Chapter 54: Master, do you believe in love?

"Why are you here?"

Xia Kewei's eyes widened slightly, a hint of surprise lingering in her tone.

"Since I was the one who invited you to the banquet, I naturally have to make sure you get home safely," Wang Can said with a shrug.

"Consider yourself somewhat conscientious."

Xia Kewei let out a soft huff, but the smile tucked into the corners of her eyes and brows betrayed her good mood.

Wang Can gallantly opened the car door for Xia Kewei and drove away under the envious gazes of the onlookers.

"Who is that young man? Is President Xia's boyfriend?" someone whispered.

"Doesn't quite look like it. He seems a bit too young."

"Don't judge a book by its cover. I heard the founder of Douya is just a college student."

"Really? That's incredible."

......

Climbing into the back seat of the taxi, Xia Kewei felt a wave of alcohol surge upward, her breathing involuntarily turning heavy.

She leaned against the car window with her eyes closed, trying to ease the sudden wave of dizziness.

"What's wrong? Weren't you quite lively just a moment ago?" Wang Can noticed her abnormality.

He had just been thinking that this woman knew her limits when it came to drinking, but now it seemed he had been proven wrong.

"I don't know... suddenly I feel terribly dizzy," Xia Kewei's voice sounded somewhat ethereal.

"What were you drinking?"

"Red wine..."

"First time drinking it?"

"I've had it a few times before, but I never really liked it."

Wang Can finally understood.

Red wine was usually sipped slowly, carrying fruity aromas, which easily led people to overindulge without realizing it.

By the time you felt drunk, you had often already ingested far more alcohol than your body could handle.

Wisely, Wang Can stopped talking to Xia Kewei, afraid that this drunken woman might vomit in the car and make him pay for the cleaning.

However, just a few hundred meters away from Shenhai University, the taxi suddenly rolled over a deep pothole, causing the car body to jolt violently and bouncing both passengers in the back seat.

"Damn it! When did a pothole appear on this crappy road?!"

Just as the driver finished cursing, he heard a sound of "blech" from the back seat.

Bad luck never comes alone; unable to hold it in any longer, Xia Kewei vomited directly onto Wang Can.

"Driver, do you believe in love?" Wang Can asked with a bitter smile.

"......"

The driver glanced back speechlessly, feeling somewhat grateful that the vomit was mostly liquid and that the majority of it had landed on the unfortunate male passenger.

"Remember to leave a five-star review," the driver said dryly.

"Fine whatever..."

Wang Can was just about to complain to Xia Kewei when he was astonished to find that the woman had somehow begun peeling off the black knee-high stockings beneath her half-length skirt.

While clumsily stripping off the stockings, she mumbled incoherently, "So uncomfortable... I want to go home..."

With that, Xia Kewei tossed the discarded black stockings aside and rested her two slender, fair legs directly across Wang Can's lap to stretch them out.

The driver in the front caught a glimpse in the rearview mirror and very consciously flipped the mirror away.

"......"

Wang Can was left speechless. He had assumed that since Xia Kewei drank every day, her alcohol tolerance should be quite decent.

Yet the scene before him completely shattered that notion.

He would definitely never let this woman go to a drinking banquet alone again.

"Xia Kewei, do you still remember who I am?" he tested tentatively.

"Rascal boss......" she responded vaguely.

It seemed she still retained a shred of sobriety, which put Wang Can slightly at ease.

......

When they got out of the car, Xia Kewei was already too drunk to stand steadily.

Wang Can sighed, bent down to pick up her dropped high heels, and hoisted her onto his back.

"Put me down... I can walk by myself......"

Xia Kewei protested vaguely, her warm breath mixed with the fragrance of alcohol brushing against Wang Can's ear.

She struggled and squirmed symbolically, but lacked the strength to make it effective.

"Be good and stay still."

"Oh."

Xia Kewei quieted down instantly, obediently resting her face against his back.

Fortunately, the apartment building had an elevator, and Wang Can didn't use too much effort to carry her back home.

