Chapter 64
Because of how wild things got last night, by the time Nan Xu woke up, it was already the next afternoon.
She jolted awake from her dream, and the first thing she did was grope under her pillow for her phone to check the time.
2:47 PM.
Her interview was scheduled for 2 PM. She had completely missed it.
“Why is it so late already!” Nan Xu groaned in frustration.
Hearing her voice, Xie Hejing walked in from the inner room, holding the pajamas he had folded for her.
They had a cute design and looked small in his hands. He thought they would look good hanging next to his own sleepwear, might even leave a trace of her scent on his clothes.
While folding, he said casually, “Get up and eat something. Your clothes were delivered too. See if you need anything else.”
No response.
He glanced over and saw Nan Xu staring at him with an aggrieved look.
“What’s wrong?”
Nan Xu pulled the blanket tighter around herself. “Why didn’t you wake me up earlier? I missed my interview!”
“Interview?” Xie Hejing paused mid-fold and looked at her, his voice dropping to a quiet tone. “Where exactly were you planning to interview?”
“If I remember correctly, you’re still my assistant.”
“Assistant Nan, is that how you tell your boss you’re planning to jump ship?”
He gripped the pajamas in his hands, fighting the urge to tear them apart—though he decided they’d look better ripped after she put them on.
“I already sent in my resignation,” Nan Xu reminded him, thinking back to that first night in Huaining City when she emailed him from the hotel.
“I didn’t approve it, so it doesn’t count,” he said flatly, handing her the pajamas. “Put these on.”
Nan Xu didn’t move. Unbelievable, she thought. He wouldn’t even let her quit—if she tried to leave, he’d just chase her down overnight.
And the consequences…
Nan Xu looked at the marks all over her body and sighed.
Hearing that, Xie Hejing asked, “What are you thinking about?”
Pulling the pajamas over herself, she deliberately said, “Thinking that next time, I’ll run farther. Somewhere you can’t find me.”
The words had barely left her mouth when he pinned her down again, looking her dead in the eyes.
“If you run again,” he said slowly, “I’ll catch you again. And every time I do, we’ll go ten rounds.”
Ten times?!
Nan Xu gasped.
Isn’t this crazy?
“How is this possible? Are you even a normal person?”
Xie Hejing just laughed. “Thanks for the reminder. That means we’ve still got eight left. How about we start now?”
Before she could react, the pajamas she’d just put on were already being pulled open.
He was starting to realize he couldn’t stand seeing her in sleepwear—every time she wore it, he wanted to rip it apart.
Feeling a chill at the front, Nan Xu quickly slapped his hand away. “You said you’d be gentle this time. Anyway, I’m not in the mood. I just want to eat.”
She spread her hands, and although her lips didn’t move, her expression was as if to say, “You figure it out yourself.”
Xie Hejing stared at her, fingers gripping the edge of her pajamas—reluctant to pull them down, unwilling to let go.
Nan Xu tilted her head, lips curling into a small, defiant hum. She looked utterly unbothered, as if daring him to try.
She had him completely figured out.
Xie Hejing let go of her hand and bit her lip, “Where did you learn all this? Think you’ve got me all wrapped up?”
The bite was quite painful, and Nan Xu’s lips felt numb. She frowned, “You bit me. You clearly knew I was… in pain, and you still bit me.”
“You deserve to feel a little pain. All you do is run away,” Xie Hejing said. “It would be best if you hurt enough that you couldn’t run.”
Nan Xu didn’t want to talk about it; what if Xie Hejing bit her again?
She couldn’t understand why Xie Hejing loved to bite her so much.
“Let’s eat.”
But Xie Hejing pulled out a smile, his expression languid, and before Nan Xu could react, he ripped off her pajamas.
Without the bothersome barrier, he instantly found the sight much more pleasing. Nan Xu should look like this, beautiful enough that he couldn’t take his eyes off her.
Nan Xu hadn’t even processed it until his cool fingertips touched her skin. She shivered and looked at him.
“You…”
Why did he rip her clothes?
“Where we eat isn’t what matters. I’d much rather you ‘eat’ me, for real.”
Xie Hejing wanted to pull her into his arms. He was desperately uncomfortable, about to explode.
He had relieved himself once in the middle of the night and again this morning, but he couldn’t keep taking cold showers forever.
Yet, as soon as he pulled Nan Xu’s leg, she gasped sharply and slapped his arm, “It hurts!”
