Tan Mo heard Xie Qichen’s words and recalled that at the restaurant earlier that evening, she had deliberately kept her distance from him in front of others and described their relationship as not particularly close.
But now…
Intimacy and ambiguity filled the air, impossible to hide.
For some reason, she sensed a hint of displeasure in his tone, though it might have been just her imagination.
She awkwardly explained in a soft voice, “I was just afraid that if I said we were close, we’d have to explain everything again, which would be a hassle…”
“That’s still my job to explain,” he replied.
Tan Mo was momentarily speechless, her thoughts becoming even more tangled. A few seconds later, she felt Xie Qichen slightly loosen his grip, his voice calm and husky:
“Did I hurt you?”
She complained unhappily, “Of course it hurt.”
He apologized and then peeled open a bandage, gently applying it to her wound, his voice returning to normal:
“I was just trying to disinfect it so it wouldn’t get infected.”
“That still doesn’t mean you had to press so hard—was that some kind of revenge?”
“Just look at the broken vase pieces on the stairs.”
Tan Mo: “…”
Xie Qichen chuckled slightly, “It seems I do have the right to seek revenge.”
Tan Mo, feeling defensive, quickly justified herself, “It was Uncle Tan who called me and said this villa was his, letting me stay for a night. I didn’t expect the door to suddenly open—I thought it was an intruder, of course I was scared.”
“Hmm, my mistake.”
She eagerly seized the opportunity, “You do bear some minor responsibility.”
The man looked down at the girl’s stubborn expression, his eyes slightly narrowed with amusement, as he closed the first-aid kit, “Alright, I’ll have my lawyer contact you tomorrow.”
“Eh?”
“You take the main responsibility first.”
Tan Mo’s heart skipped a beat and she watched as Xie Qichen turned to take the first-aid kit to the living room.
She stomped angrily off the table, and just then received a voice message from Tan Yuanzhou.
Earlier, while Xie Qichen was fetching the first-aid kit, she had sent Tan Yuanzhou a message asking about the villa.
On the other end of the voice message, Tan Yuanzhou’s innocent voice came through: “Yeah, the villa isn’t mine—it’s Achen’s. Anyway, he rarely goes to Yuning Mountain. I asked him if you could stay for a night, and he said yes. That place is great for watching the sunrise.”
“…”
Great, she might not even live to see tomorrow’s sunrise.
So Xie Qichen had known she would come here, had agreed to let her stay for the night, and yet she ended up breaking his vase…
Feeling flustered, she followed Xie Qichen to the living room, where he took off his coat and glanced at her:
“Did you have enough dinner tonight?”
“Huh?”
“If not, we can order some late-night snacks.”
To others, Xie Qichen’s words might have seemed abrupt, but Tan Mo remembered from high school how she often got hungry while studying late at night. She had even gained some weight during that time, so whenever she was starving, she had to endure it painfully.
Once, she had called Xie Qichen, crying on the phone and not even saying anything before he chuckled on the other end, instantly understanding: “Hungry?”
“Waaah…”
“It’s okay, I’ll pick you up for a late-night snack.”
That night, he took her to the food street and ordered all kinds of delicious dishes. Finally sitting in front of her, he gently wiped the ketchup from the corner of her mouth with a tissue, smiling as he comforted her: “Now that you’re under a lot of study pressure and still growing, if you want to eat, just eat. Who said you’re getting fat?”
Later, he went abroad.
And now she rarely ate late-night snacks anymore.
Tan Mo shook her head, “I’m not hungry. I had a lot to eat tonight.”
Xie Qichen didn’t say anything. Tan Mo stood there, thinking, her fingers intertwined.
She hadn’t expected that instead of kicking her out for breaking the vase, he would be asking if she was hungry. Was he really this calm and gentle?
Feeling guilty, Tan Mo walked up to him: “I’m sorry I broke your vase. How much is it worth? I’ll pay you back. I guess I can only pay in installments, but don’t worry, I will.”
The girl’s expression looked as if she were ready to face death bravely. Leaning against the sofa, Xie Qichen looked at her, suppressing the smile on his lips and speaking indifferently:
“I was just teasing you. That thing isn’t that valuable.”
“Really?”
“If it really was that valuable, selling you ten times wouldn’t be enough to cover it.”
Tan Mo sighed in relief.
…Wait, wasn’t that sentence kind of an insult?
She glared at him, “I’d definitely be worth more than that vase!”
“Hmm,” his gaze lightly fell on her, “Who would buy you?”
“…”
Feeling deeply wounded and speechless, Tan Mo turned around, “Fine, you win.”
As she was about to leave, he stopped her: “Where are you going?”
She looked at him with a grievance-filled expression: “Where else? To bury the corpse of that vase that’s worth ten times more than me.”
