Chapter 94 Anyway, I’ve Only Slept with You

Chapter 94: For the Record, You’re the Only One I’ve Slept With

Back in his cramped room, Ling Song opened his glitchy laptop and began reading the script.

After finishing it, he lay awake.

Director Jiang Huaiyuan had asked him to "release his emotions," to channel Ye Linzhou’s zen attitude… but he had no idea how to do that.

That night, however, Jiang Ruotang was in his studio, touching up the works he had completed that afternoon.

There were two paintings—one of Ling Song sitting sideways and another of him lying on the sofa.

Zhao Zhangfeng knocked on the door and peeked in.

"What?" Jiang Ruotang lifted his head grumpily.

"What did you paint Ling Song like? Let me see!"

Jiang Ruotang crossed his arms and studied Zhao Zhangfeng. "I knew it… You kept asking me to shell shrimp for you at dinner on purpose."

"On purpose for what?"

The corner of Jiang Ruotang’s lips curled up slightly. "Jealous much? You think Ling Song is handsomer, more mature, and more commanding than you. You’re worried I’ll start inviting him over as a model, and you’ll lose all standing in my studio."

"Who cares?" Zhao Zhangfeng walked over to the easel. "Hey, can I take a photo and send it to the group chat? Jian Sha just asked if you had any new works. Maybe it’ll inspire her."

Jiang Ruotang was happy to share with friends—except he doubted Zhao Zhangfeng’s photo skills could capture even any of its soul.

And… he had a little secret hope.

Would Lu Guifan, knee-deep in experiments, feel even the slightest twinge of displeasure if he saw Jiang Ruotang painting another man while scrolling through his phone?

The thought lasted only a second before Jiang Ruotang amused himself.

Lu Guifan? That guy checking his phone?

Even if he did, he’d probably just think Jiang Ruotang had found someone to paint—not someone to date. As his high school deskmate, class monitor, and friend, did he really need to vet the guy’s character or something?

"Go ahead," Jiang Ruotang lowered his head, like a deflated balloon…

No, more like a lovesick fool.

With Jiang Ruotang’s permission, Zhao Zhangfeng snapped photos from every angle and sent them to the group, adding snarkily: [Rate the guy crashing in my brother’s studio! My brother actually said he’s handsomer than me!!!]

The three exclamation marks emphasized Zhao Zhangfeng’s stance—they all had to agree that he was the hotter one.

But the next second, Zhao Zhangfeng’s jaw dropped.

The group wasn’t their usual "goof-off" chat—it was their entire Class 1, Senior Three group!

We’re screwed!

[Who’s this guy? So handsome!]

[Jiang Ruotang’s painting skills are legit—the lighting, the shadows, the contours, the atmosphere!]

[I don’t know much about art, but this looks amazing!]

[Say what you will, but Jiang Ruotang’s aesthetic is definitely inherited from his father’s legacy!]

…

Feeling his phone vibrate nonstop, Jiang Ruotang pulled it out of his pocket and immediately frowned.

A vein bulged at his temple. If he weren’t physically outmatched, he’d have jumped on Zhao Zhangfeng and pummeled him by now.

"Zhao Zhangfeng—if your eyesight’s that bad, go get glasses! Look where you sent my painting!"

Zhao Zhangfeng was also hit with a wave of ice-cold dread. He quickly deleted the photos, but the damage was done—many had already seen them.

For example, in their smaller group chat, Jian Sha went wild with theories.

[Someone fill me in—is the hottie in the painting a model or an up-and-coming actor? Jiang Ruotang, you’re such a heartbreaker omega, collecting Alphas left and right, even letting him sleep in your sacred studio—spill, is he your new flame?]

Jiang Ruotang paled. If Lu Guifan saw those wild claims, not even industrial-strength detergent could clean this up.

[It’s the studio sofa! Cai Cai and Zhao Zhangfeng have both slept on it!]

He hurried to explain.

Despite Zhao Zhangfeng’s deletion, nearly the whole class had seen the photos.

