Chapter 26: This is killing me! Who could possibly endure such a trial?

Inside the kitchen, a small flame flickered under a wok, producing a pleasant bubbling sound. The rich, fragrant aroma of fish soup wafted from the kitchen and drifted outward, smelling absolutely divine...

Four cooked dishes were laid out on the table: shredded potato with garlic and chili, sweet and sour pork ribs, stir-fried pig kidneys, and pan-fried hairtail. They were all Lin Li's favorites!

Actually... no, it should be said that as long as the dishes were cooked by Su Yue, Lin Li would accept them all without hesitation; he loved everything she made.

*Gulp.*

For the past two days, it had been nothing but egg and shredded pork noodles or self-heating rice. Lin Li was now desperately craving a proper home-cooked meal. Seeing this spread, he couldn't help but salivate, swallowing hard.

"What are you standing there for? Sit down! I'll go ladle the fish soup." Su Yue came up behind Lin Li and patted him on the shoulder.

"Oh." Lin Li nodded and quickly pulled out a chair to sit. Watching Su Yue's swaying figure as she walked slowly into the kitchen to get the soup, a thought popped into his mind.

*Man, Su Yue is beautiful and a great cook. If only she were my girlfriend... Er, stop daydreaming. There's a crowd of guys chasing her; there's no way I'd stand a chance.*

Lin Li shook his head, dismissing his unrealistic fantasies. Then, he remembered something very important he had forgotten to do.

"Su Yue, my phone is almost out of battery. Can I borrow your charger?"

"The charger is on my bedside table in my bedroom. Go grab it yourself!" Su Yue called out from the kitchen while ladling the soup.

Lin Li stood up, left the dining room, and headed toward Su Yue's bedroom.

*Click.*

As he pushed open the door and stepped inside, a scent as delicate as orchids immediately rushed toward him. Such a pleasant fragrance was definitely not the smell of perfume.

After instinctively twitching his nose a few times, Lin Li reached out and turned on the light.

As the light flickered on, the darkness in the room was instantly dispelled.

His gaze fell upon the nightstand, and he immediately saw the charger Su Yue had mentioned. Lin Li walked toward the nightstand, leaned over, and picked up the charger.

Just as he was about to turn and leave, his peripheral vision caught a glimpse of Su Yue's bed. That single, inadvertent glance caused his feet to freeze mid-step.

On the white bedsheets, several pieces of purple lace lingerie were strikingly visible.

*Tap, tap, tap...*

While Lin Li was standing there in a daze, the sound of footsteps came from outside the door.

Because the footsteps were somewhat hurried, it was clear that the person outside was in a bit of a rush.

There was no one else in the house besides himself and Su Yue, so it was obvious who the footsteps belonged to.

Startled by the rapid footsteps, Lin Li quickly withdrew his gaze and walked toward the door, pretending to be nonchalant.

Just as he reached the bedroom doorway, he collided with Su Yue, who was walking briskly into the room.

"Ah!" Su Yue, crashing straight into Lin Li, let out a cry and her body began to tilt to the side.

Seeing her about to fall to the floor, Lin Li acted quickly, reaching out his right hand to grab Su Yue's slender, pale wrist.

With a slight tug, Su Yue was pulled directly into Lin Li's arms.

The collision was sudden, so Lin Li didn't feel much at first, but the current intimate contact allowed him to feel the fullness of Su Yue's chest with startling clarity.

This kind of situation was something even an experienced veteran couldn't handle, let alone a novice like Lin Li, who had never even had a girlfriend.

To avoid making a fool of himself in front of Su Yue, Lin Li hurriedly placed his hands on her shoulders and pushed her away from his embrace.

"You scared me." Su Yue patted her chest, a scene of "surging waves" so spectacular that Lin Li didn't dare look directly at it... it was too intense.

"I'm starving, I'm going to eat!" After a panicked response, Lin Li hurried back toward the dining room.

Standing where she was, Su Yue watched Lin Li's flustered departure, then looked back at her bed.

The purple lingerie was laid out very conspicuously on the bed.

The moment she thought about the fact that Lin Li had just seen her intimate clothing, Su Yue—who was usually very easygoing—felt her fair cheeks instantly flush with a deep crimson.

***

At the dining table, Lin Li and Su Yue ate in silence, which was a complete departure from their usual dining atmosphere.

*Sigh, how awkward! Why did I walk so fast just now?* Lin Li stared intently at the food, not daring to look at Su Yue's expression.

*How embarrassing. I should have put my clean clothes in the wardrobe...* Although Su Yue felt shy, her outward reaction seemed quite composed. While she ate, she was secretly observing Lin Li.

When she saw how intently Lin Li was focused on the "great task" of eating, her embarrassment gradually faded... *Why am I being shy? This coward wouldn't actually dare to flirt with me, would he?*

The quiet atmosphere did not last long. Once the shyness had vanished from her heart, Su Yue took the initiative to break the silence.

"Lin Li, now that you've graduated from university, do you have any plans for the future?"

*Plans for the future? I plan to hunt exotic beasts in the wild to feed that magical little tree on the mysterious island, making it grow one magical fruit after another. Then, I'll eat those fruits, become a powerful cultivator, earn tons of money, and finally marry a beautiful, wealthy woman to reach the pinnacle of life...*

*Sigh, unfortunately, I can't tell anyone about such grand ambitions... I suppose this is the period of endurance that every powerful person must go through before achieving fame and fortune!*

As Lin Li was focused on his meal, Su Yue's question caused a long, passionate monologue to flash through his mind.

Swallowing his food, Lin Li turned to look at the beautiful Su Yue and replied with an air of aimlessness, "I haven't thought it through. I'll just stay like this for now. It's not like I'll starve to death."

Su Yue had rented Lin Li's house after graduating from university, and it had been about three years. Through various events, they had become very good friends in addition to their landlord-tenant relationship.

Su Yue had long known about Lin Li's desire to just stay at home and live like a carefree "salted fish."

However, Su Yue didn't want Lin Li to spend his prime years just idling away at home.

"Even though you have some savings, it's not good to just sit around and let them run out!"

*Sister! Don't talk about running out of savings. I don't even have a single cent on me right now; I'm practically penniless...*

Lin Li truly had a bitter grievance he couldn't express. If Su Yue hadn't called him over for dinner just now, he wouldn't even have had a place to charge his phone.

***

(End of Chapter)