Savage Kiss - Chapter 12

Xu Qingyi heard the knocking and hesitated for a moment before taking a deep breath and opening the door, afraid he’d keep knocking if she didn’t.

She didn’t let him in, speaking instead from the doorway. “What is it?”

Shen Yanzhou’s gaze swept over her indifferently. It was clear she hadn’t changed her clothes.

But he wasn’t sure if Shi Qing had come back with her.

“Anything that needs fixing?” he suddenly asked.

Xu Qingyi looked baffled, then slightly uncomfortable as she recalled the previous incident. “No!”

Shen Yanzhou nodded, glancing down at his phone. “Oh, it’s Unit 601 in the other building. Wrong door.”

He slipped his phone back into his pocket naturally and looked at her again.

“You didn’t reply to my messages. Thought you’d been kidnapped. Also worried those guys from last time might come after you.”

Xu Qingyi: “…”

She hadn’t forgotten about Zhang Jinsi, but since nothing had happened for so long, she figured it was over.

At the mention of it, she had nothing to thank him for, so she simply said, “Thanks. I’m fine.”

The corner of Shen Yanzhou’s mouth lifted slightly.

“Don’t overthink it. I wasn’t concerned about you.”

His tone was indifferent. “Just heard about a few cases lately where girls got hurt or even went missing because they were out having fun. If something happened to you, and given that I’ve interacted with you a few times recently, I’d easily become a suspect.”

Xu Qingyi was momentarily speechless. She couldn’t find fault with his logic.

His voice was still pleasant, but was he implying she had a messy private life and liked to fool around? Did he think she’d sleep with Shi Qing tonight?

“You’re overthinking it too,” she retorted, slightly annoyed. “Nothing will happen to me.”

Xu Qingyi was about to close the door but paused, glancing at him again. “Do me a favor and forget I live here. I don’t like visitors.”

Last time, she’d mistaken him for a repairman and let him know her unit number. It wasn’t like she could move over this.

Shen Yanzhou reached out and braced the door, watching her through the narrow gap.

He seemed to want to say something but just stared at her silently.

Xu Qingyi frowned slightly.

Last time, when he rejected her, he’d seemed to look down on her, even despise her. So why was he actively seeking her out tonight?

“Anything else?” she asked.

Shen Yanzhou pressed his lips together slightly, lowering his gaze to study her for a long moment.

Finally, he spoke. “At your age, it’s normal to like making friends. But your methods…”

“You won’t always be lucky enough to run into someone as clean as me.”

Xu Qingyi raised a brow. So, the label he’d slapped on her wasn’t coming off. “And?”

Shen Yanzhou could tell she wasn’t pleased and softened his tone slightly. “I’m not saying you’re loose.”

Xu Qingyi finally met his eyes. “Have you been drinking?”

Was that why he’d forgotten how he’d said last time that he wouldn’t entertain her? And why these recent encounters made it seem like she’d wronged him?

Shen Yanzhou held her gaze for a long moment before taking a slight step back. “I need to talk to you about something.”

Getting to the point would prove he wasn’t here spouting nonsense under the influence.

Xu Qingyi nodded, waiting for him to continue.

“Tomorrow, several cars need to be delivered from the repair shop. Come by when you’re free, I’ll transfer the payment via WeChat. The platform takes a cut, but I’ll cover that part too.”

Xu Qingyi had originally planned to work on her modeling project the next couple of days.

“I’ll come after 3 p.m.”

Shen Yanzhou nodded. “Call me when you’re on your way.”

She watched him walk to the elevator before closing the door.

After changing into pajamas, washing her hair, and drying it, she went to her small workspace to prepare the materials for her adult toy prototypes.

It wasn’t until bedtime that she noticed the flood of messages from Shi Qing.

[I’m home.]

[Forgot to Ask Your Name]

A few minutes later, he asked her again:

[Is your game ID Qiqi? I’ll add you.]

Xu Qingyi didn’t feel like logging into the game anymore. She’d deal with it another day.

The next day, Xu Qingyi started work in the morning and didn’t step out of her cubicle until three in the afternoon. After tidying up, she headed to the auto repair shop.

She didn’t call Shen Yanzhou. Liang Fanglin was the one who greeted her.

When he heard her reason for coming, Liang Fanglin looked visibly surprised and puzzled, was there a car to deliver today?

But the expression vanished in an instant. Smiling at her, he said, “Then wait here for a bit.”

Liang Fanglin poured her a glass of water before hurrying off to the back workshop to find Shen Yanzhou.

Xu Qingyi hadn’t had a single bite or sip since waking up, so she was genuinely thirsty.

By the time Shen Yanzhou came out, she had only one sip of water left in her cup. His gaze swept over it.

Haven’t eaten?

Feeling a little embarrassed, Xu Qingyi didn’t finish the last sip. She stood up, pushed in the chair, and followed him out.

“I’ll text you the delivery address and owner details,” Shen Yanzhou said as they reached the car. He handed her the keys.

Xu Qingyi’s eyes lit up when she saw it was another luxury car, suddenly, she wasn’t hungry anymore.

Just as she was about to get in, Shen Yanzhou stopped her. “Have you eaten?”

She was about to nod.

“Wait,” he said, then turned and went back inside. Moments later, he returned with a bag and handed it to her.

Xu Qingyi peeked inside, bubble tea and colorful sushi.

She glanced at him, unsure why he suddenly cared.

“Is this your lunch?” she asked. “Then what will you eat?”

Shen Yanzhou casually looped the bag over her wrist, looking disdainful. “Does this look like something a man would eat?”

Liang Fanglin chimed in with a laugh, “Some girl brought it for Brother Zhou! She was desperate for his WeChat but didn’t get it. Bet she’ll be back tomorrow!”

Shen Yanzhou shot him a look.

Liang Fanglin just grinned, he just wanted to point out how popular Brother Zhou was everywhere.

This delivery was into the city, quite a distance. By the time she got back, it’d probably be seven.

Thankfully, Shen Yanzhou had given her food, otherwise, she might’ve passed out from hunger today.

After delivering the car, Shen Yanzhou transferred the payment immediately, making her hesitate again about deleting his WeChat.

If she had to deliver cars for his family in the future, it’d be good money.

She thought about thanking him for the sushi and bringing him a meal when she returned the car tomorrow.

But Shen Yanzhou sidestepped anything unrelated to work, he didn’t reply to a single word outside of business.

That week, Xu Qingyi didn’t have a single free day. Between car deliveries and Mi’s red packets, she’d saved up nearly 10,000 yuan.

When luck strikes, exhaustion just doesn’t register.

In her spare moments, she didn’t idle either, she started browsing for used cars online.

But they were either too expensive or filled with specs she didn’t understand, leaving her clueless about how to choose.

With no one else to ask, she had no choice but to message Shen Yanzhou: [Does your shop sell used cars?]

As usual, Shen Yanzhou didn’t reply.

Scrolling up, she realized that apart from car delivery details and payment transfers, he’d never responded to anything else, exuding an icy aloofness.

Over ten minutes later, her phone finally let out a “ding.”