"Right now?"
The man pressing over her was solid, lean, and burning hot. His heavy weight carried an undeniable force, firmly trapping her between the back of the seat and his chest.
His broad shoulders blocked the light coming through the windshield, casting the bright interior of the car into a dim shadow. Qin Yuhe's unique scent wrapped tightly around her, intertwining with her senses.
Song Xinya could clearly feel his vigorous heartbeat and his heaving chest.
His movements were full of aggression, like a male beast waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
Although Song Xinya wasn't entirely open-minded, if he really wanted to do it in the car, she would go along with it.
Qin Yuhe's hand grasped her arm, stroking it up and down.
"You don't want to do it in the car?"
Song Xinya: "I... I can accept doing it in the car."
Qin Yuhe let out a soft chuckle. The vibration of his chest seeped through their thin clothing and spread across her skin.
He could tell that despite her usual sharp tongue and bravery, when it came to intimate matters, she was conservative and easily flustered.
His body pressed tightly against hers, his long, slender fingers stroking and teasing the delicate skin between her neck and arm.
His movements were unhurried, lazy, and casual, showing no particular urgency.
It felt more like he was just flirting.
For a moment, Song Xinya wasn't entirely sure if he really intended to do it right here, right now, in the car.
A message notification chimed on her phone. Song Xinya brushed her arm past Qin Yuhe's waist to reach the center console, picking up her phone to take a look.
Jiang Yaoxue: [Yaya, I'll be at Yanyan's place in half an hour.]
Song Xinya checked the time. It was a twenty-minute drive from here to Qin Yuyan's villa.
That left Qin Yuhe with only ten minutes.
Ten minutes...
That wasn't even enough time for him to do foreplay.
He always spent a long time on foreplay.
Song Xinya loosely wrapped her arms around his back, gave him a gentle pat, and asked, "Mr. Qin, if we make it a quickie, can you finish in ten minutes?"
Qin Yuhe scoffed, "Mrs. Qin, are you looking down on me?"
Song Xinya: "...No, it's just that we are really pressed for time. I made plans with Mom, and it wouldn't be polite to be late."
Qin Yuhe gripped her arms with both hands, pushed himself up, and pulled his body away from her chest. He sat back in the driver's seat and straightened his back.
"Ten minutes isn't enough for me. You owe me this time. We'll save it for next time when we have plenty of time to make up for it."
He started the Rolls-Royce, keeping his eyes on the road ahead and focusing his thoughts on driving.
He felt like a bit of a creep. One second he was telling himself he didn't want to give her the impression that he only saw her for sex, and the very next second, the moment she got close, he had pinned her down.
It was like having a split personality.
His self-control lately...
No, lately he had zero self-control.
Any man with ambition and aspirations held contempt for lechers who only knew how to indulge in women.
A great man's ambitions should lie in the vast world; how could he wallow in lust day after day?
Now, Qin Yuhe had gone from questioning such men to somewhat understanding them.
Wonderful experiences always made people addicted, making them want to do whatever they pleased.
Women were enchanting.
Lust was tempting.
Sitting in the passenger seat, Song Xinya turned to look out the window, her face still bearing the remnants of a beautiful, alluring flush.
She pondered over what Qin Yuhe had just said: save it for next time when we have plenty of time to make up for it.
She hadn't even done anything, yet somehow, in a daze, she ended up owing him a session in the car.
It was like receiving a debt collection notice without ever having borrowed money.
She felt as if she owed him a massive debt.
...
The Rolls-Royce pulled up in front of a luxurious, magnificent detached villa.
Song Xinya stepped out of the car, the top of her head brushing gently against the palm of Qin Yuhe's hand as he shielded the roof of the car for her.
Once she was out, he withdrew his hand and closed the door.
The two of them walked toward the entrance of the villa together.
The summer sun poured down on them, its golden rays draping over their skin like a gorgeous, dazzling wash of color.
She wore a red dress with a swaying hem, while he was dressed in all black. His casual suit gave him a free and dashing air, the black trousers pressed perfectly straight and crisp.
Both were tall with long legs and excellent proportions. Their figures and auras exuded the unique charm and grace of mature men and women.
