The people on the bed were like two ostriches, consoling themselves like ostriches that nothing was the matter at all. Thus, they maintained their close proximity, pretending they knew nothing.

  Still, people who are awake are actually unable to maintain their posture for a long time without moving at all.

  Lu Zhixin moved slightly, stretching her leg. Her leg was too long and she was too tall. With this, her knee and leg touched some part that she wasn’t supposed to touch, and so she could feel……

  The startled Lu Zhixin instinctively made as if to spring away. Xu Tingsheng did not speak, yet embraced her tightly such that she could not move.

  This took Lu Zhixin by surprise. Thinking about it, Xu Tingsheng was indeed a hot-blooded male in the peak of his youth.

  Her leg remained there just like that.

  Yet, to constantly remain completely unmoving was really very difficult. Therefore, there would be some unconscious movements there once in a while. Amidst those brushes of contract, Lu Zhixin could clearly sense Xu Tingsheng’s repressed bestial desires.

  Finally, Xu Tingsheng said softly, “I’m gonna die.”


  Lu Zhixin was exasperated whilst also amused. Also, she felt deeply embarrassed. If not for the pale shade of the moonlight and her fever, her face would definitely be flushed a deep red. With the mood of playing a prank as well as a bit of tenderness, sympathy and guilt, Lu Zhixin leaned closer into Xu Tingsheng’s body.

  Xu Tingsheng commented in a leisurely tone, “Pretty big, actually.”


  Lu Zhixin said, “Huh?”


  Xu Tingsheng did not speak, just extending a hand around Lu Zhixin’s waist and exerting force, pressing her body closer to his. Tighter, next loosened. Next tighter again, and then maintained.

  Understanding what he meant, Lu Zhixin bit her lip, saying softly, “ I usually, usually keep them all tight……otherwise, I wouldn’t look serious enough. It doesn’t fit with those clothes of mine and that very stern, very fierce image.”


  Were flat-chested females more suited to appearing cold, aloof and indifferent?

  Thinking of office ladies in their rigid suits, it seemed that this really was so.

  Xu Tingsheng said, “Oh.”


  Lu Zhixin hesitated for a while before asking, “I……can I move away my leg?”


  Having been bullied, this powerful career woman dared not resist, was pleading……at the very least, this was what it felt like to Xu Tingsheng. Such a feeling would leave men with a great sense of accomplishment and satisfaction.

  Therefore, Xu Tingsheng said, “No.”


  He had forgotten that Lu Zhixin was still Lu Zhixin at the end of the day. In response to his ‘no’, she immediately drew back her leg before struggling out of Xu Tingsheng’s embrace, flipping back over to face the wall.

  Xu Tingsheng smiled wryly and released a slow, lengthy exhalation.

  Then, he too turned to face the other side, closing his eyes and uttering not a single word.

  “Xu Tingsheng.”


  “Huh?”


  “Are you angry?”


  “Yeah.”


  “Oh, is it Hucheng’s heart or Hucheng, Zhixin?”


  “Hucheng, Zhixin.”


  Lu Zhixin fell silent, seemingly finally having found herself a reason to spoil Xu Tingsheng and let him have his way as she quietly rolled back over, drew close and propped her leg upon his.

  Silence reigned for a time.

  Xu Tingsheng said, “On second thought, you’d better not. It’s harder to bear this way.”


  Lu Zhixin hesitated for a moment before asking, “What’s to be done then?”


  Suddenly finding himself in a teasing mood, Xu Tingsheng asked, “If I wanted it, would you be willing?”


  Without the slightest hesitation, Lu Zhixin slowly but resolutely shook her head that was resting on his chest.

  “Apple, the young lady who knocked on the door that day, and some girl Apple seems to know about but I don’t……Xu Tingsheng, before you know what it is that you want, don’t you bully me.”


  Lu Zhixin who was such a principled person was already being very unprincipled now……still, she remained the most principled of them all.

  Xu Tingsheng remembered what Old Wai had said: ‘No matter who you intend to marry in the future, get in bed with Lu Zhixin first’. He actually didn’t understand Lu Zhixin at all. She was the most fully independent girl he had ever met. She had never and would never be content being subordinate to and dependent on another.

  “Yeah,” Xu Tingsheng said, “Sorry, Zhixin.”


  “It’s okay,” Lu Zhixin said softly.

  Xu Tingsheng reached out and gently pushed her leg off. Still, he continued holding her to him.

