Chapter 140: Sticky and Sweet... I don't know what "delicious" refers to...

On the chat interface, a small yellow face wearing sunglasses is showing a smug expression.

Zhu Liushuang chuckled and moved the screen closer, reaching out to touch the glittering sunglasses, as if what appeared before her eyes was not the system's default expression, but He Ming's real face.

Her fingertips felt slightly hot, so she quickly opened the accounts and pretended to get into work, afraid that Zhuang Xiaoqian across the table would notice anything amiss.

The day passed by remarkably quickly. The morning's work had barely finished when everyone in the department started chatting and snacking, lounging around waiting for the Spring Festival holiday. Of course, there were some who weren't so relaxed, like Zhu Liushuang.

At the end of the year, it was the peak season for collecting payments. She was busy all day with payments, collections, expense reports, vouchers, and reports... until the sun was setting and her colleagues from other departments had all left. Only then did she lean back in her chair and stretch.

He Ming's call came at just the right time. Her phone vibrated three times on the table, and she answered lazily, "Hello, Ming... I just finished work, I'm so tired!"

She could hear crisp footsteps even through the phone.

"I just got off the elevator, I'm almost at your company entrance..." the man said as he walked. "I brought you Xu Ji's fragrant black glutinous rice, it's still warm."

Upon hearing that there was Xu Ji's snacks to eat, Zhu Liushuang immediately perked up: "How did you know I was hungry? Wait here, I'll pack my things and come out right away!" After saying that, she got up, quickly swept the things on the table into her backpack, grabbed her coat, and rushed to the door.

"Thump thump thump thump," her legs moved swiftly, rushing out of the long corridor, and bumping right into He Ming who was coming towards her. Excitedly, she leaped forward, leaning forward and falling squarely into the man's arms.

As if he had anticipated this, He Ming opened his arms in a steady welcoming gesture the moment she stepped towards him.

Zhu Liushuang hugged He Ming's waist tightly, pressed against his chest, and said coquettishly, "Ah Ming, I missed you so much."

The man chuckled softly, "Oh—did you miss me, or did you want to eat the pastries I brought?"

"I want to—" Zhu Liushuang whispered, rubbing against his corduroy jacket.

Her voice was sweet and sticky, making He Ming's heart itch. He couldn't help but pat her head: "It's cold outside, I'm afraid you'll get cold if I bring you out. We'll eat in the car later... Let's go take the elevator first."

"Mmm." Zhu Liushuang nodded emphatically, then stepped out of his embrace and expertly slipped her hand into the man's pocket.

She glanced at him discreetly, and without a word, He Ming's hand slipped into his pocket. He gently covered hers, taking her slender fingertips into his palm. Fortunately, his pockets were large enough to accommodate two hands most of the time.

Taking the elevator down, the once-full parking garage was mostly empty. You could hear the echo of your footsteps as you walked down the street.

Zhu Liushuang whispered to He Ming, "My colleagues from other departments were all released long ago today. I'm probably the only one in the whole company still working myself to the bone! It's truly infuriating... Do you know what's most infuriating?"

"What is it?" the man beside her asked cooperatively.

“I’ve been busy distributing and calculating money to colleagues in other departments lately… I’ve worked so hard to get to this point, but my bonus is less than half of what they get.” Zhu Liushuang pouted after saying this.

Looking at her puffed-up profile, He Ming found it inexplicably adorable. He opened his palm, then clenched it again, saying, "Don't be angry... I'll make up for the missing bonus."

“How can that be the same…” Zhu Liushuang shouted in a drawn-out tone.

"How is it different? It's all money anyway." He Ming turned to ask, "Shuangshuang, did you forget to collect the transfer this morning?"

Zhu Liushuang has always been very clear about money matters. Fifty thousand yuan is not a small amount, and even if it was a gift from him voluntarily, and even if they were husband and wife, she wouldn't accept it rashly. His intention was enough.

"Oh, I was just venting, just take it as a joke!" Zhu Liushuang continued, "Aming, 50,000 yuan is too much, you should keep it for yourself. Or, we can open another savings account, as a joint account for us. If you feel like you don't know what to do with the money, just deposit it into it..."

"Okay, let's open an account after the New Year."

He Mingxin readily accepted her suggestion, and the burden on her heart was instantly lifted.

The car was parked not far away, and we arrived in just a few steps.

Zhu Liushuang jumped into the car and followed the rich aroma of wheat to find the insulated bag containing the pastries.

She tore open the tape on the insulated bag and eagerly reached for the food inside. He Ming had bought two boxes; she took one and placed it on her lap. Just as she was about to open it, a figure appeared in the driver's seat.

Is it still hot?

"Hmm, the box lid is all fogged up..." Zhu Liushuang said, lifting the lid.

He Ming casually turned on the air conditioner's heater and urged her, "This tastes best when it's hot."

Zhu Liushuang rubbed her fingers together and picked up a piece of square cake. She first put it under her nose and smelled it: "It smells so good! Xu Ji's wheat-scented glutinous rice is their signature dish, but it's so hard to buy. There's always a long queue every time I pass by."

"Yes, business is very good," he agreed, without telling her that he had queued for a full hour and a half to buy those two boxes of pastries.

"How long did you wait in line today?" Even if he didn't say, she would ask.

Without thinking, He Ming blurted out, "I'm lucky today, it only took about ten minutes..."

Zhu Liushuang, unsuspecting, said with an "Oh," "That's probably because the weather's been too cold lately, and foodies would rather stay home than go outside and suffer in the northwest wind..."

