Chapter 13: Maybe There Was Something Else
Qiao Xi stared at him for a while before taking out her phone to read the message she just received.
When she had just returned to the Qiao family, she overheard Qiao Rou and Gu Moling’s conversation. That was how she knew that they were struggling to find a computer hacker. She had learned from Lei Feng to do good deeds, so she secretly sent Gu Moling her contact details and helped them solve their urgent problem after that.
Unexpectedly, Gu Moling reached out to her again and this time, it was to delete the video file on her phone.
He wanted her to hack into her own phone?
Qiao Xi silently thought as she stared at the other party’s offer. Gu Moling was quite kind to Qiao Rou. Should she earn his money?
Qiao Xi happily accepted the payment.
“Gu Zheng, I have a suggestion.”
Qiao Xi put away her phone and took the opportunity to negotiate with Gu Zheng. “We’re newlyweds, so shouldn’t we do more things to improve our relationship?”
“Such as?”
“You can kiss me from time to time.”
“So…”
Gu Zheng put down his chopsticks and said slowly, “You were looking at your phone for so long just now to find out how to take advantage of me?”
Qiao Xi: “… No, I was just handling some serious matters.”
Gu Zheng shot her a look, implying that he did not believe her.
Qiao Xi spoke righteously, “Could it be that you don’t think we should foster our relationship? We live under the same roof, so I think it’s very necessary for us to foster a closer relationship.”
Gu Zheng supported his chin with one hand as his dark eyes locked onto Qiao Xi’s face. His voice carried a trace of amusement as he said, “I know a doctor. He’s very knowledgeable about physical intimacy. Do you need me to introduce him to you?”
He thought that Qiao Xi had a problem with her body and she was seriously ill.
Qiao Xi: “…”
She did not want to talk to this person anymore.
Gu Zheng sneered and stopped looking at her. He seemed to have thought of something and suddenly opened WeChat to send a message to a user with a black profile picture.
[Are you in Li Cheng?]
Qiao Xi could not do anything to Gu Zheng who would not budge, so she could only turn her head and not look at him.
At this moment, her phone vibrated. She took a look and was stunned.
Her online friend had sent her a message.
Back then, she was young and reckless. She relied on her hacking skills to sweep through all the major internet control centers. Her arrogant actions caused her to have many enemies, but she also got to know a friend by accident.
She and Mo Yuan got to know each other when they broke into the network of T Country’s National Security Center. At that time, they both thought that the other party wanted to capture their respective security experts. After realizing that it was a misunderstanding, the two of them covered each other and retreated safely.
Perhaps it was because they shared a tacit understanding, they later added each other as friends. Whenever they encountered problems, they would seek help from the other party.
Although it was easy for the two of them to investigate each other’s identities, Mo Yuan and she seemed to have the same tacit understanding. They continued to maintain their friendship on the internet.
However, what did Mo Yuan’s words mean? She could not help but reply with a question mark.
[Is there any trouble going on in Li City Hospital recently?]
Seeing Mo Yuan’s reply, Qiao Xi was enlightened. [You’re also in Li City? It’s not too troublesome, it’ll be settled soon.]
While Qiao Xi was typing and chatting with Mo Yuan, she raised her head and glanced at Gu Zheng, only to see him lazily fiddling with his phone. He did not care about her at all.
She pursed her lips and could not help but complain to Mo Yuan. [I coincidentally have something to ask you.]
Gu Zheng looked at the message sent by Black Tide and raised his eyebrows. [What is it?]
Qiao Xi typed furiously. [I have a friend who recently registered her marriage, but her legal husband refuses to get close to her. When my friend proposed to nurture their relationship and be more intimate, her husband asked her to see a doctor. In this situation, what can my friend do to get closer to her husband?]
Gu Zheng: [… Perhaps you should confirm if your friend was scammed into getting married?]
He had heard that many men would marry as a way to solve some of their problems.
Scammed?
Qiao Xi thought for a moment. Back then, she was the one who had looked for Gu Zheng. If it were a scam, she would be the scammer.
Hence, she quickly denied it. [She wasn’t.]
Gu Zheng knocked on the table. [Maybe there’s something wrong with this man’s body. You can ask your friend to bring him to see a urologist.]
Qiao Xi remained silent.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
Gu Zheng waited for a long time but did not receive a reply from Black Tide. Qiao Xi, who was sitting next to him, sized him up with a very strange gaze, making him feel extremely uncomfortable.
“Nothing…”
Qiao Xi seemed to be lost in thought.
All these years, she had never heard of any scandals between Gu Zheng and any other women. Whenever people from Li City talked about Gu Zheng, they would say that he was cold and unfeeling.
Behind this callousness, could there be something else?
Chapter 14: Taking The Initiative To Kiss
Gu Zheng stared at her for three seconds. There seemed to be a lump in his throat as he slowly pushed his bowl of rice toward her. “You’re really not eating?”