Teacher Song’s comment was the most normal: [The model in the painting has a tense-yet-relaxed vibe—Jiang Ruotang’s skills have improved again!]

Then everyone started teasing Zhao Zhangfeng for his clueless guy photography, turning art into soap-opera quality.

Meanwhile, in the lab, Lu Guifan leaned back in his chair, draped in his white lab coat, squeezing in every second of rest.

His lab partners lowered their voices as they worked around him.

"Is this kid really not in college yet?"

"His brain’s on another level… Even Professor Yang didn’t think of the solution he came up with…"

"The conversion rates shot through the roof!"

Just then, someone couldn’t hold back and shouted—

"It’s out! It’s out! Twenty-two percent!"

"Holy—? It actually broke twenty?"

Amid the exclamations, Lu Guifan’s eyelids fluttered open. He immediately stood and strode over.

The others instinctively parted like the Red Sea, and when he saw the new data, he let out a whoosh of air.

The senior researcher in glasses patted Lu Guifan’s shoulder. "Congratulations, Xiao Lu. Another breakthrough."

Lu Guifan took a deep breath. Though dark circles lined his face, his eyes shone. "I only provided the idea and calculations. Turning it into reality was all thanks to you seniors and Professor Chen."

The man addressed as Professor Chen gave his shoulder another pat.

"Go rest. Look at you—our handsome guy’s looking ragged. We’ll handle the data and report. Don’t worry, you’re getting top billing!"

Lu Guifan quickly shook his head. "I was just assisting Professor Yang—"

"Help or not, this was your brainchild. It’s a shame Shengshi University probably can’t keep someone like you. With your level, you belong at ivy-league tier institutions like Capital Science and Technology University."

Lu Guifan lowered his eyes and smiled. "Depends."

"Depends? On what? My cousin also studies at Beicheng Guangyao, and he told me they use your scores as a benchmark for their Gaokao score predictions!"

Lu Guifan didn’t explain further. If he told others that whether he went to Capital Science and Technology University depended on how Jiang Ruotang performed in the exams, no one would believe him.

But he had made a promise to stay with Jiang Ruotang, and he intended to keep it.

It had been days since he last saw Jiang Ruotang. He wondered what he'd been up to.

One of his lab seniors spoke up, "Xiao Lu, you have a girlfriend, don’t you?"

"Huh? Why do you say that?"

"If it’s not a girlfriend, who else would be so thoughtful—bringing home-cooked lunches and dinners every day? The food looks delicious, and she must be really caring!"

Lu Guifan froze for a second. *Jiang Ruotang… caring?*

He burst out laughing. The so-called lunches and dinners were all prepared and packed by Auntie Juan, then delivered by Little Gao.

But when it came to someone caring about him like this, aside from Jiang Ruotang, he really couldn’t think of anyone else.

"You should cherish her. We STEM guys—we don’t know romance, we don’t know how to care for people, and we disappear into the lab for days without spending time with our girlfriends. If you don’t stay by her side, there are better-looking, sweeter guys out there who will, and then she’ll be gone!"

Lu Guifan stiffened, then hurriedly opened his locker and grabbed his phone.

He realized that aside from text messages, his apps were blowing up.

Ignoring the group chats, he immediately tapped on Jiang Ruotang’s profile. Sure enough, he had sent a ton of messages.

[So bored… Zhao Zhangfeng is playing basketball, Cai Cai went to the summer resort with his grandparents, Jie Sha just writes novels all day, and I can’t even find a model to paint…]

[Sooo bored… No one wants to watch the new summer movies with me…]

[Little fox sighing.JPEG]

[Ah… I lost all my Happy Beans in Dou Dizhu, down to -5000… Should I just abandon this account?]

[Little fox chin-in-hand.JPEG]

[I asked Zhao Zhangfeng to hit up a bar with me, and he actually said, “Good kids don’t go to places like that”? Good kids? How old is he?]

[Haha, Dad found me a life model today—a guy with a body like a male model and a face like a CGI model. *swoons*~]

……

Lu Guifan sat on the bench, scrolling endlessly.

