7:50 PM.
Ten minutes until the fireworks show kicked off.
The hotel thrummed with excitement from top to bottom. Vibrant neon lights mingled with the pristine moonlight, casting glowing silhouettes as people streamed out the grand entrance.
The area around the hotel teemed with crowds, everyone clearly buzzing for the spectacle.
With the Art Troupe mostly made up of girls—who by nature craved romance and revelry—heading out together to watch the fireworks was the perfect way to shake off the boredom.
But up in the suite on the 18th Floor, Shen An was out cold. Without someone to rouse him, he’d sleep right through till morning.
The entire 18th Floor held just two guests: him, and Zhao Qingyu.
It was a fact Shen An didn’t know—only he and Zhao Qingyu were booked on the same floor.
In that sense, the distance between him and Zhao Qingyu kept shrinking.
The door lock clicked softly, then sprang open.
Zhao Qingyu eased back the Universal Card, kicked off the high heels hugging her delicate feet, and padded steadily and silently into the room.
The enveloping darkness gave her a moment’s pause, but she didn’t flip on the lights. She seemed worried it might disturb Shen An’s sleep.
It was a needless concern, really—she’d come specifically to wake him.
Yet her attentiveness toward him had grown ever more tender. Even if waking him was the goal, she shrank from anything abrupt or rough.
If it were her in his shoes, she’d take a soft whisper over a blast of harsh light any day.
That was closeness: putting the other person first without even thinking about it.
When your very first thought, anytime, anywhere, centered on them—that was liking taken to its peak. It might even qualify as love.
A humble kind of love.
Step by careful step, she muffled her footfalls until they blended with the air.
She reached his bedroom.
“The door’s not even shut?”
Zhao Qingyu’s lips quirked as she murmured, “So trusting.”
She stepped right in. Faint moonlight seeped through the window, chasing back some of the bed’s shadows. It wasn’t clear, but his outline emerged—the rumpled blankets arched over his sprawled, carefree pose.
By his bedside, Zhao Qingyu lightened her steps even more.
She drew the loosely hanging curtains shut, as if that sliver of light might bother him too.
The faint glow vanished. The room sank into total blackness.
No rush to wake him. Zhao Qingyu crouched low, peering at his face from inches away.
Huh~
Nothing but darkness.
Zhao Qingyu let out a wry chuckle. Why on earth had she closed the curtains?
She was starting to notice how off-kilter she’d become.
Sometime along the way, anything to do with him turned her cautious, almost reverent.
She crouched there for ages until a piercing boom rattled the window—the first firework cracking open the night.
Eight o’clock. The show was underway.
The sudden explosion jolted Zhao Qingyu. Holding the squat had already strained her legs.
She stumbled, and woke Shen An the exact way she hadn’t wanted to: her small hand smacked right onto his face.
Thud.
Hiss.
The sharp sting dragged Shen An from his dreams into reality.
He blinked awake, mind a total fog.
Who am I?
Where am I?
Who hit me?
Why?
Confusion swirled in his bleary eyes until Zhao Qingyu swam into focus, right there within arm’s reach.
Her smooth, pale skin gleamed like a pearl in the night, luminous against the all-encompassing dark.
Their gazes locked. Embarrassment and awkwardness flickered across Zhao Qingyu’s face.
But the darkness was too thick; Shen An could only make out a human shape, not her precise expression.
He wasn’t in the mood to study her face anyway.
Another jolt hit him.
Picture it: dead asleep, out of nowhere a slap, eyes open to someone hunkered by your bed.
Instinct screamed fight!
“Hah!”
Shen An’s startled yelp exploded out, chased by a reflexive backhand slap!
Smack.
The palm whistled past Zhao Qingyu’s cheek. Disbelief flooded her face.
Had she… just gotten slapped?
She couldn’t recall the last time it happened.
Probably the first slap she’d ever tasted, as far back as memory went.
But Shen An hadn’t meant it.
She’d scared him.
Somehow, she excused him right away.
But…
But…
So humiliating!!
Zhao Qingyu bit her ruby lip. Screw waking him gently—she vaulted onto his bed with a solid thump.
Ten minutes later.
