Chapter 14 Emotional Changes

As Lin Qiyue sensed Lan Yuchu getting closer, she quickly shifted over and pulled the blanket up over herself.

Seeing that she was ready to sleep, Lan Yuchu asked, “Should I turn off the light then?”

“Mm-hmm~” Lin Qiyue nodded.

He turned off the light, and they lay down together.

Covered by the same blanket, they didn’t do anything—just stared at the ceiling, listening to each other’s steady breathing.

Lin Qiyue thought to herself, It’s way too early to be sleeping. She couldn’t fall asleep. Last night she had been completely exhausted, so she knocked out right away. But tonight was different.

There was a man beside her. She felt too stiff to even move a little.

Lying flat on her back like that, she couldn’t fall asleep. She normally had to switch positions several times before settling.

Her heart was racing.

Only after a long while, when she heard Lan Yuchu’s breathing steady as he fell asleep, did she carefully roll onto her side.

The light from the courtyard filtered in through the white curtains—it wasn’t completely blocked. She could see the contours of his face.

If only he were a bit paler, she thought, he’d be a certified heartthrob. But he’s too tan—only that finely sculpted face is keeping things afloat.

Still, Lin Qiyue thought, Living with a man like this… it’s not so bad.

Her mother-in-law worked a government job and was often too busy to be home—there probably wouldn’t be any mother-in-law drama.

But a man like this… he’s the kind who belongs to the heroine in a novel, she thought to herself.

She bent her right arm under her head as a pillow and continued admiring his face.

As she stared, she couldn’t help but giggle to herself.

When drowsiness finally set in, Lin Qiyue, no longer mindful of anything, rolled right into Lan Yuchu’s arms.

She snuggled in, causing chaos in the mind of the man beside her.

Lan Yuchu was awakened in the middle of the night by her restlessness.

When he opened his eyes, she was nestled right against him, her nightgown’s thin straps slipping off her shoulders. Her soft, fair skin pressed against his bare chest—he hadn’t worn a shirt either.

Blood rushed through his veins; the veins on his face bulged.

She was soft, warm…

His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed hard, whispering to himself repeatedly, trying to calm down.

He wanted to get up and take a cold shower, but Lin Qiyue was clinging to him with both arms and legs—there was no escape.

“Mmm… handsome guy… don’t run…” she murmured in her sleep, still uttering seductive nonsense.

This was completely unlike her prim and proper daytime self.

The sky is falling, Lan Yuchu thought.

He was a normal man—how was he supposed to endure this?!

Even though he knew Lin Qiyue didn’t mean it, that sleep positions were hard to control, it was still torture for him.

He almost wanted to flip her over and…

But no. He couldn’t.

He kept telling himself to calm down. Calm down.

Only in the dead of night did Lan Yuchu finally manage to fall back asleep—
which resulted in him sleeping in the next morning.

Qian Xiuying had gotten up early. As she got older, she couldn’t sleep much. Her husband was busy with work and often away from home.

She glanced at her second son’s room. She had been up for a while now, but he still hadn’t gotten out of bed.

He must’ve overdone it last night, she thought.
Slept so early yesterday, and still not up?

Her dream of holding a grandchild was probably about to come true.

Delighted, she started making breakfast.

Outside, there was a lot of noise. Little Yangyang was in the courtyard—laughing one minute, crying the next.

Lin Qiyue couldn’t take the noise anymore and was woken up by it.

As a daughter-in-law, I really shouldn’t sleep in this late, she thought.

“Mom! It’s finally the weekend—can’t you keep Yangyang quiet? He’s keeping me from sleeping!”

Lan Yusui had gotten up first and yelled toward the kitchen.

Qian Xiuying snapped back, “You don’t do a lick of work, and you still get served breakfast. Have the nerve to complain? The sun’s already high in the sky!”

Lan Yusui had no comeback. She sighed, closed the door, and went back to bed.

Lin Qiyue, on the other hand, couldn’t sleep anymore. Her shoulder felt sore.

She squinted her eyes open, blinking against the bright light—
and suddenly became fully awake.

She stared wide-eyed at the man in front of her.

She had fallen asleep hugging him.

The position was… very compromising.

Her clothes had shifted around, exposing a lot of skin.

It was like a public embarrassment waiting to happen.

I should never have made that nightgown so loose! she thought, panicking. That much skin… how is any man supposed to handle that?

Thankfully, he was still asleep—or she’d be completely mortified.

