Mrs. Fu, please be mindful of the appropriate boundaries.

This man's eyes seemed to see through everything, like X-ray vision.

Xu Qingcheng was speechless for a moment.

The air was so quiet that you could almost hear each other breathing.

Xu Qingcheng pursed her lips, wanting to say something more, but the man suddenly stood up. He walked to her side and pulled her up, saying, "We can talk about it tomorrow. This isn't the right time to discuss things. Your brain isn't working properly."

Xu Qingcheng's slippers tripped on the sofa, and her toes hit the sofa, making her groan in pain.

The man looked down and saw that her toes were painted with bright red nail polish, which, combined with her delicate and lovely toes, was incredibly alluring.

"Did you bump into something?"

They say the ten fingers are connected to the heart, and this hurts.

She bent down to rub it, but the man simply picked her up.

He laid her on the bed, reached out and grasped her foot, pressing his fingertips against her toes. "Where does it hurt? Here?"

He did it naturally, but Xu Qingcheng felt a jolt of electricity run through his hand, reaching her heart and leaving her feeling numb. She even stammered, "No, it doesn't hurt anymore."

She tried to pull her foot back, but he held on tightly, pressing her toes with his fingers until he felt it was enough.

A blush rose on both sides of Xu Qingcheng's cheeks. She pulled her legs back, grabbed the blanket to cover her legs and feet, and felt a burning sensation spreading from her toes all the way up her body.

He could only look away and say, "Let's talk again tomorrow morning."

This roughly means: Good night, please leave.

Fu Jingting seemed not to understand, and only nodded. He turned off the ceiling light in the room, leaving the wall lamp on, and then lay down next to her.

Before Xu Qingcheng could voice her objection, he pulled her close, her cheek bumping directly into his chest. He turned slightly to let her rest her head on his shoulder, and placed his other hand on her waist, encircling her in his embrace.

Xu Qingcheng looked up at him, and their eyes met.

Fu Jingting didn't say another word, but pressed the remote control button, turning off the wall lamp as well.

The room became completely dark.

He closed his eyes, seemingly too exhausted to utter another word.

Xu Qingcheng froze in his arms, somewhat dazed. How could this have happened?

She tried to sit up, but the arm pressing down on her waist tightened, their bodies pressed tightly together. The man's voice was low and hoarse in the darkness, "Don't move, just sleep."

"I can't sleep."

She took sleeping pills before bed; they were short-acting, meant to help her fall asleep. But after waking up, she had difficulty falling back asleep.

Xu Qingcheng tried to get up, but said, "You sleep by yourself, I'll go somewhere else."

Fu Jingting remained silent, then suddenly shifted his body, turning to face her side by side. He gently lifted her chin with his fingers, "How long have you been suffering from insomnia?"

"I forgot."

With her uninjured hand supporting her on the mattress, she raised her upper body, her long hair sliding down her side and brushing against his cheek with her movements, making him feel itchy and uncomfortable.

He pressed one hand against her waist, preventing her from leaving, his voice hoarse, "Did you already have insomnia when we went to Jiangzhou?"

Xu Qingcheng did not respond.

He tightened his arms around her, pulling her back into his embrace. "Try closing your eyes and see if you can fall asleep."

Xu Qingcheng's mind was buzzing, and even her teeth seemed to be chattering. She struggled hard, "I won't try, let me go."

"I won't let go."

Like a rogue, the man shifted his body to the side, almost pressing her against himself, and kissed her face, eyelids, and nose, tracing the path of her lips with delicate kisses. Between his heavy breaths was the sound of his rapidly beating heartbeat. He gently bit her lip with his teeth, "If you sleep, I won't touch you."

"Fu Jingting, you're a pervert!"

"Yes. If you say so, then it is."

He kissed her lips, then rudely pried open her teeth and licked inside. Xu Qingcheng moaned and tried to dodge, her body burning from his teasing. She could only reluctantly agree, "Don't... I'm going to sleep."

The man was somewhat reluctant to leave, but he kept his word and kissed her lips, forcing himself to pull away.

He buried his face in her neck, rubbing his nose against her delicate skin, suppressing the restlessness in his heart and forcing himself not to be a beast, his breathing becoming heavy.

The woman's fragrance seemed to seep into his very bones. She had been sleeping peacefully at first, but now she had him burning with desire. He cursed several times, and his hands gripping her body tightened.

Xu Qingcheng's eyes were burning hot, and she was so obedient that she didn't dare to move at all.

It took quite a while for the force in his arm to dissipate.

The darkness concealed all her shyness and reserve, as well as all her wantonness and desire. Xu Qingcheng kept her eyes tightly closed, her heart pounding. His presence was so strong that it seemed like she couldn't think of anything else but him. She could hear his breathing and heartbeat in her ears.

Xu Qingcheng thought vaguely, what are they doing?

Why is it that the distance she tries to create always ends up in this inexplicable situation?

Xu Qingcheng was completely baffled.

The person in his arms gradually began to breathe evenly and steadily, curled up in his arms like the most obedient kitten.

The man holding her opened his eyes and reached out to turn on the wall lamp. The soft light illuminated the area, and her eyes and brows gently bloomed in her sleep.

Fu Jingting carefully withdrew his arm.

She turned over and continued sleeping, her hair disheveled and falling across her face, with a few strands reaching the corner of her mouth. He reached out and brushed the hair away from her mouth.

I don't know if I should apologize to her.

But now that things have come to this, she has no way out.

The man stood up nimbly, bent down to kiss her cheek, and a sigh escaped his chest.

He thought he would treat her well in the future, as a way of making up for any harm she might suffer.

……

When Xu Qingcheng woke up, it was already past seven in the morning. She looked at the time and found it unbelievable.

Placing your palm over your heart and feeling the frantic beating beneath the vibrant life force inside is definitely not a good sign.

How exactly does this sense of dependence arise?

She gently patted her forehead with her hand.

After a while, I got up and washed up.

She's busy every day and doesn't have much time to wallow in self-pity.

But the person who said they would talk about it later was nowhere to be found.

Xu Qingcheng inquired about the driver's wrist surgery and arranged for company personnel to visit him at the hospital.

Qu, the CFO of Shengshi, reported to her that the bank was discussing loan repayment and refinancing. Shengshi had a loan that was due after the new year, and the repayment and refinancing procedures needed to be completed before the new year.

However, banks currently have a very low credit rating for Shengshi, and it's difficult to find a suitable company to provide a guarantee, making it hard to get loans. Furthermore, the banks' pressure to repay the loans could potentially lead to the inability to obtain further loans after repayment.

This risk is too serious. The finance department has sounded out the bank several times, and they all feel it's not very safe.

"Meet with the people from the bank tomorrow or the day after, and I'll go with you, to discuss this further with them."

"it is good."

Mr. Qu, please leave.

Xu Qingcheng called Yu Sheng over, "Come out with me for a bit, and we'll postpone today's business."

Yu Sheng replied with an "okay," and asked, "Mr. Xu, where are we going? What do I need to prepare?"

"No need. You'll come with me to Taichi Prison."

Xu Qingyao is serving his sentence there.