Xie Hejing’s expression immediately became serious. Seeing Nan Xu’s scrunched-up face, he grew anxious, quickly let go, and asked, “Where does it hurt?”
Nan Xu glared at him, “Didn’t I just tell you?”
He thought she only meant her mouth. He hadn’t realized that area was still hurting. “I checked last night. It was a bit swollen, but I put ointment on it. Is it still hurting now?”
He wondered if the medicine wasn’t working, or if they needed to go to the hospital.
Hearing his words, Nan Xu felt her nerves instantly tighten. She choked out, “You checked? Ointment… you even had medicine ready?”
Xie Hejing didn’t feel it was a big deal. They had done the most intimate things possible; looking shouldn’t matter.
Besides, he knew he hadn’t held back his strength and was worried he’d really injured her. He also knew she was easily embarrassed, so he’d only been able to check while she was asleep.
“Yes, I had the medicine ready before I came.”
Before he came…
That meant he had planned this all along, and he even knew that ointment might be necessary. He had truly prepared for everything.
While Nan Xu was still in shock, Xie Hejing continued, “And condoms. I prepared a whole box a month before the month started.”
“It’s in the nightstand of the guest bedroom. If you had reached for the wrong thing when you were getting the red thread last time, you probably would have seen it.”
With every sentence Xie Hejing spoke, Nan Xu grew more astonished.
She had previously thought Xie Hejing had gradually developed feelings during that month. Last night, she learned he had been holding back since high school, and now she knew he had prepared everything long ago.
And he prepared a whole box…
Nan Xu felt a little lucky that Xie Hejing had genuinely managed to restrain himself for that one month, otherwise, it might have been difficult for her to even run away from Zhi’an.
“You really…” Nan Xu thought for a long while, completely at a loss for how to describe Xie Hejing’s behavior. After struggling for half a minute, she finally squeezed out, “You really came… prepared.”
Xie Hejing couldn’t help but laugh. “If you don’t know how to compliment someone, maybe don’t try.”
Nan Xu: “…”
Did she ever say she was trying to compliment him?
Xie Hejing crouched down. “Come here, let me see if it’s still swollen. If it doesn’t get better, we’ll go to the hospital.”
Go to the hospital for this? Nan Xu felt her face would stay hot for a week from embarrassment alone.
“It’s fine now… not swollen anymore. Not even a little. Doesn’t hurt either,” she hurriedly said.
“Oh really? A miracle healer, are you? It stopped hurting that fast?” Xie Hejing didn’t bother arguing—he just lifted the fabric to check.
Nan Xu tried to cover herself, but he easily pinned her hands.
He leaned in closer, brushing his fingertips over the spot. It really didn’t look swollen, and there weren’t any marks, but for some reason, it had still hurt.
Maybe he had pulled too hard earlier?
He was still seriously trying to analyze it when two teardrops fell onto the back of his hand. Xie Hejing froze, immediately standing up, a rare look of panic crossing his face. “You—why are you crying?”
Nan Xu’s nose was slightly red, her eyes filled with shimmering tears. She bit her lip and looked at him—just one glance.
That was enough to make Xie Hejing’s heart melt. He cleared his throat awkwardly. “I was just checking, wasn’t I?”
“You were still looking…” Nan Xu’s voice trembled with grievance—he was so rough, not gentle at all.
That tearful tone was exactly what Xie Hejing couldn’t handle.
Still, he tried to reason with her. “If I don’t look, how am I supposed to know if you’re hurt or not?”
“You’re still talking…” Nan Xu pouted through her tears, half complaining, half sulking.
And once she started crying like that, Xie Hejing was helpless.
The moment her tone softened, his resistance completely vanished.
He grabbed the pajama top lying nearby—thankfully, he hadn’t torn it too badly this time—and carefully helped her put it back on properly.
“Come on, let’s go eat.”
Nan Xu lowered her gaze, saying nothing. Xie Hejing reached out and wiped the tears from her cheeks.
“My fault, alright? Let’s go eat first, okay?”
She still ignored him. He hesitated for a second, then reached out to pull her into his arms. Since she didn’t resist, he smiled and simply lifted her up, walking toward the door.
In his arms, Nan Xu mumbled her complaint: “How can you be like this? I told you earlier I wanted to eat, and you wouldn’t let me.”
“And you tore my clothes again. Why is it that every outfit I wear ends up ruined by you?”
Xie Hejing almost burst out laughing at that, but he forced himself to hold it in so he wouldn’t make her even angrier.
His arms tightened slightly around her.