The man who had been passively labeled a "big victim" twitched at the corner of his mouth, but then regained his usual composure: "Well, I'll go buy it whenever you want to eat it."

"Great!" Zhu Liushuang took a big bite of the pastry in her hand, the flowing oat custard filling instantly filling her mouth. Her almond-shaped eyes lit up, and she exclaimed, "So creamy... the taste is absolutely amazing!"

The aroma of purple rice and the sweetness of the filling filled her mouth, and she quickly took another bite. Her eyebrows danced lightly with each chew, and as she swallowed the food, she hummed with satisfaction, "The oatmeal is crunchy, the purple rice is sticky, and the custard is smooth and creamy, not greasy at all."

"Is it really that delicious?" He Ming was amused by her head-shaking and swaying movements while eating, and couldn't help but ask.

"Hmm!" Zhu Liushuang asked in surprise, "A-Ming, you've never eaten this before?"

"No," He Ming shook his head and said, "I don't usually eat these things."

"Then you should try it quickly—" Zhu Liushuang said, lifting the lid of the box.

"Okay." Following her words, the man in the driver's seat tilted his head slightly, his gaze sweeping over her rosy, full lips, before leaning closer. He didn't reach for the square cake in the box, but instead gently took her wrist and slowly brought it to his lips.

His cool, reddish lips brushed against her fingertips like a feather, and the next second, the small piece of cake he was holding in her hand became his food.

"Ah Ming, you..." Zhu Liushuang was both ashamed and embarrassed, her ears burning. The warmth of his touch still lingered on the index finger he had intentionally sucked, like a tingling current that shot through her veins to her heart. Her finger curled up awkwardly, she stood frozen, her mind a jumble of thoughts.

The man beside her, however, remained calm, chewing slowly and deliberately: "Hmm, it's really delicious." His brow relaxed, and his smile was meaningful.

I don't know if that "delicious" referred to the pastry, or to her... light pink fingertips.

Her thoughts raced uncontrollably, sparking endless daydreams. The fire of desire spread from her ears to her cheeks, and Zhu Liushuang's heart leaped into her throat.

The man, who had just lit the fire, slowly finished eating, seemingly still wanting more. He reached out and picked up a piece of rice cake from her knee, bringing it to his lips.

The man's gaze was fixed on her flushed face. Seeing that she was still staring blankly at him, he smiled and asked, "Want to eat one of my pieces?"

Zhu Liushuang hadn't even had a chance to process what was happening, but He Ming took her silence as a tacit agreement.

"Here you go..." He took a bite of the sweet piece, then leaned closer to her.

When their lips met, Zhu Liushuang's eyes widened in surprise. The culprit, however, grinned smugly. Taking advantage of her momentary lapse in attention, he easily pried open her teeth and then used his nimble tongue to slip a piece of the lava pastry inside.

The soft, sweet flavor melted in her lingering breaths, even sweeter and stickier than when she had just eaten it herself.

————

As dusk fell, the car finally drove into the Donghu residential area.

The window on the sixth floor of building ten was wide open, and Gu Chunling leaned against the windowsill, looking around. Hearing the noise, she excitedly waved downstairs.

"Mom—we're back!" Zhu Liushuang was also extremely excited. She got out of the car and shouted to her mother.

"Hey hey... The food is all ready, just waiting for you guys!"

"Please close the window quickly, it's very cold outside," Zhu Liushuang said again.

"Mom's not cold—would you like to come down and help you carry your things?"

"No, no need—"

...

After calling out to her several times, she finally persuaded her mother to come inside. Zhu Liushuang rubbed her sore eyes and walked to the trunk of the car.

While she was talking to her mother, He Ming had already carried some of the items to the stairwell.

"Shuangshuang, you go up first... I can carry them a few times by myself." The man said, picking up the gifts from the ground.

"Climbing six floors, that's tiring. Here—give me something light." Zhu Liushuang naturally wouldn't let him do all the work alone.

He Ming couldn't refuse her, so he had no choice but to hand her a few relatively light gift boxes.

The two of them, each carrying a full load of items, huffed and puffed as they climbed to the sixth floor. They made four trips back and forth before finally emptying the trunk of everything.

Zhu Liushuang stared at the boxes, bags, and bottles on the ground, her mouth agape. "Ah Ming, did you not buy the items on the list I gave you? How come there are so many extra things?"

He Ming coughed tactically and explained, "It's the New Year, and the prospective son-in-law can't come empty-handed, can he? Auntie definitely won't accept anything too expensive, so I just bought her some everyday necessities."

"So...you bought health supplements, rice, oil, and laundry detergent?" Zhu Liushuang was both amused and exasperated. "My mom lives alone and is very frugal. All this stuff you've given her is enough for her to use for several years..."

"Are there that many?" He Ming asked back, looking at the dazzling array of items on the ground, feeling that he had made just the right choice. "I was thinking of buying Auntie a new outfit, but I was afraid it wouldn't suit her taste, so I decided against it. I'll give her a red envelope tomorrow night, and you can take her shopping at the mall tomorrow."

He's quite thoughtful, being a son-in-law!

Zhu Liushuang couldn't help but give He Ming a thumbs up in her heart.

"I've already bought the new clothes..." she said with a beaming smile. "As for the red envelope, you'd better give a small one, otherwise my mom won't dare accept it!"

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Author's Note: Chinese New Year is almost here! Countdown to sharing a bed! [Milk Tea emoji]