Chapter 88

. Her slightly curled hair was messy and disheveled, with strands of hair scattered across her cheeks and snow-white shoulders. She had a rosy blush on both her cheeks, eyes closed, and was sleeping t...Chapter 88

After the meeting, Ni Xuanyi's sales department manager invited everyone involved in the negotiation to have dinner. Although Ruanzhao disliked noisy gatherings, he gladly agreed when he saw Ni Xuanyi standing with the other side.

The banquet had many dishes, but none of those present came for the food; each employee from the sales department was put through a test of alcohol resistance. After drinking rounds of foreign liquor and red wine, they started on beer.

Ni Xuanyi didn't have much of a tolerance for alcohol, but since she had accomplished something that day and had connections with people from headquarters, her sales manager did not force her to drink. Similarly, the guests seemed to have been told by Ruanzhao not to pressure her into drinking.

Even though no one forced Ni Xuanyi to drink, the lively atmosphere at the banquet made her uncomfortable, so she followed everyone else and had a few drinks. As someone who couldn't hold liquor well, she felt dizzy after drinking but managed to smile through it because falling down in such an occasion would be extremely embarrassing.

Everyone at the table was drunk, their words slurred, except for Ruanzhao; he remained completely sober. With good alcohol tolerance and not being one who liked talking much, plus his status as the other side's boss, no one dared to keep proposing drinks to him.

Ni Xuanyi saw everyone at the table in a chaotic state and excused herself from the banquet to get some fresh air outside. However, once she stood up in the resting area and was hit by the breeze, she felt like she might vomit.

"Xuanxuan, are you okay" Ruanzhao, who had followed Ni Xuanyi out without her noticing, stood behind her and gently patted her back.

"Stay away from me; don't let my colleagues see us together." Ni Xuanyi hurriedly moved to the side but nearly stumbled because of her dizziness.

Ruanzhao supported her with his hand, but seeing her cautious gaze, he awkwardly withdrew it. "Xuanxuan, I'll take you back to your apartment."

"My bag's still inside." Ni Xuanyi shook her head; she couldn't be alone with a man after drinking so much.

Ruan Zhao suggested, "I'll have someone bring it to you."

"My colleagues might see it," Ni Xuanyi replied.

"They're all too drunk to notice anything," Ruan Zhao reassured her.

Ni Xuanyi tried to refuse again, but nausea and dizziness overwhelmed her as the alcohol took effect. She desperately wanted to pass out right there and then, so she reluctantly agreed with Ruan Zhao's suggestion.

Ruan Zhao half-carried Ni Xuanyi to his car and handed her a small bottle of something to drink.

"What is this" Ni Xuanyi asked, still very cautious despite being drunk.

Ruan Zhao was amused by her wariness but gently explained, "Xuanxuan, I would never harm you. This is a hangover remedy. Drink it so that you won't have a headache tomorrow."

Miserably tormented by the alcohol, Ni Xuanyi heard him say it was a hangover remedy and took it.

The aftereffects of red wine were strong; even after drinking the antidote, Ni Xuanyi felt her mind foggy. Struggling to stay conscious, she said, "Ruan... Ruan Zhao... take me home..." Her head drooped as she succumbed to sleep in the car seat.

She faintly heard Ruan Zhao asking beside her ear, "Xuanxuan, are you okay"

"Xuanxuan, we're at your apartment building. Wake up!"

...

Ni Xuanyi勉強睜開眼睛，頭痛地揉著額頭，含糊不清地問：“我到家了嗎？”

"Yes." Ruan Zhao reached out to support her. "Come on, I'll take you upstairs. Do you remember which floor it is"

“Mm.” Ni Xuanyi staggered towards the car door. A gust of wind met her, and she couldn't hold back any longer, squatting by the roadside to vomit.

Ruan Zhao hurried over, patting her back gently, then handed her water to rinse her mouth.

After vomiting, Ni Xuanyi felt even weaker. When Ruan Zhao supported her towards the dormitory, she leaned against his shoulder after a few steps and passed out.

When Ni Xuanyi woke up, she momentarily had no idea where she was.

Sitting up slowly, she looked around and found herself in a luxurious room. Ruan Zhao was half-sleeping on the sofa not far away, covered with a thin blanket. She was startled, immediately remembering her shameful behavior from last night, quickly checking her clothes to find that they were all intact before letting out a sigh of relief.

At this moment, Ruan Zhao also woke up, sitting up and looking at Ni Xuanyi with a smile. "Xuanxuan, good morning!"

"Why did you bring me back here" Ni Xuanyi's voice was hoarse, her voice sounding like it had lost its power after drinking too much; she found that even talking caused pain in her throat.

“Last night, you drank too much and fell asleep. I couldn't wake you up no matter how hard I tried. Since I didn’t know where your apartment was, I brought you back here.” Ruan Zhao explained softly.

Ni Xuanyi held the blanket uneasily and turned to look out of the window. She saw a faint dawn outside the large floor-to-ceiling window, which made her anxious. She had actually spent the night here with Ruan Zhao. Due to her frail condition and hasty descent from upstairs, she nearly fell again.

Ruan Zhao hurried over to support her, saying, "Xuanxuan, I told you that I won't hurt you. Don’t be nervous. You are still weak; lie down for a while longer. I will go get breakfast for you. Eating something will make you feel better."

Ni Xuanyi knew Ruan Zhao was right, but she was upset with herself now. She was such an idiot to have drunk so much that she ended up sleeping in the same room as him. How would she explain this to Li Yi if he found out

She waved weakly and leaned on the wall to walk into the bathroom to wash her face, brush her teeth, and tidy herself up; she wanted to leave this room filled with their mixed scent immediately.

Ruan Zhao saw that Ni Xuanyi was determined not to stay, so he didn’t try to stop her. However, he didn’t let her go alone either; instead, he personally drove her home.

It was still early in the morning with few cars on the streets. Due to an empty stomach and hunger pains, Ni Xuanyi held her chest while sitting in the passenger seat of Ruan Zhao’s car.

Ruan Zhao saw this and became worried. "Xuanxuan, there's a congee shop up ahead; let’s go get something to eat!"

Ni Xuanyi’s stomach hurt terribly. She knew it was because of hunger, so she nodded in agreement with Ruan Zhao.

Once they entered the congee shop, Ni Xuanyi sat down at a table while Ruan Zhao ran around buying things for her. As she watched his back, she noticed that he wasn’t familiar with the ordering process and was running aimlessly around the place. She felt touched by this.

Finally, Ruan Zhao had bought everything and placed the bowls of congee in front of Ni Xuanyi. "Drink some congee first; it will warm your stomach."

Ni Xuanyi drank half a bowl of congee in big gulps and felt much better overall. She smiled at Ruan Zhao and asked, "Is this the first time you’ve ordered food on your own at a congee shop"en't for us stopping him, he would have gone out onto the streets to look for you himself. This fiery temper of his... if we hadn’t stopped him, he might have eaten us alive…" Ming Zixi rattled on and...