Even the gentle head pat that used to move her heart seemed utterly perfunctory at this moment.
This is practically the standard for a scumbag!
To shut her up and keep her quiet, he exuded a gentler aura than ever before, completely deceiving those naive girls who were in love!
Chu Yi buried herself in Qiao Anchen's arms, biting her lip. Her heart felt like it was being crawled with ants, and she wished she could sit up and shake him until he confessed everything.
No, she can't be unreasonable.
Chu Yi held it in tightly, cursing himself for thinking too much.
As a cartoonist, Chu Yi's strength is her rich imagination; as a wife, her weakness is that her imagination is too rich.
The next few days were calm, and she cleared her head a bit, not understanding how she had fallen into an overwhelming panic that night because of a phone call and a few messages.
Everything was as usual, except that Qiao Anchen was still busy. In the evening, when Chu Yi saw that the time was ten o'clock, she began to be absent-minded. The lingering unease was getting to her. She bit her finger and couldn't help but dial Qiao Anchen's number.
In the past, she would send him a message to ask, so as not to disturb him. But for some reason, she really wanted to hear what he was saying tonight.
The dial tone rang for a long time without anyone answering. Chu Yixin became increasingly panicked and started imagining things again. She suddenly hung up the phone and slapped her forehead.
Forget it, I'll go chat with Xiao Gao instead.
After what felt like an eternity, Qiao Anchen finally called her back. Chu Yi answered the phone in a flustered manner and heard his steady voice on the other end.
"Chu Yi? I was busy and didn't hear you."
"Ah, I just wanted to ask when you're coming back," Chu Yi said softly, and Qiao Anchen replied.
"I'm driving now, I'll be home in about half an hour. If you're sleepy, go to sleep early."
"Okay, be careful, I'll wait for you to come back."
After the call ended, Chu Yi glanced at the time; more than half an hour had passed. She pursed her lips, her brow furrowed in worry.
The phone buzzed and vibrated, new messages kept coming in. Chu Yi opened it and saw Xiao Gao's roar filling the chat box.
"Xiao Chu!!! Where did you go! Why did you suddenly stop replying to me!"
"Have you been kidnapped by a monster?!"
"Is it that monster named Qiao Anchen?! He stole my first year of junior high school, waaaaah..."
She burst out laughing.
Chatting with Xiao Gao, time flew by, and her mood returned to normal, feeling incredibly light. However, upon hearing a noise by the door, Chu Yi immediately threw down her phone, got out of bed, put on her shoes, and ran out.
"You're back!" She looked at Qiao Anchen with delight, ran over and jumped into his arms, opening her arms to hug him tightly.
Qiao Anchen stood in the entryway, and was pushed back a step by her. He placed his palm on the back of her head, and all his exhaustion melted into softness.
Why the sudden enthusiasm?
A cheerful voice came from above. Chu Yi smiled and was about to look up to answer when a strange fragrance suddenly wafted towards her nose. It was like a faded rose, strong and intense, which made her feel disgusted from the bottom of her heart. It was extremely unfamiliar.
She froze, looked up in disbelief, and then immediately tiptoed to sniff Qiao Anchen's neck, collar, and shoulders.
"What's wrong?" Qiao Anchen was startled by her reaction. He turned his head and looked down at her, shifting uncomfortably. Chu Yi stopped moving and stood there, scrutinizing him expressionlessly.
Why do you smell of perfume?
"Is there?" Qiao Anchen raised his hand and smelled it, then frowned and casually replied, "Maybe it got on me by accident."
"Where did you accidentally get it on?" Chu Yi remained unmoved, her voice devoid of emotion as she pressed on, causing Qiao Anchen's brows to furrow even deeper.
"I just went to the police station. They arrested people involved in a bar disturbance. There were quite a few women involved, and they may have gotten involved there."
Hearing his answer, Chu Yi's expression relaxed slightly. She knew Qiao Anchen wouldn't lie.
The pores all over his body that had been bulging closed up again. His body felt as if it had just gone through a terrifying disaster. Chu Yi calmed down and said slowly, "I understand."
“Chu Yi…” Qiao Anchen looked at her, hesitant to speak, as if he wanted to say something, but Chu Yi immediately interrupted him.
"Go take a shower, I'm sleepy too, get some rest." After she finished speaking, she immediately turned and walked towards the room. After a while, she heard slow footsteps behind her.
Before going to sleep, he turned off the lights and, as usual, hugged her. Her body had regained the familiar scent of shower gel that Chu Yi knew. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and, in the darkness, suddenly turned her head to kiss him.
Qiao Anchen was stunned for a moment, but still cooperated. Their warm breaths mingled, and they separated after a short while.
"Go to sleep." He kissed her forehead again. Chu Yi was usually very obedient, but today, for some reason, she was very eager for something to soothe the anxiety that was weighing on her heart.
Instead of calming down, she buried her face in Qiao Anchen's neck, licking his warm skin, then opened her lips and gently rubbed them with her teeth.
A gasp came from beside her ear. Qiao Anchen tightened his grip on her. Chu Yi raised her head slightly and took his Adam's apple into her mouth. This time, she used force and bit him lightly but firmly.
She thought to herself, "There should be teeth marks left." Then, Qiao Anchen pinned her down, grabbed her chin, and forced Chu Yi's lips apart.
"Has it learned to bite?"
Chu Yi stared at him without answering, her eyes bright and burning even without the lights on. Qiao Anchen stared at her for two seconds, then leaned down and sealed her lips with his.
