Chapter 107 The Battle to Protect Our Marriage (4)
The principle of refusing someone is to be decisive and avoid dragging things out.
Cheng Yanjin's hand, which was gripping her sleeve, was easily brushed away.
In fact, Lin Langyi didn't use much force, but the phrase "there is no other choice" seemed to be enough to kill. So after she resolutely refused, Cheng Yanjin was like a set of building blocks that could be easily pushed and fell to the ground with a crash.
His arrogant and unrestrained eyes were half-closed and unfocused, the corners of his eyes drooping in a broken way. Even the corners of his lips, which would curve into a wicked smile when he laughed, were drooping. His breathing was slow, as if he were a person who had just drowned and was about to die.
He stopped making a scene, and Yuan Chuyu was no longer in his sight. Instead, he stared at her with extreme hurt, his eyes gradually reddening, and finally, he silently began to shed tears in front of her.
Lin Langyi's eyelashes trembled slightly.
His eyes were round and bright, and the tears that flowed from them were large, leaving mottled and obvious wet marks as they rolled down his face.
"I'm sorry, I mistook you for someone else." He said in a hoarse voice, tears streaming down his face even more fiercely.
"I'm sorry, I mistook you for someone else, I'm so sorry..."
Lin Langyi didn't say anything. She turned her head and walked towards the fast lane ahead of Yuan Chuyu.
That previous "loss of contact" had already given Cheng Yanjin a heads-up; if it happens again today, he should have learned to give up by now.
She was currently preoccupied with her own problems and had no time to be moved by Cheng Yanjin's tears.
There are priorities, and the most important thing right now is to be fully focused and deal with Yuan Chuyu, who is a million times more difficult to deal with.
Lin Langyi was preoccupied with figuring out how to deal with the situation until she boarded the plane and discovered that Yuan Chuyu had booked a first-class suite.
She stared at the double bed 30,000 feet in the air, about to take off, and a sudden tightness ran down her spine.
The two had flown together before, but Yuan Chuyu was busy with work and often worked on his computer on the plane. In the past, he was afraid of disturbing her sleep, so he always bought two separate first-class seats, separated only by an aisle.
After what happened today, instead of thinking about the two of them separating to cool off, he bought tickets to stay together. Could it be that he's getting angrier and angrier and can't wait to have a big fight with her on the plane?
Lin Langyi entered the room with her nerves on edge.
On flights at this time, there are only three people in first class. The suite is at the front, and once the door is closed, it offers even more privacy.
The flight attendant thoughtfully provided various services, bringing slippers and pajamas, and asking the two what meals they would like to order.
Even now, Yuan Chuyu has not shown a trace of bad temper over this undeniable "falling out of love".
He calmly ordered food for her, from appetizers and main courses to fruits and drinks. Among the more than twenty options, he could accurately identify her taste in every single one.
Lin Langyi suddenly felt that he seemed to understand her better than she had imagined.
Although he was so busy, the two of them could not eat together as often as ordinary families.
"Is there anything you need to add or modify?" Yuan Chuyu asked her again, just to be on the safe side, after finishing marking the box.
Lin Langyi glanced at the double caviar with lemon, egg white, and sour cream he had ordered, and he quickly explained in perfect unison:
"You didn't eat much for dinner."
"Okay." Lin Langyi naturally had no objection to such thoughtfulness.
Yuan Chuyu ordered champagne for himself.
It's rare to see him drinking; he doesn't actually like drinking. He has no choice but to drink at banquets and social events, but in private, because he can't hold his liquor, he almost never opens a bottle of wine at home on his own initiative.
At this moment, she was so paranoid that even the slightest abnormality would set off alarm bells in her mind.
The main problem is that Cheng Yanjin, that idiot virgin, just can't keep his temper in check. This whole airport standoff drama has completely taken away her initiative, and now she can only wait for Yuan Chuyu to make the first move.
But ironically, she knew far less about her fiancé than he knew about her.
Lin Langyi really wanted to ask Hang Qian if, besides how to help her restless best friend cover up, there were any kind bloggers in her Xiaohongshu collection who could make a helpful guide on "how to pacify the inner quarters after a mistress forces her way into the palace".
But the plane had already taken off, and she couldn't seek outside help.
Lin Langyi needed some time to fabricate a reason that would allow her to be treated leniently, ideally shifting all the blame onto Cheng Yanjin.
It's just unclear whether Yuan Chuyu will believe her nonsense...
She got up and walked towards the bathroom: "I'm going to take a shower."
My wrist was suddenly grabbed.
She was pulled so hard she stumbled, and frowned as she looked back. She saw Yuan Chuyu lift his eyelids and glance at her, his gaze as deep as the sea about to unleash a raging storm.
"how--"
Lin Langyi stopped abruptly halfway through her sentence.
She realized that her intention to temporarily separate and take a shower to calm down might not have been interpreted that way by him.
Did he think that she hadn't had time to shower afterwards, and that's why she was now brazenly provoking him?
After all, the mistress was forcing him out of the marriage, which seemed quite provocative.
Lin Langyi raised her hands in a gesture of surrender, trying to salvage the situation: "Ah... it's fine if I don't wash it."
Anyway, Cheng Yanjin had already wiped her down with warm water.
After saying this, Yuan Chuyu's expression became even more inscrutable. His eyebrows furrowed, and his eyelids drooped down, forming a narrow, imposing crease. He stared at her without saying a word.
Lin Langyi: ...Won't she become even more provocative?
In the deathly silence where you could hear a pin drop, Yuan Chuyu slowly released his grip.
“You forgot your pajamas,” he said calmly. “The hot water will only last five minutes, don’t shower for too long.”
He even brought out disposable bath towels and skincare product storage bags for her, as thoughtful as if he were taking care of a death row inmate's last meal before his execution.
While showering, Lin Langyi carefully observed her body. Cheng Yanjin was naturally gifted, with a strong waist and great strength. His mouth was also always busy, either eating or kissing. He also had the common problem of a virgin leaving marks everywhere like a dog.
If Yuan Chuyu saw her like this, who knows how he would kill Cheng Yanjin...
Will it?
Lin Langyi slowly stopped showering. She carefully recalled every expression Yuan Chuyu had made since he appeared today. His emotions were frighteningly stable. She didn't even know if he was able to endure it or if he didn't care.
He was someone who could tolerate having an unlocked room and being monitored throughout his childhood and adolescence.
It wasn't until she went to his house, disabled the security camera in his room, and changed the locks that this nearly twenty-year-long ordeal ended.
She seemed to have asked him how he could be so patient that time, but he didn't answer.
As for not caring... Lin Lang thought of Xiao Pucheng's evaluation of Yuan Chuyu. Yes, could there be another possibility—he actually didn't care who she had outside, so he didn't even have the anger that a normal husband should have when faced with such infidelity and betrayal.
The water temperature above her head suddenly turned cold, and Lin Langyi was startled, realizing that five minutes had passed in the blink of an eye, so she quickly turned off the shower.
At the same time, there was a knock on the door, and a familiar, calm voice said, "It's time. Be careful not to catch a cold."
Lin Langyi responded, dried herself off, changed her clothes, and went out.
The food that had been ordered had all been served, but Yuan Chuyu didn't touch it. He was working on his laptop, and the light reflected from the screen onto his face made his thick, dark eyelashes look like they were covered with a thin layer of frost in winter.
He heard her voice as she returned, but without looking up at her, his eyelashes fluttered slightly as he reached out and closed the screen, as if brushing away a layer of snow.
The two even ate in silence.
