67
The cool scent of mint and jasmine spread, carrying a hint of sweetness.
But when she realized what that sensation was, Ning Ye held her breath.
In the cold, dark haunted house, a burning heat started from the soft side of her neck, and fine beads of sweat formed on the tip of her nose.
A physiological reaction of curiosity and nervousness appeared in Ning Ye's sensory system for the very first time.
She knew what it was.
So she didn't dare to move a muscle.
Her back carefully stiffened. Too embarrassed to ask, and too shy to show any clues, she pretended she was just scared of the ghosts.
In reality, she wasn't afraid of the ghosts at all anymore.
In the darkness, Bian Xun's pupils were dark and burning bright.
That touch was very primal. Amidst the inadvertent friction, there was an indescribable, subtle thrill quietly unfolding in the dark.
At this moment, Ning Ye suddenly realized with extreme clarity that this was a man.
A young man with mature physical functions, about to step into society, in the prime of his life—no, at the absolute peak of his physical condition.
And she was his girlfriend.
The mutual probing of youth, briefly extending soft tentacles toward each other; even a simple touch of just a few seconds could bring immense stimulation and novelty.
Ning Ye panted carefully, not daring to make a sound during those few seconds.
She was an adult too, and she also felt... curious.
The bright red forbidden fruit brought a sense of shame, but its brilliant color was truly tempting to pick.
Because there would never be another age like this, where everything was brand new and unknown, leaving the most direct and intense marks on the simplest and purest of minds.
The voices of other tourists came from afar, and they hurriedly pulled away from each other.
That brief moment of contact lasted no more than three to five seconds, happening in the darkness, known to no one.
The two no longer looked at each other, but neither made a sound.
Someone took a deep breath and pulled back.
...He didn't dare let her kiss him anymore.
Having such a huge reaction just from her biting him... He really couldn't stand himself.
Bian Xun closed his eyes briefly to calm himself down.
He continued holding the child on his shoulder with one hand while holding her hand with the other. His steps were steady, making his self-control look top-notch.
He actually didn't want to rush things. In terms of physical intimacy, he was completely following her pace—if she was willing, he was naturally ready for battle. If she wasn't, he could be perfectly content just kissing for a long time.
But on the way out of the haunted house, the palms of their intertwined hands were scalding hot, their pulses throbbing.
The young woman's heartbeat was also very fast.
As he held her hand, the pads of her fingers would occasionally curl up, unconsciously scraping across his palm.
Like a lost fawn in the dark, she was so pure and had never experienced any such stimulation, so a slight accidental collision made her sensitive nerves spasm.
Bian Xun walked steadily in the dark, his pupils growing deeper with every step, and the corners of his lips slowly curled up at the speed of one pixel per second.
She, too, had a reaction.
This subtle realization made Bian Xun's scalp tingle. He didn't dare let himself feel too ecstatic, so he could only maintain a half-smile.
Cool, aloof, and unfathomable—he even looked at the ghosts with a pleasant expression.
In the end, a powerful masculine sense of security enveloped the mother and daughter duo. Ning Ye's fear of entering a haunted house for the first time was completely overshadowed by a certain hormone, silently but intensely sweeping her up.
It wasn't until they walked out and returned to the daylight that she realized she was slightly dizzy.
Little quail Ning Zhitao finally lifted her head from her dad's shoulder, blinked, and said tremblingly, Wow, it wasn't that scary! Haha!
Ning Ye's almond eyes filled with a smile as she nodded, Mhm!
Bian Xun didn't want to expose the two of them. He put the little girl down, then breezily placed his hands behind his back.
Ning Zhitao had no idea what kind of contact her mom and dad had in the haunted house, let alone that her young parents were just beginning to have physical contact with each other.
Ning Ye looked calm, and Bian Xun acted as if nothing had happened.
Both of them appeared very composed under the sun.
However, when Bian Xun raised his hand to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear, her eyelashes fluttered slightly, as if she was unconsciously tensing up from nervousness, and a shallow dimple appeared on her cheek.
After opening that floodgate, she suddenly became highly sensitive to her boyfriend's limbs, temperature, and skin contact.
