Dawn and Dusk
Time seemed to stand still in that moment.
Rong Ci pressed her lips together again and again. She seemed to have so much she wanted to say, yet had no idea where to begin.
So, after careful deliberation, she braced one hand against Xie Xunzhao’s chest and lowered her lashes. “Brother, don’t be shy.”
After a long pause, Xie Xunzhao slowly uttered two words. “Shy?”
Rong Ci: “If you’re not shy, then are you scared?”
Wait a minute. This texture…
As if realizing something, she glanced down. Beneath her palm was a smooth expanse of muscle.
Brother sleeps without—
No, not without. The robe was just too loose and had come half off under the covers.
Rong Ci’s attention was diverted.
So firm, yet so springy!
Her fingertips curled slightly, and unable to resist, she gave it a little squeeze while pretending nothing was going on.
Way more satisfying than one of those squishy stress toys!
In the dim light, the girl’s fingertips moved with the nimbleness of someone plucking strings.
Xie Xunzhao’s voice carried a note of command. “Rong Mumu.”
“Don’t be afraid, Brother. I’ll be gentle.”
This time, Rong Ci wasn’t scared. Instead, she secretly squeezed him again.
Xie Xunzhao finally reached his limit, took hold of Rong Ci’s waist from that position, and lifted her into a seated position.
“Ah!” Rong Ci cried out. Then her body slid down beyond her control, her knees landing squarely astride Xie Xunzhao.
The thin blanket covering them slipped away, revealing the man’s lean, powerful abdomen in full – every line and contour, every rise of his chest, radiated a sharp, intimidating strength.
Xie Xunzhao’s fingers tightened slightly against her waist. “Keep messing around and see what happens.”
Rong Ci thought it was a little frightening. But perhaps it was still within the limits she could handle.
Maybe. In any case, she wanted to “see what happened.”
Xie Xunzhao looked at her like a top predator shackled in chains, delivering a final warning to a fearless, ignorant little lamb. “You won’t be able to take it.”
“How do you know I can’t unless I try?”
Curiosity and eagerness were written all over Rong Ci’s face.
Both her body and mind were delicate and fragile. She couldn’t withstand any external stimulation. And yet she was full of energy, intensely curious, and unwilling to stop until she got what she wanted.
Xie Xunzhao suddenly spoke. “Fine. Close your eyes first.”
Rong Ci: “Why do I have to close my eyes?”
Xie Xunzhao’s voice was low and husky. “Didn’t you say I was… Shy.”
“Close them.”
“Oh.”
The moment Rong Ci closed her eyes, the dim wall lamp lit up. Her lashes trembled without her meaning them to. “Y-you’re turning on the light?”
She still preferred a dark environment.
After all, this wasn’t exactly something one ought to do in broad daylight.
The next second, she heard the rustle of fabric beside her.
Xie Xunzhao’s voice followed. “If I don’t turn on the light, I can’t find the props.”
What props?
Rong Ci’s mind went into overdrive.
Is he talking about that kind of prop?
She hadn’t expected Brother to say no while actually having the props ready. Were they going to use it right from the start?
She was so nervous she wanted to open her eyes. “Brother, for our first time, we could keep things simple…”
Xie Xunzhao had anticipated this. He found the robe sash hanging at the foot of the bed and turned slightly to look at her.
Rong Ci was still kneeling. She wore a silk nightdress that exposed her waist on both sides, its hem spread like a lotus across the black sheets. Her skin was dazzlingly white.
And her waist, where he’d just lightly gripped her waist a moment ago, had already developed a faint red mark.
With a body like that, she still dared to boast so boldly in front of him, saying she wanted him and could take it.
How much could she handle? How many could she bear?
Xie Xunzhao’s Adam’s apple moved ever so slightly, and he withdrew his gaze. He said briefly, “No peeking.”
Half a minute later…
Xie Xunzhao held both her wrists in one hand.
