Chapter 33: Even If We Divorce Tomorrow, I Won’t Regret Tonight
They had returned relatively late, so the communal shower room happened to be empty.
Lin Wan first turned the valve for the cold water pipe, then the one for the hot water.
The water temperature of the rusty, old-fashioned shower was notoriously hard to adjust; it was either freezing cold or scalding hot. After much effort, Lin Wan finally managed to get the water to a tolerable temperature. She quickly pulled her toiletries out of her space and washed herself thoroughly.
When she finished, she wrapped her hair in a quick-dry towel cap and put on a sheet mask. Then, she picked out a bitter orange blossom scented body lotion and carefully slathered it on.
Before she could even finish her skincare routine, a knock came from the door, followed by Huo Xiao’s deep, slightly worried voice: “Lin Wan!”
“Are you okay?”
“The hot water has been shut off.”
Lin Wan hurriedly called out, “I… I’ll be out in a second!”
She had originally wanted to apply some subtle, “no-makeup” makeup, but with the man pressing her from outside the door, she couldn’t care less. She scrambled into her clothes, tossed the items that shouldn’t exist back into her system space, and opened the door.
“Ah—”
The floor was too slippery, and Lin Wan was in too much of a rush. She lost her footing and fell backward. The washbasin in her hands slipped, hitting the floor with a loud clank.
She shut her eyes, thinking she was completely done for. If I hit the back of my head like this, I’m going to turn into an idiot.
However, she was caught.
The back of her head didn’t hit the ground. Instead, her nose slammed straight into a rock-hard chest. A scent of soap mixed with a man’s crisp, clean aura forcefully invaded Lin Wan’s nostrils.
“Are you okay?”
The man’s low voice vibrated near her ear. Clutching her throbbing nose, Lin Wan shamelessly pressed herself a bit closer to his chest muscles. If she didn’t take advantage of the situation now, when would she?
“It hurts,” Lin Wan whined. “I can’t walk.”
Her nose: Who the hell walks with their nose?
Huo Xiao scooped Lin Wan up in a bridal carry. A kind-hearted older sister, who had run over to check after hearing the commotion, helped Lin Wan pick up her basin and the things scattered across the floor.
“The guesthouse has safflower oil. Young man, your wife must have sprained her ankle. Go ask for some to rub it in. If you don’t rub it out, she won’t be able to walk tomorrow.”
Huo Xiao thanked her, “Thank you, Big Sister, I have some in my room.”
He laid Lin Wan down on the bed, then turned back to take the basin from the woman. The older sister looked at the two of them with a beaming smile. Tsk tsk, what a handsome couple! The man is good-looking, the woman is beautiful; who knows how gorgeous their children will be. She was already shipping them.
Closing the door, Huo Xiao dug through his duffel bag to find the safflower oil. He squatted in front of Lin Wan, reaching out to grasp her foot and rolling up her trouser leg to check it.
His slightly calloused fingers were rough and dry, and every inch of skin they grazed sent a shiver of electric tingling through her. When the man’s fingertips accidentally brushed the arch of her foot, an intense itch struck her. Lin Wan instinctively yanked her foot away to dodge. However, she overdid the movement, and her foot ended up planted squarely on Huo Xiao’s face.
The atmosphere instantly froze. She forgot to pull her foot back.
Huo Xiao’s eyes darkened. He lowered his gaze, the dim, amber light casting a fan-shaped shadow from his feather-like eyelashes. The thin lips beneath his prominent nose tightened, and his sharp Adam’s apple bobbed up and down.
His hand gripped Lin Wan’s foot once more. “Bear with it. Let me check.” His usual voice carried an undetectable trace of hoarseness.
“I… my foot is fine. My nose hurts.” Lin Wan averted her gaze, her face burning intensely, turning redged than a cooked crab. “I… I was just startled, and my legs… my legs feel weak…”
After saying that, she stole a glance at Huo Xiao.
Huo Xiao let go of her foot and stood up. “Then… then you should get some sleep early.”
The moment he stood up, Lin Wan looked up at him pitifully, pointing to the tip of her nose. “Aren’t you going to check it for me? It really hurts. You’re too hard. Did you break it?”
With that, she carefully reached out, grabbing his tank top and giving it a gentle tug.
