Bullying The Sister-In-Law - Chapter 8.1

Liu Chengxu hadn’t expected Yang Jie to see through her, and for a moment, she panicked. Instinctively, she looked behind Yang Jie, afraid her sister-in-law had suddenly arrived and overheard.

Su Zhiluo had a kind nature, and it was perfectly normal for people to like her.

She had started working at seventeen. Her fair complexion and delicate features made her stand out at the factory. She had a good personality and always helped others when they needed it. Liu Jinhuan liked her because she had also received her help.

Without needing to ask further, Yang Jie knew she had guessed correctly just by seeing Liu Chengxu’s flustered expression.

“Chengxu,” Su Zhiluo called out to her.

Su Zhiluo came out with Chang Ruyin and waved to her.

Chang Ruyin frowned, finding it odd.

Su Zhiluo walked over in confusion, “Did you two… just chat?”

Yang Jie nodded, “We exchanged a couple of words. It’s not safe for her to be standing alone by the entrance, and it’s cold.”

“Yeah, her face is all red from the cold,” Su Zhiluo looked at Liu Chengxu with concern, “I told you not to wait, but you keep coming.”

The bus arrived. Chang Ruyin had to return to the dorm and got on first. Feeling uneasy, she quickly looked back. Su Zhiluo was covering Liu Chengxu’s ears, saying, “I should buy you ear muffs.”

Liu Chengxu only gave a muffled “Mm.” Su Zhiluo didn’t talk much to Yang Jie. She felt quite awkward; Yang Jie had swapped shifts for her, and she had rejected Yang Jie’s pursuit, which made her feel unprincipled.

“We’re leaving,” Su Zhiluo said.

Yang Jie replied, “Be careful on your way.”

Today, Liu Chengxu was clearly distracted. Su Zhiluo rode in front, carrying her.

Midway, Su Zhiluo pulled over and turned to look at Liu Chengxu. Liu Chengxu had her eyes tightly shut. When the electric bike started again, Liu Chengxu leaned her head against Su Zhiluo’s back shoulder and called out softly, “Sister-in-law.”

The wind was too strong, and Su Zhiluo didn’t hear clearly.

When they got home, Su Zhiluo immediately felt her forehead to check for fever. It wasn’t hot, so Su Zhiluo went to mix her a cup of Banlangen (herbal cold remedy) to ward off the cold.

Liu Chengxu held the cup and drank slowly. Her body warmed up from the heat. Su Zhiluo asked, “Are you upset because of Yang Jie?”

Liu Chengxu didn’t answer. She tilted her head back to drink the last bit of Banlangen. The powder at the bottom hadn’t dissolved and flowed slowly, taking a long time to reach her mouth. Su Zhiluo said, “I told her… forget it, I’ll go tell her again.”

“No need,” Liu Chengxu stopped Su Zhiluo, who was heading to the balcony to make a call. She was very worried that Yang Jie would reveal the secret.

Su Zhiluo frowned, “Then why are you…”

Liu Chengxu: “Everything is clear, don’t look for her.”

She took the cup to rinse it clean and then carried the clay pot out of the kitchen with a wet cloth, saying, “I made you a white fungus soup. Drink a bowl to warm your body.”

Su Zhiluo sighed, her heart feeling both soft and sour.

“I added snow pears, it’s very sweet.”

“I can smell it.”

Each took a bowl with two red dates per person. The two of them sat around the table. Liu Chengxu’s spoon clinked against the white porcelain bowl. She said, “Sister-in-law, we have a bright future, don’t we? A lot of hope.”

Su Zhiluo didn’t understand. Knowing she might have suffered some setback today, she said, “Yes, absolutely. You’re a university student.”

This didn’t answer what was in Liu Chengxu’s heart, because she asked about “we,” and Su Zhiluo answered with “you.”

The winter in the north was cold, and showering every day made it easy to catch a cold. But the two loved cleanliness. Also, Liu Chengxu was afraid her sister-in-law would be cold, so she always lit the stove and boiled a kettle of hot water before going to pick up Su Zhiluo. By the time they returned home, the water on the stove was already boiling.