*Male model?*

*What did swoons mean?*

Frowning, he tapped on Jian Sha’s message, and an image popped up. Was this something Jiang Ruotang painted yesterday?

Jian Sha’s comment read: [Class president, look at this—in your absence, your replacement has already entered the sanctuary of Jiang Ruotang’s penthouse studio! What did I say? The studio is a holy place for an artist. Only their true love gets to sleep there!]

Lu Guifan sighed. Jian Sha was truly hardcore shipping them. While others obsessed over fictional couples, she enthusiastically shipped him and Jiang Ruotang. Of course… Lu Guifan secretly agreed with her, often smiling to himself at her comments.

But he couldn’t show it—because he didn’t know if Jiang Ruotang minded.

Despite his usually carefree demeanor, Lu Guifan knew Jiang Ruotang had a sensitive heart.

Ignoring the slow loading, Lu Guifan opened the painting. For once, he lacked patience, tapping his heel impatiently as the image loaded. When it finally appeared, his heart felt like it had been pierced by a needle.

The man in the painting was indeed handsome, with ideal proportions, sleeping serenely—as if, after being wounded by the harsh world, he had sunk into comfort.

Lu Guifan took a deep breath and stood up, loosening his collar.

He didn’t know where this restlessness came from. Jiang Ruotang loved painting, and his brush carried pure emotion. Whatever his eyes and heart saw, he painted.

This piece radiated a tender, protective affection.

It made Lu Guifan think of himself. He knew Jiang Ruotang felt protective of him—so much so that if anything unfair happened to Lu Guifan, Jiang Ruotang would bristle like a little hedgehog ready to fight.

If someone else stirred that same protectiveness in him… would his attention shift?

"Xiao Lu, why are you still here? Looking all lost—did your cooking girlfriend finally dump you?"

At that moment, Lu Guifan’s nerves felt like they’d been jolted. He didn’t want Jiang Ruotang to care for anyone else, didn’t want him to paint another person on canvas with that same softness. Even the thought of Jiang Ruotang studying intently at another model made him viscerally unsettled.

This feeling was possessiveness.

Lu Guifan knew it well. He didn’t want to be pushed out of Jiang Ruotang’s life just because he was absorbed in experiments.

"I’m leaving. Call me if there’s an issue."

With that, Lu Guifan swiftly hung his lab coat in the locker, changed into his own clothes, and strode out with long, determined steps.

He hailed a cab and gave the driver Jiang Ruotang’s neighborhood.

"Whoa, that’s an upscale neighborhood! The fare’s gonna be seventy or eighty bucks from here!"

"Just drive. And hurry."

For the first time, Lu Guifan truly understood what it meant to be "like an arrow shot toward home."

He wanted to see Jiang Ruotang—right now, immediately.

As for Jiang Ruotang, he had just finished dinner and was lounging on the small sofa, phone in hand, staring at his chat with Lu Guifan.

Ever since getting involved with Professor Yang, this guy had turned into a lab rat.

He and Professor Yang had spent ages discussing something about solid-state batteries, and somehow, Professor Yang—from across the ocean—had managed to secure Lu Guifan a lab at Shengshi University. Rumor had it even the applied physics department’s professor had brought juniors to help. The whole setup seemed like they were aiming for an innovation prize.

And just like that, Lu Guifan had been buried in the lab for two weeks. Jiang Ruotang didn’t want to disturb him, so he’d only sent trivial messages like "Have you eaten?" or "Are you home yet?" He couldn’t help but admire Lawyer Hong—how she could love Professor Yang so deeply in what seemed like a marriage like a widow's. Maybe only looks could explain it.

After all, among ordinary people, Professor Yang was undeniably an exceptionally handsome man.

But then—out of nowhere—the silent chat window, which had made Jiang Ruotang suspect he’d been blocked, suddenly buzzed with new messages!

Jiang Ruotang rubbed his eyes repeatedly in shock.

*A hallucination? Was he hallucinating?*

[Still painting? I can model for you.]

