NOVEL NEXT Chapter 394-399
Chapter 394: Waking Up the Following Day (4)
…
After going upstairs to check on He Jichen, she headed back down to the main hall, where she found a random quiet spot and asked the waiter to get her lots of wine because she was in a terrible mood.
That was when she drank too much and choked on the alcohol. As she bent over and laid spread out on the table, she coughed. Someone pulled on her arm and pulled her up.
She really drank too much. Her memory was a little fragmented, but she could still recollect a big portion of what happened.
It seemed like she grabbed her phone and called He Jichen but nobody picked up. Then she mistook Chen Bai for He Jichen, He Jichen for Chen Bai, and ordered He Jichen to buy correction fluid…
She couldn’t quite remember what happened afterward, but He Jichen took her back upstairs to the hotel room.
At the time, she was a little tired and with alcohol in her system, she was really sleepy too. However, she could still smell Xia Yuan’s perfume… Then she seemed to have muttered “Stinky” a few times. She even kicked He Jichen out of the room… Then she heard the two words: “correction fluid”…
Suddenly, she struggled out of bed and grabbed the correction fluid.
But she had too much to drink, so she had no strength left and ended up rolling off the bed.
She must’ve been really drunk when she hit her head because she couldn’t feel the pain. Then she started to crawl up and stagger out of the bedroom.
At that thought, Ji Yi’s fingers trembled as her mind replayed the scene like a movie and quickly forwarded to her squirting He Jichen all over his body, face, and hair with correction fluid.
Oh god… I actually did such a thing…
Though nobody on the entire plane knew what she was thinking, Ji Yi still raised her hands to cover her face in complete embarrassment.
In the full awkwardness of this memory, Ji Yi was immersed in it for a minute then continued to recall the events.
A hotel attendant helped her into He Jichen’s bathroom to take a shower, but mid-way through, she realized that Xia Yuan used the shower before her. She suddenly felt so disgusted that she ran around the bathroom like a crazy person, out of the attendant’s control. She picked up the correction fluid from the living room and smeared it everywhere in the bathroom like a lunatic.
Ji Yi couldn’t quite remember what happened afterward, but she vaguely remembered that she said a lot of nonsense. Then He Jichen carried her out of the bathtub.
He helped her out of her soaking wet bathrobe, patted her dry and helped her change into a new, dry bathrobe…
So, at that point in time, he actually saw her completely naked?
Ji Yi’s face flushed then she lowered her head.
He helped her dry her hair, brushed her hair, then fed her something…
She couldn’t quite remember. Ji Yi figured that the only reason why she didn’t feel so horrible during her hangover was probably because he fed her something.
Later on, he led her back into her own room. He stood at the door and didn’t come in. By herself, she took two steps in and was shocked by the floor full of lipstick.
So the words that came to mind earlier in the living room, when she saw the lipstick, were the same words he said at that moment.
He told her that he upset her… Perhaps she drunkenly told him that he upset her, so he used this method to cheer her up.
Ji Yi’s fingertips suddenly shivered and the image of him telling her “Sorry” came to mind.
Chapter 395: Waking Up the Following Day (5)
He said that he shouldn’t have upset her.
He even asked if she could forgive him.
She never answered him but instead, stared blankly at him. Then she didn’t know why but her attention was completely on his lips…
At that thought, Ji Yi suddenly covered her mouth with her hand as she opened her eyes wide in disbelief.
Yesterday, was I-I crazy? I a-a-actually kissed him!
If kissing him wasn’t enough, she actually licked his lips, his teeth, and his tongue…
In the beginning, he didn’t react, but then she teased him, provoking him to kiss her hungrily.
In that very moment, Ji Yi felt like she could die.
Just how many outrageous things did I do last night?
That was all that was on Ji Yi’s mind; the images of He Jichen on top of her drifted intermittently in her mind. She thought back to every time he nibbled and kissed her entire body so fervently and frantically…
Even if it had already been over ten hours ago, Ji Yi’s face still couldn’t help but burn up at the thought of what happened.
That tender picture of them shocked her into silence. After she gave her mind time to recover, she continued to recollect what happened.
She wasn’t sure what He Jichen was suddenly thinking, but he stopped, let go of her and left.
Nor did she know what he was thinking as he came back, wrapped her up in a blanket and put her back on the bed in the bedroom.
After he pulled the covers over her, he left, but she accidentally rolled off the bed. He caught her and then she…
Stunned for a long time, Ji Yi bit her bottom lip hard while holding her breath. Then she recalled the memory she pushed to the back of her mind.
