Love between Lines

Recently, Zhao Xiaorou has been suspecting that Li Ai might be sexually indifferent.

"I'm telling you, Old Li is really strange. He sleeps in the same bed with me every night, holding me close, yet he shows no reaction at all.

Could he have ED? I, Zhao Xiaorou, have liked him for so many years, always seeing him as a real man—just with a slightly lame leg. How come he shows no reaction at all now?"

Hu Xiu’s face turned green listening to this: "Why are you telling me such things..."

"Who else can I tell?!" Zhao Xiaorou shrieked over the phone. "I'm going crazy holding it in! I'm a woman—I’ve even dreamed of rolling in the sheets with him multiple times!"

Diao Zhiyu finally woke up from the noise: "You should talk to him about it. You were the one who set the rules first, and he agreed not to touch you."

Zhao Xiaorou on the phone was relentless: "Diao Zhiyu, shut your mouth! Are you trying to flaunt your youth and show off your youthful body? Let me tell you, if you indulge too much when you're young, you won’t be able to perform when you’re old!"

The two of them were baffled by the busy tone. Hu Xiu hadn’t yet adjusted to Zhao Xiaorou’s rhythm when she was in the throes of passion. The woman who used to shrewdly calculate every move with men, precisely timing her actions for maximum returns, was now often hopping with impatience.

Her messages were filled with "What should I do?" to the point that Hu Xiu had grown numb—but this was the first time Zhao Xiaorou had ever been like this.

Lying in bed, wanting to catch a few more winks of sleep, Hu Xiu found herself stirred by Zhao Xiaorou’s conversation. She slid into Diao Zhiyu’s arms like swimming, turning her back to him, pressing her body into every curve he made, and gently nuzzling her ear against his lips. Diao Zhiyu chuckled, his breath warming the back of her ear: "You’ve changed..."

She didn’t respond, just swayed her hips slightly and, as expected, felt the key in his pants.

His arm, which had been resting on the pillow, bent down. One hand cupped her chest while the other slid down her body. Diao Zhiyu licked her ear: "You seem to really enjoy this."

By then, it was too late to escape. Her body was firmly held, soft and damp as he entangled her, making it difficult even to turn over.

Whether it was cloudy or sunny outside, as long as the curtains were half-drawn, she could always catch the scent of desire in the humid air—light to heavy, shallow to deep, so thrilling.

Occasionally, she’d playfully climb on top, riding him to tease him. Diao Zhiyu loved this and would reach out to pull her in for a kiss.

She seemed to have figured out a bit of Diao Zhiyu’s positional preferences—he liked it when the girl took the initiative, enjoyed sudden advances and retreats.

He especially loved that ambiguous entanglement and touch, even more than kissing—

A man who was ticklish, every time her tongue traced his body, it drove him wild. Drenched in sweat, she lay on top of the boy, their panting gradually calming. As she touched his sweaty chest, she thought, the arrival of love feels like a rain shower.

And after the rain clears, the setting sun reflects on the shimmering river surface, the flowing, fish-scale-like light rippling on the waterway. The river, too, seems to discover its own gender—the light shimmering in the riverbed is perhaps the gentle folds of a woman.

After hanging up the phone, Zhao Xiaorou changed into a low-neck long-sleeved sweater and a pair of athletic shorts, pacing back and forth in the living room.

She hadn’t wanted to make it so obvious, but Li Ai seemed completely indifferent to her body. Was her chest too flat?

She was a normal woman, after all; were her legs not attractive enough? At the very least, she was an Internet celebrity who could hold her own on camera.Too innocent-looking? Don't be ridiculous—with her hair tucked behind her ears and eyes full of longing thoughts, how could Li Ai sit unmoved in front of his computer working on designs?

She fetched a glass of water and stood by the window admiring the view. "The weather seems quite nice today, doesn't it?"

Li Ai finally spoke. "Aren't you cold? The air conditioning isn't strong enough."

Zhao Xiaorou thought to herself, "Are you physically weak or something? The central air is set at 26 degrees." She stepped past him, bent down to pick up a coaster from the floor, and sat across from him. "Still revising the design drawings?"

