His long, thick eyelashes fluttered, and he nodded like a kitten, extending his arms.
Xie Wang acted quickly and immediately got up.
Li Man helped him drape his coat over Ling Shuangjiang's shoulders. Xie Wang put his arm around Ling Shuangjiang's waist, and with his other arm, he easily lifted Ling Shuangjiang's legs, picked him up, and quickly left the private room.
Seeing everyone's surprised expressions, Li Man said goodbye and hurriedly followed.
After Director Jia and Xiang Ming went outside, he asked in a low voice, "These two aren't for real, are they?"
Xiang Ming, a cigarette dangling from his lips, asked, "Guess?"
Director Jia was speechless: "It looks real to me."
Xiang Ming put his arm around his shoulder: "You insisted on calling me out. Come on, I'll play ball with you."
—
Xie Wang saw Ling Shuangjiang drunk for the first time.
Ling Shuangjiang was very well-behaved, sitting on his lap without moving, her head resting on his shoulder, her disordered breathing tickling his ear.
To prevent Ling Shuangjiang from moving around, Xie Wang kept him on his lap and held him intimately after getting into the car.
Li Man, sitting in the passenger seat, glanced back and quickly looked away. Assistant Jin, on the other hand, remained calm, secretly peeking through the rearview mirror.
"Are you thirsty?" Xie Wang asked, though he was very nervous, his tone remained calm. Ling Shuangjiang's body was so soft, and it felt so fragrant and comfortable to hold her in his arms; he couldn't bear to let go.
Ling Shuangjiang closed her eyes, her eyelashes fluttering slightly, and said in a kitten-like voice, "Thirsty."
Li Man immediately unscrewed the bottle cap and handed it to Xie Wang.
Xie Wang held his head in his palm, fed him a couple of sips of water, then took out some hangover medicine and had Ling Shuangjiang put it in his mouth. Finally, he thoughtfully wiped the corners of his lips clean.
"Don't let him drink so much next time. It's not only bad for his health, but also too dangerous," Xie Wangchao said to Li Man.
Li Man nodded: "Okay."
Soon, the car arrived at Ling Shuangjiang's home.
Li Man, worried that Xie Wang might have trouble going upstairs alone, escorted them both. At the door, Xie Wang was carrying Ling Shuangjiang, while Li Man frantically searched Ling Shuangjiang's pockets for the house key.
Unexpectedly, Xie Wang calmly replied, "I have some in my pocket too."
Goodness, they even have a spare key.
Li Man pretended to be calm, took the house key of Ling Shuangjiang from Xie Wang's pocket, and opened the door.
“Shuangjiang really does recognize you.” Li Man turned on the light and said softly, “When I first went to pick him up, he wouldn’t come with me. Maybe subconsciously, he didn’t feel safe.”
"Hmm." Xie Wang placed Ling Shuangjiang on the sofa and expertly fetched a hot towel to wipe his face. "Do you think I'm special to him?"
“Of course, it’s more than just extraordinary,” Li Man said. “Our Shuangjiang likes you very much. Sometimes he gets disappointed if you’re slow to reply to his WeChat messages.”
"Really?" Xie Wang looked up at Li Man, his expression showing a hint of heartache. "He'll be very upset if I reply to his WeChat message late?"
"I'm not exactly sad, just a little disappointed. But he's always been indifferent to other people."
Hearing this, Xie Wang's lips curled up slightly: "Hmm, it seems I'm very important to him."
"certainly."
Ling Shuangjiang has stabilized; it's time for Li Man to leave.
The door was closed gently.
Only two people remained in the room. Xie Wang's finger, which had been hovering over Ling Shuangjiang's shirt, suddenly stopped.
Although the two had a good relationship and liked each other.
However, changing clothes is still somewhat offensive, especially when the relationship is not yet established.
He simply took off Ling Shuangjiang's shoes, socks, and coat before carrying him into the bedroom.
As Ling Shuangjiang was placed on the bed, she murmured, "Thank you, Wang."
Xie Wang immediately lowered his head and leaned closer: "I'm here."
Ling Shuangjiang suddenly opened her eyes, chuckled softly, reached out and hugged his neck, then closed her eyes peacefully.
At that moment, Xie Wang's breathing quickened involuntarily.
If he was still unsure during the day about whether Ling Shuangjiang truly liked him, he could now be somewhat certain.
He was very special to Ling Shuangjiang.
After coaxing Ling Shuangjiang to sleep, he quietly left.
In the living room, he sat on the sofa. If he weren't at Ling Shuangjiang's house, he would have even thought of opening a bottle of red wine.
Facing the floor-to-ceiling window, he crossed his legs while making a phone call to Xiang Ming.
"Xiang Ming, if your best friend asked you if you loved him, and only allowed you to hug him, treating you as a special person, wouldn't you think he—"
"Ling Shuangjiang asked you if you love him?" Xiang Ming interrupted him.
Xie Wang stammered, "...Um."
