"Mingxi, don't do this!"
Chen Xiao felt Chen Mingxi's enthusiasm and became even more anxious.
After all, although he was very sure that he and Chen Mingxi had no blood relation whatsoever, in his heart, Chen Mingxi was still his cousin. Objectively speaking, Chen Mingxi's beauty was in no way inferior to Zhou Wanrong, Song Yan, or Xu Jingyin.
As if escaping for his life, he flipped over to avoid Chen Mingxi's kiss, quickly took out the silver needles he carried, and muttered to himself with a wry smile:
"It seems I can only use the Taiyi True Needles to resolve the medicinal properties in Mingxi's body, but... but the acupuncture points are too awkward, alas!"
Chen Xiao only hesitated for a moment, and Chen Mingxi had already stripped off her upper body, then pounced into Chen Xiao's arms again like a tigress.
However, this was convenient for Chen Xiao to overcome his psychological barrier of gender and directly perform acupuncture on Chen Mingxi's left chest.
While letting Chen Mingxi cling to his neck and kiss him wildly, Chen Xiao seized the opportunity to press Chen Mingxi down. The silver needle in his hand trembled as he inserted it, and the Wu Zi Jin Fang technique activated.
Compared to fingertip blood, the effect of the Taiyi True Needles was undoubtedly better. It was just that before this, Chen Xiao had always been unable to overcome the psychological barrier of gender. After all, Chen Mingxi was his cousin, and he really couldn't convince himself with the saying, "In a doctor's eyes, patients are neither male nor female."
Therefore, as soon as the silver needle was inserted into Chen Mingxi's left chest, she immediately quieted down.
However, her hands and feet were still wrapped around Chen Xiao like an octopus, clinging to him tightly, like a sloth hanging from a tree branch.
Moreover, the effect of the Taiyi True Needles had not yet fully manifested, and Chen Xiao could not struggle. Thus, he could only remain kneeling and half-lying on Chen Mingxi, enduring the torment.
Looking at Chen Mingxi's beautiful and alluring face, so close at hand, he could force himself to close his eyes.
Smelling Chen Mingxi's intoxicating fragrance as she exhaled, he could force himself to hold his breath.
But the crux of the problem was that he had already depleted his strength performing the Yin Yang Gui Shou technique to treat Zhang Liugian, and on top of that, he had uncontrollably used the equally draining Da Meng Jin Gang Shen Gong when dealing with Sun Xiaoxiang and other street thugs. He was truly exhausted and his eyelids were constantly fighting to close.
After an unknown amount of time, Chen Xiao's consciousness gradually blurred. Unable to hold on any longer, he fell asleep. In his daze, he only felt as if he were lying on something soft and fragrant, which made him sleep exceptionally soundly.
"Ah—"
Suddenly, a scream pierced Chen Xiao's eardrums. Chen Xiao woke up abruptly, only to find himself lying on a completely naked Chen Mingxi, who was staring at him with a look of horror.
Under the illumination of the ceiling light, in the next second, they both scrambled away from each other like cockroaches that shun the light.
Chen Xiao hastily rolled off the bed and tried to explain:
"Ming... Mingxi, if... if I told you that Sun Xiaoxiang drugged you, and I... and I fell asleep because I was too tired while trying to save you with acupuncture, would you... would you believe me?"
Fearing that Chen Mingxi wouldn't believe him, Chen Xiao frantically searched the bed as he spoke. He quickly found the silver needle he had used for acupuncture on Chen Mingxi, then nervously pointed to his own left chest:
"You... if you don't believe me, you can check if there are any acupuncture marks there."
Chen Mingxi hugged her knees, wrapped in the quilt, and squatted at the head of the bed, trying hard to recall the events before she lost consciousness. Her memory finally settled on the moment she fell into Chen Xiao's arms while being chased by Sun Xiaoxiang. Being simple-minded, she couldn't figure out how she had been inexplicably drugged.
Prompted by Chen Xiao, she nervously peeked under the quilt, not just to check for acupuncture marks.
Soon, after confirming that she had not been harmed, she gradually calmed down and said softly, with her head bowed:
"Brother, you... you don't need to explain. I... I believe you. After all... after all, we've slept in the same bed before since we were kids."
"Phew!"
Chen Xiao finally breathed a sigh of relief and then took out his phone to check the time:
"It's already past one in the morning. Let's go home quickly. Oh, and don't worry too much about your burns. I promise to restore them without a trace as soon as possible."
"I..."
Chen Mingxi hesitated, her head buried even lower:
"Brother, I... I don't want to go home. My... my parents are too shameless. I... I don't want to see them. We... we're at a hotel now, right? How about... how about you stay with me tonight? We... we haven't had a heart-to-heart talk in a long time..."
"Uh..."
Chen Xiao was startled and, without thinking, quickly interrupted Chen Mingxi:
"No! Absolutely not! We're adults now. There's a distinction between men and women. No matter how close we are, we shouldn't sleep in the same bed like we did when we were children. If you really don't want to go home, then come with me to the Jishi Tang. We have plenty of beds there, and the sooner your burns are treated, the better. If we go back now to apply medicine, they'll heal faster. Hurry up and get dressed, I'll wait for you at the door."
As he spoke, he turned and walked out without waiting for Chen Mingxi's reply.
"Brother..."
Chen Mingxi, unable to refuse, could only pout reluctantly and get dressed to follow him out.
Soon, they returned to the Jishi Tang.
Although it was nearly two in the morning, the Jishi Tang was still lit. At the entrance, barely illuminated by the dim streetlights, Chen Qing and Daphne were waiting anxiously.
Seeing Chen Xiao arrive with Chen Mingxi, who had over a dozen burns on her body, on his electric scooter, Chen Qing was terrified and asked nervously:
"Son, what happened to Mingxi's burns?"
Daphne, on the other hand, gazed at the seemingly weak Chen Xiao with longing eyes and asked worriedly:
"Chen Xiao, are you okay?"
Chen Xiao was busy rummaging through cabinets for the White Jade Emerald Paste to apply to Chen Mingxi's burns, deliberately downplaying the situation and saying lightly:
"It's nothing, Mom. You and Daphne should wash up and go to bed. We can talk about it tomorrow."
Chen Mingxi clearly didn't want Chen Qing to know about her experiences tonight and worry, and... and she even less wanted Chen Qing to know about her and Chen Xiao's time in the hotel room. As soon as Chen Xiao finished speaking, she quickly chimed in:
"Auntie, I just tripped and fell at the barbecue stall. It's really nothing."
"You two..."
Chen Qing wasn't foolish and could tell that Chen Xiao and Chen Mingxi were hiding something. But since they were back, she decided not to pry further and returned to her room to sleep uneasily.
Daphne also noticed the unusual glances exchanged between Chen Xiao and Chen Mingxi, so she also returned to her room with a heavy heart.
Soon, after Chen Xiao had applied the medicine and arranged a ward for Chen Mingxi, he too went to bed, yawning.
"What a tiring day!"
Chen Xiao fell onto the bed and slept, not even bothering to practice the Da Meng Jin Gang Shen Gong.
In a daze, after an unknown amount of time, as he turned over, he felt someone next to his pillow, emitting a distinct feminine aura. His heart leaped into his throat. Fearing that someone might be eavesdropping, he lowered his voice and said with a near cry:
"Mingxi, didn't I tell you we're grown up now and absolutely shouldn't sleep in the same bed? Why are you here again..."
As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Xiao was stunned. Because of his sharp eyesight, he clearly saw that the woman sleeping beside him was not Chen Mingxi at all, but Daphne!