She sighed helplessly and simply got dressed, preparing to go out for a walk.
Manchester's winter was particularly cold, with the biting wind penetrating her coat and seeping into her bones.
She shivered and couldn't help but wrap her woolen coat more tightly around herself.
If she had known earlier, she should have worn more, but would getting dressed and coming out again wake up Xiao Xue? Thinking about it, she dismissed the idea.
It had snowed a few days ago here, and the lawn was still partially covered with unmelted snow.
Kicking pebbles on the ground with her toes, she looked up and suddenly saw two familiar figures not far away.
"Gu Chinan said you wanted to see me?" Shao Xichen asked expressionlessly, his tone cold, as if he were interrogating a criminal.
Li Li nodded gently, her little face blushing with girlish shyness.
"If it's about work, I think we can talk about it when we get back."
"It's not about work!" Li Li quickly explained, her face flushing bright red.
The man in front of her made her heart race just by looking at him.
"To be honest, I liked you from the first time I saw you, Captain Shao, so can you consider letting me be your girlfriend?"
"I don't like you," Shao Xichen rejected without even thinking, so bluntly that it left no room for consideration.
To the extent that his response was too direct and decisive, leaving Li Li somewhat at a loss.
She had thought about the possibility of rejection, but after all, she was a girl, and he shouldn't have left her without any face at all.
As it turned out, he really left her without any face.
Such a straightforward refusal was no different from humiliating her in person.
The redness on her face turned pale, and tears were about to spill from her eyes.
Before the tears fell, Li Li fled in panic, covering her mouth.
"How long were you planning to eavesdrop?"
Behind the pillar, Cen Yao looked around guiltily.
At this moment, apart from her and Shao Xichen, there should be no third person here.
She slowly walked out from behind the pillar.
"I wasn't... intentionally eavesdropping." She could swear.
"Weren't you going to have dinner with Mr. Shen?" Shao Xichen's words were somewhat inexplicable.
His tone was like a man's jealousy over his girlfriend's date with another man.
Cen Yao was speechless, too lazy to explain, and felt it unnecessary.
A cold wind blew, and she couldn't help but sneeze, her little face turning red from the cold.
Only then did Shao Xichen notice that she was only wearing a woolen coat.
With displeasure on his face, he immediately took off the scarf around his neck and put it on Cen Yao, even offering her his coat.
"There's no need."
"Wear it properly," Shao Xichen said, pressing her shoulders to stop her from moving her hands.
Cen Yao stared at him for a few seconds, then impulsively踮起(to踮起 means to tiptoe)and kissed his lips without restraint.
This kiss became unstoppable and couldn't be halted.
Pushing open the door to the room, Shao Xichen carried her straight to the bed.
Cen Yao also cooperated by taking off her clothes; she admitted that she was craving this man's body.
Her fair skin, due to the heat continuously emanating from within, showed a layer of pink, appearing particularly enticing.
"This time, it was you who took the initiative," Shao Xichen's gaze deepened.
Cen Yao didn't know when she fell asleep, but she slept until dawn.
It seemed that she never suffered from insomnia when she was with this man.
Leaving aside other things, at least their bodies were compatible, which might also be why Shao Xichen chose her.
She was about to get out of bed when a force suddenly came from behind, hugging her into the arms of the man, blanket and all.
"Leaving after sleeping?" The man's deep voice sounded from beside her ear.
What?
"I should go back," she said. If she stayed any longer, Cheng Xue would notice her absence.
Shao Xichen did not show any intention of letting go, instead hugging her tighter.
After a while, Shao Xichen leaned down and gently kissed her forehead before reluctantly letting go of his hand.
Cen Yao got dressed, making sure no one was outside before leaving the room.
To avoid being discovered by Cheng Xue, she specifically went downstairs to buy breakfast before returning to her room.
"Yao Yao, where did you go so early?"
Cheng Xue opened her eyes to find Cen Yao absent and was about to call her when she returned.
"I went to buy breakfast, you go ahead and eat, I'll go wash up."
Placing the breakfast on the bedside table, she dashed into the bathroom.
Because if Cheng Xue took another look, she would definitely notice something was off.
Standing in front of the mirror and taking off the scarf, the red marks on her neck were exposed, the result of last night's madness.
After a simple wash, she put the scarf she had taken from Shao Xichen back on before leaving the bathroom.
"Hurry over, or I'll finish it all by myself," Cheng Xue called out while stuffing a sandwich into her mouth.
After finishing breakfast, Cen Yao tidied up the trash on the table, and when she looked up, she met Cheng Xue's unusual gaze.
Subconsciously, she tugged at her scarf, the consequence of having done something wrong was that whatever others said or did would make her think of her night out.
"Yao Yao, I feel like you've been a bit different lately."
Cheng Xue rubbed her chin, sizing her up from top to bottom, and after a long look, she finally concluded.
"I feel like your little face looks better than before."
There was no change in her mouth, no change in her eyes, but together they looked better than before.
Like she had been nourished by love.
Cen Yao rolled her eyes slightly, just thinking she was...
"I'm serious, are you listening?"
"I heard," Cen Yao responded perfunctorily.
There are always people in this world who are good-looking without realizing it, and Cen Yao was clearly one of them.
"If I had a face that could ruin a country, I would feel like I was wasting my looks if I didn't date at least a hundred boyfriends," Cheng Xue said, arms crossed.
"Just stop teasing me, go change your clothes quickly."
"It's the truth, isn't it? Otherwise, do you think those boys who asked for your contact information on the first meeting were because of your inner self?"
Cheng Xue didn't like Cen Yao always undervaluing herself; she deserved the best in the world.
The former her was a little princess, surrounded by many people who loved and cared for her, and even she herself was full of expectations for the future.
But in the year she graduated from high school, all the happiness and beauty were shattered, leaving nothing behind.
The death of her mother, the ordeal of her sister, and the betrayal of her biological father.
She really couldn't understand why her father, who had once doted on her so much, would do such a thing.