Chapter 36: A Three-Meter Bed, a Night of Differing Thoughts
When Jiang Chen walked out while drying his hair, the atmosphere in the living room was somewhat stagnant.
Su Qingge sat on a single-person sofa in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, a tablet resting on her knees. The light from the screen reflected on her face, making her look a bit cold and aloof.
Seeing Jiang Chen come out, she looked up, her gaze lingering on him for two seconds before quickly shifting away. She didn't even ask, "Are you done washing?"
That deliberate avoidance felt more like a silent interrogation.
Lin Wan was fiddling with the coffee machine over in the open kitchen. Hearing footsteps, her movements paused for a moment, and her cup hit the marble countertop with a crisp clink.
"Um... where's Chen Man?" Lin Wan turned around, her gaze flickering as she avoided looking Jiang Chen in the eye.
"She's inside drying her hair." Jiang Chen casually draped the towel over the back of a chair, walked over to Su Qingge, and glanced down at her screen.
It was filled with dense financial reports.
"President Su is so dedicated; it wouldn't be right if the company didn't give you a Model Worker Award." Jiang Chen reached out, pinched the edge of the tablet with two fingers, and gently pulled it away. "But in my room, the current task is to sleep."
Su Qingge's fingers curled slightly, but she didn't resist, allowing him to take the tablet and place it face down on the table.
"I can't sleep." She took off her glasses and rubbed the bridge of her nose, her voice tinged with exhaustion. "The roads aren't clear yet; every minute is a variable."
"Variables are tomorrow's problem." Jiang Chen sat down on the armrest beside her, his hand naturally resting on her shoulder.
Su Qingge's body tensed slightly, and her nose twitched.
She smelled the familiar scent of shower gel on Jiang Chen, but beneath it, there seemed to be a hint of something else—the scent of Chen Man's perfume. Even after a shower, that strong, powdery fragrance didn't seem to have completely dissipated.
"You washed up quite thoroughly," Su Qingge said blandly, her tone unreadable.
Jiang Chen smiled, his fingers massaging her neck and shoulders with moderate pressure. "With someone to scrub my back, of course I'm clean."
Su Qingge turned her head and gave him a sharp glare.
Just then, the bathroom door opened.
Chen Man walked out wrapped in a bathrobe.
The flush on her face hadn't fully faded, and her damp hair was draped over her shoulders, her entire being exuding a lazy, seductive charm.
Seeing the two in the living room, she didn't feel awkward at all. Instead, she walked over openly and collapsed directly onto the long sofa.
"I'm exhausted." Chen Man stretched, her bathrobe collar falling open to reveal a large expanse of snow-white skin. "This jacuzzi is great and all, but it's too physically taxing. Little brother, next time there's physical labor like this, find someone else. My waist is about to break."
Lin Wan walked over carrying several cups of hot milk. Hearing this, her face instantly turned beet red to the tips of her ears.
Su Qingge gave a cold snort and stood up. "I'm going to sleep."
The carved wooden door was pushed open, and the sight inside left Su Qingge stunned at the threshold.
Although Chen Man had described it earlier, seeing this circular bed with a diameter of over three meters with her own eyes still provided a strong visual impact.
The ceiling above the bed was mirrored, and dark gold canopies hung down. Rather than a bedroom, it looked more like some ancient Greek altar, or... some indescribable party scene.
"There's only one bed." Chen Man followed her in, holding her milk and looking at Su Qingge with a half-smile. "President Su, it looks like we're all 'in the same boat' tonight."
Su Qingge ignored her, walked straight to the far left side of the bed, pulled back the covers, and lay down. She turned her back to everyone, even pulling the duvet up over her head.
This escapist posture made Jiang Chen find it somewhat amusing.
"Sister Wan, you should sleep early too." Jiang Chen took the tray from Lin Wan's hands and set it on the nightstand.
Lin Wan stood awkwardly by the bed, her hands twisting together. "I... I'll just sleep on the sofa."
"In a three-hundred-square-meter suite, if I let you sleep on the sofa, people will think I'm mistreating a decent woman if word gets out." Jiang Chen took her wrist and led her to the right side of the bed. "Sleep here."
Lin Wan couldn't argue, so she slowly took off her coat and, wearing her conservative cotton pajamas, gingerly lay down right at the edge of the bed.
The bed was truly massive.
Even with two people lying in it, a large area remained empty in the middle.
Jiang Chen turned off the lights.
The room fell into darkness, with only the faint city light filtering in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, reflecting off the mirrored ceiling.
After a rustle of clothing, the mattress dipped slightly.
Chen Man crawled in.