"Yeah, Pei Zhen's renovation plans changed—one room needs to become a nursery. Does Hu Xiu know about this?"

He's going to be a father soon. Even if you're not becoming a dad yourself, how can you be so clueless about basic gestures?

Zhao Xiaorou sat beside him. "I think my period's coming soon. My stomach feels uncomfortable, and my breasts are swollen and sore."

Li Ai dragged a blanket over to cover her legs, his eyes still fixed on the design drawings. "Then why are you wearing so little indoors? What do you want to eat? Aren't you going to the Escape Room today?"

Angrily pulling on her pants, Zhao Xiaorou stormed out. "I'm not hungry!"

When she arrived at the Escape Room and discovered chaos had broken out, Zhao Xiaorou grew even more furious. She immediately called Hu Xiu. "Bring Diao Zhiyu over! I need him to cover an Escape Room session for me!"

Diao Zhiyu, who had been looking forward to a solid block of time at home to review and edit footage, found himself bewildered as he received the script. He changed into costume and ended up covering two Live Action Role Playing Game sessions.

His former colleague Fang Qingxian had been reported and sent to the police station, leaving the handsomest Role vacant. Zhao Xiaorou's first instinct was to call Diao Zhiyu as a replacement. The reason Fang Qingxian got reported? A player accused him of sexual harassment.

And it was a male player.

Hu Xiu had heard about similar incidents back during their Snowpiercer days—twelve men had booked the entire venue for a Live Action Role Playing Game session. One gay player took a liking to Ning Zechen. Instead of using his earnings to help Ning Zechen's character advance, he spent all his money buying jewelry for Ning Zechen, treating him like their precious teddy bear.

Ning Zechen had been utterly disgusted. With surveillance cameras overhead, he couldn't make a scene, but he absolutely refused to marry the male player. The player then pulled out a Japanese military sword in the general's chamber and threatened to commit seppuku.

Afterward, the player filed a complaint. Ning Zechen refused to apologize until the player said, "Just apologize and I'll immediately scan your QR code to tip you 888 yuan." Upon hearing this, Ning Zechen immediately said sorry.

What's pride compared to two days' wages?

Zhao Xiaorou called the acting team leader outside the venue. The leader explained they'd taken the surveillance footage to the police station. During the scene requiring coordination with a Non-Player Character to unlock something, there were props suspended overhead that could fall at any moment. To prevent players from getting hit, Fang Qingxian had used his body to shield them. In the darkness, the man took advantage of the chaos to grope Fang Qingxian from head to toe. After being rejected, the man immediately reported Fang Qingxian upon leaving.

Zhao Xiaorou stamped her feet in frustration. "Damn it, I really wish I could expose him online! Taking advantage of the darkness to touch my staff—he deserves to die!"

She rushed to the control room to check on Diao Zhiyu. The handsome young man seemed slightly lost himself while helping female players solve puzzles. Whenever his face became visible under brighter lighting, reactions ranged from immediate shy infatuation to deliberate attempts to cop a feel. This really was... a hazardous profession.

Hu Xiu asked Fang Qingxian how he felt about the incident. Fang Qingxian's handsome, chiseled features twisted in misery, as if even their arrangement might change. "I'll need my entire lifetime to recover from those five minutes—I'm a straight man!"Even more furious was Zhao Xiaorou beside her: "Damn it, even gays know they can harass people! The guy in my family is definitely impotent!"

Fang Qingxian looked confused: "What's wrong with the boss?"

Hu Xiu shook her head vigorously: "Nothing, she's just in a bad mood."

There was still an hour until Diao Zhiyu would finish. Zhao Xiaorou checked the group booking and had the customer service lock the slot: "Xiao Fang, do me a favor. We'll go play a session later and trick Li Ai into joining us. When we get the chance during missions, send me and Li Ai inside together."

After saying this, Zhao Xiaorou sat on the sofa studying the Escape Room map. Hu Xiu thought Zhao Xiaorou's urgency might not be purely about lust—she was probably more worried about whether Li Ai actually disliked her, and whether he really had... issues in that department.