She was easily captured. Chu Yi's chin was pinched by him, and she couldn't even close her lips. The liquid that she couldn't swallow slowly flowed out of the corner of her mouth. Qiao Anchen finally let go of her and wiped it clean with his thumb.
Chu Yi's breathing finally calmed down a bit, and just as she was about to curse, Qiao Anchen kissed her again. This time, unlike the previous innocent and desireless kiss, her breathing was rapid and passionate.
Chu Yi felt dizzy from the massage, accompanied by a slight pain. She couldn't help but murmur, "It hurts..."
Qiao Anchen seemed to pause for a moment, then became much gentler. After an unknown amount of time, Chu Yi was changed to a different position, her face buried in the pillow, making it difficult for her to breathe. Her mind was blank, as if she were lacking oxygen, but sparks flashed before her eyes.
Tears welled up in her eyes.
When Qiao Anchen went to work, he received a lot of stares.
He pulled out a chair and sat down at his desk. Just then, his supervisor came over with case files. The supervisor's eyes met his and he immediately stopped, a meaningful look flashing across his nearly forty-year-old face.
"Little Qiao, the battle was fierce last night."
Qiao Anchen tried his best to suppress his embarrassment and kept a calm expression, asking with his usual composure, "Prosecutor Zhang, is there something you need?"
"Ah, there's something I want to tell you."
...
After the two talked for a while, Qiao Anchen breathed a slight sigh of relief after he left. Just as he was about to turn on his computer to start working, a female colleague not far away came over and whispered mysteriously.
"Prosecutor Qiao, would you like to borrow my concealer?"
"..." Qiao Anchen couldn't answer for a moment. The other person took it as a yes and went back to his seat, opened the drawer, and gave him a small box.
"Just apply it, and if one layer isn't enough, apply a few more. It'll eventually cover it up." The female colleague pointed to his throat, suppressed a laugh, patted his shoulder with a hint of sympathy, and left.
Qiao Anchen looked at the box in front of him, paused for a moment, and then reached out to open it. Inside, besides several compartments of creams in different skin tones, the lid was a small mirror that perfectly reflected his current appearance.
A familiar face, expressionless. Below, a long, slender, fair neck, with a faint teeth mark on the slightly protruding Adam's apple.
It's not very clear, but it can't be ignored either. Its location is intriguing, and you can tell what happened at a glance.
Qiao Anchen paused for two seconds, pushed back his chair, stood up, picked up the small box on the table, went out, clutched it tightly in his hand, and then disappeared into the bathroom.
69. Chapter 69
The concealer worked instantly; at least no one looked at his neck anymore. But Qiao Anchen didn't know there was such a thing as touch-ups.
Fortunately, the teeth mark faded considerably by evening, and even with less concealer, it wasn't very noticeable.
Chu Yi was consumed by shame all day. She couldn't shake off the feeling of being possessed by a ghost and doing something irreversible in a moment of impulsiveness.
She had already huddled under the covers, and even when she heard Qiao Anchen open the door, she simply pulled the covers over her head, too ashamed to show her face.
Actually, I'm still a little angry.
I'm angry at myself and at him.
Qiao Anchen was unbuttoning his shirt with one hand next to the wardrobe, while looking for his pajamas with the other. His gaze kept falling on the bed and looking at him. Throughout the whole process, until he went into the bathroom, Chu Yi didn't look up at him even once.
Finally, it was time to sleep. Qiao Anchen pulled back the covers and lay down. Chu Yi was also pretending to be dead beside him, keeping her eyes tightly closed as if trying to cover up the truth. Even though she could feel the gaze on her face, she didn't want to open her eyes and have any contact with him.
Qiao Anchen stared at her for a few moments, then reached out and turned off the light.
The two lay down side by side, motionless, as quiet as the dead.
"First Day of the Month." Finally, Qiao Anchen couldn't bear the oppressive atmosphere any longer and suddenly spoke up, his tone flat and emotionless.
"I was laughed at today."
"What?" Chu Yi was on edge and didn't pay attention for a moment, but then she came to her senses.
"What are you laughing at?" she asked, as if she had just remembered something.
It shouldn't be what she thinks!
“You bit my neck and left a mark.” Qiao Anchen turned around, his breath close, as if he were looking at her with open eyes.
Chu Yi's head suddenly felt hot.
My unusual behavior last night was purely due to my emotional state at the time, and I was simply venting my anger. I didn't expect to be discovered.
Now, whenever she imagines Qiao Anchen in the prosecutor's office, bearing the marks she left behind and enduring the scrutinizing gazes of others, she can't help but want to bang her head against the wall.
"Then...don't you know how to cover it up?" she said in a trembling voice. Qiao Anchen paused for a moment before replying.
"It can't be covered up."
"Is it still there?" Chu Yi was already quickly thinking about whether she could cover it up with foundation or concealer, or just put on a band-aid? No, no, no, that would be even more eye-catching, like trying to hide something obvious.
As she was lost in thought, her hand was suddenly grabbed. Qiao Anchen took her fingertips and brought them to her throat, then pressed them against it.
"Touch it yourself."
The first-year student's brain exploded.
The material under his hand felt hard yet soft, and it rolled up and down with the sound of his voice, a warmth unique to his skin.
She abruptly withdrew her hand, stammering.
"I can't feel it."
“Okay…” Qiao Anchen sighed, seemingly with a hint of regret, before speaking again.
"Chu Yi, come here."
"Um?"
"I want to hold you while I sleep."