The interior of the car was surprisingly spacious, and the two of them were currently parked in the underground garage.
Lin Cheng turned his gaze toward Litchi, eyeing the black T-shirt hugging her upper body. “Litchi, you’ve grown up!”
“What do you mean, grown up?”
“Ditching those baggy T-shirts is the first step to becoming a real beauty!”
At that moment, the black tank top clung tightly to Litchi’s torso, accentuating the alluring curves of her chest—full and perfectly rounded. Her high-waisted denim shorts made her legs look especially long and slender.
“…” Litchi fell silent. One of her legs was still in this guy’s grasp, and Lin Cheng’s fingertips lingered on her calf for a good while longer before he finally let go. Litchi pulled her leg back, opened the car door, and got out alongside him.
Together, they headed upstairs to Lemon’s lab.
“You’re heading out of town?”
Lin Cheng had left Litchi a message earlier that day, saying he was going on a mission with Lu Xiaoxiao.
He nodded. “Just to a small village in the next city over. Should take three or four days, nothing too long.”
Litchi let out a soft “oh,” and they took the elevator up to Lemon’s lab. The massive space was a chaotic mess. When Lin Cheng spotted Lemon, she was sprawled out asleep amid a pile of soft bubble balls.
The sound of footsteps made her eyes snap open instantly. She was wearing a white nightgown and rubbed at her eyes. “What are you doing here?”
“Heading out of town tomorrow. Lend me your doggy for a bit.”
“Huh? No way!”
Little Qi was curled up by Lemon’s leg at that moment, wagging its tail happily at Lin Cheng. He coaxed her patiently. “This mission might be a little dangerous. You don’t want me getting killed, do you?”
“You won’t die anyway,” Lemon said gloomily, staring at him. “Just die a few times, and it’ll be fine.”
“That hurts a lot,” Lin Cheng whined, on the verge of tears.
“How many days?”
“Max seven. I’ll bring it back after seven days.”
“Mm…” Lemon pondered seriously, still lounging in the heap of pink bubble balls. After a long moment, she lifted her slender leg and turned to Lin Cheng, wiggling her cute toes. “Lick.”
She tilted her chin up slightly, but the next second, Lin Cheng dove into the pile of bubble balls too. He flipped her over, pinned her down amid the balls, and gave her backside a few firm smacks.
“Don’t pick up bad habits from that idiot Jiang Lingxue!”
Lemon kicked her legs after a couple of swats, looking at him all aggrieved. “You don’t dare bully them, but you bully me.”
“As your brother, it’s my duty to properly discipline my little sister,” Lin Cheng replied proudly.
Back when Lemon had first joined the Fruit Shop, she’d earnestly asked him what their relationship was. He’d told her he’d treat her like a real little sister from then on, so he was basically half her brother.
“You always bully me…” Lemon rolled over. “Aren’t these bubble balls super comfy?”
The bubble balls were piled into a rectangular pit. Lin Cheng asked curiously, “Is this your bed?”
“Nope. These are my latest invention: Boom Bombs. You just have to shout…”
Lin Cheng clamped a hand over her mouth in an instant, his heart skipping a beat with dread. Lemon struggled wildly for a bit until he released her. Then she said gloomily, “They haven’t been infused with energy to activate yet. They’re all half-finished. Once activated, shouting ‘Art is an explosion!’ makes them blow up.”
Lin Cheng’s mouth twitched uncontrollably. He glanced at Litchi. “Wanna lie down for a bit? These little balls are pretty comfy.”
Litchi came over to the edge and lay down. She pulled out her phone and showed Lin Cheng a video. It was filmed in some remote wilderness—Litchi testing the power of a bubble ball. After tossing it out, the bubble ball turned into a sticky liquid that adhered to a tree. Then, as Litchi shouted “Art is an explosion!” in utter embarrassment, a burst of firelight erupted in the footage. Not only did the tree explode, but even its roots were blasted away.
And right now, they were lying amid hundreds of these bubble balls.
If these little orbs were activated and detonated, the entire building would probably vanish. Lin Cheng turned his head toward Lemon, who lay lazily on one side, lifting her pale, tender foot briefly before setting it down again. “Why are you always researching weapons? Make some toys you actually like.”
“Art is an explosion!” Lemon exclaimed lightly. “It’s so cool!”
Lin Cheng chuckled helplessly. He rolled over in the bubble balls—they were indeed soft and comfy to lie on. But knowing they were super bombs made his heart race a little.
He’d already sweet-talked her into lending him the doggy. Might as well stay a bit longer. Lemon was on his left, Litchi on his right. He turned to look at Litchi’s fair little face. She lounged lazily amid the balls, staring at the ceiling. Suddenly, Lin Cheng reached out and poked her waist.
Litchi poked his waist right back.
The two of them started play-fighting in the bubble balls. After a good while, they finally got up. Lemon gazed at Lin Cheng gloomily. “You leaving again?”
“Yeah, gotta go home and feed Black Cat.”
“You snag my little doggy and run. Bring your Black Cat by sometime so I can study it.”
“Sure.” Lin Cheng sat up, then leaned close to Lemon’s face, staring seriously into her dark eyes. He said softly, “Go to bed early, okay?”
“It’s not late. I’m not sleeping.”
“Be a good girl and sleep.” Lin Cheng cupped her soft little face and leaned in to plant a gentle kiss on her forehead.
It was just a forehead kiss, but Lemon’s cheeks flushed red in that instant. She shoved at his chest and bolted away, her voice stumbling over itself. “Y-you… Are you finally making a move on me? That’s scary.”
“…” Lin Cheng stood up helplessly. “Alright, alright, I really gotta head back.”
