"But my mom isn't back yet. Why don't you go sleep in my room?" Jiaxi said, gently stroking her hair.
Mengyao felt her face start to burn. As a medical student, her first thought was whether she had a fever. "Never mind, I think I might have a cold. I don't want to infect you by staying with you," she said.
"It's okay, I don't mind," Jiaxi replied, hugging her head and letting her rest on his shoulder.
Mengyao leaned against him, feeling increasingly hot. She reached to unbutton her clothes.
Jiaxi scooped her up. "Don't panic. Let's go to my room."
Mengyao, her senses clouded, hummed in agreement. Once he laid her on the bed, she cried out, "Water, water."
Jiaxi quickly poured her a cup of warm water, helped her sit up, and let her drink.
Mengyao felt her body growing hotter. Suddenly, she tightly gripped Jiaxi's neck, gazing at him hazily. "You're back. You're finally back. Don't leave me again."
Her face was flushed, her eyes like West Lake shrouded in mist and rain, incredibly alluring.
Jiaxi stared at her with hatred, realizing she mistook him for Song Jiaping. He pushed her away, shouting, "Look at who I am!"
Mengyao giggled, still dazed, and clung to him. "I know, you're Jiaping."
Jiaxi forcefully pulled her hands away. This woman's heart only ever belonged to Song Jiaping. "Get lost! I'm not Song Jiaping."
Mengyao, like a child throwing a tantrum, tugged at him, refusing to let go. "Don't go. Don't leave me alone. I'll be so lonely and scared."
Jiaxi gritted his teeth, knowing he couldn't make her sober up. He had drugged both the pastries and the tea as a double precaution.
While Jiaxi was distracted, Mengyao, unable to control herself, reached into his clothes and began to kiss him passionately and clingingly.
Jiaxi didn't want to be mistaken for Song Jiaping, but he could no longer restrain himself. He pinned her down, roughly tore open her clothes, and forcefully took her.
Tears welled in Mengyao's eyes, and she mumbled, "Jiaping, I love you..."
Jiaxi showed no tenderness, consuming her with hatred, venting the unspeakable resentment and humiliation in his heart.
...
Mengyao woke up with a splitting headache, feeling as though she had had a very long dream. In the dream, Song Jiaping had returned, dusty from his travels, embraced her tightly, and whispered in her ear how much he missed her and loved her. She had felt the same, refusing to let him leave again. But when she saw his face clearly, her heart leaped, and she broke out in a cold sweat. The person she had been holding was not Song Jiaping at all; the man's face had no nose or eyes, like a blank slate.
Mengyao jolted awake from her dream, feeling a terrible ache all over her body with the slightest movement. She realized the person lying beside her was Hong Jiaxi. She quickly sat up, her face flushed, staring at the sleeping Hong Jiaxi, unable to recall anything. Mengyao frantically searched the messy bed for her clothes and dressed herself.
"You're awake. Are you feeling any better?" Jiaxi's gentle voice came from behind her.
Mengyao, feeling both ashamed and uncomfortable, didn't want to face him. "What happened to me? Why am I in your room?"
Jiaxi put his arm around her waist and leaned towards her. "You suddenly said you felt unwell, so I brought you to my room. It's my fault for not being able to control myself..."
"No, what did you put in the tea I drank?"
Jiaxi no longer concealed it. "Not just in the tea, but in the pastries too. I put something that helps you forget your troubles and feel happy."
Mengyao angrily grabbed a pillow and threw it at him. "How could you do this?"
Jiaxi snatched the pillow, held her tightly despite her resistance, and whispered in her ear, "If I didn't do this, how could we recapture the feeling we had when we were together? Don't you remember? Our first times were with each other. You should have been mine. Why be shy? I'm not Song Jiaping, and I will take responsibility for you."
Mengyao pushed him away with all her might, pretending indifference. "No need. We're both adults and should take responsibility for our own actions. I don't need you to be responsible."
Jiaxi clung to her again, refusing to give up. "Marry me. I'll give you happiness and make you happy every day."
Mengyao no longer wanted to believe his words. As she tried to pull away, the room door suddenly opened from the outside. Jiaxi's mother walked in and saw them tangled in each other's arms, their clothes disheveled. She immediately covered her eyes and complained, "Jiaxi, you rascal, why didn't you even lock the door? I didn't know you were both in the room. I didn't see anything." She quickly retreated and shut the door firmly.
Mengyao felt utterly mortified. Jiaxi, however, let go and lay back. "Even my mom saw what happened between us. If you don't marry me, who else will you marry?"
Mengyao felt like crying but had no tears. She quickly put on her clothes, wanting only to leave. But when she reached the door, she lacked the courage to open it, thinking about how she would face Jiaxi's family. Doing something like this with Jiaxi in the Hong family's home in broad daylight, how could she possibly face the Hongs now?
Jiaxi guessed what she was thinking and got up. "Wait a moment. I'll go out with you to see Grandpa and my parents."
Mengyao had no choice but to wait by the door for him to get dressed. She couldn't bring herself to walk out of the Hong family's house like this. Her upbringing made her feel deeply ashamed, no different from those promiscuous women outside.
After Jiaxi put on his clothes, he hugged her tightly from behind. "Don't worry. My family won't say anything. They'll only be happy to arrange our wedding once they know about our relationship."
"Take me away from here quickly," Mengyao's mind was in turmoil. The thought that she would marry Jiaxi meant there was no longer any possibility with Song Jiaping, and it made her feel terribly sad.
Jiaxi no longer pressured her. He took her hand, opened the door, and led her out.
Jiaxi's mother saw them emerge from the room. Mengyao seemed to be leaving, and she pretended not to have seen anything, smiling at Mengyao. "Why aren't you staying longer? Did I come back at an inconvenient time and disturb you?"
"Auntie, no. My mom just called me home, saying she needed me for something," Mengyao offered a hasty excuse.
Jiaxi protected Mengyao and even chided his mother. "Mom, you shouldn't say that. I finally got Mengyao to take half a day off to accompany you to learn tea ceremony, and then you weren't even home."
Jiaxi's mother smiled and looked at them. "My absence was perfect for creating an opportunity for you two. You young people don't need to mind me. Continue whatever you were doing."
Mengyao kept her head down, feeling extremely ashamed. She quickly said, "Auntie, I'm leaving," and turned to go.
Jiaxi hurried after her. "I'll drive you back."
Outside the Hong residence, Mengyao's attitude became resolute. She looked at him angrily. "No need," she said, and strode to the roadside to hail a taxi.
Jiaxi's mother watched their retreating backs, feeling that her future daughter-in-law seemed to be angry.