Jiang Xun set down his glass of water and rose from the sofa.
He crossed the short distance between them and reached out, his fingers gently lifting her chin, which had been lowered in nervousness. He made her meet his gaze.
"I don't need all this," he said softly — his tone calm, yet carrying an authority that left no room for argument.
"Go change," he added. "Into what you wore to school today."
"Huh?"
Mu Qingxue froze.
Did he mean the black business suit she wore this morning — her Tianqi Financial Group CEO armor? That was her professional uniform, the symbol of authority and self-control she wielded in the corporate arena.
But now, in this private moment with only the two of them… he wanted that?
What kind of test was this?
"Why?" she asked instinctively — and immediately regretted it, afraid she'd overstepped.
Yet Jiang Xun didn't get angry.
He simply looked at her, amusement flickering in his eyes, touched with a tenderness she had never seen before.
"Because," he said, "the way you are — the real you — is already beautiful enough."
The words struck her like thunder.
She went still.
The way she was… already beautiful?
He wasn't talking about the lavish gowns or the meticulously rehearsed personas — but her.
The woman who hid behind sharp suits and crisp professionalism; the woman who wore confidence like armor.
For him, she had risked everything — poured her savings into grooming, training, performance. She had turned herself into a perfect artifact for display, believing she had to constantly reinvent her worth to keep him interested.
And now he was saying… she didn't have to.
A warmth rose behind her eyes.
Her vision blurred. She bit her lip hard, trying to hold herself together — but the tears came anyway, one by one.
They weren't tears of humiliation. Nor of grievance.
They were tears of being seen.
For the first time, she felt understood — stripped bare not by force, but by gentleness. The string she'd been pulling taut for so long finally loosened.
He had seen through her — completely.
Later, in the bedroom, Mu Qingxue had changed back into her black suit.
The tailored blazer framed her figure perfectly. The white silk blouse was buttoned to the very top, the short skirt paired with sheer black stockings that traced the length of her legs.
In the office, such attire meant control and restraint.
But here, in this quiet room meant only for the two of them, it exuded a very different kind of allure.
She stood by the bed, awkward and unsure, like a child who'd done something wrong.
Jiang Xun patted the spot beside him.
After a moment's hesitation, she obeyed.
The instant she sat down, he pulled her into his arms, falling back onto the bed with her pressed against him.
"Sir…"
"Still calling me that?" His voice was teasing, low against her ear.
Her face turned crimson. She buried herself against his chest, her voice as faint as a whisper.
"...Jiang Xun."
"Mm."
He held her tighter, his arm firm as steel, impossible to break free from.
His scent surrounded her completely — there was nowhere to hide.
Her blouse strained faintly with every breath, silk whispering against skin, the fabric's tension outlining her curves like a protest against its own confinement.
Even through the layers of clothing, his palm on her back could feel her trembling — like a startled butterfly.
His fingers traced slowly down her spine, inch by inch.
Each touch sent ripples through her body.
Mu Qingxue forgot how to breathe.
She felt as if every facade she'd built was being peeled away — leaving only her most fragile self, open in his hands.
His hand came to rest at her waist. The other lifted her chin again.
His thumb brushed away the last glimmer of tears at the corner of her eyes.
He didn't speak.
He only looked at her — deeply, steadily — as if reading the chaos inside her: fear, confusion… and something else. Something she hadn't yet realized was surrender.
Then his fingers found the top button of her blouse.
A soft click.
The room fell into perfect stillness — only their breathing remained.
After a long silence, Jiang Xun spoke, his tone lazy yet pointed.
"Do you really have to make it so complicated? You make it sound like a corporate project — with PowerPoints and KPIs."
Mu Qingxue's body stiffened slightly.
After a pause, she said quietly, her voice dreamlike, "You don't understand…"
"For most women," she began, "marriage is the most important career of their lives. It's not wrong to treat it that way."
"I've been preparing for this project since the day I was born."
Her eyes lifted — red from tears, but shining with clarity.
"I studied management to help run your company. I learned crafts to please you. I worked hard to earn money — to bring you the best dowry, to give you the best life I could."
"Everything I've done… was to increase my 'success rate.'"
Jiang Xun listened quietly, without interruption.
"Do you know?" she continued, "The gender ratio in Longguo has passed ten thousand to one. Men like you — young, healthy, and this good-looking — are practically national treasures."
There was fear in her voice now.
"To match with you through the 'Tianhe Program,' my family exhausted three generations of connections and luck. If I fail… I'll become a lightless hollow."
"Lightless hollow?" he repeated, the term foreign to him.
"Yes." Her tone softened into sadness. "It means a woman who never meets a man — who grows old alone, like a black hole that can never be filled. It's the cruelest curse a woman here can face."
"So I can't afford mistakes. I'm terrified I'll fall short. That when the one-month protection period ends, you'll prefer someone younger, prettier… better."
Her words gave him a deeper understanding of the world they lived in — a place where affection had been replaced by competition, and survival depended on perfection.
Jiang Xun sighed, running a hand through his long hair.
"So that half-truck of clothes was your version of an arms race?"
Mu Qingxue blinked, then let out a small laugh through the tears still clinging to her lashes. The smile that followed was fragile, but luminous — like sunlight after rain.
"You could say that," she murmured, resting her head against his chest like a cat finally finding home.
"I just wanted… to give you everything I could think of."
"I don't need the best," Jiang Xun said softly, looking down at her. "I only need what I want."
Her heart shuddered again.
She gazed up at him, her soul melting into his eyes.
[Ding!] Emotional bond with heroine Mu Qingxue established! Affection +10! Current affection: 90 (Deep Attachment).[Ding!] Family Reputation +2000!
The system's voice chimed faintly in Jiang Xun's mind, but he ignored it.
All he saw was the woman in his arms — no longer an opponent in a game, but a person stripped of artifice and fear. For the first time, something stirred quietly inside him — a sense of responsibility.
He lowered his head and kissed her.
This time, it wasn't a test, nor an evaluation.
It was simply — tenderness.