[Picking Boat and Accompanying the Moon] We Will Meet Again Later - Chapter 21

Jiang Feng, “She’s not the one.”

Gao Jinfei was exasperated, “You haven’t even seen her yet, how would you know she’s not? She’s the closest match I’ve found in all these years. She moved to another city in middle school, had a serious illness with a high fever, and doesn’t remember anything from before. But her voice is really pleasant.”

There were many people with the same name as Ning Xu, and no matter how pleasant someone’s voice might be, the Ning Xu who could make those little bear cookies could only be one person.

Jiang Feng didn’t have time to explain too much, “No need to keep looking. I’m focusing on finding a place now.”

“Fine, you said it. I’ll stop looking if that’s what you want.” Gao Jinfei was straightforward. “Just don’t come begging me to help you find her again later when you’re half-dead with misery.”

While Jiang Feng was on the phone, Ning Xu stepped aside to chat with the real estate agent on WeChat.

She settled on the fourth apartment she saw—it was close to the area where Ning Xu lived.

The apartment came furnished but was very sparse. Ning Xu considered whether she should help him decorate a bit, but then she thought since she wasn’t his girlfriend, getting involved in his home decor might seem like overstepping.

With the housing matter settled, Jiang Feng was busy for a short while before he began assisting Ning Xu with her painting again.

This time, he took off his outer coat and all the clothes underneath, draping a black shirt over his shoulders and covering the critical area below his abdomen with a shiny purple-red silk cloth.

He leaned back against the sofa, part of the silk cloth resting on the sofa, part trailing onto the floor.

“Do you have lipstick?” Jiang Feng asked. “Draw on me with it.”

Ning Xu understood what he meant and took out a lipstick with a purple-toned magenta shade.

The lipstick glided like a snake over his cool, pale skin, leaving vivid marks.

She drew along the side of his neck, his collarbone, his wrists, and his waist. He tensed sensitively, his muscles tightening into sharper, more defined lines, with lean muscle becoming visible.

Finally, she raised her hand and left a red mark below the corner of his left eye.

The entire scene was vivid and alluring.

The man’s expression was lazy, his eyes lowered with a hint of a smile. The black shirt casually draped over his shoulders made his skin appear even paler, his shoulders broad, his waist slender, and his legs long—his figure was exceptional. The disheveled silk cloth and lipstick traces added a touch of the exotic and ambiguous.

Especially since he wore a light lavender-grey prosthetic eye, which, under the light, seemed to hold a starry brightness. The added lipstick mark below his eye made it as if even the stars had fallen into allure.

He was quite particular about colour tones.

Ning Xu felt her heart racing.

While drawing on him so closely with the lipstick, she had held her breath, suppressing certain impulses.

Ning Xu secretly took deep breaths for a long time, drank a glass of cold water, and first went to lock the studio door. No matter what, she couldn’t let anyone else see this.

After all, Jiang Feng in this state was something she had paid for—it was paid content.

And even if others paid, she wouldn’t let them see.

The silk cloth only covered the upper part of his thighs, revealing his long, well-built legs.

Ning Xu sat down with her drawing board, her heart still pounding wildly.

“What’s wrong?” Not hearing any movement for a while, Jiang Feng grew nervous. “Is it not good?”

He asked with tension and sincerity—since he couldn’t see, he couldn’t be sure if how he looked now was appealing.

Ning Xu, “It’s good.”

“Really?”

“Mm.”

His heart settled.

Ning Xu stared at him for a long time and suddenly deeply understood the thrill of spending money. Two thousand an hour was truly worth it.

“Seriously, though.”

Jiang Feng, “Hmm?”

Ning Xu said with a straight face, “You should be glad I’m a conscientious client.” Even though her moral boundary for committing a crime was also swaying precariously.

Jiang Feng laughed, “It’s only like this with you.”

Ning Xu picked up her brush and began painting this body that held such a strong appeal for her.

