Falling into the Capital's Radiance - Chapter 30

Chapter 30

The Moon-Viewing Terrace was high up and the night wind was strong. Since Shen Jingni was still sick, Zhao Zonglan didn’t actually tease her too much.

However, the little thing was delicate. After only kissing for a while, she claimed she had no strength left and couldn’t walk.

“Carry me back. I don’t want to walk.”

Her red lips pouted slightly, half of her flushed face hidden under her fleece hat. Her tone held its usual willful arrogance.

Zhao Zonglan felt that children shouldn’t be spoiled too much.

He kept his face stern and remained silent.

She then wrapped her arms around his waist, her fuzzy head rubbing against his chest through his clothes. “The wind makes my face hurt so much.”

Zhao Zonglan’s eyes shifted. He raised a hand to press against her head, rubbing it with moderate force. His voice was low and magnetic. “You little crybaby.”

“Hurry up and go back.”

She urged him in a sweet, pampered voice, pretending to be frail and weak.

Zhao Zonglan patiently scooped her up in a horizontal carry and walked away with steady steps.

Coming down from the Moon-Viewing Terrace, Chang An took a phone call and then quickly caught up. “Sir, Secretary Gu called. There’s a major disagreement among the group’s senior management regarding the acquisition of the German Raylein Group. They’ve been in meetings for over ten hours straight… You might need to preside over it personally.”

Usually, for an acquisition of this scale, Zhao Zonglan would only flip through the project proposal, sign his name, and look at the final results.

Every senior executive at Jingyao Capital was a top-tier elite in the industry.

Given their astronomical annual salaries, they were expected to do their jobs well.

If he had to personally manage every project, even a man made of iron would be worked to death.

Zhao Zonglan didn’t speak, but Shen Jingni, nestled in his arms, lightly tugged at his suit jacket and asked softly, “Are we going back?”

They had been here for less than two days. She hadn’t had enough fun yet; she hadn’t even soaked in the hot springs.

“You don’t want to go back?” Zhao Zonglan stopped walking and looked down at her, his dark eyes deep and calm.

Shen Jingni still had a sense of priority and knew what was important.

She buried her head, her mood a bit low, and said considerately, “It’s okay. Your work is important. At most, we can just come back next time.”

Zhao Zonglan felt that the little thing had suddenly become well-behaved.

However, he didn’t like this kind of awkward compliance.

He gave a faint glance at Chang An behind him. “Inform Gu Qian. Tomorrow morning at eight, I’ll join the meeting online.”

Chang An replied, “Yes, sir.”

***

Perhaps because Zhao Zonglan’s embrace was too comfortable, Shen Jingni felt a bit sleepy being carried back by him.

But when she saw the gifts in the outer room of the bedroom, she suddenly perked up.

A pile of colorful gift boxes was arranged on the carpet, tied with beautiful ribbons, looking exactly like the boxes under a Christmas tree.

Her face was full of surprise. Before she even had time to take off her coat and hat, she ran over joyfully and knelt on the soft carpet. She turned back to look at Zhao Zonglan. “Are these all for me?”

Zhao Zonglan hung his coat on the rack and slowly loosened his tie, his expression cold and indifferent.

He walked unhurriedly over to her. “Mm, yours.”

“However, filling the entire room with gifts isn’t possible for now. There wasn’t enough time to prepare.”

Shen Jingni: “?”

He actually remembered what she had said before going to sleep.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t do it, but that there wasn’t enough time to prepare.

He had actually taken her seriously.

Shen Jingni pursed her lips, her heart filled with complex emotions. “I was just saying that casually. I didn’t think it would actually happen.”

But Zhao Zonglan was like her Santa Claus.

She had just made a wish out of boredom, and to her surprise, Santa had made it come true.

Shen Jingni counted them; there were twenty-two gift boxes in total.

She was twenty-two years old this year.

The capitalist was quite savvy; he wasn’t as cold-blooded as she had imagined.

She casually opened a gift, and when she saw the blue diamond necklace inside, she could hardly suppress the upward curve of her lips.

This must be worth tens of millions.

Zhao Zonglan was handsome and generous; being his girlfriend was a job that was definitely worth it.

Shen Jingni didn’t rush to open the rest. Instead, she ran into the bedroom, rummaged around for a bit, and then hurriedly came back out.

