"One more, one more kiss?" Qin Yige stammered, confirming.
"Yes. You're not at a disadvantage anyway, and you get to see the photos on my phone." He took out his phone and tossed it onto the foot of the bed.
The phone was right there, within arm's reach.
It was too tempting!
She wanted to be cheeky and snatch it, but she didn't know his password, so it would be useless.
Qin Yige gritted her teeth, hesitating. The photos held too much allure for her.
"Qin Yige, your first kiss is gone. What are you still hesitating about? Or are you… afraid to kiss me while I'm awake?" the man asked unhurriedly.
Afraid?
What a joke! How could she, Qin Yige, be afraid to kiss him? She wasn't some naive, pure girl.
"Who do you think you are!"
No more hesitation. She was too curious about what photo could make Shang Sheng smile. A kiss was a kiss. After all, her first kiss was already given to a dog…
A dog of a man.
Qin Yige took a step forward, rising on her tiptoes as quickly as possible.
She tilted her head up, and he lowered his head.
Unconsciously, they coordinated with perfect synergy.
She placed her hands on his arms and planted a light kiss on his slightly cool, thin lips, like a butterfly alighting on a flower.
Just as she was about to pull back, she was caught off guard when the man reached out and cupped the back of her head, deepening the kiss.
She was held tightly in a strong embrace, their bodies pressed together without a sliver of space between them.
"Mmm." All of Qin Yige's protests were sealed.
His kiss deepened, gradually drawing her into a trance.
In the confined space, only their mingled breaths could be heard. Shang Sheng's sudden kiss caught Qin Yige off guard like a storm. All she could smell was his incredibly pleasant scent, her mind a blank slate.
The scent of hormones from a mature man, mixed with a faint hint of tobacco, occupied all her senses.
Fortunately, just as she was about to suffocate, Shang Sheng slowly released the girl who was clinging to him limply like an octopus.
Looking at her flushed face and her cherry-red lips, which seemed about to bleed from his kiss, a hint of tenderness flickered in the man's eyes.
Before Qin Yige could open her eyes, he said calmly, "I believe what you said."
Still dazed, Qin Yige looked up at him, her eyes clouded with confusion.
"Your first kiss is still there. After all, your kissing skills… aren't great. You must have bitten my lip, right?" He pointed a finger at his slightly red lower lip.
Qin Yige was instantly jolted awake. Her eyes widened, and she roughly pushed him away, her face flushing as she retorted angrily, "You're complaining about my kissing skills? Excuse me, your skills are also very average. I've never met anyone who kisses as badly as you!"
Seriously, who had ever been kissed so hard they almost fainted? Shang Sheng had. If he hadn't let go, she might have been the first person in the world to die of suffocation from a kiss.
Shang Sheng wasn't angry. He wiped his lips with his thumb, "Since you think my kissing skills are worse than yours, please teach me more often from now on."
"Teach you what?"
"Teach me… how to kiss, okay, Teacher Qin?"
Teacher Qin?
Qin Yige, like a little lamb, fell directly into his trap. She crossed her arms defiantly, tilting her chin up, and declared, "That's not difficult at all. I hope President Shang will call me Teacher Qin every day from now on."
"Deal."
Qin Yige took his phone and handed it back to him with a smug smirk, "Unlock it, Mr. Shang!"
Shang Sheng didn't take it, instead walking out and reciting the password: "080609."
080609?
What kind of numbers were these? Not someone's birthday, and not his.
Never mind, she'd check the photos first.
She entered the password into his phone and was greeted by a photo that made her shriek.
"Ah, Shang Sheng!!!"
The man whose name she called, at that very moment, 'helped her' lock the bedroom door, effectively silencing her scream.
A surge of anger rushed through Qin Yige. Holding his phone, she stormed to the door and twisted the doorknob with all her might. To her surprise, it wouldn't budge.
She twisted again, using all her strength, but the lock remained unresponsive.
Realizing that someone outside might be deliberately preventing her from opening the door, Qin Yige banged on the door several times: "Shang Sheng, open the door! You dog, you dare to kiss me without permission, I'll skin you alive!"
"Shang Sheng, open the door, I know you're out there, stop hiding!"
"If you dare to kiss me, why can't you open the door?"
To her surprise, the next moment, when she tried the handle again, the door opened easily.
However, Shang Sheng wasn't outside, and there wasn't a soul in the living room.
As the furious Qin Yige was about to storm to his room, the phone in her hand vibrated.
Someone was calling Shang Sheng.
She looked down; the caller ID read: Secretary Chen.
Secretary Chen? It must be Chen Ling!
It was already past nine in the evening, and she was still calling her husband? Hmph! Not with good intentions.
Qin Yige glanced at the closed door of the room next door, then a sly smile spread across her face. She answered the phone and asked in French, "Hello, who is this?"
Chen Ling on the other end looked at her phone; it was indeed President Shang's number.
She had no choice but to reply in French, "Hello, I am President Shang's secretary, Chen Ling. I need to speak with President Shang about something."
Qin Yige scoffed inwardly. As expected of Shang Sheng's personal secretary, her French was even better than hers.
She switched back to Chinese and said, "My husband is asleep. Just tell me if there's anything."
Chen Ling finally recognized her voice and sounded a bit puzzled, "Is President Shang already resting?"
She glanced at the time on her wrist. It was just past nine. President Shang had never gone to bed this early.
"Yes," Qin Yige's eyes darted around. She said deliberately and ambiguously, "I'm sorry, he was just very tired. I was also quite tired, but I couldn't miss Secretary Chen's call, could I?"
Just as she finished speaking, the door of a certain room opened, and her entire sentence reached the man's ears.
Shang Sheng paused, his gaze towards her instantly deepening to an inky black.
Qin Yige's face flushed, her heart pounding with guilt.
Chen Ling, nearing thirty, of course understood the implication of her words.
She replied with slight awkwardness, "Could you please let President Shang take the call? I have an urgent work matter to report to him…"
"What if I say no?" Qin Yige refused capriciously.
Shang Sheng walked up to her, standing face to face.
"Qin Yige, I really have something important. Can you not do this?"
Qin Yige held the phone she was using out to Shang Sheng and said innocently, "Honey, you're awake? I answered your call. Secretary Chen seems unhappy."