At first, the air felt stiflingly hot, and she couldn’t bring herself to start. But later, calming her mind, she found her strokes flowing smoothly.

His eyes, his lips—she depicted them stroke by stroke.

She painted until dusk, then stopped to examine her work carefully. The more she looked at what she had created, the more she liked it. She began to understand what it meant to be passionate about something.

A knock sounded at the door.

Ning Xu snapped out of her reverie and got up to answer it.

Shan Yuqing stood there holding groceries in both hands, looking puzzled. “Sis, why did you lock the door?”

Jiang Feng had already gotten dressed. Hearing the noise, he greeted Shan Yuqing.

Shan Yuqing smiled and said, “You’re here again? Thanks for your hard work.”

Right after saying that, she noticed the lipstick on Jiang Feng’s face and neck. She remembered Ning Xu wearing that lipstick color. Could it be…?

Before even putting down the groceries, Shan Yuqing whipped her head around to stare directly at Ning Xu.

Seeing her strange expression, Ning Xu raised an eyebrow.

“Did you already sleep with him?” Shan Yuqing leaned in close, whispering into her ear, “Did you get his consent? His friend seemed pretty fierce. If this blows up, I won’t be able to handle it.”

Ning Xu, “…”

Jiang Feng was dressed and properly put together, but since he couldn’t see, he had forgotten about the lipstick on the corner of his left eye and his neck over time.

“Our company is a proper business,” Ning Xu cleared her throat and said sternly, “And this is proper work.”

It seemed the awareness of the company’s employees still needed improvement.

Forget that the company wasn’t even registered yet. Shan Yuqing looked at Jiang Feng, then glanced at Ning Xu—she really found it hard to believe.

Ning Xu changed the subject, “Alright, let’s get ready for the live stream.”

While Shan Yuqing busied herself in the kitchen, Ning Xu went to get makeup remover wipes. She took one out and helped Jiang Feng wipe off the lipstick.

He didn’t refuse.

The distance was a bit too close. Ning Xu looked into his eyes. Usually, he wore brown-toned prosthetic eyes to better match the color of his right eye, making it hard to tell the difference between the two at a glance.

The ones he wore today resembled amethyst-gray crystal, like colored contacts, but more beautiful than contacts and costing hundreds of times more.

“Your eyes are very beautiful.”

Since childhood, Ning Xu had never been stingy with compliments about his eyes.

Jiang Feng smiled but didn’t say anything.

After wiping the area under his eyes, Ning Xu took another makeup remover wipe to clean his neck. The lipstick marks gradually faded until they were completely gone.

For some reason, both of them held their breath.

The moment Ning Xu withdrew her hand, the curve of her finger brushed against his Adam’s apple.

He closed his eyes, and his Adam’s apple bobbed.

Ning Xu stepped back a few paces and didn’t exhale until she reached the kitchen.

Shan Yuqing had already set up the camera and turned it on. Ning Xu quickly organized the ingredients.

“Can I play the piano?” Jiang Feng asked.

“Feel free.”

Ning Xu had placed a piano in the studio, thinking she would learn to play when she had time. But she never found the time, and when she did, she wasn’t in the mood. So, it had been gathering dust in the corner.

Shan Yuqing announced the start of the livestream. As viewers joined, Ning Xu greeted them, “Good evening, everyone. Today, we’ll start with a dish of Braised Duck with Plum and Rock Sugar.”

When the audience heard other sounds, they began asking: [What’s the occasion today? There’s background music.]
[Lin Xu’s livestream actually has BGM now.]

Ning Xu handled the duck while saying, “Yes, just treat it as BGM.”

[What’s the BGM?]

Ning Xu began preparing the supplementary ingredients and said, “I’m not sure what it’s called either. Seems like a piece by Liszt.” She wasn’t very familiar with piano music but had a general idea of some pianists’ styles.

Jiang Feng asked, “Is it distracting you?”

“Not at all.” Ning Xu smiled. “My livestream finally has background music.”

