A gentle spring rain fell last night.

The window was half-open, and the scent of fresh grass mixed with a hint of rain drifted into the room.

At nine in the morning, just as Xiang Yuan was waking up, her phone suddenly vibrated with a new text message.

“Dear Ms. Xiang Yuan, over the past year, you have rescued marine animals, promoted environmental protection knowledge, and fought for more living space for endangered lives. We hereby thank you for your enthusiasm and contribution to marine conservation!”

It was a text from the volunteer association.

Xiang Yuan opened her eyes and groggily checked it.

A swipe of her fingertip happened to land on an unread message from a few days ago.

The sender was saved as Doctor Cheng.

Only then did Xiang Yuan realize she had completely missed a message from three days ago.

It wasn’t that she had intentionally avoided Doctor Cheng’s message; rather, she had been frantically busy rushing to finish her art commissions, completely losing track of day and night. She had cut off all contact with the outside world.

Now, taking a closer look at the message he had sent, she saw it was just a short line.

[I’ll be home on Sunday.]

The woman on the bed, dressed in a white slip nightgown, had thick, seaweed-like black hair spread carelessly across the pillow. A pair of long legs imperiously occupied the center of the large bed. Her skin was fair and delicate, and her exquisite features exuded a lazy, casual sexiness.

Seeing the message on her phone, Xiang Yuan’s slender eyebrows furrowed faintly.

Sunday?

How long had it been since he was last back?

Counting carefully, it seemed to be about two weeks.

Cheng Zhinan had informed her before his business trip that he was going out of town for a medical skills seminar, and with some other arrangements, his trip would be a bit longer this time.

Xiang Yuan used to have a restless personality, willing to travel far and wide in search of inspiration. She could be drinking in a bar one day and volunteering abroad the next.

However, she had become much more behaved since she broke her leg.

A hundred days are needed to recover from a bone and muscle injury, but her parents had ordered her not to run around anymore and to live a quiet life at home, putting Cheng Zhinan in charge of watching over her.

In the eyes of the older generation, Cheng Zhinan was the perfect son-in-law. Everyone in the Xiang family, from old to young, admired him, saying he was so mature for his age. From his family background to his looks and career, he was top-notch.

With his qualifications, he would probably have young women fighting over him on the matchmaking market.

But ever since their friends heard the news of their marriage, they found it utterly baffling.

How did those two end up together?

With Xiang Yuan’s restless nature, how could she tolerate Doctor Cheng’s coldness after marriage?

Ever since university, Cheng Zhinan had been engrossed in his studies, seemingly uninterested in women. Even after he started working, when people introduced him to outstanding girls from well-matched families, he showed no interest, merely saying he had no plans to marry for the time being.

And yet.

The two of them had gotten married.

During a small gathering one day.

A friend from their shared circle teased Xiang Yuan, “You actually got married?”

Xiang Yuan smiled brightly. “That’s right.”

The friend: “To Cheng Zhinan, really?”

Xiang Yuan: “The genuine article. A hundredfold compensation if it’s a fake.”

The friend: “With his personality… aren’t you afraid of a boring married life?”

Xiang Yuan: “It’s fine, it’s fine. I think it’s pretty good.”

Thinking of Cheng Zhinan’s cool and detached demeanor, the friend silently shook her head and poured Xiang Yuan a glass of wine.

Their personalities were worlds apart.

Cheng Zhinan was aloof and unsociable, while Xiang Yuan had a vivacious personality and loved trying new things.

Besides, Xiang Yuan was still young; it was uncertain if she could adapt to this kind of life after marriage.

The friend sighed silently. “Marrying Doctor Cheng, you’re really in for a tough time.”

Xiang Yuan gave an awkward smile but said nothing.

Whether married life was tough or not was for her to judge, not for others to comment on.

But as for the period since their marriage.

It had indeed been quite good.

Cheng Zhinan had an excellent character, was one-in-a-million handsome, a neat freak who loved cleanliness, and never disturbed her.

Xiang Yuan was quite satisfied with him.

Just as she was lost in thought, the person who had sent the message seemed to be on the same wavelength as her and called her directly.

A vibration came from her palm. Xiang Yuan glanced down and saw it was a call from Cheng Zhinan.

She rolled over, her voice laced with the languid laziness of someone half-awake. “Doctor Cheng, good morning.”