Song Xinya looked up and saw Jiang Yaoxue standing in the villa's courtyard, holding two exquisitely packaged gift boxes, one pink, one red.
Seeing the English letters BVLGARI on the boxes, Song Xinya recognized the luxury brand Bvlgari.
When Jiang Yaoxue saw Song Xinya, a kind smile appeared on her breathtakingly elegant face.
But upon seeing Qin Yuhe beside her, Jiang Yaoxue froze in surprise.
She hadn't expected him to come.
So many years of absence had caused a profound lack of familial affection between mother and son.
An invisible, deep chasm lay between them.
Qin Yuhe was no longer the boy he was when Jiang Yaoxue left. The little boy who had clung to her legs, crying and begging her not to go, had long since become an independent, mature man.
Children didn't need to be taught; they were born with an instinct to love their mothers.
A mother's place in a child's heart, and the reliance they have on her, could never be replaced by anyone else.
Although twenty-eight years had passed, Jiang Yaoxue remembered clearly how, at one year old, Qin Yuhe had caught a virus and run a high fever. His fair, chubby little cheeks had burned bright red. He wouldn't let anyone hold him except her.
His tiny body nestled in her arms, his chubby little hands tightly gripping her clothes. Even when sleeping, he insisted on lying in her embrace. The moment she laid him in his crib, he would open his red little mouth and wail pitifully.
From the moment he was born, Qin Yuhe had been deeply dependent on Jiang Yaoxue. Mother and son were connected by heart. Even after she left the Qin family, that dependency didn't vanish immediately.
During the first year she was gone, he would call her often, saying he missed her, loved her, and asking if she was doing well.
A child will always crave a mother's love, but every time he needed her most or wanted to see her the most, when he was hospitalized, when he fell off a horse and got hurt, at his birthday parties, at his graduation ceremonies, she was always absent for one reason or another.
Time and again, he hoped to see his mother, and time and again, he was let down.
Distance created barriers; disappointment wore away affection.
As the years went by, his calls grew fewer and fewer, until he stopped calling entirely.
Intimate words like I miss you, Mom and I love you, Mom were said less and less, until they were never spoken again.
In the beginning, mother and son talked about everything; in the end, they had nothing to say to each other.
Now, standing face to face, Jiang Yaoxue saw that Qin Yuhe's gaze toward her was flat, calm, and distant.
He nodded at her, his demeanor polite.
Just as he would treat any other elder, with no difference whatsoever.
It had been a long time since he called her Mom.
For over a decade, he hadn't uttered that word to her.
Jiang Yaoxue didn't blame him. She had no right to, nor did she have the heart to. Because she knew that when other children were loved and cared for by their mothers, the little boy standing in the corner watching them must have felt incredibly sad.
She wanted to make it up to him, but he had already built an impenetrable wall around his heart.
She stood outside the wall, at a loss for what to do.
"Mom."
Song Xinya's gentle and soft voice pulled Jiang Yaoxue out of her memories.
Jiang Yaoxue looked at Song Xinya with teary eyes, "Yaya."
Song Xinya walked up to her, her warm hand grasping hers. "Mom, let's go see Yanyan together."
Jiang Yaoxue glanced at Qin Yuhe, "Okay, together."
In her peripheral vision, Qin Yuhe showed no sign of refusal.
...
Inside the villa, Qin Yuyan wore a white dress. Her cool, pale skin was clear and clean, and her slender figure seemed almost fragile. With her big eyes and small, red lips, she looked like an exquisite little elf.
She sat alone in the huge living room, slender and solitary, playing with a nest of pet snakes.
On the smooth, expensive slate tabletop, eight corn snakes and one hognose snake were crawling everywhere.
Qin Yuyan had named every single snake and could clearly distinguish each one.
Her soft, white hands gently stroked the heads of each little snake as she called out their names one by one.
"Iron Egg, Steel Egg, Copper Egg, Aluminum Egg."
These were the male snakes' names.
"Cuihua, Xinghua, Guihua, Caihua, Ruhua."
These were the female snakes' names.
They were all her babies.
