The mountain woods were quiet all around, with a crescendo-shaped moon rising into the sky. The leaves were bathed in silvery moonlight, glowing with a milky halo, while cold winds howled through the trees.
It was especially cold at this moment, but Tan Mo was tightly wrapped in Xie Qichen’s arms, instantly feeling warmth replace the chill.
When he said, “Do you know how worried I’ve been about you,” Tan Mo’s heart quivered like ripples on a pond, and her eyes reddened at his words.
She never expected Xie Qichen would come all this way to find her.
She also hadn’t imagined he would be so anxious, as if he genuinely feared something might happen to her.
She had thought that he had been so cold and distant to her these past few days, that he wouldn’t care about anything related to her…
Her mind went blank. After a while, Xie Qichen loosened his hold, took off his coat, and wrapped it snugly around her, pulling her close into his warm embrace:
“Why are you wearing so little to come to the mountains? Don’t you feel cold?”
She rubbed her red nose, “I didn’t realize it was so cold until I got here…”
He leaned closer, carefully inspecting her, “Are you hurt anywhere?”
Tan Mo lightly bit her lip, “I just fell a moment ago, and my knees hurt a bit…”
She was wearing knee-high socks, so the injuries couldn’t be seen now. Xie Qichen patted the dust and grass off her coat, looking at her disheveled appearance with a helpless teasing tone, “You look like you’re lost.”
“…”
She felt embarrassed and couldn’t look at him. Xie Qichen glanced down and noticed her reddened palms, grabbed her hand, and opened it up. There were several scratches oozing blood on her delicate skin, clearly visible and shocking. It was obvious how painful it must have been for such a fair-skinned girl.
Xie Qichen furrowed his brows, “How did this happen?”
Her voice was soft, “There are too many weeds in the mountains. I got scratched without noticing.”
Xie sighed, “Tan Mo, you’ve never made things easy for me.”
Though his tone seemed scolding, it sounded softer than the breeze to the young girl.
At this moment, the other three villagers who had been in Tan Mo’s search team earlier also returned to the crossroads. Seeing them, Tan Mo hurriedly shared the news she had received: “Brother, sister, thank you for your efforts. Ji Shu just called me and said Grandpa has been found.”
The three sighed in relief and were delighted, “That’s great! It’s good that he’s found!”
Then they noticed the suddenly appearing, well-dressed man standing in front of Tan Mo and looked surprised, “Who is this?”
Tan Mo hesitated slightly, then smiled gently and introduced:
“This is… my husband.”
Xie Qichen looked down at her briefly. The villagers were surprised, “Wow, your husband is so handsome, and he was really worried about you, coming all the way to pick you up.”
They teased a bit, and Xie Qichen calmly responded while Tan Mo turned red in the ears.
Eventually, the three prepared to return to the town. After they left, Tan Mo said to Xie Qichen, “I need to go to Ji Shu’s house to check on Grandpa.”
Xie Qichen didn’t say much, picked her up, and headed toward the Rolls-Royce.
Her knees were still hurting.
So even though it was only a twenty-meter distance, he didn’t let her take a single step.
Tan Mo gently clenched the fabric of his dress shirt, obediently curling in his arms, her heart fluttering wildly from the strong, possessive scent of sandalwood.
Wen Cheng helped open the rear door, and Tan Mo was gently placed inside. Xie Qichen got in from the other side.
The car started and headed toward the small town.
The interior was warm, and Tan Mo’s tense body from the cold relaxed completely. Xie Qichen handed her a cup of hot water, “Drink some water first.”
Tan Mo took the warm glass cup, unscrewed the lid, and gulped down several mouthfuls, realizing it was actually ginger tea.
Xie Qichen leaned closer, looking at her, “Do you feel unwell? You were in the cold wind for so long.”
“I’m okay, just my nose feels a bit uncomfortable.”
“Take some cold medicine when we get back.”
“Okay.”
Five minutes later, the car arrived at Ji Shu’s doorstep. Tan Mo was helped out of the car by Xie Qichen. Ji Shu, seeing their return, hurriedly came to greet them.
“Mo Mo, what’s wrong with your leg? Did you get hurt?”
“I just fell accidentally, nothing serious.”