It was her who reached out to his lips first, and after kissing him, she said something like: “cotton candy with no added sugar” and “why does cotton candy taste like alcohol?” If that wasn’t enough, the worst part was how she lowered her head and licked his lips with every word…
When he carried her, she even accidentally ignited his fire. He warned her not to move, but she was the one who didn’t listen. She fought him and not only did they toss and turn, but she even reached her hand out and touched…
So, I started everything that happened between us last night?
Ji Yi suddenly slumped in her seat like she lost all her strength.
At this very moment, she really and truly wanted to die.
If she felt at a loss this morning when she realized they had sex, now she felt all the same misery and on top of that, she was now truly embarrassed to face He Jichen!
–
He Jichen slept well.
They say that the most beautiful thing in this world is nothing other than waking up naturally from a dream. Even He Jichen himself couldn’t remember just how many nights he had without waking up naturally like this.
Perhaps it started four years ago after she left him that his sleep duration started to gradually get shorter and shorter. Even when he was asleep, the slightest sound or movement could easily wake him up.
In university, he and Han Zhifan slept in the same room, so whenever he was particularly restless at night, Han Zhifan knew full well that he was tired… really tired. He really wanted to sleep till the next morning, but he couldn’t. Whenever he shut his eyes, he would think of her, and when he opened his eyes, he would still think of her. Especially in the dead of night, those thoughts were intensified and made every second of every minute unbelievably grueling.
Chapter 396: Waking Up the Following Day (6)
Maybe it was because he hadn’t slept so well for such a long time that He Jichen slept like there was no tomorrow.
When he woke up, the room was incredibly quiet. The sunlight outside the window was unusually harsh on his eyes, but it actually felt quite pleasant.
He Jichen was still a little groggy from sleeping for too long, so he laid in bed staring at the crystal lights on the ceiling for a long time. Then he hugged the covers and slowly sat up.
He was used to grabbing his phone from his nightstand, but after reaching around for some time to no avail, he furrowed his brows. That was when he realized that this wasn’t his room; it was Ji Yi’s room.
Image after image of what happened last night immediately came to his mind. Then he instantly looked over at the other side of the bed.
The bedsheets were left in disarray and the pillow was randomly tossed to the corner of the bed. Yet, there was no one on the other side of the bed.
He Jichen furrowed his brows slightly as he instinctively touched the bed. It was cold; there were no traces of body warmth leftover, which meant that she… had been awake for some time now?
Deep down, He Jichen suddenly realized something. The next second, he pulled off the covers, picked up his bathrobe and messily put it on as he rushed into the bathroom.
Just like the empty half of the bed earlier, there was no one in sight.
But her makeup was still scattered on the shelf above the sink, just where they were when he brought her in to take a shower last night.
He Jichen’s restless heart calmed down a little. Then he rushed out of the bathroom and pulled open the wardrobe.
Suitcase, clothes, and shoes. All her luggage was here…
Seeing as she didn’t take her stuff, He Jichen let out a long sigh of relief. This meant she didn’t really leave… But after she woke up, where did she go? Was she bothered by what happened last night? Or maybe she was hungry so she went to the restaurant downstairs to eat…
Although he tried really hard to restrain himself last night, they still did it again.
Four years ago, he inflicted such an inerasable pain because he was young and naive; because he didn’t know how to truly love someone; because he was jealous. He even almost caused her to lose her life. Four years later, he could never repeat the same mistakes again.
So, there were some things he had to tell her.
For example, at the very least, he was willing to take responsibility for what happened last night.
At that thought, He Jichen quickly gathered his thoughts together and walked over to the bedside table. He picked up the phone and gave the front desk a call. He ordered them to send someone up to help him open the room next to his.
…
Back in his own room, He Jichen first found his phone and called Chen Bai. After asking him to drop by his room, he then walked into the bathroom.
When he finished freshening up, he found a set of casual clothes to change into. Just as he was going to shave his beard in front of the mirror, the doorbell rang.
He shaved his chin with the razor in hand as he walked over to the door and pulled it open.
It was Chen Bai.
“Mr. He, you’re awake?” Having been mistaken for He Jichen last night when Ji Yi was drunk, Chen Bai was now afraid that He Jichen would try to get back at him, so he smiled unusually brightly when he spoke.
He Jichen said nothing to his bootlicking and smiling face. He turned right around and headed for the bathroom.
–
Chapter 397: Waking Up the Following Day (7)
Chen Bai shut the door and followed He Jichen all the way to the bathroom door.
Before Chen Bai could politely ask He Jichen if he wanted to have something to eat, He Jichen looked up and swept Chen Bai a look in the mirror then said with a bland voice, “Where’s Ji Yi?”
