Chapter 168: From Now On, I’ll Listen to You

The long night stretched on, and Lu Qingyue once again experienced firsthand what a man’s deliberate revenge, petty exactingness, and merciless score-settling could be.

The thick fog had dispersed, and a scattering of starlight faintly showed through the night sky.

Cheng Xingye lounged against the headboard. Beside him, the fluffy goose-down quilt rose into a little hill, revealing one small, fair shoulder.

The heat in his eyes had faded, but his fingertips still lingered in her hair. Unable to resist, he lowered his head and kissed the corner of her lips once more.

“Going to sleep already?”

The little wretch beneath the covers was disturbed by him. With a heavy nasal tone, she gave a muffled hum. Whether it counted as an answer was anyone’s guess.

Cheng Xingye smiled silently.

Such poor stamina.

It had not even been an hour, yet she was already sniffling and refusing to continue.

He had remained perfectly at ease, but he could not bear to torment her until she whimpered and begged for mercy. In the end, reluctant though he was, he had no choice but to bring their affair to a reluctant close.

Afterward, Lu Qingyue had wrapped herself in the quilt, turned over, and fallen into a deep sleep. He, however, was left completely unable to sleep, dissatisfied as he was.

Cheng Xingye moved up behind her and reached out to stroke her soft, delicate earlobe. With a chuckle, he teased her,

“Still planning to tame me?”

Lu Qingyue was roused from her sleep by his touch. Perhaps she found it irritating; her lashes fluttered, and her lips pressed together slightly, as though she might open her eyes and begin complaining at any moment.

Seeing how truly exhausted she was, Cheng Xingye smiled again without a sound.

His arm drew her into his embrace, almost imperceptibly, and a fervent yet gentle kiss landed at the corner of her brow.

“Go to sleep, baby.”

There was an unusual note of surrender in his voice as he coaxed her in a husky murmur,

“I’ll listen to you from now on.”

⋯⋯

Their return flight was four days later.

When Cheng Xingye heard that Lu Qingyue’s two best friends had failed to get discounted tickets, he simply waved a hand and bought tickets for both of them as well. The four of them would return to River City together.

Lu Qingyue met the two girls at the airport, dark circles beneath her eyes. The brightness she had possessed on the first day of their trip was nowhere to be seen.

For all five days, Lu Qingyue had stayed up late almost every night.

She had discovered that a man’s stamina was genuinely astonishing.

They both went to sleep after midnight, yet the next morning she looked as wilted as an eggplant struck by frost, while the culprit himself was refreshed, wearing the calm and satisfied expression of a man thoroughly indulged.

Sometimes, after being tormented until her lower back felt as though it might snap, Lu Qingyue could not help wondering whether his day-and-night excesses would drain him dry at such a young age. Would he find himself unable to perform before he even turned thirty?

Clearly, however, such worries did not apply to Cheng Xingye.

He seemed never to suffer from exhaustion, no matter how excessive his indulgence. If anything, he grew ever more adept at it, stretching their encounters longer and longer through practice, until he had her whimpering and begging for mercy.

The four of them met at the boarding gate. After a few words of idle conversation, it was time to board.

The moment Lu Qingyue got on the plane, she put on a sleep mask. She did not feel like saying another word to the man beside her and simply closed her eyes, falling into loud, deep sleep.

Across the aisle, Zhou Tingting and Hu Qiuyue cast furtive glances in their direction.

“What happened to Yueyue?” Hu Qiuyue asked, baffled. A person who had been so lively just a few days ago now looked utterly lifeless.

Zhou Tingting was just as inexperienced in matters of love, but she adopted the air of someone worldly and sighed with exaggerated wisdom.

“Do you really need to ask? Someone tamed her last night.”

Hu Qiuyue’s eyes widened, her face filled with disbelief. Yet the alleged culprit beside them was smiling radiantly, looking every inch a man who had been thoroughly satisfied.

The two exchanged a glance and suddenly felt that dating the chief instructor really was thrilling. At any moment, he might decide to give you a little training of his own.