Bian Xun couldn't help but chuckle softly.
The shyness and flush of youth were so moving.
His long fingers gently tucked her hair away, and as Bian Xun withdrew his hand, he rubbed his fingertips together for a long moment before taking a deep breath.
Let's go.
Ning Ye didn't know how to calm this physiological tension either, so she could only blame a certain someone for indiscriminately releasing hormones. She pursed her lips, Where to?
Bian Xun smiled, On a date.
Ning Ye looked down at Ning Zhitao. The round-headed little kid was looking at them with a beaming smile, tilting her head.
She was clearly very used to her parents' interactions and didn't think there was anything wrong with them going on a date.
Ning Ye felt a bit embarrassed, but Bian Xun had already smilingly taken both of their hands.
...Let's go eat.
...
Their holiday had just begun today. Before this, they had been at school, and upon leaving, they had headed straight for the amusement park, leaving Bian Xun with no opportunity to elevate the tone of their date.
Tonight, he finally had the chance.
He directly called someone to pick them up, and the car pulled up to the entrance of a restaurant in the city center.
The waiter was waiting at the door. As soon as he saw his figure, he immediately greeted him, calling out, Young Master Bian.
Bian Xun paused, looked back at Ning Ye, and held her hand.
Ning Ye also snapped back to reality at this moment—only after leaving school would the differences in their spending habits truly reveal themselves. She didn't want to take advantage in the relationship; it was better to have a mutual give-and-take, but the problem was that the gap in this give-and-take would be a bit large.
During the day, Bian Xun's crazy official announcement had fermented for a whole day and was now completely known to everyone.
The relationship and backgrounds of the two had also been blatantly laid out by people.
It was only at this point that Ning Ye truly gained a comprehensive understanding of Bian Xun's family background—it turned out that at such a young age, he already had two companies under his name, and he was the largest shareholder.
As almost the sole heir to the Bian Family Group, the wealth he would inherit in the future was immeasurable. No one knew exactly how deep the foundations of such a century-old aristocratic family went. And he himself had already set his sights on emerging industries; he was very likely to be a revolutionary heir for the Bian family.
It was even possible that, years later, he could become the richest man.
People all said that being with someone like him was achieving a leap in social class, and the other party in the story naturally became Cinderella.
But Ning Ye had no desire to be Cinderella.
Holding Ning Zhitao's hand, she walked into the restaurant.
Bian Xun seemed to be a regular here. As soon as he entered, countless eyes fell on him, but he didn't even spare them a glance. The waiter guided them all the way to his regular table and handed over the fixed menu. Bian Xun lowered his eyes, remembered something, and then asked someone to bring a formal menu to Ning Ye.
Ning Ye looked down for a moment and swapped out two dishes from his fixed menu for something the little one could eat.
The waiter hesitated: But... This eldest young master had never allowed his fixed set to be changed; even the shape of the leaves in the side dishes had to remain consistent.
Bian Xun shot him a glance. Go.
He had kept himself pure and clean for over twenty years, and now he even had a child. At present, only his wife and child were fixed.
Everything else could be changed.
Ning Ye blinked slightly.
Everything was normal during the meal, but halfway through, a voice suddenly cut in.
"Brother?!"
Bian Xun frowned.
Ning Ye looked up and saw a boy dressed very flamboyantly, perfectly fitting her stereotype of a rich kid, excitedly bounding over. Then he caught sight of Ning Ye and froze for a moment.
Bian Yang knew his brother was dating, and even heard he had proposed. Old Master Bian was looking for people to investigate from the old estate, but to think he actually bumped into them! Right now, the entire wealthy circle was itching to know what kind of person Bian Xun liked!
Bian Yang was surrounded by rich kids whose female companions were mostly big internet influencers or minor celebrities, each beautiful in their own way.
But seeing this girl now, she had a completely different aura. Bian Yang subconsciously thought, is this what girls from prestigious universities are like? So fresh, such a clean kind of pretty...
His brother's taste was indeed unconventional... If he went back to school and had to choose the campus belle, he felt it should be exactly this type...
"Have you stared enough?"
A cool, indifferent voice rang out.
