Arriving home, it was already half past twelve. The house was quiet; the child and grandfather had already gone to bed.
Quan Jiu, having eaten a boxed lunch on set that afternoon, went straight to her room. She quickly changed and got into the bathroom, her washing and tidying up done efficiently. In less than half an hour, she emerged with wet hair. To her surprise, she saw someone sitting by the head of her bed.
Chu Rong turned his head upon hearing her. It was too late for her to retreat into the bathroom.
Quan Jiu, feeling a bit awkward, adjusted the collar of her sleepwear and urged, "It's very late, go to sleep."
"Come here," Chu Rong said, taking a hairdryer from the vanity cabinet and gesturing for Quan Jiu to sit down.
Quan Jiu paused, then reluctantly moved over, making a move to take the hairdryer from Chu Rong's hand. "I'll do it myself."
However, Chu Rong pushed her back down and began to blow-dry her hair.
His technique was very gentle, not pulling her hair at all. Even when his fingertips occasionally brushed her scalp, it was soft and warm.
Quan Jiu's heart fluttered, her thoughts racing like wild horses, a chaotic jumble.
"Hot?" Chu Rong suddenly turned off the hairdryer, noticing Quan Jiu's flushed cheeks in the mirror.
He reached out and felt her burning cheeks, his brow furrowing slightly. "You've caught a chill. You have a slight fever."
Quan Jiu's face turned even redder, though she tried to appear calm. "The costume was too thin, and it was a bit windy today. I'll just have a cup of cold medicine."
Chu Rong continued to blow-dry her hair until it was completely dry. Then, without further ado, he picked her up and carried her to bed, tucking her in before leaving. A moment later, he returned with a cup of cold medicine.
Quan Jiu forced herself to drink the cold medicine, constantly reassuring herself: It was indeed windy today, and she had caught a chill. The medicine was just preventative. It was fine, no big deal.
After self-hypnotizing herself and taking the medicine, her body felt warm. Quan Jiu lay down again, tucking the corners of the quilt snugly, and said to Chu Rong, "Go to sleep now."
Unexpectedly, after Chu Rong turned off the ceiling light, he didn't leave but instead went into her bathroom.
Quan Jiu heard sounds coming from the bathroom. She opened her eyes and saw bright light spilling from the bathroom.
She froze, then suddenly remembered something. She threw off the covers, forgetting even to put on her shoes, and rushed over, "Wait."
Unfortunately, it was too late. Someone was already tidying up the clothes she had casually left on the washbasin... her discarded clothes.
Quan Jiu's face turned bright red. She snatched her underwear from Chu Rong's hand and asked indignantly, "Why are you using my bathroom? Don't you have your own room?"
Chu Rong looked at her with a playful glint in his eyes. "I brought some of the clothes from Shu Jing's place and put them in the walk-in closet."
The walk-in closet... Quan Jiu thought of her own messy walk-in closet and felt as if smoke was about to billow from her head due to the heat.
"Who asked you to go into my walk-in closet?" she pouted, glaring at the person who liked to take matters into his own hands.
Chu Rong raised his hand and affectionately smoothed Quan Jiu's ruffled hair. "I don't mind. Why are you so shy?"
"Who said I was shy? Why would I be shy? This is just how I am, I like to put things down wherever. It's not like you're meeting me for the first time today," Quan Jiu retorted stubbornly, then turned and, almost instinctively, closed the bathroom door.
Only when she heard the sound of water inside did she tiptoe to the walk-in closet, carefully opening it a crack. Her face immediately fell.
Her walk-in closet, which had been filled with clothes piled everywhere, was now transformed. Clothes were clothes, pants were pants, even colors were meticulously categorized, from light to dark. If she didn't know Chu Rong, she would have suspected they had hired a professional organizer.
She opened it a little wider, poking her head into the walk-in closet. She glanced left and right, like a thief, then looked back to make sure no one would come out immediately. She quickly slipped inside and pulled open a drawer. As expected... her underwear, bras, and socks, which she had stuffed into drawers haphazardly, were now folded into neat little squares and stacked in orderly fashion.
Quan Jiu squatted on the floor, feeling utterly mortified.
Her image of a perfect wife, which she had painstakingly maintained for two years, was completely ruined. Little did anyone know that she didn't actually enjoy tidying up that much. When they got married, out of love, she didn't want Chu Rong to see even a single flaw in her. She demanded perfection in every aspect.
Now, it was all ruined.
After a long moment, Quan Jiu stood up expressionlessly and mechanically returned to bed. "Fine, I give up. Let it be."
However, after lying down for a moment, she suddenly remembered something: This wasn't right. Someone was currently showering in her bathroom, which meant...
Just as she was thinking this, the bathroom door opened, and Chu Rong emerged, dressed in a loose-fitting sleepwear. He then went to the vanity and sat down.
Quan Jiu watched him blow-dry his hair. After his hair was dry and he stood up, she abruptly rolled over and tucked the quilt tightly around herself.
Chu Rong came to the bedside, reached out to feel Quan Jiu's forehead, and then climbed into bed, lying beside her. He then directly embraced Quan Jiu and closed his eyes, falling asleep.
Quan Jiu endured it, feeling helpless and speechless. "Are you planning to freeze outside the covers all night?"
Chu Rong didn't get under the covers. Instead, he pulled her, quilt and all, into his embrace.
"A chill needs to be sweated out. Sleeping like this will keep you warmer," Chu Rong said.
I'm warm, but are you sure you're not pushing me too far? Quan Jiu thought, rolling her eyes internally. She pushed him, "I don't need it. Go sleep in your own room."
"That's also your room, and this is also your room. It's the same wherever I sleep," Chu Rong said matter-of-factly.
Can it be the same? Quan Jiu wailed internally.
"Let go of me. This way, I can't move. It's uncomfortable to sleep," Quan Jiu squirmed, and indeed, she couldn't move.
So Chu Rong loosened his grip slightly, but still held her close, embracing and hugging her.
Quan Jiu finally made up her mind and closed her eyes, feigning sleep. "It's okay, it's okay. Right now, it's a battle of thick skin. At worst, I'll freeze you for a night. I won't lose anything..."
She truly intended to be resolute and indifferent, but perhaps subconsciously she still cared. In any case, she drifted off to sleep and woke up to find him still frozen outside the quilt, while she herself was slightly sweating.
Quan Jiu looked at his peaceful sleeping face, so close to hers, with a conflicted heart. In the past, she had loved watching him sleep. When he slept, he seemed so intimate, like a treasure belonging only to her.
Now, she still loved it.
As she watched, Quan Jiu subconsciously raised her hand and gently stroked Chu Rong's brow, the bridge of his nose, and then his slightly pursed lips.
As she was lost in thought, a slender hand caught hers.
Chu Rong slightly opened his eyes, his gaze still hazy with sleep, exuding a subtle allure. His slightly cool lips lightly touched Quan Jiu's, and after a lingering, passionate embrace, he released her. Then, he closed his eyes again and fell back asleep.
Quan Jiu's heart pounded wildly. Listening to his steady breathing beside her, she felt like cursing.
Good heavens, did he have a sleepwalking dream?
However... after feeling Chu Rong's cold hand, she couldn't bring herself to be completely heartless. She carefully loosened the quilt and covered Chu Rong properly.
Entering the warmth of the quilt, Chu Rong moved closer to the center of the warmth and held her securely.
Quan Jiu sighed inwardly. "Fine, let it be."
But as she closed her eyes, in the darkness, Chu Rong, who had been sleeping soundly, gently curved his lips into a smile.