The room lights blazed. Under the harsh glare, Zhao Qingyu perched stone-faced on Shen An’s bed, a vivid red handprint blooming on one cheek.
Lean in closer, and faint red marks traced her neck too.
They snaked down her graceful column… trailing off into mystery.
Shen An, meanwhile…
He huddled under the tangled blankets, looking distinctly sheepish.
After an awkward impasse, he tested the waters. “Um… Senior Sister…”
Zhao Qingyu slid him a sidelong glare, radiating kill intent.
Shen An cleared his throat. “I didn’t mean to, okay? It was pitch black—I had no idea it was you.”
“And next time you wanna wake me, no need for all this hassle. Just… call my name or something.”
Zhao Qingyu huffed coldly and clammed up.
Shen An scratched his head. “Senior Sister, I know I screwed up. Can you hand back my boxers first? Kinda hard to get up without ’em.”
Zoom out a touch, and there they were: a pair of shorts clutched tight in Zhao Qingyu’s fist.
Shen An’s sleep shorts, to be precise!
Her meticulously picked skirt hung rumpled and askew, like it’d been thoroughly manhandled by some grabby paws from hem to hem.
The earring from her right ear had vanished; only the left one dangled.
Clearly, those ten minutes had hosted an epic, no-holds-barred tussle.
Zhao Qingyu ignored his wheedling apology.
Shen An arched a brow. Not swayed by sweet talk or tough talk?
He let out a soft huff. “Fine. I’m getting up now. Senior Sister, if you don’t mind holding onto those, be my guest. Doesn’t faze me.”
Zhao Qingyu whipped her head around, eyes locked on him in brazen challenge, practically egging him on.
Game on!
That feisty.
Shen An’s mouth twitched upward. He whipped the blankets off in one go.
Zhao Qingyu folded first.
She yelped, slapping hands over her eyes—but whacked the shorts right into her own face.
This…
Aaaah!!!!
Gritting her teeth, she bolted upright, spun away from him, and flung the shorts his way. “Put ’em on yourself! I’ll wait outside.”
She stormed from the room.
Beneath the blankets, Shen An still had his underwear on.
He quirked a brow at her furious exit, muttering, “Put on what? You’re the one who yanked ’em off.”
In the living room, Zhao Qingyu’s cheeks burned with a sunset flush, brighter and bolder than any evening sky.
Annoyance consumed her. She paced back and forth, whispering furiously to herself. “Insane… I’m totally insane… What the hell am I doing…”
Her pride lay in tatters.
This topped even being stripped naked in humiliation.
She pressed a hand to her forehead and let out a long sigh. “Should’ve just flipped the lights and hollered. Done.”
“Why go through all that nonsense… Look at the mess now.”
“Huh? Muttering to yourself, Senior Sister?”
Guys changed clothes at warp speed.
Zhao Qingyu’s grumbling had barely wrapped when Shen An strolled out, grin full of mischief.
“Shut it!”
She stomped hard and whirled with an icy snap.
Shen An shrugged and mimed zipping his lips.
Now he finally took a good, leisurely look at Zhao Qingyu’s evening getup.
An elegant pale red gown with a daring slit clung to her voluptuous curves. The back plunged in a smooth hollow, baring a tantalizing blend of snowy skin and rosy warmth.
The skirt’s high slit flashed long legs wrapped in sheer black stockings.
Her feet pressed the floor, crimson polish gleaming through the silk.
Shoulder-length hair swept up in an intricate twist traded her usual cool edge for poised grace—a serene, sultry elder sister vibe.
The skirt’s wrinkles and lone earring lent her refined look a deliciously tousled edge.
Mmm~
Freshly ravished heiress?
Amusement danced in Shen An’s eyes as he swallowed a laugh.
It gave him a solid guess at her plans for the night.
Dressed to kill, every detail fussed over to perfection—what else but a date?
His scorching gaze was well within Zhao Qingyu’s expectations.
She didn’t feel angry at all. Instead, an inexplicable surge of pride welled up inside her—as if her careful selection hadn’t been wasted after all.
With a slight turn of her body, she shot him a playful glare. “Had enough yet?”
Shen An could tell her anger had eased a little, so he said softly, “Senior Sister looks stunning tonight. Like a movie star heading to some glamorous event.”