When Li Ai arrived, Zhao Xiaorou's coiled posture on the sofa combined with her newly dyed red hair made her look like a ball of burning desire.

Diao Zhiyu emerged from the venue followed by two players asking for his phone number: "Little brother, we promise we won't disturb your life, we just want to see you again sometime..."

"I'm just here for a part-time shift," Diao Zhiyu said helplessly, pointing at Fang Qingxian. "How about adding his WeChat instead?"

Fang Qingxian's WeChat was a massive fishing pond, with plenty of repeat customers coming specifically for him.

Zhao Xiaorou stood smoking by the entrance with Li Ai, visibly sulking. Li Ai noticed this and made eye contact with Hu Xiu from afar, as if asking for help.

This time, she really couldn't help.

The four of them had never played Zhao Xiaorou's Escape Room together before. "The Farewell Letter" appeared to be a mildly terrifying Escape Room with four Non-Player Characters, but actually covered 200 square meters, recreating narrow alleys and mottled brick walls.

Just like how Diao Zhiyu loved Southwest stories, this one began with stairs leading up to an iron gate. Pushing it open immediately revealed the sound of crying.

Zhao Xiaorou and Hu Xiu had each tried it once when it first opened. Later, the actor team leader had led a revision, and they hadn't experienced the adapted storyline yet.

Following Fang Qingxian inside, they had just pulled open the iron gate when they heard the cries of a woman and child. Immediately, a female ghost rushed out. Zhao Xiaorou buried herself in Li Ai's arms: "Oh my god! So scary!"

Hu Xiu subtly furrowed her brows—this woman usually cursed loudly. Li Ai didn't push her away though, and Zhao Xiaorou's heart fluttered with hope that her plan might succeed.

They began solving puzzles right after entering. Beneath the glass window was a six-digit code lock. The group rummaged through the room and discovered photos with eyes gouged out and smeared with blood. After piecing them together, they found three photos with numbers and tried different sequences.

Zhao Xiaorou dragged Li Ai to input the numbers. Halfway through, a female ghost suddenly appeared at the glass window, her face illuminated with terrifying black lips. Zhao Xiaorou immediately reverted to her true self: "What the hell! Who are you trying to scare!"

Then she saw Li Ai and stammered, unsure whether she regretted her outburst or was genuinely frightened: "There's a ghost..."

Fang Qingxian, playing the detective, began interacting with the female ghost mother through the glass—a story about returning from taking her child to see a movie in the city when they were robbed. The mother chose to be killed to save her child's life.

The sound effects and acting were both chilling. Diao Zhiyu leaned close to Hu Xiu's ear: "This is the first time I've found Zhao Xiaorou cute."

"Really..."

"The way she's so anxious about Li Ai is much cuter than when she's being domineering and cursing."

The female ghost had already started chasing them. Zhao Xiaorou continued pursuing Li Ai in the darkness, trying to stick close to him.Li Ai, protecting Zhao Xiaorou, would first shine his flashlight into every dangerous corner before proceeding;

Hu Xiu was so distracted chasing the beam of light on Zhao Xiaorou’s legs that he forgot to use his own flashlight to find the way, as if spotlighting the protagonist of the scene.

In the dimness, all that could be seen was a pair of slender legs trying to keep up but failing, stumbling and flailing in frustration through the darkness.

For a drama to become a classic, it requires a well-laid foundation, dramatic highlights, and a brilliant second half full of character arcs.

Climbing up a small porch and descending a ladder, they encountered two other actors—two ghosts.

The woman who had killed the mother was actually there for revenge. The couple from the previous room were fugitives who had once hit and killed a family of three in a hit-and-run. Even as ghosts, they refused to let the couple go, and they regarded the players who came to solve the puzzles as targets for their vengeance.

Before anyone could react, the couple charged toward them. The players stumbled blindly in the dark, forced to flee along the narrow path.

At this point, Zhao Xiaorou lost track of Li Ai. Li Ai was still searching for her in the darkness, but she had run in the wrong direction amid the chaos. Sensing that the person ahead didn’t feel right, she turned around and ended up chasing the female ghost.

