Chapter 10

Mo Hongshen didn’t react much to Yu Qing’er’s sudden entrance. He casually replied, “Just leave the umbrella outside, I’ll grab it when I leave.”

In the military, being shirtless wasn’t a big deal. Guys showered together, a bunch of rough men all crowding in—it was nothing.

During summer training, when it got hot and exhausting, most people didn’t even bother wearing shirts. So Mo Hongshen was completely used to it.

But Yu Qing’er didn’t respond to what he said. Instead, she kept tracing his body with her eyes—over and over again.

Being stared at like that, Mo Hongshen finally realized what was going on.

Those burly military men weren’t the same as Yu Qing’er. She was a young lady. And here he was, half-naked in front of her—definitely inappropriate. But how was he supposed to bring it up?

For a moment, even Mo Hongshen felt awkward. His gaze started to shift evasively.

“Comrade Yu?” he called.

“Hm?” She finally snapped out of it, not even realizing what he’d said earlier. She quickly grabbed the umbrella and rushed out. “Ah—sorry, I thought you’d already changed. I’ll wait outside.”

Mo Hongshen: “…”

Was she blushing just now?

He looked at himself in the mirror. The sight… yeah, it was understandable. But why was his own face slightly red too?

Yu Qing’er walked out into the living room and plopped down on the sofa, fanning her face with her hand.

She’d been looking at him openly before, but once Mo Hongshen noticed, she started to feel embarrassed. Her cheeks burned, her mind was spinning.

Honestly, Mo Hongshen’s body was about the same as her ex’s in the previous life…

No, actually—better!

She may have still been a virgin after transmigrating into the book, but in her previous life she definitely hadn’t had a platonic relationship with her boyfriend.

So—her head was now filled with all kinds of not-so-innocent thoughts. And now that she suspected Mo Hongshen was her ex-boyfriend… those “thoughts” were driving her nuts.

It was like she already knew him too well…

Smack! Yu Qing’er slapped her forehead and muttered, “Yu Qing’er, quit it with the pervy brain! Can you stop being so shameless?!”

She was already drooling over Mo Hongshen’s body—if he ever found out, what would he think?

Although his opinion didn’t really matter… Yu Qing’er mostly feared scaring him off. That’d be such a tragic loss!

Mo Hongshen finished changing in the bathroom. As expected, the clothes were a little small, but wearable.

He tidied up his wet clothes before stepping out—only to find Yu Qing’er talking to herself and hitting her own forehead. He was baffled.

“What are you doing?” Mo Hongshen asked, puzzled.

“Ah?” Yu Qing’er laughed awkwardly, not explaining a thing. “You finished changing? Hmm… yeah, it looks a bit tight.”

It was because it was tight that Yu Yaotian’s shirt hugged Mo Hongshen’s body so closely.

To put it another way—it fit very well.

Which, unfortunately, made Yu Qing’er’s mind drift off again…

This is getting ridiculous, she scolded herself. Am I some sheltered village girl who’s never seen a man before? Get a grip, woman!

“It’s fine,” Mo Hongshen said, looking down at himself. It wasn’t his own shirt, so he felt a bit out of place.

Being alone in a girl’s home, just the two of them—he shouldn’t stay long.

“Well then…” Mo Hongshen picked up the umbrella from the coffee table and said, “I’ll head out now.”

“Oh, okay.” Yu Qing’er got up and walked him to the door.

As they were about to part, the atmosphere turned slightly awkward again—like when they first met.

“I’m going to drink some cold medicine anyway. Do you want a cup before you go?” Yu Qing’er racked her brain to come up with an excuse to keep him a little longer.

They had just started seeing each other and hadn’t made anything official yet. Mo Hongshen felt it was inappropriate to linger.

“It’s fine. I’ll drink some when I get home.” He carried his wet clothes and held the umbrella, clearly about to leave—but there was a hint of disappointment in his eyes. The date hadn’t gone exactly as planned.

“Are you free next week?” he asked. “If you are, maybe we can go out for a meal?”

“Sure!” Yu Qing’er blurted out without hesitation.

Her response was so quick that it caught Mo Hongshen off guard. The two looked at each other and chuckled at the same time.

“Alright, see you next week.”

“See you next week.”

Yu Qing’er still had images of a shirtless Mo Hongshen stuck in her mind. It was like her brain was full of glue—nothing she said or thought made sense. It wasn’t until the door closed that she realized what she’d agreed to.

Oh well. She didn’t usually have plans anyway. Having lunch together on the weekend wasn’t a problem.

But her face must’ve been really red just now. Hopefully, Mo Hongshen didn’t notice anything weird.

Biting her finger out of habit, she headed toward her bedroom.

Meanwhile, Mo Hongshen left holding the umbrella and walked home.

As he thought about everything that had happened with Yu Qing’er, something felt off. No matter what he said to her, she seemed distracted.

And that look she gave him before he left… it was hard to describe.

As a soldier, Mo Hongshen wasn’t just trained in combat. He’d worked in the field, faced enemies, and learned to read people’s expressions and intentions just by looking in their eyes. So he was very sensitive to such things.

Yu Qing’er’s gaze back there… to put it bluntly, it was like a hunter eyeing its prey.

Like she was ready to devour him.

But… why would she want to devour him?

Was he just overthinking?

Back at home, ever since the weather turned and the rain began, Yin Xiaolan had been pacing and muttering anxiously.

“Aiyo, our eldest finally got a weekend date with a nice girl, and it had to rain? Why now? Why rain today?”

Couldn’t heaven be more merciful?

Not long after, Mo Hongshen came home.

Yin Xiaolan sighed—what a disastrous start.

“Son! How did the date go with the girl? What did you do? It’s raining out—did you at least walk her home?” she fired off questions rapidly, trailing after him.

Mo Hongshen didn’t know where to start. But before he could even open his mouth, Yin Xiaolan’s voice rang out again.

“Wait a minute—this isn’t your shirt, is it? Where’d you get this shirt?” She tugged at the hem of his shirt, frowning. “It doesn’t even fit you properly!”

“It’s not mine,” Mo Hongshen finally found a question he could answer. “My clothes got soaked. This is Comrade Yu’s father’s shirt. She lent it to me.”

He was already thinking that he’d wash it clean later and return it the next time they met.

“What?!” Yin Xiaolan, who’d just been moping about the rain ruining the date, suddenly perked up.

So the girl lent him clothes? That had to mean she liked him at least a little!

“Oh no, you’re not going anywhere!” she called, pulling her son toward the couch. “Sit down and give me the full report—don’t you dare skip any details!”

“Come on, from the very beginning. Tell Mom everything from the moment you two met.” Her eyes sparkled with excitement. Clearly, Mo Hongshen wasn’t escaping without a full interrogation.

Mo Hongshen: “…”

“We met and decided to watch a movie,” he began, helpless against his mom’s enthusiasm.

“Wait—did you go empty-handed?” Yin Xiaolan interrupted.

Mo Hongshen was stunned. He gave an innocent, “Mm,” thinking he hadn’t owed Yu Qing’er anything, so what was wrong with going empty-handed?

“Mo Hongshen, Mo Hongshen! You’re really something!” Yin Xiaolan jabbed her son’s forehead with a finger, slapping her thigh in frustration. “You’re such a blockhead! With this kind of awareness, you want to date someone?”

“Your first date with a girl, and you show up with nothing? No gift at all? Fine, maybe you don’t know her well enough to pick something she likes—but couldn’t you at least bring a bouquet of flowers? Most girls don’t hate flowers, don’t you know that?” she lectured earnestly.