Chapter 45

Chapter 45 Rose x Kiss

Ji Mingzhu heard his words and made a move to close the door again.

When the “bang” sound came, Jiang Ji looked at the closed door in front of him and didn’t continue knocking.

He quietly waited for three seconds.

As expected.

After that, the door slowly opened again.

Ji Mingzhu glanced at him, her tone haughty, “You really have nowhere to stay?”

“Mm.”

“Bring your luggage in.” Ji Mingzhu opened the door crack, looking at the person in front of her, “Remember, you’re not allowed to sleep on the sofa, only on the floor.”

“The bed?” Jiang Ji’s tone was as ordinary as if discussing the day’s weather.

Ji Mingzhu looked at him for a long while, “You’re dreaming. If you don’t want to sleep on the floor, I can close the door right now.”

At this moment, Jiang Ji didn’t dare push further and took his luggage inside.

Ji Mingzhu knew he had entered, didn’t even look, and casually pointed to a spot, “Here, pick a place to sleep on the floor. There’s underfloor heating, so don’t complain about the cold.”

As if seeing through his later scheme, Ji Mingzhu lifted her chin and directly took her pajamas toward the bathroom.

Because Jiang Ji had interrupted earlier, she hadn’t had time to freshen up.

When the rustling sound of water came from the bathroom, Jiang Ji finally settled his mind.

He looked in the direction Ji Mingzhu had casually pointed earlier, lowering his eyes and thinking for a moment.

Ji Mingzhu spent a long time inside. When she came out, Jiang Ji’s eyes were tightly shut, looking extremely exhausted.

His hands were casually spread, his whole body almost leaning against the sofa. The suite’s light poured down, falling on his face, making him look exceptionally handsome.

Jiang Ji had always been proper and handsome; his looks were indeed flawless.

Ji Mingzhu slowly walked over, tentatively calling him, “...Jiang Ji?”

No response.

She stretched her toes and gently tested his calf.

Still no response, probably asleep deeply.

Jiang Ji usually looked cold and distant, which actually attracted girls a lot—pure, aloof, a little domineering.

But now with his eyes closed, he didn’t look bad, showing a softness rarely seen.

Thinking this, Ji Mingzhu immediately leaned in and played with his eyelashes with her hand.

She couldn’t help but notice his eyelashes were thick and long.

After playing with them for a while and getting bored, her gaze moved down and fixed on his lips.

She seemed able to sense the texture of Jiang Ji’s lips, soft and cool.

In ancient times, Jiang Ji would definitely be a pale, refined scholar.

And she… was the petulant princess, seeking yin to supplement yang.

Thinking this, Ji Mingzhu smiled lightly.

But when her eyes returned, she couldn’t smile anymore, completely unable to.

Jiang Ji had somehow opened his eyes, his clear black eyes looking at her.

Their gazes met.

Ji Mingzhu cleared her throat and spoke first, “What are you looking at!”

“Looking at you trying to harass me.”

Ji Mingzhu’s face immediately turned as thin as if it had been slapped. She spoke to explain herself, “Just now… I meant to call you to take a shower, nothing else.”

“Mm, so since you tried to harass me, as compensation, can I request not to sleep on the floor?”

“How did I harass you!”

“Your actions and your gaze.” Jiang Ji didn’t pause, responding directly.

As he spoke, his eyes scanned her from top to bottom.

He deliberately lingered a moment on her hand.

Ji Mingzhu noticed his brief pause and quickly withdrew her hand.

“............”

So why exactly! Jiang Ji was so… persistent about the topic of “whether she had harassed him”!

As if afraid Ji Mingzhu would go back on her words, he quickly emphasized, “I observed just now, there aren’t any extra blankets here. Even with underfloor heating, I wouldn’t sleep well.”

Ji Mingzhu: ?

Even while she was showering, he was able to observe so much?

Actually, Jiang Ji’s words weren’t wrong.

This large townhouse was the private property of the couple who owned it. Each suite had a unique style, unlike uniform hotel rooms. The house carried a strong local flavor.