It was too cold outside, so Ji Shu first invited them indoors. Entering the house, Tan Mo first went to see her grandfather, who was now lying in bed. She leaned down to look at him, “Grandpa, are you okay?”
The old man didn’t seem to recognize her well, nodded, and mumbled, “I’m fine, I’m really fine…”
Ji Shu sighed, “We found him by the dam. We never thought he could walk for four or five hours alone to such a distant place. He insisted that some playmates invited him to swim, remembering clearly things from his childhood.”
“Did Grandpa get hurt?”
“Just some minor injuries; I’ve already applied medicine. I’m just worried he might catch a chill outside. Tonight, we’ll see if he feels unwell. If he does, we’ll take him to the hospital tomorrow.”
Tan Mo patted her shoulder, “Okay, we must keep an eye on him when he goes out from now on.”
“Yeah, I was so scared today.”
After seeing Grandpa, Ji Shu and her mother escorted Tan Mo back to the living room. Ji’s mother expressed her gratitude to Tan Mo and then saw Xie Qichen waiting in the living room, smiling gratefully, “Mr. Xie, thank you so much for your help today. You’ve done us a great favor.”
Tan Mo was stunned. Ji Shu quickly explained, “The situation was urgent, and I hadn’t told you yet. In the evening, Mr. Xie also called me. Their company has a branch in Lincheng with extensive resources, so he mobilized a lot of manpower to conduct a thorough search in the mountains. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have known how late we’d have to search tonight.”
Tan Mo hadn’t expected Xie Qichen to have helped so much.
The man spoke gently, “You’re too kind. It was just a small favor. As long as we found the person, it’s all good. If you need any further assistance, you can contact Mr. Chen, the head of our branch office.”
“Okay, thank you so much…”
After a few exchanges, Ji’s mother asked, “Then are you planning to head back to Licheng now?”
The man glanced at his watch, “It’s too late now. I might take Mo Mo to stay in Lincheng city for the night.”
“Why don’t you two stay here for tonight? We have an empty room upstairs. It would be troublesome for you to go down the mountain and then to Lincheng city, which would take nearly an hour.”
Ji’s mother said this was a small villa they built last year, and the third floor was usually unoccupied. It would be fine to sleep here tonight and leave in the morning.
Upon hearing this, Xie Qichen looked at her, “I’m fine either way. It’s up to Mo Mo.”
Ji Shu held Tan Mo’s hand, “Mo Mo, why don’t you and Mr. Xie stay? Besides, your leg is injured, and it’s inconvenient for you to walk.”
Since Xie Qichen had no objections, Tan Mo agreed, “Then thank you and your mother.”
“Of course not. It’s you who worked hard to help find the person today.”
So Ji’s mother went upstairs first to prepare the room, letting Tan Mo and Xie Qichen sit in the living room. After finishing, she led the two upstairs.
Entering a room on the third floor, there was a large bed and a desk inside, simple but very clean. Ji’s mother brought in new toiletries: “The bedding and sheets are all new, there’s a separate bathroom inside, the water heater was just turned on, so you might have to wait a while before you can take a shower. I asked Ji Shu to get the toiletries for you.”
Ji’s mother asked them not to mind, and Tan Mo shook her head saying she didn’t mind at all, this was already very good.
“Then rest well tonight.”
“Okay, thank you, Auntie.”
The man beside her spoke, “Auntie, do you have any cold medicine? Mo Mo might have caught a chill.”
Tan Mo herself had forgotten about this, but Xie Qichen remembered. Ji’s mother nodded quickly, “Yes, how careless of me not to give you an extra jacket tonight. It’s so cold in the mountains.”
“It’s okay, Auntie, just a mild symptom.”
“You wait, I’ll go get it for you.”
Ji’s mother left, closing the door behind her.
The room was left with only the two of them, and the atmosphere seemed to become confined.
Tan Mo turned her head, looking at the only bed in the room, her earlobes suddenly heating up. She lightly twisted the hem of her clothes with her fingers. The man glanced at the girl’s unnatural expression, guessed what she was thinking, and calmly asked:
“Are you going to tell Auntie that we need two rooms?”
