Chapter 63

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There was no need for Ning Jiuwei to even think about it. With one hand, Su Jinglan tugged open her belt and shrugged off her nightgown, generously offering herself up for Ning Jiuwei to do with as she pleased.

The bright overhead light in the entryway shone down on Ning Jiuwei, casting a hazy shadow over Su Jinglan. Her fair skin carried a faint scent of lily and agarwood. Up close, Ning Jiuwei could tell that the perfume Su Jinglan wore was the very bottle she had gifted her.

The top notes held a subtle spicy ginger and a distinctive rose, the heart notes unfolded into an aged, mellow agarwood lily fragrance, and the base notes lingered with a soft cedar white musk. Seeing her favorite light perfume now gracing Su Jinglan’s skin made Ning Jiuwei feel as though her heart had been utterly captured.

A surge of adrenaline ignited her long-suppressed desires. Ning Jiuwei kissed the soft lips before her with scorching intensity, greedily drinking in Su Jinglan’s taste, her passion so fierce it seemed she wanted to devour her whole.

The nightgown hung half-off Su Jinglan’s arms, not yet fully shed. Ning Jiuwei pressed against the small of her back, their heated bodies melding intimately. The kiss trailed down along her jawline to her neck—long and flawless like a swan’s—and forced it to arch upward. Su Jinglan fluttered her eyes open, her hazy gaze brimming with amusement as she gazed at the scattered light. She lifted a hand, threading her fingers through Ning Jiuwei’s hair and cradling the back of her head.

A faint sting bloomed on her neck, sending a shiver through Su Jinglan’s body. She let out an involuntary “mm.”

Su Jinglan had never heard herself make such a sound before. Ning Jiuwei tightened her hold and sank her teeth into the side of her neck once more, hard and unrelenting.

“Not like that,” Su Jinglan said, the bite snapping her back to clarity as she guided her. “Gently nibble and suck.”

Ning Jiuwei released her grip and buried her face in the crook of Su Jinglan’s shoulder, her voice a breathy whisper. “Su Jinglan… what I want is to hurt you.”

Both their nightgowns were a tangled mess by now. Ning Jiuwei reached for the fabric dangling from Su Jinglan’s arm, pulling it back up over her shoulders before turning abruptly and retreating to her room.

That parted collar was far too tempting; Ning Jiuwei didn’t dare steal another glance. Left stranded midway, Su Jinglan felt the fire in her body not only unquenched but stoked to an agonizing new peak by Ning Jiuwei’s abrupt withdrawal.

Was Ning Jiuwei some kind of saint? How could she rein in her desires so completely at a moment like this?

Su Jinglan glanced down at herself. Surely her figure was just the type Ning Jiuwei liked?

No—on that front, Su Jinglan was utterly confident. Ning Jiuwei wouldn’t dislike it.

She straightened her nightgown, fastened the belt, and made her way to Ning Jiuwei’s bedroom with familiar ease.

The door wasn’t locked. Su Jinglan pushed it open.

Warm orange light bathed the bedroom. Ning Jiuwei had just splashed water on her face in the bathroom and emerged right as Su Jinglan stepped inside. Their eyes met, and Ning Jiuwei quickly looked away. “You can take the blanket at the foot of the bed,” she said.

With only one blanket on the bed for once, why on earth would Su Jinglan put up any obstacles? She climbed in after Ning Jiuwei and slipped under the covers. “Sharing with Teacher Ning is just fine.”

The bedding still held Ning Jiuwei’s lingering warmth. Su Jinglan claimed her usual spot, propping her head on a bent arm as her smoldering gaze roamed freely over Ning Jiuwei.