A slight smirk curved the man’s lips:
“I’ll take care of it. You go upstairs and rest.”
He insisted she stop fussing around, so she gave up and didn’t argue with him anymore: “…Okay, just be careful with your hands.”
Going upstairs, Tan Mo returned to the guest room and finally sat down on the bed.
With her knees bent, she rested her chin on her hands, her elbows on her knees, her mind a tangled mess of thoughts.
Xie Qichen had only recently returned to the country.
How did she end up under the same roof with him again…
Actually, she was a little afraid to meet him.
Not because she disliked him, but because she didn’t want to feel unnatural. Everything had already passed, and she didn’t want her heart to be stirred up again.
Licheng wasn’t too big, but it wasn’t small either. Why had she been running into him so frequently lately?
Tan Mo looked down at the bandage on her foot, puffed her cheeks, and finally gave up trying to figure it out, flopping back on the bed with a sigh.
—
An autumn rain passed through the night, slightly lowering the mountain temperatures.
The next day, the sun rose.
Around nine in the morning, Tan Mo woke up in her room, freshened up, changed clothes, and walked out, only to find, just like last time, that the man had already left the villa.
She went to the kitchen and found breakfast still waiting for her.
This time she didn’t rush to leave. She sat down to eat, and a little later, her phone received a call from an unfamiliar number. It turned out to be Xie Qichen’s assistant, who informed her that Mr. Xie had arranged for him to drive her down the mountain today, or she could stay a few more days if she preferred.
“Where is Xie Qichen?” she asked.
“Mr. Xie left early this morning to head back to the city. He had an important appointment this morning.”
Tan Mo was surprised. If he was in such a rush, why didn’t he go back to the city last night?
She didn’t plan to stay any longer, so after finishing breakfast, she walked out of the villa and saw the assistant already waiting at the door.
“Miss Tan, please.”
The assistant, Wen Cheng, respectfully nodded and opened the car door for her.
Tan Mo got into the car and asked, “May I ask how to address you?”
The assistant’s name was Wen Cheng. “You can just call me Xiao Wen.”
Tan Mo politely smiled, “Since you’re older than me, I’ll call you Brother Wen. Thanks for the trouble today.”
“Not at all, Miss Tan, please don’t be so formal…”
The car started down the mountain, and Tan Mo, still sleepy, couldn’t help but fall asleep again.
An hour later, the car arrived back at her apartment. She got out, said goodbye, and Wen Cheng reported to Xie Qichen: [Mr. Xie, Miss Tan has been safely returned to her apartment.]
Wen Cheng sent the message and couldn’t help but recall Tan Mo’s appearance.
The girl had black hair and red lips, with big, bright eyes like grapes. Her gentle and quiet demeanor surpassed many flashy women who deliberately tried to attach themselves to Mr. Xie.
Many women had actively thrown themselves at him, trying to get into Xie Qichen’s bed, only to be coldly rejected.
Only Tan Mo—last time she was not only taken by Xie Qichen into a hotel suite, but also stayed in the same villa with him last night.
Wen Cheng sighed.
She was truly one of a kind.
—
After this unexpected little incident, in the following days, Tan Mo didn’t run into Xie Qichen again.
That day after returning to her apartment, she had also sent Xie Qichen a thank-you text.
Looking at the previous chat history, she suddenly remembered she had forgotten to ask him about the lipstick. But there had been so many unexpected situations, how could she remember such a small thing…
She decided to let it go and wait for another chance to meet him before asking again.
After receiving an interview video from her classmates at the branch campus, Tan Mo started editing it.
The following Tuesday, Tan Mo returned to school to submit the video to her teacher and heard that they had successfully signed a contract with Aochuang. Next, Aochuang would begin designing the drone program, and she would be responsible for monitoring the progress.
There wasn’t much urgent work to do, and life as a senior was leisurely. A week passed quickly.
It was Saturday again. In the morning, Tan Mo woke up and headed to the supermarket to buy ingredients.
A few days earlier, after finishing editing the weekend vlog, she had posted it online. Her fans had been asking for her return, so she promised them she would host a live stream on making snowflake toffee and chat with them.
When she returned home with her shopping bags, Tan Yuanzhou’s call came in just in time.
He chatted with her for a bit and asked, “We didn’t manage to meet last week. How about dinner today?”
Tan Mo smiled, “Uncle, you’re not especially missing me, are you? You keep inviting me.”
Tan Yuanzhou snorted, “Look at you getting all smug. Just tell me if you’re coming or not.”
“Of course I’m coming! But I have a live stream this afternoon and probably won’t finish until evening.”
“Fine, I have to play soccer this afternoon. Let’s meet at six tonight at the building entrance.”
“Okay.”
After hanging up, Tan Mo started preparing the ingredients.
