Chapter 389 - 402: As Long As You Want
Jiang Xia stared into the mirror, his anxiety over his appearance taking hold. With one finger, he lifted a lock of hair and tried patting it down to the left. ’That doesn’t look good.’ He switched directions and patted it down to the right. It still didn’t seem quite right.
An Ning, who was holding the mirror, suddenly pulled it away.
"Forget your hair. A newborn calf is in better shape than you are right now."
Jiang Xia’s hands froze. He gave up on saving his hairstyle and slumped against the headboard, looking utterly hopeless.
An Ning set the mirror down on the table, pulled a chair over, and asked with a perfectly straight face, "So, this injury of yours—is this something we can treat out in the open, or does it need to be handled discreetly?"
An Ning’s cautious phrasing almost made Jiang Xia laugh, but the moment the corners of his mouth twitched, the movement pulled at the cuts on his face.
"Hsss—are you trying to talk in code?"
"What? Am I not pulling it off?"
Jiang Xia wanted to laugh again, but the pain on his face made his smile freeze.
"You are! They’re all just superficial wounds, nothing serious. I can just put some medicine on and rest for a couple of days. It’s just... I need a place."
The meaning in his eyes was crystal clear, and An Ning, of course, understood.
"Why are you being so cautious? This isn’t like the usual Young Master Jiang at all."
An Ning stood up, casually tossed Jiang Xia a key, and turned smoothly away.
"Watch the house. If anything goes missing, you’re paying for it."
Lying on the bed, Jiang Xia caught the key in the air with one hand. He tried to flash his signature Young Master Jiang smile, but it once again pulled at the injuries on his face.
"It never ends—"
Jiang Xia leaned against the headboard and poked his own cheek with a finger, wincing in pain. But his eyes were full of happiness. With his other hand, he pulled something from a hidden pocket on his inner thigh, clutched it in his palm, and grinned foolishly.
"This is the medicine Master Tang prepared. Need help?"
An Ning walked in carrying a tray, on which sat three small, vintage-style porcelain medicine bottles.
"Oh, you’re... I’ll leave. I’ll leave."
An Ning set down the tray and immediately turned to go, not giving Jiang Xia—whose hand was in an awkward spot—any chance to explain.
"I— What in the world was that about?!"
Jiang Xia pulled his hand out from under the covers, put the object in his palm back into his inner pocket, and, enduring the pain, picked up the tray An Ning had left behind.
"Jiang Xia, need some water?"
"For drinking—or whatever else you might use it for. In any case, you should always be mindful of hygiene."
An Ning’s words drifted clearly in from outside the window, and Jiang Xia, who hadn’t wanted to explain himself, finally couldn’t hold back.
"An Ning, let me state for the record: I wasn’t doing anything. Don’t get the wrong idea."
Outside the door, An Ning leaned back against the wall with the heel of one foot propped up behind her. Her arms were crossed, her posture relaxed without a hint of embarrassment.
"Ohhh, alright. Don’t worry, I get it."
"You don’t get it!"
Jiang Xia’s howl of frustration only made An Ning laugh more. She said deliberately, "Okay, okay, I understand how a grown man can get embarrassed. I’m leaving, leaving right now."
An Ning left abruptly, but the amusement in her voice made it clear to Jiang Xia that she was only teasing him.
Inside the room, Jiang Xia gave a wry smile. ’Just how close have we gotten? We’re even making jokes like we’re a couple of bros?’
"Bros... Damn it all to hell."
Jiang Xia picked up the medicine bottles. Following the handwritten instructions, he cleaned his wounds and applied some of the ointment.
After treating all the spots he could reach, he sat shirtless on the bed, using a mirror to see his own back.
"Let me."
An Ning had returned.
When she came back, she had a pair of surgical gloves that she’d found somewhere.
Without another word, An Ning put on the gloves and began applying the medicine to Jiang Xia’s back.
Just as Jiang Xia had said, his injuries were all superficial, but the array of bruises and scratches was still alarming to see.
"Relax."
"With you doing it, I can’t relax."
His words were both a probe and a statement of fact.
"That’s true. There’s a difference between men and women, so it’s only natural for it to be awkward."
Unfortunately for his attempt, An Ning was even more nonchalant. "It’s nothing. When you’re dealing with matters of life and death, something like this isn’t worth a second thought."
"All done."
An Ning finished her work, peeled off the gloves, and watched as Jiang Xia awkwardly struggled into his shirt. She couldn’t help but step forward and help him.
Once everything was taken care of, An Ning finally sat down across from him. "Alright, talk. What happened?"
"I’ve noticed a pattern. You get into trouble every time you leave the house, and you always seem to run into me when it happens. I think you should check an almanac before you go out next time. As for Feng Shui, when things get this weird, it’s probably best to be a little superstitious."
As she spoke, the tension and the thrill Jiang Xia felt while she was treating him began to fade, and he started to relax.
"Maybe I’ll have you do a reading for me next time."
"Deal. No charge."
The two sat facing each other, and Jiang Xia told her what he’d been doing without hiding anything.
As it turned out, he hadn’t been in the country at all. He’d gone abroad.
An Ning had a general idea that what Jiang Xia was doing was, in essence, the same as what An Guoming did, shuttling back and forth between the north and south.
The only difference was that Jiang Xia was taking bigger steps and bigger risks, and the dangers that came with them were far greater.
"Jiang Xia, do you need money?"
"It’s not just about money. It’s about certain things the higher-ups need. I have no intention of going into politics, but it’s always good to have connections. I’m paving my own way."
Jiang Xia didn’t hide the truth. Of course he was making a fortune by going abroad, but there were also certain things that were genuinely needed—things that required someone operating outside the system to forge a path and bring them back. He was that person.
An Ning didn’t feel that what Jiang Xia was doing was wrong. If it weren’t him, it would be someone else. She just didn’t quite understand his reasons.
"Can I ask why? You’ve said yourself you’re not short on money. But there’s no end to chasing wealth, so what’s the endgame for you? What level are you trying to reach? Can I help?"
Jiang Xia shook his head. He didn’t want to tarnish An Ning’s clean record. Strictly speaking, what he was doing wasn’t illegal, but he was definitely exploiting loopholes.
"If I need help, I’ll definitely come to you. Just like today."
"As for why I need to make money... You know my biological father, Jiang Dongcheng. My goal is to leave him with nothing."
As he finished, a hidden fear surfaced in Jiang Xia’s eyes. He was afraid of An Ning seeing his darker side, afraid of seeing disgust in her gaze.
But her eyes remained as clear as ever, holding no judgment at all. She simply asked, "Do you need me to—"
An Ning’s simple gesture—drawing a hand across her throat—made Jiang Xia’s fear vanish completely.
"An Ning, do you have any idea how adorable you are?!"
"Adorable? Me?"
An Ning stepped forward skeptically and felt his forehead. "Are you sure you’re okay? You think the person who just offered to assassinate someone for you is adorable?"
Jiang Xia confirmed that he was, and the two exchanged a smile before An Ning’s expression turned serious once more.
"Jiang Xia, I’m serious. If you need me to, I can do it without leaving a single trace. All you have to do is say the word."