Nan Xu thought he was upset by what she’d said and frowned. “I told you not to look, but you still looked.”
“Still so stubborn,” Nan Xu muttered under her breath, grumbling nonstop.
Xie Hejing just raised an eyebrow and accepted every word with an amused smirk.
He set her down in her seat and picked up the chopsticks. When Nan Xu reached to take them, he dodged her hand immediately—he clearly intended to feed her himself.
Bit by bit, he fed her, watching her eat slowly. To him, it was oddly soothing, even a little healing.
Nan Xu didn’t resist. Fine, let him do it. At least she didn’t have to lift a finger—she was feeling lazy anyway.
But Xie Hejing’s feeding skills were truly a disaster.
Sometimes he’d pile way too much food onto the chopsticks, as if afraid she’d starve before the next bite. Other times, she’d just bite down when everything would fall right back into the bowl.
Unimpressed, Nan Xu tried to grab the chopsticks from him to eat on her own.
But Xie Hejing tightened his grip, voice firm and low. “I’m feeding you. If this doesn’t work, I’ll just snap these chopsticks in half and use a spoon.”
His tone was far from gentle, and he’d even raised his voice a little.
Nan Xu shrank her neck back and muttered, “I swear, you really don’t have a gentle bone in your body.”
Not gentle?
That one line hit a nerve. Especially after what happened yesterday, hearing her say he wasn’t gentle was something Xie Hejing absolutely couldn’t take.
He drew in a deep breath, forcing the words out between his teeth. “Impossible. I can be gentle.”
Nan Xu had only said it teasingly, but seeing his determined look, she suddenly became curious to see how far he’d go.
“Then go on—feed me. But gently.”
In his twenty-something years of life, Xie Hejing had never felt this nervous over a single meal. It was as if her words held the power of life and death over him.
His movements were stiff, his fingers numb, gripping the chopsticks so tightly that his knuckles turned white.
“I want vegetables,” Nan Xu prompted softly.
He grunted an acknowledgment, reaching toward the dish. The closer his hand got to her, the less control he seemed to have. In the end, it was Nan Xu who leaned forward to take the bite, noticing how his chopsticks trembled slightly.
She glanced up at him—but in that same moment, the chopsticks grazed her gums. She gasped sharply.
“Ah—Brother…”
Xie Hejing went rigid, instantly putting the chopsticks down to check on her.
“Where did it poke you?”
And then, defensively, he added, “I swear—I didn’t even use force.”
Nan Xu covered her mouth, saying nothing. Xie Hejing stood there with his hands on his hips, trying to figure out how to prove his innocence.
But the next second, he saw her shoulders trembling—then came the sound of muffled laughter, growing louder and louder.
Realization dawned on him. He grabbed her and pulled her into his arms, leaning in to look at her face.
There wasn’t a trace of pain on it—only laughter she was desperately trying to hold back, until she finally burst out laughing.
“Nan Xu, you dare tease me?” Xie Hejing said sternly.
Nan Xu shook her head right away. “No, I was just… happy, I guess.”
“Happy about what?” he asked suspiciously.
She improvised without thinking. “Happy that you’re feeding me.”
That one line sealed her fate—
For the next two days, every single meal was fed to her personally by Xie Hejing.
At this rate, Nan Xu felt like she was going to forget how to use her own hands entirely.
One evening during dinner, Nan Xu firmly grabbed the chopsticks and told him, “I’ll feed myself.”
“Alright,” Xie Hejing agreed surprisingly easily this time.
That caught Nan Xu off guard. Something about his attitude felt off, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was.
“I’m going to take a shower. When you’re done eating, just leave the dishes there—I’ll clean up later.”
“Okay,” she said.
She tried to shake off the uneasy feeling. Whatever it was, she’d figure it out later.
After finishing her meal, she tidied up the bowls and chopsticks, then went back to the bedroom and lay down to watch a variety show.
The only strange thing was how long Xie Hejing was taking in the shower—so long that by the time Nan Xu was halfway through her show, he still hadn’t come out.
She paused the video, thinking back carefully. And suddenly, she remembered that look he’d given her right before going into the bathroom.
That wasn’t just any look—it was the one she knew far too well. The one filled with unspoken hunger.
She had said she was sore before, and Xie Hejing had restrained himself for two whole days. Their little playful moments since then had been harmless, so she’d let her guard down.
But now, it felt like the calm before a storm.
She glanced toward the bathroom—and just then, the light inside went out.
