Chapter 300: I didn't book a room

There was no sound on the phone.

Xia Xi muttered, "Is the signal bad?"

She took the phone away from her ear; the screen showed it was still on a call, not disconnected.

"Xu Yanfeng?" Xia Xi raised the phone to her ear again, "Can you hear me?"

"I can."

Accompanied by the man's amused voice, a particularly noticeable honk sounded.

Xia Xi froze for a moment, sure she hadn't misheard, a little surprised: "Where are you? Still not home this late?"

Xu Yanfeng spoke with a double meaning: "Almost there."

Xia Xi recalled her earlier doubt: "You still haven't told me how you knew it was raining in Londun."

Xu Yanfeng refused to tell the truth, selling her a secret: "Guess."

"I guess your head." Xia Xi said irritably, "If there's nothing else, just hang up; I still need to call a taxi back to the hotel, and soon the rain will get heavy, making taxis hard to get."

"Okay."

"Are you sure you're fine? I feel you're acting weird." Xia Xi frowned, speculating the cause of his odd behavior tonight: "Did you drink too much?"

"……"

At this moment, Xu Yanfeng's silence here became tacit agreement. She was both annoyed and amused: "You don't even know how poor your own alcohol tolerance is? If you can't drink, don't drink; the one who suffers from being drunk is still yourself."

Sitting in Xu Yanfeng's position, if one truly didn't want to touch alcohol, few people would have the nerve to advise against it.

"You're concerned about me?" Xu Yanfeng chuckled, unable to hide his pleasure.

Xia Xi pursed her lips: "I'm worried you won't take good care of Zi Heng."

After exchanging a few casual remarks, Xia Xi thought she really couldn't waste more time, so she hung up the phone.

Xia Xi shoved her phone back into her bag; suddenly, the sound of an approaching car gradually drew near her.

The ground was already soaked; the car tires kicked up splashes, spraying to both sides.

Afraid of getting splashed, Xia Xi instinctively stepped back, only to see the black car happen to stop two meters away from her, its headlights on, illuminating clear raindrops.

The rain fell that urgently, that densely.

The car windows were tinted, so outsiders couldn't see inside; Xia Xi assumed the occupants were customers coming to the restaurant for a meal. She was about to look away when the rear door slid open, and she inadvertently caught a glimpse of the man's profile, so familiar.

This man had just been on the phone with her.

Xia Xi stared, then after two seconds raised her hand and slapped her face; she hadn't drunk alcohol, so there was no possibility of hallucinations from intoxication.

The scene she had fantasized about countless times gradually overlapped with what lay before her: the man opened a black umbrella, stepped out of the car, walked into the rain, and raindrops pattered crisply on the umbrella surface.

Xia Xi blinked hard; the vision before her didn't fade. The man had already walked up to her, his distinctively jointed fingers gripping the umbrella handle, leaning toward her, while his other hand took everything she was holding.

"Are you stupid?" Xu Yanfeng's eyes curved like crescent moons, "Get in the car."

He gathered her shoulders, pulling her into his embrace, shielding her as they walked forward.

Xia Xi was like a marionette, utterly devoid of self-awareness, being led by him into the all-encompassing rain curtain; the noisy rain continued for a brief spell, then upon entering the car, it suddenly grew much quieter.

Afterwards, Xu Yanfeng sat beside her, put away the umbrella, and the car door automatically closed.

The wind and rain were completely shut out.

"Are you cold?" Xu Yanfeng set down the dripping umbrella, turned sideways, and took her hand.

Her hand was cold, so he didn't let go, grasping her other hand as well, holding it tightly.

It was this pressure that brought Xia Xi back to herself; she also slightly turned her body, looking at him, feeling incredulous, her eyes widening: "How did you come here?"

"Why couldn't I come?" Xu Yanfeng laughed, his jet-black eyes becoming scorching bright at that moment.

"Are you here to find me?" Xia Xi's tone uncertain, "Or is it because of work?"

By this point, lying would be pointless; Xu Yanfeng said, "The former."

Xia Xi reacted a beat slower: "The former? Oh, that means he came to find her."

But... why did he come over?