The incident that Black Tide brought up had caused him to reflect on himself. Even though his marriage with Qiao Xi was not a proper marriage, in the eyes of women, marriage meant that the two of them would share an intimate relationship. In that sense, it was not wrong for Qiao Xi to want to be closer to him.
Sighing, Gu Zheng grabbed Qiao Xi’s wrist and was slightly helpless. “You’re not eating because I’m not kissing you? What’s with this childish temper?”
Qiao Xi puckered her lips.
As someone with normal taste buds, he naturally did not know that everything she ate was bitter. It was a truly painful experience!
“Fine.”
Gu Zheng’s hand on her wrist loosened indifferently. By the time Qiao Xi reacted, Gu Zheng had already grabbed her waist and leaned over to kiss her lips!
Qiao Xi’s mind instantly went blank.
“Have you gone dumb?”
Gu Zheng slightly retreated, his hot breath spraying on Qiao Xi’s ear. “Or… is this your first kiss?”
Qiao Xi’s pupils moved stiffly while she gaped. She did not say anything.
Seeing this, Gu Zheng chuckled. His deep voice was magnetic and made one’s scalp tingle.
“And here I was thinking about how bold you were. Turns out… you’re nothing like that.”
Qiao Xi finally realized what Gu Zheng had done. She paused for a long while before pursing her lips.
No matter how dull she was in relationships, she knew that a kiss on the hand and a kiss on the lips were vastly different.
As he gazed at Qiao Xi’s clear and bright eyes, Gu Zheng’s scalp became numb. “Wait, don’t tell me you’re going to cry?”
“Cry?”
Qiao Xi had not cried in ages.
She smacked her lips and suddenly raised her hand to press it against the back of Gu Zheng’s neck. She raised her chin and kissed Gu Zheng’s lips again!
She realized that Gu Zheng’s lips were much sweeter than his fingers!
He was caught off guard…
It lasted for about three seconds, or was it three minutes?
In any case, when Gu Zheng pushed Qiao Xi away, his breathing was a little uneven.
“Woman! You…!”
Gu Zheng picked up a meatball from the dining table and stuffed it into Qiao Xi’s mouth. “Are you kissing me like you’re eating food?”
Qiao Xi instinctively bit it.
The meatball with a fragrant sesame aroma exploded in her mouth. It was crispy and sweet.
Qiao Xi’s eyes lit up, and she bent down to pick up a pair of chopsticks before swiftly eating.
Gu Zheng: “…”
After a while, Qiao Xi gradually slowed down. The aroma of the food in her mouth slowly vanished. The familiar bitter taste spread once again.
It seemed that kissing Gu Zheng could let her normally taste food again?
This was much more tempting than kissing his sweet fingers!
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
Gu Zheng covered his mouth and retreated.
It was not that he was cowardly, but Qiao Xi’s gaze was simply too terrifying. The way she stared at him reminded him of a hungry wolf that saw its prey on the plains!
“Oh…”
Qiao Xi swallowed the food in her mouth and smiled happily at Gu Zheng. “I just want to tell you that it tastes pretty good.”
Gu Zheng, “?”
Was this woman teasing him?!
This woman was definitely teasing him!
After eating a delicious dinner, Qiao Xi went upstairs in satisfaction.
Qiao Xi had gained a lot of assets over the years, so she did not really care about Qiao Corporation.
However, that did not mean that she would give it to Qiao Rou. Since she was free tomorrow, she would take back what she should.
The next afternoon.
Qiao Xi changed into a black sweater and stepped out of the door in canvas shoes.
On the second floor, Gu Zheng was sipping on his coffee and quietly scoffed. This woman was busier than him.
…
Relying on her memory, Qiao Xi found the musical instrument store that was under Qiao Corporation.
She casually plucked the strings of the guitars on the wall. At that moment, she heard a discordant voice…
“Brother Ling, that looks like my sister. Why is she here?”
Qiao Xi pulled the hood of her sweater and could not help but sigh. Enemies were bound to meet on a narrow road.
On the other side, Qiao Rou seemed to have confirmed it and said hesitantly, “Why is she here? Does she want to buy something? A few days ago, Dad canceled her credit card out of anger. Brother Ling, let’s go over and take a look. If she likes something, we can give it to her.”
“Give it to me?”
Qiao Xi turned around. “Why would I need your help?”
Everything in this shop belonged to her, alright? Did she need Qiao Rou’s charity?
Qiao Rou’s expression froze as tears welled up in her eyes. “Sister, that’s not what I meant. I just want to help you… Y-You don’t have any money on you and this shop happens to be mine. I just wanted to tell you that if you like something, you can take it. It’s okay.”
Qiao Rou’s words made it seem as if Qiao Xi did not know how to appreciate kind gestures.. At the same time, their identities were revealed.