A beautiful summer night

"Brother, do you like Sister Wanzi?" Xie Tan asked as he rolled down the car window on the way to Lanting Villa.

Xie Qiyan focused on driving and ignored her the entire time.

"I really like Sister Wanzi." Xie Tan asked and answered himself.

Xie Qiyan remained unmoved.

"Brother, what do you think of Sister Wanzi?" Xie Tan asked earnestly, resting his chin on his hand.

Every word Xie Tan uttered along the way was related to Xia Wanzhi. Xie Qiyan's mind was forcibly filled with Xia Wanzhi's name, his ears were connected to his brain, and he inexplicably thought of Xia Wanzhi's stubborn face.

I thought of Xia Wanzhi standing alone, lost and anxious, in the rain, looking disheveled.

She shouldn't be like this.

She was a flower in a greenhouse, a little princess showered with love and affection.

She is the eldest daughter of the Xia family, who has been pampered since childhood.

But what does Xia Wanzhi's situation have to do with him?

The image in my mind just won't go away no matter what I do.

The car drove into the underground parking garage of Lanting Villa. Xie Qiyan parked the car, went around to the back seat to open the car door for Xie Tan. The lighting in the underground parking garage was dim, so he offered his hand. He originally wanted to help Xie Tan out, but the child looked like he was about to swallow a watermelon whole, so he withdrew his hand and lifted him out of the car instead.

Xie Tan was in pain from being strangled: "..."

That moment was indeed an illusion.

The elevator went straight to the 27th floor. Xie Tan reached out to enter the password herself, but Xie Qiyan beat her to it.

With a press of the fingerprint sensor, the door lock opened, leaving Xie Tan's hand awkwardly suspended in mid-air.

Xie Qiyan ignored him, pushed open the door and walked straight in.

The house was occupied, which added a touch of warmth. The kitchen had been used, and you could feel the warmth of cooking. However, the house was very large, and the atmosphere was too quiet.

When the luggage was brought up in the evening, there weren't this many household items here. Perhaps Xia Wanzhi's assistant helped to add a lot of new things.

Xie Qiyan placed the luggage in the storage room. He glanced at it and saw that it hadn't been touched, so they obviously didn't know about it yet.

Lost in thought for a moment, Xie Tan had already left him and gone to Xia Wanzhi's bedroom. A little while later, she ran out to report, "Sister Wanzi is asleep."

Xie Qiyan slightly raised his eyes as a response, then went to the kitchen to boil water.

It's a new house after all, so there are quite a few things missing.

In particular, a water dispenser is missing.

"Brother, could you adjust the air conditioner for me?" Xie Tan ran out of Xia Wanzhi's room after staying there for a while. "Sister Wanzi is very hot."

"Is it hot?" Xie Qiyan ignored the cold water he had just filled and put down the kettle before walking over.

Xie Tan opened the bedroom door wide: "See for yourself."

Xie Qiyan stopped at the door of Xia Wanzhi's bedroom, hesitated for a moment, and then went in.

The bedroom temperature of 28 degrees Celsius was just right, but when Xie Qiyan approached the bed and saw Xia Wanzhi's sweaty forehead, he frowned briefly.

Xia Wanzhi was covered with a blanket, only her small head was showing, her soft hair hanging down on both sides, and her bangs were almost wet with sweat.

She didn't sleep well.

Her delicate eyebrows were almost furrowed together; she looked somewhat pained, as if she were having a nightmare.

Xie Qiyan looked down at her, seemingly lost in thought.

Seeing that he didn't move, Xie Tan said anxiously, "Brother, can you adjust the air conditioner?"

"She'll feel better once she sweats it out." Xie Qiyan didn't lower the temperature, but turned to look at Xie Tan. "Go find a towel, wet it, and wipe her sweat."

Xie Tan immediately accepted the order and left.

Only he and Xia Wanzhi remained in the bedroom.

She seemed trapped in a dream world, wanting to escape but unable to.

His tightly closed eyes twitched slightly, as if he were about to open them at any moment.

