The heartless beauty is addicted to being licked by a seemingly obedient and loyal dog.

Song Yunqi paused for a moment while wiping her hands.

Initially, I thought Meng Zhaoyuan was joking, but when I turned my head to look, I found that although the corners of his mouth were slightly upturned, there was no joking in his eyes. His seriousness was like a taut string, quietly hanging between the two of us.

He paused for a moment, then shook his head.

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

Meng Zhaoyuan was probably quite drunk and not thinking clearly, saying some nonsensical things. The best way to handle this is to pretend you didn't hear him and give him a way out.

But the man didn't accept that offer.

"I'm not talking nonsense."

I've always liked you, you just didn't know it.

"You haven't had much of a partner these past few years, so suddenly wanting to find a bed partner now probably just means you're lonely, right?"

"But a bed partner is just a bed partner after all; no matter what, it's not as good as a true confidant."

"Me too, Yunqi."

"I'm a year older than you, and at this age, I should have settled down a long time ago. I'm serious about wanting to be with you."

Song Yunqi stood leaning against the sink, arms crossed, the paper towels crumpled tightly in his palm. He didn't speak, just listened quietly, his expression unchanged.

Seeing that the other party did not immediately refuse, Meng Zhaoyuan became more talkative.

He stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray, turned around to face Song Yunqi, and placed his hands on the marble countertop on either side of Song Yunqi, forming a small encirclement, but without any skin-to-skin contact, appearing intimate yet not offensive.

"We've known each other for almost 10 years. I've been following you since high school, but you've made it clear that you have no intention of dating, and all the people who pursued you have failed."

"I was afraid of being disliked after confessing my feelings, so I've always stayed by your side as a friend."

He paused, his gaze lingering on Song Yunqi's rosy lips before shifting away.

"To be honest, I feel a little inferior in front of you, after all, you are so perfect. But when you suddenly came to me that day to set me up with someone, saying you wanted to keep a bed partner, I knew that you were actually just like me."

Song Yunxi's brows finally twitched slightly, so subtly that it was almost imperceptible.

"So?" he asked.

"So I think, maybe there's a possibility between us."

He wanted to say something more, but Song Yunqi suddenly raised her hand, making a gesture to stop him. The movement was small, and the posture could even be described as elegant, but the unquestionable meaning was clearly placed between the two of them.

"Wait a moment."

Meng Zhaoyuan's words stuck in his throat, his lips were still open, but no sound came out.

The two were very close, close enough that Song Yunqi could see the small patch of wine stain on Meng Zhaoyuan's shirt collar, as well as the strong scent of cologne on him, mixed with the faint smell of alcohol underneath, which smelled somewhat cloying.

"Are you done talking?" he asked.

Meng Zhaoyuan looked at him, his Adam's apple bobbed, and he shook his head.

"Hold on, I'll say it."

Song Yunqi took a deep breath and pushed the person away.

"First of all, thank you for telling me all this tonight."

The words were spoken very politely and in a gentle tone, but Meng Zhaoyuan's expression was not good. He knew Song Yunqi too well; the more polite a person was, the more it meant a rejection.

If he truly considered you one of his own, he wouldn't speak to you so formally.

"But you knew from the beginning that my original intention in finding a bed partner was simply to satisfy my physical needs."

Song Yunxi threw the tissue into the trash can, her voice soft but each word clearly enunciated: "I'm not looking for a boyfriend."

He paused for a moment, then looked up at Meng Zhaoyuan.

"And you don't meet one of the requirements."

"What?"

"Clean".

Meng Zhaoyuan frowned.

"Can you count how many people have come and gone over the years?"

These words were not intended to be offensive; they were simply stating an objective fact.

"I'm not criticizing you. Everyone has their own way of living. Your success in love is your own skill, but since you want to talk to me about relationships, I'll lay out my standards."

Meng Zhaoyuan's lips moved as if he wanted to refute something, but in the end he didn't say anything.

Song Yunqi continued, "There's an even more important reason: I don't like sleeping with people I know."

"No, to be precise, I don't like having intimate relationships with my friends. Once it happens, the relationship can never be the same again."

"Whether it ends amicably or unhappily, we can't be friends anymore."

He looked into Meng Zhaoyuan's eyes, which were long and bright, and looked particularly charming under the bathroom light.

"I don't want to lose you as a friend."

Meng Zhaoyuan tightened his grip on the sink, his expression shifting several times in a short period, from anticipation to astonishment to resentment, before finally settling into calm.

After a few seconds of silence, he spoke, his voice much lower than before.

"Yunqi, I—"

"Let me finish speaking first." Song Yunqi interrupted him, her tone still gentle, but that gentleness was more irresistible than any sharpness.

"You said you've liked me since high school, almost ten years now."

"Um."

"In these past ten years, how many people have come and gone in your life? Have you ever counted them yourself?"

Meng Zhaoyuan remained silent.

Song Yunqi didn't wait for his answer, because he knew that the question didn't need an answer.

"You feel you're not good enough for someone as clean as me, so you've never dared to speak up."

"But you didn't choose to remain chaste just because you liked me. Instead, you kept coming and going among women, with so many people coming and going around you."

He chuckled softly as he said this.

"And now you're confessing your feelings to me, precisely after I've had a relationship with someone else."

Song Yunxi looked into Meng Zhaoyuan's eyes and said, word by word:

"I'm no longer clean; I'm having affairs like everyone else in the industry. Do you think there's a possibility between us...?"

"is that so?"

The restroom was so quiet you could hear someone breathing.

Meng Zhaoyuan's straight shoulders slumped slightly, and his lips opened and closed twice before he just pursed them tightly, stretching the muscles of his jaw into a hard line.

Song Yunqi straightened up and looked at Meng Zhaoyuan. They were about the same height, and although their eyes were level, he inexplicably gave off a sense of pressure.

"Excuse me."

"As friends of many years, I cherish this relationship, but I will never date anyone in my life, nor do I plan to find a partner."

"I'm sorry, I can't give you the response you want; that's definitely my fault."

He raised his hand and gently patted Meng Zhaoyuan's shoulder.

"Go back, I'll have the driver take you."