Chapter 41: Almost Melted Into the Pillow

Li Zhenguan couldn’t help but glance at Wang Zhao.

Wang Zhao, on the other hand, showed no reaction. She took out her change of clothes from the wardrobe and casually sorted through the luggage Li Zhenguan had brought, placing it on one side of the wardrobe.

Li Zhenguan’s clothes were considerably more than hers. Wang Zhao had already tidied up the wardrobe once, barely managing to fit in a small portion of Li Zhenguan’s clothes.

Some clothes were left at the villa, to be retrieved later if needed, or they could be taken directly to the house on Golden Boulevard once the renovations were complete.

After she finished organizing everything, she turned around to find Li Zhenguan still standing in the same spot, which confused her a bit. “Is there anything else?”

Li Zhenguan lowered his head shyly and shook it.

Wang Zhao led Li Zhenguan into the bathroom: “The floor here can be a bit slippery, so be careful when you’re showering. You can use the bathtub too, but it’s best not to use it for now.”

She explained to Li Zhenguan, as pregnant men generally shouldn’t soak in the bath for too long, as it could be harmful to their body and the baby. Besides that, she carefully told Li Zhenguan where all the toiletries were placed.

“If you have any brands you prefer, we can go buy them tomorrow,” Wang Zhao said to the man beside her while adjusting the hot water.

Li Zhenguan made a sound of agreement, watching Wang Zhao bend down to adjust the shower temperature for him. “Yours is fine, I’m okay with anything.”

Wang Zhao nodded, turning off the hot water tap. “You go ahead and shower first. If you need anything, just call me. I’ve already adjusted the hot water for you.”

She walked out, closing the door behind her, and opened the curtains that had been drawn shut to look outside. It was already very late, and most of the lights in the buildings opposite were off. The screen window was open, allowing a breeze to blow in, which somewhat cleared her muddled thoughts.

She took out her phone and looked at it. Many classmates who couldn’t attend had sent her red envelopes congratulating her on her marriage, including some classmates Wang Zhao hadn’t even been in contact with, who must have heard the news and sent their blessings.

After replying to all these messages, half an hour had passed, and the bathroom door still hadn’t opened. Wang Zhao checked the time again and couldn’t help but knock on the door.

“Zhenguan, are you not done yet?”

Pregnant men shouldn’t shower for too long, and Wang Zhao was worried that Li Zhenguan might be too tired today and could faint in the bathroom due to the rush of blood from the hot shower.

There was no sound from inside, but after a moment, the door was pushed open from within. Li Zhenguan, wearing pajamas and enveloped in a cloud of steam, walked out. His cold, pale skin had taken on a rosy hue, making him look like a white onion tinged with a layer of sunset glow.

Wang Zhao asked, “All done?”

Li Zhenguan nodded, holding a bundle of dirty clothes. This set of formal wear definitely couldn’t be machine washed and would have to be sent to a nearby dry cleaner tomorrow.

Wang Zhao took her own change of clothes. She was still wearing her formal dress, feeling confined all day. She said to Li Zhenguan, who was standing still, “I’ve put the hair dryer on the desk for you. Dry your hair and go to sleep first, don’t wait for me.”

Li Zhenguan nodded, his ears turning red.

There was a socket near the desk, and Wang Zhao had already drawn the curtains. Li Zhenguan could sit there directly to dry his hair.

Wang Zhao took a bit longer to shower than Li Zhenguan, mainly because it took her nearly a minute just to take off her formal dress. She also had to wash her hair, so before she knew it, forty-five minutes had passed.

Usually, she didn’t take this long to shower, generally keeping it under half an hour. Perhaps it was because she realized that another person would be living in the room today, that another man would be lying on the other side of the bed. Wang Zhao actually felt a bit hesitant, mainly because it was difficult to accept. This was undoubtedly a hurdle for her.

Although she didn’t dislike Li Zhenguan, and even had a certain degree of fondness for him, the two of them hadn’t spent much time together. For Wang Zhao, living together now was also a challenge.

When she finished her shower and came out, it was almost one o’clock in the morning. When she came out, it was very quiet outside. Her parents must have already gone to sleep. Her room was also very quiet. The hair dryer was placed in the room, and Li Zhenguan was lying on the bed. His eyes were originally closed, but when he heard the sound of Wang Zhao coming out, his eyelashes couldn’t help but tremble slightly.

After hesitating for a few seconds, before he could open his eyes, he heard the click of the doorknob. It seemed Wang Zhao had taken something and gone out.

At this, Li Zhenguan suddenly opened his eyes. He stared at the chandelier on the ceiling for a while, lost in thought. Just as he was about to sit up and go look for Wang Zhao, he heard the muffled sound of a hair dryer coming from the direction of the living room.

If it wasn’t for the deep night and the room being so quiet, Li Zhenguan definitely wouldn’t have heard this sound.

The sound of the hair dryer didn’t last long, about four minutes, before it stopped. Then there was a very light series of sounds of slippers shuffling against the floor. At the moment the doorknob clicked, Li Zhenguan closed his eyes. This was an instinctive action at this point, but after closing his eyes, he felt a bit regretful.