Tan Mo: “…”
That would draw a strange look from Auntie.
But then, that meant they would have to sleep on the same bed tonight. She couldn’t possibly ask him to sleep on the floor…
At that moment, Xie Qichen’s phone rang. Tan Mo looked curious. The man took out his phone and turned the screen for her to see: “It’s Mom.”
Xie Qichen answered the call. Tan Mo looked up at him, hearing the man’s calm voice, “Yes, I’ve found her…”
It should be the other end asking about the situation of him coming to find her. Probably Yang Xialan already knew.
While on the phone, Tan Mo heard a knock on the door. She gestured to him and got up to open it. Ji Shu was outside with the new toiletries, “Toothbrush, toothpaste, towel, and also cold medicine from my mom and a pot of hot water. Let me know if you need anything else.”
“Okay.”
Ji Shu held her hand, “Dear, I’m so touched that you came today. If it weren’t for you, I would have been in a panic. I love you so much.”
Tan Mo smiled, “Alright, don’t be so sentimental.”
“And also thank Mr. Xie and your uncle. Please convey my gratitude to them. We’ll invite you all for a meal another day.”
“Okay.”
Ji Shu leaned against the door frame, sneakily glancing at the man still on the phone inside the room, then raised her eyebrows at Tan Mo, “I noticed Mr. Xie is really good to you. Has he been so affectionate since you got married?”
Tan Mo was slightly taken aback. Ji Shu tapped her head lightly, “You don’t think he helped just out of kindness for me, do you? Silly, of course it’s because of you that he cares. And he even came all the way here for you.”
Tan Mo slightly clenched her fingers, her heart filled with emotions.
Ji Shu looked at the bed in the room and smirked, “One bed, huh. My mom is really considerate.”
Tan Mo blushed and hit her, “You’re too much…”
“Alright, I won’t disturb your romantic time. Have a good rest tonight.”
Ji Shu couldn’t resist adding, “You two are sharing a bed. How can you resist doing anything?”
Tan Mo was teased into a deep red face, “Just go already!”
Ji Shu was chased away by her, and Tan Mo closed the door, just as Xie Qichen finished his call. Turning his gaze, he saw the girl’s slightly flushed face, clearly having been teased, “What’s wrong? Why is your face so red?”
She hurriedly tried to stay calm, “Nothing, it’s just… a bit hot.”
He calmly asked again, “You call this hot when it’s near zero degrees in the mountains?”
“…”
Tan Mo felt a bit guilty and touched her head, “It’s a bit hot indoors.”
Tan Mo felt the air around her thinning, until a few seconds later, the deep male voice broke through, pulling her chaotic thoughts back to reality:
“Come and sit here.”
Tan Mo obediently walked over, placing her things on the table. Xie Qichen picked up the cold medicine, prepared it, and handed it to her, “Drink it first.”
“Okay.”
Then she saw the man take a towel and go to the bathroom. When she finished her medicine, he just came out.
Coming back to her, he half-knelt down and calmly said:
“Let me check the wound on your knee.”
“Um…”
She felt her ankle held by his large hand. The warmth from his palm felt like a branding iron on her skin, continuously radiating heat. Her long lashes fluttered slightly, her heart beating erratically as she lightly bit her red lip. She felt him taking off her short boots.
A few seconds later, he lifted his hand to her black knee-high socks, slowly pulling them down.
The girl’s delicate and beautiful legs were exposed, her skin as white as milk, glowing softly under the light.
From the calves to the ankles, finally, the man pulled off the long socks, revealing her delicate, fair feet. Her toes were small and cute, slightly pink, subtly hinting at a hint of allure.
The man raised his eyes, his dark gaze deep and unfathomable, meeting her gaze.
Tan Mo’s heart skipped a beat, and she turned her eyes away, blushing.
Then, the other long sock was slowly pulled off by him as well.
Feeling his gaze occasionally lingering on her legs, Tan Mo’s throat tightened, and she gently gripped the bedsheet.
This action was too intimate, revealing a subtle intimacy.
In silence, Tan Mo felt the air gradually thickening, wrapping around her consciousness layer by layer, as an electric current spread from her ankle to every part of her body.
