Lu Lingling had assumed he would firmly declare “no.” But after she voiced the question, Lin Cheng suddenly froze. He pondered seriously for several seconds before shaking his head. “I don’t know.”
“How can ‘I don’t know’ even be an answer?”
“It’s hard to explain.” Lin Cheng scratched his head, looking somewhat troubled. “But she’s pretty cute.”
“So you want to know whether she was truly aware of what happened that day?”
“Yeah.”
“You’re not planning to look into it yourself?” Lu Lingling adjusted the strap on her shoulder and turned to regard him with a playful glint in her eye. Lin Cheng fell silent for a moment. “Yeah, you’re right.”
Perhaps it really was better to seek out the answer on his own.
Endless fantasies, endless suspicions, endless unease—always anxious about gain and loss.
“Oh, one more question. Is her mission still ongoing?”
“We’ve decided to keep observing for now.” Lu Lingling rose to her feet and fetched two cups of hot water. She handed one paper cup to Lin Cheng. “After all, how could he bear to just abandon it like that?”
When Lu Xiaoxiao returned from outside, Lu Lingling and Lin Cheng were sitting on the sofa watching television. They looked remarkably harmonious.
Yet Lu Xiaoxiao felt an inexplicable awkwardness.
Lin Cheng glanced up at her. “All done?”
“More or less.”
“I’ll send you Litchi’s contact info later. It’ll be up to you then.” Lin Cheng stood and headed for the door. From behind him, Lu Xiaoxiao softly asked, “You’re leaving?”
“Yeah. Business is done, so it’s time to head home.”
Lu Xiaoxiao watched his retreating figure, words rising in her throat but refusing to come out. She suddenly realized she had no idea what their relationship even was anymore. Lin Cheng had already reached the eaves beyond the courtyard, where a heavy rain was pouring down.
Lu Xiaoxiao hurried after him and stared at the deluge. “With rain like this… how are you getting back?”
“Then will you give me a ride?” Lin Cheng asked softly.
“Call me sister.”
“Sister’s the best.”
Lu Xiaoxiao drove steadily.
Lin Cheng sat in the passenger seat, watching the raindrops on the windshield get swept away by the wipers one after another. Before they left, Lu Xiaoxiao had changed into a gentle pink-blue floral dress. The skirt hugged her figure perfectly, accentuating her slender waist. When they arrived, Lin Cheng got out of the car and waved to her.
Lu Xiaoxiao rolled down the window, her eyes fixed unblinkingly on him.
One second. Two seconds. The casual “bye” Lin Cheng had planned suddenly felt terribly out of place. He hesitated another second before asking, “Want to come up… maybe have some tea or something?”
“Your eyes aren’t sincere at all.”
“Because I don’t have any tea… Soy milk okay?” Lin Cheng replied, a touch embarrassed.
Lu Xiaoxiao didn’t answer. Instead, she unbuckled her seatbelt and swapped her slippers for a pair of slender jade-colored high heels. Lin Cheng opened an umbrella and escorted her back to the home he hadn’t seen in days.
Lu Xiaoxiao spotted the roses on the table. Her gaze shifted to his profile, and Lin Cheng explained matter-of-factly, “These are the roses from last time that didn’t sell. I’m keeping them fresh for the next round.”
“So why did you go sell flowers in the first place?”
“To add some fun to my boring life.” Lin Cheng flopped down onto the sofa. It was plenty big—more than enough room for Lu Xiaoxiao too if she joined him—but she didn’t lie down. Instead, she began inspecting the place on her own.
This was her second time here. The first had been deep into the night; she only remembered the hazy lighting in the rooms and the warmth of their skin against each other. She headed to the refrigerator first and pulled out two cans of pineapple beer. She tossed one to Lin Cheng. He sat up and took a long swig while she continued wandering around his home.
Lin Cheng had no worries. There was nothing strange in the house. He’d even given all of Jiang Lingxue’s old jewelry and shoes to Xu Wanyue. But moments later, Lu Xiaoxiao emerged from the balcony. The gentle, composed smile on her lips from before had vanished, replaced by an icy chill. Her eyes were frigid, as if she wanted to carve the flesh from Lin Cheng’s bones.
“Why the sudden ice queen face?” Lin Cheng asked, baffled.
“What’s hanging on your balcony?” Lu Xiaoxiao’s voice was equally cold.
Lin Cheng couldn’t think at first what might be out there, so he looked. Only then did he see the girl’s underwear drying on the line—black lace, no less. It was from the day he’d opened an energy node for Xu Wanyue. She’d accidentally gotten them wet and changed into a fresh pair. The soiled ones had gotten washed and hung out to dry, apparently forgotten.
Lin Cheng’s head throbbed. He rubbed his brow. “Actually, I’m a pervert who gets his kicks from wearing women’s underwear.”
“That style of underwear… Xu Wanyue and I bought matching ones. Just different colors.” Lu Xiaoxiao dropped the bombshell out of nowhere.
“If I told you she wet the bed while napping here, would you believe me?”
“Do you think I should?” Lu Xiaoxiao took a deep breath.
“Wait, I still have my final explanation… Just hear me out.”