Chen Bai was stunned by his question for a moment, but two seconds later, he asked curiously, “Wasn’t Miss Ji with you?”
He Jichen creased his brows. “Didn’t she get up really early? Didn’t she go to the restaurant to eat?”
Chen Bai shook his head. “No… I was sitting at the restaurant for breakfast and lunch, but I didn’t see Miss Ji.”
He Jichen’s heart jumped and an ominous feeling filled his heart.
Seeing He Jichen’s expression change, Chen Bai spoke again but with a more cautious tone of voice, “Mr. He, what’s wrong?”
She didn’t eat in the restaurant and her things are still in the room, so she couldn’t have done what I’m thinking… After she woke up and saw us sleeping together, was she so shocked that she found somewhere to hide all alone, worrying about what happened last night?
With that thought, He Jichen threw his razor into the sink. He turned around and walked out of the bathroom. After pulling out his own phone, he found Ji Yi’s number and gave her a call.
After about three seconds, the connection went through, but it was an automated response. “Sorry, the person you are trying to reach has turned off their phone.”
Turned off?!
The uneasiness in He Jichen’s heart grew deeper.
After she got drunk last night, she dragged his number into her blocked numbers list. But then again, he later got hold of her phone and removed it from the list… Don’t tell me my hand shook and didn’t properly remove my number from the list?
At that thought, He Jichen looked over at Chen Bai. “Give me your phone.”
At a loss, Chen Bai was confused as to why He Jichen wanted his phone, but he still obediently pulled out his phone, unlocked it and handed it to He Jichen.
He Jichen took his phone, entered Ji Yi’s number and made the call.
He got the same response as when he used his own phone just now. “Sorry, the person you are trying to reach has turned off their phone.”
She really did turn her phone off…
He Jichen used Chen Bai’s phone to call again. When he confirmed the circumstances, he felt like the situation was more serious than he imagined.
It was a matter of urgency. He had to find her first…
As this idea came to He Jichen’s mind, he handed Chen Bai’s phone back to him and said, “Go find a hotel manager now to scan through the CCTV footage. Let’s see if we can find out where she went.”
“Yes, Mr. He.” Chen Bai realized that something was wrong, judging by the look on He Jichen’s face. He didn’t dare to refuse him in the slightest, so he simply gave a short response and took the phone. Then he quickly left He Jichen’s room and followed his orders.
As He Jichen waited for Chen Bai’s news, he called Ji Yi a few more times but got the same response telling him that her phone was off.
After making countless calls, just when he was going to call her again, he suddenly remembered Tang Huahua. Then he withdrew his fingers, opened his contact list and found Tang Huahua’s number. He called her.
Tang Huahua was probably in class since she whispered when she picked up: “Hello, He Xuezhang.”
Chapter 398: Waking Up the Following Day (8)
He Jichen went straight to the point: “Did Ji Yi contact you?”
“No…” Tang Huahua paused for a moment then replied with more detail: “… Three nights ago, when we chatted over WeChat, she told me she’d be going back to Beijing the day after tomorrow. In the past two days, we haven’t been in contact.”
“Oh…” He Jichen didn’t say anything further.
Tang Huahua waited for more, but seeing as He Jichen didn’t say anything else, she asked curiously, “He Xuezhang, did something happen?”
He Jichen came back to his senses and replied flatly, “No.”
“Oh…” Tang Huahua wasn’t stupid – she knew He Jichen wasn’t going to tell her the truth, so she didn’t bother probing anymore.
After two seconds, Tang Huahua said again, “… He Xuezhang, how about this… I’ll try to contact Xiao Yi. If I’m able to get through to her, I’ll contact you right away.”
“Thank you,” He Jichen politely replied and hung up the phone.
He Jichen stared at the phone screen for a short while then called Ji Yi’s phone again. The phone was still turned off.
After hanging up, He Jichen stopped calling Ji Yi incessantly. Instead, he held his phone, walked over to the tall windows, and stared at the glistening sunlight outside.
He didn’t know how much time passed before the doorbell behind him rang.
He Jichen turned around and pulled the door open.
It was Chen Bai again. He Jichen didn’t invite him in but asked at the door, “So?”
“Mr. He, Miss Ji left the room at a quarter to seven this morning. She headed straight for the elevator, went downstairs and left the hotel. She hasn’t come back…”
So, she got up and left at six? That’s earlier than I imagined…
He Jichen silently pursed his lips while he listened to the rest of Chen Bai’s report.