His hand, hidden under the blanket, curled a few times. The room light seemed to dim, and one side of the blanket was lifted. As a whiff of fragrance wafted over, the bedding on his side also sank a little.

He knew Wang Zhao had lain down beside him.

Li Zhenguan shifted his body, but was immediately noticed by the person beside him. Wang Zhao turned her head.

At this time, the floor lamp in front of the bedside table was still on. Wang Zhao was half-leaning on the bed, her phone in hand, planning to read a book before sleeping. Mainly because she couldn’t fall asleep, or rather, because of Li Zhenguan’s presence, she couldn’t fall asleep, so she prepared to pass the time this way.

She asked in a low voice, “Did I wake you?”

Li Zhenguan shook his head and turned to look at Wang Zhao. “No, I wasn’t asleep yet.”

Wang Zhao withdrew her gaze and swiped her phone screen. “Not used to the bed?”

Li Zhenguan made a sound of agreement.

Actually, it wasn’t because he wasn’t used to the bed, but because of her presence that he couldn’t sleep. All kinds of thoughts were running through his mind. Maybe it was because of the pregnancy, but he felt exceptionally attached to Wang Zhao. Sometimes, just a glance or a movement from her would make his legs go weak, melting like spring water.

“You’ll get used to it,” Wang Zhao said. “I’m not good with new beds either. In a new environment, it usually takes me about half a month to adjust.”

When she first woke up in the hospital bed, she had a headache most of the time. Even in her sleep, she felt nauseous. After finally adjusting to the hospital and this world, she returned home and went through another half month of adjustment period, as well as getting to know this world.

“If you really can’t sleep, just close your eyes and empty your mind. You’ll fall asleep eventually,” Wang Zhao said. “Try not to think about anything. Though this is very difficult to do. Most people end up thinking more about what they’re trying not to think about.”

Li Zhenguan looked up at Wang Zhao.

This was a side of Wang Zhao he had never seen before.

The woman was casually leaning against the headboard. The nearby floor lamp gave off a warm light, not too glaring, but it softened Wang Zhao’s features considerably, stripping away her usual coldness and unapproachability. Moreover, she was wearing a pair of glasses on her nose bridge.

It was the first time Li Zhenguan had seen Wang Zhao wearing glasses up close. He had only seen it a few times through video calls before, but it was nowhere near as captivating as it was now.

Also, because they were so close and the light on the other side was so bright, Li Zhenguan suddenly noticed that Wang Zhao had a Roman nose, slightly protruding in the middle. Such a nose would definitely not suit most people’s faces, and people with Roman noses were rare.

There was a very faint small mole under her nose bridge on the side closer to him, which would be unnoticeable unless one looked carefully.

He had been staring for too long, and Wang Zhao seemed to notice. She looked down and met Li Zhenguan’s bright gaze. She frowned slightly, “You’re not sleepy?”

Li Zhenguan moved under the blanket, seeming to get a bit closer to her, before saying, “Aren’t you not planning to sleep either?”

Hearing Li Zhenguan’s words, Wang Zhao looked at him for a while before turning off her phone screen.

“I won’t read anymore. Let’s sleep together.” She bent down to turn off the light, giving Li Zhenguan no time to react before lying down. She tucked in the blanket and said softly to the man beside her, “Good night.”

After a long while, Li Zhenguan’s voice came from the darkness. However, he still looked at Wang Zhao’s profile for a while.

The woman had her eyes closed. In the darkness, he could barely make out her outline, her high nose bridge, her clear and handsome features, giving off a feeling of a Chinese ink painting. At the same time, Li Zhenguan felt a bit disappointed. Various chaotic thoughts kept running through his mind. He really couldn’t sleep at all, simply because this person was lying beside him.

So, after lying still for a long time, he felt his leg starting to cramp. He couldn’t help but turn over, which also moved the blanket. Afraid of waking Wang Zhao, he quickly lay back down, but lying like this was really uncomfortable, so he couldn’t help but start moving his leg slightly.

At this moment, he suddenly heard a suppressed voice from beside him: “Still can’t sleep?”

Li Zhenguan froze. After several seconds, he felt Wang Zhao sit up, and he made a sound of agreement, quickly saying, “My leg is just cramping a bit, it’s nothing serious.”

“Where is it cramping?” When Wang Zhao heard Li Zhenguan say this, she turned on the light. She knew about Li Zhenguan’s condition at this time, and leg cramps at night were quite common, usually due to calcium deficiency.

Li Zhenguan said, “The left calf is cramping a bit.”

Wang Zhao pulled back the blanket, sat at the foot of the bed, lifted one of Li Zhenguan’s legs, and before he could react, she had rolled up his trouser leg.

Startled, Li Zhenguan almost kicked her away, the exposed skin turning red.

He shrank back a bit, “It’s already better, there’s no need to massage it.”

When Wang Zhao’s hand casually rested on his thigh, his whole body melted into the pillow on the bed.