"Nan Xing?" Huo Feng called out to me.
"Hey, do you need some water?" I asked with a trembling voice.
Huo Jingchuan shook his head. I rushed over and knelt beside him.
Huo Jingchuan hesitated and grabbed my hand. "Don't move around. It's making me dizzy."
"Oh, okay." I obediently complied.
I gently placed my hand on his abdomen, not daring to apply any pressure.
"How do I stop the bleeding?" I asked.
Huo Jingchuan shook his head. "It's already been tended to. You... why aren't you scared?"
I shook my head. "Who hurt you? I'm going to kill him!"
I said with fierce hatred.
Huo Jingchuan burst into a laugh, but after a couple of chuckles, it strained his wound and he had to stop. The way he looked at me was exceptionally tender.
Huo Jingchuan never smiled.
Although I had seen him smile before, Huo Jingchuan in front of others never smiled.
He had always been a man who kept his emotions hidden deep beneath the surface.
"A girl shouldn't go around talking about killing people, especially a pretty girl." Huo Jingchuan frowned through the pain, his voice very soft.
I gripped his hand. "Don't talk. Just focus on recovering your strength. Don't say anything else."
In my heart, I had already stabbed Lin Ran a thousand times. Why was he taking so long? What an idiot!
Huo Jingchuan looked at our intertwined hands, which were covered in blood. But I couldn't see it, and I didn't care.
"Nan Xing, you're always like this—so full of surprises," he said softly.
"No, I'm only like this with you." I looked straight into his eyes.
Huo Jingchuan froze.
The door banged open, and Lin Ran finally arrived.
Seeing me, he froze. "What—what are you doing here? Go back to bed!"
I stamped my foot. "Hurry up, will you? I've been waiting ages. Are you part snail?"
Lin Ran glared at me. "I got here in fifteen minutes, driving like a maniac, you know? Have you ever seen a snail that fast?"
I really wanted to beat him up, but I still needed his help, so I had to patiently beg him: "Dr. Lin? Big Brother Lin, my handsome brother? Please hurry up and take a look at Huo Jingchuan's wound, I'm begging you!"
I pressed my palms together and bowed to him over and over again.
Lin Ran waved a hand at me. "All right, all right, I know. Don't worry, he's not going to die. I'm here now, so go back to sleep. Don't wake Mother Kong and the others up, what a pain!"
He turned to Huo Jingchuan. "Should we do this here or back in your room?"
Huo Jingchuan thought for a moment. "Let's go back to my room."
He glanced at me. "Nan Xing, clean up the blood here."
"Okay." I immediately got to work, moving so swiftly that it made Lin Ran do a double-take.
When I finished cleaning up and gently pushed open Huo Jingchuan's bedroom door, he had already treated his wound, changed his clothes, and was propped up against the headboard.
As Lin Ran packed up his instruments, he asked me, "Kid, why aren't you asleep yet?"
I looked at Huo Jingchuan. Aside from being a bit pale, he seemed to be doing all right.
"I want to stay here and keep Master company." I looked at Huo Jingchuan.
Huo Jingchuan smiled slightly. "Lin Ran said I'm not going to die, so I definitely won't die. Go get some sleep, you still have classes tomorrow."
I pulled over a chair, sat on it backward, and looked at Huo Jingchuan. "You go to sleep. I'll watch over you. If you want water or get hungry, the moment you open your eyes, you'll see me."
Huo Jingchuan exchanged a glance with Lin Ran.
Lin Ran chuckled. "I never took this kid for someone with such a conscience."
Huo Jingchuan didn't say anything; he slowly closed his eyes, clearly exhausted to the bone.
Lin Ran stretched and gestured toward the next room, signaling to me that he was going next door to catch some sleep.
I nodded, gesturing for him to turn off the light on his way out.
The room grew dim, with only a single wall lamp left on. Looking at Huo Jingchuan's sleeping face, my heart felt completely full.
Thinking back to my past life, I didn't know how many nights Huo Jingchuan had watched over me just like this. Now, it was my turn to protect him.
I had long known that Huo Jingchuan's identity was far more complicated than just being Young Master Huo of the Huo Family, but I had never known exactly what he did.
Later on, the one who took over the family business wasn't Huo Jingchuan; the family business was controlled by Huo Ning.
Huo Jingchuan had always remained on the fringes of the Huo Family, running his own career.
In this lifetime, being able to see Huo Jingchuan up close and truly understand him made me so happy.
Just now, when Huo Jingchuan asked me why I wasn't scared, I couldn't really explain it.
Perhaps it was because I had witnessed far too much bloodshed in my previous life? Or perhaps because a violent, bloodthirsty streak was simply embedded in my bones—either way, such a scene didn't frighten me.
Looking at Huo Jingchuan, I felt nothing but heartache—incomparable heartache.
If possible, I was willing to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with him, sharing his burdens and facing everything together.
I needed to make myself stronger, and fast. I needed money and power!
Huo Jingchuan's wounds healed very quickly. Huo Ni simply thought her uncle was sick and needed to rest, so she obediently focused on her studies.