Lin Langyi frowned as she stirred the caviar in front of her with a spoon. The eerie atmosphere made her feel increasingly uncomfortable, as if it were prolonging the waiting time for a death row inmate to be executed. At the airport, the three of them had already broken through the barriers between them, and she was prepared for the two of them to have a big fight, but she did not expect such a suffocating situation.
If he doesn't want to talk to her, why is he squeezing into the same space with her?
"Is there anything you want to ask me?" she asked first.
Yuan Chuyu lowered his eyes and watched her scramble the food on the plate, asking, "Isn't the caviar delicious?"
Lin Langyi put down her spoon and questioned, "Is this what you were asked to ask?"
Instead, she became the more aggressive one.
"Let's go to the old house for dinner tonight." Yuan Chuyu changed the subject abruptly, "Mom is calling us back."
Lin Langyi looked at him in disbelief. His attempt to change the subject was too obvious. She didn't understand why he was the one who wanted to avoid the topic more. If it weren't for the scene at the airport, she could have acted even more calmly than him. But now that things had come to this, if he pretended not to see it, she would have a bad feeling that he was up to something.
"Want to give me the silent treatment?"
"No."
These words stung him somehow; fine cracks seemed to appear on Yuan Chuyu's icy face, and she even felt that his tone became more hurried when he denied it.
After a few seconds of silence, Yuan Chuyu composed himself, carefully softening his tone, and said in a deep voice:
"I just thought you didn't want to talk about it, Zhuzhu. I have nothing to ask. It's obvious that he's just being wishful and delusional."
"I cannot choose to trust a stranger I will never see again in this lifetime, rather than my closest wife."
As if thinking of something, his lips parted slightly, his Adam's apple bobbing before tightening again. As he spoke the next sentence, his gaze drifted aimlessly past her shoulder, aimlessly looking back.
“I know you’ve been rejecting him. You have nothing with him.”
"Nothing happened, there's no connection whatsoever."
His tone was unquestionable, just like his assertive and sharp demeanor when he sat at the head of the board table. If you didn't listen carefully, you wouldn't be able to hear the uncontrollable tremor in his voice, as if he was convincing himself through this resolute and certain repetition that this was the truth.
Lin Langyi's prepared remarks were rendered useless, as he had already finished speaking for her.
"Just a delusional suitor. You already made your choice at the airport." Yuan Chuyu composed himself, leaned down, and took her hand.
His movements were somewhat rough; their fingers were tightly clasped together, and the cold, sharp ring on his ring finger rubbed heavily against her finger, as if branding a mark deep into her skin.
He held her hand to his lips, showering her with delicate kisses from her fingertips to the back of her hand. Only then did she realize that his fingers had been icy cold, as if his soul was still struggling to survive in the snow, frozen solid.
He said, "Zhuzhu, you've made your choice, haven't you?"
Lin Langyi felt that he was like a broken precision instrument at this moment, expensive, rare, and heavy. He had a porcelain-white glaze, and he should have been able to give the best option in an objective, rational, and calm voice with an inorganic indifference, but he was broken.
He's broken.
Inside, hidden from view, were winding, vascular-like rust cracks. He glued them back together, but the spiderweb-like traces he left behind were hard to erase. So much so that when he spoke to her, she could almost see dark red blood slowly flowing through his hidden cracks.
Lin Langyi stared at him blankly, a strange emotion churning within her. Those joking words about "wanting to see him lose his temper and go crazy" flooded her mind, unexpectedly bringing about a different kind of emotional fluctuation.
She even found his current appearance incredibly sexy, as if she had infused a perfect doll with emotions and desires, allowing all sorts of dirty and complex dark sides to grow behind the halo of righteousness, making him seem more like a human being.
She bit her lip, and a faint smell of blood emanated from the small wounds, whether from Cheng Yanjin or from him, like the smell of rust in a broken machine.
His gaze was fixed on her face; he was still waiting for her answer.
"Of course." Lin Langyi turned around and grasped his fingers, trying to warm them by wrapping them in her palm.
She wanted to kiss him again; he had such a handsome and beautiful face: "How could I have anything to do with him? We will never see each other again. In the past, in the present, and in the future, I will always be by your side."
Yuan Chuyu seemed to let out a long sigh of relief. There was a faint emotion in his eyes, which, upon closer inspection, could not be called a smile. However, the corners of his lips turned up, and he pulled her completely into his arms.
He whispered in her ear, praising her in a gentle and kind voice: "Okay, I understand. Good Zhuzhu, I believe you."
He patted her back gently, as if coaxing a child to sleep: "Go to sleep, and when you wake up, we'll be home."
Lin Langyi slept more soundly than she had imagined. Yuan Chuyu didn't know if the keyboard switches had been changed, because there was no sound at all. She was tired from playing and fell asleep very quickly in the quiet environment.
When she woke up, she found herself lying flat on her back, her left arm pressed tightly against someone.
Her mind was still hazy from just waking up. She closed her half-open eyes again, and after a while, she opened them again.
Yuan Chuyu had somehow gotten onto the bed and was sitting close to her. He was leaning against the headboard, his laptop still open in front of him, his hands resting lightly on the keyboard, completely still.
Lin Langyi glanced at it with half-closed eyes and found that the file he opened was still stuck on the progress before the two of them had their meal.
"We'll be there soon." He reached out and closed the notebook.
Lin Langyi sat up and looked out the porthole. Large, fluffy clouds were piled up in the azure sky, like half-melted ice cream.
...
Returning to the old house for dinner in the evening was actually an unwritten rule between Yuan Chuyu and his family. Because his relationship with Chu Guanqian and Yuan Pingran was complicated and they didn't have much affection for each other, he moved out after he started earning money independently and only came back for dinner once or twice a month unless necessary. This continued even after he got married.
Lin Langyi quite liked this arrangement, as it allowed her to avoid excessive interaction with the other party's parents, making her feel relaxed and at ease. Moreover, strictly speaking, she was never Ying Yuan's most desired marriage partner.
It is said that Yuan Chuyu insisted on having her despite all opposition. In fact, given his consistently low-key and easy-going style and his years of careful planning, it would be very foolish for him to have a conflict with his parents for her sake. It would also be detrimental to his ability to continue expanding his influence and accumulating shares in Yingyuan.
So outside, people are spreading rumors that Lin Langyi has captivated everyone, making the future ruler of Yingyuan abandon his country for her. They're all talking nonsense every day, as if she's so powerful that she can cast love spells on people.
A pair of chopsticks reached out and took the carrot from her bowl. Lin Lang interrupted her thoughts and glanced to the side. Yuan Chuyu naturally put the carrot into his mouth and chewed it.
"Are you sleeping at home tonight?" Yuan Pingran asked Lin Langyi.
"I'll listen to Brother Yu." Lin Langyi threw the problem to Yuan Chuyu. Anyway, he'd been playing the villain for a long time, and he was even less willing than her to live under the same roof as Chu Guanqian.
"good."
Wow, that's unexpected.
Lin Langyi glanced at him sideways; the other party's expression was calm.
After chatting at home for a short while after dinner, Yuan Pingran was called away by a phone call. This was a good time to end the gathering. Yuan Chuyu said to Chu Guanqian, "We're going upstairs first," and then took Lin Langyi upstairs.
The two only shared a room when they were in the old house. Lin Langyi pushed open the bedroom door, threw out a sentence, "I'll use the bathroom first," and left Yuan Chuyu behind.
The sound of water came from the bathroom. Yuan Chuyu's hand was on the bedroom doorknob, and his gaze was also fixed on the shiny, cold walnut-colored metal handle.
Upon closer inspection, this is the only incongruous door lock in the entire behemoth-like mansion.
When he first brought Lin Langyi to the old house, he was worried that she might feel uneasy because of the rumors and gossip. However, she appeared calm and composed throughout the family dinner, chatting and laughing with ease and self-assurance.
