“Since Le’yi wasn’t brought back here, she must be safe. I believe we’ll be rescued soon, so don’t you worry.”
“Thank you.”
Listening to the girl’s words of comfort, Jiang Lai knew she couldn’t afford to fall into a state of self-abandonment. There was someone relying on her now; she had to protect the girl beside her.
“Don’t worry, I won’t let anyone hurt you before that happens.”
Jiang Lai looked at Shen Ruxue, who was leaning against her shoulder, and gave her a smile that seemed to say, ‘Leave everything to me.’
It was a very warm smile, like the gentle sunshine of spring, capable of instantaneously melting all frost and barriers.
If her husband’s shadow had only been faint before, this simple, sweet smile truly triggered a flood of memories for Shen Ruxue. Her entire body couldn’t help but tremble.
Shen Ruxue felt as if she were going crazy. Clearly, the woman before her was vastly different from her husband, yet why could she see that familiar silhouette in her?
Shen Ruxue missed her Jiang Lai desperately. For over a decade, all she could do was observe from the shadows. She had wondered countless times how her ‘Jiang-Jiang’ would react if she could one day stand before him openly with her brand-new image.
Given how well she knew him, he would probably be so shocked his mouth would hang open for a long time. Just thinking about it made Shen Ruxue feel that it would be an incredibly amusing sight.
When would she be able to stand before her husband with pride? How could she make up for everything they had missed? Shen Ruxue had envisioned this countless times in the past, yet she never had the courage to take that final step.
“I actually used to dislike you quite a bit. The first time was because you stole Le’yi’s attention; the second time was when I thought you were unfaithful. But the truth wasn’t what I imagined. I misunderstood a lot in the past, and I’m afraid I caused you some trouble. I want to say I’m sorry, and I’m also very grateful to you—grateful for everything you’ve done for them.”
Shen Ruxue’s voice carried a hint of loneliness and an endless sense of desolation. Feeling the weight on her shoulder, Jiang Lai leaned her head against Shen Ruxue’s.
No matter how mature Shen Ruxue seemed, she was still a child at heart, and she was bound to be scared even if she didn’t show it. As the only adult present, Jiang Lai silently vowed to protect Shen Ruxue.
As time passed and there was no movement outside, Jiang Lai finally lowered her guard slightly. Her greatest fear was the door suddenly swinging open while she was fumbling for her phone; if that happened, her only way of contacting the outside world would vanish.
Before exposing the fact that she had a phone, Jiang Lai specifically pressed her ear against the wall. Once she was certain there was no noise outside or at the door, she leaned in and whispered into Shen Ruxue’s ear.
“I have a spare phone hidden inside my clothes. Help me get it out. I want to see if I can send our location; that way we can get out of here faster.”
“Inside your clothes?”
“Yes. There’s a small insert in my bra—it was originally meant to make the bra more elastic, but that layer happens to work as a small pocket, so I tucked it in there.”
Jiang Lai didn’t know if that bastard Si Yina would search her thoroughly, so she treated everything with the utmost caution. While this caution prevented the phone from being easily discovered, it made retrieving it incredibly difficult, especially with her hands and feet bound and her arms tied behind her back.
“…”
Shen Ruxue didn’t waste any time. Upon hearing that Jiang Lai had a hidden phone, she immediately focused her gaze on her. She began to plan how to get the phone out.
Though the resulting posture would be somewhat unseemly, to save time and get the phone as quickly as possible, Shen Ruxue stood up and sat directly in Jiang Lai’s lap. Only by sitting in her lap could Shen Ruxue’s hands reach far enough inside.
“While I’m getting the phone, I might touch some places I shouldn’t, or I might tickle you. You have to endure it.”
This subconscious warning came from a sudden memory. Back then, she would often sit in her husband’s lap in a playful mood, originally intending to be a bit seductive.
But through those touches, she discovered that many parts of her husband’s body were off-limits; he was extremely ticklish. Once he got the tickles, he would instantly curl up. The reaction was so amusing that what started as an intimate seduction often turned into her one-sidedly teasing and “tormenting” him.
Shen Ruxue didn’t know why she was thinking of such fun past events at a time like this, but she issued the warning nonetheless.
“It’s okay.”
Jiang Lai was very ticklish. Back when she was a man, she could usually endure it unless someone was intentionally poking her. But since becoming a woman, her skin had become exceptionally soft and sensitive; even a light, feathery touch would make her body reflexively shrink back.
Every time her sister-in-law, Chi Yingyu, made a “night raid,” the first thing she did after slipping under the covers was put her hands on Jiang Lai’s waist. If Jiang Lai was asleep, she would gently pinch and knead until she forced her awake.
While other people’s night raids were quiet to avoid detection, Chi Yingyu acted as if she wanted the whole world to know she had arrived. That mischievous streak in Chi Yingyu was exactly the same as when she was a child—unbearably playful.
Yet, despite the mischief, Jiang Lai felt a surge of joy. She knew very well that she enjoyed it all; otherwise, she wouldn’t have been so indulgent.
Was she enjoying her sister-in-law’s liveliness, or was it the feeling brought by the physical intimacy, or perhaps both? Jiang Lai wasn’t sure, she only knew that she felt happy.
Sometimes, just as her sister-in-law said, it’s better to face one’s heart honestly.
As Jiang Lai was thinking about whether she should be even more open with her sister-in-law if they made it home safely, Shen Ruxue’s hand brushed directly against the most sensitive part of her waist.
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