  “Just sleep like this tonight. When you’ve gotten better, you go on being Lu Zhixin, and I’ll go back to the dormitory to stay.”


  To other girls, this might sound offensive and irresponsible, whereas to Lu Zhixin, it instead signified protection and respect.

  Lu Zhixin made a small affirmative noise in response, then paused for a moment as she seemingly forced herself to ask, “You must be feeling very terrible, right? How about, how about……I help you out. I’ll have forgotten about it when I wake up anyway. “


  Xu Tingsheng looked quizzically down at her, “You know how to?”


  “I……yes,” As her eyes met Xu Tingsheng’s, Lu Zhixin hurriedly averted her gaze.

  All of a sudden, Xu Tingsheng felt a stifled, uncomfortable feeling in his chest. He seemed not to have the qualifications to feel terrible like this. Even now, he was still shamelessly in an ambiguous relationship with a few different girls at once. Still, he was just unable to stop the ache and fury that now surged irrepressibly in his heart.

  As she felt Xu Tingsheng’s entire body suddenly stiffen, Lu Zhixin hurriedly said, “No, it’s not that, it’s not like what you think. I just did some research on it before. At the time, I was worried for when the two of us began dating, and so I secretly studied it……I analysed a dozen videos and also browsed tens of thousands of characters of text.”


  “I’ve also heard quite a bit about this over the years! I’ve had friends and roommates in a relationship before, and Fang Chen also likes to talk about such stuff……because of this, I know all about it, but all of it was only from research. Really.”


  Xu Tingsheng felt relieved. Still, researched it before? Could the word ‘research’ even be used here? Watching videos was called analysis, and reading textual browsing? From an educational standpoint?

  “It’s the educational videos I’m talking about! There were ones from both within the country and abroad, both animated and of real people. The ones from overseas are a bit more informative. As for the texts, there were all sorts. There were some educational ones……and novels, too.”


  As Lu Zhixin explained things, Xu Tingsheng smiled, looking at her. This was the shyness and distress of a cold, aloof, domineering powerful career woman as she was forced to her great embarrassment to learn about those things. Xu Tingsheng imagined her ‘researching’ the images with a serious expression on her face.

  Along with her current ‘bullied’ state where she was feeling troubled yet could also not bear to have him suffer, this made him feel even more than turned on than any aphrodisiac.

  Xu Tingsheng breathed lightly into the ear of Lu Zhixin who had her head buried into his chest like an ostrich, “How will you help me?”


  Lu Zhixin looked up at him, staring wide-eyed, “Huh?”


  “You didn’t really mean what you said earlier?”


  “I, I……go over and draw the curtains.”


  “No……”


  “You……”


  Xu Tingsheng looked at her, “I’m really having it hard here.”


  “I……”


  An embarrassed Lu Zhixin continued burying her head in a refusal to look at anything even as she extended a hand and started probing downwards.

  At that moment of clutching, the two of them could not help but exhale simultaneously. Xu Tingsheng unconsciously hugged her tighter. Lu Zhixin nearly cried out in alarm before immediately swivelling around and biting right down on Xu Tingsheng’s shoulder.

  After a while, Xu Tingsheng helplessly removed that hand by the wrist.

  “What is it?” A perplexed Lu Zhixin asked.

  “It hurts,” Xu Tingsheng said, “It looks like research alone isn’t enough.”


  “So……so, what should I do then?” Lu Zhixin asked somewhat awkwardly.

  Xu Tingsheng pressed Lu Zhixin’s head into his chest, saying, “Don’t look. Hug me tightly. I……I’ll take care of it myself.”


  “Huh?”


  “I’m used to it.”


  “Oh.”


  A while later, feeling that Xu Tingsheng was no longer moving, her head still buried in his chest, Lu Zhixin asked, “You done now?”


  Xu Tingsheng shook her head, “Maybe I’m too nervous. Nope.”


  “What, what’s to be done then?”


  “Let me ask something. Promise not to get mad, okay?” An embarrassed Xu Tingsheng asked.

  Lu Zhixin looked up at him, “Hmm?”


  Xu Tingsheng bit the bullet, swiftly asking, “I want one of your underwear. The bottom one.”


  Lu Zhixin was unable to accept it as a long time passed before she ventured, “In the novels, only perverts……you don’t look like one.”


  “You don’t get it,” Xu Tingsheng intentionally acted mature, “Actually, all men think about it. A few of them just usually pretend that they don’t, like me. Whatever the case, I still am a man!”


