Chapter 16

“Has he taken the medicine?” Song Longsha was the first to leap up, “Wasn’t that kind of medicine banned?”
The doctor adjusted her glasses: “Useful things aren’t so easily banned.”
Fang Xianxing felt that those two deserved to be hacked to pieces, but thinking about it now was useless, so she pressed on: “Is there any way to counteract the drug?”
“The test results show that the medicine he took was made from tonics—it’s not inherently poisonous, so there’s no antidote. Using anesthetics or ice water to suppress it will only work temporarily.” The doctor looked troubled, “The purity of the refinement isn’t clear yet. Self-relief might help.”
Song Longsha let out a long breath: “Oh, it’s just tonics? Then it’s fine, my sister’s still here.”
After saying this, Song Longsha paused, as if something felt off. Her sister had been quite proactive, almost making her forget that Xie Zhi was married to her sister as a shield. Before, when they were told to share a room, her sister had resisted left and right, but now they were sleeping in the same bed—maybe that wouldn’t work out.
Sure enough, after Song Longsha spoke, Fang Xianxing’s eyelid twitched.
She wasn’t there, she didn’t want to be, and right now she only wanted to head to Hongsheng Villa to have a good “chat” with those two all night long.
“Sister, you seem to like your husband quite a bit. How about just going with it?” Song Longsha probed cautiously.
The doctor was quite familiar with Song Longsha and was meeting her sister for the first time. She was curious about what was up with Song Longsha’s sister and her husband. Logically, if they were wife and husband, this should be an easy fix.
Fang Xianxing felt awkward under their stares.
“General Fang, the drug’s effect will likely peak in five or six minutes. At that point, the remaining dose of sedative we’ve given him won’t hold it back.” The doctor quietly fanned the flames.
Unfortunately, Fang Xianxing didn’t take the bait. She pressed her lips shut and said nothing, and the room fell abruptly silent, an inexplicable tension settling in. The doctor set aside her gossip and, with benevolence, offered a solution: “I’ll leave him a medical note, suggesting he… take care of it himself? If the drug’s purity isn’t too high, he can manage it alone, no problem.”
“And if the purity is high?” Song Longsha asked curiously.
The doctor placed a fist near her lips and coughed lightly: “If the purity is high, he might not be able to resist it. He could become restless, lose control of his strength, and if he tries to handle it himself then, well, it might…”
“Shut up!”
Fang Xianxing stared at the two before her with exasperation.
Her relationship with Xie Zhi was already troubled—he didn’t put even half a heart into her. If this blasted drug ended up making something happen, wouldn’t Xie Zhi feel utterly repulsed when he woke up?
It’d be even harder to deal with later.
“That’s all the solutions we have. The injury on his foot is fine—if you’re worried, you can spray it with medicine a few more times. It’s past two in the morning, I need to go.” The doctor stood up, bid Song Longsha farewell, and left with her team, vanishing the moment she stepped out.
Left behind, Song Longsha felt a bit awkward. She stood up carefully, edged toward the door, and pointed upstairs with her index finger: “Sister, don’t worry, I won’t stay next door or downstairs—I’ll stay upstairs.”
Fang Xianxing: “…” What a clever little thing you are.
After Song Longsha left, the hotel suite emptied out. Fang Xianxing sat on the living room sofa, alone and irritated.
A loud “bang” came from the inner room. Fang Xianxing jumped up and hurried into the room where Xie Zhi was sleeping.
Xie Zhi had woken up, his forehead dripping with cold sweat, his face flushed red. He must have stirred midway, thirsty for water, but after getting out of bed, dragging himself to the table had exhausted all his strength. A bottle of water slipped from his grasp and fell to the floor.
Fang Xianxing walked over, ignoring the spilled mineral water. She picked up a new bottle, unscrewed the cap, and handed it to him.
“You know what you took, don’t you?” Fang Xianxing began.
Xie Zhi held the water bottle with both hands, turning his back to Fang Xianxing and sipping slowly. He didn’t react to her words.
“What do you plan to do?” Fang Xianxing asked again.
He still didn’t speak. After finishing the water, he set the bottle on the nearby table.
Fang Xianxing reached for it, screwed the cap back on, and thought to herself that it was good he was awake now. He could decide for himself—either way, she…
The thought of her first time being with someone she was somewhat interested in, but who didn’t like her back, left Fang Xianxing unwilling. Yet she couldn’t bear to see Xie Zhi suffer.
