Chapter 48 Because of her feelings for Lee Seung-ik, the scene from just now replayed in her mind...
He quickly dodged the lace-trimmed undergarment from Lin Yanshu's hand, hid it behind his back, and stammered an explanation:
"You took the wrong one. This one isn't important."
"Yan Shu, go and check out the others."
Lin Yanshu was still tilting her head to look behind Li Chengyi. Li Chengyi nodded at her, telling her to go change her clothes. Lin Yanshu awkwardly hummed in agreement.
She changed into a light-colored undershirt, turned around and called out to Li Chengyi:
"I've changed."
Li Chengyi turned around and immediately saw Lin Yanshu standing upright beside the couch, wearing a light-colored bodice.
His eyes widened instantly, his gaze burning as if he could see right through Lin Yanshu. Li Chengyi's Adam's apple bobbed, and he swallowed hard, his mouth dry. He hurriedly covered Lin Yanshu with a coat, his voice trembling as he questioned:
Why aren't you wearing any clothes!
Lin Yanshu, following the clothes Li Chengyi had covered her with, tucked her arms inside and blinked innocently, saying:
"I want to show you, see if it looks good."
Li Chengyi's mind replayed the rounded curves of the bodice and Lin Yanshu's fair skin, which rippled slightly with her breath.
It's beautiful, absolutely gorgeous.
Li Chengyi gripped Lin Yanshu's collar tightly, afraid that if he wavered even slightly, he would let go and savor the tempting fruit.
Lee Seung-ik suppressed his desire, his voice hoarse and low:
"Yes, it looks good."
"Don't show this to just anyone."
After hearing Li Chengyi's praise, Lin Yanshu happily climbed into bed; she was sleepy.
Li Chengyi sat on the side of the couch, patted Lin Yanshu's shoulder, and gently coaxed her to sleep.
"Go to sleep, I'll sleep a little longer."
Lin Yanshu looked at him with a smile. She thought, how could her mother be so beautiful? Her eyebrows were sharp as knives, but her eyes were gentle and tender, making people...want to kiss her.
Lin Yanshu was suddenly startled by her own thoughts. How could she want to kiss her own mother? But it seems that it is only natural for a child to kiss her.
Thinking this, Lin Yanshu quietly moved her body and snuggled up to Li Chengyi's lap. Li Chengyi looked down at Lin Yanshu, whose black hair was resting on his lap, her head bobbing up and down.
"What are you doing?"
Lin Yanshu didn't speak, her eyes gleaming mischievously as she looked at him. Just as Li Chengyi lowered his guard, Lin Yanshu suddenly sat up and kissed Li Chengyi on the cheek. Then she scurried back into bed and buried her head under the covers.
She licked her lips; Li Chengyi's cheeks were soft, even softer than the rice cakes she ate.
Lin Yanshu peeked out nervously, her eyes wide open, trying to catch a glimpse of Li Chengyi. For some reason, she was eager to see his reaction.
Lin Yanshu felt that she might be a little abnormal, but wasn't it natural for a child to be close to its mother? She hastily explained away the strange feeling in her heart.
Li Chengyi touched the spot where Lin Yanshu had just kissed him, feeling a little damp. He looked down at Lin Yanshu, who was peeking out from under the covers, and without a word, he suddenly stood up and walked out of the room.
Lin Yan had no idea what kind of trials Li Chengyi was going through, but her own heart was pounding.
How strange, would someone feel this way about their own mother? It felt like her heart was about to jump out of her chest. Do other people feel this way too? Lin Yanshu's hands and feet were burning hot. She threw the blanket aside and thought she should ask Ji Wenxuan if they felt this way too.
Li Chengyi covered his face and fled in a panic. He was so embarrassed by Lin Yanshu's teasing that his face was flushed red and his ears were almost bleeding.
Li Chengyi ran to the study and, in a low voice, instructed the servants to prepare a bath.
Li Chengyi was so eager that he plunged into the cold water before the water was even heated. He sat in the bathtub, trying to calm himself down.
But how could a hot-blooded young man, who is just beginning to experience life, so easily let go of what has happened in the past few days?
The more Li Chengyi tried to ignore the kiss, the more excited he became, and the image of Lin Yanshu wearing a light-colored bodice, which he had been trying to forget, also surfaced in his mind.
He even fantasized about Lin Yanshu kissing him while wearing that lace top…
Lee Seung-ik truly despised himself.
Despise your own fantasies;
Despise one's own body;
Despise your own uncontrollable feelings;
She despised herself for not being able to win Lin Yanshu's heart, for not having the captivating charm to possess.
The sound of rushing water drowned out the darkness of the night. Li Chengyi changed out of his wet and dirty clothes, pushed open the door again, and returned to Lin Yanshu's side.
Lin Yanshu lay sprawled out on the bed, fast asleep.
Li Chengyi looked over, wrapped the blanket around her, and cursed under his breath:
Heartless.
Li Chengyi lay down. He hadn't rested well last night, and with all this tossing and turning today, he closed his eyes wearily and fell asleep with Lin Yanshu.
When Lin Yanshu was awakened by the sunlight in the early morning, she found herself almost hanging on Li Chengyi, her head resting on his chest.
Lin Yanshu looked at the man beneath her, blinked longingly, and rubbed against Li Chengyi's chest. She felt a strange familiarity with this, as if she had done it many times before.
Normally, Lin Yanshu would have jumped up and run down long ago, but she stayed obediently by Li Chengyi's side.
She had to admit that she craved this feeling, this familiar and warm feeling of déjà vu.
