My Dongguan Love Story

I watched as Lin Tao fell backward, and my heart skipped a beat. I quickly reached out to pull her up. But she was still huddled under the covers, afraid to stick her head out too far. Her left hand was pressed tightly against the blanket, while her right hand desperately reached forward.

He was about to touch her, but he missed and instead grabbed her bath towel.

With a whoosh, I ripped the bath towel off on the spot.

Lin Tao's eyes widened in surprise, and she fell straight backward. Fortunately, she managed to brace herself with her hand and didn't hit the back of her head.

Her cheeks flushed instantly, and she hurriedly raised her hand to cover her front, while quickly grabbing back the towel with her other hand to wrap it tightly. Embarrassed, she turned and ran to the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind her as soon as she entered.

Her back was pressed against the door, her chest heaving, and her cheeks burning red. Having lived for over twenty years, she was utterly humiliated to be caught red-handed by Da Zhuang, a man she had only recently met. She wished she could disappear into a crack in the wall right then and there.

But then she suddenly remembered that when she fell, the clothes she was holding had also fallen to the ground. She was very annoyed; the clothes were not only covered in dust, but they wouldn't dry for a while.

She began to worry, fearing that Dazhuang might not notice when he got out of bed and might step on the clothes on the floor and get them dirty.

Lin Tao pressed herself against the door, slowly opening it a crack to peek out. Her eyes met Da Zhuang's on the bed, and her cheeks flushed; she quickly pulled back.

After a few seconds of contemplation, she hesitantly peeked out again and whispered, "Dazhuang."

When I heard Lin Tao call me, I quickly looked up at her and explained with an embarrassed expression, "Lin Tao, I'm so sorry, I really didn't mean to pull the towel. When I heard you fall, I instinctively wanted to reach out and help you up."

I was incredibly nervous, afraid she was still bothered. I had only asked her to come and help, but this whole blunder had turned out so embarrassing.

Lin Tao's cheeks flushed again as she recalled the scene, and she gently shook her head: "It's nothing, let's not talk about it anymore. Could you help me pick up my clothes from the floor and hang them up?"

"Oh." I followed her gaze to the underside of the bed and saw her clothes scattered all over the floor. I immediately replied, "No problem, I'll clean it up for you right away. Don't open the door yet, I'm not dressed."

Upon hearing this, Lin Tao blushed and immediately shrank back into the toilet, turning away and not daring to look out again.

I waited until the bathroom door was closed before lifting the covers and getting out of bed. As soon as my feet touched the floor, a blast of icy air from the air conditioner hit me, making my whole body stiffen.

I walked to the bedside, bent down and picked up the scattered clothes one by one, then moved my own clothes aside to make room. I first hung my outer clothes in the best ventilated spot, then hung my underwear to the side.

My gaze inadvertently swept over the lingerie, and my cheeks flushed slightly. Recalling the unexpected scene just now, I was secretly surprised; I hadn't expected Lin Tao, who looked so slender, to have such a magnificent figure.

I was lost in thought when there was a sudden, urgent knocking at the door. Startled, I quickly burrowed back into bed, pulled the covers tighter, and asked in a low voice, "Who is it?"

The first sound from outside the door was a female voice from the hotel reception: "Handsome, it's me."

I frowned slightly, thinking the front desk was coming to urge us to complete the check-in process, but the next second, a calm and serious male voice came: "We are from the police station. Open the door, it's a routine room check."

"Ward rounds?" I was taken aback when I heard his words.

I knew that hotel room checks in Dongguan were strictly controlled, but I never expected to run into one on my first visit. I glanced instinctively at the closed bathroom door, feeling awkward and unsure how to respond.

The knocking started again, and I had no choice but to say, "The door's unlocked, please come in. I can't get up right now."

Upon hearing this, the receptionist took out her key, opened the door, and stepped aside to let in a male and a female police officer. The male officer in the lead quickly scanned the room and looked at me on the bed, saying, "Please show me your ID card and temporary residence permit."

I nodded in response, reached down to take the pants from the bedside, took out my wallet from the pocket, and handed over my identification documents one by one.

The policewoman next to me, seeing that I was shirtless, immediately turned away to avoid eye contact. The male officer took my identification, carefully checked it, and then asked, "Why didn't you register after checking into the hotel?"

I was taken aback for a moment before realizing what was going on, and honestly replied, "I've already spoken to the front desk and plan to go down and complete the registration later."

The other person nodded upon hearing this, glanced around the room, noticed the women's underwear hanging next to the air conditioner, frowned slightly, and then looked at the closed bathroom door: "There's another person in the room, right? Please ask her to come out for a moment."

Lin Tao, hiding in the restroom, felt her cheeks burning. She recognized the voice outside all too well; it was not only her colleague at the police station but also someone she had feelings for. Their relationship at the station was ambiguous, somewhere between friendship and romance.

She looked down at the towel she was wearing, feeling both ashamed and embarrassed. If she went out like this and her colleagues saw her, it would be difficult to get along with them afterward.

Lin Tao was already uneasy, and when she heard her colleague ask if there was anyone else in the room, her heart jumped into her throat. The footsteps approached the restroom, and she nervously swallowed, silently praying that the person wouldn't come closer.

But things didn't go as planned. The footsteps stopped at the door, and then a knock sounded: "Lady inside, please come out for a moment to cooperate with the inspection."

Lin Tao's cheeks flushed red, and her voice was tinged with embarrassment: "I'm also a police officer, here on a mission. My police ID is outside in my pants pocket; you can check it. I really can't go out right now."

The officer paused for a moment, then his tone became more suspicious: "That's a rather far-fetched claim. I have reason to suspect that prostitution is taking place here. Please open the door and cooperate with the inspection."

He had been in charge of ward rounds for many years and had seen many people make up excuses to get away with things, but this was the first time he had encountered someone who lied about being on official business.

He thought to himself: If it were a real mission, why would he hang all his clothes on the side? This is really illogical.

Lin Tao blushed upon hearing the other person's words, knowing that he wouldn't leave unless she confessed. So she gritted her teeth and said, "Chen Ming, it's me, Lin Tao."

"Lin Tao?" Officer Chen was stunned upon hearing this.