On this particular day, Song Yansheng returned late, though not exceptionally so; when Shi Nuan heard the sound of the car outside, it was about ten o’clock in the evening.
At that time, she had just lain down in bed, not yet asleep.
Around ten minutes later, Song Yansheng entered the room. Seeing the petite figure on the bed, a smile graced his lips, and he said, "Is Nuannuan waiting for me?"
Shi Nuan’s calm eyes flickered as she said, "...Second Uncle didn’t drink tonight, right?" free.w e bn.ov(e)l(.)com
Song Yansheng’s smile deepened, unexpectedly, the little girl was concerned!
He reached out, took off his suit jacket, and walked step by step toward Shi Nuan, who instinctively shrank back into the quilt.
The man’s figure was already approaching the bedside, leaning over, his handsome face gradually drawing near, as his breath pressed down...
"Second Uncle..." Shi Nuan was frightened and didn’t dare to move, the scent of sandalwood and tobacco from the man overwhelmed her senses, engulfing her consciousness...
The distance between the two grew closer and closer, Shi Nuan was very nervous, and just as their lips were about to touch, she instinctively closed her eyes and slightly turned her face to the side...
The man’s long eyelashes trembled, but ultimately he did not come any closer, only lightly touching his nose to hers, saying, "Come, smell, do I have the odor of alcohol on me?"
Shi Nuan was momentarily stunned, alcohol smell?
Then she gently opened her eyes, at which point Song Yansheng had already retreated a little distance, but his arms still propped on either side of her, encircling her.
Shi Nuan pressed her lips together, saying, "...Second Uncle, it’s late! You... should wash up now..."
He didn’t smell of alcohol, which relieved her a lot, but he did smell of smoke, indicating he had been smoking!
She really couldn’t understand why men were either smoking or drinking. Neither was good, yet they were so keen on both!
But she couldn’t ask Song Yansheng to quit smoking, abstaining from alcohol was due to his stomach issues and was medical advice, but asking him to quit smoking felt like meddling.
Even if she was his wife...
Song Yansheng looked at the girl’s slightly flushed face, knowing she was shy, and didn’t want to tease her any further, smiled, saying, "Alright... I’ll go now!"
As he stood up, he straightened his collar, casually picked up the suit jacket, and hung it on the hanger.
Then he turned and walked toward the bathroom.
Soon, the bathroom door closed, and Song Yansheng’s silhouette disappeared. Only then did Shi Nuan slightly breathe a sigh of relief.
She reached out to pull the quilt over herself, lay down again, and tried hard to disregard that faint red mark on Song Yansheng’s shirt collar.
In the bathroom, as Song Yansheng undressed, he undoubtedly saw the lipstick mark on his collar as he undid all the shirt buttons.
Tonight, in a social engagement, he met an elderly couple nearing seventy, who were friends of his late grandmother, and hadn’t seen them in a long time.
Especially the old lady, seeing how he had grown so much, couldn’t resist embracing him.
Though approaching seventy, she was a fashionable old lady, never short of makeup and style. While hugging Song Yansheng, some lipstick accidentally smeared onto his collar.
The old lady apologized, saying she had ruined his shirt, but Song Yansheng didn’t mind, saying it could be washed later.
However, when he actually went to the washroom to wash it off, he hesitated slightly.
He wondered, if his Nuannuan saw this lipstick mark, would she be jealous?
After all, she was his wife, seeing her husband returning from a social event with a lipstick mark on his collar, shouldn’t she be angry or jealous?
He had come in just now, removed his jacket, and got so close to her, she must have seen it.
To make it more noticeable, he even tugged a bit at the collar...
But observing Shi Nuan’s reaction, she only seemed tense when he got close, and nothing more...