Startled by the sound of someone behind her, the female ghost stopped and turned around, frightening Zhao Xiaorou to her knees. Zhao Xiaorou scrambled between the ghost’s legs.

The female ghost grabbed her leg, and Zhao Xiaorou let out a scream, instinctively slapping the ghost across the face.

She had previously complained about some players who enjoyed assaulting NPCs, calling them shameless.

But being grabbed in the dark triggers instinctive human reactions—like Zhao Xiaorou’s panicked counterattack in that moment.

Li Ai rushed back upon hearing the scream and pulled Zhao Xiaorou forward. Entering a small room, the detective whispered urgently, “They’re coming! Hide in the cabinets, quick!”

Two empty cabinets could each hold three people. Hu Xiu and Diao Zhiyu hid in one cabinet, waiting for Zhao Xiaorou to join them. But then they realized something was off—Li Ai and Zhao Xiaorou wanted to stay together, so the two of them had to split up.

Hu Xiu scrambled into the other cabinet, and Zhao Xiaorou, who had rushed through the door, also squeezed into a cabinet. All that was left was to wait for Li Ai.

Just then, a boy from another group squeezed in and realized there wasn’t enough space in the cabinet. In a panic, he propped the two cabinet doors open and tried to kick people further inside, using so much force that the doors came off.

Holding both doors in his hands, the boy left Zhao Xiaorou stunned and Hu Xiu frozen in place.

The ghosts were about to enter the room. The boy squeezed into the cabinet, holding the doors like shields in front of him, and locked eyes with the female ghost through the cracks. The player muttered anxiously, “Oh shit, don’t see me, don’t see me…”

Zhao Xiaorou pushed him out with all her might, shouting, “Dammit, where’s Li Ai! You broke the doors! I’ve waited so long for this—it’s my last chance!”

The boy, still holding the doors like shields, was shoved out. The female ghost, equally shocked by the unexpected situation and the broken doors, took the opportunity to get up close, scaring the boy into hysterics: “I’m sorry, don’t kill me, don’t kill me! I’ll even recite my bank card PIN for you…”

The game ended. The male player, pale and in tears from fright, stumbled out of the now-lit Escape Room, while Zhao Xiaorou, clutching the two cabinet doors, stormed out with a dark expression.

The group watched as the shop owner fumed with rage, wanting to laugh but not daring to. Hu Xiu, however, laughed until he was out of breath. “Why did you bring those out?”

“To make him pay for damaging the props.”

“But you kicked him, too.”

“He ruined my plan, and I haven’t even settled that score yet!” Zhao Xiaorou lifted the two doors, unable to maintain her usual gentle facade. “Hey, buddy, let’s settle the repair cost for these doors.”It was already two o'clock when they got home. After showering, Zhao Xiaorou, exhausted from her earlier tantrum, lay slumped on the sofa drinking gloomily. Li Ai took her glass and took a sip. "You've been quite temperamental lately."

"Nothing, just tired." Zhao Xiaorou watched as Li Ai massaged his leg; the muscles had almost fully recovered, now completely healthy and strong.

She looked up and inadvertently studied him—he had very distinctive lips, the corners downturned yet full, somehow both melancholic and... seductive.

Staring at his lips, Zhao Xiaorou gulped down more wine, quickly feeling lightheaded.

"You were quite cheerful a few days ago, why so irritable lately?" Li Ai held her arm. "It's very unusual..."

What do you think? Zhao Xiaorou's lips still glistened with alcohol as she met his gentle, concerned gaze. Damn, such bad luck—did I really draw the ED card?

The skin where he held her arm grew warm. She just stared at him, pouring all her desire into his eyes.

Getting Li Ai to speak his mind was truly difficult.

He finally asked, "Are you trying to make me break my vows?"

"Don't you love me?"

He laughed. "Clearly you're testing me on purpose. Wearing so little while swaying before me, now getting drunk like this—waiting for me to break our three rules, forcing me to take the bait."

"If you know, why ask?"

"I need to respect you. You set those three rules—how can I cross the line so easily if you don't actively revoke them?"