Fang Xianxing wrestled with herself for a while, but Xie Zhi, the one in question, kept his back to her, unresponsive. The contrast made her wonder if she was being overly sentimental again.
Somewhat humiliated, she stepped around to face him, but what she saw instantly doused her anger.
Xie Zhi’s cheeks were flushed scarlet, his wet lashes looking like they might drip, his temples and nose tip glistening with fine beads of sweat.
Sensing Fang Xianxing move in front of him, he shrank back trembling, his entire being so fragile it seemed he might shatter.
Fang Xianxing set aside her own feelings, took a step closer, and grabbed his hand, saying softly: “I can help you.”
Before Xie Zhi could pull away, Fang Xianxing caught his wrist. He lowered his eyes to her hand gripping him, pressed his lips tight until they turned white.
Ever since he was young, Xie Zhi had always hated being a man.
To him, aside from having emotions and the ability to think, men were no different from animals.
At fourteen or fifteen, desire would stir and spill over; a slight provocation would set him off. His body had a breeding sac that, once activated by female hormones, would release capturing pheromones to seize a suitable egg and nurture it into a fetus.
Like a lowly animal born ready to mate and reproduce at any moment.
Women, though? They could restrain themselves and stay calm whenever they chose—wanting when they wanted, stopping when they stopped.
Why was it like this?
Xie Zhi didn’t understand, didn’t like it, and didn’t want to live this way.
But he’d been fed that drug…
Yes, he knew exactly what he’d taken. He’d kept his back to Fang Xianxing earlier because he didn’t want her to see him shamelessly reduced to an animal.
Xie Zhi felt wronged. The warmth from Fang Xianxing’s hand on his wrist made his heart ache even more.
Why did it have to be this way?
Compared to the vile woman who’d drugged him, Fang Xianxing was indeed a better choice. She was a good person, willing to help him.
But he really didn’t want to do this, didn’t want to become someone stripped of his own will, entirely controlled by animal instincts.
The reality was, his wants didn’t matter.
His body was on fire, his mind a muddled mess, every part of him urging him to go to Fang Xianxing, to seek her mercy.
He didn’t want this.
Struggling to hold onto the last shred of clarity in his mind, Xie Zhi lifted his head and looked at Fang Xianxing.
His watery eyes, framed by red, feverish rims, met hers, and Fang Xianxing somehow felt he was pleading for help—not for his body, but for his soul.
*
They stood in fragile deadlock, neither knowing when that taut string might snap.
Fang Xianxing seemed to see Xie Zhi’s struggling soul, roasted over a fire. He didn’t need more fuel—he needed a bucket of water. He wanted clarity, reason, to break free of base instincts.
After much thought, she wondered if, since something absurd was inevitable, she should give him a reason that preserved some dignity. Like saying she liked him, wanted him, that the drug was just a catalyst, and any intimacy would stem from affection.
But Fang Xianxing wasn’t willing. In their relationship, she’d already quietly taken the lead, yet Xie Zhi never cared for her. If she bared more of herself, it’d be like exposing her belly to her prey, willingly placing herself beneath him—against the principles of a hunter. Wouldn’t Xie Zhi just trample over her later?
She wasn’t willing.
This wouldn’t harm her anyway. She’d have Xie Zhi, and he’d owe her a favor—wasn’t that good? Why should she speak up and frame it as something she liked, anticipated, or rejoiced in, lowering herself to a groveling fool?
Fang Xianxing looked up at Xie Zhi. His fair face was flushed red, the redness creeping into his black eyes as if swallowing his last bit of sanity. His hands at his sides were clenched tight—she didn’t need to guess to know how hard he gripped, his nails likely digging near-bleeding marks into his palms.
Why hold on so stubbornly? Controlled by that drug, anything he did would be excusable. Why stake his sanity and dignity on it? Physical love didn’t need an emotional foundation—couldn’t people just indulge as animals sometimes?
After who-knows-how-long, Xie Zhi’s body swayed slightly. Fang Xianxing slid her hand down, pulled his up, and pried his fingers open one by one. Seeing the deep marks, she sighed.
Fine.
