Before Shi Su could speak, and before the neighbors disturbed by her knocking could open their door, Jing Jihan abruptly pulled the unsteady woman swaying at the door inside his place. Shi Su was caught off guard and stumbled in. As the door closed, she fell into his chest, her head resting against it momentarily before she quickly pulled away, straightened up, and looked up again at the tall, commanding man, staring at him, glaring at him. The woman reeked of alcohol—a clear sign she had drunk quite a bit. Jing Jihan’s brows furrowed coldly: "You’ve been drinking?" Shi Su continued to stare at him, and after a few dozen seconds, she burped in his face without restraint. Facing the instantly dark cloud of his cold expression, Shi Su merely let out a vague smile, then attempted to brush past him to head inside. But just as she was about to move past him, her arm was suddenly gripped tight, and she was pulled back again by the man. She nearly lost her balance again, leaning back on the door as she looked up at him blankly: "What are you doing?" "Shoes." The man stood under the light, his voice deep and cool. Shi Su was momentarily stunned, then quickly looked down, only to realize she hadn’t taken off her shoes yet. She chuckled lightly, removed her shoes, and put on indoor slippers. As she passed by him again, she instinctively raised her hand to pat his shoulder in thanks for opening the door when she had returned without keys. But as her hand rose, before she could touch his shoulder, she hesitated, thought about something, lowered her hand, and headed straight for the sofa. Jing Jihan noticed her abrupt pause, stood in place for a moment without moving. Shi Su collapsed onto the sofa, leaning back as if exhausted, closed her eyes briefly, then opened them again, staring unblinkingly at the ceiling lights, seemingly unbothered by their brightness. She watched, and suddenly the man’s figure appeared in her line of sight. Shi Su blinked slowly, then grinned at him. After smiling, she rolled her eyes at him like a madwoman and sat up straight on the sofa, no longer looking at him. Too lazy to deal with a drunk, Jing Jihan asked, "Do you have any sobering tea at home?" Shi Su still ignored him, suddenly lowering her head and burying it into the gap between the sofa back and a pillow, as if trying to block out all sound, curling up there. Jing Jihan picked up the pillow. Shi Su remained half-slumped on the sofa, raised her hand to futilely grab at the air: "I’m not drunk, I don’t need sobering tea, give it back!" Jing Jihan not only didn’t give it back, he threw the pillow heavily onto the opposite sofa, and was about to help her sit up when Shi Su suddenly forcefully tried to shake off his hand, struggling: "Go away!" "Don’t be silly, you drank so much, do you want to wake up with a headache tomorrow?" Jing Jihan pressed down her madly resisting hand. Shi Su struggled a few more times but couldn’t break free, suddenly tilting her face up, glaring at him, cursing without restraint: "Bastard!" Confronted with her gaze, Jing Jihan’s stern brows twitched, not expecting to be insulted out of nowhere. "You!" Shi Su couldn’t shake him off. Both her hands were firmly held by his powerful grip, so she just stared at him: "You..." Just about to speak, a surge of nausea hit her stomach, and instinctively she retched, desperately trying to free her hands and then looking at him with a pained, pleading expression. Seeing she was about to vomit, Jing Jihan just released one of her hands, preparing to help her to the bathroom. Shi Su quickly pointed to her mouth, realizing her other hand was still held, panicked, and suddenly turned her head and bit into the back of his hand. She bit hard, without any restraint, and Jing Jihan immediately let go of her wrist. Shi Su swiftly turned and ran into the master bathroom, lifting the toilet lid to retch violently, vomiting nothing but alcohol—only alcohol. Jing Jihan looked at the clear teeth marks on his hand, unable to respond. In the bathroom, Shi Su retched as if the world was spinning. Ignoring the slight blood and the harsh mark on his hand, Jing Jihan texted Lu Zhao, who was nearby in the neighborhood. Lu Zhao acted quickly, arriving with sobering tea five minutes later. "Mr. Jing, do you need anything else?" Lu Zhao asked before the door closed. Jing Jihan paused for a moment, tossed out in a cool tone: "Find out where Shi Su went tonight, and why she drank so much." With that, he shut the door. Shi Su had vomited most of it out, drunk to the point she could smell the unpleasant odor on herself, wrinkling her nose with disdain, she rushed into the bedroom’s bathroom. Jing Jihan brought the sobering tea inside, boiled some water to mix it. The sound of water splashing in the bathroom was accompanied by the tea cooling down as time passed. Shi Su was still in there, not having finished, and hadn’t come out. Discover more novels at novel⸺fire.net Another seven or eight minutes went by, over half an hour since Shi Su entered the bathroom. Jing Jihan returned to the master bedroom, hearing the continued sound of the shower, but no other noise. He knocked on the door: "Come out and drink the sobering tea before you sleep." The only response was the sound of water. Jing Jihan hesitated for two seconds, then opened the door. Upon entering, he saw Shi Su had already showered, changed clothes, and fallen asleep sitting on the dressing bench, leaning against the wall. The bathroom divider shower was left running, water spilling out. Amidst the chaos, she slept peacefully leaned against the wall, occasionally smacking her lips, her half-wet hair draped over her shoulder, some strands tangled around her neck. Shi Su uncomfortably scratched her neck, the heat left her sensitive skin marked with red streaks. Uncomfortable leaning against the corner, Shi Su shifted her head, her body tilting down. Jing Jihan entered, turned off the shower, and caught her exactly as she was about to fall. As soon as Shi Su’s head rested against his chest, she happily nuzzled against it, wrapping her arm around his neck, finding a more comfortable position, closed her eyes, and continued sleeping. The bathroom was too humid, and Shi Su’s hair was still wet. Sleeping here was not a good idea. Jing Jihan picked her up, carried her out of the bathroom, placed her on the master bedroom’s bed, and then left to get the sobering tea. But in the blink of an eye, Shi Su suddenly rose from the bed, her half-wet hair trailing ghost-like as she followed him wherever he went.