Lin Yanshu listened to the steady breathing of the person beneath her, rested her chin on her hand, and looked down at Li Chengyi.
She couldn't help but reach out, her fingertips touching Lee Seung-ik's brow, which was furry. She then slid her fingers down his nose, all the way down to his soft lips.
Lin Yanshu poked him, and Li Chengyi frowned slightly, muttering a few words indistinctly. Lin Yanshu couldn't hear him clearly, and her fingertips slid down.
The touch brushed against Lee Seung-ik's Adam's apple. Lee Seung-ik vaguely felt someone touching him, but he was too tired and thought it was just an illusion.
Seeing that he was different from her, Lin Yanshu acted as if she had received a new doll. She propped herself up on the blanket, leaned over, and scratched his bobbing Adam's apple.
Fun.
Li Chengyi, in a daze, reached out and brushed away Lin Yanshu's toying fingers. Lin Yanshu had no choice but to abandon this territory and explore the rest of the doll.
Lin Yanshu placed her hand back on Li Chengyi's chest, her thin fingernails rubbing and scraping against his inner garment. Suddenly seized by a playful impulse, Lin Yanshu slipped inside the garment's lapel.
His collar was pulled back, and Li Chengyi was exposed to Lin Yanshu like an onion, but unlike an onion which needs to be peeled layer by layer, Li Chengyi only needed to be peeled one layer.
Lin Yanshu looked at Li Chengyi's fair chest, feeling it was even fairer than her own. However, the only flaw was a scar on Li Chengyi's chest.
Lin Yanshu stopped what she was doing, leaned closer, and examined it carefully.
She felt the scar looked familiar. Lin Yanshu frowned, revealing a heartache she herself was unaware of, as if some flashback was going through her mind.
Li Chengyi felt a chill in his chest. He unconsciously grabbed the blanket beside him and covered himself and Lin Yanshu with it.
Lin Yanshu was forced to press against Li Chengyi's chest, her lips touching his wounds, and she cried out in resentment:
"A Zhao!"
Upon hearing the familiar call, Li Chengyi opened his eyes and looked down to see something wriggling on his chest. Finally, the thing pulled itself out from under the covers.
Lin Yanshu called his name in a disheveled manner, and Li Chengyi looked at her in surprise:
"You remembered?"
"Remembered what?"
"Things from the past."
Lin Yanshu shook his head, and Li Chengyi said urgently, "But you just called me by my courtesy name, didn't you remember anything?"
Lin Yanshu smoothed her hair, which Li Chengyi had messed up, and pondered:
"I don't know, I just thought of that name. As for what it reminded me of... I just felt that the scar looked familiar."
Li Chengyi felt that this was a good opportunity to explain things to Lin Yanshu and stop her from calling him "Mommy" every day.
"This is from when you bit me."
Lin Yanshu's eyes widened, her fingers gently touching the surface. She looked at Li Chengyi with a moved expression, meeting his gaze, and asked the same question as before:
Does it hurt?
Lee Seung-ik parted his thin lips slightly:
"It doesn't hurt."
"How could I bite my mother and leave a scar?"
As Lin Yanshu spoke, she gently stroked Li Chengyi's wounds, causing Li Chengyi's body to tremble involuntarily.
He reached out and grabbed Lin Yanshu's fingertips, looking down at the pink, tender nail polish she had applied to his body.
“You bit down because the needles hurt so much, but it doesn’t hurt at all now, Yanshu.”
"Now that you've remembered my name, I should tell you that I'm not your mother."
Lin Yanshu was slightly taken aback. She was thinking about what Li Chengyi meant by saying that. Did he not want her anymore? Lin Yanshu looked at Li Chengyi with some vigilance.
When Li Chengyi saw Lin Yanshu's expression, he knew that she would resist if he brought it up with her.
But she has remembered her own handwriting now, and she will remember it sooner or later.
"Don't be afraid, no one is abandoning you."
"The name you just called me, A-Zhao, is my courtesy name. You used to call me A-Zhao. I'm not your mother, I am..."
Li Chengyi wanted to tell Lin Yanshu that he would be her lover, the person she liked.
But he couldn't bring himself to say it.
"I am your best friend."
Lin Yanshu silently recited the words "best friend" in her heart, staring intently at Li Chengyi, her eyes burning with passion:
"Then will you not want me?"
Lin Yanshu didn't care whether Li Chengyi was her mother or her best friend; what she cared about and feared more was that he would abandon her and not want her anymore.
Li Chengyi seemed to sense her fear, gently pinched her nose, and chuckled:
"Won't."
He added:
"Even if I never regain my memories, it won't change anything."
As Li Chengyi moved, Lin Yanshu's pupils dilated suddenly, her nose felt itchy, and her heart felt itchy too.
Never, Lee Seung-ik will never abandon her.
Lin Yanshu stared intently at Li Chengyi's hand, his gaze burning, so intense that Li Chengyi sensed something was amiss and asked:
"Yanshu, is there anything else you want to say?"
Lin Yanshu grasped Li Chengyi's wrist, pulled his hand to her face, and said in a coquettish tone:
"Ah Zhao, touch it again."
Li Chengyi was stunned by Lin Yanshu's sudden request and asked in return:
Why do you want to touch it again?
His words were full of patient guidance.
Lin Yanshu replied without hesitation:
"like."
"Because I like it."
The two characters "I like them" were like pebbles thrown into Li Chengyi's heart, stirring up ripples and making his mind a complete mess.
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Author's Note: Secretly adding an extra chapter [cat head emoji]. Planning to start a contemporary romance novel, a tale of love and hate, but it's a sweet type. Wondering if anyone's interested? [cat head emoji]
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