Lu Xi never expected that later that night, she would actually receive a phone call.
It was specifically to thank Xie Heng.
The caller was the grandfather of the two children Xie Heng had saved that day. He was currently abroad and wouldn’t be back for a few days. When he found out that his two grandchildren had narrowly escaped danger and learned the full story, he was deeply grateful to the boy who had stepped in to help.
“I just called Xiao Xie’s father and thought I should also thank you. Your husband gave me this number,” the elderly man explained with a smile.
Lu Xi nodded, then remembered that the other party couldn’t see her through the phone, so she replied lightly, “You’re too kind. This is something my Xiao Heng should do.”
Her heart was pounding, and her palms felt slightly warm.
She couldn’t help but straighten her back with pride.
Even though it was Xie Heng who was being praised, she couldn’t help but share in the honor, as if she had been complimented herself. Holding the phone, she paced around the room, unable to contain her joy.
The elderly man said that once he returned, he would bring gifts and his two grandchildren to personally express their gratitude. He also apologized, explaining, “We should have come these past few days, but both parents of the children are away, and I can’t return just yet, so we have to delay it a bit.”
Lu Xi was momentarily stunned.
When he said ‘away,’ did he mean what she thought he did?
Hopefully not…
After hanging up, Lu Xi remained in high spirits. The excitement even sparked inspiration within her, and two evening gown designs suddenly took shape in her mind. They had different styles, but each had its own unique beauty.
One was an order from Zheng Suxin, while the other was a Christmas gift she had promised Xu Jiaming she would make for Yang Yihan.
Although Lu Xi was usually prone to slacking off, once she got into work mode, she was fully absorbed. She sketched designs until eleven o’clock before finally yawning and heading to bed.
With Xie Yizhao away on a business trip, the large bed was hers alone. She could sprawl out in any position she wanted, sleeping like a starfish without a care.
But the downside was obvious—
Lu Xi had already gotten used to Xie Yizhao’s presence.
Sure, it felt great to roll around freely in bed, but when Xie Yizhao was there, he would catch her if she rolled too close to the edge. He would also get up in the middle of the night to fetch her water if she woke up thirsty.
An hour quickly passed.
Lu Xi was still staring at the ceiling, sighing in frustration.
She, someone who could usually fall asleep the moment her head hit the pillow, was actually suffering from insomnia?
She figured it must be because she was too excited tonight and had drunk coffee to stay up late, which was now keeping her awake.
Luckily, she didn’t have to get up early for work tomorrow, so she wasn’t too worried about losing sleep.
One simple rule—just go with the flow. No need to fight against her body.
Since she couldn’t sleep, Lu Xi got up. She considered visiting Xie Heng at the hospital but quickly dismissed the idea when she saw the time. It was already past midnight. The kid was surely asleep.
Then, a sudden thought struck her.
What was the best thing to do in the middle of the night?
Midnight snacks, of course.
Her first choice was hotpot. Naturally, she wasn’t going to be unreasonable and wake up the house staff to cook for her when she could just order delivery. The restaurant even offered fully prepared hotpot so she wouldn’t have to cook it herself, super convenient.
More importantly, cooking would leave her smelling like food, and she didn’t feel like washing her hair so late at night. Pre-made hotpot was the perfect solution.
Half an hour later, the delivery arrived.
Lu Xi had already been waiting in the living room. When she opened the door, she was surprised to see that the delivery person was a young woman. Concerned, she reminded the girl to stay safe when delivering food at night.
The girl thanked her before leaving. Lu Xi carried the bags upstairs, pulling out her phone to leave a 500-yuan tip.
Meanwhile, in a foreign country where it was midday, Xie Yizhao was seated at a hotel desk, preparing for a meeting an hour later.
Normally, he wouldn’t check his phone at this time.
But for some reason, he had an urge to take a look. When he opened the app, he saw a post Lu Xi had made half an hour ago.
[There’s no problem a midnight snack can’t solve.]
The accompanying picture was of a hotpot that looked incredibly spicy.
Xie Yizhao frowned slightly.
It should be the middle of the night back home.
As far as he knew, Lu Xi didn’t have trouble sleeping. Was something on her mind?
Closing his laptop, he hesitated for only a moment before dialing Lu Xi’s number.
But in his haste, he accidentally tapped the video call button.
By the time he realized it, several seconds had already passed. He debated whether to hang up and call again, but at that moment, the video connected.
“…”
Xie Yizhao pressed his lips together.
He had expected to see Lu Xi sitting at the table, enjoying her late-night snack.
Instead, the screen showed a swaying view, as if it were on water.
Lu Xi was in the bathtub.
She was immersed in the water, surrounded by delicate bubbles. Lu Xi gathered her hair up, revealing her small face. Her delicate features softened by the mist, adding a hazy beauty to her appearance.
The water rippled gently, flickering in and out of sight.
Xie Yizhao’s Adam’s apple bobbed. His gaze flickered unnaturally as he forced himself to look up, keeping his eyes on his wife’s face.
“Sorry, I originally meant to make a voice call.”
Lu Xi : …As expected.
She thought so. Xie Yizhao didn’t seem like someone who would make a video call. At first, she hesitated for a few seconds but answered anyway, thinking he might have something important to say. After all, their relationship wasn’t an ordinary one, so there was no need to be overly reserved.
