Chapter 29: Dew

Lin Qiao always knew that Ji Duo was tall, but she didn’t realize how difficult it would be to handle the height difference when it came to their body types.

The weather was hot, and she only wore a sleeveless cotton shirt. When the man’s scorching palm touched her, it sent a shiver through her waist. As one hand gripped her waist, the other hand seized the back of her neck, forcing Lin Qiao to tilt her head back and accept the forceful and domineering kiss.

What’s even more fatal is that, who knows if it’s the residual estrogen from her menstrual period, she actually doesn’t feel disgusted.

When the man kissed her, she didn’t feel anything; when his big hand smoothly pressed against her waist, she didn’t feel anything; even when they paused to breathe, she let out a small sigh.

This very breath brought an even more intense kiss, overwhelming everything.

The ceiling fan above was whirring, bringing a cool breeze along with a bit of noise, yet it still couldn’t drown out the sound of water in the darkness.

There was no half-heartedness or gradual progression; from the beginning, this person gave her the most intense sensory stimulation.

Lin Qiao felt her whole body heat up; the fire ignited wherever the man’s big hand touched.

The scent of soap still lingered in Ji Duo’s hair. With almost no effort, he pushed her away with his knee. The moment their skin touched, their breaths became even more tightly intertwined.

Noticing an undeniable presence, she regained a bit of her awareness and pushed him away with her hand. But this push clearly lacked any force. The man seemed to think she found him heavy, so he turned over and lifted her onto his waist, wrapping his arm around her neck and continuing to kiss her.

Until his thumb brushed the edge of a piece of fabric, Ji Duo finally let her go, his voice hoarse, “If you don’t object now, I’ll continue.”

Lin Qiao was about to speak, but her fingers pressed against the man’s chest tightened, letting out a soft moan.

He asked her if she opposed, so he should give her time to oppose!

This person looks serious and upright. How can he be so unscrupulous in certain matters? It’s just like what Old Zhou said—full of bad intentions!

Before the other person could explore further, Lin Qiao finally grabbed his finger with her eyes hazy, “D-do you have a condom?”

The man’s breath hitched slightly, “Didn’t it just leave?”

Lin Qiao had regained some of her composure from that remark, “But there’s still a chance of getting pregnant.”

After Lin Qiao visited the doctor, Xu Li also called Ji Duo to remind him that she wasn’t suitable for having a child for the time being.

As soon as these words were spoken, the room fell into silence, with only the sound of the ceiling fan and the uneven breaths of the two people remaining.

After a long while, the man suddenly kissed her forcefully on the lips.

Lin Qiao thought he was going to force himself on her against her will, but the man let go of her, “Sleep.”

Sleep? Just like that, lying on him to sleep?

Lin Qiao thought it shouldn’t be that bad. She carefully avoided a certain part of him that was still energetic and turned to lie back on her side of the bed. But once she lay down, her mind became clear, and more questions followed, making it impossible for her to fall asleep.

First, wasn’t the male lead in the original book always chaste, waiting to give his virginity as the best dowry?

How could he give it to her like that? Doesn’t he want to be the male lead in JJWXC anymore?

Secondly, at the critical moment, she said there was no condom, not that it was impossible…

Lin Qiao didn’t want to admit it, but she was always honest with herself. She was also attracted to his body.

Of course, with such a perfect man lying next to her every day, if she wasn’t sure he was the male lead, how could she remain so calm? So now that the opportunity was right in front of her, should she take it or not?

Lin Qiao couldn’t help but turn over and over again, and she wanted to keep turning when she heard the man’s slightly hoarse voice: “Still uncomfortable?”

She was stunned, quickly realizing what he meant, given that he had just touched everything. But before she could explain, the man’s large hand reached over again…

Ten minutes later, Ji Duo turned on the bedroom light and grabbed a cigarette, biting it between his lips. He casually put on his military pants without fastening the belt, and his shirt was completely open, revealing his defined chest and abs, as he leaned against the desk by the bed.

This look was even more relaxed than his nephew Ji Ze, completely overturning the image he usually presented. The way he tilted his head to light the cigarette even exuded a bit of roguish charm. But it also matched the feeling he gave in the dark—dominant and dangerous. At least until today, Lin Qiao never imagined he had this side to him.

No, it wasn’t entirely unexpected…

Previously, at the hospital, when the man was drenched and smoking in the corridor, he already showed a bit of uncharacteristic unruliness. She had thought it was because of the rain.

Seeing Lin Qiao looking over, the man glanced at his fingers, “I’ll go wash my hands.”

The heat that had just subsided on Lin Qiao’s body surged back up, but honestly, it didn’t feel bad. After all, this man had a good service spirit and patience.

Soon, Ji Duo came back up, carrying a basin of water with a towel draped over the edge. He bit the cigarette in his mouth, wrung out the towel, and handed it to her, “Wipe yourself.” He stood by the bed, looking out into the corridor.