After dinner, Chu Guanqian asked him to show his fiancée around. When they got to the third floor, he took her to his bedroom as usual. But when he turned around, he saw Lin Langyi standing at the door with her head down, studying his doorknob.
The lock cylinder was empty; after it was removed, a hollow hole was revealed, like a naked eye with only the whites showing.
For a moment he didn't know how to explain, and only blurted out, "It's nothing."
Indeed, it was nothing. The days of being controlled at every turn were long gone, and the life of being observed and monitored like a specimen in formaldehyde was also a thing of the past. He rarely returned to this room to stay overnight, which is why he could summarize his past with such simple three words.
What was her expression like at that time?
Lin Langyi looked up at him, her eyebrows curving into a smile, like a jasmine flower sketched with just a few strokes. She beckoned to him and mouthed, "Come here, come here."
He didn't understand why, but he still walked towards her.
"What's wrong--"
Just a step away, she charged into his arms like a calf. Caught off guard, he stumbled back several steps by her fierce and forceful movement. His only thought as he staggered was to hold her waist to prevent her from falling. The two of them crashed heavily into the door with a dull thud.
The hard doorknob pressed right against his lower back. Before the pain hit, his senses were invaded by a sweet floral and fruity scent, and a soft, delicate kiss on his lips.
That was his first kiss, with her.
He will always remember the feeling of numbness in his lower back after being hit.
He pulled her into his arms and subconsciously lowered his head to follow her, wanting to prolong the unexpected kiss. However, Yuan Pingran, who was "accompanying" her, also went upstairs. Lin Langyi struggled for a moment, then peeked out and looked behind him, exclaiming in shock, "Oh my god, it looks like there's a dent in the wall from the doorknob."
"This is terrible. There's something wrong with your doorknob. I'll pick out a new one for you next time."
She chattered away in his arms, and he, like a dullard with a malfunctioning brain, lowered his head, paused to sniff her hair, and then tightened his arms to hold her tightly.
Yuan Pingran stood on the last step of the stairs, but did not come up for a long time.
Lin Langyi is a woman of action; once she decides to do something, she does it immediately. She sat by his bedside, opened her phone to shop, and declared that she was going to buy it right now. He sat beside her, his gaze fixed on her trembling, rosy lips, and he couldn't hear anything else.
He remembered her telling Meng Hui that having physical contact with someone you don't like is a very unpleasant thing, so he always followed the rules and dared not overstep any boundaries before the two of them were in love. Forcing a marriage was already a blessing from heaven, and he could wait for everything else.
But she just kissed him, what does that mean?
His heart was pounding like a drum, crashing violently against his chest. Fireworks were exploding in his mind, and he felt dizzy.
She seems to be starting to like him; otherwise, according to her, she should have discarded him like trash.
This idea made him overjoyed, and she dialed a familiar business friend, saying, "Price is not a problem, the most important thing is that the lock is good and secure, preferably one that can lock my room like a safe."
He couldn't help but chuckle. Hearing the boss across the street making sarcastic remarks, he leaned over and loosely put his arm around her, saying, "I don't have such high demands."
She held up one finger and waved it slightly in front of him, meaning he shouldn't worry about it, she could handle it. Her confident and slightly proud expression made her beautiful features even more lively and vivid. He couldn't resist, tightened his chin, and kissed her raised index finger.
She didn't show any disgust or try to avoid it.
That's good, he thought, she doesn't dislike kissing.
After choosing the doorknob, she was still not satisfied and instructed him to remove the old, broken doorknob that was currently installed on the door.
He did as instructed, and as he unscrewed each screw, he thought of Jesus nailed to the cross.
Amidst his turbulent thoughts, he turned his head and saw her standing on his chair, tiptoeing, reaching out to retrieve the surveillance device hanging high in the corner.
“Yuan Chuyu,” she said, playing with the object for a moment, then looked at him with a complicated expression, “I hope I won’t see you naked on some websites in the future, right?”
“No,” he said. “It’s not connected to any power source and has been abandoned for a long time.”
"Then why don't you remove it? Doesn't it hurt? You're really good at putting up with a man."
She jumped off the chair with the dark surveillance camera in her hand. There was a thin layer of dust on the camera; it hadn't been touched in so long that the dust floated in the warm yellow light when she moved it.
He saw the fine down on her porcelain-white cheeks, clean and delicate. She wrinkled her nose and waved her hand in front of him, brushing away the annoying dust, then tossed the surveillance camera onto the carpet and stepped on it.
The creaking sound was muffled in the carpet. She had thought she could stomp on the electronic eye like a villain in a movie, but who knew it was so sturdy that she had no choice but to stand on tiptoe and put most of her body weight on it.
"Be careful, don't twist your ankle." He went to help her, but she grabbed his arm for leverage and stepped onto it completely.
He stared intently at her delicate ankles, wondering how such a small frame could support such a stubborn and strong-willed woman.
The monitor screen cracked, and she threw this so-called "second piece of junk" into Chu Guanqian's beloved fish tank on the first floor.
He watched as the broken, dilapidated old object sank to the bottom of the water amidst a string of bubbles, like a deformed, rotten stone.
If the aunt saw what she lost, and if anyone else saw it, everyone would know the next day that it was her doing, but she didn't care at all, and even smiled at people instead.
“They never really liked us much to begin with, so there’s no need to compromise on such a fundamental issue. Giving in every way won’t make them look at me any differently; they’ll just think I’m easy to manipulate.” She shrugged at him. “You should have dumped them a long time ago.”
“I like you,” he said. “Whether they like me or not, nobody cares.”
"You like me?" She tilted her head mischievously, smiling like a little devil. "I like you too."
She was very good at saying sweet words that people couldn't resist, and she could always coax people into giving her their whole heart.
He took everything she said to heart.
She couldn't lie to him.
The events of the day flashed before his eyes again. Yuan Chuyu released the doorknob, pushed the door shut with the back of his hand, and locked the room with a "click".
He opened his suitcase and took out the items one by one to organize them.
A neatly folded women's nightgown came into view.
He looked down at it for a while, then used his fingers to trace the outline of the dress.
...
Lin Langyi came out of the shower and had just called out, "I'm done, you can go take a shower," when she looked up and realized that no one was in the room.
Two wall lamps beside the bed cast a soft glow, and the sliding door separating the terrace was slightly ajar, the wind rippling the silk-white curtains.
The door to the study was ajar, letting in some light. Lin Langyi heard a sound and went straight there.
"Original--"
Before she could even finish calling out her name, the remaining syllables came to an abrupt end.
Yuan Chuyu leaned back in his chair with his back to her, the leather backrest tilted into a slanted arc as he pressed it back.
He seemed to have finished showering in the guest room bathroom, wearing a loose bathrobe with the belt undone, dragging long on the floor.
It was quite rare. Lin Langyi took two steps forward, then stopped abruptly, her eyes widening in surprise.
She saw that his bathrobe was slightly open at the front, revealing his jade-like skin, and one hand was hanging between his legs, while her nightgown hung down from the table, half of the hem covering his vaguely moving hand.
Her free left hand continued to slowly stroke down the curves of the skirt fabric.
Lin Langyi felt rooted to the spot, caught between a rock and a hard place looking at the decadent scene before her.
He was always proper, meticulous, and perfect, impeccably dressed and methodical, like a celibate monk adhering to strict rules.
“I’ve dirtied your dress,” he suddenly said.
Alright, Lin Langyi could no longer sneak out and pretend she had never been there.
"How come it's with you?" she could only say, forcing herself to speak. "That's why I couldn't find it."
“I take it with me every time I go on a business trip.” He continued her words without any shame. “It’s very useful, just like Pavlov’s dog, it responds as soon as it sees me.”
