When Zhou Ying came in, Jiang Cheng was no longer in the room.
Looking at the swelling and blisters on the inside of Zhong Chuxi's thighs,
Zhou Ying was a bit puzzled.
"How on earth did you get this?? I see your wounds while dancing every day, and I don't quite get how you fell; it looks a bit like it was rubbed raw."
Hearing this, Zhong Chuxi resentfully took the ointment and applied it haphazardly.
It was indeed rubbed raw from being squeezed tight.
"I don't know either, the alcohol was getting to my head at the time..."
Seeing that Zhong Chuxi was unwilling to talk more about it, Zhou Ying didn't ask further.
She smiled and walked over to the side table to start stretching.
She privately thought that Zhong Chuxi might find the location of the injury embarrassing, which was why she didn't want to say more.
After Zhou Ying left the room, Zhong Chuxi sat alone by the bed, her fingers unconsciously stroking the red marks on her inner thighs.
"This is crazy..." she muttered under her breath, Jiang Cheng's hot breath in the utility room flashing through her mind again.
Suddenly, the sound of a piano drifted up from downstairs; it was Chopin's 'Nocturne.'
Zhong Chuxi froze for a moment, then tiptoed to the hallway railing.
In the hall, the crystal chandelier had been dimmed.
Only a beam of warm yellow light remained above the piano.
It spilled over the black and white keys, creating a hazy and romantic atmosphere.
Zhou Ying sat upright on the piano bench, her slender back straight as her fingers flew across the black and white keys.
She wasn't wearing a jacket, and her high school uniform outlined the elegant lines of her shoulders and neck.
As she swayed slightly with the melody, her hair shimmered like satin under the light.
Jiang Cheng appeared at the corner of the stairs at some point.
Holding a glass of red wine, his gaze was focused intently on Zhou Ying.
Zhong Chuxi instinctively shrank back into the shadows.
Seeing Zhou Ying, only one sentence popped into Zhong Chuxi's mind.
Sigh, I finally understand what that line from overbearing CEO novels—'You can't even compare to a single strand of her hair'—actually means.
What woman... no, what man wouldn't love a stunner like Zhou Ying?
The piano music stopped abruptly.
"The modulation in the third measure was half a beat slow." Jiang Cheng walked down the stairs and set his wine glass on the piano.
Zhou Ying looked up, the light casting small shadows under her eyelashes. "Your ears are that sharp?"
"Only for you." Jiang Cheng sat down beside her naturally, making the piano bench feel crowded instantly.
His right hand reached past Zhou Ying to the treble keys. "Let's play together."
"Sure, I've wanted to play with you ever since we played at Steinway last time."
After saying that, Zhou Ying added, "Oh right, and that girl named Annie; whenever I think of her, I find her so cute."
Hearing this, Jiang Cheng said, "That naughty child even invited me to go to the amusement park the day after tomorrow."
Speaking of Annie, Zhou Ying naturally thought of An Xin as well.
Last time at Steinway, although she had acted very calm,
In reality, Zhou Ying felt a natural sense of crisis regarding An Xin.
She couldn't even explain how this inexplicable feeling had arisen.
It had simply formed naturally the moment she first saw her.
It wasn't just because of An Xin's stunning looks, but also her innate noble temperament.
The slight hormonal competition between women made Zhou Ying care a bit every time she thought of her.
Seeing that Zhou Ying was a bit distracted, Jiang Cheng's long fingers pressed down on the keys.
His other hand slid around Zhou Ying's waist.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing, I just remembered something about going to the amusement park when I was a kid."
Zhong Chuxi saw the tips of Zhou Ying's ears turn red instantly.
But her handwork didn't falter at all; instead, she followed Jiang Cheng's rhythm and played more and more fluently.
Two pairs of hands intertwined on the keys like an intimate dance.
As Jiang Cheng's lips brushed against Zhou Ying's earlobe, a magnificent chord happened to land.
"Concentrate," he chuckled softly.
Zhou Ying suddenly took charge, her left hand pinning down Jiang Cheng's hand that was about to cause trouble, while her right hand sped up into a flashy variation.
The music was like a torrential downpour until the final note burst forth.
"How was that?" Jiang Cheng asked.
"To be honest, your level is top-tier among ordinary people, but at our school, it's only considered average."
"Whoa." Jiang Cheng was about to speak.
Then came the sound of someone walking down the stairs.
The three of them made eye contact.
"I... I'm going back."
Hearing this, Zhou Ying stood up and walked over to Zhong Chuxi's side.
She leaned in suspiciously and suddenly reached out to pinch her face.
"Where are you going in the middle of the night?"
Zhong Chuxi tilted her head. "What do you mean where? Home. It's almost 9 o'clock."