Jiang Feng’s voice was also picked up by the microphone. Those who heard it quickly started commenting in the livestream: [There’s a man’s voice!]
[Such a nice voice! Is he an assistant or your boyfriend?]
[Make him say something else!]

Ning Xu saw the comments but pretended not to. As long as she ignored them, Jiang Feng wouldn’t know what was being said in the livestream.

He had been sensitive to sounds since childhood and loved pleasant voices. Ning Xu had once thought he might learn to play an instrument in the future, but she never expected him to play this well.

She could tell he was in a good mood now—the melody was gentle and lingering, which put Ning Xu at ease as well.

The setting sun fell beside him, and the white curtain corners swayed gently in the evening breeze.

Ning Xu lifted the lid of the pot, releasing the aroma of the Braised Duck with Plum and Rock Sugar. Through the steam, she looked at his blurry figure, her heart feeling warm and full, her emotions turning both sour and sweet.

Doing what she loved and seeing the person she wanted to see.

For the first time in a long while, she finally tasted a hint of happiness.

What you dwell on by day, you dream of at night.

Perhaps it was because she had painted Jiang Feng’s body too much, but that night, before going to sleep, Ning Xu felt physically warm and restless, struggling to fall asleep. She tossed and turned until the early hours of the morning before exhaustion finally pulled her under.

The scenes in her dream were blurry, hard to make out clearly, but Jiang Feng was unmistakably there.

She remembered his smiling eyes, but couldn’t clearly see his expression.

He lifted the purple-red silk cloth, pulled her into his embrace, and they held each other tightly.

Ning Xu kissed the side of his neck, leaving behind magenta lipstick marks.

She could hear his breathing, feel his strength, and even sense his warmth.

Ning Xu felt as though she were a small boat tossed on the waves.

Rising and falling, drifting and swaying.

…

Daybreak came, and Ning Xu woke up.

She knew exactly what she had dreamed and why she had such a dream.

Having desires and impulses was a good thing—they could provide a continuous source of inspiration and material.

Ning Xu stayed curled up in bed, not getting up. She reached for her iPad and started drawing, capturing the perspectives from her dream.

She drew from morning until noon, roughly finishing before tossing the iPad aside, feeling only emptiness.

Sitting up and rubbing her temples, she sighed ruefully. Was this draining both her wallet and her body?

A couple of days later, Jiang Feng came over again.

Ning Xu instantly felt as though her body had been hollowed out.

As he began to undo his clothes, Ning Xu quickly grabbed his wrist, “Wait.”

Jiang Feng stopped, “What’s wrong?”

Even though 48 hours had passed, seeing him still made Ning Xu feel restless and feverish. It was time to go out and cool off in the breeze to calm down.

“Well, I had another idea,” she said, thinking on her feet. “Let’s paint outdoors today. We’ll find a nice spot outside. You just sit somewhere, and I’ll paint.”

Jiang Feng naturally agreed, “Okay.”

They went to a park together, but even the tranquility of the park couldn’t dispel Ning Xu’s chaotic thoughts.

Looking up at the contour and lines of Jiang Feng’s jaw, she vaguely recalled disjointed fragments from her dream—his eyes blindfolded with a white silk ribbon, her tugging hard on the ribbon forcing him to tilt his head back, the ribbon loosening and slipping down to rest on his collarbones, and her kissing his eyes.

Tch.

Ever since seeing him, her mind had been filled with a mess of adult thoughts. Where had her former peace and tranquility gone?!

If there ever came a day when she reached a state of sage-like clarity, it would only be because her heart ached for her money.

Jiang Feng, unaware of her thoughts, only sensed her restlessness. After a moment’s thought, he asked the most likely reason, “What’s wrong? Is the painting not going well?”

“It’s just going too well, you know?”

“Hmm?”

Ning Xu mustered the last of her conscience and said, “If we keep painting like this, it’s really dangerous.”