She had embarked on the journey of becoming a video blogger since her junior year. Initially, it was simply out of her passion for food that she wanted to share her cooking process online or create some straightforward tutorial videos. Little did she expect that later on, with her adorable and laid-back style coupled with her striking good looks, she would gradually rise to fame, now boasting millions of followers.
But unlike most skilled food bloggers, Tan Mo’s cooking skills weren’t particularly refined. Though she aspired to become a chef, she often messed up recipes in various ways, making her a veritable landslide in the food section. Yet precisely because of this, many people could genuinely see the growth of a kitchen newbie.
After a year, Tan Mo’s cooking skills had improved a lot. She now made tutorial videos and occasionally hosted live streams to make desserts.
In the afternoon, Tan Mo set up her phone in the kitchen, tied on a new bunny apron, and casually put on a bunny headband.
Once everything was ready, she turned on the camera.
[‘Xiaomoli’ Live Stream Started]
Soon, many fans flooded into the live room. Tan Mo smiled brightly at the camera and waved, “Hello everyone, good afternoon.”
In the live chat, the comments quickly rolled by:
[Aww, my baby is here!]
[Good afternoon! It’s been a month, I’ve missed my wife so much!]
[Tan Mo looks so cute today!]
[This live stream has been postponed for too long! That’s unfair!]
Tan Mo smiled apologetically, “Sorry, everyone. I’ve been busy with school stuff lately. I’ll give out some gifts during today’s dessert making…”
[Is Tan Mo making snowflake toffee today?]
[Don’t care about the gifts, we just want to see the streamer’s cooking fails]
[Come on, my wife! I’m having a bad day and I’m counting on seeing you mess up to cheer me up.]
Seeing the comments, Tan Mo laughed in mock indignation, “Hey! You’re already cursing me to fail before I’ve even started! I won’t fail today, especially since snowflake toffee is actually pretty simple…”
As she began cooking and chatting, the camera captured her bright, soft face, as delicate as a dough ball someone would want to poke. Her almond eyes sparkled, and the afternoon sunlight added a particularly gentle touch to the scene.
Her looks were top-tier even among beauty streamers, and fans often said watching her live stream was very therapeutic.
As she cooked, fans asked: [By the way, why haven’t we seen the Boss lately?]
The “Boss” was a nickname for the top donor, “C,” who had followed Tan Mo for a long time and often watched her stream like an old friend.
He had always been the top donor, following only Tan Mo, and usually spoke very little, leading people to imagine him as a quiet, wealthy CEO, hence the nickname “Boss.”
Some fans replied: [The Boss said he’s been busy lately and can’t come often.]
[Of course the Boss is busy in real life, he’s probably super rich…]
[I think the Boss must be someone really important in real life.]
Seeing the comments, Tan Mo also thought it had indeed been a while since she’d seen C. They weren’t in frequent private contact, so she felt awkward asking him why he hadn’t shown up.
She continued making the snowflake toffee and finally succeeded, giving away extra gifts to a few lucky fans.
…
Busy with that, time passed quickly until evening approached.
As six o’clock neared, Tan Mo said, “Guys, since I have plans tonight, I’ll end this live stream now. Let’s meet again next time!”
Everyone was reluctant but had to say goodbye: [Bye, my wife~]
[See you next time~ Don’t forget to update more!]
Finally ending the stream, Tan Mo took off her apron, quickly tidied up the kitchen, grabbed her bag, and headed downstairs.
Arriving at the underground parking lot, she took out her phone and sent a message to Tan Yuanzhou: “Uncle, I’m downstairs. Have you arrived yet? If you’re on your way, no rush…”
She walked forward, looking around for Tan Yuanzhou.
Suddenly, she saw ahead diagonally—
A black Rolls-Royce was parked there.
A man was standing beside the car.
He was wearing a long coat, tall and straight, his legs appearing especially long.
Xie Qichen noticed her approach and slowly lifted his long eyelashes, turning his gaze toward her.
The parking lot lighting was dim, outlining the sharp lines of his handsome profile. With his sharp brows and bright eyes, he exuded a coolness.
Tan Mo was captivated by his gaze and couldn’t move.
Xie Qichen?!
What was he doing here?!
Tan Mo’s heart beat a little faster. A few seconds later, she walked up to him. Around her, a faint scent of tobacco and sandalwood enveloped her. She looked at him and calmly asked:
“What a coincidence… What are you doing here?”
The man lowered his eyes to look at her:
“I was waiting for you. Do you think that’s a coincidence?”
Tan Mo: ?
She was surprised: “But my uncle invited me for dinner tonight…”
“He asked me to tell you he broke his leg and can’t come to pick you up.”
“Broken leg?!”
Xie Qichen crushed the cigarette butt and responded indifferently, “Yes, I broke it for him.”
Tan Mo: What did you just say???
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