“Little Qi, let’s go.”
The little dog sitting on the ground perked up obediently. Lemon tossed him a thick little booklet. Lin Cheng flipped it open for a quick look—it was Little Qi’s user manual. Beyond what she’d mentioned last time, it turned out Little Qi had a ton more functions.
Lemon tossed him a space ring too. “This has ten Boom Bombs infused with energy. Use them carefully.”
“Thanks for the hard work.” Lin Cheng smiled lightly at her and leaned in. “One more kiss?”
“No way.” Lemon shrank back another step, her eyes timid, cheeks still flushed.
Lin Cheng and Litchi went downstairs together. She drove him home.
“I could’ve just taken Little Qi back myself.”
“It’s no trouble anyway.” Litchi’s voice had softened quite a bit. Lin Cheng murmured a gentle agreement.
An old song from years ago played in the car, the female singer’s voice soft and lingering. Litchi pulled up to his building and parked. She unbuckled her seatbelt. Lin Cheng blinked in surprise as she naturally moved to his side.
“Hm?” Lin Cheng scratched his head.
“Been having trouble sleeping lately,” Litchi said flatly.
“Heh, asking me to stay over and still sounding so cold.” Lin Cheng sidled up to her, took her small hand, and they headed upstairs together to his place.
“I’m going to shower,” Litchi said softly, then headed to the bathroom.
She’d been to his place plenty of times before. Back when Jiang Lingxue still lived there, Lin Cheng would occasionally invite Litchi over for dinner. Jiang Lingxue had been awfully brazen at home—even with Litchi around, she’d skip underwear and just throw on a loose nightgown. One time when she answered the door for Litchi, there was still something trickling slowly down her pale thighs…
But Litchi never reacted to Jiang Lingxue’s provocations at all. No one had the right to challenge her relationship with Lin Cheng. In this world, he owed no one—except Litchi, a debt he’d never repay.
In the Fruit Shop, only Lin Cheng knew Litchi’s true past identity. Grape, Jiang Lingxue, and Lemon were all in the dark. Litchi and Lin Cheng were the real founders of the Fruit Shop; they’d been the ones who’d first agreed to start it.
Lin Cheng lay on the bed scrolling his phone. Hearing footsteps, he looked up. Litchi had come in, wearing a white nightgown. She slipped under the covers beside him and sat there.
“Big Bear’s been working with Lu Lingling lately?”
“Yeah, I arranged it with Lu Lingling. Sticking with her is fine for now—that woman’s barely trustworthy at best.”
“Neither of them is any good anyway,” Litchi said flatly. Lin Cheng smiled wryly but didn’t argue. He turned to look at her. “New perfume?”
“Mm.”
“Smells familiar.”
“The one Sis used to love.” Litchi answered softly.
Lin Cheng froze for a moment, then lowered his head slightly and fell silent. Litchi went quiet too.
A long silence stretched through the room.
“I didn’t mean to bring it up,” Litchi broke it. “Just… dreamed about Sis again a couple days ago. Never mind, forget it.”
Litchi suddenly threw back the covers. Her fingertip brushed the ring on her pinky, and suddenly a pair of ultra-thin white silk stockings appeared in her hand—thigh-highs with white lace garters at the tops. Lin Cheng’s eyes went on high alert.
“Hm? What’s your angle?”
“I saw in Xu Wanyue’s recent shopping history that she’s bought a ton of stockings and massage oils. Any idea why?” Litchi looked up at him.
“I-I don’t know…”
“Really?” Litchi’s hand rested on his head. The next instant, her Mental Domination ability seeped into his brain. Lin Cheng shook his head hard before she could read his memories. “I confess!”
“Oh? Confess what?”
“The oils… she wanted me to give her a massage… Um, the stockings, I don’t know, she probably just wanted to wear them herself?”
“Oh? And your doujinshi collection’s got a few new white-silk maid cooking dumplings ones lately.”
“Wait, can I have a shred of privacy?” Lin Cheng was on the verge of tears.
“No can do. I’m just that bored.” Litchi shrugged and leaned to his ear. “Plus… Grape Sis knows too.”
“I had to explain it to her forever before she got why a certain guy gets excited from being stepped on.”
Lin Cheng covered his face with his hands.
Dying of embarrassment in front of Litchi didn’t matter; he’d been acting all cheeky around her forever. But dying of embarrassment in front of Grape? That was humiliating.
“So…”
“You think this is a reward?” Litchi tilted her head, a slight smirk tugging at her lips.
She always seemed so gentle and agreeable on the surface, but Lin Cheng knew Litchi was a super scheming little monster deep down.
“I’ve never done anything like this, and I didn’t bring any oil, so… it’s gonna hurt.”
“How about we just sleep properly? I can tell you a story—The Little Mermaid, Snow White, even the Princess and the Pea…”
“No.” Litchi sneered. “You should’ve known this was coming when you went to a hotel with Lu Xiaoxiao last night!”
“I didn’t do anything! I’m innocent!”
“You expect me to believe you did nothing?”
“If I did, may I get hit by a car on the way out.”
“Oh, so you slept together at least?”
“Yeah.”
“Nothing but a beast—or worse. Filthy dog.”
“Don’t—give me back the gentle, blushing-when-you-touch-her-legs Litchi little sis.”
“Litchi was never gentle.” She huffed coldly, tossed the stockings onto his face, crossed her arms, and lifted her pale little leg slightly, toes pointed. “Put them on me properly.”
Lin Cheng picked up the stockings without a shred of dignity and carefully rolled them up. He knelt by the girl’s tender foot and slid them on bit by bit. Litchi patted his head. “Good doggy.”