Xiang Ming frowned: "Everyone in the whole world has figured it out, except you."
Xie Wang chuckled softly: "I see it now."
Xiang Ming: "Now you see? Why don't you hurry up and go to sleep with your wife? What are you wasting my time on? Are you crazy?"
Xie Wang raised his eyebrows, his expression tinged with pride: "You tell me, since he likes me, wouldn't it be a bit unfair if I let him have me so easily? The more difficult the process of him getting me, the more secure my position will be, making me his one and only dog... dog-like boyfriend, right?"
"Beep...beep...beep." The phone call ended.
Xie Wang didn't care about Xiang Ming's attitude. Instead, he cleared his throat, tapped his fingers on the sofa, smiled, admired the night view outside the window, and hummed something.
There are six hours left until tomorrow.
Should he first win Ling Shuangjiang's heart or her body?
In the darkness, Ling Shuangjiang stood in front of the bedroom door, her eyes clear and carrying a faint smile.
"You want things to be a bit tougher, right?"
Chapter 47 Partners?
The next day.
When Ling Shuangjiang came out of the room, Xie Wang was already busy in the kitchen, wearing his little apron.
Xie Wang seemed to be in a good mood. He had a recipe for tamagoyaki on his phone and was carefully following along with it step by step.
Ling Shuangjiang stood at the door for a while, then said, "Good morning."
Xie Wangdao nearly dropped the knife, but after regaining his composure, he raised his head and maintained a calm and composed smile: "Good morning."
He was so excited yesterday that he couldn't fall asleep for a long time. He kept thinking about how to talk to Ling Shuangjiang about this. He kept thinking until five in the morning when his alarm clock rang.
He should cook for Ling Shuangjiang.
"Don't you have to go to work today?"
Ling Shuangjiang poured herself a glass of milk, held the glass, leaned against the table, and quietly watched Xie Wang.
Xie Wang: "There's no morning meeting today, so I have time."
"Mmm." Ling Shuangjiang set out the tableware for the two of them and noticed a bowl of bean sprout soup in front of his seat.
“You were drunk yesterday, so you'll feel unwell when you wake up today. I searched online and they said that mung bean sprout soup can effectively relieve the discomfort caused by a hangover.”
Xie Wang sat opposite Ling Shuangjiang and spoke earnestly.
Ling Shuangjiang took a sip and smiled at him: "It's delicious, thank you."
The thought of Ling Shuangjiang liking him made Xie Wang feel a little embarrassed, and he said in a low voice, "What are you thanking me for? Don't be so polite."
This breakfast was eaten quietly.
Ling Shuangjiang ate her soup quietly. Xie Wang occasionally looked up at her.
Backlit, Ling Shuangjiang's facial features appeared gentler. The weariness from his hangover gave him a more languid air, and the whorl of hair on his head was slightly raised, making the fine downy hairs on his nose clearly visible.
Xie Wang held his chopsticks, suppressing his inner excitement.
Even his little tuft of hair looks amazing.
After finishing their meal, the two went out together. Ling Shuangjiang had a variety show negotiation in the morning, so Li Man came to pick him up early.
Li Man was also there, so Xie Wang didn't have a chance to have a private conversation with Ling Shuangjiang. He stood beside her and said meaningfully, "I'll pick you up tonight."
Ling Shuang turned back before getting into the car: "Why did you pick me up?"
Xie Wang glanced at Li Man: "I'll take you out to play."
“But I have plans tonight.” Ling Shuangjiang glanced at her watch. “We’re going to be late. Can we tell each other on WeChat?”
Xie Wang nodded obediently, winked at him with his right eye, and said, "Waiting for you."
Ling Shuangjiang smiled and said, "Okay."
The car door closed, and Li Man tilted her head curiously to look at Xie Wang, who was standing there. "Why is Mr. Xie acting a little strange today?"
Ling Shuangjiang said meaningfully, "His thought process has always been strange, so I'm not surprised by anything he does."
Li Man watched as Xie Wang made a mock shooting motion on the spot, shivering, "Indeed, it's weird."
Li Man was initially reluctant to accept the invitation to Ling Shuangjiang for this variety show, because Ling Shuangjiang's schedule was already very full, with filming dramas and commercials, leaving her no time to be a regular guest on a reality show.
However, Li Man hesitated when she saw the production company behind the variety show. Upon reviewing the show's description, she discovered that it wasn't a traditional reality show, but rather a science-themed variety program presented as a documentary.
This program aims to promote my country's traditional intangible cultural heritage. It will travel across the country to find artisans who uphold these traditions and tell their stories.
The television station broadcasting this variety show is controlled by the state.
Sure enough, Ling Shuangjiang was very willing to join after learning about it, and the first stop of the program was his hometown, Suzhou.
"Do you think they know your mother is a successor of the kesi (silk tapestry) craft? That's why their first stop was your house."
Ling Shuangjiang nodded: "Possibly."
Li Man said, "This variety show has three guests, all of whom are young people, and they see the world from their own perspectives."