By the time Rong Ci sensed something was off, she was already securely restrained. Her lashes flew open, and she could hardly believe what she was seeing.
Her wrists were slender and pale, now wrapped in black satin ribbons about two fingers wide. The other ends were tied around the ornate bedpost. She tipped her head back, incredulous. “You actually tied me to the bedpost!”
“Am I a puppy?”
Xie Xunzhao had already thrown on his robe and gotten out of bed. His tall, slender figure cast a deep shadow. “You deserve to be tied up even more than a puppy.”
Rong Ci watched helplessly as his figure disappeared through the bathroom door. She was so angry she wanted to pound the bed. But her hands were tied. She couldn’t even do that.
Calm down. Rong Mumu.
Can’t calm down.Despicable!
Rong Ci tugged at the ribbon and suddenly noticed—
A bow on the inside of her wrist? Was it a slipknot?
All she had to do was catch the ribbon between her teeth and give it a gentle tug. It would come undone.
So, Xie Xunzhao had never intended to truly tie her up. He was just teasing her.
And she’d actually been scared!
The bathroom door was firmly shut. The sound of running water began.
After quite some time, no steam had even spread across the glass wall.
Rong Ci was angry.
She’d finally worked up the courage to be a real married couple with him, yet Xie Xunzhao would rather take a cold shower than accept her help.
Rong Ci picked up Xie Xunzhao’s phone and disabled the signal-blocking system, found Meng Lingzhou, and sent him a message.
Helios: [What happens to a man who holds it in too long?]
Divine Doctor Xiao Meng: [?]
[Little Ancestor Rong?]
Helios: [This is Xie Xunzhao.]
[Answer your employer’s question, or your pay gets docked.]
Divine Doctor Xiao Meng: [Of course, Miss.] [A man can die if he goes without sex for too long.]
Helios: [I’m being serious. I’m not joking with you.]
Divine Doctor Xiao Meng: [I’m not joking.]
[Holding it in too long can cause a fever. Do you think his body feels hot? That’s actually an early sign of a fever. In severe cases, it can lead to infection.]
Helios: [What if he gets an infection?]
Divine Doctor Xiao Meng: [Then it has to be surgically removed.]
Helios: […]
[Quack doctor, lying to me again.]
Divine Doctor Xiao Meng: [As a servant of two masters, I would never lie to you, Miss.]
Rong Ci knew that this quack, Meng Lingzhou, exaggerated and spouted nonsense in nine and a half out of every ten sentences. But she did know a little about the body and its complications.
Brother really was very hot.
If it was a fever, that would make sense.
She deleted the chat history.
Rong Ci’s patience had run out. She tossed the phone aside and marched straight to the bathroom door. “Brother!”
At first, she knocked politely. “Husband.”
Xie Xunzhao remained silent.
Cold droplets of water traced their way down the man’s long neck, and as they slid over the pulsing veins, the cold water seemed to boil from the heat beneath his skin.
Xie Xunzhao had been showering for several minutes, yet he still couldn’t wash away the sensation and warmth of Rong Ci’s palm against his chest.
Until Rong Ci’s voice came to his ears.
Last time, she’d struggled even to say his name. Now she could call him “husband” so smoothly.
But…
The way Rong Ci called him “husband” was no different from the way she usually called him “Brother,” not even a trace of any impure thoughts.
Rong Ci’s soul was pure. She thought of marital intimacy far too innocently, unaware of its dangers or its weight.
After a long time, he lowered his damp lashes. He didn’t even want to touch himself, because…
With something so exquisite before him, nothing else could satisfy him; it was just a waste of time.
“Brother, this is your final warning.”
“If you still don’t open the door and give in to me, I’m going to find Uncle Ye and get the spare key.”
The moment she finished speaking, the sound of running water stopped abruptly. Then came his footsteps. And the door opened.
The corners of Rong Ci’s lips curved in triumph. “See, wouldn’t it have been better to listen from the start?”