Using the excuse of needing help with problems, I would take my worksheets to his room to grind through practice questions.
Huo Jingchuan would lean against the headboard reading a book while I sat at the desk. We didn't disturb each other, but this atmosphere made my study efficiency skyrocket, and my grades improved in leaps and bounds.
Thus, Huo Jingchuan tacitly allowed me to linger in his room, and I successfully breached his private territory.
"Thud!" I opened my eyes in a daze and looked at the chair lying overturned on the floor, my mind blank for a split second.
A hand extended toward me.
I looked up to see Huo Jingchuan's eyes brimming with a smile.
I had fallen asleep sitting in the chair and tipped right over onto the floor along with it.
Huo Jingchuan was amused beyond belief, though he was trying hard to hold it in.
"It's too late. Stop studying, go back to your room and sleep," he said gently.
I grabbed his hand, used his leverage to stand up, and promptly flopped onto his bed, saying, "Too much trouble, I'm sleeping right here!"
The surroundings fell silent. Huo Jingchuan was probably stunned stupid.
I didn't care. Step one was invading his room; step two, naturally, was invading his bed.
Given Huo Jingchuan's personality, there was only one way he would ever voluntarily come to me—by making me go through the horrors of my past life all over again.
But I was a brand-new Nan Xing now, and I would never let myself be trampled upon like that again.
So what about Huo Jingchuan?
I had no choice but to walk toward him.
"Nan Xing! Nan Xing," I heard him call.
It was no use. I wasn't getting up.
"Nan Xing, go back to your room to sleep." He tugged at my sleeve.
Annoyed, I gave him a shove, rolled over without even opening my eyes, tucked the blanket over myself, and buried my head in it. "Stop making a fuss, go to sleep. I'm exhausted."
After a long while, I heard the sound of clothing rustling beside me—Huo Jingchuan must have moved himself to the other side of the bed.
I thought to myself with a secret smile: from now on, we would never have a huge bed in our room; when two people sleep together, they ought to be pressed tightly against each other!
I really was sleepy. The blanket was full of Huo Jingchuan's scent, intoxicating me. Before I could even figure out my next seductive move, I fell asleep. This time, I was truly asleep.
My biological clock had been well-trained; even before the six o'clock alarm could ring, I woke up ahead of time, quietly waiting for the alarm to sound—that had always been my habit.
Yet the very moment I regained full consciousness, I remembered with a jolt: I was in Huo Jingchuan's room!
Every cell in my body leaped with joy, and I involuntarily held my breath.
A faint sound of breathing came from just above my right side.
It was Huo Jingchuan!
The dim morning light squeezed in through the cracks in the curtains. Borrowing this sliver of dawn, I carefully turned over to look at Huo Jingchuan.
Huo Jingchuan was so remarkably handsome! Even asleep, he looked this good.
His head rested on his arm, his body slightly curled. His long eyelashes cast a pretty curve downward, and his high nasal bridge gave him a stern look. His thin, beautiful lips were always pressed together lightly, making him look very serious and intimidating.
Yet I wasn't intimidated!
I loved him!
Such a Huo Jingchuan turned my heart into a pool of spring water.
I couldn't resist leaning in and kissing his lips.
Startled, Huo Jingchuan instinctively raised his hand to block me, instantly pinning my arm behind my back and pressing me down against the pillow.
He must have thought I was an assassin!
"Ah!" I cried out in surprise.
His hand immediately released me. This man went from sleeping to waking up and launching a counterattack in less than a second—it was pure instinct.
Realizing it was me, the formidable aura around him instantly vanished, replaced by exasperation. "What are you doing?"
I didn't care. I scrambled up, threw my arms around his neck, and kissed his lips without another word.
Huo Jingchuan was dumbstruck.
His entire body went rigid.
I found it inwardly amusing and stuck out my tongue to trace the outline of his lips, lightly sucking and nibbling, just like on that final night in my past life. I knew how to light his fire.
Huo Jingchuan's breathing grew heavy.
When I tried to part his teeth, his response came.
He pulled me tightly into his arms, kissing me back with fierce intensity, as if he wanted to devour me alive. Beneath his thin pajamas, I could feel his arousal.
I smiled with satisfaction in my heart.
Huo Jingchuan, you're mine!
If I hadn't been destitute in this lifetime, how long would it have taken me to seduce him?
I knew all too well how much of a gentleman he was inside, and just how far his self-discipline could go.
Therefore, I couldn't give him the chance to hesitate!
I had to wrap myself around him first.
When I was nearly out of air, Huo Jingchuan finally let me go with great reluctance.
He panted, staring fixedly at me.
I placed my index finger against my lips. "Shh! Don't you dare say sorry, just try it!"
His expression was a mixture of helplessness and embarrassment. "Nan Xing, you—"
I got up, planted a light peck on his lips, and stepped back. "I've fallen in love with you, didn't you know?"
I grabbed my worksheets and phone, and trotted out of his room.
Darling, take your time waking up from this!