She didn't go to either side but instead occupied a spot just to the left of the middle, very close to Su Qingge and even closer to the central spot left for Jiang Chen.
"Little brother, come here quickly." Chen Man patted the empty space beside her in the darkness. "I've already warmed the covers for you."
Jiang Chen lifted the duvet and lay down right in the center.
To his left were Chen Man and Su Qingge, and to his right, at a bit of a distance, was Lin Wan.
Just as he lay down, an arm wrapped around him.
Chen Man was like a snake, pressing her entire body against Jiang Chen, and her leg unceremoniously pinned his down.
"Sister Man." Jiang Chen caught her wrist, his voice calm. "Keep moving, and you'll go sleep in the bathtub."
"Tch, no fun," Chen Man muttered, but she obediently withdrew her limbs, though her body remained pressed tightly against him.
Jiang Chen turned over to face the left.
He reached over Chen Man toward the lump at the innermost side.
Su Qingge was curled up under the covers like an ostrich.
Through the duvet, Jiang Chen gently patted her back.
"Come out for some air; don't smother yourself."
The duvet moved slightly, but there was no response.
Jiang Chen simply reached inside and accurately found her face.
It was damp.
Jiang Chen sighed inwardly. With a firm pull, he hauled Su Qingge over, duvet and all.
"Ah..." Su Qingge let out a startled cry as her body was lifted, and in the next second, she had landed in Jiang Chen's arms.
Chen Man, who was in the middle, tactfully moved aside, letting out a "tsk" as she turned her back to them.
"Let go of me," Su Qingge struggled inside the duvet, her voice raspy. "It's too cramped."
"Don't move." Jiang Chen rested his chin on the top of her head, his arms tightening like iron bands, locking her firmly to his chest. "Keep moving, and I'll assume you want to do some other kind of exercise here."
Su Qingge instantly went quiet.
She lay stiffly against Jiang Chen's chest, listening to his powerful heartbeat.
That intense sense of insecurity miraculously began to dissipate within this embrace full of masculine hormones.
"Jiang Chen," she whispered his name.
"Yeah."
"What if we can't leave tomorrow?"
"There are no 'what ifs'." Jiang Chen's hand stroked her back soothingly. "Go to sleep. If the sky falls, I'll be the one holding it up."
Su Qingge closed her eyes, her fingers quietly grasping the hem of Jiang Chen's pajamas.
That night, nothing scandalous happened.
Perhaps because they were too tired from the previous night, or perhaps because the four of them each had their own thoughts, the room was soon filled only with the sound of steady breathing.
...
The next morning.
Jiang Chen was awakened by a series of urgent knocks.
It wasn't his room door, but the sound from a neighboring suite or the hallway.
He opened his eyes and felt half his body had gone numb.
Su Qingge was sprawled over him like an octopus, one leg draped across his waist, sleeping soundly.
Lin Wan, who had originally been on the far right, had somehow rolled into the middle at some point, her head resting on his arm.
As for Chen Man, she had long since kicked the duvet away and was lying horizontally at the foot of the bed in an extremely unrestrained sleeping posture.
Jiang Chen carefully pulled his hand out. Su Qingge let out a dissatisfied whimper, rolled over, and continued to sleep.
He got out of bed, walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, and pulled back the curtains.
The world outside was still a silver landscape. Although the snow had stopped, the ice on the road surface looked even thicker than yesterday.
Jiang Chen took out his phone and opened several ride-hailing apps.
All of them displayed "No available vehicles nearby" or "Waiting in queue 200+".
He then checked carpooling groups and local forums.
The screen was flooded with posts begging for rides. Occasionally, a driver would take an order, but the asking price was ten times the usual rate, and they only did short trips within the city. No one was willing to go to the provincial capital hundreds of kilometers away.
"Damn it," Jiang Chen cursed under his breath.
Given this situation, let alone rushing back to the provincial capital, it was possible they could be stuck in this hotel for days.
Su Qingge's company couldn't afford to wait.
Just then, the voice in his head that had been silent all night suddenly rang out.
【Ding! Detected that the Host is facing a travel predicament.】
【In this frozen world, how can a true tycoon be stopped by mere road conditions?】
【Triggered Random Mission: The Mobile Fortress.】
【Mission Description: Ordinary transportation cannot meet the Host's needs. Within two hours, purchase a vehicle capable of ignoring harsh road conditions and equipped with top-tier comfort. Lead the three beauties to break through the wind and snow and reach your destination.】
【Mission Funds: No upper limit (limited to vehicle purchase and related supplies).】
【Mission Reward: God-level Driving Mastery (All-terrain/All-vehicle); one Vehicle Modification Gift Pack.】