Chapter 33: I must be a glutton for punishment, wanting to wait on you.

Qiao Xu was already too lazy to correct how he addressed her. This man was a two-faced creature.

"She also said that you are very—hard."

"What the... fuck..."

Xu Si'an didn't even bother with Qiao Xu, who was still sitting on the bathroom vanity. He returned to his room, grabbed his phone, and called his lawyer.

"Help me sue someone."

"Yes, she's spreading rumors."

"She's spreading lewd rumors about me."

"Evidence? Do you think I need evidence to sue someone for slandering me?"

Qiao Xu walked into his room with her phone, tapped a few times, and Shen Zhiwei's smug voice rang out.

Xu Si'an told the lawyer he would call him back later and snatched the phone from Qiao Xu. He listened to their conversation from the plane multiple times.

Qiao Xu felt a bit flustered under his gaze.

"Why, why, why are you looking at me like that?"

The man’s lips curled into a handsome arc. "You were right, I'm the one serving you."

Qiao Xu: "..."

Why was his focus always so different from everyone else's?

"Qiaoqiao, I'm being a masochist and I want to serve you. What should I do?"

Qiao Xu’s mouth twitched. "Too ugly. Denied."

Xu Si'an: "I'm ugly?"

As he pinched her cheeks, Qiao Xu spat out two words: "It is."

Xu Si'an let out a muffled laugh and traced her nose with his fingertip. "Four years later, and you still have such a deep impression of it."

As Qiao Xu backed away, she fell onto the bed, and the man loomed over her...

"Qiaoqiao, I want to."

"Thank you, but I don't."

"I'll serve you."

"I can serve you all night long. The fact that you're 'wrapped' is true."

Qiao Xu: "..."

Xu Si'an sent the recording from her phone to himself and then called Song Jia.

"Mr. Xu?"

"I sent you a recording. Edit it and send it to the lawyer."

After hanging up, he unbuttoned the pajamas Qiao Xu had only just fastened.

"Before we officially start dating, don't we need to check the goods?"

"Qiaoqiao, hmm?"

Qiao Xu was forced to wrap her arms around his neck. "My hands and feet are injured."

Xu Si'an chuckled. Fearing she might run, he held her, bent over to open his suitcase, and took out a box of condoms.

"I don't need your hands or feet."

"Just lie flat and moan."

Qiao Xu: "..."

The man’s hand clamped onto her chin, and he leaned down to kiss her. Qiao Xu’s gentle response caused Xu Si'an’s self-control to crumble and sink.

"Qiaoqiao, I missed you so much."

His low, hoarse voice carried a hint of grievance, and the way he said "Qiaoqiao" was both seductive and tugged at her heartstrings.

In the midst of their passion, Qiao Xu whispered his name: "A-Si..."

Her red lips were aggressively claimed, accompanied by the sound of plastic film being torn open.

In the pitch-black room, every sense and breath was infinitely amplified.

Even though the man was gentle enough, Qiao Xu, who hadn't experienced a man in years, found it difficult to bear.

Xu Si'an wasn't having an easy time either. It had been four years; he had waited exactly four years for this moment.

He wasn't in a rush.

He didn't dare to be.

"Does it hurt?"

Qiao Xu hid in the crook of his arm, whimpering, "Mm, a little."

Xu Si'an lifted her chin, suddenly feeling relieved. "Didn't you say you had a boyfriend, were getting married, and had even... hmm? Were you lying to me?"

"If I lied to you, I lied to you. If you aren't going to do it, then get off."

Xu Si'an nibbled on her ear. "That day at your house, who was the person who took you to the police station?"

"Who was the one who came to your house late at night and saw the little moon on your waist?"

His thumb rubbed the small birthmark on her side, and Qiao Xu, ticklish, tried to pull away.

"Hmm? Not talking?"

"Ah—Xu, mmm, I'll talk."

"It was my brother. He’s my cousin."

Qiao Xu gripped his arms tightly, tears of physical pain instantly springing to her eyes.

Xu Si'an’s smile deepened. "We’ve barely started, baby, and you’re already crying?"

"It seems only I am suitable for you, so quickly—"

Qiao Xu was so angry she pinched his waist. "You talk too much. That was pain. It’s been four years, and Mr. Xu’s technique is as mediocre as ever."

Xu Si'an didn't get angry; instead, he laughed. "Tomorrow's meeting is at three in the afternoon. Qiaoqiao, you’re definitely pulling an all-nighter tonight."

***

Amidst the chaos, Xu Si'an carried Qiao Xu out of the bathroom for the third time. She was already fast asleep.

He carried her toward her room; he figured this room wouldn't be habitable for the night.

Qiao Xu let out a small whine as he laid her on the bed.

"You're so annoying, Xu Si'an."

The man chuckled, kissing her eyes. "Darling, I intend to annoy you until the day I die."

After soothing her, he returned to his room and put on a clean bathrobe. He dialed back the domestic number he had been called from several times.

"What is it?"

He Yanxun’s teasing voice came through. "Yo, Mr. Xu, what time is it? Don't you need to adjust to the jet lag?"

"It's 4:50 AM in Los Angeles. Don't tell me you just finished working out?"

Xu Si'an gave a soft hum as he squatted on the floor to put the trash into the bin.

"Holy shit!"

"Did you actually find a woman? Finally willing to let go of your old flame?"

Xu Si'an glanced at the bedsheets and laughed out loud.

And she said she didn't love him?

Liar.

"Holy shit, what the hell are you laughing at? I was right, wasn't I? Find someone else, do it a few more times, and you'll forget all about Qiao Xu."

Xu Si'an’s face darkened instantly, and he hung up the phone.

He really had nothing better to do than listen to this nonsense while his wife was waiting for him.

He washed his hands, lit a cigarette, and only then reconnected the call.

"Hey, why'd you hang up? I wasn't finished."

Xu Si'an was in a good mood and didn't want to curse. "Speak your mind."

He Yanxun turned serious. "The Shen family has some connections to your brother. Are you really going to post it?"

"Did I lie? Aren't those things true?"

He Yanxun was blocked by his words. "That's true, but once it's posted, Shen Zhiwei is finished."

Xu Si'an sneered. "Do you think I care?"

"Post one first. You have to play the game slowly."

"I've suffered for four years; they shouldn't expect an easy time."

He Yanxun steered the conversation back. "Hey, who is that woman anyway? I told you there’d be someone better than Qiao Xu."

Xu Si'an chuckled. "Want to know?"

"Yeah."

"How many times have you slept with Si Shen?" Xu Si'an asked, his expression filled with satisfaction and amusement.

He Yanxun exploded. "I'll sleep with your grandfather! Mention that name again, and I'm cutting ties with you."

Xu Si'an crushed his cigarette. "Fine, cut ties then. I'm not A-Shen, I don't fancy you. Having Qiaoqiao is enough for me."

Before hanging up, Xu Si'an could hear He Yanxun throwing things.

The two people sleeping in each other's arms didn't know that the media back home had collapsed, and a surgery record for Shen Zhiwei’s reconstructive procedure was trending at the top of the charts.

Xu Shiran was woken up by his phone in his sleep.

Looking at his sleeping wife, he got up and left the room.

"What is it?"

"Mr. Xu, you need to look at today's trending topics. The PR department tried to suppress it immediately, but it's impossible to stop."

Xu Shiran hung up, opened his web browser, and saw the trending topic marked "Explosive." He clicked it.

Even though he had known about these matters from the very beginning, seeing the wound torn open so bloodily—to say it didn't hurt would be a lie.