Chapter 43
It wasn’t until she had slept until her whole body was soft and had recovered a little that Chu Xihuan’s eyelids twitched, and she opened her eyes in a daze.
Just after waking up, she didn’t know what day it was. She couldn’t help but stretch comfortably, and only then did she notice that it was already bright outside.
Looking at the sun…
The memories of last night instantly flooded Chu Xihuan’s mind, and she couldn’t help but bite her lip.
It was one thing to be so ridiculous last night, but to sleep until the sun was high in the sky today.
A hint of shame flashed in Chu Xihuan’s eyes.
Ridiculous! So ridiculous!
She sat up, but soon, she felt something swaying on her chest.
Chu Xihuan looked down and was slightly taken aback when she saw the jade ring hanging around her neck.
Having lived with Lin Zhao for so long, she naturally knew what this thing was. Even if Lin Zhao had not explicitly said where it came from, she would have to be a fool not to understand that this thing must have been left to her by Lin Zhao’s mother.
But now, this person had actually given it to her?
Chu Xihuan was a little dazed, and at the same time, her heart was exceptionally soft.
This person wouldn’t even throw away the old, dilapidated furniture in the house, but now she had given her such a precious thing…
Chu Xihuan let out a soft laugh, her hand holding the jade ring tightening. Then, she tucked it into her collar.
She knew Lin Zhao’s intentions, so she naturally couldn’t just return it to her.
After figuring this out, Chu Xihuan’s mood improved a lot. She snorted softly. It was a wonder that Lin Zhao had held onto this thing for so long and had only given it to her now.
However, before she could get up, she could already hear some noise from outside.
Chu Xihuan was speechless.
At this point, it was probably not just that the sun was high in the sky.
She suddenly covered her face and lay back down, pulling the quilt over her head. She felt as if she had no face to see anyone.
She had never woken up so late before, especially because of such a thing. Even if she tried to be calm, she still felt her face burning with shame.
Perhaps the person outside had noticed that there was no movement in the courtyard and had come to look. The door to the room was gently pushed open, and at the same time, she could hear Lin Zhao’s slightly uncertain voice. “Xihuan? Are you awake?”
Chu Xihuan was speechless.
She didn’t want to answer now, and she was also a little embarrassed to see Lin Zhao.
To see the other person involved so soon, she just felt her body go soft again, and a sourness unconsciously rose in the places that had been so thoroughly caressed and ravaged yesterday.
The sound of footsteps came, and Lin Zhao had already come to the side of the bed. Because she had just come back from work and was still wearing her work clothes, she didn’t dare to sit directly on the bed. She could only cautiously reach out her index finger and tentatively poke the quilt.
“Xihuan, won’t it be stuffy like this?”
To cover yourself completely with a quilt, how could you breathe properly?
Chu Xihuan was speechless.
She took a deep breath, not wanting Lin Zhao to notice her discomfort. She composed her expression, lifted the quilt, and looked at her with a steady gaze.
Chu Xihuan suddenly lifted the quilt and looked at her like this, especially since she wasn’t speaking. Lin Zhao’s face slowly turned red, and her gaze flickered for a moment. But she couldn’t bear not to look at Xihuan, so she could only suppress her shame and look at her again, her gaze scanning her.
Yesterday, after she had washed Chu Xihuan, she had hesitated for a moment, but in the end, she had still helped her put on her undergarments. She was afraid that if she didn’t help Xihuan put them on, she would certainly like to hold her naked, but Xihuan might not like it so much.
If she made Xihuan dislike it, she would be fierce with her!
But although she had helped Xihuan put on her undergarments, after a night’s sleep, the lapels of the undergarments had loosened a lot, especially since Xihuan hadn’t tidied them. Lin Zhao quickly noticed that the jade ring she had given her had been tucked into her lapels and was being worn close to her skin.
Lin Zhao’s eyes immediately lit up, and she quickly asked, “Xihuan, do you like this jade ring?”
This was already the best thing she could give to Xihuan, and it was also the most meaningful thing to her. She naturally hoped that Xihuan would like it.
Seeing her so happy, Chu Xihuan, who had been trying to maintain a composed expression because she was embarrassed, her gaze slowly softened, and all her previous discomfort disappeared. “Of course I like it,” her voice was much gentler.
She gave Lin Zhao a very certain answer.
In the past, she had thought that she might fall in love with Lin Zhao, but she had not expected that she would fall in love with her so quickly. But since things had already reached this stage, she couldn’t possibly deny her feelings.
She liked Lin Zhao, and Lin Zhao also liked her. Such a perfect situation, Chu Xihuan naturally couldn’t have any concealment, to let this relationship be overshadowed by any gloom.
Hearing Xihuan’s certain answer, the smile on Lin Zhao’s face grew even brighter. She couldn’t help but lean forward and give Chu Xihuan a kiss on the cheek. “Xihuan, I like you,” she said softly.
I like you so much.
She didn’t know why Xihuan had married her in the first place, but after everything that had happened last night, she understood one thing.
Even if Xihuan had married her for some reason in the beginning, she must like her now.
As long as Xihuan liked her, that was enough.
Chu Xihuan looked up at the person in front of her, and from the corner of her eye, she saw the sachet hanging at her waist. This was the one she had hung on her waist when they first met. It had been carefully kept by Lin Zhao for so long, and she often wore it at her waist.