  “Oh.”


  After a while, Lu Zhixin said softly, “In the drawer. You, you go get it yourself. Throw it in the trash afterwards. And get rid of it tomorrow, I won’t want it anymore.”


  After saying so, she released Xu Tingsheng and rolled over to the side of the bed……pretending not to know anything at all.

  Xu Tingsheng did not get up. He was finding it even harder to control himself as he leaned over and hugged Lu Zhixin from behind, whispering into her ear, “I want the one you’re wearing right now.”


  Lu Zhixin directly elbowed Xu Tingsheng behind her.

  “Xu Tingsheng, you’re too much!”


  “Fine. Men are abnormal like this sometimes, you know. It’s fine if you aren’t willing……what’re you being angry for?” While the incomparably embarrassed Xu Tingsheng seemed to be shamelessly defending himself, he was really just comforting himself.

  “Forget it. Time to sleep,” He said.

  Lu Zhixin did not speak.

  Xu Tingsheng tossed and turned, trying hard to shift his attention away.

  After a long time, there were some movements from under the blankets beside him.

  Then, a hand reached from underneath, trembling slightly as it found Xu Tingsheng’s hand, opening his palm……next, another hand reached over, stuffing a small cloth bundle in his palm.

  After doing all this, Lu Zhixin faced away from him, not moving.

  Xu Tingsheng squeezed the cloth bundle in his hand.

  “You were sweating,” Xu Tingsheng said.

  Lu Zhixin kicked out at him.

  After a while, Xu Tingsheng turned, lightly drawing Lu Zhixin over by the shoulder and right into his embrace. Cuddling her, he spoke warmly, “Sleep.”


  Lu Zhixin said, “Alright. Have you thrown that away?”


  Xu Tingsheng said, “No. It’s on the floor by the bed.”


  “Throw it away.”


  “No, you can still wear it after it’s washed. How about I help with that? It was me who dirtied it.”


  Lu Zhixin extended a hand and pinched Xu Tingsheng on the waist, no longer uttering a sound.

  “Zhixin?”


  “Hmm?”


  “Can you sing? I think that apart from arriving home and suddenly hearing you humming a little once, I’ve never actually heard you sing in earnest before.”


  “Who can’t sing? It’s just singing well that’s hard.”


  “Can you sing a few lines for me now?”


  “Huh? Me, singing……what?”


  “A very popular song known as Conquest……Have you ever heard of it? It was sung by Na Ying.”


  “Oh……no, dream on. Xu Tingsheng, you bastard!”


  “Come on, why not? Sigh, hitting people again……”
……

  When Xu Tingsheng awoke the next day, Lu Zhixin was already no longer on the bed. Looking downwards, the item on the floor was already gone.

  A while later, Lu Zhixin returned to her room.

  Xu Tingsheng had just wanted to ask how she was when Lu Zhixin cut to the chase, “I’m much better already. Now, please get off my bed.”


  Xu Tingsheng resentfully acquiesced.

  As he was bathing, he discovered black panties soaking within a bucket. Inside the living room, breakfast was already on the table. Xu Tingsheng saw that one of the plates had two fried eggs.

  Coming out of her room, Lu Zhixin had a cold, aloof expression on her face as she said even as she ate, “Zhang Xingke took away quite a few important personnel from Dexin. Recruitment has already begun for our Shenghai’s training institute. I think it would be best to start recruiting for students before October 1st. We’ve got to make a trip over in a couple of days.”


  “Right,” Xu Tingsheng said.

  “What’s the thing that you’ve got a team working on?”


  “A rather more primitive 020.”


  “What?”


  “I’ll explain it to you when it’s done.”


  “Alright. Hurry it up and return the team. We’re really lacking in manpower for the platform here.”


  “You should recruit a few more people. After this is over, I’ve still got other projects to work on.”


  “That’s fine. Still, you’d best give me a proposal next time. I’m afraid it might end up being a waste of effort.”


  Xu Tingsheng was ‘choked speechless’. Lu Zhixin was indeed still Lu Zhixin, or perhaps it should be said that Lu Zhixin was now Lu Zhixin again.

  “Yesterday’s like the east-flowing water, flowing far away, never to remain……”


  “Finish eating and get working! What’re you doing, singing when eating?”


  “Just like this I was conquered by you……”


  “I’m full. I’m going back to school. Wash the dishes after you’re done.”