Chapter 29

Zhu Xinyue, who had just had a "beautiful dream," was awakened by the sunlight.
She slowly opened her eyes, and the sunlight flooded her vision. She froze for a moment, placing her hand in front of her eyes. Her slender fingers, with their distinct and delicate contours, allowed her to peer through the gaps between them. It seemed she could see the man sitting in the accompanying chair, resting his head on one hand, eyes closed as he dozed.
Could she really see?!
Wow! Yesterday’s beautiful dream had come true!
Suppressing her joy, Zhu Xinyue squeezed her eyes shut tightly, then opened them again to confirm whether she truly had regained her sight.
Close her eyes, open them again, the man with his eyes shut was still there.
Although her vision hadn’t fully returned to normal levels and wasn’t perfectly clear, it was still much better than her previous severe nearsightedness. Zhu Xinyue recognized Ji Linyu at a glance.
Had he returned to the hospital early in the morning after going home last night? He was so exhausted he’d fallen asleep...
Touched, Zhu Xinyue quietly got out of bed, careful not to disturb the man in the chair, and went to the bathroom to freshen up.
She didn’t notice that the moment she woke, Ji Linyu’s eyelashes fluttered briefly before settling back into stillness.
In the bathroom, Zhu Xinyue changed her clothes and tidied her appearance in the mirror.
Although she hadn’t been able to see these past few days, her overall health was fine. Even without makeup, she didn’t look haggard, just a bit too pale.
She wet her hands and smoothed down the strands of hair that had stuck up from sleep.
She had slept so well last night, all thanks to that wonderful dream. The moment she recalled the scenes from the dream, her cheeks flushed with heat. She quickly pressed her cool hands against them to cool down.
If only that were real too...
Biting her lower lip, Zhu Xinyue saw her flushed reflection in the mirror, then lowered her head and splashed cold water on her face.
Calm down.
She needed to think about how to tell Ji Linyu that she had regained her sight.
Leaning on the sink, Zhu Xinyue remembered what Ji Linyu had once said to her: "I won’t leave you until your eyes are better."
Hiss... Now that her eyes were better, did that mean he would leave her?
The thought felt like a bucket of cold water, dousing the excitement she had felt just moments before.
With heavy steps, she walked out of the bathroom and approached Ji Linyu, who was sitting by the window.
Only the two of them were in the hospital room. The sunlight was bright, but the curtain behind him was half-drawn, shielding the upper half of his body from the glare.
Zhu Xinyue’s footsteps grew lighter as she drew closer, until she stood right in front of him.
The man sat with his legs crossed, his proportions perfect, relaxed against the chair as if asleep. He resembled a statue placed in an art gallery for admiration, completely unguarded against her.
Zhu Xinyue leaned in toward him, bracing one hand on the armrest of the chair.
They were so close that she could count his eyelashes.
From their very first meeting, Zhu Xinyue had felt that Ji Linyu perfectly embodied her aesthetic preferences.
His features were deep and defined, with a tall, straight nose bridge. Up close, she noticed a tiny mole on the bridge of his nose, a flaw placed so perfectly it seemed like the finishing touch on a masterpiece.
His lips were exceptionally well-shaped, colored like strawberry jelly, a stark contrast to his usual expressionless coolness.
The ever-serious Boss Ji had lips that looked incredibly kissable.
Zhu Xinyue was debating whether she should sneak a kiss while he was asleep.
But that wouldn’t be right, it would be too much like harassment.
Reality and dreams had to be kept separate. She could afford to be bold in her dreams, but in reality, she was too timid to act.
Just as she was about to pull away, his eyelashes fluttered, and she unexpectedly met a pair of dark eyes, clear and wide awake, with no trace of sleepiness.
She froze in place as if he had cast a spell on her, unable to move, even forgetting to breathe.
A slight smile tugged at the corner of Ji Linyu’s lips as he watched her calmly, waiting for an explanation.
Thinking quickly, Zhu Xinyue summoned her best acting skills. She blinked, letting her eyes go vacant, and began playing the part of a blind person, naturally pushing herself up from the sofa armrest.
Ji Linyu narrowed his eyes, his gaze fixed on her as if trying to determine whether she was truly blind or just pretending.
Zhu Xinyue kept her gaze unfocused. As she stepped back, she stumbled over something, lost her balance, and pitched forward. Her knee bumped against his, and she tumbled right into Ji Linyu’s arms.