In the quiet small town, the architecture was old European style.

“The sofa… there’s a blanket there… this is my final concession!” Ji Mingzhu clapped her hands, got up, shuffled a few steps, and flopped onto the bunk bed.

The bed was square-shaped; even if Jiang Ji wanted to sleep there, there was no space.

Sleeping together would be uncomfortably cramped.

There was a faint movement behind her. After some time, the sound of water came from the bathroom.

Ji Mingzhu rolled once on the bed, lay back, and stared at the ceiling with a floral pattern, lost in thought.

The past few days had been surreal.

Cold war, separation, then reunion in Switzerland.

More astonishingly, the problem that had troubled her for so many years… was suddenly solved in just a day or two.

Ji Mingzhu looked dazed, gently poking her arm with her fingernail.

A faint pain came.

So it wasn’t a dream.

She shook her head, took out her camera, and began reviewing the videos and photos she had taken today.

…

By the time Jiang Ji came out of the bathroom, Ji Mingzhu was already asleep.

There was something next to her head, probably her treasured camera equipment.

Jiang Ji tidied the sofa slightly, sat down, and lazily lifted his eyelids to look at her on the bed.

Her hair was messy from sleep, curls scattered everywhere, half of her smooth shoulder exposed, her fair face looking utterly innocent.

She liked making intricate hairstyles, but in Jiang Ji’s eyes, messy was more beautiful.

Especially when she was asleep.

He was bored, and in the silent, peaceful night, opened his phone’s photo album and glanced through it.

To be precise, Jiang Ji didn’t have many photos on his phone, but because of backups, they spanned many years.

The oldest photo was a scanned one.

Yellowed, blurry, with only two faces faintly recognizable.

His clear fingertips brushed over them, lightly stroking.

After looking for an unknown length of time, Jiang Ji slowly rose, took a few steps to Ji Mingzhu’s bedside, and carefully organized the camera equipment that had fallen beside her.

He placed each item back into its respective equipment bag.

She had probably fallen asleep while reviewing them and hadn’t had a chance to put them away.

They were messy, scattered around.

Even sleeping properly was difficult, and her space had been forcibly squeezed out.

She curled up into a small ball, eyelashes tightly closed, casting a shadow.

Jiang Ji mimicked her earlier motion, lightly brushing her eyelashes with his fingertips.

Then he leaned down, pushed aside the hair on her forehead, and gently pressed a kiss.

My dearest little rose, good night.

…

Ji Mingzhu hadn’t set an alarm, so she woke naturally.

Switzerland had dramatically changed overnight; outside, the landscape was covered in gloomy snow, white and vast, blanketing the Longjiang small town.

Startled, she looked toward the sofa at the foot of the bed.

Jiang Ji was still asleep.

She thought she had woken late enough, but Jiang Ji was even more relentless.

This was completely uncharacteristic of him.

After Ji Mingzhu finished washing up in the bathroom, she noticed Jiang Ji still hadn’t woken.

He was sleeping very deeply.

His brow was furrowed, as if the discomfort came from not being able to stretch his long legs.

Seeing this scene, Ji Mingzhu felt that making him sleep on the sofa didn’t seem so right after all.

Maybe… she could let him share the bed tonight?

She looked at her bedding and saw that her camera equipment had all been neatly put away.

This couldn’t possibly have been done by some “conch maiden”; no one else was here—it had to be Jiang Ji.

Ji Mingzhu couldn’t help but curve her lips slightly.

Jiang Ji always moved silently, touching hearts without a sound.

This quiet, unobtrusive care… was it meant only for her?

The weight of the camera bag in her hand pulled Ji Mingzhu’s thoughts back.

She had looked through the photos last night, overwhelmed by the sheer number, and had fallen asleep.

When she had taken the photos yesterday, she had been alone by the lake and meadow, with few people around. She couldn’t find anyone to help, so she just took selfies.

Along the way, she happened to meet a Chinese couple staying here, surnamed Liu, scholarly in appearance and exceptionally warm. They were out for outdoor exercise, and their route coincidentally matched hers, so they walked together.