Su Jinglan shifted closer, drawing Ning Jiuwei into her arms with exquisite gentleness, as if cradling a fragile, one-of-a-kind treasure.

~~~

The investigation had expanded to every patient Shi Wanxu had ever treated since starting her practice, but Ning Jiuwei’s name still didn’t appear. Su Jinglan let out a quiet breath of relief—only for fresh doubts to take root.

Ning Jiuwei and Shi Wanxu clearly knew each other well, yet they’d only exchanged contact info after class. What hidden connection bound them?

Su Jinglan’s elective courses included psychology, and she’d heard the professor discuss the ethical guidelines. Psychologists and counselors were bound by strict rules: no friendships with patients, and certainly no romantic or physical entanglements.

Every detail of their interactions suggested Ning Jiuwei and Shi Wanxu had adhered to those guidelines.

The restrictions lasted three years. Working backward, that meant they’d known each other for longer than that.

As Su Jinglan mulled over their relationship, Assistant Lin’s phone buzzed with another message. The contact informed her that portions of the medical records had been deliberately deleted.

“President Su,” Assistant Lin said at once, relaying the update, “she says part of the investigation files has been erased. From what we can tell, there are gaps in Shi Wanxu’s second and third years of practice.”

Assistant Lin showed Su Jinglan the screenshots, with two sections circled. “Between one patient getting their prescription and leaving, and the next one entering the consultation room, there’s a blank stretch of over an hour.”

The missing time slots weren’t limited to just two places—more turned up later. Su Jinglan had someone investigate the day’s registration records based on those gaps.

They could delete visit logs, but not the registration records.

Su Jinglan did the math on Ning Jiuwei’s age at the time and realized she had only been seventeen.

Could Ning Jiuwei really have gone to see a psychologist at seventeen?

Staring at the date, Su Jinglan suddenly remembered it was after the Gaokao—more precisely, after filling out the college entrance exam applications.

“President Su, I couldn’t find anything,” Lin Fengmian said for the first time, having failed to complete the task her boss had assigned. “It was too long ago. The hospital’s systems have been upgraded and replaced multiple times. All those registration records are gone—impossible to recover.”

“Even money can’t dig them up?” Su Jinglan trusted her instincts. Those missing records had something to do with Ning Jiuwei.

Lin Fengmian nodded. She wouldn’t lie just to claim extra pay.

The inability to control the situation filled Su Jinglan with worry. A sense of lurking danger gnawed at her heart, making her want to stay by Ning Jiuwei’s side every moment—especially at night.

She pushed the memories aside and gazed down at Ning Jiuwei in her arms. Su Jinglan nuzzled close to the back of her neck and murmured her name softly. “Ning Jiuwei, I can’t sleep.”

Ning Jiuwei felt like she was burning up in a furnace, suffocating under the heat. Her sleepwear was the only thing keeping Su Jinglan from noticing her feverish temperature.

Her parched throat kept her silent—any sound might betray the urges churning inside her. She stayed perfectly still, maintaining her sleeping pose.

Su Jinglan probed gently. “Jiuwei, when did you first meet Teacher Shi? Has it been five years?”

Two options—yes or no. Easy to answer.

At the mention of Shi Wanxu, Ning Jiuwei’s heart clenched. She didn’t respond. Su Jinglan lightly pressed her shoulders, turning her over until she loomed above, gazing down.

Ning Jiuwei flicked her eyes to Su Jinglan’s neck but said nothing.

The glance was obvious, and Su Jinglan—watching her every reaction—knew exactly what had caught her attention. A smile tugged at her lips as she teased, “Should I wrap a silk scarf around my neck for work tomorrow? Wouldn’t want anyone spotting Teacher Ning’s bite marks.”

Ning Jiuwei shoved her lightly and yanked the blanket tight around herself. “They’ll be gone by tomorrow.”

No blood had been drawn, no hickeys sucked into the skin. The marks would fade in a few hours, long before dawn.