Forced to lean down, Huo Xiao locked eyes with Lin Wan’s shy gaze. The young girl’s almond eyes were bright and moist, reflecting tiny, scattered glints of light. Her timidity was laced with a sense of eager anticipation, like a curious kitten secretly extending a paw to explore the unknown, yet acting incredibly cowardly—striking once and immediately hiding away. Seeing that nothing happened, it would dare to pop its head out and strike again. One swipe to the left, one swipe to the right, scratching his heart until it was completely restless.
Their gazes became thoroughly entangled. Huo Xiao’s fingers gently landed on the bridge of her nose, rubbing it back and forth.
Lin Wan’s heart went thump, thump, thump in a chaotic rhythm. The butterflies in her stomach were running wild, and her heart was racing furiously.
Driven by her audacious lust, she said cooingly, “Can you blow on it for me? It won’t hurt if you blow on it.”
Huo Xiao’s eyes grew even darker, looking terrifyingly still.
Lin Wan curled all her toes. If she couldn’t even seduce the man in front of her like this, she might as well quietly get a divorce in three years. Otherwise… should she consider drugging him before the divorce? At the very least, she had to get a taste of him so she wouldn’t lose out!
Lin Wan’s little hand kept tugging. The man’s tank top became completely stretched out of shape by her pull, fully exposing his blood-pumping chest muscles.
Just as she was boldly gathering the courage to touch him, a knock suddenly rattled the door.
Knock, knock, knock…
“Regiment Commander Huo! An urgent call just came from the higher-ups. You are ordered to rejoin the unit immediately. The plane is already prepared.”
Lin Wan: “…”
(╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻
Huo Xiao left his address and contact number. Before stepping out the door, he turned back to give her a deep, lingering look. After a moment of deliberation, he said, “Ideological report, once a week!”
Lin Wan had originally wanted to tell him, “Stay safe,” but the words were forcefully swallowed back down. She lay on the bed, clutching the blanket and twisting herself into a pretzel. Cursing under her breath, she drifted off to sleep.
Despite her lingering frustration, she still slept very soundly.
Huang Guixiang, who had flipped the table to vent her anger, also slept very soundly. But the rest of the Zhang family didn’t get much sleep at all.
As for the Guo family, they couldn’t sleep at all. Everything was in an absolute uproar.
Inside the Guo family’s living room.
Zhang Qin and Guo Xuyang stood together in the center of the room. The atmosphere was terrifyingly heavy. She kept her head down, her hands tugging at the hem of her shirt, her small face stark white. A mess of shattered porcelain and spilled tea lay right at her feet.
Mother Guo’s face was flushed red with anger, and she leaned weakly against the shoulder of her eldest daughter-in-law, Jiang Fang, shedding tears. Her second daughter-in-law, Huang Hui, sat on her other side, gently rubbing her chest to soothe her breathing.
Father Guo rubbed the space between his brows. He was profoundly disappointed in this son of his. This was supposed to be the son he took the most pride in, the one with the brightest future. Who could have imagined he would act so recklessly for the sake of a woman!
Marrying and registering a certificate behind their backs was one thing, but he had actually landed himself in the police station for her sake!
Guo Xuyang’s maternal aunt and uncle, paternal aunt and uncle, and maternal older cousin were all gathered in their living room.
His paternal uncle, who worked in criminal investigation, spoke up: “Sister, Brother-in-law, the situation has already happened. I’ve already spoken with the local precinct downstairs. As long as Lin Wan withdraws the police report, they can act as if they never received it. It won’t affect Xuyang on his official record. Otherwise, it will be very difficult to pass the military’s inspection.”
With that, he turned to advise Guo Xuyang, “Xuyang, I’ve looked at the entire chain of evidence. You have a misunderstanding regarding this Comrade Lin Wan. Tomorrow, take some heavy gifts and go door-to-door to apologize. She is a military dependent too. Her husband is an officer as well! If she resolutely refuses to let it go, it will be more than enough to give you a very rough time!”
Guo Xuyang’s maternal uncle, who served as the director of the Revolutionary Committee, also nodded in agreement. “Yes, matters on the civilian side are easy to resolve. The real fear is the other party taking it straight up to the military…”