But she didn't.

I've never heard Xie Tan mention that she has a habit of sleeping with the lights on. Xie Tan is a polite girl, so she would never see her sleeping with such a bright light on.

She's scared, isn't she?

I was so scared that I didn't dare to turn off the lights to sleep.

Anyone who is treated that way will lose their sense of security.

Xie Qiyan clenched his fist slightly, regretting that he hadn't punched Zhou Yu a few more times.

But for some reason, he felt a sense of relief.

Thankfully, she's alright.

"Brother, a towel." Xie Tan walked in with a wet face towel.

"Wring it dry." Xie Qiyan looked at the still dripping towel with displeasure.

Xie Tan glared at him: "I'll twist it!"

Glancing at Xie Tan's wet clothes, Xie Qiyan didn't scold her this time. He took the towel, went out again, washed and wrung it out before coming back in.

Xie Qiyan didn't even know how to wring a towel, so he didn't intend to place his hopes on her. However, just as the towel in his hand touched Xia Wanzhi's skin, he straightened up again and ordered, "Get out."

Xie Tan walked away cursing, "You still won't let me see..."

Despite saying that, Xie Tan thoughtfully closed the bedroom door.

The room fell silent.

As she slept, Xia Wanzhi seemed to be dreaming about something, and she let out a very soft murmur.

Xie Qiyan leaned forward slightly and wiped the fine sweat from her forehead.

The area covered by her bangs was difficult to wipe, so he gently raised his fingertips, but stopped abruptly just before touching her forehead, as if he was having some internal struggle. After a moment, he gently brushed her hair aside and continued to wipe her sweat slowly.

I gently placed the back of my hand over her forehead, and a slight warmth washed over me.

Xia Wanzhi still has a fever.

His face was pale and his lips were dry.

Xie Qiyan stared at her for a long time.

He couldn't understand his own current emotions.

He opened the door and went out. He returned to the kitchen to boil water. After the water boiled, he added cold water. When he returned to the bedroom, he passed the sofa and saw Xie Tan nestled in a corner, resting her chin on her hands and watching him.

He glanced at him sideways: "Don't say a word about what happened tonight."

Before Xie Tan could speak, he continued, "Including your sister Wanzi."

Xie Tan: "..."

He was clearly a Good Samaritan, but now he acts like a thief.

The thief felt guilty, so he wouldn't tell.

After Xie Qiyan went in, he moistened Xia Wanzhi's pale lips with a cotton swab. He was worried that she would be scared to death if she saw him when she woke up, so he stayed for a while and then went out to leave with Xie Tan.

Tonight, Xie Qiyan's dreams were almost entirely occupied by Xia Wanzhi.

He shouldn't have had so many ties and interactions with her, but Xia Wanzhi has been appearing by his side every few days lately.

There's no way to avoid it.

My childhood experiences in the Xie family were not pleasant.

He didn't want to recall his memories of the period before he went abroad.

He hated that memory, hated everyone who called him an illegitimate child and mocked him and his mother, and hated those who looked at him with pity and sympathy.

Years later, after he returned from abroad, the Xia family went bankrupt, and the once high and mighty little princess fell from her pedestal.

But what does that have to do with him?

He inexplicably felt sorry for Xia Wanzhi.

He actually felt sorry for others.

At that moment, the word "pitiful," which he had always considered a derogatory term, transformed into a positive one.

Back then, he mistakenly thought that Xia Wanzhi was deliberately coming to make a scene for him, just like everyone else, so he smashed her milk, scolded her fiercely until she cried, and said that he didn't need her pity.

Looking back now, was Xia Wanzhi simply trying to be good to him back then?

The delicate and beautiful princess may be kind, but she is also naturally vengeful. After that incident, Xia Wanzhi never gave him a kind look whenever she saw him.

From then on, the two became enemies and looked down on each other.

Many years later, when they met again, the once arrogant little girl had learned to endure hardship and humiliation.

He should have remained indifferent.

But something intangible was always tugging at his thoughts.