Zhao Xiaorou didn't speak, just kept watching him. Unexpectedly, Li Ai's hand slid along her nightgown before stopping. "I knew it..."

She blushed—such direct probing was against the rules.

His hand didn't withdraw. Though Li Ai remained completely still. Perhaps light and color were liquid, like how she was now bathed in orange lamplight, radiant and dewy.

The real embarrassment might be the eye contact. Even though she was usually bold, wherever her gaze landed made sensitive areas more sensitive, hidden desires growing damper.

He finally leaned in to kiss her lips. The feeling of embracing felt unfamiliar; he was clearly still nervous. But it was nice—just as gentle and passionate as she'd imagined. As they lay back on the sofa, their skin gradually warming, the pace remained surprisingly slow. How could he be so patient?

Right now she wanted to confess: I'm impatient, truly impatient. I've waited so long. He just smiled and said, "This sofa backrest feels awkward no matter how we lie down."

A man who'd been celibate for three years was shy. Zhao Xiaorou thought with a smile, Oh you.

After lingering for what felt like ages, they finally found their rhythm. Zhao Xiaorou laughed, "Are you nervous?"

"A little..."

"We know each other so well, just relax." After saying this, she grew nervous too.

Li Ai looked into her eyes, her heart pounding—how long a road they'd traveled to reach this point.

He held her legs, kissing her ankles. Waves of pleasure surged through her, her body tensing and arching—a sensation she'd never experienced before.

In her dazed state, Zhao Xiaorou thought with surprise: These hands that wipe coffee cups and brew beans—they hide such skill?

Flustered, she sought his kiss to hide her panicked expression, but Li Ai pressed her hand down. "Don't hide. Look at me."

This surprised her—trembling, as if cold and warm currents washed through her chest and arms. This pleasure of waves crashing against the shore was something she hadn't anticipated.In the world that followed, only her unconscious cries remained. Li Ai seemed to enjoy watching her, then leaned down to kiss her lips, chest, fingers...

What surprised her most was how he found the precise angle that made her scream, her vocal cords completely beyond control... The pleasures of a mature woman were only understood by mature men.

Treasure...

"Want some jam?"

"Yes..."

What trick was this now?

The jam wasn't fed to her mouth. That small jar of blueberry jam from the bedside was used to trace the curves of her body from her back down to the crease of her buttocks.

Every vertebra along her spine was explored by his tongue, perhaps part of some primal male animal's territorial marking ritual.

It was terrifying. So terrifying it became exhilarating. He seemed to already be intimately familiar with every angle of her body. Was this what he'd been thinking about all those times he secretly watched her?

And it didn't stop there. The next day, when Zhao Xiaorou returned home from a shoot, he immediately pinned her against the door for a kiss the moment she stepped inside.

She still had her makeup on: "Let me shower and remove my makeup first - my face is covered in dust from the shoot."

"What does that matter..." Li Ai laughed: "Didn't you say before that true love is always dirty?"

"That was a metaphor! Li Ai, I'm telling you, you can't just interpret things so literally. Adults always like to make suggestive wordplay..." What followed went unspoken - her voice had gone hoarse. Never mind.

Her body rubbed against the cold door panel. This man was anything but boring. The shadows cast by the lighting formed erotic parallels. She didn't need to imagine how disheveled she must look right now, but how joyful it was to be skin-to-skin with someone you love.

Why had she ever bothered making that abstinence pact for thirty days? Li Ai unleashed was simply the smartest man in the world.

All her previous partners who she'd thought were decent now seemed dull by comparison - their angles always slightly off from what she preferred. Compatibility, what a magical concept.

Physically spent, Zhao Xiaorou finally surrendered, poking Li Ai's cheek with her finger: "Can I ask you a question?"

"Hmm..."

"How do you last so long?"

Li Ai smiled: "I've always been like this."

"But you haven't been in a relationship for three years! And you were so quiet all those days at my place before..."

"Secret..." Li Ai would never tell her that every day before emerging from the bathroom, he'd already released the tension beforehand.

Remaining composed while holding someone in your arms was simply too difficult.