Zhao Zonglan was sitting on the leather sofa, just lighting a cigarette, when he saw her coming over holding a small pink box. The fleece hat on her head had been removed at some point, leaving the hair on top of her head slightly messy.
“Actually, I prepared a gift for you too.”

She held the box in her arms, looking a bit shy and self-conscious. “But… but it’s not as expensive as the ones you gave me.”

The things he had sent were worth over a hundred million in total; she certainly couldn’t afford anything like that.

Zhao Zonglan raised an eyebrow.

Shen Jingni continued, “You’re not allowed to look down on it.”

“Mm.”

Having secured the man’s promise, Shen Jingni carefully opened the box.

Inside was a common snow globe.

It featured a Christmas tree with drifting snowflakes, set atop an exquisite ceramic base carved with a cozy little cottage and a cute reindeer.

A line of small, elegant characters was written at the bottom.

[May Zhao Zonglan be free of worries every year, and may everything go his way.]

“Even though it wasn’t expensive, I made the ceramic base myself. It took a lot of time.”

In truth, Shen Jingni was stretching the truth a bit. She had only shaped the clay and written the words; a pottery master had finished the rest.

Zhao Zonglan’s gaze finally settled on the snow globe.

He watched as she flipped the switch on the base.

The Christmas tree suddenly lit up.

That warm yellow glow abruptly illuminated a void deep within Zhao Zonglan’s heart, a lack he had almost forgotten himself.

On the streets of New York when he was ten years old, he seemed to have seen a Christmas tree just like this one.

It was warm and beautiful.

But back then, he had neither the time nor the freedom to appreciate it, let alone cherish it.

Seeing that he hadn’t rejected her gift, Shen Jingni felt a strange sense of accomplishment.

Her smile grew sweeter, and her voice was bright. “Go take your shower first. I’m going to unwrap my presents.”

But just as she was about to leave, Zhao Zonglan caught her by the wrist.

With a slight tug from the man, Shen Jingni was forced to fall back into his lap.

He stubbed out his cigarette, his deep eyes locking onto her with intense focus.

“Unwrap them tomorrow morning.”

“No, I… mmm.”

Before she could finish her protest, he sealed her lips with his.

Zhao Zonglan’s kiss was gentle.

His breath was hot as he softly pressed against her lips, lingering and grinding against them with deep affection.

His warm palms stroked her back and waist, acting as a silent, soothing coax.

The faint scent of sandalwood on him was cool and alluring.

Shen Jingni became much more compliant.

Kneeling on the man’s sturdy thighs, she clung to his shoulders and obediently closed her eyes to kiss him back.

Feeling her subtle response, Zhao Zonglan’s Adam’s apple bobbed, and the hand at her waist suddenly tightened.

The kiss gradually deepened, shedding its initial restraint.

He forcefully pried open her teeth, capturing her breath with both greed and patience.

Shen Jingni nearly went limp in his arms, soft whimpers escaping from between her teeth, scratching at his heart.

Her eyelashes were damp, and her face was flushed with a seductive charm.

Zhao Zonglan pulled back only half an inch, resting his forehead against hers. His breathing was hot and heavy, and his usually calm, rippleless eyes were now churning with a thick, inseparable lust that threatened to consume her.

His thumb brushed over her slightly swollen lips, his voice low and husky. “I’ll carry you to the shower, hm?”

Shen Jingni understood the meaning behind those words.

She didn’t speak, merely leaning weakly against his shoulder.

Zhao Zonglan stood up with her in his arms and headed toward the bathroom, their lips meeting again to deepen the kiss.

Outside the window, the night was as thick as ink.

By the time they came out of the bathroom, Shen Jingni was completely drained of strength.

Inside the warm bedroom, his tall figure loomed over her, enveloping her entirely.

The original sense of distant boundaries was completely melted away by the heat of their skin.

The rustle of wind sounded outside, as if a corner of the window hadn’t been shut tight.

Shen Jingni shivered, her toes curling uncontrollably.

She heard a low groan rumble from Zhao Zonglan’s throat, husky and sexy.

In the next instant, it seemed as if the wind outside grew even louder and more violent.

Unable to bear it, she could only whimper piteously, tears pricking the corners of her eyes. She stayed obedient, not daring to move an inch.