Chapter 44: First Marriage, Then Love: A Side of Scumbag Crushing 22
The noise of the world faded into a dull roar, leaving Ning Qingqing aware of only the sensation on her lips—firm, warm, and moist.
Gu Youchen’s kiss wasn’t as effortlessly skillful as his usual demeanor suggested.
This must be his first kiss. For a twenty-six-year-old man, he was surprisingly inexperienced and a little clumsy.
He started with an instinctive, pressing motion, then began to explore, gradually learning the rhythm of give and take.
A quick study, he traced the shape of her lips, slowly turning up the heat between them.
Ning Qingqing’s mind went blank at first, but she soon realized what was happening.
Still wrapped in his embrace, their bodies pressed close, she could feel a heart pounding wildly.
Unsure whose it was, she instinctively clutched at his shirt.
His kiss deepened, moving from a gentle touch to a more demanding pressure, his masculine scent overwhelming her senses.
A sheen of sweat broke out on her skin, and her grip on his shirt tightened.
In the intimate friction, her chaotic thoughts began to settle, and she heard her heartbeat syncing with his.
It was their first moment of true intimacy—a little strange, but also thrilling.
She didn’t push him away.
Instead, she began to respond.
Slowly, she hooked her arms around his neck, parting her lips to kiss him back.
Her heart still raced, and a hidden emotion welled up from the deepest part of her, a mix of sweetness and nervous excitement.
For Gu Youchen, her response was the greatest encouragement. After a brief pause, he held her tighter, his tongue seeking entrance.
But just then, a jarring voice shattered the moment. “Let go of her!”
Gu Youchen opened his eyes to see Shen Zhiqian standing just two meters away.
Shen Zhiqian’s friends were holding him back, clearly afraid he would do something reckless.
Gu Youchen pulled away from Ning Qingqing’s lips but kept her pressed against his chest, shielding her face in the crook of his shoulder.
He looked up, his voice husky from the kiss, but his aura instantly turning icy.
“It’s only right and proper for me to kiss my wife here. President Shen, aren’t you overstepping your bounds?”
Shen Zhiqian’s chest heaved as he stared at Ning Qingqing in Gu Youchen’s arms. He knew rushing over was humiliating himself, but he couldn’t stand it!
He never imagined the day he would see Ning Qingqing kissing another man with his own eyes!
Even knowing she was married, even suspecting Gu Youchen liked her, he had clung to the hope that she had no feelings for him, and that Gu Youchen wouldn’t force her.
But now…
He would never forget the feeling of that moment.
The man, his eyes dark with intensity, lowering his head to kiss the woman in his arms, inch by inch.
And Ning Qingqing, nestled in his embrace, showed not a hint of resistance, even closing her eyes in compliance.
Surrounded by other kissing couples and strangers, the atmosphere in the hall was heated and ambiguous.
Shen Zhiqian’s heart trembled. “Qingqing, we’ve only been apart for half a month—”
Ning Qingqing didn’t look up.
Her response to the kiss had already made her stance clear. Gu Youchen understood, and that was enough.
As for anyone else, she had explained herself once. She had no obligation to keep repeating herself.
Seeing she refused to leave Gu Youchen’s embrace, Shen Zhiqian reached out to grab her.
However, his friends still had some sense and quickly signaled their group to pull him away.
The club owner reacted quickly, apologizing to Gu Youchen, “I’m sorry for the disturbance.”
Gu Youchen withdrew his gaze indifferently and looked down at Ning Qingqing. “Qingqing, shall we go home first?”
She nodded.
He took her hand, paid the bill, and left.
Back in the car, Xiao He dutifully turned on the music again.
But today, the two passengers seemed preoccupied, exchanging few words.
Gu Youchen held Ning Qingqing’s hand, his mind replaying the images and sensations of kissing her.
His Adam’s apple bobbed, and with his free hand, he undid the second button of his shirt.
Beside him, Ning Qingqing also seemed to be feeling a bit stuffy and lowered the window.
“Is it too stuffy for you, Qingqing?” he asked.
She nodded, her ears belatedly starting to burn.
Seeing this, the man beside her lowered his window a bit more as well.
In the front seat, Xiao He, who already had the AC running, was confused. “…”
Stuffy? Where? I was worried the AC was too high and the boss’s wife would get cold.
They arrived back at the apartment in silence. It was getting late, so Ning Qingqing opened her laptop to record the points Gu Youchen had discussed with her that day and organize the information she hadn’t finished gathering.
By the time she was done, it was past ten.
She heard the sound of water running from Gu Youchen’s room.
His door was open, light spilling from the bathroom.
Gu Youchen never closed his door when he slept. Before, she hadn’t thought much of it, but now she realized it seemed like an invitation.
