Chapter 37 (1/2)
The warmth of his lips lingered against her earlobe like a spark catching fire.
Outside the emergency building, the little nurses seemed to have seen something; one by one, they flushed and looked away.
The SUV had plenty of space, yet with their breaths entangled, the interior suddenly felt close and narrow. The dark water of Liu Qianxiu’s eyes had softened, ripples spreading across it like a spring warmed by wind.
Mu Wan was bewitched.
It took effort to wrench herself free of his gaze. Leaning back against the seat, Mu Wan turned her head toward the window, her body burning hot. Reminding herself not to be seduced by a handsome face, she kept her cheeks red and her voice dry.
“I’m not telling you.”
Her tone was sweet and unsteady. She meant to sound stubborn, but the blush had already spread from her ears down the line of her throat. Liu Qianxiu lowered his lashes, the light in his clear eyes breaking into fine fragments. He lifted a hand and smoothed her hair, then sat back and started the car.
They drove to Xu Xingkong’s house first. After picking up the cats, they returned to Liu Qianxiu’s place.
Even after several days away, his home still had none of the dust and clutter of ordinary life. The faint fragrance of sandalwood hung in the quiet, empty space, light and lingering.
As soon as they came in, Mu Wan changed into slippers, took the cat carrier from his hand, and let Zhouyi and the three kittens out together. Zhouyi still carried himself like the eldest brother of the house. He stepped out first, his long black body sleek and elegant, like a length of brocade embroidered with two cat’s-eye gems.
The three little ones were more timid. In the end, Bighead was the first to toddle out, meowing as he went. With the eldest leading and the youngest bringing up the rear, Ertong and Zhongfen came out after him.
In an instant, the house that never seemed touched by the mundane world was filled with the soft, babyish cries of kittens. The entire atmosphere changed from distant and serene to lively and warm.
Mu Wan sat down on the carpet, stroking this one, then that one. Their fur was soft beneath her palms. Looking up at Liu Qianxiu, she smiled and curved her eyes.
“Look at me. I have so many cats, I can pet whichever one I want. Doesn’t that make me terribly fickle?”
She leaned back on her hands, her posture open and relaxed, while the three kittens climbed over her folded legs. Tilting her face up, she smiled at Liu Qianxiu like a little tycoon showing off her private treasure.
Liu Qianxiu pressed his lips together and looked down at her, his gaze deepening.
Feeling vaguely guilty under that look, Mu Wan immediately straightened up and sat properly. Raising one finger, she said, “I’m not fickle. When it comes to men, I only keep one.”
His expression barely changed. He merely lifted a wrist and rolled his sleeves back, exposing a clean, beautiful length of forearm, then asked in his low voice, “What do you want for dinner?”
Night made everything feel more ambiguous. Mu Wan looked up at him. Tall and lean, refined and spare, he stood there like some untouchable immortal—and yet he stirred every mortal desire in her.
She wanted to eat him.
A wave of heat passed over her skin. Mu Wan licked her lips, keeping her face composed.
“Tomatoes with eggs, and stir-fried broccoli.”
Liu Qianxiu went into the kitchen. After playing with the three kittens for a while, Mu Wan carried them into the kitten room. Since they were older now, they no longer needed separate bottle-feedings. She mixed milk for them, closed the kitten-room door, and headed into the kitchen.
Liu Qianxiu stood at the sink washing vegetables. His back was long and lean. The movement of his arms pulled faint lines across his shoulders and back beneath the thin shirt, and Mu Wan had the absurd feeling she could see the taut muscles beneath the fabric.
Her eyes flickered. She walked over.
The moment she came near, he glanced back at her, though his hands kept moving.
“Is that good eaten raw? I want to try it.” Standing beside the sink, Mu Wan lowered her eyes and pointed at his hand.
He was holding a just-washed tomato. His fingers were long and elegant, his skin cool and pale, making the tomato look even more vivid and tempting than it had in the supermarket.
Liu Qianxiu cast her a sideways glance. She looked up at him, then back at the tomato, licking her lower lip like a cat eyeing a fish.
Without speaking, he turned off the faucet. Water slid down the tomato and disappeared between his fingers. He dried it with a paper towel, then held it out in front of her.
Mu Wan’s eyes lit up. She looked up at him. His face was calm as ever, his gaze still and clear.
She smiled, her red lips curving. Instead of taking it with her hand, she bent her head and bit into it directly.
The posture was almost absurdly obedient, as if a kitten had lowered its head to lap milk, leaving only a fluffy crown of hair visible.
But she was no kitten.
She was a cat-spirit, and there was nothing obedient about her.
She took one bite, then another. On the second bite, she caught Liu Qianxiu’s finger between her teeth too, lightly biting down—softly enough that even the pressure seemed tender.
When she let go, she took the tomato from him, leaving his palm empty. Lifting her head, she looked at him with eyes shimmering like water, filled with fine, enchanting sparks.
“It’s good. Do you want some?” She held out the tomato with two neat little bite marks.
He did not take it. Mu Wan watched his eyes. They were much darker than before, like a spring hidden in the shade of moonlit trees. Mu Wan knew he would not eat that. What he wanted was something else.
Because she had tempted him.
And she had succeeded.
He lowered his head and kissed her, throwing the sour-sweet taste in her mouth into disarray. She answered him, and in the quiet kitchen their breathing grew ragged.