Lu Xi smiled. “It’s fine. Since we’re already here, let’s just chat like this.”
The man’s gaze remained steadily on her face, his expression tightly controlled. Yet, he still couldn’t help but ask with feigned ease, “Are you testing my self-control?”
Lu Xi froze.
Then, she did something even more outrageous.
She glanced down at herself, seemed to realize something, then looked back at the man on the screen, whose eyes had subtly changed. Without a word, she sank a little deeper into the water. Then, with a pair of innocent eyes, she blinked at him as if to say, I don’t know what you’re talking about.
Xie Yizhao pinched the bridge of his nose, resisting the urge to sigh.
After taking a deep breath, he finally asked, “Why can’t you sleep?”
Lu Xi was more than happy to change the subject. She started talking about the phone call she had earlier, the burst of inspiration she had tonight, and how a young girl had delivered her takeout. As she spoke, she became a little sentimental.
Throughout it all, Xie Yizhao listened attentively, never interrupting.
He liked hearing Lu Xi talk—especially when she was happy. Her eyes would sparkle like they held starlight, and her dimples would appear faintly when she smiled. Sometimes, he found himself mesmerized.
But Lu Xi never noticed his distraction.
He was always good at keeping his composure.
Only today felt a little different. Xie Yizhao realized he wasn’t able to suppress his emotions as easily as usual.
Lu Xi kept talking when she suddenly noticed his prolonged silence. She paused, feeling a little embarrassed. Who talks about themselves the whole time without asking about the other person?
Tilting her head slightly, she asked, “I remember you don’t usually check social media.”
Xie Yizhao was quiet for a moment before answering honestly, “I kind of miss you. And… I always check your posts.”
His sudden confession caught Lu Xi off guard.
She looked at him—at his refined, handsome face under the sunlight—and suddenly felt her heart tickled, like it had been brushed by a feather. Feeling a bit shy, she instinctively sank a little deeper into the water.
One thing about talking to him was that she never had to worry about him lying.
Lu Xi had that kind of trust in Xie Yizhao.
Though she was slightly flustered, she was more intrigued. She could feel the growing tension between them, and she didn’t mind it at all. It reminded her of those marriage-before-love romance novels she loved—except now, she was experiencing the slow buildup of romance they had missed before marriage.
Ambiguity was a game where both players had to be evenly matched—each move met with another, the line never fully crossed, yet both perfectly aware. A single word, a single glance, could be enough to spark countless thoughts.
Lu Xi blinked at him, her gaze steady and unflinching. With a sweet smile, she asked, “I miss you too. When are you coming back?”
Xie Yizhao’s lips curved slightly.
Well played—she had tossed the ball back to him.
“In three days,” he said.
Following the topic naturally, they continued chatting casually, even touching on Xie Heng’s day. About ten minutes later, the timer Lu Xi had set rang.
She told him directly, “I’m getting up now. Wait a moment.”
“Okay.”
Soon, Lu Xi placed her phone face-down to the side. The screen instantly went black, but her voice could still be heard.
The sound of water shifting. The faint rustling of clothes being put on.
Xie Yizhao lowered his gaze slightly, unable to stop himself from chuckling wryly.
They could have simply hung up and called again later.
Yet, for some reason, neither of them mentioned that option—as if they had both conveniently forgotten it.
It wasn’t until Lu Xi lay down on her bed that her screen lit up again.
Seeing her nestled obediently against the pillow, Xie Yizhao’s gaze softened. In a low voice, he reminded her, “It’s 2 AM. You should sleep.”
Lu Xi blinked, deliberately teasing him. “No, I want you to lull me to sleep.”
Xie Yizhao chuckled softly.
Was she purposefully making things difficult for him?
It wasn’t easy, but he only hesitated for a few seconds before finding a solution. He picked up the English contract that he had previously shown her—the one she found incredibly frustrating—and started reading it aloud.
At first, Lu Xi didn’t understand.
But as she heard a few familiar words, she suddenly realized his intention.
She was both amused and exasperated. Was he treating her like a rebellious child who hated studying? Using English to lull her to sleep?
Five minutes later…
Drowsiness crept in. Her eyelids grew heavy.
She had to admit. She really wasn’t cut out for studying.
English wasn’t like Chinese. She only understood half of it, while the other half blurred together, making her mind hazy. In the end, it actually worked as a sleep aid.
Her phone rested beside her pillow, as if the man’s deep voice was right by her ear. His tone carried a hint of laziness, effortlessly soothing her.
Xie Yizhao’s voice was truly pleasant. She wondered if he had told bedtime stories to Xiao Heng when he was little.
Half-asleep, Lu Xi let her thoughts drift.
Seeing that she was on the verge of sleep, her eyelids nearly shut, Xie Yizhao slowed his pace. After finishing a sentence, he paused briefly before softly calling, “Xiao Xi?”
Lu Xi, unaware that he had switched between Chinese and English, kept her eyes closed, a contented smile on her face. “Mm?”
Xie Yizhao watched her. “What do you think of the properties list my assistant sent you?”
“I haven’t started looking yet.”
Just as he expected. The man chuckled, lowering his voice, his tone like that of a shrewd hunter moving carefully to avoid startling his prey.
“When I return, let’s move into a new home.”
Somewhere with better soundproofing.
Seriously, it’s hurting me how there’s barely any comments in each chapter considering their flirting 😭😭😭