My cousin-in-law helped me achieve my ambitions.

She did these things so naturally, as if Su Ming didn't exist at all.

Su Ming felt that every second was torture.

He heard the soft rustling of foam against his skin, the splashing of water against his body, and her occasional soft sighs of pleasure. His eyes were fixed on the ground, but the images in his mind were growing uncontrollably.

He tried desperately to think about other things. He thought about tomorrow's work, about Yang Tian, ​​about Bao Yazhong, about the gecko he had released.

But all the images eventually returned to the same place. Because he found that just thinking about his cousin-in-law Qiu Tong made him feel a strange sense of comfort and anticipation.

He didn't know how much time had passed, perhaps only a few minutes, but to Su Ming it felt like an eternity. The sound of water finally stopped.

Qiu Tong grabbed a bath towel and slowly dried her body.

"Alright," she said with a smile, "you can go now."

Su Ming felt as if he had been granted a pardon and practically fled the bathroom.

When he finished showering and returned to the bedroom, Qiu Tong was already lying in bed. She was facing away from him, a thin blanket covering her waist, revealing her smooth shoulders.

Su Ming lay down on the bamboo mat and closed his eyes.

But as soon as I close my eyes, all I can think about is the scene in the bathroom.

Her pale body was shrouded in mist, water droplets sliding down her curves as she applied foam, her fingers tracing the skin...

Damn it.

I can't think about it anymore.

He rolled over, facing the wall. The bamboo mat was warm from his body heat, sticky and not cool at all.

He rolled over again.

"Can't sleep?" Qiu Tong's voice came from the bed.

"Hmm," Su Ming replied listlessly.

"Isn't it too hot?" Qiu Tong paused for a moment. "How about... we all sleep on the bed together? It's cooler there."

Su Ming quickly shook his head: "No need, no need, I'm not hot."

He dared not. He was afraid he wouldn't be able to control himself.

Some boundaries, once crossed, can never be crossed back.

That night, Su Ming didn't know how he fell asleep.

It felt like an eternity, an ordeal, like being roasted over a fire all night.

The next morning, Su Ming was awakened by the glaring sunlight outside the window.

He opened his eyes, rubbed them sleepily, and sat up, glancing habitually at the bed. On the bed was...

empty.

My cousin's wife has disappeared.

He paused for a moment, all sleepiness vanishing. Just as he was about to get up to look for it, he suddenly heard a slight noise coming from the kitchen.

The sound of the spatula hitting the edge of the pan, the sizzling of oil in the hot pan, and the soft sound of footsteps.

Su Ming walked to the kitchen door and peeked inside.

Qiu Tong, wearing a floral apron, was standing in front of the stove frying eggs. Today she was wearing a simple white T-shirt and light gray lounge shorts, her hair casually pulled back, with a few stray strands falling around her neck.

The morning light slanted in through the window, falling on her and gilding her silhouette with a faint golden edge.

She scooped the fried eggs into a plate, then ladled the stir-fried rice noodles from the pan, sprinkled them with chopped green onions, and brought them to the table.

Looking up, I saw Su Ming standing at the door.

"Awake?" she greeted with a smile. "Go wash up and have breakfast."

Su Ming then came to his senses, said "Oh," and turned to go into the bathroom.

When he finished washing up and came out, the dining table was already set with two plates of fried eggs, two plates of fried rice noodles, a small dish of pickled cowpeas, and two bottles of milk taken from the refrigerator.

It was so lavish it didn't feel like breakfast, it felt like Chinese New Year.

Su Ming sat down and picked up his chopsticks.

"Try it and see if it suits your taste." Qiu Tong picked up a piece of rice noodles for him. "I haven't cooked in a long time, so I'm a bit rusty."

Su Ming took a bite.

The rice noodles were stir-fried to the perfect consistency, the eggs were fried to a crispy exterior and tender interior, and even the pickled cowpeas had the slightly sweet flavor he liked.

"It's delicious," he said.

Qiu Tong smiled and lowered her head to eat her own portion.

The two ate their breakfast in silence. A warm feeling welled up in Su Ming's heart. He hadn't had a proper breakfast like this in a long time since his mother had passed away.

"Sister-in-law," he asked, "is your foot better?"

"Much better." Qiu Tong moved her ankle. "Thanks to the massage you gave me last night, it doesn't hurt much today."