Liu Qianxiu pulled her into his arms. She was slight and delicate, but she always knew exactly how to stir his heart. His lips lingered near her ear, his voice low and rough as he asked, “Would it be all right if dinner were a little late?”
Mu Wan’s eyes were already misted over, as though she had half drowned in the moment, yet her answer was perfectly clear, soft, and sweet.
“That wouldn’t be just a little late.”
She knew exactly what his timing meant.
He kissed her earlobe more deeply. Mu Wan fell apart completely. Her fingers caught the edge of the sink; tomato juice ran sticky across her hands. Her voice trembled.
“Much later is fine too.”
He lifted her and carried her into the bedroom.
Liu Qianxiu’s bed was too firm for her thin back, so halfway through, Liu Qianxiu moved Mu Wan to the guest room. By the time he finally let her go, Mu Wan no longer had the strength to eat. She drank a bowl of porridge, then fell asleep.
Night deepened like water. Her breathing settled into an even rhythm. Liu Qianxiu got up and went into the kitchen to clean the mess they had made.
The kitchen light was clean and bright. It had always felt cold and spare, but now there was suddenly a trace of warmth in it.
He had just put the dishes in order when his phone vibrated. Drying his fingers, he glanced at the screen and answered.
“Uncle Cai.”
It was Cai Qingliang, the Liu family’s chief secretary. His job was to gather reports from every branch and relay the family head’s orders downward.
The Liu family’s auction group operated worldwide. Branches in country after country were managed by different Liu clan branches. Though they held some shares, they were still only administrators. Ownership of everything ultimately belonged to the head of the Liu family—Liu Qianxiu.
Cai Qingliang had served as chief secretary under the previous family head. Since Liu Qianxiu had been raised by his grandfather, Cai Qingliang had watched him grow up. He was half elder, half subordinate.
“I didn’t wake you, did I?” Cai Qingliang asked with concern.
“No.” Liu Qianxiu lifted his eyes to the reflection in the kitchen glass and asked, “Something happened again?”
“You already know?” Cai Qingliang sounded surprised, then realized that, of course, he did. “It’s the Netherlands branch. Same situation as last time. Before the auction, the item was authenticated as genuine. After the auction, it was declared a forgery. Both buyer and seller insist that our side switched it out and are demanding compensation.”
He paused, then added, “Since this isn’t the first time, the other branches are hoping you’ll investigate properly and give everyone an answer.”
Liu Qianxiu was the head of the Liu family. Everything belonged to him, and every burden belonged to him as well.
He withdrew his gaze, walked out of the kitchen, and returned to the living room. Those few steps were enough for him to decide. Sitting cross-legged before the low table, he lowered his eyes to the book lying there and said calmly, “I’ll go back to Austria next week.”
“Shall I notify the heads of the other branches to come over?” Cai Qingliang asked.
“Yes.” Liu Qianxiu’s voice was soft and even. “Thank you, Uncle Cai.”
Mu Wan had taken a week off last week. This week, she had work every day. But she was still only playing supporting roles, and the productions she had joined lately were filming her scenes in concentrated blocks, so by noon she had already finished for the day.
Liu Qianxiu had surgery in the afternoon and would not be home for lunch. Mu Wan called Lin Wei, and the two of them arranged to eat hot pot at Lin Wei’s house.
The central air-conditioning was running in the living room. On the table, a rich butter-and-chili broth rolled in the pot. The two women ate until they were sweating, flushed, and blissfully full.
Lin Wei had been the first person to know that Mu Wan and Liu Qianxiu were together. Naturally, as a veteran player in the game of life, what most interested her was her best friend’s sex life.
She had never expected Liu Qianxiu to be so restrained. He had actually endured the whole time up on the mountain because he was afraid Mu Wan might get pregnant. A Taoist really was a Taoist—capable of enduring what ordinary people never could.
“When you first told me Taoist Liu wouldn’t sleep with you at the temple, I honestly got worried,” Lin Wei said after taking a gulp of sparkling water, squinting from the spice.
“Worried about what?” Mu Wan asked lazily, fishing out a piece of tripe.
“That he couldn’t,” Lin Wei said. “That maybe something was wrong with him.”
Mu Wan bit down on the tripe, which snapped crisp between her teeth. She glanced at Lin Wei.
“Why would you think that?”
“Because that would be the normal conclusion,” Lin Wei said, looking like a seasoned scholar of the battlefield. “What normal man can sleep beside a woman and still not do anything? Every man I’ve ever known couldn’t resist.”
She thought for a moment, then added, “Oh, except for two. One had lipstick on his collar, and one couldn’t get it up.”
“Not him,” Mu Wan said. “My man is not in either category.”
Lin Wei let out a drawn-out, knowing sound. Mu Wan’s face was visibly red, yet she was still smiling bravely. Seeing that, Lin Wei felt genuinely happy for her.
To be honest, Liu Qianxiu really was an exceptional man. Being handsome was one thing. But being that restrained, that effortless, that devastatingly alluring—that was something else entirely. Sometimes, when Mu Wan described the things he said to her, Lin Wei honestly felt that even romance novels could not produce a man like that.
Mu Wan had never really dated. Plenty of men had pursued her, and some of them had been quite outstanding. She had turned them all down. Lin Wei had once thought it a shame. But now, looking back, fate was strange. All those missed men had been gold at best. Liu Qianxiu was a rare treasure.
Mu Wan’s happiness made her happier than anything. She teased her a bit more, and the two of them leaned close together, whispering like schoolgirls, perfectly content.
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