help glancing at Xie Hejing’s retreating figure. Every inch of him radiated that reckless, shameless energy of his.
Even that line he’d said to her earlier, his tone had been laced with unmistakable anticipation.
She quickly shook her head, trying to shake off the memory of everything that had just happened.
This time, she showered very slowly—deliberately stalling—until nearly an hour and a half had passed before stepping out of the bathroom.
By her estimate, Xie Hejing should’ve been done around now too.
Cautiously, she pushed open the door to the guest room. She didn’t dare look toward the bed first—her eyes darted straight to the floor.
Then she heard it—the steady patter of running water from the bathroom. Only the light in there was on, bright and white, while the rest of the room was dim.
And the bathroom door—whether by coincidence or Xie Hejing’s design—was frosted glass, hazy enough to blur the details but not enough to hide the silhouette inside.
Her gaze landed on the doorknob. That’s when it hit her—he hadn’t been joking earlier. The door really wasn’t locked.
Which meant right now, he was…
The thought made her heart skip. She hurried to the sofa, sat down facing the wall, and began her silent self-reflection.
“Forget it, forget it, just forget it…” she whispered to herself, over and over.
She tried to think of anything else to drown out her thoughts. But the sound of the water was right there, steady and relentless, slipping straight into her ears—accompanied by the memory of what he’d said earlier.
This wasn’t something she could just will herself to forget.
She pressed her forehead against the wall, then even rested her cheek against it, hoping the cool surface would bring her temperature—and her mind—down.
About half an hour later, the water finally stopped. Nan Xu exhaled in relief, feeling her restless thoughts finally start to settle.
Then the door opened. Xie Hejing stepped out in a bathrobe.
Nan Xu muttered under her breath, “Finally. You’re out.”
At least now, there was no more water sound to tempt her imagination.
He caught her words and smirked. “Sounds like you’ve been waiting—looking forward to what’s coming next, huh?”
“I wasn’t!” she denied instantly.
But somehow, his teasing words made her eyes flick toward his hands.
Noticing her gaze, Xie Hejing walked closer and asked, “Want to use the same hand as me?”
“The same hand?” Nan Xu echoed, confused.
He didn’t answer directly. Instead, his tone grew lower. “Guess whose face I was thinking of in the shower. Want to know how long it lasted? Did you open the door to check?”
That string of questions suddenly clicked in her head—connecting back to what he’d said first.
The same hand?
Was he implying… that tonight, they’d be using the same one?
“N-no… I don’t want to,” she stammered.
Xie Hanjing wasn’t annoyed, and went a step further, saying: “Then take a guess which hand I used. If you guess right, I won’t use that same hand tonight.”
Her long lashes fluttered wildly, like they’d been startled. Nan Xu’s lips parted slightly, hands and feet tense as she tried to respond to Xie Hejing’s question.
“I’m not guessing,” she said, voice trembling.
Xie Hejing studied her with lazy amusement, his tone full of teasing warmth. “No? Then we’ll just use both hands tonight, Nan Xu. The night’s still long.”
She instantly caught the meaning behind his words, panic flashing through her eyes. Her gaze dropped to his hands—one of those hands had just been…
Nan Xu didn’t dare think any further. Her face felt like it was on fire.
She could only stare hard, trying to figure out which hand had been “clean.”
Xie Hejing, ever so casual, lifted both hands right in front of her for inspection.
But how could she tell? No matter how she looked, they seemed exactly the same.
“Nan Xu,” he said, a hint of playfulness in his voice, “I’ll give you one more minute. If you still don’t answer, we’ll just start.”
The words sent her pulse racing even faster. Her brows knit tightly together in panic.
“Five.”
“Four.”
“Three.”
“Two.”
“…!”
By the time he reached the final count, Nan Xu was practically sweating. At the very last second, she blurted out, “The right one! It’s the right hand, isn’t it?”
Her eyes locked on him anxiously, heart caught in her throat.
Xie Hejing’s lips curved into a bright, almost mischievous smile. “Then we’ll use the left.”
“That’s not fair! Was I right or not?” she asked in frustration.
The smile deepened, pure mischief glinting in his eyes. “I’ll tell you tomorrow.”
There wasn’t a hint in his tone whether she’d guessed correctly or not.
“You— you’re impossible! You’re awful,” Nan Xu burst out, glaring at him.
Xie Hejing’s gaze darkened, his voice low and smooth as velvet. “If I were really that awful,” he murmured, stepping closer and tugging lightly on the belt of her robe with his left hand, “I wouldn’t have let you walk out of the bedroom earlier.”
He leaned closer, his tone calm and dangerous. “If we’d started back then, you wouldn’t have the strength to argue with me now.”
Nan Xu was so taken aback she couldn’t form a reply. Her chest rose and fell with agitation as she searched for something to fight back with—but came up empty.
“You… you’re going too far. One day, I’ll— I’ll deal with you!” she stammered, grasping for a word strong enough.
Deal with him.
The phrase made Xie Hejing tilt his head slightly, biting back a laugh. If he laughed now, she’d only get angrier.
But instead of letting it slide, he said with quiet amusement, “I’ll be waiting.”
The clock on the wall ticked past eleven. Xie Hejing cleared his throat and sat down on the sofa beside her.
Seeing Nan Xu still frozen in place, refusing to move closer, he reminded softly, “Did you forget what I told you earlier? If you keep avoiding me…”
“I’m not! I’m not avoiding you,” Nan Xu cut in quickly, taking a deep breath before exhaling slowly. “Just— let me mentally prepare myself first.”
He chuckled. “Didn’t you already do that in the shower?”
“I did,” she admitted, “but it didn’t work.”
Even though she’d told herself over and over while showering that there was nothing to be afraid of—that Xie Hejing would never hurt her—her heart still pounded wildly now that the moment had come. No amount of logic could calm it down.
“Come sit and relax,” Xie Hejing said, patting the sofa beside him.
Nan Xu nodded. “Okay.”
She walked over and was just about to sit next to him when his voice came again. “Not there.”
She blinked in confusion. Not there? Then where?
“Sit here,” he said again, tone calm but deliberate.
Her mind flashed back—last time he’d said those exact same three words, she’d refused, and he’d simply taken matters into his own hands.
This time, Nan Xu decided she’d rather do it herself. She stood up, eyed his legs nervously, and took a hesitant step forward, preparing to move.
But before she could, his voice came again. “Not there, either.”
Nan Xu stamped her foot, frustrated. “Then where am I supposed to sit?”
Xie Hejing’s left hand came down lightly on the sofa once more, then turned palm up.
Nan Xu’s heart gave a small jolt. Surely he doesn’t mean… there?
Two seconds later, Xie Hejing raised an eyebrow, utterly unbothered, curling his fingers slightly in a beckoning gesture.
“Sit,” he said softly.
Taw’s Note: Let me make a confession… I thought this novel was just a fluffy, cute romance story—not the kind that crosses the “adult” line. TAT
But since it’s posted on JJWXC, there shouldn’t be any “adult” scenes, right?