At the thought, her cheeks flared with heat. She poured herself a glass of water, forced herself not to think about it, and hurried to the bathroom to shower.
She had just finished drying her hair and was about to go to sleep when there was a knock on her bedroom door.
“Come in.”
She hadn’t actually locked the door, but unlike Gu Youchen, she kept hers closed.
Seeing she was ready for bed, Gu Youchen walked up to her. “Qingqing, I came specifically to say goodnight.”
“Mm,” she nodded. “Goodnight.”
But the man didn’t leave.
Just as she was about to ask why, he suddenly wrapped his arms around her, resting his forehead against hers. “We were interrupted earlier. I haven’t made up for it yet.”
Ning Qingqing’s eyes widened. In that moment, she caught a faint whiff of alcohol on his breath.
“Youchen, did you drink after we got back?” she asked, puzzled.
He shook his head. He didn’t know why, but he felt as if he’d drunk half a bottle of liquor, even though he’d only had one cocktail at Lan Yue.
“There might have been something in that drink,” he murmured, his voice low.
She understood immediately. It must have been Shen Zhiqian’s friend. He was a master mixologist and had once made a drink called “Half-Cup Knockout.” It was probably something similar.
“Forget about that,” Gu Youchen nuzzled her cheek with his chin. “I want to make it up to you.”
There was even a hint of grievance in his tone.
It must be the alcohol…
Before she could finish the thought, he cupped the back of her head and kissed her.
She wanted to ask if he knew how to tango, because the man before her was advancing, probing, breaking down her defenses bit by bit.
Their breaths mingled, the scent of alcohol and body wash heady and intoxicating.
From gentle nibbles, he moved to devouring her lips, his tongue pushing past her teeth to explore the depths of her mouth.
Her acquiescence was like a spark in the dark, igniting his vision and his desire.
He pressed her against the wall, his masculine presence overwhelming her. Perhaps he accidentally hit the switch, because the room suddenly plunged into darkness.
In the dark, other senses were heightened.
Ning Qingqing heard their heartbeats pounding like war drums.
Her eardrums tingled, her lips tingled even more. It was as if half the alcohol he’d consumed had passed to her, numbing her nerves.
So when she felt a change, it took her a few seconds to react.
The man had already stopped.
Their eyes adjusted to the dim light filtering in from the window, allowing them to make out each other’s silhouettes.
Gu Youchen’s breathing was still ragged. His lips were a hair’s breadth from hers, brushing against them as he spoke.
“Qingqing—” he chuckled low in his throat, his voice raspy. “If I keep kissing you, I’m afraid I won’t be able to control myself.”
When he came over, he had seen that her door was closed.
Some signals were tacitly understood.
She would respond to his kisses, but going further… she probably wasn’t ready yet.
“So I don’t dare kiss you anymore.” He pecked her lips quickly and pulled back slightly. “My wife is too sweet, and I have a weakness for sweets.”
Her cheeks and ears burned at his words.
She grabbed his pajamas. “Give me a little more time… soon.”
Tacit understanding again. They were talking about the same thing.
“Okay,” he said, hugging her again. “I’m very happy today. Goodnight, Wife.”
With that, he released her.
From ‘my wife’ to directly calling her ‘Wife,’ the change was only one word, but the meaning was vastly different.
“Goodnight,” she whispered, her hands clenching at her sides. “Husband.”
Gu Youchen froze. His first instinct was to kiss her again.
But he could feel the blood rushing through his veins. If he kissed her now, something would definitely happen.
He had promised not to force her, in any way.
So he simply took her hand and placed it over his heart, chuckling softly. “Qingqing, feel how fast my heart is beating just from hearing you call me ‘Husband’.”
She could clearly feel the pounding beneath her palm. It felt like she’d been burned, and she blurted out, “Youchen, do you like me?”
His Adam’s apple bobbed. He looked down at her small hand on his chest. “It has already given you the answer.”
Her breath caught.
She stared at the man before her in disbelief.
He met her gaze, his eyes dark in the gloom.
His voice held a smile and an inexplicable tenderness. “Yes, I like you.”
Ning Qingqing stood rooted to the spot, feeling as if her hand conducted electricity, transmitting the rhythm of his heart to hers.
Her own chest began to tingle with the vibration.
After a few minutes of silence, he leaned down and kissed her forehead. “I’m going to sleep. You should rest early too. Don’t you have negotiations with the Si family tomorrow?”
She nodded numbly. “Mm, okay.”
He left, but his presence seemed to linger in the room.
Her mind buzzed with chaotic thoughts.
Gu Youchen had confessed to her. She had been so nervous she forgot to ask when he started liking her.