"Sometimes, I still need to hear your voice. I'll record a video when we're video chatting... Well, when you're too busy to talk to me, I can only look at your photos."
"Can you come and kiss me...?" He seemed to be crazy tonight, talking to himself, "It's been a long time, I can't stand it if you come over, it should be faster."
Lin Langyi was completely stunned; she couldn't believe such words would come out of his mouth.
Yuan Chuyu finally turned his head to look at her, and a certain temperature seemed to burn in his dark pupils, revealing a lustful desire that would never normally surface.
Good things come to those who wait, and it seems her wish is about to come true.
Lin Langyi slowly walked up to him and scrutinized him carefully.
He appears slim in his clothes, but in reality, he has broad, straight shoulders. His exposed chest and abdomen are covered with well-defined muscles that are firm and smooth. His lower abdomen also has undulating veins that bulge coolly and sexily on his fair skin, extending down into the area hidden by his nightgown.
A small patch of moisture had already seeped into the hem of her skirt. Lin Langyi withdrew her gaze and squeezed between him and the table.
He pulled his legs together to give her space, but their legs were still pressed tightly together.
"What are you thinking about?" She picked up the half of the skirt that was spread out on the table, and the silk fabric suddenly slipped down and piled up on his lap.
“I’ve fantasized about you…” He stared at her, speaking the most vulgar words in the calmest, most normal tone, “many times.”
He remained half-reclined in the chair, motionless. She leaned down to kiss him, her long hair cascading down her back and brushing against his chin and neck. She pressed her knee against him and slowly rolled it, soon hearing his deep and shallow breaths.
His usually composed face showed a rare moment of blankness as she straddled his lap, sitting completely on it and deepening the kiss.
"Are you willing?" she asked again, unnecessarily.
Yuan Chuyu opened the drawer in front of the table and asked instead of answering, "You only do it with someone you like, right?"
At this moment, how could there be any other answer? Lin Langyi said decisively, "Of course."
He pursed his lips, lowered his eyes, and stared at her with a dark gaze. Without looking at her, he took a box from the drawer and slammed it on the table.
Lin Langyi, still smiling with the thought of sleeping with him, happily turned her head to look, about to tease him, "You, Yuan Chuyu, you even prepared a set in the study, you're really something," when she saw the box clearly, her expression changed, and her nerves suddenly exploded.
It's exactly the same as the one she bought; she still has two left in her bag.
How did Yuan Chuyu know she was allergic to rubber?
This is an old house. The housekeeper, as instructed, updates the condoms every month with common, mass-produced models. They've been gathering dust in Yuan Chuyu's bedside table for a long time, and she knows this better than anyone else.
This box could only have been bought by him.
I accurately bought her most frequently used styles and flavors.
Lin Langyi's body stiffened, and for a long time she didn't dare to turn her neck back to meet his gaze.
In her opinion, since Yuan Chuyu himself confirmed on the plane that she and Cheng Yanjin hadn't gone that far, she could simply deny it to the death.
But now...
Lin Langyi cursed a thousand times in her heart, thinking, "If I had known, I wouldn't have deliberately not taken the whole box because of the anti-addiction system for virgins..." Now, she was caught red-handed for leaving the remaining two pieces in her bag.
She was about to tell a lie, saying that she had been given two free condoms by a volunteer while walking down a main road in Switzerland, but Yuan Chuyu simply said, "I'll know later."
"Know what?"
He folded the skirt neatly, placed it clean side up on the table, lifted her onto it, and then, in front of her, untied and put it on before finally raising his eyelids to answer her question:
"I know you're allergic."
Lin Langyi's eyelids twitched slightly as she watched him squat down and hold her legs, his high, straight nose gliding over her, half of his face hidden under the table.
He was completely different from the style she had imagined.
She thought he was reserved, gentle, and elegant, but when Yuan Chuyu continued biting her for an extended period of time without saying a word, Lin Langyi finally realized his domineering nature in sexual matters.
If Cheng Yanjin's problem stemmed from his physical condition, then Yuan Chuyu's was clearly due to his personality.
He forced himself on her so many times with his lips, tongue, and fingers that Lin Langyi was so exhausted from his ministrations that she almost lost her mind. She snatched the small box from the table and angrily threw it at his face before he finally entered her.
The whole box is used up.
On the fourth time, she told him to stop, but he pressed her against the bedroom door, staring at her hand gripping the doorknob. Suddenly, as if he couldn't take it anymore, he whispered a dirty joke in her ear and said, "At least one more time."
In her dazed state, she did not understand what those words meant.
She only learned one lesson:
He would try to coax her, but he wouldn't stop.
...
From that day forward, Lin Langyi came to understand what it meant for some to suffer from drought while others to suffer from floods.
In the past, the two slept in separate rooms in their marital home. Sometimes, when Yuan Chuyu finished work and came home, she was already asleep, and the two would not even see each other.
But things are completely different now.
No matter how late it was, a curve would appear beside the bed. His presence was so strong that, in her half-awake state, she could always feel his arms pulling her into his embrace.
"Tonight, Mom reminded us not to forget to attend the banquet in Linqufu tomorrow, hosted by the Cheng family." Lin Langyi mumbled, her eyes closed and her cheeks squished by the pillow.
"I understand." Yuan Chuyu held the person in his arms. "Cheng Yangkang has called me several times. Even if it's just for your sake, I will definitely go."
"Hmm...it's nothing, just one of Ying Shanhu's clients."
As she herself said, Lin Langyi didn't take this banquet too seriously.
If I hadn't seen Cheng Yanjin at the banquet...
As Cheng Yangkang introduced his son to everyone with a beaming smile, Lin Langyi's eyes met those of Cheng Yanjin, whom she hadn't seen for a week.
It feels like a lifetime ago.
His eyes were swollen, as if they had been soaked in water, yet his demeanor was nonchalant and disdainful. He had a haughty, arrogant face, exuding a kind of half-dead, scoundrelly air.
His eyebrows, which had been furrowed since the start of the banquet, twitched violently upon seeing her, and his red and swollen eyes slowly widened.
Then, amidst Cheng Yangkang's hearty laughter, Cheng Yanjin accidentally dropped the wine glass from his hand.
With a crisp "whoosh," everyone's attention was drawn to him.
Cheng Yanjin was completely unaware, walking towards her blankly as if he had lost his soul, his steps becoming faster and more hurried, ignoring all the greetings and flattery from those around him.
Lin Langyi was so frightened by his murderous posture that her body stiffened. She had only taken a step back when Cheng Yanjin reacted quickly and darted forward a short distance.
He thought she was going to run away again, so when he chased after her, he didn't look where he was going at all. His left foot stepped on the velvet tablecloth and pulled her forward, causing a pair of crystal candlesticks on the outer edge of the table to fall to the ground and immediately burn a piece of the white tablecloth.
The hands beside Lin Langyi suddenly tightened, gripping her a little too tightly, and her disconnected mind finally reconnected.
Yuan Chuyu stood silently beside her, his arms around her.
This scene looks exactly like a recreation of what happened at the airport back then.
Before anyone else could clean up the mess, Cheng Yanjin stared intently at Lin Langyi and the aloof man standing beside her. The longing he had been yearning for earlier was finally suppressed.
He stepped on the flames and ground them up, then gave her a nonchalant smile.
Lin Langyi couldn't laugh at all; she just felt like she'd been tricked.
Help! How can he be Cheng Yangkang's son?!
She had been doing business with the Cheng family for so long, and all she had heard was that the Cheng family had a spoiled brat who was living abroad. But the world is too small. She never expected that the person she had seduced and then abandoned was her business partner.