His pleasant scent instantly enveloped her.
It was like the fragrance of fresh greenery carried on a spring breeze.
“...Ji, Ji Linyu, is that you?” she asked, staying true to her blind persona as she stared blankly at the button on his collar.
“Mm.” His tone gave nothing away.
Feeling guilty, Zhu Xinyue whispered, “I didn’t do it on purpose.”
Ji Linyu held her shoulders and gently pushed her away, but his eyes never left hers.
Zhu Xinyue didn’t dare meet his gaze, afraid she’d break character.
His voice came from above her: “I did it on purpose.”
Huh?
Zhu Xinyue almost looked up at him but managed to restrain herself. Digging her nails into her palm, she pushed herself up using the nearby chair armrest.
Ji Linyu watched as she avoided his arm and accurately found the chair armrest, letting out a faint, ambiguous chuckle.
Zhu Xinyue missed his smile, still puzzling over what he had meant by his earlier words.
“How are your eyes feeling today?” Ji Linyu asked.
Zhu Xinyue detected something unusual in his tone and answered cautiously, “The same as before.”
“Before” referred to before she went blind. It wasn’t exactly a lie.
Ji Linyu was almost amused by her audacity.
Just one night, and she was already acting like a stranger.
Fine. Very well.
Zhu Xinyue noticed his laptop and some work documents on the table, guessing that he had brought his work to the hospital to take care of her. The hospital was quite far from both the Jin Huan Group headquarters and Lishan, so it must have been exhausting for him to commute between the two places.
"Since the hospital can't find anything wrong anyway, why don't we go back to Lishan?" Zhu Xinyue asked.
Ji Linyu saw that she intended to keep pretending to be oblivious and felt both angry and helpless.
But he deserved it, who told him to kiss her back when she wasn't fully conscious?
"Alright." Ji Linyu stood up and walked over to her side.
Zhu Xinyue instinctively grabbed his arm, just as she had when he guided her before.
Ji Linyu paused for a moment, looking down at the young woman before him, she seemed perfectly fine everywhere except for the fact that she refused to meet his eyes, and she was putting on quite the act.
"There's... there's a draft," Zhu Xinyue said, immediately regretting her clumsy excuse. Would he see through it? She thought her acting was decent, after all, she was practically an actress now.
Ji Linyu raised an eyebrow, turned around, and faced her directly.
The movement made it awkward for Zhu Xinyue to continue holding his arm, so she let her hand drop. She resolved not to touch him again on her own initiative, or he would surely see through her act.
She lowered her gaze and saw him extend his hand, then...
He took her hand in his.
"This is more convenient, don't you think?" he asked.
Zhu Xinyue’s mind exploded with dazzling fireworks. Her heart raced, thumping so hard it felt like it might leap out of her throat.
His palm was warm, a stark contrast to her own hand, which was still cool from having been in water. The heat was almost scalding, as if it could set her ablaze.
A tingling sensation spread from her fingertips where they touched him. Unconsciously, she curled her fingers, hooking them with his.
"...It's fine," Zhu Xinyue murmured, biting her lower lip to suppress the smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
A flicker of amusement shone in Ji Linyu's eyes, as if he had discovered something delightful. He boldly interlaced his fingers with hers, pressing their palms together, taking it a step further by locking their hands in a tight clasp.
Zhu Xinyue drew a soft, sharp breath and held it.
Gosh, she was holding hands with Ji Linyu!
Fingers interlaced and everything!
Ji Linyu led her by the hand to the sofa in the living room, had her sit down, then stood up and walked toward the shoe cabinet to find her outdoor shoes.
While his back was turned, Zhu Xinyue secretly pinched her own cheek.
Ouch, it hurt, so this wasn’t a dream!
As Ji Linyu stood up, he caught her action in the reflective glass and couldn’t help but chuckle.
Silly, but kind of cute.
On the way back from the hospital to Lishan, Zhu Xinyue was determined to keep up the act until the very end. As long as her acting was convincing enough, she could pull it off. Then, when she "woke up" tomorrow, she could tell Ji Linyu she could see again. He would surely be happy for her and wouldn’t dwell on anything else.
Zhu Xinyue mentally rehearsed her plan.
The car slowly entered the villa's underground parking garage. After it came to a stop, the bodyguard opened the car door on Zhu Xinyue's side.
Zhu Xinyue was about to move but restrained herself.