Lin Qiao, still a bit dazed from the recent events, asked casually, “What’s wrong?”

“We should install a water pipe upstairs,” the man said, pointing out the window with his cigarette-holding hand.

In this context, saying he wanted to install a water pipe right after finishing was self-explanatory. It seemed he had decided not to remain chaste. Lin Qiao pressed the wet towel to her face, “Are you sure you really want to sleep with me?”

She feared he might regret it later, but the man only noticed the lingering pink on her body and the slightly trembling, seductive eyes from the recent excitement. He bit the cigarette, “Why wouldn’t I sleep with my lawfully wedded wife?”

That “why wouldn’t I” had a bit of the flavor of someone who had led soldiers at the grassroots level, making him even more aggressive.

Especially when he looked at her, Lin Qiao could almost feel the lingering numbness on her tongue, unlike before, when he was too restrained, making her think of elders and fathers but never of a husband or boyfriend.

Well, then, with such a perfect piece of meat delivered to her mouth, and legally, why shouldn’t she eat it?

As for the female lead, who wasn’t even in the picture yet, if he didn’t care about his role as the male lead, why should she? Should she leave him for someone else?

Rejecting internal conflict started with me; Lin Qiao quickly figured it out, and sleepiness soon followed. She handed the towel back to the man, “I’m sleepy. You handle it yourself.” She fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

That “handle it yourself” line really exposed her use-and-discard nature.

But Ji Duo wasn’t in a hurry. He glanced at her, extinguished the cigarette in the ashtray, wiped himself down, and turned off the light to sleep.

The next morning, while Lin Qiao was combing her hair in front of the mirror, she noticed two hickeys on her neck. It was clear they were from the man. Whether he was too forceful or her skin was too fair, the marks were particularly noticeable.

She couldn’t help but glare at him.

At this moment, Ji Duo had already reverted to his usual stern demeanor. His belt was tight, his uniform meticulously buttoned to the top, and even his shaving movements exuded a businesslike air. If it weren’t for the tangible evidence on her neck, Lin Qiao would have thought last night’s events were a dream.

Having known each other for so long, this was the first time Ji Duo saw Lin Qiao glare at someone, and his hand paused instinctively.

Lin Qiao had already looked away and was spraying herself with the newly bought floral water.

In this era, there was no concealer, and it was too hot to wear high-collared clothes. But it didn’t matter; weren’t there mosquitoes to blame?

As long as she sprayed enough, making sure she was thoroughly scented, anyone passing by would smell it. If anyone thought otherwise, it was their problem.

Lin Qiao never let herself get tangled up in such matters. After spraying herself, she even sprayed some on Ji Duo.

The man clearly didn’t like the scent and frowned.

“Who told you not to be careful?” Lin Qiao didn’t care if he liked it or not. “Next time you leave marks, I’ll spray you again.”

Indeed, Ji Duo knew he was at fault, so he didn’t say anything more.

With the floral water as a cover, no one on the way to work or in the school office associated the two marks on Lin Qiao’s neck with hickeys. Her calm demeanor also played a part; as long as she wasn’t embarrassed, others would be. Those who had suspicions quickly dismissed their thoughts.

Group Leader Gao, being a male colleague, didn’t even look at Lin Qiao’s neck. “I got the potassium hydroxide you asked for last time.” He placed a packet of powder on Lin Qiao’s desk. Lin Qiao thanked him and immediately thought of something else, “Have the reagents for the school lab also arrived?”

“Yes, they came in yesterday afternoon.”

This meant she could finally conduct the promised experiments for the two classes. Previously, she had delayed because the school lab didn’t have enough potassium chlorate.

However, with two classes, there would inevitably be a first and a second session if done separately. If done together, they would have to use the school’s small auditorium, as there wasn’t a classroom big enough.

Lin Qiao applied to the school, and they quickly approved it. But before she could schedule the time, Group Leader Gao approached her, “Why don’t you include my two classes as well? The small auditorium is big enough for two or three grades.”

Lin Qiao hadn’t promised those two classes. If they could join, her promise to Classes Three and Four would lose its motivational effect.

Group Leader Gao understood, “They don’t need to participate, just watch from the back. It saves them from constantly asking me.”

After Lin Qiao explained, he knew what to do and could teach it in his class. He didn’t want to take advantage of Lin Qiao.

“You should teach it yourself,” Lin Qiao thought for a moment and said. “Once I’m done, you can take over. After all, experiments need to be done hands-on to feel involved.”

Being the first to know and the first to do it was enough for the students in the two classes. Once the class was over, those who loved to show off would spread the word, and within three days, the whole school would know how to make a chalk bomb.

Since she didn’t mind, Group Leader Gao said nothing more. “Then I’ll wait until you’re done, and I’ll apply for the small auditorium, too.”