Cheng Yanjin bent down to pick up the overturned candlesticks, and nonchalantly pressed his thumb into the wicks, causing a cloud of gray-black smoke to rise. He extinguished all three candles with his bare hands.
He rubbed his hands together in front of his eyes, then slammed the candlestick back onto the table with his other hand and continued walking toward her, ignoring everything else.
His persistent and unyielding attitude was so obvious that the surrounding guests noticed the strange atmosphere and their probing gazes darted back and forth between the group.
How could Cheng Yangkang have imagined that his son and Yuan Chuyu, who had never even met, would have such an irreconcilable feud? Seeing Cheng Yanjin striding towards Lin Langyi, he naturally stepped forward eagerly to act as a matchmaker:
"Yan Jin, this is Mr. Yuan Chuyu, the young CEO of Yingyuan Group. Beside him is his wife, Miss Lin, Lin Langyi, who is the producer of Yingshan Lake Pearls, with whom we cooperate—"
"No way." Cheng Yanjin stood in front of Lin Langyi in a few steps, his broad shoulders casting a shadow. He said, "Why is she the madam? I heard that Miss Lin is clearly unmarried."
Cheng Yangkang hadn't expected that there were so many important points in his words. Cheng Yanjin had only heard the word "Madam," and choked for a moment. Just as he was about to speak, Yuan Chuyu, standing beside him, spoke calmly:
"When Xiaoyi and I got engaged, the invitations didn't reach Mr. Cheng, but that's alright. I'll definitely invite you to the wedding."
Cheng Yanjin didn't want to give Yuan Chuyu even a glance, and kept staring straight at Lin Langyi.
Since their parting at the airport, he hasn't stopped thinking about her for a single day. Hate and love intertwine like a double-flavored ice cream cone, eventually turning into a sticky, sweet longing. Even in his dreams, he sees her every smile and frown.
He even felt that the slight hatred he felt for her because of her heartlessness had become the catalyst for his inability to forget her. Humans always use the pain of separation to measure love, and hate lasts longer than love. He simply couldn't handle it and was tormented to the point of despair by her series of hot and cold yet resolute breakups.
Every day after the breakup, he locked himself in his room, sleeping and waking up, crying, and then drifting back to sleep in a daze. He thought he would hate her to the core, hate that she made vows of eternal love with every word she uttered, hate that her favoritism, whether intentional or unintentional, made him delusional, hate that she deceived him with her body and heart but refused to deceive him to the end, and hate most of all that she coldly abandoned him like a bag of trash.
He thought he would never see her again in his life, but when she appeared in front of him again, he felt only ecstatic excitement and relief. He was like a dog that had experienced the abandoned cat effect, becoming more docile and obedient because of the fear of being abandoned again.
She's really something, and he's really useless, completely controlled by this heartless woman.
Cheng Yanjin showed no temper whatsoever and extended his hand to shake hers: "Miss Lin, Lin Langyi, which Lang?"
“Wang Liang,” Cheng Yangkang answered for her. “You’ll be handling company business from now on, and you’ll often run into Miss Lin. She’s young but very successful. You should learn from her.”
"Definitely." Cheng Yanjin insisted on shaking her hand this time.
Yuan Chuyu took half a step forward, seemingly trying to block Lin Langyi, but Cheng Yanjin quickly cut him off with a sarcastic remark: "Ladies first, I'll say hello to you later."
"Heh," Yuan Chuyu chuckled indifferently, as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world. "Mr. Cheng has lived abroad for so long and all he has remembered is 'ladies first.' Doesn't he know that a man should not reach out first if a lady doesn't reach out first?"
Cheng Yanjin glanced at him sideways, adding fuel to the fire: "I've been living abroad for a long time, especially in Switzerland, so I've gotten used to it. Sorry."
Yuan Chuyu looked him straight in the eye, his words tinged with hostility: "Since you've gotten used to it, it's indeed better to settle down abroad."
"Ha, what a coincidence, I'm not leaving this time I'm back."
"Cheng Yanjin!"
The moment the woman's voice rang out, Cheng Yanjin's newly ignited fighting spirit was instantly extinguished.
Lin Langyi had recovered from the shock of the unexpected reunion. She raised her eyelids and glanced at him casually, then raised her hand to meet his palm, saying, "Hello."
The tone was somewhat harsh; it was a warning.
Cheng Yanjin got his wish and held her hand. He couldn't help but curl the corners of his lips into a smile, like a cat that had successfully stolen some fish. He held her hand for three or four seconds and was reluctant to let go. He couldn't wait to start making arrangements: "I'll go to Yingshan Lake tomorrow and have a good talk with Miss Lin about the cooperation between our two families over the past few years."
Yuan Chuyu coldly interrupted, "Young Master Cheng, you should get your eyes treated first."
Cheng Yangkang quickly explained, "Yan Jin has only been back in China for less than a week, and he might be experiencing some acclimatization issues. He said that the wind makes his skin ache and he keeps tearing up. He's been staying home all day and won't go out. Today, I had to coax him out to get some fresh air..."
Taking the opportunity, Lin Langyi withdrew her hand and glared at Cheng Yanjin as he pouted in grievance.
He was happy even when she scolded him. As soon as he saw her, all his ailments disappeared. His heart stopped aching, his head stopped throbbing, and his eyes stopped crying. He was cured as soon as he was cured and was a good man again. However, when he looked at his fiancé standing next to him, who was like a ghost, he couldn't help but feel annoyed.
But Lin Langyi warned him two or three times that no matter how happy he was, he should control his facial expression.
Cheng Yanjin coughed, unwilling to use the same hand he had used to shake hands with Lin Langyi to shake Yuan Chuyu's hand, and deliberately extended his other hand instead.
The moment she touched Yuan Chuyu's hand, he immediately and coldly withdrew it. Their fingertips touched for less than two seconds before separating, a blatant display of perfunctoriness.
Yuan Chuyu even temporarily placed the wine glass on the plate and took out a handkerchief from his pocket to carefully wipe his hands: "I have some champagne on my hands."
Cheng Yanjin rolled his eyes and said that it made sense that there was still some cigarette ash on his fingers, but there was also alcohol... Was he implying that he had lost his temper and smashed the wine glass earlier?
Although he was timid in front of Lin Langyi, a man would not lose face in front of his love rival. Just as he was about to have a fierce battle with Yuan Chuyu, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a black ice-colored watch on Yuan Chuyu's wrist and instantly lost his composure.
He clearly remembered that Lin Langyi went to several watch shops and spent a long time choosing, even gesturing on his wrist several times before finally deciding to buy it.
Right in front of him! Using him as a mannequin! Buying gifts for her husband! And then saying, "He's a better match for him, he's fairer!"
She didn't put much thought into the gifts she bought him! And the prices were worlds apart!
Cheng Yanjin felt like a whole bottle of vinegar had been spilled inside him, the more he thought about it, the more sour it became. But at a time like this, he had to save face, even if his knees were broken, he had to stretch his neck two miles. So he immediately reached into his pocket and took out his cell phone with the red cowbell hanging from it.
The little bell jingled, and he had kept it very well, as new as ever.
Yuan Chuyu glanced at it and then looked away.
He knew this must be Lin Langyi's doing. She liked to buy these strange and unusual things. When she came back from her travels, she would bring back all sorts of oddly shaped stones, which she would then dye and glue together into a jigsaw puzzle. She collected rock sand, sand, branches, and pine cones and arranged them into an artistic bonsai, which she placed next to the photos they had developed together. His bookshelf was filled with all sorts of creative souvenirs, brightly colored. She had entered his life and brought a touch of human warmth to his dull and monotonous house.
He liked it very much.
