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

When Su Ming returned to the familiar yet unsettling rented room, the sky outside the window was already turning a pale white. At four in the morning, the city was immersed in the deepest silence before dawn.

He tiptoed open the door. The living room was pitch black, with only a faint ray of morning light filtering through the curtains, casting a few grayish-white shadows on the floor. The bedroom door was ajar, and he could hear his cousin-in-law Qiu Tong's even, long breaths coming from inside. She was fast asleep, like a water lily quietly blooming in the night, completely unaware of his return.

Su Ming breathed a sigh of relief and moved even more quietly. He slipped into the bathroom and took a shower as quickly as possible. The cool water washed away the lingering smell of alcohol and the ambiguous fragrance of the water bottle, and also cleared his head, which was a little feverish from the alcohol and the excitement of the night.

After changing into clean underwear, he went shirtless and tiptoed back to the bedroom. He didn't dare turn on the light, afraid of disturbing his cousin's sweet dreams, so he took out the Nokia 8250 that his cousin's wife had bought for him a while ago, and used the small screen with its faint blue glow to illuminate the small patch of space in front of him.

Within that pale blue halo, he witnessed a scene that made him hold his breath instantly.

My cousin's wife lay on her side on the bed, the thin air-conditioning blanket slipped down to her waist, and her silk slip dress was already crumpled and disheveled in her sleep. The hem of the dress was rolled up, revealing two long, straight, and dazzlingly white legs. In the dim blue light, her skin had a warm, ivory-like luster, and her lines were smooth and beautiful, as if they were a work of art carefully sculpted by the hand of God.

What's even more deadly is that her side-lying position left the neckline of her nightgown slightly open, exposing half of her full breasts to the air without any defense. The breathtaking curves and the barely visible depths exuded a fatal allure in the dim light.

Su Ming's Adam's apple bobbed involuntarily, his mouth went dry, and his heart pounded wildly. He couldn't help but glance at her a few more times, letting out a heartfelt exclamation: His cousin's wife's figure was absolutely stunning! Last night at the water park, all those dozens of bikini-clad girls posing seductively couldn't compare to even a fraction of the allure his cousin's wife exuded unintentionally.

Compared to the exquisite beauty before them, those ordinary women were like wildflowers by the roadside versus peonies carefully cultivated in a greenhouse.

His thoughts wandered uncontrollably for a moment, and even some erotic images began to surface in his mind. But he quickly pinched himself hard, forcibly suppressing those inappropriate thoughts.

He lay down on the cool bamboo mat on the ground, closed his eyes, and forced himself to sleep. He was so tired that even though random thoughts arose, he quickly fell asleep.

But after only two hours of sleep, the alarm clock on the bedside table went off like a death knell, ringing loudly.

Su Ming was so tired that his eyelids felt like they were filled with lead, and he was in a deep sleep. Even the jarring alarm clock couldn't pull him out of his dream.

On the contrary, Qiu Tong, lying in bed, was disturbed by the ear-piercing alarm clock, her delicate brows furrowing. She groggily turned over, stretched out her slender arm, groped around on the bedside table for a while, accurately found the culprit, and slapped it down.

The world is finally quiet.

She rubbed her sleepy eyes, sat up, glanced at Su Ming who was sleeping like a log on the floor, and couldn't help but feel both annoyed and amused. She threw back the covers, walked barefoot to his side, squatted down, and gently nudged his shoulder with her slender hand.

"Su Ming, Su Ming, wake up! You're going to be late for work!"

Unexpectedly, at the very moment she pushed him, Su Ming, who was asleep, rolled over and went from lying on his back to lying on his side.

Qiu Tong's hand, which should have landed on his shoulder, touched his lower abdomen precisely and perfectly.

Qiu Tong froze, as if struck by an electric current, completely dumbfounded.

Su Ming, startled awake by the sudden shock, jolted awake from his sleep and sat bolt upright on the bamboo mat. His eyes widened as he stared at the stunningly beautiful face so close to his, a face equally etched with shock and panic. He almost blurted out, "Sister-in-law! What... are you doing...?"

Qiu Tong reacted instantly, her pretty face flushing red to the roots of her neck, like a ripe apple. She hurriedly withdrew her hand, her eyes darting away, not daring to look at Su Ming. She just bit her lip and explained in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz, "I... I was calling you to get up, it's time for work."

Su Ming then seemed to wake from a dream, belatedly realizing what had just happened. He let out an "Oh," feeling incredibly embarrassed, and quickly jumped up from the floor, rushing out of the bedroom as if fleeing.

He quickly finished washing up, not even bothering to eat the breakfast his cousin-in-law had carefully prepared, and grabbed his backpack to run outside.

All the way home, the embarrassing scene kept replaying in his mind: his cousin's soft hands, her panicked eyes, her flushed cheeks…

He couldn't help but mutter to himself: "Cousin-in-law...does she really have feelings for me?" But quickly, he shook his head, reassuring himself: "Impossible, impossible! My cousin-in-law isn't that kind of person. Even if she were interested in me, she wouldn't be so bold as to deliberately touch me. Just now...it must have been an accident. Yes, it was just an accidental touch."

Filled with suspicion and with a heavy heart, he walked straight toward the factory.

Just as I reached that familiar main road near the factory area, another unexpected incident occurred.

A familiar women's motorcycle drove past him. He subconsciously looked up and saw that the rider was Yang Tian.

What made him even more shocked was that there was a man in the back seat of Yang Tian!

The man looked to be about my age, wearing a clean white shirt. The two were standing very close, chatting and laughing, their intimate manner resembling that of a couple deeply in love.

Su Ming's heart felt as if it had been gripped tightly by an invisible hand, and instantly sank to the bottom.

Could it be... that she has found a new boyfriend?

Just then, Yang Tian also saw Su Ming by the roadside. The smile on her face froze instantly. She paused for a moment, her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she didn't say anything. She just silently turned her head away, twisted the throttle, and rode away on her motorcycle, quickly disappearing into the factory gate.

Su Ming stood there, staring at the empty intersection, feeling as if a piece of his heart had been hollowed out, and the pain was excruciating.

For some reason, memories of his time with Yang Tian kept replaying in his mind. The first time they awkwardly held hands in the park, the first passionate kiss in the rain, the first intimate moment in the projection room that made his heart race…

The more he thought about it, the more distressed he became, as if his heart was being torn apart. To be precise, Yang Tian was his first love!