[Which movie do you want to see? Is it *Cavern of Horrors* or *Moonlight on the Sea*? *The Mathematician* is a biopic—you’d probably fall asleep. Let me know, and I’ll book tickets.]

[I’ll get your Happy Beans back in Dou Dizhu.] [Don’t go to a bar alone. A looker like you—it’s dangerous.]

[Petting the little fox—are you mad, little fox?]

Even though it took days, at least every word was answered.

Jiang Ruotang’s nose stung with emotion, and he sent back a voice message: "Shifu, you’re finally out of seclusion! This disciple missed you so much!"

Just as Jiang Ruotang was about to say more, there was a soft knock on the door.

"Who is it?"

"Ruo Tang, it's me. Can I come in?"

"Mom? What is it?"

Jiang Ruotang quickly wiped away his teary expression, forcing his voice to sound composed.

Zhao Yunshu walked in with a smile. "Didn’t you recommend Sasha’s *West Window Strange Tales* to me?"

"Yeah," Jiang Ruotang nodded. "Have you finished it?"

"I’ve been hooked on it lately. Even a few employees from your dad’s and my company love it too."

Jiang Ruotang resting his chin on his hand and grinned. "So… what’s your plan?"

"Well… I was thinking of recommending this story to an editor I know… from *Rockheart Publishing*. Ever heard of it?"

Jiang Ruotang’s eyes lit up. Rockheart Publishing Co., Ltd.? Of course he’d heard of it—that publisher is a powerhouse for major IPs!

Whether it was promotion, post-editing, or book production, they were first-rate.

"Sure, why not?"

"Mm… Your dad and I also plan… after the *Drunken Immortal Terrace* project wraps up, to try adapting *West Window Strange Tales* into a high-quality TV series…"

Jiang Ruotang’s smile widened. "Are you short on funds? Need me to invest?"

"Buzz off, you brat!" Zhao Yunshu bapped his forehead. "We’ve still got pull with investors, okay? It’s just that Sasha was scammed before, so I’m not sure if she’d be willing to work with us."

Jiang Ruotang couldn’t help but laugh. "Sasha still trusts our family a lot!"

"So, can I leave it to you to persuade her? I can guarantee she’ll get the best terms."

"Easy, I’ve got this!" Jiang Ruotang pounded his chest for emphasis.

"Good, then go back to your movie." Zhao Yunshu glanced at Jiang Ruotang’s computer and noticed he was watching the biographical film *Gravity*.

Once the door closed again, Jiang Ruotang immediately grabbed his phone—only to find that Lu Guifan hadn’t replied.

No way. Back to the lab again? Was that quick reply just a fluke?

What he didn’t know was that, in those few short minutes, Lu Guifan had pressed his phone to his ear, replaying his voice over and over.

Especially that line—"This disciple missed you so much"—made Lu Guifan’s pulse spike, cursing how slow the taxi was, wishing he could turbocharge it.

The car dropped him off at the complex entrance, and it still took a while to walk inside.

[Shifu, are you ghosting me again? Ditching your disciple?]

Lu Guifan chuckled at Jiang Ruotang’s message.

Was this straight out of a novel, or maybe a line from that *Drunken Immortal Terrace* drama Jiang Huaiyuan was filming?

Lu Guifan broke into a sprint. But as he reached the Jiang family’s doorstep, he suddenly realized something.

Jiang Ruotang always said he "smelled nice," but he hadn’t showered in days after being in the lab.

Touching his chin, he felt the stubble.

A pang of panic hit him—would Jiang Ruotang be disgusted?

Art kids were rumored to be romantic and sentimental, but right now, he was anything but romantic.

More like a scruffy mess.

Lu Guifan exhaled, taking half a step back, thinking he should hurry home to clean up and visit Jiang Ruotang tomorrow instead…

Then, a bright voice called from above.

"Lu Guifan—Lu Guifan, you’re here!"

Lu Guifan looked up to see Jiang Ruotang leaning out the window, his eyes wide and bright, like a beacon over a midnight ocean.