“… I booked Miss Ji’s flight back to Beijing, so I called the airline company to check. Miss Ji’s flight was changed from the day after tomorrow to today at half past eight in the morning. That flight wasn’t delayed, and the duration was two hours and fifteen minutes, which means that Miss Ji arrived at Beijing Airport at a quarter to eleven…” Chen Bai lowered his head and glanced at the time on his watch. “…It’s two in the afternoon now, so Miss Ji has already been in Beijing for three hours and fifteen minutes now.”
Three hours and fifteen minutes… so much time has passed, yet she still has her phone off.
As soon as she woke up, she saw me by her side. Yet she left without any hesitation?
Could it be possible that the thing I’m most afraid of is really going to happen?
He Jichen’s fingers instinctively balled into a fist.
Having finished his report to He Jichen, Chen Bai couldn’t help but cry “Mr. He?” after he remained quiet for so long.
After about five seconds, He Jichen’s gaze fell on Chen Bai’s face. “Change my flight and I will return to Beijing.”
“But the film festival is tonight – you have to be there…” Chen Bai reminded him.
He Jichen instantly fell silent.
Oh yeah, the film festival. He had to attend not only for himself, but on behalf of YC Corp, and most importantly, for Ji Yi’s dream.
He Jichen pursed his lips slightly. After a good while, he spoke, “As soon as the film festival is over, we’ll head back to Beijing.”
Chen Bai knew this was the biggest concession for He Jichen. He replied with a “Yes,” grabbed his phone and started to change their flights.
Chapter 399: Waking Up the Following Day (9)
…
The film festival finished at ten in the evening.
He Jichen tactfully declined over ten invitations to meet afterward. After he slipped out, he immediately reached for his phone and tried to call Ji Yi as soon as he got in the car.
Just like his previous attempts to reach her, her phone was still switched off.
From the rear-view mirror, Chen Bai, in the driver’s seat, saw He Jichen put his phone to his ear for the second time.
Chen Bai didn’t have to ask; he knew He Jichen was calling Ji Yi.
Since He Jichen woke up in the afternoon, Chen Bai had constantly been by his side. When he attended the film festival in the evening, He Jichen had to entertain a lot of people, but every now and then, he would pull out his phone and tap the screen. Sometimes, the people beside him would talk to him, but He Jichen wouldn’t react for a long time and when he did, he replied with single-word answers.
He knew better than anyone that Miss Ji left without saying goodbye. In his heart, he knew that He Jichen was in no mood to smile, but he smiled at everyone he met at the film festival. The moment he finished making casual conversation though, there would be an indescribable cloudiness in his eyes.
What was more grueling than forcing someone to smile? But for four whole hours, Mr. He managed to get through the film festival…
Chen Bai came back from his senses and saw a slight worry creep up between He Jichen’s handsome brows. He immediately removed the phone from his ear.
Chen Bai figured that Mr. He’s call definitely didn’t get through to Miss Ji.
The sight of him made Chen Bai a little uncomfortable, and he couldn’t help but try to console him. “Mr. He, nothing’s going to happen to Miss Ji. She probably decided she wanted some alone time. You don’t have to worry.”
He Jichen glanced over at Chen Bai through the rear-view mirror without making a sound.
To make He Jichen’s mood a little better, Chen Bai smiled as he said, “What’s more, Mr. He, you treat Miss Ji so well. You’re handsome and rich, and you’ve been considered this century’s most desirable director. You’re the dream man of nine billion young girls, so you don’t have to worry so much. Miss Ji is an ordinary woman too, so she definitely feels something for you too…”
With that, as Chen Bai continued to ramble on, the darkness in He Jichen’s eyes grew more intense.
Chen Bai realized something was wrong, so he hurriedly shut his mouth in fear.
Could I possibly have said something wrong? How come the more I try to persuade him, the more upset Mr. He looks?
Chen Bai didn’t dare speak.
The car fell silent.
Just when Chen Bai thought it’d be quiet for the rest of their journey to the airport, He Jichen suddenly said, “If only she was just an ordinary woman…”
Chen Bai, who was fully concentrated on driving, didn’t quite catch what He Jichen said and naturally let out an “Mhm?”
He was met with a wall of silence.
Just when Chen Bai was going to ask He Jichen to repeat what he said, he saw a strong sense of helplessness between He Jichen’s brows as he stared at the endlessly disappearing night through the window.
This was a side of He Jichen that he had never seen in all the years he had known him.
Just like that, the words he wanted to say were swallowed.
He never knew that the god-like, almighty Mr. He could look so helpless.
He Jichen had no idea that Chen Bai was looking at him.
As he stared at the scenery outside the window, he continued to quietly think… that it would be alright if she was just a little more superficial, greedy, infatuated with love, or vain, so she would be more like other women and like him…