Cold mist poured into her lungs. Rong Ci’s eyes suddenly widened. “Mm…”
Xie Xunzhao pinned her against the glass wall and pried her lips apart, sweeping into her mouth without hesitation. His lips were cold, his tongue burning hot as he ravaged her mouth mercilessly.
She could feel his presence leaving a distinct mark on every part of her. Like a crashing wave, Rong Ci’s mind went blank, her pupils lost focus, as if every sensory organ in her body had gone on strike at once.
She didn’t even know when Xie Xunzhao had carried her back to the bed.
When she paused to catch her breath, Xie Xunzhao propped himself up and looked down at her. “What could you possibly help with? You can’t even handle a kiss.”
The black satin ribbon still hung from the bedpost. As they moved onto the bed, its loose end swayed gently. In the hazy lamplight and blurred vision, Rong Ci realized she could actually make out the silver patterns on it.
They were embroidered with the design of the sun god.
When the suffocating sensation finally passed, and Rong Ci’s mind began working again, she started analyzing Xie Xunzhao’s words one by one.
She wanted to retort.
But Xie Xunzhao wouldn’t listen. Seeing her recover, he held her chin and kissed her again. The kiss was just as aggressive.
Every time Rong Ci was about to suffocate, Xie Xunzhao stopped. He waited until she finished catching her breath, then continued.
Over and over.
Rong Ci felt as though she’d entered a time loop.
Kissed—or not kissed?
On the verge of dying, then coming back to life.
Xie Xunzhao understood her body far better than she understood it herself. He controlled the intensity with precision.
She wouldn’t faint, and yet he kept her hovering just one breath away from it.
Rong Ci finally acknowledged just how great the difference between her and Xie Xunzhao was.
He was right. She couldn’t take it.
Just before falling asleep, Rong Ci’s mind was filled with one thought. It’s over.
Brother and I are completely incompatible.
Early the next morning, while Rong Ci was still asleep, a faint mint scent lingered in the air. Xie Xunzhao gently touched her rosy, moist lips with a cotton swab coated in ointment.
“Brother… no more kissing.” Half-asleep, Rong Ci pressed her lips together and mumbled.
“No more kissing.” Xie Xunzhao whispered beside her ear.
Rong Ci unconsciously nuzzled his cheek, and only then settled back into sleep, reassured.
Aside from her lips, there were also suspicious kiss marks along her slender, fair neck. Xie Xunzhao had applied ointment to those as well.
Before leaving, he bent down slightly, took her fingertips, and kissed them lightly.
No more kissing?
That was impossible.
~~
A silver-gray Rolls-Royce rolled over the scattered fallen flowers and leaves in the courtyard.
Xie Xunzhao toyed with the heart-shaped ruby and, in a good mood, made a video call to Rong Qingtiao.
He got straight to the point. “Where did Mumu get this? Did you give it to her?”
Xie Xunzhao knew better than anyone how much Rong Ci had on hand.
The ruby was naturally heart-shaped and an exceptionally rare, pure pigeon-blood red.
Rong Qingtiao was also on his way to the office. Their working hours were about the same.
He leaned lazily into the leather seat, his long legs stretched out casually. “It’s a Valentine’s Day gift. What would be the point of me paying for it? Counts it as my gift to my brother-in-law?”
“She sold a blue sapphire to get it.”
“A blue sapphire?” Xie Xunzhao’s expression darkened.
“That’s right. The one she likes most. She hadn’t even decided what kind of jewelry to make with it yet.”
Xie Xunzhao’s expression remained calm. “I’ll buy it. Double the price.”
Rong Qingtiao let out a snort.
This man had not only calculated exactly how much money Rong Mumu had, but also knew that the blue sapphire was still in his hands.
Rong Qingtiao took the blue sapphire out of the storage compartment. “No need to pay double. Consider it my donation to the M Foundation.”
After ending the video call, Rong Qingtiao thought for a moment.