Lu Guifan’s heartbeat grew wild, as if Jiang Ruotang were wielding drumsticks, hammering wildly against his ribs.

He liked this boy—so much that just hearing his voice drowned out all logic, leaving only the urge to get closer.

"Wait for me! I’ll come down to open the door!"

With that, Jiang Ruotang disappeared from the window.

He shoved open his bedroom door and dashed out, nearly colliding with Sister Juan, who was bringing up some fruit.

"Ruo Tang, are you going out again this late?"

"Lu Guifan’s here! I’m letting him in!"

Jiang Ruotang bolted like an Olympian, swung open the front door, and found Lu Guifan fidgeting on the doorstep.

"Ruo Tang, I…"

Lu Guifan had meant to say he’d go clean up first, but Jiang Ruotang yanked him inside the entryway, then fished out the navy-blue house slippers reserved just for Lu Guifan.

"How’s your experiment? Did it work?"

"Yeah, it did." Lu Guifan nodded, knowing terms like ion conductivity, cycle stability, or thermal runaway tests would fly over Jiang Ruotang’s head—but his concern was genuine.

"Haha, that’s great!" Jiang Ruotang suddenly leaned in, peering at Lu Guifan’s face closely.

Lu Guifan instinctively lowered his head. He probably looked terrible—messy hair, exhausted expression—and if Jiang Ruotang saw, his rose-tinted image of him might crack.

For the first time, he understood why Lady Li refused to let Emperor Wu see her on her deathbed.

*To serve a lord with beauty—when beauty fades, so does love…*

Lu Guifan never thought he’d have such ridiculous, overthinking thoughts.

But then, Jiang Ruotang’s hand reached out, gently tilting his chin up.

"Lu Guifan… is this your stubble?"

Lu Guifan tried to step back, but Jiang Ruotang unexpectedly took great interest and lightly ran his fingers over the stubble.

"Wow... so fun! The stubble is a bit rough. I read online that men with rough stubble are really good in bed. Is it true?"

"Cough... cough cough..." Lu Guifan hadn’t anticipated this unexpected twist and immediately started coughing.

The instigator, Jiang Ruotang, grinned mischievously beside him.

"I should go back and freshen up first..."

"Freshen up? No, don’t! I’ve never drawn you like this before. If you go back and tidy up, you’ll just look the same as usual—how boring!"

Jiang Ruotang grabbed Lu Guifan’s wrist and pulled him inside.

Just then, Sister Juan happened to be coming down the stairs. "Oh dear, Ruo Tang, Xiao Lu said he wanted to go home and freshen up because he’s tired and needs to shower and rest. He’s not a wind-up doll that can play with you the moment you turn the key!"

"Oh..." Jiang Ruotang paused, then turned to Lu Guifan. "It’s already past ten. Don’t go back. You have a change of clothes here anyway."

His words gave Lu Guifan the perfect excuse—he had wanted to stay all along.

"Okay."

Jiang Ruotang’s joy was plain on his face, and even his steps up the stairs became lighter.

Lu Guifan took his change of clothes and entered the bathroom. As the warm water streamed down his body, he finally returned from the sterile world of data and logic to the warmth of the real world.

Both the shampoo and body wash smelled just like Jiang Ruotang.

Lu Guifan exhaled, his mind wandering countless times to the person just beyond the wall.

He hadn’t expected that after days of exhaustion, when he was practically running on fumes, just holding Jiang Ruotang’s hand could send his blood surging like a cavalry charging.

He didn’t know how long he stood there before finally emerging from the shower. Staring at his reflection in the mirror, he pushed his slightly long bangs back, revealing a pair of cool, detached eyes.

The steam fogged up the mirror, and without his glasses, he couldn’t see clearly anyway.

When he walked into Jiang Ruotang’s bedroom with a towel draped over his shoulders, the familiar scent of Jiang Ruotang washed over him, and the barely contained desire surged wildly again, like a stampeding horse charging toward a narrow bridge.

Jiang Ruotang was sitting cross-legged at the foot of the bed, sketchbook in hand. Hearing Lu Guifan’s footsteps, he turned his head without hesitation, his crystal-clear eyes meeting Lu Guifan’s.