The person on the other end of the line paused for two seconds, quickly discerning that she was answering the phone while lying in bed.

The man’s voice was slightly husky, possessing the pleasant, proper quality of fresh bamboo after rain, his tone lowered slightly. “You’re awake?”

Xiang Yuan: “Mhm, just woke up a little while ago.”

It seemed he had moved to a quieter place, as his voice sounded a bit more spacious.

The man’s thin lips pursed slightly as he adjusted his collar. He asked her, “Why didn’t you reply to the message I sent a few days ago?”

It was a perfectly serious question, yet he was met with a low chuckle from the other end of the line.

Xiang Yuan half-buried her head in the pillow, her words carrying an innate, unaffected coquettishness, as if she were deliberately teasing him.

“I forgot. I just saw your message now, sorry.”

After she said this, the person on the other end was predictably silent.

She raised an eyebrow slightly, probing, “Are you angry?”

As soon as she asked, the person on the other end replied quickly.

“No. I was just worried something might have happened to you at home alone since I didn’t get a reply.”

“What could possibly happen to me?” Xiang Yuan muttered. “I’m busy with my art commissions at home every day. I can’t even go out to have fun. I’m stuck here day and night, I don’t know when I’ll ever get to go out and have a blast.”

Cheng Zhinan seemed to ignore her complaint and continued to ask:

“Has your leg been bothering you recently?”

Xiang Yuan answered obediently, “Nope, everything’s normal.”

Only then did Cheng Zhinan sound relieved. “That’s good.”

The two first met at the hospital.

Xiang Yuan had just returned from abroad and hadn’t even been resting for a week when she broke her leg while hiking. Fortunately, there was a silver lining to the scare; it wasn’t particularly serious.

On the way to the hospital, Xiang Ming’s hands trembled on the steering wheel as she drove, muttering incessantly:

“Sis, you can’t let anything happen to you! If something really happens, Mom and Dad will slice me into a thousand pieces.”

The injured one was clearly Xiang Yuan, yet she was calmer than the driver.

Xiang Yuan sat in the back seat, her face pale, in so much pain she could barely speak. “At worst, it’s a broken bone, not like I’m dead. Hurry up and get me to registration.”

The doctor she met that day was Cheng Zhinan.

Cheng Zhinan was serious about his work and responsible toward his patients. He had patiently soothed Xiang Yuan’s emotions at the time and told her that if she rested well, there would likely be no lasting side effects.

During her recovery, Xiang Ming had whispered gossip to Xiang Yuan, “Sis, your attending physician is so handsome. Does he have a girlfriend?”

How would Xiang Yuan know if Cheng Zhinan had a girlfriend?

She only knew that Cheng Zhinan was a doctor who maintained a strong sense of boundaries.

While she was recovering in the hospital, his care for her was meticulous, making one feel as if bathed in a spring breeze.

Although Xiang Yuan couldn’t go out and have fun as usual, being able to see Cheng Zhinan’s breathtakingly handsome face was quite satisfying and one of the few pleasures during her recovery.

However, after she recovered and was discharged, she ran into Cheng Zhinan again at a bookstore. She had planned to greet him enthusiastically.

Unexpectedly, his attitude toward her was distant. It wasn’t cold, exactly, but more like he was deliberately keeping his distance.

Later, Xiang Yuan learned that this was just Cheng Zhinan’s personality; in his private life, he was unwilling to engage in excessive, useless socializing.

She had thought their paths would never cross again, but then her parents pulled some strings, saying they had arranged a blind date for her with someone whose family background and qualifications were a good match, and that she might as well go meet him.

Before the meeting, Xiang Yuan didn’t have high expectations.

Only after arriving at the coffee shop did Xiang Yuan realize her blind date was her former attending physician, Cheng Zhinan.

The moment he saw Xiang Yuan, Cheng Zhinan was also a little surprised.

However, he maintained his composure and grace, chatting with her naturally and paying for the date.

Even so, during the date, he had deliberately avoided Xiang Yuan’s gaze a few times.

Xiang Yuan was young and beautiful. Their date was in the winter.

She took off her coat, revealing a white, form-fitting sweater paired with slim-fit light blue jeans. The pants perfectly outlined the curve of her legs, which were long, straight, and slender, and her hips were exceptionally pert. Her long hair cascaded smoothly down her back.

She always smiled when she looked at people.

