Chapter 032: Would It Be Crowded If We Bathed Together?

With a gentle twist of the doorknob, the door creaked open just a sliver. Through the narrow gap, Su Dieyi could be seen sprawled across the soft bed, her body half-sunken into a large plush toy. Faint, stifled sobs drifted out, her frame trembling with each subdued cry. Her graceful, alluring back arched like the gentle swells of a docile sea, not grand in scale yet still majestic in its quiet beauty.

Li Huan instinctively swallowed, hesitated for a moment, but ultimately lacked the courage to go in. He quietly retreated, closing the door behind him with a sigh, and slipped away to the kitchen. Gathering some ingredients, he began preparing dinner.

Though the apartment complex was a bit old, the location was excellent, and most of the furnishings had been left by the landlord. The rent should have been expensive, but the previous owners were an elderly couple in their seventies, whose son had founded a major company and moved them in with him. When Li Huan came to rent the place, the old lady took a liking to him and charged only ten thousand yuan, not even specifying the duration—he could stay as long as he pleased! At first, Li Huan found it odd; if they were so generous, why not just sell the place? Renting it out without a time limit was tantamount to giving it away—only without the deed. Later, from the neighbors, he learned about the old couple’s son and realized they likely didn't care about the money. To them, helping a promising young man was a way to accumulate virtue in their twilight years, a deed that brought them quiet joy.

Once dinner was ready, Li Huan walked to Su Dieyi’s door, knocked gently, and called, “You’ll need your strength to keep crying. Come eat—I promise I won’t laugh at you!”

A thud—probably a pillow striking the door—startled him. A gentle tigress is still a tigress, after all; her temper was not something he could withstand. Li Huan shrank away, set the table, and after a while, saw Su Dieyi’s door open a crack. A delicate, translucent foot peeked out, toes curled shyly, the taut arch of her foot smooth as if just lifted from a bath of milk.

The ancients spoke of women’s feet as if they were made of jade, revealing a deep-seated tenderness for such beauty. Li Huan had always found foot fetishists rather odd, but seeing Su Dieyi tiptoe out barefoot, he was utterly entranced, unable to tear his eyes away from the graceful curve of her foot, swallowing hard.

“Don’t look…” Su Dieyi peeked out, caught his gaze, and shot him a shy yet indignant glance, withdrawing her foot.

“Uh… I wasn’t looking!” Li Huan tried to protest, but with her foot gone, a faint sense of loss crept in, and only then did he avert his gaze, allowing her to emerge from her room.

Clearly, she had rushed inside earlier in distress, leaving her shoes at the door. Now, seeing Li Huan watching her, she felt especially self-conscious. She wanted to go straight to the table, but the thought of him eyeing her feet only made her more embarrassed.

“No looking!” Su Dieyi glared as she hurried past him, then dashed to the entryway to fetch her sandals from the rack.

Li Huan hadn’t meant to stare, but her protest only made him more curious. He glanced over just as she bent to pick up her sandals, her fitted sportswear stretching over her curves. Her hips arched temptingly, round and full as twin moons, the faint hollow between them accentuating their shapely allure.

Li Huan drew in a deep breath, his eyes tracing the length of her legs—pressed together with not a sliver of space between them—feeling a sudden heat flare in his belly, surging through his body. Even his breath came out hot.

Su Dieyi slipped into her sandals, sat at the table, and noticed Li Huan clutching his nose, his eyes darting about guiltily. She frowned in confusion, then realization dawned, a blush blooming across her cheeks as she glared at him in silent reproach but said nothing more.

The atmosphere at the table was quiet but tinged with awkwardness. Su Dieyi guessed he had stolen a glance at her as she changed shoes. She was no naïve girl, and knew well enough the effect her body could have on men. Now she could only blame herself for speaking up—if only she hadn’t, she wouldn’t have been caught off guard and spied upon. How mortifying!

Li Huan was still lost in the memory of the scene, eyes fixed on the pale tofu in his bowl, only to have Su Dieyi’s shapely figure flash before his mind’s eye, stoking his appetite. In his distraction, he choked on a piece of tofu.

“No one’s fighting you for it…” Su Dieyi shot him a look of disdain. This was the first time she’d seen anyone choke on tofu—what a weirdo!

“Heh, it’s just too delicious!” Li Huan forced a laugh, not daring to mention the real reason for his distraction. Still, seeing she’d mostly recovered from her earlier sadness—though her eyes were still a bit swollen—he couldn’t help but ask, “Did something happen?”

Su Dieyi had just picked up a piece of tofu when he spoke. Her hand trembled, the tofu dropped back into her plate, and she froze for a moment before withdrawing her hand and replying, voice flat, “Nothing, just felt a bit off this afternoon.”

Seeing she didn’t want to talk about it, Li Huan didn’t press. After all, their relationship wasn’t that close, and if not for that silly piglet, they probably wouldn’t have exchanged more than a few words. Of course, his injury had been the turning point. Girls always have their mysterious troubles, he thought, and it was best not to pry; whatever it was, it was likely a delicate matter she didn’t wish to share.

After dinner, Su Dieyi went to shower. Li Huan watched her head into the bathroom with her pajamas, and soon she emerged, cheeks flushed, wearing a white silk nightgown. Unlike the one from that morning, this one was less sheer, revealing nothing underneath.

“Hey, come here!” Su Dieyi stood by the bathroom door, looking at Li Huan, her face a mix of embarrassment and irritation.

Li Huan was watching a dating show and, hearing her call, looked up in confusion. Seeing her standing there in her nightgown, cheeks aglow, he felt his heart skip a beat. Was she inviting him to bathe together? That seemed far too sudden!

“Um… the bathroom’s a bit small. Wouldn’t it be cramped if we showered together?” He thought it best to play it cool, not wanting her to think he was too easy—a man should have some dignity, after all.

“How disgusting! Who wants to shower with you?” Su Dieyi scowled and turned away, pointing into the bathroom, her face reddening. “How could you hang something like that on the showerhead? Take it away!”

“What?” Li Huan was puzzled. Why did girls always make such a fuss about bathing?

“Just look for yourself…” Su Dieyi couldn’t bring herself to say the word, so she stepped aside and let him see.

Li Huan frowned, walked past her, and glanced inside. He’d left his washed underwear hanging on the showerhead, forgetting to take them down. Su Dieyi must have spotted them and was too embarrassed to move them herself, so she called him.

“Too reserved…” Li Huan sighed dramatically. Living with such a conservative beauty, it would be hard to get anywhere with her, he thought with a tinge of regret.

Still, he took his underwear down without complaint. He might have a mischievous streak, but he wasn’t so crude as to force a girl to handle his laundry.

But as he turned to leave, his eyes landed on the clothes rack beside the shower. There hung Su Dieyi’s sportswear from earlier, and right next to it—a set of black lace lingerie.

Li Huan’s gaze was instantly magnetized, his eyes fixed on the delicate fabric just a step away. The air in the bathroom was thick with a subtle, intimate fragrance—a scent unique to young women, intoxicating and heady, as if laced with some maddening elixir. He felt a fire ignite in his belly, heat radiating through his body.

He thought he might suffocate, his limbs stiff as if frozen for a thousand years. Almost involuntarily, he reached out, his fingers brushing the soft, silky edge of the black lace panties. His body shuddered, his mouth filled with saliva, and he swallowed hard. Carefully, he hooked a finger around the waistband and lifted them, the delicate lingerie settling into his hand.