Chapter 159 Li Xiao later thought that he must have been out of his mind at that time.

Li Xiao was stunned for a moment before realizing what Pipa meant.

Then, strangely enough—

He suddenly felt a little embarrassed.

Not long ago, this young master was the one who kept saying that there was nothing shameful about him.

[Ahem, actually...] Li Xiao's throat started to feel itchy again.

He watched as Pipa lowered her raised hand back onto her knee, looking docile and helpless.

The latter just stared at me with innocent eyes, looking up at me quietly, seemingly waiting for my next move.

The loquat's calmness at this moment was truly extraordinary.

As the saying goes, there must be something fishy going on when things seem abnormal.

Therefore, Li Xiao realized almost immediately that the other party was actually putting on an act.

From her trembling eyelashes and unnatural stiffness, it was clear that Pipa was nervous about what was about to happen.

Upon realizing this, Li Xiao suddenly felt a strange sense of guilt.

—What's wrong?

Li Xiao asked himself a question.

Then he was absolutely certain that what he was going to do was just an ordinary thing.

It's just catching a bug for a good friend and solving an urgent problem, is that too much to ask?

It's not unreasonable to suspect that an insect might have fallen into your clothes, so you should reach in and search carefully, right?

So here's the question...

Why did Li Xiao suddenly start to feel that he might have gone a little too far?

【actually……】

Li Xiao started to speak, but didn't know what he wanted to say.

Seeing the boy's hesitant expression, Pipa blinked gently.

"It's alright," he said softly.

It wasn't that they deliberately lowered their voices, but the two of them were already standing close enough that the volume was sufficient.

Li Xiao was still agonizing over his own teenage feelings when he suddenly heard Pipa say that, and his mind went blank for a moment, not understanding what it meant.

"If you suddenly feel it's not right, you can change your mind," Pipa added.

Li Xiao finally understood.

Perhaps the other party noticed his hesitation and assumed he had changed his mind, so they were offering him a way out.

However, Li Xiao just got stuck on that one point.

He had already made his promise; although he didn't consider himself a gentleman, he wasn't someone who broke his word.

not to mention……

Moreover, if we were to back down at the last minute as the other party suggested, wouldn't that... make us look like we have something to hide?

Thinking of this, Li Xiao almost blurted out: 【I'm not—】

He paused for a moment, then continued, "Can't I at least gather my emotions and adjust my strategy?"

This kind of nonsense could only fool Li Xiao himself, and Pi Pa didn't say anything to refute it, which seemed to be an admission of it.

The look in his eyes always made Li Xiao feel as if he had been seen through by the other person long ago.

Then silence fell over the carriage again.

But it wasn't complete silence.

Because you could still hear the sound of the carriage wheels rolling on the ground, mixed with the soft rustling of clothes... some of which were worn by Pipa, and some of which were worn by Li Xiao.

Throughout Li Xiao's life, someone else has always taken care of her clothing needs.

From colors and styles to how to wear them...

Li Xiao wasn't interested and never bothered with it.

One reason is that he's too lazy to care.

Secondly, Li Xiao possesses a natural confidence, or perhaps it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say arrogance. As the saying goes, it doesn't matter what you wear; any decent clothes will look good on him.

so……

This was probably the first time in Li Xiao's memory that he had stared at the same piece of clothing for such a long time—especially since it was someone else's clothing—and looked at it so carefully.

He could see every line and every tiny wrinkle on the clothes, as well as the subtle or dramatic changes they made as the carriage swayed gently.

Especially when the boy's cool fingertips touched the warm, smooth skin beneath his clothes, he felt the body opposite him visibly flinch.

From Li Xiao's angle, he couldn't see Pi Pa's face, only her small earlobes and slightly hunched shoulders.

The collar of her clothes became deformed, pulling and revealing more of the skin on the back of her neck, which was pink and had some marks from her own scratches, bright red, vaguely resembling congealed blood.

Li Xiao glanced at it, found it offensive, and immediately looked away.

At the same time, I felt my heart pounding and my mouth felt dry.

But Li Xiao didn't find it strange.

Because he already knew he was afraid of blood, and in severe cases, he could even faint from shock.

So Li Xiao shifted his gaze and stared intently at a dark pattern next to his collar.

It looks strangely familiar.

After thinking about it for a while, I realized—oh right, isn't this their clothing?

Last night, Li Xiao took the person back, and because of his parents, he didn't get a chance to rest until the next day.

The loquats came in a hurry the first time, and no change of clothes were prepared.

The old man in the family somehow found a few pieces of clothing that Li Xiao used to wear and sent them over.

Li Xiao didn't think much of it at the time, but he felt that Li Jinzhi was stingy. It wasn't like there weren't any new clothes at home, yet she was giving away her own hand-me-downs.

However, he was also exhausted at the time, so he just randomly pointed to something and left it there.

Li Xiao went to bed early, and when he woke up and saw Pipa again, she had already changed her clothes. Li Xiao didn't pay any attention to it, obviously having long forgotten about this little incident.

Looking back now, I realize that I wore these clothes myself and chose them for myself. I can't quite put my finger on it, but it's like an itch.

Although they are called old clothes, they have not been worn many times and look no different from new ones.

It's just a little too big, so it doesn't fit as well as the clothes I changed out of before. So... with just a gentle tug, a lot of it is visible from the neckline.

Li Xiao stared at the dark pattern for a while.

Watching the patterns change color and shape with the refraction of light, I gradually started to feel a little dizzy.

—Perhaps it's because I just saw that bloodstain.

Li Xiao thought to himself, his eyes almost involuntarily glancing at the collar that seemed to have been pulled open a little more.

Oh, he did that, of course, to check the collar.

After all, it would be indecent to leave it open like this in front of people and have it seen.

So Li Xiao thoughtfully and considerately thought that before getting out of the car, he should remind the other person to straighten their clothes, especially the collar.

Since the collar is currently open, it's inevitable that when people look over there, they'll also see other things.

For example, those red marks...

For example, the slightly sweaty skin beneath the red marks...

For example, the loose strands of black hair clinging to his skin—soft and delicate, like a few wisps of seaweed swaying in the water—make one's heart itch with longing, and one really wants to reach out and scoop them up with one's own hands.

Li Xiao later realized that he must have been out of his mind at that time.

Or perhaps, that elusive, hanging ghost has already climbed onto your body.

Otherwise, why would he have inexplicably lowered his head and moved closer at that moment...?