Finally, the socks were off, and Tan Mo’s delicate ankle was still held in his hand. Though he had done nothing else, she felt herself almost melting from the heat.
He placed her foot on his leg, covered by his trousers, and calmly broke the delicate atmosphere:
“It’s not bleeding, but it’s bruised. It should be fine in a few days.”
“Okay…”
Xie Qichen used the towel to wipe the dust off her knees, then held her hand, cleaning the dirt and mud from her palms.
She inhaled sharply, “It hurts a bit…”
“You still feel pain?”
He looked up at her, “I think you were really brave today, rushing over without hesitation.”
Tan Mo recalled the shock of seeing him suddenly appear tonight. Her amber eyes widened, and she stared at him blankly, “When did you find out about this today?”
“When I got home in the evening and saw that you weren’t there, I asked the driver.”
Xie Qichen’s tone was hoarse, “Why didn’t you tell me about this when it happened?”
Tan Mo felt guilty, “Partly because there wasn’t much time, and you were at the group company. I didn’t want to bother you…”
If she had known earlier that Xie Qichen could help so much, she should have reached out to him sooner.
“So you could come here by yourself, post a missing person notice online asking netizens for help, and even bother your uncle, but you didn’t want to bother me?”
She was stunned, “How did you know I asked my uncle…”
“He called me to tell me.”
The man’s dark eyes were narrow and deep, gazing at her with a voice as calm as nightfall, laced with a chill:
“So, you don’t have a husband?”
“Didn’t you know who to ask first when there’s a problem?”
Tan Mo blushed at his assertive and domineering words, a warmth rising in her chest.
“At least send me a message to let me know what’s going on. You disappearing without a word—don’t you know it causes more trouble?”
Tan Mo understood, knowing her actions today were indeed inappropriate. “I didn’t think it through…”
“I’m not blaming you.”
His tone softened: “Just don’t make me worry, okay?”
He feared she might get hurt, that she couldn’t take care of herself. Even the slightest possibility of something going wrong would unsettle him.
Tan Mo’s eyes widened slightly, and Xie Qichen looked at her, sighing apologetically:
“Why didn’t you tell me you were upset at your grandmother’s birthday banquet?”
Tan Mo froze: “Did my uncle tell you that too?”
Xie Qichen had thought earlier that Tan Mo was upset because he showed up at the banquet, but only after talking to Tan Yuanzhou today did he learn that the girl had been spoken to harshly that day, hurt and silently bearing it all.
Looking at her, Xie Qichen’s throat tightened:
“Sorry, I shouldn’t have been cold to you these past few days.”
Thinking about how he had been petty and distant while she was hurting made him feel deeply guilty.
Tan Mo shook her head, her nose slightly tingling: “I just thought this was something personal, no need to bother you or make you sad.”
“Bother me? I’m one of the people involved in the gossip. And what do you mean ‘personal’? Now that we’re married, we’re a team. At least during the duration of our engagement, I have a responsibility to protect you. We should face things together.”
“Tan Mo, I know your upbringing has made you feel insecure, so you’re used to keeping things inside and being cautious all the time—”
“But you don’t have to be like that with me.”
He lifted his gaze to meet hers, his voice low and steady:
“You can rely on me.”
He just wanted her to be less distant, to stop carrying everything alone and learn to be happy by his side. He wanted to solve all her problems for her.
She could stay safely in her own little shell, stand still and do nothing, and let him come to her.
“Slowly get used to relying on me, okay?”
Tan Mo’s eyes welled up slightly at his words.
Seeing her reddened eyes, Xie Qichen smiled helplessly and tried to soothe her:
“Why did I end up making you cry? Don’t cry.”
Tan Mo shook her head, a tear falling. “Xie Qichen, thank you so much…”
Suddenly, she remembered his words from the past: “If you ever don’t know what to do, come find me. I’ll be here.”
Years later, he told her again that she could choose to depend on him.
All her life, aside from her family, only he had stood by her side like this—while some family members had even turned against her.
He smiled slightly and said softly: “That’s not what I wanted to hear.”
Tan Mo rubbed her nose. “I’ll try. I’ll talk to you about everything from now on, like you said. Now that we’re in this together, we rise and fall together.”
“Mm.”
