His voice was very soft, and the assistant didn’t hear it clearly, “What?” 

Han Jingnian realized he had lost his composure and quickly regained his senses, “It’s nothing.” 

Three seconds later, he spoke again, “Let’s go home.” 

The assistant was confused again, but before the assistant could respond, Han Jingnian seemed to remember something and added, “To the home where she is.” 

… 

After finishing the spa, it was already one in the morning. 

Xia Wan’an didn’t know how to drive, so Song Youman, who had obtained her driver’s license as an adult, drove her home. 

During the ride, Song Youman drove while multitasking, repeatedly advising Xia Wan’an to break free from the bitter sea of Han Jingnian’s influence. 

After parting ways with Song Youman, Xia Wan’an watched her car disappear from view before entering the elevator. 

It was very late, and the elevator was empty except for Xia Wan’an. In the quiet, narrow space, she stared at the continuously flashing red numbers. Suddenly, she remembered Song Youman’s words, “Break free from the bitter sea of Han Jingnian’s influence.” 

Bitter sea… indeed, it was a bitter sea… secretly liking someone was always painful. As for breaking free… if only that were possible… she wished more than anyone that she wouldn’t like him so much. 

Soon, the elevator arrived at her floor. 

Stepping out of the elevator, Xia Wan’an swiftly entered her password, pushed open the door, and when she instinctively raised her hand to turn on the lights, she noticed that the lights inside were already brightly lit. 

She remembered turning off the lights. 

Xia Wan’an was momentarily stunned, lowered her head, and saw a pair of black shoes placed in front of the entrance shoe cabinet. 

Those shoes looked familiar, they were the same ones Han Jingnian had worn tonight… 

So, he had come back? 

In the midst of Xia Wan’an’s confusion, the study door was pushed open, and Han Jingnian, still in the suit he had worn that night, walked out. 

Seeing Han Jingnian suddenly, Xia Wan’an felt slightly disoriented. To hide her unease, she subconsciously spoke, “Why did you come back?” 

As her words left her mouth, Xia Wan’an keenly caught the slight furrowing of Han Jingnian’s brows. Only then did she realize she had misspoken. 

This was his home, so why couldn’t he come back.

Thinking quickly, Xia Wan’an hurriedly continued speaking, “I mean, I thought you had plans and wouldn’t come back. That’s why I was a bit surprised.” 

Her voice was warm and gentle, no different from usual. She managed to conceal any hint of her emotions, but deep inside, when she mentioned the words “plans,” a strong sense of bitterness and a faint pang of pain welled up. 

Han Jingnian didn’t immediately reply. He gazed at Xia Wan’an with deep, pitch-black eyes, making it impossible to discern what he was thinking. Yet, his eyes carried a piercing intensity, as if they could see through one’s soul. 

However, within the brief span of about ten seconds, Xia Wan’an lowered her head, avoiding Han Jingnian’s gaze. 

She was about to come up with an excuse to cover up the awkwardness when she realized she hadn’t spoken yet. But before she could say anything, he, standing not far away, coolly said, “Hand me the documents.” 

Hearing this, Xia Wan’an noticed that he was holding a folder in his hand. 

So, he had come back just to retrieve something. Thankfully, she hadn’t let her mind wander too much when she saw him at home.

Xia Wan’an was tempted to ask him, “Are you leaving again?” 

But when the words reached her lips, she held them back. 

Between him and her… it seemed that they weren’t familiar enough for her to have the right to ask about his whereabouts.

Xia Wan’an pondered quietly for a moment, adopting an indifferent appearance. She nodded slightly and said, “Oh,” then pointed towards the bedroom door, adding, “I’ll go in first,” without waiting for him to respond. She hurriedly slipped into the bedroom. 

After closing the door, Xia Wan’an leaned against it, holding her rapidly thumping heart for quite a while before calming down. 

Outside the door, it was very quiet. She listened carefully for a while but didn’t hear any sound. 

She thought he might have already left. In this spacious house, she was once again alone.

She stood by the door for a moment before collecting her emotions and walking towards the changing room. 

Having already bathed and taken care of her skin at the spa, Xia Wan’an changed into her pajamas and collapsed onto the bed. 

Perhaps because she had bumped into him tonight, and he had returned home immediately afterward, even though she hadn’t really thought much in her mind, her heart was still in disarray. So she tossed and turned for a while before finally managing to fall asleep. 

Even though she had fallen asleep, her sleep was restless. Her dreams were filled with a recurring scene: a fifteen-year-old her wearing a beautiful dress her mother had brought back from Hong Kong, going to see Han Zhijin. 

On that day, she, Han Zhijin, and Song Youman had planned to go watch a movie together. When she rushed into the gates of the Han residence, she saw a black car parked in the courtyard. 

Assuming it was the same car the Han family’s driver used to chauffeur Han Zhijin, she didn’t hesitate to run over to open the door. She struggled for a while, but the door didn’t budge. 

Half-jokingly, half-annoyed, she began to shout, “Han Zhijin, open the door! If you keep this up, I’ll get angry. Let me tell you, if I really get mad, even if you call my dad, I won’t forgive you…” 

Before she could finish speaking, the car window in front of her rolled down, revealing a face similar to Han Zhijin’s but slightly older. That face was much more refined and perfect than Han Zhijin’s, who was hailed as a school heartthrob. 

She stared at that face in a daze, then, after three seconds, remembered what she had just said and felt her face turn red. 

She had the typical outgoing personality, and when speaking to people she was familiar with, she had no reservations. But when facing strangers, she still felt somewhat embarrassed. 

Thankfully, Han Zhijin quickly appeared and came to her rescue, “This is my cousin, three years older than me. Cousin, this is Wan’an, my classmate.” 

Inside the car, his expression didn’t change much. He didn’t even look at her, just nodded slightly towards Han Zhijin and casually remarked, “I thought he had a new dad.” 

With one sentence, Xia Wan’an felt even more embarrassed and couldn’t lift her head. 

Han Zhijin quickly defended her, “Cousin, don’t be like that. Wan’an is a bit shy…” 

“Oh.” he responded and then looked at Xia Wan’an. 

It was the first time Xia Wan’an had seen his eyes, and they were truly beautiful. So beautiful that it made her heart race and her hands tremble. She forgot how she had left Han Zhijin’s home.

It wasn’t until later, when she and Han Zhijin were close to the movie theater, that she managed to regain her composure. On that day, he was wearing a white T-shirt. For some inexplicable reason, she uttered a sentence in her mind: “Who’s the youth in white clothes?” Could he be her youth in white? 

As time went on, she eventually married him. Had she fulfilled the dream she had back then? 

As she dreamt, Xia Wan’an started feeling something was off. She felt someone vigorously devouring her skin, and the pain made her furrow her brows. Then, she was pulled out of her slumber. Before she could open her eyes, she felt a strong force.

Note from No touchy-touchy:
Zhup, guys. This your translator, No touchy-touchy. This is a new novel I picked up, hope you guys like it.
This is my schedule for posting(link) in case you want to stay updated to the novel. I will be posting 3x a week (but can be subject to change).
If you want to support this poor translator, you can avail to my patreon(link) (and get some advanced chapters!) or buy me some ko-fi. ehe.

As a form of thanks, I will be posting 1 extra chapter for every $3 met. Yeya!
Anyway… hope you like the story. Kaching.