After entering, he fished the master bedroom key out of Xia Kewei's bag, and with a crisp "click," he dumped her directly onto the soft, oversized bed.

Xia Kewei sank entirely into the bedding, her long hair cascading like a waterfall and partially obscuring her flushed cheeks.

Perhaps feeling that her shirt was too tight, she unconsciously unbuttoned the top two buttons, revealing a delicate collarbone and the faint outline of black lace trimming.

Wang Can averted his gaze, his Adam's apple bobbing involuntarily.

This kind of half-concealed allure made one's heart race even faster than blatant exposure, carrying an indescribable, languid temptation.

"Even when you're drunk, you're a damn handful."

He muttered a curse, forcefully suppressing the restless heat surging within his body, and moved Xia Kewei's slender legs—which were dangling off the edge of the bed—back onto the mattress.

"Don't touch......"

Feeling the touch, Xia Kewei began to squirm vigorously again.

"Well, that's not up to you anymore."

Wang Can retorted with annoyance, turning around to open the wardrobe in search of a blanket.

As soon as the closet door opened, he froze in place.

All kinds of lingerie were neatly hung inside, ranging from minimalist pure cotton styles to sexy lace sets, and even a few Victoria's Secret pieces with crystal straps.

Wang Can's breathing hitched involuntarily, and his mind uncontrollably conjured up images of these garments worn by Xia Kewei.

"No wonder her bedroom is always locked." His Adam's apple rolled as he swallowed with difficulty.

Forcing himself to look away, Wang Can casually grabbed a cashmere blanket and draped it over Xia Kewei.

He walked to the kitchen to pour a glass of warm water, placed it on the bedside table, and wrung out a hot towel to give Xia Kewei a simple wipe-down before stepping out of the room.

While changing his shoes, Wang Can's gaze suddenly locked onto that perpetually closed study room door.

It was understandable to lock the bedroom and the walk-in closet, but why would a study used for work be locked as well?

This thought sprouted like wild grass in his mind, and his gaze drifted uncontrollably toward the set of keys gleaming coldly on the desktop.

"Creeak."

The study door was pushed open, and moonlight spilled through the window onto the desk, casting a pristine, slanted shadow.

Wang Can flicked the light switch; the room layout hadn't changed much since he last helped her move.

A modern-style desk held a laptop, and a floor-to-ceiling bookshelf was stuffed with various kinds of books.

"Nothing special after all."

Just as he was about to leave, his peripheral vision swept across a neat row of book titles arranged in the most prominent spot on the bookshelf.

"The Overbearing CEO's Crazy Love", "The Dark-Belly CEO Wants a Hug", "The CEO is Above", "The CEO is Above and I am Below"......

"......"

Wang Can's expression instantly froze, as if he had heard the sound of some kind of illusion shattering.

......

......

Early the next morning, Xia Kewei slowly drifted back to consciousness from her slumber.

The moment she curled up beneath the covers, a strange sensation washed over her.

Puzzled, she reached out and felt the wrinkled fabric of the shirt she was wearing.

"Ah—!"

A piercing scream shattered the morning stillness.

Memories of the previous night rushed back like a tidal wave; the scene of her clumsily shedding her stockings in the taxi flashed vividly in her mind.

Xia Kewei's cheeks burned instantly, turning as red as a ripe apple.

Gripping the corner of the quilt tightly, she wished she could instantly turn into dust and burrow into a crack in the floor.

"I'm completely done for......"

She bit her lower lip and muttered to herself, "Should I just resign and go home? This is simply too......"

"Knock, knock, knock."

The sudden rapping at the door interrupted her frantic thoughts.

Wang Can's voice came from the other side of the door, carrying the morning hoarseness unique to waking up:

"What are you shrieking about early in the morning? You have 5 minutes to get yourself together and come out for breakfast."

"Oh...... got it."

After responding reflexively, Xia Kewei suddenly felt something was amiss.

Wang Can's tone of voice sounded rather strange......