Shen Jianian’s face suddenly turned as red as blood.
Ho-how could it be...
The phone in her hand felt like a hot potato, and Shen Jianian wanted to throw it away.
Fu Jichen hadn’t been paying attention to which photo she was looking at, but seeing her face change suddenly, he glanced at the phone screen. His furrowed brows relaxed slightly, and his gloomy mood lifted a bit.
She didn’t ask where the photo came from, so Fu Jichen took the initiative to explain: "That day you got drunk, I carried you back, we had a time together on the bed, and afterwards, you slept like a little pig. I couldn’t help but take a photo. When you woke up and saw I was still asleep, you secretly kissed me, but I was just pretending to sleep and caught your sneaky kiss. I asked if you’d fallen in love with me, and you stubbornly refused to admit it. But I know, you’ve fallen in love with me."
Shen Jianian couldn’t remember the joy and emotions from back then at all. Fu Jichen was well aware that no matter how many times he told her, she wouldn’t recall those things, nor would her heart ripple because of it. To her, perhaps those were other people’s stories, unrelated to her.
Indeed, Shen Jianian had no recollection of what he described, only feeling embarrassed to the point where even her toes curled involuntarily. She couldn’t believe she would do such things with another man, was this still her?
At that moment, there were two knocks on the door, and Cheng Jin’s voice came through: "Sir, Doctor Zhao is here."
Shen Jianian secretly breathed a sigh of relief, grateful for the doctor’s timely arrival; otherwise, facing Fu Jichen alone would have been unbearably awkward.
Fu Jichen turned, directing his gaze toward the door: "Let him in."
Doctor Zhao arrived with an assistant, examined Shen Jianian, and diagnosed a cold caused by getting chilled. Her constitution was weaker than average, and the symptoms were severe. Doctor Zhao recommended an IV drip to bring down the fever quickly so she would feel much better.
Shen Jianian recalled sleeping in her room without a blanket that afternoon, with the cold air from the AC constantly blowing. Her resistance was much weaker than before, making her more prone to illness. She blamed herself for not being careful.
After the medication was prepared, the assistant was responsible for giving Shen Jianian the injection. Fu Jichen sat at the bedside, helped roll up Shen Jianian’s sleeve, and tied the rubber tube around her arm. The assistant tapped her hand to find the vein.
When the needle was being inserted, Fu Jichen covered Shen Jianian’s eyes with one hand. Chapters first released on novel-fire.ɴet
Before Shen Jianian could react, her vision went black. Then, there was a brief sting on the back of her hand, like an ant bite. In an instant, the needle was successfully inserted, and Fu Jichen removed his hand.
Everything happened naturally.
Doctor Zhao prescribed the oral medication needed for the next few days, explained the dosage for each, and prepared to leave: "My assistant will stay here and remove the needle later."
Fu Jichen nodded in appreciation and asked Aunt Cheng to see Doctor Zhao off.
"No need to see me out, call me anytime if there’s a problem." Before leaving, Doctor Zhao glanced back, finding it quite remarkable how attentive Mr. Fu was to a girl.
The assistant did not stay in the room and went to sit in the living room downstairs to wait.
Fu Jichen brought over a glass of plain water, placed it on the nightstand, stacked two pillows behind Shen Jianian as support, and gently said, "If you’re dizzy, don’t look at your phone. There’s time for that later."
The impact of seeing the "bed photo" had been too great for Shen Jianian, and the blush on her face hadn’t faded yet.
Without needing Fu Jichen to say, she herself had no intention to continue looking, fearing she might see more indescribable photos.
Shen Jianian returned the phone, half-lying on the pillows, tilting her head to stare at the IV drip, watching the medicine drip down, looking absentminded.
Fu Jichen put the phone into his pocket, stayed in the room, sitting a little ways on the sofa chair, and watched Shen Jianian for a while, feeling a sense of reassurance and calmness settle in.
"If you’re tired, take a nap. I’ll keep an eye on the IV drip," he said.
Shen Jianian didn’t know how to face Fu Jichen, so she chose not to speak or look at him, doing her best to make her presence as small as possible.
Her mind was in a whirl, and she couldn’t sleep.
The air drifted silently, and after some time, Shen Jianian finally couldn’t hold in her curiosity and harshly asked, "Hey, how could I possibly with you..." Not sure how to phrase it, Shen Jianian stammered, squinting her eyes, feeling extremely agitated. For the first time, she doubted her own ability to express herself, "I want to ask, how did we meet?"
The housekeeper couldn’t provide an explanation, but Fu Jichen should know.
Fu Jichen’s eyes, filled with complexity, turned toward her. She no longer addressed him as "Mr. Fu," but simply as "Hey."
"I’ve told you before, we met in Yicheng, on a rainy night. You fell pathetically in front of me, asking me to save you." Fu Jichen patiently said, "I took you back to my place. We made a deal; I helped you regain Lingyue Group, and you stayed with me."
The relationship didn’t start in a completely upright manner, but he chose to tell her the truth.
When she furrowed her brow, Fu Jichen continued, "At that time, I was being secretly monitored by my family, and I needed a woman by my side to cover for me, to make them think I wasn’t interested in the family business, so they would lower their guard. Your timing was just right, so I showered you with the utmost affection. It was almost to a well-known extent. I’d never treated a woman like that before, and some games, once started, become real without realizing it. I began to have real feelings for you. I don’t know when you started having feelings for me, but when you couldn’t hide your feelings for me any longer, I realized that you liked me too. I used to think love between a man and a woman was just that. Only after experiencing it myself did I understand the pleasure it affords, which can’t be obtained in business gambles. We spent a very happy time together. Later..."
Fu Jichen paused, his voice no longer smooth, as what followed was filled with pain.