It had only been half a month. How did he fall for her so quickly?
And what about her? Did she like him?
She asked her heart.
There was definitely attraction. But true love… it seemed she was still just shy of that leap from quantity to quality.
But being with him did make her feel increasingly comfortable and happy.
She lay down to sleep.
Just then, her phone on the nightstand vibrated.
She checked the caller ID. It was an unfamiliar number.
She declined the call, but it rang again less than thirty seconds later.
Worried it might be important, she answered.
A somewhat familiar voice spoke. “Ning Qingqing, I’m a friend of Zhiqian’s, we’ve met before… Zhiqian is drunk and keeps calling your name. His stomach seems to be really bothering him, and I’m worried something might happen, so…”
It was past eleven. If Shen Zhiqian was still drinking at the club, of course he’d be feeling unwell.
She took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, I’m not an ambulance.”
“Look,” the friend persisted, “for the sake of the years you’ve known each other, even if you’ve broken up, you wouldn’t just leave him to die, would you?”
“Since you’re his friend,” she replied, “you should be taking him to the hospital immediately. If he won’t go, buy some Omeprazole and force it down his throat.”
Hearing the name of the medicine, the friend looked at Shen Zhiqian and sighed.
She hadn’t left him to die. She had given the name of the medicine, but she had also made her stance clear: she would no longer be involved in Shen Zhiqian’s affairs.
He immediately sent someone to buy the medicine and could only try to comfort his friend.
In her bedroom, Ning Qingqing turned off her phone, afraid they would call again.
She tossed and turned for a while before finally falling asleep.
In the room next door, Gu Youchen did the same.
However, his biological clock was always punctual, so he woke up early the next morning.
By the time Ning Qingqing’s alarm woke her, he had already made porridge and prepared a simple breakfast. They sat down to eat together.
Habitually checking the news on her phone while eating, she immediately saw a headline about Si Luoqing—
[Hilarious! Si Luoqing’s ‘Art Lover’ Persona Crumbles]
She guessed what it was about and clicked on the video.
It was clearly a candid shot of Si Luoqing standing in front of an oil painting, expounding on her views.
The audio was a bit low, so the poster had thoughtfully added subtitles.
“This is morning light, very warm—”
“Miss Si, that is evening.”
“This has black and gray added.”
“Miss Si, painting shadows like that is a major taboo. It’s basic knowledge.”
…
By the end of the video, even Ning Qingqing felt embarrassed for her.
So before she and Tan Xizhou had even arrived, Li Lan had already taken Si Luoqing down a peg!
Why was it so satisfying?
Seeing her smiling at her phone, Gu Youchen leaned in. “Qingqing, what are you looking at?”
She looked up. “Mom is awesome!”
She showed him the screen.
He scanned it and saw it was full of comments mocking Si Luoqing—
“She claims to love oil painting, but look at her answers! Even I, a non-art student, can tell that’s evening light!”
“That little brother is kind of handsome. Even from the back, he looks good. Listen to his answers!”
“Si Luoqing trying to show off in front of Teacher Li is just laughable! Is she switching to a ‘black-red’ route (getting famous through notoriety) now that she has no traffic?”
“No, didn’t you see how she and Kenny were bowing and scraping when they were standing there? They were obviously trying to suck up to Teacher Li and Director Guo!”
“So sucking up failed and she made a fool of herself? I’m cringing so hard I could build a three-story villa with my toes!”
…
After reading the comments, Gu Youchen told her, “Kenny waited in my company lobby all morning yesterday. I ignored him.”
Her eyes lit up. “Yeah! Our President Gu isn’t someone just any scumbag can see!”
Hearing this, he leaned forward, bracing himself on her chair and the table, and kissed her lips.
Thinking of last night, her lips felt hot.
The morning sun was bright, and their reflections were clear in each other’s eyes.
He pulled her up from the chair, and somehow, they were kissing again.
His kissing skills had improved by leaps and bounds, as if he’d taken a crash course overnight.
She gradually lost the strength to resist and melted into his arms.
Until Xiao He called.
Gu Youchen remembered he had an international conference call that morning.
He let her go with a hint of regret, pecking her lips one last time.
He looked like he wanted more.
Still catching her breath, she straightened her blouse, which had been rumpled by the kiss. “Do you have a morning meeting?”
He nodded. “Yeah, I have to go.”
He retrieved his briefcase from the study and opened his arms to her.
This parting hug had become a habit. She threw herself into his arms.
He hugged her tight, kissed her hair, and whispered in her ear, “Last night, I dreamed of you.”
Author’s Note:
Sweet, right? Sweet!
Congrats to Young Master Gu for unlocking the kiss-hug-lift mode~~
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