With her leaning and snuggling like this, Bao Nan, who was already unable to sleep, found it even harder to doze off.
The moment Jiang Tong hugged him, his whole body stiffened, and his ears turned rapidly red.
Having embraced something comfortable, Jiang Tong contentedly smacked her lips, continued curling up, and nestled into Bao Nan’s arms, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist.
Now, Bao Nan couldn’t push her away even if he wanted to.
Besides, he didn’t really want to push her away...
Bao Nan furrowed his brow slightly, raising his hand, seemingly contemplating where to place it.
In the end, the yearning in his heart triumphed over reason.
He threaded his long fingers through Jiang Tong’s dark hair.
Gently pressing her head, bringing her closer to his chest.
The other hand held her waist tightly, drawing her into his embrace.
His delicate chin lightly tapped on the top of her head, catching a whiff of her shampoo’s fragrance.
Just for tonight...
He would indulge just this once...
With this thought, he bowed his head and gently pecked Jiang Tong on her nose, a slight curve at his cool lips.
A smile of fulfillment and happiness graced his face as he held Jiang Tong and drifted into a deep sleep.
...
The next morning.
The air was just turning cool, and the village was shrouded in layers of light mist.
Despite the warm night, Bao Nan suddenly awoke with a start.
Jiang Tong, still asleep in his arms, caught his gaze for a long while.
After lingering regretfully, he kissed her nose lightly once more, then cautiously pried her arm from his waist.
Carefully, he placed her back where she had fallen asleep last night, and once again laid a quilt between them.
Having done all this, Bao Nan let out a sigh of relief, getting up to prepare for the day.
He did this because he feared that Jiang Tong would wake up in his arms in the morning.
Then fear, and refuse to sleep in the same bed with him again.
So, it was better to prevent that from happening.
Seeing that Jiang Tong was still asleep, he contentedly slipped off his pajamas.
As the light gray pajamas fell away, his solid, muscular upper body was revealed.
Long fingers buttoned the white shirt one by one, with elegance in every gesture.
After changing, Bao Nan glanced down at his watch.
It was 6:30 in the morning.
Neither early nor late for him, as this was his usual waking hour.
But for Jiang Tong, that little lazy pig, waking up early was as if it took half her life.
Fully aware of her habits, Bao Nan could only chuckle helplessly, his long fingers gently stroking her cheek, with a hint of indulgence flashing in his cool eyes.
Sitting by the bedside watching her for quite a while, Bao Nan finally got up again to prepare breakfast for her.
"..."
By the time Jiang Tong was fully awake, an hour and a half had passed.
The roosters outside the house began to crow.
She rubbed her sleepy eyes, propping her body half upright on the bed.
Once her vision cleared, Jiang Tong glanced around, only to find Bao Nan was already nowhere to be seen.
She sneakily looked at the blanket that served as a boundary between them on the bed.
It was undisturbed.
Jiang Tong breathed a sigh of relief, yet at the same time felt a tinge of disappointment.
Bah!
She was overthinking again!
It’s a good thing the blanket wasn’t moved, why was she feeling a bit let down? Why was she feeling down for no reason?
As she was chiding herself, Bao Nan walked in slowly with a bowl of porridge.
"You’re up? The production team made breakfast early, and I brought some for you."
Seeing Jiang Tong still curled up in bed, a trace of amusement flashed across Bao Nan’s eyes.