Then, bracing one hand on the bed, he leaned forward and said in an exaggerated, teasing tone, "Wow, you look... so sexy."

"Do I?" Lu Guifan answered evenly.

He didn’t know what "sexy" was supposed to look like—he felt no different from usual.

Except... for the stubble Jiang Ruotang was so intrigued by.

But when Jiang Ruotang reached out and tugged lightly at his collar, exposing one side of his collarbone and the dip of his throat—along with his slightly tilted chin and the faint dip at the corner of his lips—Lu Guifan suddenly wanted to return the compliment.

"I’ll dry my hair first." Lu Guifan gently patted Jiang Ruotang’s hand and turned away. The sound of the hairdryer drowned out his pounding heartbeat. Closing his eyes, he regulated his breathing, forcing the unchecked desire in his chest to slowly settle.

When he returned to Jiang Ruotang’s side, the latter excitedly seized his shoulders and pressed him against the headboard.

"Let me sketch you real quick! It won’t take long—just a few minutes!"

"Okay."

Lu Guifan leaned against the headboard and reached for his glasses, but Jiang Ruotang lightly caught his wrist.

"Don’t. The glasses cover your eyes. I want to draw them."

Hearing Jiang Ruotang’s voice only made Lu Guifan want to wear his glasses even more.

To Lu Guifan, Jiang Ruotang’s tone was intimate, almost coquettish.

He really wanted to put on his glasses and see the expression on Jiang Ruotang’s face.

The sound of the pencil scratching across the page was swift and smooth.

Lu Guifan asked in a carefully neutral tone, "When you draw, do you need the model to be relaxed and natural? Am I too stiff like this?"

"Huh?" Jiang Ruotang looked up, confused by the question.

"Like the sketch you posted in the group earlier—the model was asleep."

"Oh, I had him pose at first, but he got tired and fell asleep on the couch. The lighting at dusk was perfect, so I just drew him like that..."

Suddenly, Jiang Ruotang paused, an impish smirk spreading across his face as he leaned in close—so close that Lu Guifan could see the curve of his lips and the mischievous spark in his eyes.

"Ohhh—did you see what Jian Sha said in the group?"

"What did she say?"

"Something about how my studio has been defiled because another man slept in it." Jiang Ruotang shrugged.

Lu Guifan shut his eyes with a faint smile. "Zhao Zhangfeng sleeps there all the time when he models for you."

"Right? What’s the big deal about someone sleeping in the studio? It’s just because my couch is so comfortable." Jiang Ruotang lifted his gaze, knowing full well Lu Guifan couldn’t see his expression clearly, and said with deliberate seriousness, "Besides, I’ve only ever slept with *you*."

Lu Guifan’s heart lurched, his heart rate spiking. That uncontrollable feeling was back.

He subtly curled his fingers, but Jiang Ruotang just lowered his head and let out a playful, knowing laugh—clearly having said it on purpose to provoke him.

Lu Guifan felt it was unfair. Why did Jiang Ruotang effortlessly control his reactions while remaining utterly unruffled?

"Well, I’ve only slept with you too."

Before he could even process it, the words had already left his mouth.

Jiang Ruotang looked up. Lu Guifan’s expression was calm, not joking in the slightest—completely earnest.

"Lu Guifan, you actually learned to play along? Did you go to some EQ bootcamp instead of the lab?"

Hidden behind his sketchbook, Jiang Ruotang pressed a hand over his pounding heart.

If not for his better judgment—worried that crossing the line might scare Lu Guifan off—he would’ve thrown himself on the bed right then and challenged him: *Go on, put your money where your mouth is!*

"Yeah, yeah. If you don’t finish soon, I’m going to fall asleep."

"Then sleep." Jiang Ruotang thought, *God, you look good even when you’re asleep.*

As if receiving a power-down signal, Lu Guifan’s eyelids grew heavy, his breathing slowing into deep, even rhythms.