“I’m listening.” Lu Xiaoxiao crossed her arms and stepped right up to him. She leaned down slightly, her eyes gazing imperiously into his. Lin Cheng took ten seconds to gather his thoughts before continuing. “I mapped the energy nodes based on the distribution patterns in abyss demonic beasts, using the human body’s energy nodes as a blueprint. Through constant experimentation and refinement, I found the method to unlock the fiftieth energy node. But once all the energy nodes are opened, the human body secretes pleasure-inducing hormones in an instant. So that day, Xu Wanyue couldn’t hold back and… soiled them. They ended up drying here.”
“You came up with that excuse in ten seconds?”
Truth be told, Lin Cheng wasn’t even sure why he was bothering to explain. He didn’t owe Lu Xiaoxiao any accounting, and even if he’d done something, so what? But those slightly frosty eyes of hers made him feel like if he didn’t clear things up properly, the frost would melt away to reveal raw hurt underneath.
“It’s true,” Lin Cheng declared confidently.
“Oh.” Lu Xiaoxiao nodded once, but her expression showed not a shred of belief. Lin Cheng met her eyes. “Come here.”
“What for?”
“To prove it.”
Lu Xiaoxiao approached. Lin Cheng gently took hold of her arm. The method she used to activate her energy nodes differed from his own, so he needed to stimulate each one in her body first—starting with her arm. This time, he didn’t need direct contact; a faint thread of energy would suffice.
Lu Xiaoxiao sat on the sofa and bit her lip lightly. Her body gradually softened as she clearly sensed the changes within. A strange tingling started in her arm and spread gradually. It wasn’t quite itchiness—hard to describe. She instinctively pressed her thighs together beneath her skirt. Her toes curled inside her high heels, and her waist grew taut.
The process was quick overall, no more than three minutes. Soon they reached the final unopened energy node. Lin Cheng watched her intently. “Just… bear with it, okay?”
“I don’t believe you.”
“Oh…” Lin Cheng channeled the last faint thread of energy to unlock it.
In the next instant, Lu Xiaoxiao’s entire body went rigid. She collapsed straight into his arms, her shoulders trembling nonstop like a startled fawn. Lin Cheng could feel the heat in her flushed cheeks, but that wasn’t the worst of it. Her lips were clamped tight, tears leaking from the corners of her eyes. Her slender legs twitched in spasms. Lin Cheng bent down to slip off her high heels, then gently massaged her calf and straightened each of her toes. Suddenly, Lu Xiaoxiao leaned in and bit his shoulder.
It wasn’t hard. About a dozen seconds later, she slowly lifted her head. Her dark eyes were hazy and unfocused. Lin Cheng gazed at her innocently. “Believe me now?”
“You…”
Lu Xiaoxiao couldn’t get the words out. Her voice was soft and faint. A few more seconds passed before Lin Cheng muttered, “Maybe… go take a shower?”
Her skin was tinged with a light rosy glow now, beads of sweat trickling from her forehead. She rose unsteadily to her feet, legs wobbling. Lin Cheng steadied her and helped her to the bathroom. A good while later, she finally slipped inside and shut the door firmly.
Lin Cheng glanced back at his sofa.
…Good thing it was leather. A quick wipe would do.
When Lu Xiaoxiao emerged from the bathroom, she was still wearing the pink-blue floral dress. Lin Cheng couldn’t help wondering about the state of things beneath her skirt. Surely it couldn’t still be on—must be uncomfortable. His gaze drifted instinctively to her snowy white thighs below the hem. Lu Xiaoxiao gritted her teeth slightly and headed to the balcony to take down Xu Wanyue’s underwear from earlier.
She said nothing, just dashed back into the bathroom. When she came out again, she carried the freshly washed garment to the balcony and hung it up. Then she returned to Lin Cheng and eyed the puddle on the sofa.
Lin Cheng gave her an innocent look.
Lu Xiaoxiao’s cheeks burned red, as if steam might rise from her at any moment.
She pulled some wet wipes from the table, her eyes brimming with shame. Seeing this, Lin Cheng retreated to his bedroom first, grabbing a blanket to give Lu Xiaoxiao some time alone to calm down and ease her embarrassment. He waited about half an hour before Lu Xiaoxiao walked in from outside the room. The instant her eyes met his, they darted away instinctively.
“I… believe you,” Lu Xiaoxiao said, turning her face aside.
“Oh… okay. Want to play some games? I’m planning to take a nap.”
Lin Cheng gestured to his computer, but Lu Xiaoxiao had already settled on the edge of his bed. “I’ll nap too.”
Lin Cheng thought for a moment, then placed the Striped Cat Hug Pillow between them. Another moment passed, and he blurted out, “You definitely wouldn’t want me doing anything bad to you, right?”
What kind of stupid question was that?!
“Of course not!” Lu Xiaoxiao lay down on the other side of the bed, turning her back to him. A hint of anger colored her voice.
Lin Cheng breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
…As long as he riled her up now, even if he wanted to do something to her later, she’d refuse anyway.
…Can’t cheat while dating. Gotta uphold male virtue.
