PSMD – Chapter 44

There were four photos in total, so Qiu Yang bought exactly four photo frames, not one more.

Shen Ningruo looked at the wooden photo frame placed before her, blinking. When she first came in, all her attention was on Qiu Yang, and she hadn’t noticed the bag Qiu Yang was carrying. Even if she had seen it, she wouldn’t have known it contained photo frames.

She moistened her lips, still damp from her shower. After several seconds passed, she said softly, “Thank you”.

Her voice was a little low and heavy, etching itself deeply into Shen Ningruo’s own heart. She suddenly remembered that ever since meeting Qiu Yang, she had experienced a lot of happiness she never had before.

Previously, she had always felt like she was just a tool for Qiu Yang, that she was the one unilaterally helping Qiu Yang, and that Qiu Yang, to her, was merely fulfilling her own needs.

But only now did she realize the most important point: what Qiu Yang brought her wasn’t just pleasure in bed, but more so, spiritual fulfillment.

Therefore, this “thank you” wasn’t just for the photos and frames.

Seeing her still stunned, Qiu Yang curved her lips, wanting to lighten the slightly heavy atmosphere. So, Qiu Yang looked up and removed the towel wrapped around Shen Ningruo’s head, “Let me help you dry it”.

Her tone held some worry: “I’m so afraid you’ll catch a cold, Director Shen”.

Shen Ningruo’s eyes welled up again. Looking at Qiu Yang, who was so close, she acted on instinct without thinking, grabbing Qiu Yang’s wrist. She lifted her eyes, meeting Qiu Yang’s somewhat astonished expression, and parted her lips, “I can do it myself”.

Being taken care of like this by Qiu Yang made her feel a little bad, especially since she had made Qiu Yang sad and disappointed today.

Shen Ningruo felt even worse.

Qiu Yang’s wrist was still held by her. Hearing her words, Qiu Yang sighed softly and finally asked, “How long did you wait?”

“Not long,” Shen Ningruo released her hand and started drying her own hair.

“Three hours?” Qiu Yang asked uncertainly.

The response was Shen Ningruo’s “Mm”.

Qiu Yang was suddenly speechless. She looked at Shen Ningruo’s lowered lashes, thought for a moment, and then explained, “After work this afternoon, I went to meet my senior. She was in a bad mood, and I…”

“I wasn’t in a very good mood either”.

“We had dinner together, then went to KTV. I didn’t take out my phone, and I didn’t hear it ring”.

“I didn’t intentionally…”

Before the words “not answer” could leave her mouth, Shen Ningruo wrapped her arms around Qiu Yang’s waist and pressed her lips against hers.

She knew Qiu Yang wouldn’t intentionally ignore her calls, because Qiu Yang, this little lamb, was just that polite and well-behaved.

But Shen Ningruo clearly remembered her own worry and bitterness at that moment. She really…

Didn’t want to experience it again.

Losing phone contact with Qiu Yang felt like completely severing all ties, as if returning to the time before they knew each other, each confined to their own world.

This feeling was too agonizing; she didn’t want to taste it again.

Shen Ningruo had never been like this before, so now she had a strange sense of having lost and regained something.

She also really wanted to kiss Qiu Yang, hiding all her feelings in this kiss, secretly telling Qiu Yang.

She didn’t dare to speak directly, didn’t dare to confess her emotions.

It was also today that Shen Ningruo suddenly realized.

It took Qiu Yang twenty-four days to not forget Tao Sixian. But after only half a month of contact with Qiu Yang, she had already fallen for her.

The person she thought of during the day, the person she longed for at night, was Qiu Yang.

Forgetting takes a long time, but falling in love doesn’t; it can happen in an instant, in a second.

Shen Ningruo knew this clearly.

Qiu Yang was a bit surprised by Shen Ningruo’s approach, but she still didn’t reject it. So, after pausing for two seconds, she grabbed Shen Ningruo’s arm and responded to the gentle kiss.

Her emotions had fluctuated greatly today, and only now, kissing Shen Ningruo, did she feel a sense of comfort, making her even more absorbed.

However, Shen Ningruo’s hair wasn’t dry yet, and she was still worried. So, after a short while, she pushed Shen Ningruo’s tongue away, and the two separated slightly.

Qiu Yang frowned, “Dry your hair first”.

“Okay,” Shen Ningruo replied, then kissed Qiu Yang again before obediently standing up.

Qiu Yang took the hairdryer out of the bathroom and went to take a shower herself.