"I'll be going back in three or four days." Xia Xi said, "It hasn't even been a week yet; how did you come to Londun to nab someone?"

Since seeing her, Xu Yanfeng's smile never faded; hearing her question, he laughed even harder, his chest shaking: "Is that not allowed?"

Xia Xi didn't say it wasn't allowed; seeing him, she actually felt quite delighted, as if making up for a past regret—he came to her side on such a rainy day and held an umbrella for her.

This feeling, described merely as "surprise," feels too thin.

She suddenly fell silent; Xu Yanfeng felt a bit unsure, leaning close to her face and whispering, "I came without saying hello—are you angry?"

The car drove toward the hotel; along the way, the neon lights were blurred by rain into a hazy glow. Xia Xi looked up at him, a faint smile on her lips: "Why would I be angry? I'm not."

Xu Yanfeng immediately relaxed.

Xia Xi: "I'm just a little surprised."

Both of her hands were held by him; her icy hands had already taken on the same warmth as his.

Xu Yanfeng said, "I arrived in the evening, waiting for you at the hotel; you didn't come back for a while, I saw it was raining, so I came to find you."

Xia Xi let out an "oh," realizing why he had asked which restaurant she was eating at earlier; plus, a few days before, he'd also asked which hotel she was staying at. Everything left a trail; he likely had harbored the intention to come to Londun to find her for some time, not a spur-of-the-moment idea.

Upon arriving at the hotel, the attendant came to greet them; Xu Yanfeng only asked the attendant to help bring out the items from the car, while personally undertaking the task of holding an umbrella and escorting Xia Xi.

As Xia Xi entered the elevator, she suddenly remembered to ask: "Have you had dinner?"

"You tell me." Xu Yanfeng turned his head to look at her, "I said I'd been waiting for you since evening; I originally wanted to surprise you with a chance encounter at the hotel, but you got busy with work and didn't return, went out shopping, and then even enjoyed a meal by yourself."

Xia Xi felt rather innocent: "You didn't say you were coming either; how would I know?"

The elevator reached the fifteenth floor; the two stepped out.

The soft carpet absorbed the sound of footsteps; all around was quiet.

As Xia Xi swiped her card to open the door, she glanced at the man beside her: "Wait until you've put things away, then go to the hotel restaurant to get something to eat. With such heavy rain, going out isn't convenient either."

"Okay, you keep me company."

"……"

Xia Xi thought for a moment, but didn't say she would refuse.

He came all the way over to find her, and she couldn't bring herself to ignore him.

Entering the room, Xia Xi casually pointed and said, "Just put the things there."

After saying that, she suddenly thought of something, turned to look at Xu Yanfeng: "Which room did you book? Or should we order something to eat in the room? I want to take a shower." Her pant leg was wet in a spot, and she wanted to take off her clothes.

Xu Yanfeng took off his coat; underneath was a pure black shirt, slightly loose, which made his slender frame look even more so. He paused, then told a lie: "I didn't book a room."

Xia Xi: "?"

The air froze; Xia Xi noticed his gaze was directed at the only big bed in the room, immediately guessing what he was thinking. Her face heated, she raised her voice: "Stop it! Can't you see? I didn't book a suite."

"What are you thinking?" Xu Yanfeng's thin lips curled slightly, and he said calmly, "I haven't said anything yet."

Xia Xi: "……"

You didn't say it out loud, but your gaze—even a dog could guess what you mean.

"Aren't you going to take a shower?" Xu Yanfeng raised his eyebrows gently, saying, "Hurry up and go wash, don't catch a cold, I'll wait for you."

He said that quite seriously, but to Xia Xi's ears it wasn't quite that; it inexplicably carried an ambiguous tone. She shook her head, grabbed a set of clothes, and went into the bathroom.

Xu Yanfeng sat down on the sofa; from the moment they met until now, he hadn't dared to ask the question that had been weighing on his mind for days: she said she wanted to make some change in their relationship—what exactly did she mean?

From observation, she seemed not to have the intention of parting ways with him.

Also, it's hard to say for sure.

As long as the object is her, all his self-assured certainty and confidence will fail.