He was exhausted. The desire to see Jiang Ruotang had kept him going until now, but he was completely drained.

The soft pillow, the beloved scent in the air, and the person he wanted most right beside him—he relaxed completely and soon slipped into sleep.

Jiang Ruotang noticed Lu Guifan's silence. When he looked up, the guy had already dozed off?

They'd barely spoken!

But Lu Guifan didn’t even go home first—right after finishing his experiment, he came straight to see him. Did that mean Jiang meant something special to him? Really, really important?

Jiang Ruotang set down his sketchbook and carefully moved closer. With every inch he neared, he felt an overwhelming urge—to melt into Lu Guifan, to press against him, trace his contours, to become his soft armor, shielding him from all the world’s harm.

His fingers lightly brushed over Lu Guifan’s long lashes, the bridge of his nose, his well-defined jawline. Jiang Ruotang even wanted to nuzzle his nose against Lu Guifan’s chin, to feel that gentle scrape without the sting.

Then, slowly, Jiang Ruotang lay down on top of Lu Guifan, pressed his ear to Lu's chest, listening to his steady heartbeat.

Lu slept deeply, the security and comfort from having Jiang Ruotang beside him finally easing his overtaxed mind.

He slept for over ten hours, until he barely heard Sister Juan’s gentle knock at the door, calling them for lunch.

Lu Guifan’s eyelids fluttered as he remembered—he wasn’t in the lab anymore, but in Jiang Ruotang’s room.

“Okay, Sister Juan.”

He responded, slowly propping himself up on his elbows, only to feel something pressing against his side.

Turning his head, he saw Jiang Ruotang curled against him like always.

His heart melted instantly. Lu Guifan gently stroked Jiang Ruotang’s hair, his mind flashing to that little fox emoji the other had sent him.

A sleepy little fox—so cute.

Lu Guifan lowered his head. He wanted to kiss Jiang Ruotang. This impulse, after their brief separation, had grown raw and irresistible, like needing to breathe. Once deprived of oxygen for too long, he just wanted to take his fill.

He braced his hands on either side of Jiang Ruotang, as if he could encircle him in his own world, then leaned down… Reason told him he hadn’t confessed yet, Jiang Ruotang hadn’t agreed—kissing him now would be crossing a line.

But Lu's chest ached unbearably, especially when he thought of Ling Song in Jiang Ruotang’s sketches. He really wanted to bite down hard, to mark Jiang as his own, to make him remember him through the pain.

Well… he'd already accidentally kissed Jiang's ear before…

Lu Guifan slowly lowered his head, his shadow covering Jiang’s vulnerable face. Just as his teeth were about to close around the cartilage of Jiang Ruotang’s ear, the other let out a soft murmur, reaching up to touch where Lu Guifan was before lightly gripping his sleeve.

He sighed helplessly. Jiang's sleepy clinginess was Lu Guifan’s undoing. His heart melted completely—forget biting him, in the end, all he did was give the spot the lightest lick before giving up.

Lu Guifan slowly got up, planning to freshen up first. As he passed the foot of the bed, he spotted Jiang Ruotang’s sketchbook, carelessly tossed there.

He picked it up, curious to see how he appeared in Jiang Ruotang’s world.

If Jiang Ruotang could make that male model look so beautiful, then what about him?

The moment he turned to the first page, Lu Guifan froze.

His exhausted, sleeping form had been captured in Jiang Ruotang’s bold, lively strokes. Yet despite that, the entire sketch radiated warmth—even the stubble on his jaw carried a mature, sensual charm.

Just from this one page, Lu Guifan understood why Jiang Ruotang had looked so delighted when he saw him last night.

The corners of his lips curved slowly. At the very least, this proved Jiang Ruotang’s aesthetic wasn’t limited to sharply defined features.

Even his disheveled state could be rendered with striking elegance under Jiang Ruotang’s brush.

Flipping to the next page, Lu Guifan stiffened.

This angle… Jiang Ruotang must have been lying beside him to draw it.

And some of the perspectives… were so close, it almost felt like the artist was about to press a kiss onto the page.