Shen Ningruo dried her hair outside. Her hair was thick and curly, taking longer to dry. Pingzi observed her secretly from the side, and she made eye contact with it several times.

When her hair was almost dry, Shen Ningruo turned off the hairdryer. She glanced at the closed bathroom door, then walked over to Pingzi and patted its head, just like Qiu Yang did.

Pingzi didn’t shy away, probably because Shen Ningruo used Qiu Yang’s bath products, so it didn’t feel unfamiliar. When Shen Ningruo patted it, it even squinted its eyes, looking like it was enjoying it.

Qiu Yang hadn’t washed her hair. When she came out of the bathroom, she saw Shen Ningruo interacting with Pingzi. Hearing the door open, Shen Ningruo turned around, a smile lifting the corners of her lips, “It let me touch it”.

“…It always lets you touch it.” Qiu Yang chuckled. Pingzi had a good temper and wouldn’t hide even from strangers. If it sensed goodwill, it would let people pet it freely.

Shen Ningruo: “…Oh”.

Shen Ningruo explained awkwardly, “I was bitten by a stray cat when I was little, so I’m a bit scared”.

“Did you get shots?” Qiu Yang walked towards her, asking casually.

Shen Ningruo stood up, “Mm”.

“So you have some psychological trauma”.

“It’s getting late”.

“Let’s sleep”.

Qiu Yang finished speaking and turned off the living room light. The bedroom door was open, and the light from inside spilled out, illuminating their path.

Pingzi consciously went to its climbing frame, showing no intention of following them in.

It was already 11:30 PM, and both had work tomorrow. Qiu Yang lifted the covers first, and Shen Ningruo lay down beside her.

“Is your lower back still sore today?” Shen Ningruo turned over to face Qiu Yang, asking softly.

Qiu Yang shifted her waist slightly, “It’s okay”.

Qiu Yang tilted her head, pausing for a moment, “But if you still want to help me massage it, I won’t stop you”.

The meaning was perfectly clear.

Shen Ningruo’s throat moved. She hummed an “Mm,” “Then I’ll give you a massage”.

As she spoke, she started to reach her hand under the covers towards Qiu Yang, but before she could touch her, Qiu Yang leaned over and pressed her down.

Nothing could be seen clearly in the darkness, but they could distinctly feel each other’s gaze.

Darkness had its advantages; they could hear each other’s breathing.

Qiu Yang didn’t say anything, slowly lowering her head. Her hair cascaded down, brushing against Shen Ningruo’s face and neck.

It tickled a little.

When their last kiss ended, she had said, “Dry your hair first,” so naturally, there was an “after”.

This was the follow-up.

Qiu Yang now pictured Shen Ningruo’s somewhat disheveled appearance tonight. She actually didn’t know why Shen Ningruo cared so much about her emotions and even waited at the door for three hours to apologize.

But Shen Ningruo didn’t need to apologize; Qiu Yang knew it was her own issue.

She had clearly tried hard, but she still needed a little more time to be completely unaffected.

Shen Ningruo received Qiu Yang’s kiss, her hands wrapping around Qiu Yang’s waist. As their lips and tongues intertwined, her throat tightened several times.

After a while, Qiu Yang lifted her head, panting slightly. She lowered her head again, this time kissing Shen Ningruo’s chin, then her warm lips moved further down.

“Shen Ningruo,” Qiu Yang called her name then.

“Mm?” Shen Ningruo was losing control, her voice slightly trembling.

“Tonight isn’t about paying back a debt,” Qiu Yang lifted her leg, pushing the blanket aside.

Shen Ningruo didn’t hesitate, “Okay”.

Shen Ningruo closed her eyes, her body’s reactions becoming exceptionally sharp. Her head rested on the pillow, a faint, fresh scent in the air, similar to Qiu Yang’s own smell.

This fragrance seemed to have an amplifying effect, expanding her feelings for Qiu Yang more and more. She couldn’t help herself, responding fully.

After a while, Shen Ningruo felt uncomfortable. She swallowed hard and called out, “Xiao Yang”.

“Mm?”

“I…” Shen Ningruo still had a shred of reason, holding back the words she wanted to say. Finally, she just said with a trembling voice.

“I…”

“I can’t really take it anymore”.

She was already losing control of herself.

---

Help me decide what to translate next by voting for the novels you’re most interested in reading or suggesting ones you’d like to see translated.

If you’d like to read ahead and support me, you can request extra chapters or get the full novel as an EPUB.