45. We’re Married, It’s Fine Without a Condom, Right?

Li Yao didn’t know much about Jiang Yan, having only met him a handful of times. It’s said that details reveal character, and that’s true enough. Lin Xingzi, bundled in a thick down jacket, sat in the back seat. After Jiang Yan closed the door for her, he walked around to the passenger side.

“You sit in the back too,” Li Yao smiled. “I’ll be your driver today.”

Jiang Yan politely thanked him and got in the car.

Lin Xingzi learned about Ji Qiuchi’s arrest through Lin Xudong. The mission failed, and the contact person turned out to be Ji Qiuchi. Even Lin Xingzi found it hard to accept, let alone Jiang Yan, who had grown up with her.

Li Yao drove. Jiang Yan was usually quiet and reserved, and he didn’t inquire about others’ work. They just chatted casually, but Lin Xingzi was the most silent one.

On the way to pick up Jiang Yan from work, Lin Xingzi was full of joy. Li Yao could see the light in her eyes through the rearview mirror.

But when she actually saw him, she didn’t know how to speak.

Whether Ji Qiuchi had fallen willingly or had hidden reasons, Lin Xingzi hadn’t been able to decipher it before, nor was she willing to delve deeper. But the moment Ji Qiuchi risked warning her, the scales in her heart had already tipped to one side.

What would Jiang Yan think?

She didn’t know.

She only knew that when Jiang Yan came out of the police station, he was completely exhausted, as if suffocated by something, and he didn’t even notice it was snowing from the main gate to the intersection.

“Li Yao, Xiao Jiang, please sit for a while, there are two more dishes,” Li Qing poked half her body out of the kitchen. She was wearing an apron, still holding a kitchen knife, her voice still strong. “Lin Xingzi, you’re dressed like that? You’ll freeze to death! You might as well wrap yourself in a rag.”

Lin Xingzi was used to it, “Mom, this dress costs eighty thousand.”

Li Qing continued to nag, telling her to quickly make a cup of cold remedy and drink it.

Lin Xudong had already brewed tea. Li Yao, knowledgeable about tea, sat with him to taste it. After a cup of tea, their bodies warmed up. Li Qing called out that dinner was ready, and they sat down first. Jiang Yan went to the room to call Lin Xingzi.

Lin Xingzi had changed into loungewear. “Just a moment, I’m tying my hair.”

Her voice was a bit nasal. Jiang Yan parted her loose hair, placing his palm on her forehead to check her temperature. “Are you catching a cold?”

Lin Xingzi sniffled, “I don’t think so.”

________________________________________

Today was New Year’s Eve, the last night of the year. Lin Xudong had prepared wine.

As a junior, Jiang Yan was among family. Lin Xudong knew he didn’t drink much and had been up almost all night yesterday. After they each toasted him twice, Lin Xudong didn’t press him to drink more.

Lin Xudong was the first to get completely drunk. Li Yao’s alcohol tolerance was similar to his, but he showed no signs of being affected.

They couldn’t drive after drinking, so Li Qing asked Lin Xingzi and Jiang Yan to stay the night. Tomorrow was New Year’s Day.

The snow wasn’t heavy, but it drifted gently from the vast black canvas onto the city. After several hours, the roads were still wet. There was a thin layer of snow on the balcony. Just as Lin Xingzi was about to put her foot out to make a footprint, Jiang Yan picked her up from behind by her waist.

Lin Xingzi was displeased, her feet dangling in the air. “You sleep. Why bother me?”

Lin Xudong was completely drunk, and Li Qing was resting. Jiang Yan carried Lin Xingzi back to the bedroom and locked the door behind him. “You’re not moving beside me. It’s too quiet, I can’t sleep.”

Lin Xingzi hummed softly, not responding.

Her room had floor-to-ceiling windows, offering an excellent view when the curtains were open. There was underfloor heating after winter began, and with a carpet, it was even warmer. She sat on the floor, clinging to him, looking outside. The city lacked much New Year’s festive spirit, not as lively as the Chinatown she had seen during her years abroad.

