Chapter 132

She had a lot of love in her heart, but the prerequisite for loving others was to love herself. However, she believed she could do it, so she could not allow Xie Shiqing to keep falling.

She had to grab hold of this person, pull her back from the edge of the cliff, and let her once again embrace the vast world.

Zhong Ning stayed with Xie Shiqing the whole afternoon, lying by her side without doing anything. For two people who liked each other, simply leaning against each other was already a very happy thing; there was no need for extra words.

Even so, Zhong Ning still spoke off and on, guiding Xie Shiqing to open her mouth as well, hoping to help her develop the habit of sharing more.

Sharing bad things could ease sadness, and sharing good things could increase joy. All of this was based on having enough correct feedback, and Zhong Ning felt she could do this well.

First build the habit, then gradually spread the trust.

“You said you used a tranquilizer. Did you feel unaccustomed to it, or uncomfortable?” Zhong Ning asked.

“No, it’s all fine.” Xie Shiqing shook her head. “It’s right there in the nightstand. Ning Ning, do you want to take a look?”

Zhong Ning really went to take a look. The small glass vial lay in a pure white box, the liquid inside transparent and colorless, really looking like some strange medicine.

She only glanced at it before pushing the drawer shut again and saying, “Don’t use it tomorrow.”

As Xie Shiqing suddenly held her breath, she continued, “At night… do you mind if I stay here just a little while?”

Xie Shiqing’s head shook like a rattle drum. “I don’t mind, I don’t mind!”

Mind? As if!

It had been so long since she last enjoyed Zhong Ning’s meticulous and all-encompassing care. Even dinner was fed to her by someone else.

Xie Shiqing’s joy was so intense her chest ached.

Who wanted to eat on their own? Who wanted to pretend to be normal? Certainly not her. She was a delicate and pitiful omega, and she should be carefully cherished by her own alpha.

Being fed was what she deserved.

After dinner, Zhong Ning really didn’t leave. Xie Shiqing lay in bed, her hand on the sheets tightening and gathering the fabric into a crumple.

Heavens… she was even more nervous than the first time.

Would she not look good right now? After crying for so long, her eyes were still swollen and hadn’t gone down. Recently she hadn’t rested well—did she have dark circles? Were they obvious? She had lost more weight; she must feel so bony to the touch…

Would Zhong Ning dislike her?

Without realizing it herself, Xie Shiqing bit her lower lip, unease coiling around her.

What broke the frozen air was Zhong Ning’s index finger. She pressed it against Xie Shiqing’s lips, rubbed lightly, then replaced it with something far softer, gently prying open her teeth and freeing those pitiful lips.

Setting aside that messy, chaotic forced kiss from last night, who knew how long it had been since they had kissed? Xie Shiqing could hardly count—it felt like centuries to her senses.

She was like a fish sealed in ice, miraculously still able to perceive the outside world, yet surrounded entirely by a frozen wasteland, silent and dead. A single second felt as long as a century, and a century felt as short as a second. Time here was useless.

The days without Zhong Ning were as unbearable as dying and living again, again and again, trapped in a state between life and death, never finding release.

After dinner, they had eaten strawberries. Zhong Ning’s tongue also carried the flavor of strawberries, moist and sweet. With the lightest suck, Xie Shiqing almost melted into a pool of sugary water, swallowed straight into her.

Even her once dry and soft palm was drenched as if by rain.

At the moment of marking, Xie Shiqing shed tears again, crying in broken sobs. “I’m going to die,” she murmured. “I’m really going to die.”

Never before had her tears been so sincere.

Zhong Ning had no time to speak, only pinching the soft flesh of her body.

Xie Shiqing went limp, as if she had truly become some kind of boneless mollusk, murmuring, “It’s fine to die right now.”

“What nonsense are you saying.” Zhong Ning finally freed her mouth enough to gently bite her face. “No talking like that.”

“If I die right now, then tomorrow I won’t want it anymore?”

“Yes, yes!” Xie Shiqing hurriedly reeled back the words she had just spoken as if pulling them in with a fishing rod. “I’ll still want it tomorrow, Ning Ning.”

Pressing her lips together, she hooked her finger into Zhong Ning’s palm. “What about today? I still want it today.”

Her voice was soft and delicate, sweeter and stickier than honey.

Zhong Ning had already decided to make it up to her properly, to use happiness to cover yesterday’s sadness. Hearing these words, she chuckled softly, shook her head, sat up first, took the glass of water from the nightstand, drank a sip, and passed it into Xie Shiqing’s mouth.

Like this, they drank almost half a glass before she leaned down again.

…

When it was over, Zhong Ning was also covered in sweat. She hadn’t dared to set the air conditioner too low, afraid of giving her a cold, and now with her blood surging, there was no way not to sweat.

Lowering her head to kiss the corner of Xie Shiqing’s lips, she said softly, “I’ll go run the bath. Wait for me a bit, alright?”

This time, Xie Shiqing truly had no strength at all, lying flat and drenched in sweat, as if she had made a small rainstorm all on her own.

Her messy black hair trailed over her skin, like a black-and-white ink landscape painting.

She didn’t even manage a hum, only opened her mouth weakly, revealing a small stretch of bright red tongue.

Zhong Ning found it unbearably cute. As she reached out to pull the quilt over her, she leaned down and gave her a small bite.

“Alright, wait for me a moment, I’ll be back soon.”

She tucked the quilt in securely, making sure it covered her well, then climbed off the bed, bent down to pick up her clothes, found her slippers hidden underneath, slipped them on, ran her hand a few times through the sweat-damp hair sticking to her neck, and pushed open the bathroom door.

The bathtub in this room was quite large, more than enough for two people to lie down in.

She first turned on the heater, then opened the tap, adjusted the temperature, and began to fill it.

While the water was running, she rinsed herself off with the shower. Her hair wasn’t long, and one towel was enough to leave it drip-free. Seeing that the bathtub was full, Zhong Ning turned and left the bathroom, leaving the door slightly ajar, and quickly walked back to the bedside.

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