Shen Peichuan turned around and said, “It’s nothing. I’ll deal with it. Let’s go back, Sang Yu.”
Sang Yu’s expression stiffened. However, she quickly squeezed out a smile and said, “Sure, whatever you say.”
She stood up from Shen Peichuan’s back. “Let me pack our stuff and bid farewell to the kids. Oh, right. I’m here to call you for breakfast.”
Shen Peichuan stood up from the bench. Stuffing his phone into his pocket, he followed her into the house.
Sang Yu’s voice sounded from within. “I can’t bear to part with these kids.”
“You can still visit them in the future,” consoled Shen Peichuan.
“Don’t forget that you promised to help them.”
He assured, “I won’t forget.”
Back in B City, Zong Jinghao was already gone when Lin Xinyan woke up.
Zong Yanxi was still soundly sleeping. Lin Xinyan got up and washed up in the bathroom. When she headed downstairs, she was surprised to see Zong Jinghao in the living room; she assumed that he had already gone to the office.
She walked down and hugged his slender waist from the back. “Why are you up so early?”
Zong Jinghao put down the empty cup of water and turned around to look at her. “Why didn’t you sleep in a bit longer?”
Pressing against his back, Lin Xinyan muttered, “I can’t fall asleep.”
Zong Jinghao glanced at Aunt Yu, who was cleaning the wine cabinets. After ensuring that she would not look over, he spun around, pulled Lin Xinyan into his arms, and kissed her lips. Lin Xinyan flinched a little; she was afraid Aunt Yu would see them.
However, Zong Jinghao refused to let her leave. With a hand clasped behind her head, he pulled her closer to him.
Knowing that she could not resist him, Lin Xinyan responded to his kiss.
After Zong Jinghao released her, she continued hugging his neck and biting his shoulder. She bit with more force because she knew that as Aunt Yu was around, he would not dare to make any noise even if it hurt.
Only when she saw Zong Jinghao’s pained expression did she release him in satisfaction.
Zong Jinghao gave his collar a tug and glanced at his shoulder. There were obvious bite marks left by Lin Xinyan, and that spot on his skin was almost bleeding.
He blinked. “Are you trying to murder your husband?”
Lin Xinyan said skeptically, “I didn’t even use that much force.”
“What would happen if you actually did?” Zong Jinghao could barely believe his ears. Do I have to bleed before it’s considered forceful?
Seeing that he was actually in pain, Lin Xinyan pulled his collar aside. Not only were the bite marks on his shoulder quite deep, but they also looked like they were bleeding. She did not know that she had exerted so much force, either.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t do that on purpose. I’ll get the first-aid kit for you…”
Zong Jinghao held her back. “There’s no need for that.”
As Lin Xinyan did not intend to injure him, she felt guilty for not controlling her force well. “Does it hurt?”
“I’m fine. I’ll just take it as a mark you left for me. I’ll leave one for you in the future…”
“I don’t want it.” Lin Xinyan was not foolish, of course. Since it hurt so much to be bitten, she would not want a mark left on her body.
“You can’t refuse.” Hugging her, Zong Jinghao deliberately pulled her collar aside and pretended to bite her as a joke.
Tickled, Lin Xinyan burst out laughing.
When Aunt Yu overheard the commotion, she walked over to take a look. However, upon seeing Zong Jinghao hugging Lin Xinyan so intimately, she spun around quickly. Perhaps because she was panicking or was moving too quickly, she dropped an unopened bottle of red wine on the ground. With a loud crash, the bottle shattered into smithereens as red liquid splashed onto the floor.
The mild fragrance of red wine permeated the room.
Zong Jinghao and Lin Xinyan glanced over simultaneously. Standing rooted to the ground, Aunt Yu let out an awkward laugh. “You guys continue. I didn’t see anything. I’ll clean this up immediately.”
Blushing, Lin Xinyan shoved Zong Jinghao away and walked towards Aunt Yu. When she saw that the broken bottle of red wine was the one Song Yaxin complimented, she could not help but lament, “It’s a pity that such a good bottle of wine is gone.”
Zong Jinghao glanced at her. “You know what wine it is?”
If he recalled correctly, Lin Xinyan was not very knowledgeable about wine.
Even though these bottles of wine had been displayed there for a long time, she had never paid particular attention to them. At the very most, she could only recognize the more famous local wines.
“Song Yaxin told me. She’s quite knowledgeable about red wine,” explained Lin Xinyan. However, when she recalled how Song Yaxin kept mentioning Zong Jinghao, she felt uneasy.
Zong Jinghao snorted coldly. It was evident that he did not have a good impression of that woman—he probably even despised her.
Wrapping a muscular arm around Lin Xinyan, he went upstairs with her. “If she visits the next time, just come up with an excuse to stop her from entering. Otherwise, she’ll disturb your rest.”
Lin Xinyan replied, “Okay.”
“But she probably doesn’t have a chance to visit anymore. I told Shen Peichuan everything. With his personality, he’ll definitely return to clarify things with Song Yaxin.”
Lin Xinyan nodded, thinking that it was the right decision for Shen Peichuan to come back and deal with the issue. Otherwise, if he kept delaying it, things would become even more complex.
When Shen Peichuan broke off all ties with her, she would naturally stop visiting the villa.
Lin Xinyan raised her head and glanced at Zong Jinghao. His profile was well-defined with his neck forming an elegant curvature. He was very fair, and from the side, his nose bridge looked very tall. Even his eyelashes were enviably long. Pouting, Lin Xinyan asked, “Are there any women in your company who have a crush on you?”
Zong Jinghao suddenly looked at her, feeling surprised by her sudden question. “Why did you ask that?”
Remembering the message from last night, she said, “Someone complimented you for being charismatic. Stay away from other women when you’re working.”
Zong Jinghao chuckled. “Are you jealous?”
Shooting him a look, Lin Xinyan remained silent.
Zong Jinghao stopped smiling. He was about to ask her who said that when Zong Yanxi woke up. When the girl realized that there was no one beside her, her face scrunched up and she looked like she was on the verge of tears. Lin Xinyan was about to carry her when Zong Jinghao offered, “Let me carry her.”
As Zong Yanxi had just woken up, she was very still very lethargic. Lying against Zong Jinghao’s shoulder, she rubbed her eyes.
Lin Xinyan rummaged through Zong Yanxi’s closet to find some clothes.
While Zong Jinghao carried Zong Yanxi to the bathroom to wash up, Lin Xinyan spread her daughter’s clothes on the bed. At that moment, her phone on the bedside table buzzed. She picked it up.
It was a message from the same number last night.
Frowning, she clicked on it.