"That's not right. Why are you touching up your makeup just to go home? Did the sun rise in the west?" Zhou Ying raised an eyebrow and continued, "When you came earlier, you said you were going to dominate with a bare face, so what's with the bright red lipstick now?"
At this, Zhong Chuxi suddenly felt a bit guilty.
After darting a quick glance at Jiang Cheng, she spoke rapidly and guiltily.
"I'm taking a taxi later. What if I run into a Handsome Guy? Shouldn't I look a bit more refined?"
Jiang Cheng spoke up, "Why don't you just stay here for the night? It's getting late, and a taxi ride back would probably take over an hour."
After Jiang Cheng said this, Zhou Ying spoke.
"Yeah, just let your mom know and stay here tonight. You can head back tomorrow."
Looking at her stockings that weren't dry yet, Zhong Chuxi immediately shook her head.
She knew exactly how much the flower had bloomed.
Otherwise, it wouldn't be so wet.
If she stayed, and if another accident happened,
She really couldn't guarantee she'd be able to hold back again.
"No need, it's just a bit of scraped skin, no big deal," Zhong Chuxi replied awkwardly.
Jiang Cheng said, "Don't worry, with Zhou Ying here, you're absolutely safe."
Jiang Cheng's words had a double meaning.
To Zhou Ying's ears, Jiang Cheng was implying—just like during their bickering earlier—that Zhong Chuxi's charm wasn't as high as hers.
While Zhong Chuxi understood it as: with Zhou Ying around, I won't have a chance to touch you.
Zhou Ying said to Jiang Cheng, "Chuxi likely doesn't care about what you're saying."
Seeing this, Zhong Chuxi quickly chimed in, "Exactly, Zhou Ying, don't let him drive a wedge between us. This man is probably just jealous because he sees how close we are! Let me tell you, we're so close we can even sleep in the same room! So, Big Boss, you'd better watch out!"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Cheng's eyes widened, and he looked at Zhong Chuxi in disbelief.
He said, "Sleep in the same room?? I told you when I arrived, I'm a petty and 'long-chickened' person who's good at 'chicken-stirring.' Zhou Ying is sleeping in the same room as me tonight, and you want to sleep with her too? Rounded up, doesn't that mean you want to sleep with me as well?"
Originally, Zhong Chuxi was a bit shy and hesitant.
But hearing Jiang Cheng say that,
She immediately couldn't hold back.
When she bickered with Jiang Cheng before, she didn't understand the subtext.
But now, thinking about it, the word had already become concrete in her mind.
Her face turned bright red instantly.
"One room? In your dreams! I'll spray you to death..."
"Spraying again??"
At first glance, there was nothing wrong with Jiang Cheng's words.
But for Zhong Chuxi, who had just'sprayed' once, it was like walking into a minefield.
After shooting Jiang Cheng a look, she huffed and complained to Zhou Ying, "Zhou Ying, look at him~~"
Zhou Ying covered her mouth and laughed. "I said, I'm not getting involved in your business. Handle it yourselves."
Zhou Ying had said this more than once.
It made Jiang Cheng want to open Bihu and ask,
"My girlfriend always says she doesn't care about what happens between me and her best friend, what does that actually mean?"
At 11 PM, the sound of the piano downstairs was still continuing.
Thinking about the scene she just saw of Jiang Cheng and Zhou Ying's duet, Zhong Chuxi finally understood why Zhou Ying pushed forward every day without fail.
In her eyes, Jiang Cheng doted on her so much.
A mansion worth tens of millions, luxury cars worth millions.
Transfers of millions at the drop of a hat.
With all this, Zhou Ying was no longer of the ordinary class.
She could actually choose to just 'lie flat' whenever she wanted.
But this Jiang Cheng was just too outstanding.
If she had a boyfriend like this, she'd probably be so stressed every day she wouldn't be able to sleep.
Seeing that the Nocturne downstairs stopped halfway, Zhong Chuxi curiously pricked up her ears to listen to the movement.
"Why didn't they finish?" she muttered to herself, while straining her ears to listen carefully to the sounds from below.
"What are they doing?? Given Zhou Ying's personality, she wouldn't just stop halfway??"
Suddenly, a thought flashed through Zhong Chuxi's mind.
"They wouldn't be... doing that down there, would they?"
The thought made her face flush bright red instantly, and she quickly shook her head. "Hmm? No way..."
Lying on this soft, large bed,
Zhong Chuxi's thoughts began to run wild like a runaway horse.
All sorts of strange ideas flashed through her mind.
Her usual personality was carefree, and she could quickly adapt to any environment.
She rarely had trouble sleeping in a new bed.
However, at this moment, she was tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep no matter what.
Sigh... No, I can't be like this...