“Not necessarily.” Propping her cheek on one hand, Su Jinglan leaned down closer, her voice playful near Ning Jiuwei’s ear. “My skin’s sensitive—marks show up easily. Teacher Ning bit me twice, and the second was harder than the first.”

She touched the spot, her voice dropping low. “Teacher Ning’s bites felt so good.”

The title, the words—both sent a shiver through Ning Jiuwei’s chest. “President Su, can you stop calling me Teacher Ning?”

She’d noticed the pattern: Su Jinglan used “Teacher Ning” when she was teasing, seducing, or getting intimate.

And here it was again—irresistibly tempting.

“What should I call you then?” Su Jinglan’s slender arm snaked around, resting on Ning Jiuwei’s waist. “Baby?”

Fighting the flutter in her chest, Ning Jiuwei removed the hand. “I’m going to sleep now. Take your time thinking, President Su.”

Her closed eyes and peaceful expression looked so obedient and serene. Su Jinglan stared, only then realizing Ning Jiuwei had deftly changed the subject.

They’d been talking about Shi Wanxu, but Ning Jiuwei had subtly shifted her focus without her noticing.

Sleep eluded Su Jinglan. Her fingertips traced Ning Jiuwei’s waistline, pinching the hem of her clothes. “Jiuwei, next time you go to Teacher Shi’s class, take me with you. I’m really interested in her.”

The words “interested in Shi Wanxu” made Ning Jiuwei’s eyes snap open as she tried to gauge if Su Jinglan meant it.

Those deep eyes were hard to read, the smile in them intriguing. Another tug at her clothes. Ning Jiuwei grabbed Su Jinglan’s hand to stop her. “Teacher Shi’s thirty-eight and unmarried. If President Su wants to pursue her, you can leave my house right now.”

“I just said I’m interested in Teacher Shi—not that I want to pursue her.” Su Jinglan was blunt with Ning Jiuwei. “The teacher I like is someone else.”

Ning Jiuwei fell silent. She already knew who that “someone else” was.

Su Jinglan didn’t say it was Teacher Ning. Instead, she smiled brightly and traced a finger along Ning Jiuwei’s palm, continuing her probe. “How did you and Teacher Shi meet, Designer Ning?”

Without a firm answer, Ning Jiuwei felt a hollow ache inside. She couldn’t help wondering who else that “someone” might be besides herself. “Does President Su want to know how Teacher Shi and I met? Or how long we’ve known each other?”

Su Jinglan nodded with a smile.

Ning Jiuwei curved her lips into a smile. “I won’t tell President Su. You should get some early sleep, President Su.”

“Not telling?” Su Jinglan wrapped her arms around Ning Jiuwei, nuzzling into the crook of her neck and giving her a light bite—exact payback for everything Ning Jiuwei had done to her. “Does Teacher Ning want to know what it feels like to be bitten?”

Su Jinglan’s soft lips brushed against her sensitive skin, sending involuntary shivers through Ning Jiuwei’s body. She bit down on her inner lip and forced out a refusal. “President Su, please show some restraint.”

Su Jinglan’s smile turned gentle as she pulled back from Ning Jiuwei’s neck, still holding her close. “Shi Wanxu is a psychology professor at the university, and she also works as a psychologist at the hospital. I’ve heard that psychologists have to follow strict ethical guidelines. Does Teacher Ning know about them?”

Ning Jiuwei had pored over psychology books right in front of Su Jinglan, even feigning keen interest in the subject. Claiming ignorance of the ethical guidelines would ring far too false.

She switched off the light, letting the darkness veil her expression. “The ethical guidelines are extensive. I’ve only skimmed them once and jotted down a few points. Why bring them up all of a sudden, President Su?”

“I’ve been reading some related books lately and came across the ethical guidelines.” Su Jinglan steered the conversation to plant seeds of doubt about Shi Wanxu. “One rule in particular puzzles me: why psychologists can’t form multiple relationships with their patients—no sexual or intimate contact for at least three years. Does Designer Ning know about that?”

Ning Jiuwei fell silent for a moment. “If a psychologist wants to, she can always drag a recovered patient back into the abyss whenever she pleases—exploit them, control them, use them.”

In the darkness, Su Jinglan’s lips curved into a smile. Ning Jiuwei turned her head and asked abruptly, “Why does President Su want to sleep with me? Are you worried about me? Or… do you like me?”

~~~