Even though the coffee shop was a bit chilly in winter, she held her cup with both hands, the faint sunlight from the window shining on her, enveloping her in a warm aura as she chatted cheerfully with Cheng Zhinan.

Xiang Yuan didn’t have much memory of what they specifically talked about that day.

But based on her self-awareness, she figured she had what could be called a physiological attraction to Cheng Zhinan.

This seemingly cold man had an absolutely superb face and figure.

He dressed in simple, casual styles, but his broad shoulders were like a walking clothes hanger, effortlessly making basic pieces look high-end.

When he wasn’t working, he would occasionally wear cologne.

The top note was the freshness of citrus, and the base note was a warm, rich woody scent.

Especially in the moment his broad chest completely enveloped her, the man who was usually impossibly composed was, in that department, so shockingly different it was mind-boggling.

On their wedding night, Xiang Yuan was too stunned to believe her eyes.

That night.

Cheng Zhinan had been outside entertaining guests for a long time.

By the time he returned to the bedroom, Xiang Yuan was already drowsy and half-asleep.

She opened her eyes, only to hear a loud *thud* from outside the door.

Cheng Zhinan didn’t turn on the light, yanking off the black tie at his chest with one hand.

Although he had drunk a lot tonight, he didn’t want to frighten his new wife.

So, he kept his posture steady, suppressing the tipsiness that was already going to his head, and asked Xiang Yuan:

“Sorry, did I wake you?”

Xiang Yuan casually said it was fine, then got up and turned on the bedside lamp.

She hadn’t been that sleepy anyway, just startled by the *thud*.

She received quite a few shocks that night.

The second *thud* came after Cheng Zhinan unbuckled his black leather belt.

The man’s long, slender fingers brazenly challenged the speed of Xiang Yuan’s heartbeat.

This completely subverted the theoretical knowledge she had accumulated her entire life.

She was in shock for a long time, almost unable to believe her eyes.

She once again affirmed her own good taste.

So physiological attraction was this accurate.

Her taste in men was actually this good.

That night, Xiang Yuan was extremely smug.

As it turned out, a man like Cheng Zhinan, who was always busy with his studies and work, was truly irresistible once he let loose.

In summary, Doctor Cheng satisfied her completely, inside and out.

However, Cheng Zhinan’s personality was different from hers, and he usually didn’t have much time to fool around with her. After their marriage, Xiang Yuan had been recovering on and off, and had also unluckily suffered some minor injuries.

She was used to a leisurely life, and Cheng Zhinan was afraid her lack of self-control would be bad for her health, so he drew up a post-marriage agreement with her.

On a sheet of white paper, a week’s plan was printed out.

Xiang Yuan looked at the planned agreement with boredom, feeling that Cheng Zhinan’s rigid and meticulous manner was somehow inexplicably cute.

Considering they hadn’t known each other long and didn’t fully understand each other yet, she readily agreed to the treaty.

Except,

When her gaze fell on the last item.

Her mouth opened slightly, her fingertip landing on the text. Her tone rose at the end, teasing him with a question she already knew the answer to:

“What does this one mean?”

It was clearly written that they could have marital intimacy every Sunday.

The proper, old-fashioned man remained expressionless, but the line of his lips tightened a few degrees.

“Everything will be according to your wishes. If you’re not willing, I won’t force you, but.”

He balled one hand into a fist, brought it to his lips, and coughed lightly. “Regular marital intimacy can promote our relationship. Too frequently isn’t good for the body.”

Hearing this, Xiang Yuan began to reflect.

Could it be that she had been too much in the past few days?

Thus, she mimicked Cheng Zhinan’s seriousness and agreed to this Marriage Treaty.

At first, the Marriage Treaty went quite smoothly.

But with Cheng Zhinan on a business trip for the past two weeks, Xiang Yuan had started staying up all night again, her schedule completely reversed.

Perhaps it was the thought of his return that made Xiang Yuan’s mind wander for a moment.

The person on the other end of the phone took the initiative to speak. “I’ll be back on Sunday. Is there any gift you want? I’ll bring it for you.”

Hearing this, Xiang Yuan’s face, buried in the pillow, quietly turned red.

Now, whenever Sunday was mentioned, an image of Doctor Cheng’s ascetic face would automatically pop into her head.

In the past, an hour was the minimum.

Mhm.

She did need some restraint.

But it had been two weeks since they last saw each other.

She probably didn’t need any restraint anymore.