She can't see, she can't see.
Ji Linyu noticed from the corner of his eye that she shifted forward slightly when the door opened. He curved his lips into a smile, got out of the car, and walked around to her side.
Zhu Xinyue stared straight ahead, quietly waiting for Ji Linyu to come and take her hand.
The light outside the car was blocked by someone, casting a shadow over her. As his presence drew closer, Zhu Xinyue grew so nervous she forgot to breathe.
The next moment, she suddenly felt weightless.
Ji Linyu slipped one arm behind her knees and the other around her back, effortlessly lifting her out of the car.
Zhu Xinyue was stunned, her eyes widening as she turned to stare at Ji Linyu. She noticed his Adam's apple bob slightly, then quickly lowered her gaze, forcing herself to appear calm.
"The chassis is a bit high. I was afraid you wouldn't be able to see," Ji Linyu easily found an excuse for his actions, after all, she was the one who started pretending first.
"O-okay... thank you," Zhu Xinyue clutched his shirt.
To maintain her lie, no matter how absurd the reason, as long as it was based on the premise that "she couldn't see," she would accept it.
Ji Linyu carried Zhu Xinyue out of the car and steadily set her down on the ground.
It's better to take things step by step, no need to push her too hard.
Ji Linyu glanced at her slightly reddened earlobes, then took her hand and led her toward the elevator.
Zhu Xinyue secretly peeked at Ji Linyu beside her before looking away, lowering her eyes to their interlocked fingers.
His hand is so big.
The elevator stopped on the second floor.
Zhu Xinyue thought Ji Linyu would take her back to her room, but he held her hand and walked past her room, past Ji Qingyuan's room, and continued forward.
Huh? Where are we going? Just as Zhu Xinyue was wondering, Ji Linyu stopped, right in front of his own room.
Ji Linyu looked down at Zhu Xinyue. She knew he was watching her and that he had stopped in front of his room, but she still said nothing.
Are you going to keep pretending?
Ji Linyu turned the doorknob and noticed the hand holding hers tightened slightly.
The air grew still for a moment.
Ji Linyu glanced back at her. Seeing no reaction, only that her blinking had quickened slightly, it seemed she was determined to keep up the act to the very end.
"I have to go to the company later for a morning meeting," he said, so she could rest assured.
Hearing this, Zhu Xinyue didn't know whether to feel relieved or disappointed.
Ji Linyu pushed open the door to his room, led her into the dimly lit space, and guided her to the sofa by the floor-to-ceiling window. "Wait here for a moment," he said.
Then he walked toward the adjacent walk-in closet.
This was Zhu Xinyue's first time entering Ji Linyu's room. The decor, much like the man himself, was clean and warm. The entire room was filled with his scent, a fresh, botanical fragrance.
Beside the sofa where she sat was a small, stylishly designed round table with two financial magazines and a few small decorative items on it.
Zhu Xinyue wasn't interested in the financial magazine, but she noticed the small ornament on the table, a preserved flower encased under a glass dome.
The flower looked familiar, like the one she had picked up from the ground while following Ji Linyu down the stairs in Country Y. It was a peach-pink blossom, though she didn’t know its name.
While still studying the ornament, Zhu Xinyue suddenly heard a noise from the closet. She immediately straightened her posture and looked ahead, but her attention was inevitably drawn toward the source of the sound.
When they had entered the room earlier, they hadn’t turned on the lights. The curtains were half-drawn, and a rectangular beam of sunlight fell across the round table beside Zhu Xinyue. The room’s furnishings were only dimly visible in that faint light. But when the walk-in closet opposite the foot of the bed lit up, nearly all the light in the room converged there, instantly capturing her gaze.
Zhu Xinyue looked toward the walk-in closet and couldn’t tear her eyes away.
Ji Linyu had his back to her as he changed clothes. With his movements, warm light and dark shadows shifted across his broad back. His cool-toned skin and firm muscles were sharply defined, with light and shadow flowing like rivers over his body, revealing his physique in full detail.
She couldn’t help but imagine how incredible it would feel to touch.
Her breathing slowed as her gaze traced the shadowed groove along his back upward…
Only to find Ji Linyu, now fully dressed in trousers, turning around to face her.
Their eyes met, and it was too late for her to look away.
Ji Linyu looked at her with a faint, teasing smile, his tone both seductive and inviting as he asked:
“Want to touch?”