Among them, Iron Egg was the most mischievous, constantly trying to crawl off the table.
Just a split second before Iron Egg fell off the table, Qin Yuyan grabbed its tail, yanked it back, and tapped its head with her finger.
"You little Iron Egg, why are you so disobedient? Don't force Mommy to chop you up into pieces and stew you into snake soup."
The little snake seemed to understand human words. Every time it heard her say this, it would shrink its neck and lie down obediently, no longer acting up.
Qin Yuyan lay on the table, resting her chin on her pale, slender arms, playing with the little snakes and occasionally zoning out.
A day basically passed just like that.
Today seemed no different from any previous day; Qin Yuyan spent it with her four eggs and five flowers.
Suddenly, the doorbell rang.
Qin Yuyan went to open the door with Iron Egg resting in the palm of her hand.
When the door opened, she saw Jiang Yaoxue, Song Xinya, and Qin Yuhe.
It was as if fireworks had exploded in the dark night, lighting up a bright gleam in her eyes.
"Mom! Miss Song! Brother!"
Qin Yuyan tossed Iron Egg from her hand onto the table.
Iron Egg landed headfirst on the table with a smack, lying motionless, taking quite a while to recover.
Qin Yuyan opened her arms and hugged Jiang Yaoxue tightly, rubbing her head against Jiang Yaoxue's neck.
"Mom, I missed you."
Jiang Yaoxue held her, gently patting her back. "Yanyan, Mom missed you too."
Qin Yuyan, "Boohoo."
Jiang Yaoxue, "Yanyan, are you crying?"
Qin Yuyan, "No, I'm fake crying. I'm actually very happy, hehehe."
She leaned in and kissed Jiang Yaoxue on the cheek. "Mwah!"
"Mom, I'm so happy to see you."
Jiang Yaoxue, "I'm sorry, Yanyan, for not coming to see you for so long."
Qin Yuyan, "During the days you didn't come to see me, have you been doing well?"
Jiang Yaoxue, "Yanyan, you don't need to worry about me. I'm perfectly fine."
Qin Yuyan, "As long as Mom is doing well, that's all that matters. It's okay if you didn't come to see me."
She would only feel happy if her mother was doing well.
Hearing Qin Yuyan's words, Jiang Yaoxue's heart trembled.
Her Yanyan had changed.
She had become more mature and sensible.
In the past, she would have been very disappointed and would have complained about why her mother didn't visit her often.
The little princess no longer focused only on her own emotions; she knew how to put herself in her mother's shoes and be considerate of her.
Jiang Yaoxue thought that someone must have counseled and guided the little princess.
Who could this person be?
She looked at Song Xinya beside her.
Qin Yuyan let go of Jiang Yaoxue, turned to face Song Xinya, and said, "Miss Song, the atmosphere is just right for a hug right now. Let me give you a hug too."
Song Xinya, "And what if I don't agree?"
Qin Yuyan threw her arms around her. "You have to agree even if you don't want to. No one can refuse a hug from this princess."
Song Xinya, "This humble commoner is honored."
Qin Yuyan looked smug. "Isn't that right? You should be secretly thrilled."
She let go of Song Xinya and opened her arms toward Qin Yuhe.
Qin Yuhe reached out, poked her forehead, and pushed her away. "Men and women should keep their distance, haven't you heard of that?"
Qin Yuyan stumbled back a few steps, pulled back her arms, and pouted. "Who cares about hugging you? You're as cold as a block of ice every day. I'd be worried about freezing myself if I hugged you."
Qin Yuhe's voice was cold and deep. "Qin Yuyan, do you still want your living expenses for next month?"
Qin Yuyan instantly put on a very enthusiastic look. "Yes, yes, yes! My best brother in the whole wide world, who loves his sister so much, how could you bear not to give your sister her living expenses?"
Qin Yuhe looked at her hypocritically flattering face. "I could bear it."
Qin Yuyan let out a sorrowful wail.
What a heartless man!
Hmph!
I really don't know how my sister-in-law can stand him!
Living with him every day, my sister-in-law must be suffering so much!
Speaking of which, even Miss Song came to see her, so why didn't her sister-in-law come?
