Chapter 53: The Red Marriage Star Stirs—An Old Tree Blooms
You could tell at a glance it was Fu Mo.
Nan Xun yawned and got up, walking out of the bedroom.
On the black-and-white piano keys, long, slender fingers moved nimbly as captivating notes flowed from beneath his fingertips. Outside the window, the moonlight was just right; the pale glow spilled in, illuminating the man’s refined profile—so fair it was almost translucent, as if he might melt into the moonlight at any moment.
Nan Xun stood quietly beside him, not disturbing him.
Only when the final note fell did Fu Mo turn his head toward her and ask softly, “Did I wake you?”
Nan Xun shook her head and smiled. “I slept for a long time during the day, so I’m not very sleepy. What about you—can’t you sleep?”
Fu Mo gave a hum in reply. “At night, I get a bit of insomnia.”
“I see. Then I’ll keep you company and chat for a while,” Nan Xun said.
Fu Mo shifted over and patted the empty seat beside him. “Momo, come sit here.”
Nan Xun sat down next to him and turned her head to look at him. Her eyes were dark and bright, brimming with moisture; under the moonlight they shimmered like rippling water, dotted with starlight. Her black hair fell loose, looking soft enough to make one want to ruffle it.
“Momo, do you still want to learn the piano?” Fu Mo asked.
“Sure,” Nan Xun replied with a smile.
Fu Mo suddenly reached out and wrapped an arm around her—this time, truly touching her.
He half-drew Nan Xun into his embrace. His arm passed beneath her arms, the back of his hand sliding along her arm until it reached beneath her palm, lifting her hand up.
When his arm closed around her, Nan Xun’s body stiffened involuntarily.
Even through a layer of clothing, she could feel how cold this man’s body was. Especially when his large hand lightly brushed past beneath her arm and then lifted her hand—until now, that chill still lingered in her limbs.
Looking up at him, she felt even more strongly that his complexion was so pale it was nearly transparent.
“Momo, focus,” Fu Mo suddenly said, his voice sounding softly by her ear, a little ethereal in the deep night.
Nan Xun quickly answered with an “oh” and concentrated on following his rhythm.
She was a little relieved that the entire building was occupied by just the two of them—otherwise, if the neighbors heard someone playing the piano in the middle of the night instead of sleeping, they would definitely come knocking.
In fact, the problem she worried about had really happened before. But when the neighbors discovered that no one actually lived in this house, yet harsh piano sounds still came out every night, they were terrified and moved away one after another.
After playing the piece three times, Nan Xun had already learned it, but she didn’t dare show it. When Fu Mo asked her to play on her own, she just tapped a few keys at random.
“Momo,” Fu Mo suddenly called her.
“Hm?” Nan Xun responded, turning her head to look at him.
The next moment, her eyes flew wide open.
Fu Mo’s face enlarged before her eyes, and then a cool sensation landed on her lips—his tongue even brushed lightly against the seam of her lips.
Nan Xun’s heart trembled, and her face flushed bright red in an instant.
“Y-you—you…” Nan Xun pointed at the man who had taken advantage of her, unable to form a complete sentence before she turned and ran.
She rushed back to her bedroom, her face burning as she stared blankly into space. She quickly called out to Little Eight, “Little Eight, Little Eight, I was just lightly molested by the big boss! The problem is, I wasn’t even angry. Do you think my red marriage star is moving—has this old tree finally bloomed?”
Fu Mo was just too good at flirting; she was having trouble handling it.
The Void Beast yawned. “That’s a good thing. But let me tell you—those red marriage stars are fine as long as they move a little. Just don’t let them fall.”
Nan Xun was a bit surprised. “Little Eight, are you really the Little Eight I know? Weren’t you the one who absolutely forbade me from developing any improper feelings toward the target?”
The Void Beast snickered. “Because I know you’re only feeling a little something right now—but very soon, you won’t be able to feel anything at all.”
Nan Xun: “……”
She felt that Little Eight’s words carried deep meaning, but that round little creature stubbornly refused to explain what hidden meaning lay within.
Nan Xun simply patted her butt and left. In the living room, Fu Mo stared blankly at the empty space where she had been in his arms. His gaze suddenly turned dark and sinister, and the hand resting on the piano keys curled up.
“Still not enough, huh? But Momo, I’m almost unable to hold back…” he murmured softly.
A small stream of vivid red blood suddenly flowed from his temple—more and more, until it covered his entire face.
When he lifted his head again, that refined, handsome face was crisscrossed with blood. A bloody hole gaped in his forehead, blood pouring out and dripping along his softly contoured chin, falling drop by drop onto the black-and-white piano keys below, making crisp tick-tock sounds…
Nan Xun, whose old tree had nearly bloomed, still felt her face burning. She opened the bedroom window a bit wider. Cool night breezes drifted in through the half-open window, carrying with them the fragrance of flowers from the residential complex.
After cooling off in the breeze and breathing in the floral scent, her face finally stopped burning so badly.
She burrowed back into her blankets, planning to sleep straight through until morning.
Half-asleep, Nan Xun suddenly felt a chill creeping in—beneath the soft, warm blanket, slowly climbing up from her feet, inch by inch, all the way to her thighs.
The icy sensation made her whole body tremble.
Her body stiffened abruptly, her breathing seeming to stop at that very moment.
She wanted to move, but found she couldn’t move at all, nor could she make a sound. She could only breathe shallowly, passively enduring the pleasure brought by that thing.
Her heart pounded violently. With her mouth wide open, she finally screamed at one point—
“Ah—!”
Nan Xun jolted upright in bed like a carp leaping from water, panting heavily, drenched in sweat.
She looked around—there was nothing. It had just been a dream.
She didn’t know whether to call it a nightmare, or… a spring dream.
The next day, Nan Xun’s gaze toward Fu Mo was somewhat evasive.
Someone who had a spring dream maybe once every few hundred years had actually had one less than two days after meeting Fu Mo. She felt she must have developed some unspeakable feelings toward him.
The two of them lived together for three days. Every day, Nan Xun bought groceries, Fu Mo cooked, and she thoroughly enjoyed the life of a freeloading rice bug, waiting to be fed. Though it was only three days, their tacit understanding felt almost innate.
Fu Mo indulged her greatly and never got angry with her. Nan Xun had the distinct feeling of being pampered by him.
She thought that if things continued like this, her relationship with the big boss would grow closer and closer. After a little more time passed, when the big boss brought up dating, she could smoothly agree.
Then, as the person closest to the big boss, eliminating his malice value would only be a matter of time.
So when Fu Mo said on the fourth day that he was going to leave, Nan Xun was completely dumbfounded.
“There are some matters at the old family residence. I may have to leave for a while,” Fu Mo said as he looked at her. Deep in his eyes were things Nan Xun couldn’t understand, surging like undercurrents.
Nan Xun suddenly blurted out, “If you leave, what about me?”
Fu Mo looked at her for a moment after hearing that, then suddenly smiled. His lips curved upward, and his eyes filled with laughter. “Momo, I won’t let you leave me. Never.”
For some reason, hearing those words made Nan Xun feel a little panicked.