She carefully slipped out of Lan Yuchu’s arms and got out of bed to fix her nightgown.

But in her hurry, the moment she stood up, her leg cramped—

“Ah!” she cried out, losing her balance and falling to the floor with a loud thump.

Lan Yuchu was jolted awake by the sound. He immediately got up and rushed over.

Seeing her on the ground, he helped her up and asked, “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine—I just tripped,” she replied, thoroughly embarrassed.

Her calf twitched from the cramp, sending spasms of pain.

“Where are you hurt? Let me see.”

Lan Yuchu checked her over. Her knee was a little scraped, but everything else seemed fine.

“Ah~” she winced again—the cramp still hadn’t passed.

“Where does it hurt? Tell me,” Lan Yuchu asked, worried.

Lin Qiyue pointed honestly, “It’s a cramp… here.”
She motioned to her right calf, her toes stiff.

Lan Yuchu reached out and began firmly massaging the area.

Only then did the pain begin to subside.

From outside, Qian Xiuying heard the noise and muttered,
That rascal must not have controlled himself… First time and already hurt Qiyue?

She made a mental note to give her son a serious talk later.

Lan Yusui, having heard the commotion, couldn’t fall back asleep either.

She remembered she had plans to hang out with her classmates today.

Her skirt from yesterday should be dry by now.

She stepped out and noticed her mom staring toward her second brother’s room.

“Mom, why are you staring at Second Brother and Sister-in-law’s room?” Lan Yusui asked curiously.

Qian Xiuying looked a bit embarrassed and quickly said, “You’re just a kid—why are you asking so much?”

Lan Yusui immediately mimicked her mom in a low voice, grumbling, “You’re just a kid—why are you asking so much?”

Then she went to get her skirt, brought it back to her room, and changed into it.

Lan Yuchu rubbed Lin Qiyue’s leg a bit and, seeing she looked better, asked, “Feeling better now?”

“Much better, thank you,” she replied.

Her leg was resting across his thigh, revealing her shapely leg in a teasing way—
which, whether intentional or not, could easily be seen as her trying to seduce him.

Lan Yuchu gently put her leg down and turned to the wardrobe to grab some clothes.

He put on a shirt and was about to change his pants. Lin Qiyue immediately turned away, giving him privacy.

But Lan Yuchu, noticing she had turned around, got lazy and just changed right there without going to the bathroom.

When Lin Qiyue finally turned back after waiting for a while, she caught the moment he had just finished dressing.

Her cheeks flushed bright red, and she pretended not to have seen anything.

“I’ll go get some disinfectant from the living room and clean your wound,” he said, then walked out.

The moment Qian Xiuying saw her son come out, she hurried over to ask, “Is Qiyue okay?”

“She’s fine. Just scraped her skin a little. I’ll disinfect it for her.”

“What? Scraped? You—where did she get scraped?” Qian Xiuying grew anxious.

“Just a little on her elbow joint. I’ll take care of it with some disinfectant.”

Once she realized it wasn’t what she’d imagined, Qian Xiuying’s face turned a little awkward.

But seeing her son looking like he hadn’t slept well, she figured those two must’ve had quite a night.

“Hurry then, don’t keep Qiyue waiting,” she urged.

Given all the noise earlier, she had assumed he hadn’t even let her rest in the morning.

Men… they’re most energetic in the early morning, she thought. I’ve been there—I know how it is.

Lan Yuchu brought the disinfectant back in. Lin Qiyue had just finished getting dressed.

“Come here, let me disinfect your wound,” he said—his tone almost like a command.

Lin Qiyue found his tone a bit unpleasant, but still obediently walked over.

Sitting in front of him, she watched as he dipped a cotton swab into the disinfectant and gently dabbed it near her wound.

“Ahh! Ow—owww!” she yelped. She was truly afraid of pain.

“I haven’t even started yet,” Lan Yuchu said, exasperated. He had only dabbed the edge of the wound and she was already trembling.

Lin Qiyue looked at him with a pitiful expression and said, “It hurts! What do you want me to do?”

Lan Yuchu: “…”

What could he do? Not treating the wound wasn’t an option either.

“Can you blow on it? It won’t hurt as much then?” Lin Qiyue blurted out without thinking—completely forgetting that the two of them weren’t even that familiar yet.

She used to say that to her roommates whenever she got hurt.

But the moment the words left her mouth—she regretted it instantly.