Nan Xu’s heart skipped a beat. She dropped her iPad, didn’t even bother with her shoes, and dashed for the door.
She didn’t make it halfway before Xie Hejing caught her and pulled her right back onto the bed. “Where do you think you’re going?”
Nan Xu forced a nervous smile. “I just remembered—the dishes! I didn’t actually finish cleaning them. And my clothes, I didn’t fold them properly—they’ll wrinkle.”
“The clothes were folded this morning,” he said calmly. “The dishes can wait. There’s something more important right now.”
Of course, Nan Xu knew exactly what he meant. She bit her lip. “Um, I still feel a bit—”
She never got to finish the sentence. Xie Hejing grabbed her hand and pressed it down.
“Ah—ow!”
But the next sound wasn’t hers—it was his.
The tone was low, rich, and laced with something almost sweet, the kind of voice that melted against her ear.
“What do I do?” he murmured, breath rough. “It hurts… it’s aching.”
Nan Xu swallowed hard. “Didn’t you… take care of that just now?”
It sounded harsh, maybe even heartless—but if he had taken care of it, he wouldn’t have stayed in the shower that long and still come out complaining of the same ache.
He brushed his head against her shoulder, shaking it slightly.
“Do you… want to try again?” Nan Xu asked softly, exhaling a long breath.
She didn’t even understand why she was hesitating, why it was so hard to resist him.
Was it because her own desire had grown stronger, too?
But she didn’t think that was it.
Staring blankly at the ceiling, she fell deep into thought.
Whatever the reason, she completely failed to notice that Xie Hejing was deliberately drawing her in again—
She only thought that being around him for so long had somehow made her more susceptible to his moods, to that same pull of longing he carried.
If he knew what she was thinking, he would’ve laughed out loud.
How could someone truly overwhelmed by desire still be calm enough to think like that?
He wrapped both arms around her, pressing her tightly against his chest.
The long, seductive, and ambiguous voice coaxed Nan Xu: “Bad baby, it hurts! Nan Xu, you are a bad baby.”
“You don’t want to help me?”
Nan Xu’s heart trembled. She felt like she was done for, that she might truly have changed.
She tried hard to make her voice sound normal: “Will you be gentle, then?”
Gentle outside of bed, but not in it.
Xie Hejing expertly swallowed that thought. “How about we try and see?”
“Alright, fine.”
The lamb had jumped into the trap, but still had to add: ‘”Be gentle, or I won’t talk to you.”
Soon, Nan Xu felt the force of Xie Hejing’s two days of pent-up need. Her whole body was shaking, her fingers had no strength left even to pinch him.
“You… didn’t you say you’d… be a little gentle?”
Nan Xu’s voice was fragmented, soft, and trembling.
“Liar.”
Physiological tears spilled from the corners of her eyes. Xie Hejing kissed her and comforted her at the same time.
“Then I’ll be even more gentle. Let’s change position and see where we can get to, okay?”
The familiar pendant swung in front of Nan Xu’s eyes again. She snatched it and fiercely scolded him: “You scoundrel, you bastard.”
Her dictionary of insults had certainly been updated. Xie Hejing truly enjoyed the sight of Nan Xu when she was provoked into cursing him.
It was full of life.
The grip of his fingers tightened on her wrist. “Keep going.”
His voice was incredibly hoarse. Xie Hejing’s tongue lightly pressed against his upper teeth, his ragged breaths repeatedly filling Nan Xu’s ears.
“Can you call me with that tone just now? My bad baby.”
Nan Xu was past the point of being able to heed anything he said. She could only whimper, “Stop, Xie Hejing, you promised to be gentle! Wuwu, lighter!”
Xie Hejing chuckled, his heavy breaths bursting out until they became rapid and urgent. But no matter what he said, Nan Xu just wouldn’t call him that.
The veins on Xie Hejing’s body stood out, his muscles rigid. His nose nudged hers, and he pleaded, “Please.”
Nan Xu was tingling all over, hurting below, and aching in her heart. She truly couldn’t stand it anymore, and she shouted, “Scoundrel brother, bastard Xie Hejing!”
Xie Hejing suddenly stopped.
Nan Xu didn’t know what happened and could only ask, “What, what are you going to do now?”
Xie Hejing helped her sit up slightly, then lightly touched a certain spot, and pressed down.
In an instant, Nan Xu shivered all over, gripping the sheets to barely stifle the light moan in her throat.
Xie Hejing buried his face in her shoulder and asked, “Did you feel that?”
“We got to this point.”