Bian Yang snapped back to reality. He lowered his head, coughed, and met a pair of dark, round eyes.
Ning Zhitao opened her mouth, almost calling out to him, but Ning Ye reacted quickly and covered her little cheeks.
Bian Yang had already yelped, "Who is this kid?!"
Ning Ye, however, had already let go and calmly said to Bian Yang, "My kid."
Bian Yang was stunned, but then noticed the two looked very similar. Probably a younger sister or something?
He wanted to say more, but Bian Xun had already stood up and dragged him away. He knew the old man definitely had a message for him. And he didn't want Ning Ye to hear a single word of it.
Before leaving, he reached back and left his wallet on the table next to Ning Ye.
Bian Yang: "!!"
His brother had never even spent money on him!!
Ning Ye looked at his expensive leather wallet and sighed softly in her heart.
Whether it was this wallet or the appearance of Bian Xun's family, they all represented the massive system of power and wealth behind him, which made Ning Ye feel a bit of pressure.
Ning Ye actually had a premonition that she and Bian Xun probably wouldn't make it to twelve years later so smoothly. It couldn't just be harmonious and happy in between; it would definitely be full of twists and turns.
As she was thinking this, a chubby little hand suddenly reached out from beside her, round fingers clutching a black card.
"Mommy, swipe this," she whispered to Ning Ye.
"There's lots and lots of money inside. The password is your birthday."
Ning Ye paused, looking down at Ning Zhitao's sparkling eyes, and couldn't help but smile.
Her child didn't want her to feel stressed.
Not only could she sense her mother's mood, but she was also trying hard to embrace her heart.
Just like a little angel.
"Keep this card safe. I have money, I can raise you." She couldn't resist pinching her cheek.
Although she didn't feel like a real mother yet, she was beginning to experience what it was like to have a cute daughter.
Bian Xun stood in the garden outside the restaurant, occasionally glancing in through the glass window, his brow slightly furrowed, clearly impatient with the Bian family representative's speech.
His aloof figure, bathed in moonlight, was indeed the most eye-catching existence in the crowd.
But without Bian Xun at their table, many of the assessing gazes in the restaurant became rather unfriendly.
Being with him, Ning Ye inevitably received more attention.
Ning Ye wasn't really used to Western food. Someone at the next table let out a low snicker, "Hey, look, she doesn't even know how to eat caviar..."
Ning Ye looked up, but the person acted as if they weren't talking about her, looking away with a half-smile.
Ning Ye actually expected things like this to happen.
When there is a vast difference in status, the disparities in daily life will pop up as little thorns in these details.
Ning Ye wouldn't feel inferior because of this, but she still felt displeased.
Just as she was pondering the various problems that might arise between her and Bian Xun, a crisp, childish voice rang out.
"Sister!" Ning Zhitao cleverly gave her mother a temporary title. She took out a small spoon, spread the caviar on avocado toast, and held it up as if claiming credit.
"You taught me to eat it like this before, did I do it right?"
Ning Ye blinked.
Ning Zhitao's eyes sparkled. She wasn't lying. Many years later, it really was her mother who taught her. How to eat this, how to wear that, her mother taught her bit by bit.
It was just that the current mom didn't know how yet.
That's okay~
She knew how~
The little girl's innocent voice was irrefutable. Ning Zhitao even glanced at the next table, "People who think others don't know how are the big dummies. I'm only four, and even I know!"
That table immediately felt awkward, couldn't sit still, paid their bill, and left.
Ning Ye, however, couldn't recover her senses for a long time.
Ning Zhitao didn't dare to look into her mother's eyes, because she actually had her own little ulterior motives.
She didn't know how she ended up in the time when her parents were in college, but she knew that her mom and dad were only supposed to get together when they started working, right?
If they were together now, would they separate later?
How could that be allowed?
A Little Grape began to think roundly.
When dad wasn't around, she had to protect mom.
Ning Zhitao clenched her little fists seriously.
With her around, she would absolutely never let mom and dad break up!!
Little Grape college arc mission triggered!
Taotao: I will protect my own birth! Attention OvO~
There are a few thousand words left that I didn't have time to post. I will update another chapter after midnight