One kettle of water was enough for both of them to have a simple wipe-down. Liu Chengxu carried the water into the bathroom. Preoccupied with her thoughts, she accidentally spilled all of it.

When Su Zhiluo came over and saw it, Liu Chengxu said, “Let’s wash together, Sister-in-law.”

Su Zhiluo didn’t really want to wash together; she wanted to avoid suspicion. Just as she was about to speak, Liu Chengxu’s eyes became moist, “Sister-in-law, please don’t dislike me.”

Su Zhiluo steeled her heart and went in.

The door closed with a “click.” The cramped bathroom was immediately filled with hot, humid steam. Water droplets condensed on the tiled walls and slowly slid down, glistening ambiguously in the dim light. Su Zhiluo slightly turned her body, “Let’s just wipe down quickly today. After being out in the wind, it’s not worth catching a chill if we wash with cool water.”

Liu Chengxu lowered her head to wring the towel. Hearing this, she looked up, and her breathing suddenly hitched.

Su Zhiluo turned her back to untie her clothes. The humid air made the clasp a little stiff. She tried twice before she managed to unhook it. The bra Liu Chengxu had bought for her last time was tightly pressed against her body, outlining her slender waist and full bust. She bent down to check the water temperature, and her neckline slightly opened, revealing a small patch of skin flushed red by the hot steam.

Su Zhiluo didn’t want to take all her clothes off to wash and kept her bra on. She took the towel from Liu Chengxu’s hand to wipe her body. She put on her pajamas, took off her bra, and continued wiping herself dry.

The white-pink pajamas Su Zhiluo was wearing became nearly transparent when soaked with hot water, clinging tightly to her body and clearly outlining the contours of her chest.

Su Zhiluo didn’t notice at first until she caught Liu Chengxu’s sudden, deep gaze. She followed the other person’s line of sight and looked down, and her face “whooshed” with heat, even the tips of her ears were flushed crimson. She tried to act calm and turned away.

Beside her was Liu Chengxu’s puzzled look. She pretended to be composed, continued doing her hair, quickly put on her clothes, and went out.

The wind howled outside. The old window frame rattled, making the stockings hanging on the drying line swing gently.

Liu Chengxu wasn’t in a hurry to leave. She stayed inside to wash the underwear she had changed out of. Catching sight of the small item Su Zhiluo had taken off, she wanted to help wash it but dared not touch it… She reached out her hand, then pulled it back.

Seeing that scene just now, her fingers desperately wanted to pinch it. Now, she even felt a desire to bite it.

She couldn’t speak of it; she had to severely hide it in her heart and mind. But the more she tried to hide it, the more violently it surged.

Sister-in-law, she smells so good.

It emanates from her very bones—she wants to eat her up.

Liu Chengxu still slept with her sister-in-law. Su Zhiluo didn’t chase her out either, especially since Liu Chengxu was feeling low, and she couldn’t find a reason to.

Since they started sleeping together, neither of them had caught a cold this winter. When they slept separately before, one of them would always be coughing or sneezing.

The cold wind whimpered outside, causing the glass to tremble slightly. The two squeezed into the warm bedding, feeling cozy all over.

Su Zhiluo hesitated for a moment, then quietly asked, “Did… Yang Jie say something to you today?”

Liu Chengxu actually wanted to speak ill of Yang Jie, to make Su Zhiluo dislike Yang Jie and never be with her. But she was more afraid that Yang Jie had told her about the speculation that she liked Su Zhiluo.

“Didn’t say anything.”

“Really? Tell me the truth.”

“Really.”

“Okay.” Liu Chengxu leaned closer. Su Zhiluo knew she wanted to find warmth on her, so she let her, trying hard to restrain the urge to hug and comfort her.

Liu Chengxu said muffledly, “I’m sorry, Sister-in-law.”

Her voice sounded terribly pained, “My parents treated you that way, and I used to scold you too. I’m sorry.”

Su Zhiluo held back for half a minute, then reached out and patted her shoulder, “What your parents did has nothing to do with you. They… didn’t treat you very well either.”

So many years had passed, and the creditors weren’t causing trouble anymore. They should have secretly returned to see Liu Chengxu, but the couple had been completely out of touch.