Unexpectedly, Lin Qiao continued, “Do you have time this afternoon? If so, can you help me with something?”

This experiment could be dangerous if not handled properly. With over a hundred students in two classes, even though Lin Qiao divided them into groups of ten and used desks as experiment tables, not everyone got a chance to mix the reagents. She was worried she wouldn’t be able to oversee everything.

Group Leader Gao readily agreed, “Sure, I’ll take a look at how it’s done.”

When the class started, not only Group Leader Gao but also Teacher Yang from the middle school department and Vice Principal Qi came.

Teacher Yang smiled at Lin Qiao, “I came to see what you’ve been up to. Even the middle school has heard about it.”

Vice Principal Qi’s gaze briefly fell on Qi Huaiwen before quickly and discreetly looking away.

Lin Qiao didn’t know the root of the father-son conflict and had no way to help. However, she appointed Qi Huaiwen as the group leader for this class, responsible for mixing the reagents. The boy performed exceptionally well, calmly starting the process while others were still figuring out the steps and ratios. Pouring alcohol, measuring reagents, mixing—he did each step steadily. Group Leader Gao couldn’t help but glance at Vice Principal Qi.

Due to the limited number of petri dishes and balances, the students who weren’t chosen as group leaders didn’t get to mix the reagents but did get to drill holes in the chalk and fill them themselves.

This kept everyone enthusiastic, even though they had to wait for the materials to dry before using them, and Lin Qiao still had to teach. After the experiment, Lin Qiao labeled each group’s chalk so they could enjoy the results of their work once it dried.

The students carefully packed their chalk, saying, “Next time, I’ll work harder. Maybe I’ll be the one mixing the reagents.”

Lin Qiao chose group leaders based on significant improvement or outstanding performance to encourage the students.

Some students were already thinking about the next test, “What will the teacher have us do next time?”

This was exactly the effect Lin Qiao wanted, “Next time, I’ll strive to let each of you participate. It depends on how much you improve.”

This statement was more motivating than a thousand rewards. The boys moved desks, the girls cleaned up the chalk dust and washed the dishes, all filled with energy.

Group Leader Gao watched and felt something was off, “Aren’t you competing with the two classes I lead?”

Class Two was fine, but Class One was only a few points behind Class Three. If Lin Qiao continued like this, his two classes would be in danger.

Everything was normal on Lin Qiao’s side, but Ji Duo was already noticed for the scent of floral water when he entered the camp in the morning.

Old Zhou, with a nose like a dog’s, started sniffing from two meters away, “How rare, even you used floral water? Didn’t you say real men don’t need this?”

What was a real man afraid of mosquitoes for? A couple of bites wouldn’t kill them.

Previously, during mountain training, a young soldier brought floral water and was found by Ji Duo, who said the same thing. Despite his good background, Ji Duo didn’t have any of the bad habits of privileged people and could endure hardships as well as anyone.

Now, even he was using it, which Old Zhou found unbelievable. Afraid he had smelled wrong, he took two steps closer.

Ji Duo didn’t intend to discuss personal matters with outsiders. He raised his hand to open the office door, “Where can I get family planning supplies?”

Old Zhou laughed, “Are you treating your wife like a delicate flower?”

Seeing Ji Duo’s calm gaze, Old Zhou quickly corrected himself, “I was just joking. I’ll tell you where to get them.”

In the evening, when Lin Qiao got off work, Ji Duo had already brought someone back to discuss installing the water pipe.

“The main pipe is in the kitchen. We can run a pipe along the outer wall directly to the second floor. It won’t need a long pipe, and we can add a water tank and a drainpipe.”

The person he found was clearly knowledgeable, and after inspecting inside and out, they had a rough plan. Since they needed to install water pipes and build a water tank, the noise was noticeable, even to the neighbors, Commander Liang’s family, who were watching from upstairs.

Although there was a wall between the two houses, it was only about two meters high. The first floor was well-covered, but the second floor was very close, especially the balconies outside the houses. Lin Qiao stood nearby, listening, and when she turned around, she met the curious gaze of Commander Liang’s wife. They hadn’t exchanged more than simple greetings in a long time, so this close encounter was unusual. Commander Liang’s wife seemed a bit uneasy, unlike before, when she was straightforward about her likes and dislikes.

Lin Qiao nodded politely and was about to look away when the other called out, “Teacher Lin.”

Commander Liang’s wife realized she had gotten used to calling her that because Junzi always said “Teacher Lin.”

One good thing about her was that she was straightforward about her feelings and didn’t pretend to like someone she didn’t. She wouldn’t be friendly to your face and badmouth you behind your back.

Having called out, she collected herself, “What’s going on at your place?”