“Alright, Xie Zhi, I’ll be straight. Last time I proposed, it wasn’t because you were suitable. When Tang Xuan ruthlessly hurt himself and you shrank back in guilt, you didn’t look at all like someone fit to be my fake marriage shield.”
Xie Zhi blinked slowly, the heat consuming his body, even his eyelids burning, but he fought to stay lucid and hear Fang Xianxing’s words.
“I proposed because I found you attractive, adorable.”
“I like you. I want to marry you as my true husband.”
“I know you don’t like me, that you’re just humoring me for the Fenjie Sea archaeology project.” Fang Xianxing pouted, unconvinced, “But I think you’re blind for it, and that needs fixing.”
She finished, casting a disdainful glance at Xie Zhi before turning her head away.
Hearing her words clearly, Xie Zhi’s mind buzzed, and the tension in his nerves inexplicably eased a little.
“I seem reasonable, but I’m not really. I like you, so you should like me too. You’ll be mine eventually.”
Fang Xianxing gripped his hand harder, pulling Xie Zhi into her arms without warning, holding his waist tightly. She lowered her head, fiercely demanding: “Now, say you like me, that you’re willing to be my husband. Whatever I do next will be my rightful claim.”
Her words made Xie Zhi want to cry, tears welling up layer after layer until he could barely see her face.
It wasn’t enough, he thought.
Clinging to his last thread of reason, he spoke softly: “Today… at the set… what did you say to Tang Xuan?”
Taking all the responsibility on herself left Fang Xianxing frustrated. Hearing Xie Zhi ask about something trivial irritated her: “You saw? He’s annoying. I threatened him—if he gets close again, I’ll have someone break his leg and leave him lame for life.”
“Really?”
“No reason to lie to you.”
Fang Xianxing was annoyed at his distrust but hadn’t snapped yet when Xie Zhi, trembling, asked again: “Tonight at your hotel room… was someone there? Did you… touch him?”
Fang Xianxing tilted her head, looking at him oddly: “You know about that too? That guy had no sense—I knocked him out. He’s probably been dumped by the moat by now, I don’t know.”
“Xie Zhi, did you put a tracker on me?” Fang Xianxing let go, stepped back, and patted herself down in confusion.
As she checked herself, Xie Zhi’s strained clarity suddenly collapsed, his unsupported body tipping forward.
Fang Xianxing noticed, quickly catching him. Seeing the explosive redness on his face, she frowned, lifted him onto the bed, and laid him down.
After settling him, she stood, wondering if she should get a cold towel to cool him down, but Xie Zhi grabbed her hand. Struggling to sit up, he clung to her tightly, gasping: “Fang Xianxing, I think I… I also like…”
“Like what?” Fang Xianxing pressed, “Like me?”
Xie Zhi’s breathing was ragged, struggling to control the scorching heat in his body. It felt like a million ants were biting him. He desperately wanted to tell Fang Xianxing clearly: he wasn’t blind, he’d come to care for her without realizing it, he didn’t want Tang Xuan or anyone else near her—she should be good to him alone.
But the overwhelming heat trapped those words in his throat, gurgling incoherently, and Fang Xianxing couldn’t make them out.
Finally, she caught something: “Hot, so hot…”
Fang Xianxing puffed out one cheek, noticing Xie Zhi’s hands starting to wander over her. She gritted her teeth, pulled back the covers, and lay down with him.
“Hey, Xie Zhi, I heard you—you like me too. That means we’re mutual.”
Fang Xianxing pinned his hand, which had climbed to her waist, muttering to someone who’d lost all sense.
“Since it’s mutual, whether we get a license or not has nothing to do with the bidding or the Fenjie Sea project.”
“Last time, my dad scolded me for not telling them about the license. In a couple of days, you’re coming home with me to tell my mom and dad, got it?”
“Xie Zhi, you’re not just saying you like me to trick me into helping you, are you?”
“Xie… mmph.”
Fang Xianxing couldn’t mutter anymore. Xie Zhi’s burning lips found hers, their lips meeting. Her mind jolted, his scalding breath hitting her face, making her head spin too. She pulled him close, lightly biting his clumsy, rubbing lips, taking the lead to part his teeth and entwine them more deeply.
Xie Zhi responded awkwardly, but it wasn’t enough. His heart still raced, his body still burned, tears streaming down from the corners of his eyes.