But after so long, no matter how carefully Lin Zhao kept it, the color of the outermost layer of fabric had inevitably faded a little, not as bright as it was at first.
Compared to this thoughtless thing she had given her at first, what Lin Zhao had given her was much more precious.
This preciousness was not just in terms of value, but in the true meaning it carried, which was something her sachet could not compare to.
“Lin Zhao, I’ll give you something new,” Chu Xihuan said, her gaze moving down to the sachet at Lin Zhao’s waist.
Lin Zhao followed her gaze and, as if realizing why Xihuan had said this, quickly shook her head and held the sachet. “No need. I really like this one that Xihuan gave me!”
This was the first gift she had received since her mother and the others had passed away, and it was a gift with such a special meaning. She was already very happy and would not ask for more.
Seeing her like this, a hint of bitterness flashed through Chu Xihuan’s heart.
She suddenly reached out, hooked her arm around Lin Zhao’s neck, and pulled her closer. She gave her a restrained kiss on the lips, her lips slowly caressing hers.
Because she hadn’t gotten up and washed yet, otherwise, it would definitely not have been just such a fleeting kiss.
She was annoyed in her heart, but just this was enough to make Lin Zhao happy. Immersed in the joy of Xihuan kissing her, she gradually felt a little dissatisfied, wanting to feel more of Xihuan.
Chu Xihuan tilted her head back and panted heavily. She reached out and ruffled Lin Zhao’s head, then gave her a rewarding rub on the ear.
This person’s ears were also very hot. Chu Xihuan inexplicably wanted to laugh.
However, just as Lin Zhao was about to dizzily climb into bed, she was suddenly startled by a loud banging on the door.
Lin Zhao was suddenly startled and quickly straightened up. She looked at Xihuan’s stunned expression, and her ears grew even hotter. She helped her tuck the jade ring back into her lapels, pressed her lips together, and wanted to say something, but she didn’t know what to say. In the end, she could only say in a small voice, “It seems someone is knocking on the door. I’ll go and see.”
With that, she left, looking back every three steps.
Chu Xihuan was speechless.
She took a deep breath and covered her eyes with her hand. Perhaps Lin Zhao was the succubus from the books. Otherwise, how could she have so easily allowed her to do such a thing in broad daylight?
And it was a good thing that she had been interrupted by the knock on the door. If not, Chu Xihuan was not sure what would have happened next.
After taking a deep breath and slowly calming down, Chu Xihuan had a rough idea of who was knocking on the door at this time. Afraid that Lin Zhao would be bullied if she faced those people alone, Chu Xihuan’s movements of getting up and getting dressed were much faster.
However, when she came out later, only Lin Zhao was left in the courtyard, and she was looking at the things in her hand with an excited expression.
Chu Xihuan was speechless.
It seemed she had been overthinking it. Lin Yongchang was probably really afraid that they would have a falling out, so he had actually obediently sent the things over, and he hadn’t even had any more conflict with Lin Zhao.
“Did the person who came say anything?” Chu Xihuan asked, as if by chance.
Lin Zhao looked at her with sparkling eyes and shook her head repeatedly. “The person who came just asked me to check and confirm that the things were correct, and then left without another word.”
The whole process took less than half a shichen (approx. 1 hour)! Lin Zhao had rarely been able to get rid of the members of the Lin clan so quickly.
Seeing her like this, Chu Xihuan was sure that this person had not been bullied, and she was a little satisfied. She came to Lin Zhao’s side and took the title deed from her hand to look at it.
The piece of land in the suburbs outside the city was more than ten mu (approx. 1.6 acres). The soil was relatively poor, and the yield of crops planted on it was not high, which was why the members of the Lin clan had left it vacant for a long time. However, it could not be said that this piece of land was completely useless.
She didn’t believe that Lin Zhao’s mother had taken this piece of land just to let it lie vacant. She must have had some idea. But she didn’t know what Lin Zhao’s mother’s specific idea was. Perhaps she could go home and ask her mother about it.
As Chu Xihuan thought this, and she had indeed not been back to see her mother for a while, she could take this opportunity to stay at home for a few more days to accompany her.
“Lin Zhao, I’m going home in two days. I might stay for a few days. You take care of yourself at home,” Chu Xihuan said.
She hadn’t been back for so long, so it wouldn’t be right to go back empty-handed. She could use these two days to prepare some things to take back.
And… she really did feel that her body needed to rest…
Hearing her words, all of Lin Zhao’s joy at receiving a large sum of money from the sky disappeared. Her brow furrowed, and she muttered in dissatisfaction, “Can’t you take me home with you?”
She didn’t want to be separated from Xihuan!
Sensing her clinginess, Chu Xihuan pinched her cheek with amusement. “You just stay at home. You wouldn’t be comfortable going back with me.”
Her family was so large, and they were all her relatives. It would naturally be difficult for Lin Zhao to deal with them, so she wouldn’t let her suffer.
Lin Zhao was still a little dejected and very reluctant, but since Xihuan said she was going back, she would definitely go back.
So mean, Xihuan! She can go home and be with her mother and sister, but I have to stay at home alone!
So lonely!
**
Author’s Note:
Zhaozhao: [Crying][Crying][Crying]