Lin Qiao couldn’t exactly say that Ji Duo found it troublesome to go downstairs for water after certain activities, so they were installing water pipes upstairs. She quickly came up with an explanation, “Ji Duo said it’s troublesome to go downstairs for water to clean up, especially in winter when it’s slippery.”

Commander Liang’s wife agreed, “Exactly, especially in winter when it snows. Going up and down is already troublesome, and if water spills on the stairs, it’s even worse.”

She went downstairs and told Commander Liang, who was relaxing in the living room, “You should ask about it. We should install one too. I’m getting older, and it’s hard to carry a water bucket up and down the stairs. Xiao Ji has a good idea; it’s much more convenient than having a big bucket upstairs.”

“Alright, I’ll ask in a bit.”

“They will leave in a bit, so let’s go now.”

Commander Liang originally didn’t want to move, but after being urged by his wife a few times, he put on his shoes and went next door. He wasn’t very particular about his appearance and usually wore his military uniform with slippers at home.

After discussing it, they decided to install it together. As long as they had enough materials, they could finish it in a day. Coincidentally, the next day was Sunday, and both men were home. However, this meant they couldn’t go back to the old house, so they had to call Xu Li.

Ji Duo made the call and went to buy the materials. He never made Lin Qiao worry about these household matters.

That evening, Lin Qiao and he settled the accounts, prepaying all the material and labor costs. She even gave him an extra third, just in case.

When they were about to go to bed, the man behaved normally, without the aggressiveness from the previous night, and didn’t even spare Lin Qiao a glance. Lin Qiao thought he had given up on getting the condoms, but just as they got into bed, with the lights still on, the lurking leopard pounced on its prey.

This time, Lin Qiao reacted quickly. The man had just leaned over, and before he could ignite her desire, she pressed his hand down first. “Do you have a condom?”

Ji Duo didn’t say anything. He just pulled out a bundle from his pants pocket, tossed it next to her, and leaned down to kiss her, not even asking, ‘Is this enough?’

He was a man of few words, a man of action.

Lin Qiao didn’t push him away anymore. Before her limbs went soft, she turned off the lights in the room.

As the darkness descended, although she couldn’t see the man’s handsome features and superior physique, every part of his body under her hands was tense with desire.

Taking the opportunity, Lin Qiao touched him several times, tracing along the man’s broad back to his muscular waist, quickly feeling the hot, sweaty skin beneath her palm.

In the darkness, the sound of someone rummaging around was heard. Lin Qiao opened her eyes. Having adapted to the dim light, she vaguely saw the man tilt his chin up and bite the packaging open swiftly. She closed her eyes again, but the imagined storm didn’t come.

It was his first time using it, and he had no experience; he didn’t even know how to put it on. It couldn’t end before it even started, right?

Then, he was really quick, ah…

Lin Qiao didn’t want to believe that the person she found was all show and no substance. She opened her eyes softly and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, just a bit tight.”

A bit tight?

What does “a bit tight” mean?!

Lin Qiao realized what was happening, and the excitement that had just been stirred up almost cooled down.

Fortunately, the man’s aggressive approach didn’t go overboard when it was time to slow down. He was usually so composed; his self-control was no joke.

Lin Qiao didn’t feel much pain. But when she got up in the morning, she almost couldn’t get up. She leaned by the bed and counted the things she had thrown into the trash can. Not much—only three—but why did it feel like she had used seven?

If it weren’t for the fact that water pipes still needed to be installed at home, she would have suspected that the man who had not returned to the old house today was up to something else.

Fortunately, she felt much better after sitting on the bed for a while. There were still things to do at home today, so Lin Qiao couldn’t lie in bed. She quickly tidied up and went out to help. She didn’t have to do any heavy work. Lin Qiao only cut some watermelon, boiled mung bean water, and bought ice creams.

Since there was a refrigerator at home, these were taken out only after being cooled. She didn’t have to cook lunch either; the wife of the neighbor, Commander Liang, took over.

In the afternoon, the water pipes for both houses were installed, and the sinks were also built with cement. They just needed to dry for a few days before they could be used. Commander Liang arranged for a meal in the courtyard, and Lin Qiao and Ji Duo were both invited. Ji Duo even had a bit to drink and ended up dragging Lin Qiao to use ‘two more’ when they returned.

In this life and the last, Lin Qiao had never eaten this well, to the point of feeling a bit stuffed.

The following day, he saw Ji Duo frowning at the few remaining ‘small umbrellas.’

Only then did Lin Qiao remember that these things seemed unavailable for sale and could only be picked up from the family planning department.

Ten a month isn’t a lot, but it’s not particularly few, either. Honestly, it aligns well with the principles of health and sustainable development.

She was about to say they could wait until next month, but the man looked up at her and said, “This is for a year.”

Lin Qiao was stunned.

“They gave me a few extra because I got married late.”

At the time, he also thought it was a bit few, but he was never a person of heavy desires, so he didn’t say anything.