The white rose I picked up cried and said she liked me.

After eating and drinking her fill, Xu Xi licked her lips contentedly and stood up from her "seat".

Xu Nian shook her head helplessly and wiped the hot, wet kiss marks off her face.

"Tell me, brother, what secret seasoning did you add to the dish?"

Xu Xi rested her chin on her hand, propped her head up with her hands, and looked at the man with a smile. Her cute little leg swayed slightly uncontrollably under the table, and occasionally it would gently kick her brother's trouser leg.

Do you remember that barbecue stall we ate at by the roadside last time?

"I remember, their chili powder was absolutely delicious."

Xu Nian nodded, walked to the sack in the kitchen, and took the bag of chili powder to Xu Xi's side.

Xu Xi stuck out her little nose and sniffed, her eyes widened, and the tuft of hair on her head stood up high, like a small antenna.

"Yes, that's the taste!"

She looked up and blinked incredulously.

"Brother, you can actually make chili powder exactly like that barbecue stall's?"

"I'm not that good."

Xu Nian scratched his head and smiled somewhat embarrassedly.

"After you said it was delicious last time, I asked the boss to send us some. I didn't expect the boss to send us a huge bag of it right away. We probably won't be able to finish it for several years."

"I see."

Xu Xi jumped off the chair and ran into the kitchen in a flash. She stuck her little head into the sack full of chili powder and took a deep breath.

An epic experience!

"Mmm..."

Xu Xi closed her eyes, fully enjoying the spicy and numbing aroma spreading through her internal organs, as if all the fatigue from a day's work had vanished at this moment.

"Oh, by the way, the boss also wrote you a thank-you letter. Take a look."

Xu Nian took the crumpled piece of paper out of her pocket and handed it to Xu Xi.

Xu Xi looked at the crooked but warm words above and smiled with relief.

"If it can help them, then all that money I spent on developing the medicine won't have been for nothing."

She carefully folded the note and put it in her pocket, her tone relaxed, as if she had only done a trivial thing.

"Once this drug is successfully developed, it should be very profitable, right?"

Xu Nian recalled the exorbitantly priced medicine she had bought to treat Xu Xi's illness.

"Hey, I'm already being lenient by not losing all my money."

Xu Xi sighed softly.

"My several pharmaceutical laboratories ask me for hundreds of millions or even billions of yuan every time they want. They eat up most of the group's profits every year."

"In addition, these are drugs for rare diseases, which are not needed by many people. Considering the total number of patients, even if we only make a profit at cost price, almost no one can afford them."

"How much does your medicine cost at the hospital?"

The girl tilted her head and thought for a moment.

"It usually costs between a few hundred and a few thousand, and then the medical insurance will subsidize me a little, so it comes to about ten thousand per injection."

Xu Nian couldn't help but gasp.

Ten thousand yuan per injection seems like a lot, but considering the large number of people suffering from rare diseases, the total profit may only be a few million yuan.

Compared to the billions or tens of billions of dollars required for the research and development of a single drug, this is a drop in the ocean.

He silently looked at Xu Xi, who had a calm and composed expression, his heart filled with mixed feelings.

No wonder this young lady still works so hard even though she has already achieved financial freedom.

It turns out she was carrying the hopes of so many people on her shoulders.

"Hehe, what are you thinking about, brother?"

Xu Xi kicked her legs and clung to the man.

"Brother, if I ever go bankrupt, I'll have to go home and live off your parents."

She deliberately drew out her words, her tone carrying a hint of coquetry and a touch of joking.

"Okay, I'll take care of you then."

Xu Nian, both amused and exasperated, ruffled the girl's silver hair.

Xu Xi smiled contentedly and nuzzled against his chest like a docile kitten.

......

As the days went by, Xu Nian gradually got used to picking Xu Xi up and dropping her off at get off work, cooking for her, and taking care of the cat.

When they have nothing to do, they pass the time by watching short videos and live a peaceful life.

After being introduced to cat food, MaiMai's orange-colored foodie instincts gradually emerged, and its size grew rapidly, from being small enough to lie in the palm of your hand to now requiring one hand to hold in your arms.

"Okay, okay, I have to go to work now, sweetie. I'll come back and play with you after I get off work tonight."

In front of the villa's gate, Xu Xi buried her little face in Mai Mai's white belly fur, rubbed it vigorously, and then put it back inside the door.

Then, amidst its reluctant meows, it followed the man into the black SUV.

"Brother, I'm covered in lint, where's the lint roller?"

Xu Xi looked at the cat hair covering her pants and clothes and immediately got goosebumps.

Petting a cat is fun for a moment, but shedding fur is a nightmare.

"My cat MaiMai sheds so much fur. I have to go into her room two or three times a day to clean it."

Xu Nian took out a lint roller from the passenger side glove compartment and carefully removed the cat hair from the girl's body.

"Oh no, I'll go buy some fish oil for MaiMai."

Xu Xi took out her phone and ordered several bottles of fish oil from the Sinian Mall.

"I'll buy you a few bottles too."

Xu Nian joked.

When it comes to shedding, the girl next to me is just as bad.

Due to immense work pressure and frequent overtime work, her hair was falling out in clumps.

Every time Xu Nian combed her hair, a large clump would fall off, like snow.

"Hmph, it's my brother who should eat it."

The girl's sly words carried a hint of mockery.

Every night when they playfully wrestle with each other, Xiao Xu Nian loses a lot of curly "hair".

Xu Nian, realizing the meaning behind the girl's words, blushed and turned her head away to concentrate on driving.

"You're making fun of me, aren't you? You don't even have hair."

"I... I was born that way, okay? A lot of people shave their heads to become bald."

"Huh? There are heads that aren't bald? I've never seen one like that before?"

"You still want to see him?"

"Uh...no, no..."

"You can only look at my head, not anyone else's!"

"Okay, okay, I'll only look at yours, I'll only look at yours."

.....

They laughed and bickered all the way, and time flew by. Soon the black SUV pulled into the parking lot of Xuxi Company Building.

They arrived very early, and the parking lot was deserted except for the clear chirping of birds from the distant trees, which played the prelude to the morning and added a touch of life to the quiet parking lot.

The two got out of the car one after the other. Xu Xi stretched and yawned. The morning breeze brushed her hair, carrying a bit of coolness, which made her feel more awake from her drowsiness.

She turned around, looked at the man, and said with a hint of reluctance in her voice, "Come to my office and rest for a while. Have a cup of hot water and relax."

"No, I need to go home and feed MaiMai later."

"Aren't there automatic feeders?"

"Uh... well, we should clean up then. I need to wash the blankets; they're covered in our hair."

"What do you mean 'I'? It's all your hair!"

"your!"

"It's your hair!"

"Some people are so engrossed in their own sleep that they don't even realize it's snowing in their beds."

"Mmm..."

Seeing that she couldn't argue with him, Xu Xi simply stood on tiptoe, reached out her small hand to press on his shoulder, and sealed the man's lips with her small mouth.

Their soft lips touched, carrying a faint sweetness and her unique fragrance.

Xu Nian's body stiffened, then relaxed. The words she was about to say were swallowed back down.

After a long while, their lips parted.

The girl licked her lips, still wanting more, and gently rubbed her cheek against the man's chest.

"I'm off to work now, brother. See you tonight."

See you tonight.

Xu Nian smiled and waved, watching the girl's beautiful figure walk into the office building.

He got into his car, started the engine, and left the company.

Little did he know, a faint red light was silently watching his back from the bushes behind him.