The cabin crew began broadcasting the preflight safety instructions. At the far end of the aisle, a flight attendant smiled as she demonstrated the procedures for the passengers.

On one side of the aisle, the two best friends excitedly imagined all sorts of scenarios involving such “training.” On the other, the person who had supposedly been trained slept soundly, utterly unaware of what was happening around her.

Then, amid the heavy fog of sleep, a warm weight settled over her shoulder. The crisp, clean scent was familiar and reassuring.

Lu Qingyue gave a sleepy little murmur. Enveloped in that warmth, she sank into an even deeper sleep.

⋯⋯

At half past three in the afternoon, the plane arrived in River City.

After disembarking, Zhou Tingting and Hu Qiuyue thanked Cheng Xingye repeatedly, insisting that it was only thanks to him that they had flown first class for the first time in their lives.

They looked ready to worship him, having entirely forgotten what he had done to their dear friend.

Cheng Xingye held Lu Qingyue’s hand and smiled casually. To him, anything that could be solved with money was no more than a minor favor.

After exchanging a few words, the four parted ways and took separate taxis.

With his grandfather still at home, Cheng Xingye could not stay away forever. He took Lu Qingyue home first, then returned alone to the Cheng family residence.

He arrived at six in the evening.

The golden afterglow of winter bathed the entire world, casting a faint warm hue over the snow piled along the eaves and corridors.

Cheng Li had heard that his son would be coming home today. At that moment, he was in the courtyard with a watering can, tending several wintersweet trees that had only recently been planted.

At the sound of the door opening, he turned around. Seeing only Cheng Xingye, he instinctively glanced behind him.

“Why did you come back alone?”

Cheng Xingye paused slightly and followed his father’s gaze to look behind himself.

“Who else would there be?”

Had he not always come home alone?

There was a trace of disappointment on Cheng Li’s usually stern face, but in the end he said nothing. He set down the watering can and turned back into the house.

Cheng Xingye had no idea what was going on. Seeing how coldly his father seemed to regard his return, he assumed the old man was simply displeased to see him.

In any case, he had only come back to visit his grandfather. He paid no attention to his father’s aloofness and followed him up the steps into the house.

The atmosphere seemed perfectly normal, if somewhat desolate.

After visiting his grandfather in the study, Cheng Xingye was instructed to arrange a follow-up examination at the hospital for one of the old man’s former comrades-in-arms.

He agreed. But as soon as he came downstairs, Guo Mengyun caught him by the arm and pulled him into the corridor.

Under the dim yellow light of the wall lamp, she looked at her tall son with reproach and dissatisfaction.

“When are you going to bring Dotty home?”

They had been dating for nearly half a year. It was not as though the girl were some shameful secret. Did he really need to keep her hidden away like this?

Cheng Xingye clicked his tongue, suddenly understanding why Cheng Li had looked so displeased when he had returned alone.

So that was what this was about.

He slipped his hands casually into his pockets and leaned lazily against the wall.

“What’s the rush?”

Cheng Li had not even given his approval yet.

What if he brought the girl home on his own, only for Cheng Li to treat her coldly? Would that not leave his little troublemaker feeling wronged?

Guo Mengyun shot him an exasperated look, her urgency tinged with the frustration of someone who could not make her son see sense.

“You may not be in a hurry, but we are! The New Year is almost here. With so many visitors coming to pay their respects, do you really want people taking turns trying to set you up with someone?”

At the mention of matchmaking, a faint trace of mockery curved Cheng Xingye’s lips.

He lowered his lashes. His voice was slow and light, carrying a hint of careless indifference.

“What are you in such a hurry for? Setting me up with people has always been your favorite pastime, hasn’t it?”

Guo Mengyun was rendered speechless. For a long moment, she could not find a single word.

Seeing that she still seemed intent on defending herself, Cheng Xingye lowered his head and idly ground the tip of his shoe against the marble floor.

His voice was quiet and dismissive.

“I know what I’m doing. No matter how you treat Dotty, whether you approve of her or not, she will be the only one I ever have.”