Zhao Qingyu narrowed her eyes. “A movie star?”
“Or maybe a little princess?”
“Pah!” Zhao Qingyu put on a look of disgust. “Can you not be so cheesy?”
Shen An pursed his lips. “Well, I can’t exactly call you a fairy. I’ve never seen one, after all.”
Zhao Qingyu snorted. “Still got jokes in you? Hurry up and help me find my earring.”
She pointed to her right ear.
“Already found it.”
Shen An opened his palm, revealing a gem nestled quietly there. “But the hook fell off. I can’t just stick it back on.”
Zhao Qingyu snatched it from his hand and fixed him with a fierce glare. “Then you owe me a new one.”
Shen An’s mouth twitched. “Me?”
“Who else? You’re the one who yanked it off!” Zhao Qingyu’s voice rose with indignation. “So damn hard—it hurt like hell.”
Her right ear did indeed bear a glaring red mark, even more noticeable than the faint flush on her cheeks.
To be fair, though, in the heat of the moment, Shen An had shown considerable restraint by not tearing her earlobe clean off.
Reasoning with a woman in a situation like this, however, was a lost cause.
Shen An rubbed his hands together. “How about I blow on it for you, Senior Sister?”
Zhao Qingyu frowned. “I want cash.”
“Then kill me.” Shen An flopped back onto the floor with exaggerated despair. “I’ve got everything but money.”
“Heh, welching already?”
Zhao Qingyu lifted one black-stocking-clad foot and gently pressed it against his calf.
Hiss.
The sensation wasn’t half bad.
Shen An let out a discreet sigh. “It’s not that I want to dodge it. I really am broke.”
Zhao Qingyu increased the pressure, looming over him. “Then sell yourself.”
“Am I not already yours, Senior Sister?”
Shen An grinned slyly. “If I’m your man, we’re family. Talking money just hurts the harmony.”
Zhao Qingyu’s eyebrows arched, and she let out a cold huff. “Oh? You strike me more like a traitor, crawling into bed with the enemy!”
“?”
Shen An tilted his head. “Come on, Senior Sister—that’s harsh. I’ve been nothing but diligent the whole way here. You say jump, I jump.”
“Name one thing I haven’t done perfectly for you.”
Zhao Qingyu faltered for a moment. It was true, more or less.
“For now!” she shot back, grasping at straws.
“Tsk. Then let me prophesy your death—in a hundred years.”
Shen An beamed up at her.
“I won’t last that long.” Zhao Qingyu withdrew her foot and said coolly, “Since you can’t pay up, we’ll do it my way.”
A twinge of disappointment stirred in Shen An. Why stop now?
He sat up from the floor. “What way?”
A sly smile tugged at Zhao Qingyu’s lips as she slowly crouched down and pinched his chin. “Tonight, you’re glued to my side. Not one step apart.”
“No problem!”
Shen An nodded vigorously.
Zhao Qingyu blinked, then backpedaled. “Not just tonight!”
“Ha? You want a lifetime commitment, Senior Sister?” Shen An ducked his head bashfully. “I need to think that over.”
Zhao Qingyu rolled her eyes and poked his forehead. “Think about what?”
“So, how many days, then?”
“I…” She paused. “I’ll let you know when I decide.”
“?”
“Not thrilled? Then pay up.”
Zhao Qingyu unfastened her other earring. “This pair runs about three hundred fifty thousand. I’ll throw this one in too, and for all your hard work lately, three hundred thousand will do.”
Shen An: ?
Robbery, plain and simple?
He collapsed back onto the floor. “I’ll accompany you.”
“Compensate?” Zhao Qingyu’s frown deepened.
“Accompany—as in the full service kind. I’ll do it!” Shen An said with mock resignation.
Zhao Qingyu’s frown smoothed out. She rose triumphantly. “Then get moving and clean yourself up. Look at those pants—go change!”
“I think shorts are fine. It’s hot out…”
“I said change!”
“Fine…”
Shen An’s face fell, but as he turned toward the bedroom, a brilliant smile lit up his features.
Compensation? It was all just playful banter.
And she was flirting right back—without even realizing it.