Then he sent a warning to Evil Calico Cat. [Rong Mumu, you won’t be able to hide your private savings anymore. Your husband knows your net worth like the back of his hand. Hide one yuan, and he’ll find it.]
Evil Calico Cat didn’t reply for several hours.
[Rong Qingtiao, you can’t drive a wedge between us.]
[Give it up.]
[Brother and I are the people who trust each other most.]
Black-Hearted Sesame Ball: [Oh.]
~~
Rong Ci had always been full of energy. No matter how late she stayed up, she never got up later than nine in the morning.
But today!
When she opened her eyes, it was already eleven thirty.
At first, Rong Ci suspected her phone was broken, but the clock showed the same time.
Very good.
Her body had been kissed into disrepair.
She’d only been kissed a few times. How could she feel as if she’d run a marathon? She had no energy at all, and even her bones felt soft.
Rong Ci lay on the bed, vaguely remembering that Brother had carried her to wash up that morning and fed her breakfast, and applied ointment too.
No wonder she wasn’t hungry.
And her lips no longer stung.
The curtains were open, and the magnificent midday sunlight spilled in, as if plating Rong Ci on the bed with a layer of golden light.
Once her rationality returned—
She knew that, ultimately, Brother had refused her the night before because he was worried about her health.
Sigh.
Brother was just too kind, too upright, too gentlemanly, and too good at holding himself back. Compared with everything Brother had done for her…
His needs were so small. If she couldn’t even satisfy them, wouldn’t that make Brother terribly pitiful?
Besides…
This was also a necessary step in cultivating love.
Rong Ci sat up. Her long hair spilled over her slender, delicate shoulders, making the kiss marks on her neck appear even more vivid and unmistakable.
Since it was a physical issue…
She thought for a moment, then earnestly asked her attending physician: [I want to turn my marriage with Xie Xunzhao from a marriage in name only into a real marriage.]
Divine Doctor Xiao Meng: [?]
[Little Ancestor, do you think I’m a wishing well?]
Astraia: [We only kissed for a little while last night, and I couldn’t even get up this morning. If we actually did it, wouldn’t I have to be rushed straight into the emergency room?]
Divine Doctor Xiao Meng: [First of all, thank you for your trust, but is it appropriate to discuss such private marital matters with me?]
Astraia: [Aren’t you a doctor?]
Divine Doctor Xiao Meng: [I’m a doctor, not a eunuch.]
Astraia: [You can be anything.]
[Just help me think of a solution first.]
She dangled a promise in front of him. [Next year, I’ll have Brother give you a raise.]
Divine Doctor Xiao Meng: [Ultimately, your physical foundation is too weak. President Xie is worried about hurting you.]
[I’ve seen President Xie’s medical examination report before. Tsk, tsk, tsk. It’s only natural that he’s worried.]
[If you two had lived in ancient times, there would’ve been a murder on your wedding night.]
Astraia: [I want a solution, not for you to scare me.]
Divine Doctor Xiao Meng: [I just cast a divination for you two. Highly auspicious.]
[You probably won’t end up drenched in blood.]
[At this point, all you can do is exercise.]
[Make yourself a little stronger. The rest is up to fate.]
Exercise?
A bunch of ideas immediately popped into Rong Ci’s head.
Running? No.
Martial arts? No.
Fencing? No.
Out of the corner of her eye, Rong Ci caught sight of the outdoor swimming pool shimmering in the sunlight. Her eyes suddenly lit up.
Swimming!
Rong Ci spent half the day just looking for a swimsuit. She hadn’t swum in three years, and her swimwear hadn’t been updated.
She looked at her reflection in the water. The swimsuit was a very pale pink, almost the color of a peach. When she’d worn it back then, it had fit perfectly. Why did it look so strange now?
Never mind.
To make sure she wouldn’t forget—
Rong Ci asked the maid to take a picture of her, then sent it to her “Memo” chat.
[Time to replace my swimsuits.]
Author’s note:
Xie Zhaozhao: Why has my wife suddenly grown up?