Tan Mo pouted slightly and whispered softly: “So that’s why you were upset after leaving the banquet that day?”
“Mm.”
She pouted again: “I actually wanted to come talk to you these past two days. I thought maybe you rushed to the banquet and missed an important meeting for the company, causing financial loss. I even wanted to ask if I could help make it up to you somehow.”
“Are you going to give me money?”
“I mean, maybe I can return some of the money you’ve given me.”
He chuckled at her. “You’re really something.”
He ruffled her hair. “It’s all in the past. Let’s not have this cold war anymore, okay?”
She smiled faintly. “Mm…”
With everything finally out in the open, Tan Mo’s heart, which had been heavy for so long, finally felt light. Xie Qichen helped her treat her wounds and then let her freshen up first.
After a quick wash-up, Tan Mo came out from the bathroom and he went in.
She sat on the bed, looking down at her leg injuries, feeling the pain in her knee intensify, swelling more and more.
Rubbing her knee for a while, she took out her phone and opened the chat with Ji Shu, sending a message:
[Ji Shu, do you have something at home?]
Ji Shu replied quickly: [What do you need?]
Tan Mo started typing, but the phone keyboard suddenly froze. After a few taps, it switched to the English keyboard, and she accidentally sent just one letter: [T]
At that moment, Xie Qichen came out of the bathroom. Tan Mo looked up at him briefly and continued typing: [I need some ointment for my knee, it’s bruised…]
Before she could finish, a voice message suddenly came through from the other end. She tapped to play it:
“Huh? T? What do you want?!”
Then came a second voice message automatically played, with a teasing laugh:
“Oops, did you mean ‘T’ as in condoms?! Are you two finally hooking up tonight?! But where am I supposed to get that for you at this hour, tell Xie Qichen to hold on, hahahaha…”
Ji Shu’s not-so-quiet voice echoed through the room.
Needless to say, it clearly reached the man who had just walked by.
Tan Mo: …
Her brain exploded with embarrassment on the spot.
Oh no, what was Ji Shu saying?!
Feeling a gaze fall on her, Tan Mo’s face turned completely red. She couldn’t help but explain: “No, Ji Shu misunderstood. I just wanted her to bring some medicine for my leg…”
The more she explained, the more awkward it became.
Tan Mo quickly locked her phone screen, already imagining how she’d beat Ji Shu up tomorrow.
A few seconds later, a calm voice finally came from above: “Is your knee still hurting badly?”
“Not really. It’ll be fine after a night’s rest.”
Xie Qichen had originally wanted to get the medicine for her, but Tan Mo said it wasn’t necessary and could wait until tomorrow.
Now that both had freshened up, Tan Mo looked at the bed, her ears slightly warm: “So…”
“So afraid to sleep in the same bed with me?”
Her face heated up again.
“If you’re really uncomfortable, I can go rest in the car.”
It was late at night, and the weather was freezing cold. She couldn’t be so heartless as to send him out like that. “It’s fine. I don’t mind. It’s just lying together…”
After all, Xie Qichen wouldn’t do anything to her.
He went to turn off the lights, and Tan Mo lay down on the bed. After a while, she felt the bed sink beside her.
Nervously gripping the blanket, she saw a shadow fall over her. Then she saw Xie Qichen pull most of the blanket over to her side.
She was stunned: “What are you going to do without a blanket…”
“I’m not cold.”
Seeing how little he had covered himself with, she said, “Won’t you catch a cold like that?”
“You’re the one who already caught a cold. Worry about yourself.”
…
Worried he might get sick, Tan Mo tried to pull the blanket back: “Fine, at least cover yourself a little…”
She turned over to cover him, but accidentally pressed the blanket under her. When she pulled, she lost her balance and fell onto him.
She froze instantly. In the next moment, she felt Xie Qichen roll over, pinning her beneath him.
Their distance suddenly closed, his heat and breath enveloping her.
Trapped under him, Tan Mo’s face went blank, her cheeks flushed red, her voice barely a whisper: “Xie Qichen…”
In the darkness, she met his emotionally charged gaze. The man’s husky voice broke the silence:
“Behave yourself, Tan Mo.”
“I can barely control myself.”
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