As she spoke, her brows suddenly furrowed, she put down her chopsticks, and cupped her lower abdomen with her hands.

Su Ming saw it: "Sister-in-law, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing." Qiu Tong shook her head and picked up her chopsticks again.

"Do you have an upset stomach?" Su Ming asked, concerned.

"no."

"Then why are you always holding your stomach?" Su Ming put down his chopsticks and looked at her seriously. "Tell me, maybe I can help you."

Qiu Tong looked at him and suddenly smiled.

She rolled her eyes dramatically, her tone a mix of helplessness and indulgence: "I have menstrual cramps!"

Su Ming was taken aback.

Then her face flushed red.

"Didn't you say that if I told you, you could help me?" Qiu Tong tilted her head and looked at him, a mischievous smile on her lips.

Su Ming stammered, "This... I don't know how to treat it either..."

"You will," Qiu Tong said.

Before Su Ming could react, her hand had already reached out and grasped his wrist.

Then, she pulled his hand over and gently pressed it onto her lower abdomen.

Through the thin fabric of her T-shirt, Su Ming could feel the temperature of her lower abdomen and the soft, slightly undulating curves.

His mind went blank with a "buzz".

"Just leave it like that." Qiu Tong's voice was soft, with a hint of languor. "Your hands are warm; it will make me feel much more comfortable if I put them here."

"This..." Su Ming dared not move.

His hand was pressed on her lower abdomen, as if frozen in place.

The living room was quiet. The fan was still whirring. Outside the window, there were children's laughter, the shouts of vendors at the breakfast stalls downstairs, and the distant sound of a bus braking as it pulled into the station.

But these sounds were all far away from Su Ming.

He could only hear his own heartbeat, pounding like a drum, one beat, two beats, three beats…

After an unknown amount of time—maybe five minutes, maybe ten minutes—Qiu Tong gently grasped his wrist and removed his hand from her lower abdomen.

"Alright." Her voice was soft, as if it came from afar. "Shouldn't you go report for duty?"

Su Ming suddenly realized what was happening.

He slapped his thigh: "Oh no! I have to go for a physical exam first! HR said I need to have my blood drawn on an empty stomach, and I can't eat breakfast!"

He stood up, pacing anxiously in circles.

Qiu Tong laughed and said slowly, "It's alright, what you ate wasn't greasy, it won't affect the result."

Su Ming looked at her with suspicion.

"Really, go change your clothes quickly." Qiu Tong said, clearing away the dishes. "Don't be late."

Su Ming hurried back to his bedroom to change. He wore the same shirt, trousers, and leather shoes his cousin-in-law had bought him. Standing in front of the mirror, he straightened his collar and combed his hair with his fingers.

When he came out of the bedroom, Qiu Tong had already washed the dishes and was leaning against the kitchen doorway watching him.

"He looks quite energetic," she commented.

Su Ming smiled sheepishly and bent down to change his shoes.

"Then I'll be going, cousin-in-law."

"Okay, be careful on the road."

The door opened, then closed again.

Su Ming's footsteps gradually faded into the corridor.

Qiu Tong stood there, staring at the closed door, motionless for a long time.

She looked down at her hand, the hand that had just held Su Ming's wrist.

Then she sighed softly. She had to admit, she had developed different feelings for Su Ming.

When Su Ming arrived at the hospital, there was already a long queue at the physical examination department.

He registered and underwent one test after another. Blood test, chest X-ray, electrocardiogram... After more than two hours of this, he finally finished all the tests.

"Come pick up the report at 3 p.m.," the nurse said, handing him a receipt.

Su Ming took the form and walked out of the hospital.

The sun was so bright that it was hard to open one's eyes.

He stood under the shade of a tree at the hospital entrance, unsure of where to go.

Go back to the rented room?

He recalled the scene at the breakfast table this morning when he placed his hand on his cousin's lower abdomen.

He recalled the moment last night in the bathroom when she threw herself into his arms, naked.

He recalled an earlier time when she walked past him in a slip dress, the strap slipping down to reveal her pale chest...

Su Ming shook his head, forcing himself not to think about it.

He dared not go back.

It's not that I don't want to, it's that I don't dare.

He was afraid that if things continued like this, he wouldn't be able to control himself and something would happen between him and his cousin's wife.

That's a bottom line that can't be crossed.