He wanted her to take over all his space and territory, leaving all sorts of marks on him that would be immediately recognizable as hers.
But now, another man is brazenly taking those colors that don't belong to him at all.
Yuan Chuyu lowered his eyelashes, thinking that Cheng Yanjin had his reasons for being proud. When others saw him wearing a red bell that didn't suit his personality, they would naturally think of his girlfriend. What was the difference between that and wearing a girl's hair tie on your wrist?
As for the watch and cufflinks he wears, since Lin Langyi deliberately bought them to match his style, how would others know how loving he and Lin Langyi are if he didn't always intentionally or unintentionally mention that they were "gifts from my lover"?
Lin Langyi didn't know why the two men suddenly fell silent. Little did she know that they were both envious of each other's gifts and itching to get rid of them. Her only thought now was to quickly pull the two of them apart.
She took Yuan Chuyu's arm: "Zhuang Lan is over there, come with me to say hello?"
Yuan Chuyu naturally lowered his arm and took her hand, gently nodded to Cheng Yanjin, and said in a calm tone, "Excuse me."
Cheng Yanjin raised an eyebrow: "You left without even touching your wine glass?"
Lin Langyi denied it: "He's been on an IV drip these past two days, so he shouldn't drink alcohol."
Hmm... it's because he played in the bathroom for too long and the water got cold, and he was only focused on drying her off first.
The champagne in Yuan Chuyu's glass hadn't been touched at all. Cheng Yanjin could go all out against him, but the moment he heard Lin Langyi say a few words of defense, he immediately faltered.
He can't even drink alcohol, what a sickly person he is, and he's even on an IV drip.
Cheng Yanjin swirled his glass and downed it in one gulp: "It's a pity, Mr. Yuan still needs to take good care of his health. Getting sick every few days only adds to Miss Lin's burden. I heard you're a few years older than her... You need to take even better care of yourself, otherwise you might accidentally pass away before her one day... Ah, I misspoke. It's just that I've never been sick much since I was a child, and I have a good constitution."
“My wife cares about me a lot and worries a lot about my affairs,” Yuan Chuyu suddenly revealed an impeccable smile, “It’s just a little cold, she’s just too nervous.”
Cheng Yanjin took a deep breath. He recalled that the time he fell into the water and had a fever in Switzerland was the nightmare period when Lin Langyi was giving him the cold shoulder.
Comparing yourself to others is truly infuriating.
Is there any way to put some cephalosporin in Yuan Chuyu's wine?
Cheng Yanjin raised his glass with a forced smile, wishing the person in front of him would be taken away by an ambulance immediately: "It's our first meeting, let's just have a little toast, it's fine as it is."
Yuan Chuyu readily complied, the two wine glasses touched briefly before separating, he raised his chin, the wine only briefly touching his lips, truly "it's fine as it is," showing no respect whatsoever.
"Alright, you still need an IV drip when you get back tonight." Lin Langyi tugged at Yuan Chuyu's sleeve.
He placed the wine glass on the waiter's tray, and good-naturedly took her hand and kissed the back of it: "Okay, whatever you say."
Some people around him jokingly called Yuan Chuyu henpecked, but he didn't feel embarrassed at all. Instead, his smile widened, as if he really enjoyed hearing such a comment about himself.
Lin Langyi took the person away, finally separating the two men who were openly and secretly at odds.
...
Perhaps because Cheng Yanjin was present at the banquet, Yuan Chuyu made a point of leaving early today. Although he claimed to have made an appointment with his family doctor, Lin Langyi knew that he simply did not want to stay here and breathe the same air as Cheng Yanjin.
"Can we stop the injection?" Yuan Chuyu sighed. "My fever has gone down."
"The last day." Lin Langyi pressed him down in front of the desk, and the family doctor gave him an injection.
Yuan Chuyu hooked his arm around hers, his curled fingers slowly sliding across her palm, and asked softly, "Aren't you going to stay with me?"
"Don't you still have to work?" Lin Langyi thought of Cheng Yanjin's words about "short-lived husband" at the banquet and found it inexplicably funny. "I'm going to take a shower. You can get your IV drip first."
The door to the study wasn't closed properly, so that if he called her, she could hear him even if she was in the bedroom.
Lin Langyi took a comfortable hot bath, and when she came out of the bathroom, she suddenly heard intermittent rustling sounds coming from the balcony.
She thought it was just the wind blowing the leaves of the green plants on the terrace, so she went outside to check. But when she pulled back the curtain, a human face appeared in front of her.
"Ah—um."
The conditioned scream was choked off and swallowed into his palm.
"Zhuzhu?" Yuan Chuyu heard her call, took off his headset and asked her.
Lin Langyi, still shaken, stared at Cheng Yanjin, who was equally at a loss, and pushed him back with her arm. The two of them pulled and tugged each other back to a blind spot on the terrace where Yuan Chuyu could not see them.
"I'm fine." She fiercely pulled Cheng Yanjin's hand away and answered Yuan Chuyu's question.
There was no more sound coming from the study, probably because Yuan Chuyu had returned to his work.
"What are you doing here?" Lin Langyi lowered her voice. "How did you get in?"
"I..." Cheng Yanjin hadn't seen her for a week, and suddenly he could see her again, wearing only pajamas and exuding the fragrance of a fresh shower. His mind went blank, and he blankly pointed outside.
Lin Langyi looked in the direction he was pointing. "Hmm, very good, they climbed up from the outer wall."
The vertical distance from here to the ground is about twelve or thirteen meters.
"Hurry up and leave," Lin Langyi snapped at him. "Otherwise, I'll have someone take you to the police station."
Cheng Yanjin remained silent with his drooping eyebrows. After being scolded, he turned around and went back to the railing, where he pushed himself up with his arms and flipped over.
Lin Langyi was startled by his decisive action and regretted that she hadn't thought things through. What if he fell? She should have let him sneak out of the house.
The more she thought about it, the more uneasy she became. Then she heard a faint noise outside, so she quickly walked to the railing and looked down.
Cheng Yanjin didn't leave. He stood on the cross-section of the outer wall that bulged outward by half a palm's width, where an oversized dark blue travel bag was placed on the outdoor unit of the fresh air system.
He picked up the bag, slung it over his shoulder, and grabbed the railing, as if he were about to climb up again.
"Hey!" Lin Langyi was startled by his action of climbing up with one hand, and suddenly reached out and grabbed him with both hands.
Cheng Yanjin paused, his gaze lingering on their tightly clasped hands before slowly moving upwards to look at her.
He didn't use her strength to climb up, fearing he would pull her down, just like the time they were soaking in the icy lake.
He silently took the woven bag off his shoulder and handed it to her.
"I made the snow lantern that I didn't have time to give you at the two snow house festivals. It's made of ice and I carved the pattern with the military knife you gave me."
"It will melt, so I rushed over tonight. I'm sorry, did I scare you? I originally planned to leave it on the balcony and then leave."
He answered her first question quietly. He hadn't had time to explain before she chased him away, but he still had to hand over the things to her.
Snow lanterns are lampshades cast from ice and snow with an upward-facing opening. A candle is placed in the center, and the candlelight penetrates the translucent ice, emitting a uniform and dreamy orange-red light.
That was something she mentioned casually at the time.
Lin Langyi stared at him without saying a word, and he just kept raising his arm, holding it out to her.
After all, it was only one hand; he had to support his half-exposed body while trying his best to hand her the item. His arm, which had been taut for so long, slowly began to sway slightly, making a crisp sound from inside the woven bag, like ethereal notes played on a glockenspiel.
She didn't react, and Cheng Yanjin thought she didn't want it, so the light in his eyes gradually dimmed.
When was it done?