“Achoo!” Lin Xingzi sneezed.

She really did catch a cold.

Jiang Yan had gotten cold medicine from Li Qing earlier. This packet of granules was bitter, from her tongue to her throat. Lin Xingzi’s eyebrows furrowed. There was a plate of milk candies Li Qing bought on the living room table. Jiang Yan peeled one and fed it to her.

The scent of milk in the air slowly covered the bitterness.

During the day, Lin Xingzi wore an expensive gown to the company’s annual meeting, representing the entire company’s management in her speech, looking noble and aloof. At night, she washed off her makeup and hair, peacefully accompanying the first snow. She showed a lively little expression because of a milk candy. Jiang Yan sat beside her, his heart slowly calming. All the things that had disturbed his mind seemed to have quietly smoothed out their rough edges.

“Jiang Jiang, he’s not dead.”

“...Who?”

“Jiang Yi,” Jiang Yan’s eyes lowered, pausing for a few seconds. “I saw him today.”

Lin Xingzi suspected she had misheard.

The person the police confirmed dead eight years ago suddenly appeared?

If he wasn’t dead, why didn’t he come home? Why hadn’t he called his family for eight years? Why was there such a huge error in the forensic examination results? If ‘Jiang Yi’ was ‘dead,’ what identity had he lived under for the past eight years? Where was he? What was he doing? If the real ‘Jiang Yi’ was still alive, then whose body was it that was identified as ‘Jiang Yi’ eight years ago?

Countless questions piled up in her mind. Lin Xingzi dared not delve into the intricate reasons behind them.

She widened her eyes, stunned and lost, silent for a long while. Jiang Yan thought he had scared her, but she suddenly leaned over and hugged his waist, gently patting his back.

“That’s good. Officer Jiang has another family member,” she looked up, smiling and blinking. “Not everyone gets a New Year’s surprise like this.”

In his eyes, Jiang Yan could only see his own reflection.

After a gust of cold wind, the snow grew heavier, large flakes falling on the glass window. It was unclear who kissed whom first.

Lin Xingzi leaned back. The man’s palm cupped the back of her head, pressing her towards him, kissing her mouth, chin, gently biting her lower lip. When she winced in pain, he slipped his tongue between her teeth.

“...I have a cold.”

“Sweating will drive out the chill.”

That wasn’t what she meant. “It’s contagious!”

“I have a three-day holiday.”

“...”

Lin Xingzi was pushed onto the carpet. The man’s hand cushioned the back of her head, a warm, damp sensation coming from her scalp. She had some difficulty breathing and gently pushed him, but he clung to the kiss. The hand cushioning her head pulled away and cupped her chin, lifting it.

The taste of milk candy was entirely consumed by him, a slight bitterness spreading between her teeth.

Her pajamas were unbuttoned. Lin Xingzi’s cold seemed to worsen; she felt the heating was too hot, her head swimming.

The man’s fingers slowly delved along the edge of her bra, his nails brushing her skin.

He was about to grasp her.

Lin Xingzi had no more energy to think about the pristine white city covered in a layer of snow tomorrow morning.

Jiang Yan suddenly stopped, his heavy body pressing down on her.

The heavy breathing near her ear made Lin Xingzi blush. “What’s wrong?”

“...No condom.”

Jiang Yan fiercely kissed her, then propped himself up on the carpet, about to get up. But the hand clutching his clothes hooked around his neck. Lin Xingzi’s shoulders shook with laughter. He had said these two words more than once, and each time there was a next time.

He was caught off guard, his body sinking, his erect cock pressing between her legs.

Jiang Yan was a bit disheveled, veins bulging on his arm, his voice extremely hoarse, “Jiang Jiang, I won’t be able to stop myself.”

I’ll get it inside.

“We’re married. We’ve both had premarital check-ups. It’s fine without one, r-right?”