Ji Mingzhu had asked them to take a few photos for her.

At the time, she didn’t have the chance to review them, eager to return before nightfall.

So it was only after returning to the accommodation that Ji Mingzhu carefully sorted through them.

She placed the equipment next to her suitcase, then turned her attention back to Jiang Ji.

He was still deep in sleep.

In fact, she guessed that perhaps he had been exhausted from the long journey to Switzerland, which was why he was so tired.

After all, she had carefully planned before finding this accommodation.

After getting off the car and being guided by a staff member, they still wandered around the small town a bit before finding the place.

And Jiang Ji, even more so.

Ji Mingzhu didn’t want to disturb or wake him, so she went downstairs first.

The landlady heard footsteps, saw it was her, and smiled, “You young people always wake up late. Breakfast is still available, go ahead and eat.”

Ji Mingzhu thanked her and walked to the kitchen, seeing three neatly arranged portions of breakfast on the long table. She was surprised, “Three portions? I really can’t finish all of this by myself.”

The landlady followed her gaze, “Oh no, it’s the usual serving for three guests, but I didn’t expect that all three of you would wake up so late. Such a delicious breakfast with no one to share it~”

Ji Mingzhu nodded, then quickly caught a key word.

She immediately asked in surprise, “Three guests?”

The landlady went “Ah,” “Miss Mingzhu, I thought you knew. That young man from yesterday, he booked the last suite—lucky him, haha.”

After speaking, the old lady winked mischievously, her tone gossiping a bit, “He even said he’s your lover. You two slept together last night, right? Is that correct?”

Ji Mingzhu: “............”

As if that were true!

She finally understood where the odd feeling she had noticed earlier came from.

If he hadn’t booked a room, he wouldn’t have been able to go upstairs at all.

Switzerland has sparse population, and accommodations are separate, so privacy is highly valued. The landlady would have no reason to let a stranger upstairs.

Moreover…

Jiang Ji had actually booked a room early?!

And yet he pitifully acted like he had no place to stay, speaking with a straight face!

This man was literally lying about everything—lying about his charm, lying about the bed!

The most crucial part: he even said he was her lover?

Ji Mingzhu cut a slice of toast. If tonight she softened and let Jiang Ji into the room and onto the bed, she wouldn’t even be surnamed Ji!

Author’s Note: [Mini Theater]

Chicken: Snuggle?

Pig: Yeah.

Chicken: Okay, then I won’t snuggle in.

A long time later—

Pig: This is the kind of snuggle!

No surprises, there will be an extra chapter tonight! Thanks to the little angels who voted for me or watered me with nutrient elixirs between 2020-02-23 07:50:12 and 2020-02-24 07:13:29~

Thanks to the little angels who triggered mines: Di Shengsheng’s big fan, Wutong Qiaoshu 2; 41782980, Super Cute Yanyan 1;

Thanks to the little angels who watered me: Nini-chan 20 bottles; Super Cute Yanyan 15 bottles; Big Moon, Ye Bo, and Rabbit Tooth 10 bottles; l 9 bottles; More effort, okay 6 bottles; Lao Zhang’s Tiny Star, Little Fairy Seven?, Cute Zazai 5 bottles; Qiang, Meat-Loving Hao Sijia, Fruit Tea 4 bottles; Yi Han, Wutong Qiaoshu, Di Shengsheng’s big fan, Qi Tian Datou Sheng, Ji Qiao 3 bottles; Ping Sheng, Li Yangyang Mio, 36052851, Fei123, Jin Shang Tian Hua, Nong Xiao Mo! 2 bottles; Qi., 41296409, Jia Ying Baby, Gu Jiu Nan Wen., Five Elements Lack Money, Never Encountered an Unoccupied, Qian Qian, Hair-Loss Girl, Wen Ye Xi, Lollipop, Ah Salt Too Salty, Shan P’s Wife, Little Sun?, One Round Taro, Pi Xi Wai’s Tao Tao, Fang Shi He I Want to Chase You 1 bottle;

Thank you all very much for your support. I will continue to work hard!