He paused for a moment, then answered every question: "After returning to China, there was no snow here, so I made it with ice from the freezer."
Meeting her gaze, he dared not say that since returning to China, he had been in a daze, locking himself in his room to make snow lanterns, tears streaming down his face as he worked, his eyes and hands red and swollen, the melted ice mingling with his tears, even the air felt damp.
She was very impatient with him, and he was afraid she didn't want to hear it, so he said nothing.
Thinking about these things makes me feel bad. As my thoughts wander, the weight in my hand suddenly feels lighter.
He snapped back to reality and saw Lin Langyi take the bag from his hand.
She took out the snow lanterns one by one and lined them up in a row, like kindergarten children lining up to cross the street.
Very beautiful. To be honest, his knife skills are excellent. These snow lanterns are all about the same size, and each one is carved with a lifelike mural.
Lin Langyi picked it up and spun it around in front of her eyes by the moonlight before realizing that it was carved with a cowbell.
He must have loved that bell she bought so much that he jumped into the icy lake to retrieve it, and now he's engraved it on a snow lantern.
She put down the snow lamp, reached into the inner compartment of the bag, and sure enough, found a lighter.
When she took it out, she was surprised by her own familiar movements, as if she had known him for a long time.
While in Switzerland, he also kept a lighter inside his backpack to light the stove in the igloo.
Lin Langyi lit the first snow lantern.
The candlelight, like a red bean, illuminated the entire crystal-clear snow lantern. The thickness of the ice layer gave the light a textured quality, and it was surrounded by a golden robe.
Lin Langyi then noticed that the bottom of the lampshade where the candles were placed was engraved with patterns that looked somewhat familiar at first glance.
She lowered her head, and her heart suddenly skipped a beat, following the flickering candlelight—
It was a range of rolling mountains. She remembered that she had bought a whole set of mountain-themed cups at a Swiss cultural and creative store, which were now on the wine cabinet on the first floor.
Cheng Yanjin stood beside her like a guardian deity, watching her take photos and ask Yuan Chuyu if he liked them, listening to her enthusiastically share how to add these interesting items to her and her fiancé's home.
No wonder there were eight snow lanterns in total. He didn't receive the gift from the Mountain Cup, so he was disappointed but also stubborn. He closed the door and made a whole set by himself.
"How long did it take?" she asked.
Without her permission, Cheng Yanjin dared not climb onto the terrace again. He gripped the railing with both hands, lifted himself up, rested his chin on it, and cautiously observed her expression, only half of his head showing.
"One week."
After returning to China, he kept trying to find something to fill his time, hoping to erase her from his mind. But no matter what he did, everything he did ended up being related to her.
Lin Langyi lit all eight snow lanterns, and a corner of the terrace instantly looked like a beautiful and dreamy scene from a fairy tale.
She then asked, "You only did eight in a week?"
Cheng Yanjin nodded like a chick pecking at rice.
Of course not. He did a lot, and he kept getting better and better. In the end, he selected these eight items that satisfied him the most and gave them to her.
He used up the rest as emotional distress consumables.
Watching those carved snow lanterns melt away little by little, eventually turning into a puddle of water, felt like watching myself slowly breathe my last.
He began to understand the man who stood silently by the dessert cart, letting the ice cream cone melt.
Of course, on the other hand, that man was Yuan Chuyu, which is good; it would be best if he died.
Lin Langyi turned her head and glanced into the bedroom. She had pulled the curtains shut tightly when she came out, so she couldn't see what was going on inside through the dim light. But since Yuan Chuyu had been receiving an IV drip for a longer period of time a few days ago, he should still be in the study for the time being.
She felt slightly relieved. Although the outcome was still to drive Cheng Yanjin away, her tone was much gentler when she spoke again.
"Come on up." She grabbed him, wanting him to leave the house. If he fell while scaling the walls, people would only speculate about it from a scandalous angle.
Cheng Yanjin's eyes lit up. He was so easy to coax, like a stupid dog that never learns from its mistakes. He immediately smiled, revealing a row of neat, white teeth, and said cheerfully, "Wife, you're so good to me."
Lin Langyi's hand, which was trying to pull him up, suddenly jerked, almost slapping him back over the railing: "What did you call me?"
“You call him husband, I call you wife, what’s wrong with that? Can’t I call him that?” He shrank back slightly, shouting relentlessly, “Let’s just call each other our own thing.”
Lin Langyi withdrew her hand and blew out all eight lamps.
"What are you doing..." he complained softly, "Do you mean to turn off my light?"
Lin Langyi put the snow lantern away: "It would melt immediately if you lit a candle on it."
It would dissolve sooner or later, actually because having eight lights on would make it easy for Yuan Chuyu to notice something amiss.
But Cheng Yanjin's mind was filled with nothing but pink bubbles. He couldn't help but smile happily, rubbing the newly grown calluses on his fingers behind his back, thinking that since she liked and cherished him so much, all his efforts hadn't been in vain.
"It's melted, so be it... I'll make it for you again later."
"Stop doing it, your hands are covered in calluses, doesn't it hurt to rub them?"
Cheng Yanjin was stunned, his hands behind his back slowly clenched, and his heart raced.
She touched it; how meticulous! It turned out she even remembered how many calluses he used to have on his hands.
Cheng Yanjin recalled that when the two of them bought a Swiss Army knife at a cultural and creative store, she had touched the calluses on his palm, which had made him feel excited at the time.
Their love story is so touching. If you think about it carefully, what's the difference between her pulling him in from the outer wall and Rapunzel letting down her long hair and making the prince climb up from the tower?
When people fall in love, they always want to show their best side to the other person, unable to repay the relationship.
Cheng Yanjin knew his advantage well and asked solicitously, "Want to touch my pectoral muscles?"
Lin Langyi peeked out from behind the gauze curtain to check the situation inside, her mind filled with how to perfectly send her big-breasted, brainless lover out without her husband finding out. She resolutely refused: "I won't touch him."
"Feel it, do you prefer it hard or soft? I can relax it or tighten it."
"No."
"Feel it..."
"You're a bot! Is that all you can say?!"
Lin Langyi's two ears, one to probe the room and the other to deal with the persistent and enthusiastic large breasts, were finally worn down and she could only touch them a couple of times.
Ah, although, well, ah... the feel is really good...
"Yibao, wife..." He opened his arms to hug her, all shamelessness in his pursuit of pleasure, and blurted out, "I'll pick up the training plan again and add four more sets of bench presses every day. It's just that I don't have a coach to help me record the measurements. Can you measure them for me manually? I can climb over the wall every night to deliver my 'public service' to you, no, I mean, to deliver my 'homework'."
That's incredibly audacious!
Lin Langyi struggled to pull her head out of his surging embrace, and while giving a stern warning, the male bodhisattva pressed his hand passionately and forcefully onto his chest: "There are surveillance cameras here, so don't cause me any trouble, or I'll have to delete the recording for you later."
So what if Yuan Chuyu saw it?
Cheng Yanjin appeared meek and submissive, but inwardly he was incredibly arrogant: He'd already laid bare the truth; Yuan Chuyu should be used to it by now.
Moreover, Cheng Yanjin has matured, his mentality has become more stable, and his self-regulation ability has improved. Nothing can defeat him, and he will never be able to break down again.
"I'll scout ahead. You follow behind me. Let's go right now, and hurry up." Lin Langyi pointed at his nose fiercely.
"Mmm." Cheng Yanjin knew when to stop. Having experienced being dumped, he now even felt good when he heard her scold him. Seeing her habitually pointing at him and yelling at him made him feel comfortable and gave him a lot of hope for life.
Haha, can you call it scolding when your wife scolds you?
