Can't Take My Eyes Off You

C 198-199

Standing at the bathroom door, Lu Xingzhi tilted his head slightly as he wiped his wet hair with a dry towel. Some of the water on his hair dripped on the floor, some on his bathrobe, and some on his face, sliding along his tall nose bridge and consequently dropping onto his chest which was barely visible under the bathrobe.

He was standing there like a dangerous yet relaxed leopard. It was quite a seductive picture to look at.

Suddenly, he chuckled. His laughter was low and cheerful, his shoulders shaking with the laugh.

It was already way past dinner time, and so, Lu Xingzhi called the reception using the telephone in the room and asked the hotel staff to deliver supper to their room.

Jiang Yao lay lazily in the bathtub. Her body was covered with Lu Xingzhi's love bites after a night of indulgence. Tiny dots of reddish marks were imprinted on her neck, chest, as well as her back and waist.

She could even feel that she was soaked in his unique scent.

The supper was delivered to their room swiftly. After waiting in the living room for a few minutes but to no avail, Lu Xingzhi walked to the bedroom, knocked on the bathroom door, and urged coyly. "Hurry up, or I'll go in and carry you out."

"Give me a minute! I'll be quick!" Her frantic voice echoed through the door.

Jiang Yao changed into her pajamas before opening the door. She assumed that the man would wait for her outside the door, but it was empty. She stepped out of the bedroom in her slippers and detected a faint odor of cigarette as soon as she walked into the living room.

She looked around the living room and then glimpsed Lu Xingzhi's figure on the balcony.

Jiang Yao approached him slowly and frowned. "Did you smoke?"

Donning the bathrobe, Lu Xingzhi leaned against the guardrail with one hand on the tile of the rail and a cigarette in the other hand. When Jiang Yao approached him, he was huffing a smoke, standing slantingly against the railing, shaking one of his legs.

The cold and clear moon was hanging in the sky behind him. He seemed to be a dark angel descending from the moon, making the crescent moon his exclusive backdrop. However, this scene seemed too lonely and forlorn.

The moment Jiang Yao saw Lu Xingzhi, a dangerous aura emitted from his body that distanced himself from the rest of humankind, but the aura dissipated instantly when her voice resonated.

Jiang Yao wondered if, in her previous life, Lu Xingzhi had spent his many lonely nights like this—staring at the blue moon while puffing cigarettes in his leisure time.

Jiang Yao felt a sudden jab in her heart when she saw him like this.

Lu Xingzhi quickly stubbed out the cigarette, knowing how repulsive she was to the smell of smoke. He then waved at her and said, "Come here."

Jiang Yao strode toward him and snuggled up to him, a rare action from her. Laying comfortably in his embrace, she lifted her head and rested her still-wet hair against his body. "Smoking is bad for your health, stop smoking. You have to take care of your body. At the very least, you have to live longer than I do."

What if Lu Xingzhi died before her again in this life? How would she be able to face the pain of losing him again? She wasn't sure if she could handle it again. The thought sent her trembling in extreme fear.

She had spent thirty-something years in her previous life without him, but now, she dared not even think about not having him in her life.

"Don't you worry, I'll live for a hundred years." There was an old saying that went 'bad things never die', and Lu Xingzhi had never once considered himself to be a good guy.

The supper consisted of seafood porridge and several side dishes. They were placed on the dining table in the living room, and the fragrance had permeated the entire room.

Lu Xingzhi scooped a bowl of porridge for Jiang Yao and without waiting for him, she quickly picked up the chopsticks and started eating. He smiled at the amusing scene, thinking that she must be very hungry by now.

She was so casual and spontaneous without a sense of awkwardness around him. Lu Xingzhi totally adored Jiang Yao like this because she made him feel like they were a normal couple that could communicate and behave nonchalantly.

"Why do you want the Qi family's hospital?" Lu Xingzhi asked the question again, but this time, he was more relaxed as compared to earlier. There was only curiosity in his tone.

"Your comrade's mother stays in that hospital, that's why. When the hospital is mine, we can arrange for the best doctor to attend to his mother, we can prescribe the best medicine for her, we can hire the most professional nurses to tend to her, and we can even waive her bill. Isn't that awesome?"

Of course, this was only one of the many reasons she needed a hospital. Another reason was that she needed the hospital as a cover-up for the Medical System since she planned to establish a private operating theater in the future. That way, if she wanted to experiment with the drugs or facilities she extracted from the system, she didn't have to worry about being discovered.

"Oh yes, did you already know about the connection between the Qi family and the Huang family?" Jiang Yao asked. "You didn't seem the least bit surprised when Mr. Huang came today."

"Yes. When Xuyao mentioned about Qi Xiang, I researched the Qi family's possible network and found the Huang family. I must say, that Mr. Huang is quite an interesting person."

When Lu Xingzhi talked about Huang Chengjing, there was a dash of an amused expression on his face, especially when he said that he was 'interesting'—it sounded as though he was complimenting him and condemning him all at the same time.

However, through this series of shenanigans, Jiang Yao had gained a little more understanding about Lu Xingzhi. She realized that this man who was in the army base all year long was not as rough a man as she had expected. He was very mindful and vigilant in his actions, always having a few tricks up his sleeves.

The Qi family had felt a pang of despair when Jiang Yao asked for the hospital, but after Huang Chengjing told them that they should count themselves fortunate that she didn't ask for the entire business empire, they suddenly felt that they could very well afford to lose just the hospital.

As if fearing that Lu Xingzhi and Jiang Yao would regret their decision as well as to end any possible hitches, they went through the equity transfer very quickly. Qi Xiang even brought a lawyer with him and met Lu Xingzhi and Jiang Yao at the hotel.

Lu Xingzhi and Jiang Yao went to get changed when there was a knock on the door before welcoming their guests.

"Young Master Lu, Miss Jiang," Qi Xiang greeted them humbly as soon as he entered the door. Then, he bowed to Jiang Yao and apologized solemnly. "Miss Jiang, I'm sorry."

After apologizing, Qi Xiang discreetly observed the couple who was way above his league. Since there was no change in their expression, he took the document from his lawyer and passed it to Jiang Yao. "This is the equity transfer agreement. My parents and I have signed it, and this document will take effect when you sign it. This is the Huang family's lawyer, you can consult him if there are any questions or doubts."

He had come with the Huang family's lawyer, meaning that the Qi family had assigned the Huang family as their guarantor and to also to let Lu Xingzhi know that they were not executing any schemes.

Lu Xingzhi took the document and quickly glanced through. The agreement was filled with a lot of difficult and complex legal regulations, but he read it like an adult reading a children's book. After confirming that the agreement was legit without any problems, he gave it back to Jiang Yao to sign.

"Qi Xiang, I would like you to know that I hate self-righteous people the most. So far, any being who dares to challenge or trick me has not even been born yet, so I hope the Qi family will not be the first ones." Lu Xingzhi glared at Qi Xiang coldly. "I don't want to see the doctors in the hospital line up to the board of directors and resign one after another after I return to the base. I don't mind coming back to Nanjiang again if they do."