Su Zhiluo probably figured out what was happening. “Don’t think too much. You’re different from them. Didn’t you hate them too? Let’s not talk about it anymore.”

“Okay.” Liu Chengxu nestled in her sister-in-law’s arms. Even though they used the same shower gel, she always felt Su Zhiluo smelled sweeter.

Yang Jie’s words eventually took root in her heart. That night, Liu Chengxu had a dream. In the dream, Su Zhiluo wore a white wedding dress and smiled as she said goodbye to her. She watched helplessly as her sister-in-law linked arms with someone else, unable to move, only able to stand where she was, crying tears all over her face.

She cried, trembling all over. Su Zhiluo was woken up by her crying. In the darkness, she whimpered in her sleep, “Sister-in-law… don’t leave me… please…”

Su Zhiluo pulled her into her arms and reached out to check her forehead.

The night was so restless that they didn’t sleep well. Fortunately, Su Zhiluo didn’t have to work the early shift the next day. She slept until nearly ten o’clock, with a fluffy head still buried in her arms. She subconsciously touched Liu Chengxu’s face but was once again startled awake by the abnormal temperature, so she quickly called out to her softly.

Liu Chengxu responded groggily, “Sister-in-law…” Half-asleep, she leaned in close to her face, about to kiss her. Fortunately, in the next second, she snapped awake and quickly turned her head away.

“Do you have a fever?”

“Huh?”

Su Zhiluo propped herself up, reached over Liu Chengxu’s body to pull open the nearby drawer, took out the thermometer, and placed it under her armpit. “Here, hold it tight.”

Liu Chengxu calmed down for a while. Su Zhiluo got dressed, pulled the blanket up to cover Liu Chengxu snugly. Three minutes later, Su Zhiluo took out the thermometer: 37.4, a low-grade fever. Su Zhiluo first got out of bed to brush her teeth and wash her face, then poured the water from the stove into the basin and brought the medicine in.

“Don’t go out today. Stay home.”

The child had a holiday from school today, so Liu Chengxu didn’t need to go out.

Liu Chengxu watched her go to cook.

Her secret crush was only known to God. As long as God didn’t spill the beans, as long as she could hide it until graduation, she could muster the courage to tell Su Zhiluo.

To live a good life, they poured all their effort into every single day. Electrical appliances were added one by one to their home, but the space visibly became more and more cramped. What was once a relatively spacious area for two now felt like there was only an inch of space left.

Before, there was only one bottle of face cream on the bathroom sink, and their two toothbrushes could each occupy a spot. Now, it was cluttered with lipsticks, toner and lotion, face masks, foundation, and blush, squeezed so tightly there was no room to stand. The two toothbrushes eventually had to be shoved into the same cup.

Today, Su Zhiluo’s factory had an event, giving out year-end bonuses. In previous years, the German boss was extremely stingy, treating people like robots. Later, the boss was replaced by a Japanese person. Japanese people weren’t necessarily good, but they loved holding ceremonies and would draw many gifts at the annual meeting.

Su Zhiluo specifically washed her hands, applied BB cream, and put on the lipstick Liu Chengxu had given her. After a quick tidying up, she planned to go try her luck in the draw.

Liu Chengxu gave her a warming patch to stick on her leg. Liu Chengxu said, “By next year, I’ll save up my tuition fees, and Sister-in-law, you can change your job. Didn’t you want to study for the exam? You can read at home.”

“I’m not taking the college entrance exam; I can study at night.”

“You can do e-commerce.”

E-commerce had been quite popular in the past two years, just starting up. Su Zhiluo was somewhat tempted. Su Zhiluo glanced at her, “You should go out and hang out with your friends.”

Su Zhiluo rode away but returned shortly after. She found the house had been swept clean, and Liu Chengxu was folding clothes in the wardrobe. She placed a bag of sweet potatoes and tangerines on the table. “Chengxu, roast some sweet potatoes and tangerines to eat.”

Just then, Auntie Zhang from next door came over with her granddaughter. The granddaughter had a math problem she couldn’t solve, and no one at home could teach her, so she asked if Liu Chengxu could help.

“Of course,” Su Zhiluo opened the door.