He was secretly pleased, secretly plotting whether he should "accidentally" leave some personal items behind to give Yuan Chuyu a little stimulation, hoping that he would get sick from anger.
Lin Langyi lifted the gauze curtain and took the first step.
Cheng Yanjin followed behind with a smug look on his face.
Suddenly, someone shoved me hard in the stomach.
Caught off guard, he stumbled, and the soft, white gauze brushed past his nose, obscuring his vision. Before he could see anything clearly, Lin Langyi pushed him back onto the terrace.
Her figure moved through the gauze curtains, her long, slender legs that had been exposed retracting as if disappearing into quicksand, completely entering the room.
Cheng Yanjin was stunned for a moment, and just as he raised his hand to pull back the curtain, a clear voice came from the bedroom: "Husband?"
He froze on the spot.
Separated by a curtain, Lin Langyi was also rooted to the spot, her heart pounding in her throat.
Yuan Chuyu returned to the bedroom from the study at some point. He leaned against the headboard, his body slightly tilted back, his long legs stretched out and crossed on the ground. From her angle, she could clearly see the superior curve from his brow bone to his eye socket. The light and shadow separated his profile into sharp lines of dawn and dusk, like a lonely dead star in the universe.
The hand receiving the IV drip was holding a box of condoms up to its face, examining it closely.
With his hand raised slightly, the IV tube on the back of his hand began to slowly draw blood back. The dark red blood slowly surged upwards along the narrow tube, climbing over the distance to his face, as if cutting a long, thin knife across his indifferent and aloof face—grim, vibrant, gloomy, and exuding an indescribable sense of oppression.
Lin Langyi didn't know whether she should first remind him that his incorrect posture was causing backflow of blood, or be concerned that the box of condoms in his hand looked exactly like the one she had left over after taking it to Switzerland, or perhaps wonder why his IV drip was going on so quickly today, as the bottle was almost empty in the same amount of time.
She only felt that he was currently overflowing with lust, and there was a strange sexual tension about him.
So she called out to him.
He turned the box around, and it rang empty. Lin Langyi's last breath also broke down... It sounded like it had definitely been used. A new box would be full and wouldn't make such a lonely sound.
Could it be that the box she couldn't find ended up in his hands?
"I lost a bit too quickly today." Yuan Chuyu casually tossed the box aside, answering as if he could read her mind. "Maybe I accidentally adjusted the speed wrong."
Lin Langyi composed herself and walked towards him. His gaze was fixed on her intently, and he gradually raised his chin to stare at her as they got closer.
Lin Langyi sat on the edge of the bed and pressed down his disobedient hand: "Doesn't it hurt? This medicine will hurt if it's infused too quickly."
He lowered his eyes, watching the red tube being rinsed clear again by the medicine, his expression indifferent and nonchalant, as he hooked his finger around her little finger.
Lin Langyi looked at the two intertwined fingers, which really looked like they were wrapped in a cold and twisted snake tail.
“It hurts,” he said.
His hands were cold and numb from the medicine. Lin Langyi had just covered his hands under the blanket when she heard him say the last sentence:
"They deserve the pain."
A string of foam rose from the bottle, like bubbles coming out of a fish's mouth, and the last bit of medicine was gone.
The cylindrical dropper was as still as a stagnant pool, but the IV stand standing to the side was shaking violently, and the empty bottle hanging from the top was swaying wildly.
He kissed her deeply, and as he leaned in to press down on her, his entire demeanor changed drastically. He bit her lips with a fierce intensity, as if he wanted to crush her, kissing and sucking at her simultaneously. Broken syllables escaped from between his teeth, and the swallowing sounds in his throat were obvious.
Lin Langyi was pushed back onto the bed by him, her head throbbing from his kisses, and she kept making unconscious moaning sounds as she struggled to breathe.
Yuan Chuyu grabbed her shoulders and pulled her back, dragging the IV tube along with her hand and the frame towards the bed. The four wheels were making a clattering sound.
Finding it troublesome, he remained outwardly calm, but with a ruthless tug, he pulled out the needle. The dripping medicine immediately spread across the smoky gray bedding, blurring the deep black.
His hand, which hadn't stopped the bleeding, was placed on the back of her head. Through her hair, he clamped the back of her neck and pulled her into his arms. His voice grew increasingly hoarse and deep. His nose pressed against her cheek as he sniffed her scent. His suppressed, deep breaths and moans made him sound like a patient with a persistent high fever.
He kept murmuring her name, calling her by her nickname indistinctly, and affectionately calling her "baby," saying that he really missed her so much. He said that his wishes could always be fulfilled when he was sick, so why couldn't he do it now?
There were still people behind the curtain.
Realizing this, Lin Langyi held her breath and forced back the voice that she couldn't control.
But she didn't say no.
After Yuan Chuyu tore off that self-disciplined and courteous facade, the dark side he revealed seemed to have eyes added to a simulated painting, turning him into a real person. He had no qualms about letting her know his despicable desires, which was good.
She loved the wildness he revealed every time he ripped away his feigned perfection, watching him shatter the sense of propriety and boundaries he had been taught since childhood, like crushing a resilient and quick-rebounding stress reliever to death, turning it into a puddle of water that had lost its shape and beauty.
He shed his superficial politeness, and in this rare moment, she was so moved that she couldn't bring herself to refuse.
Lin Langyi could only compromise, managing to squeeze out a broken sentence: "Go to the study."
"Why?" Yuan Chuyu raised the corners of his eyes slightly, tilting his head in confusion to glance at the moonlit terrace.
The light gauze floats.
“That thin veil lets in light but not people,” he lowered his head again, whispering comforting words in her ear, his low, husky voice and warm breath penetrating her eardrums, “It’s very quiet here, Zhuzhu, the doctor has left, and Mom and Dad aren’t home either, no one will bother us.”
No!
The sheer curtain resembled the dividing line of a two-tone ice cream cone, spiraling and intertwining. He stepped back, and Lin Langyi reached down and grabbed his hair tightly, his vision blurring from the increasingly obvious sound of him swallowing water.
She heard the sound of dripping water outside the terrace, probably from melting snowflakes hitting the wooden planks of the tiered flower stand, gathering and slowly flowing down.
The mental tension and shame should have broken down her defenses, but her body responded even faster than usual.
In her dazed state, Yuan Chuyu lifted her and sat her on the dressing table. Her legs, which were still twitching slightly, straightened up, and the thin gauze that was being blown by the wind gently brushed against her skin, raising goosebumps.
The dressing table is just a step away from the terrace.
"No—" Lin Langyi's rationality finally returned, but she was completely silenced by Yuan Chuyu before she could finish her sentence.
This is insane! Lin Langyi's back tightened, and a tingling sensation surged up her tailbone like an electric shock. Through her teary eyes, she squinted at him, watching the veins bulge in his large hand gripping her thigh, watching the blood on the back of his hand spread across her leg in a shimmering color, while he intently looked down between them, his thumb, tinged with blood, stroking the birthmark on her leg.
Every time the gauze curtain billowed in the wind, Lin Langyi would hold her breath, her heart pounding as she stared at the tiny slit that opened for a second or two, as if an eye was silently watching her from there.
This overwhelming tension caused her to crumble repeatedly throughout the night.
He was finally caught daydreaming several times, but Yuan Chuyu wasn't angry. Of course, he seemed to have gotten into a good mood over the past hour.
He turned her face towards him, his smile and slightly upturned eyes equally gentle, and he spoke softly and gently in his clear, melodious voice:
"Zhuzhu, we're making love."
The sound was neither too loud nor too soft; it was clearly audible in the quiet, dimly lit room, and anyone could hear it.
The gauze flowed like water, and this time, she couldn't see if there was a shadow in the gap.
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