Chapter 423

"Hey?"

After Xu Youyu pressed the answer button for him, Li Luo spoke into the phone.

"What are you doing?" came Ying Chanxi's voice from the other end.

"Just finished writing." Li Luo glanced at the time—it was nearly midnight—then asked, "Aren't you asleep yet?"

"I was just about to sleep." Ying Chanxi lay on her bed, feet propped up, "I remember you said they arranged a seaside resort hotel for you—how's the environment?"

"Pretty good." Li Luo held Xu Youyu in his arms and glanced out the balcony, "The view from the balcony is the ocean."

"Wow~ That must be beautiful."

"You'll see it in a couple days." Li Luo smiled, "Thanks to my uncle's connections, we rented a beachfront villa with a private beach—when you come, we'll stay there."

"Didn't you say we'd stay at your hotel?"

"Yeah, but an old boss my uncle knew has a private villa in Qiongzhou that's been empty—perfect chance to borrow it."

"Oh, I see." Ying Chanxi nodded, then asked, "So at the hotel, are you and the other author each in your own room?"

Hearing this, Li Luo looked down at Xu Youyu in his arms; Xu Youyu looked up, grinning mischievously and winking at him.

"Two people per room." Li Luo answered honestly, "I'm sharing with another author."

"Who is it?" Ying Chanxi asked curiously.

"You wouldn't know him." Li Luo changed the subject, "Go to sleep early—I need to sleep too, or I'll disturb the other author."

Xu Youyu stifled a laugh in his arms.

On the other end, Ying Chanxi exhaled slightly, thinking Li Luo was probably sharing a room with some male author—Xu Youyu, even if attending the annual meeting, would surely be sharing a room with a female author.

Thinking this, Ying Chanxi's mood improved a little.

So she said, "Then go to sleep early—I'm getting ready to sleep too."

"Okay." Li Luo nodded.

Then came a rustling sound from the other end—like Ying Chanxi getting out of bed and slipping on slippers.

After that, Li Luo heard Ying Chanxi whisper, "C-Can I sleep in your room?"

"Huh?"

"Your bed's bigger—it's more comfortable."

"Hmm…" Li Luo paused, not because he disagreed, but because a certain possibility suddenly occurred to him.

But before Li Luo could speak, Ying Chanxi had already pushed open the door to his master bedroom—and the next second, she exclaimed in surprise: "Zhusheng? Why are you here?"

Hearing Ying Chanxi's words, Li Luo couldn't help but laugh helplessly—he'd known it all along.

"You two figure it out yourselves—just don't start fighting." Li Luo chuckled, "I'm going to sleep now."

"Mm, mmhmm… I get it." Ying Chanxi nodded, wished Li Luo goodnight, hung up, and walked toward his bed, staring at Yan Zhusheng—who had already been lying there long before.

Yan Zhusheng blinked innocently at her, then shifted inward, making space.

Seeing this, Ying Chanxi said nothing more, pulled back the covers, and slipped in.

Immediately, Yan Zhusheng wrapped her arms around her, snuggling close.

"Zhusheng… what are you doing?"

"You steal the blankets at night," Yan Zhusheng admitted plainly, "If I don't hold you, I'm afraid I'll freeze to death."

Ying Chanxi: "..."

…

"We've got two daughters, huh?" Xu Youyu leaned against Li Luo's chest after he hung up, laughing, "And while we're away on vacation, they've both crawled into our bed."

Li Luo also chuckled: "Good thing I changed the subject fast—if she'd asked who exactly I was sharing a room with, I wouldn't have known how to answer."

"How else could you answer?" Xu Youyu waved dismissively, "Just say sleeping early helps you grow taller—nobody knows they're female authors anyway."

"You're not worried at all?"

"Why worry?" Xu Youyu snorted, then gazed at Li Luo with suggestive intent, hands resting on his shoulders, gently pushing him toward the bed, "Why don't you think about whether we should sleep tonight?"

Li Luo sat on the edge of the bed, then was gently pushed down by Xu Youyu until he lay flat.

Watching Xu Youyu, clad in a white bathrobe, smile suggestively as she straddled his abdomen, Li Luo's head spun, his breathing quickening.

"Husband~" Xu Youyu leaned down, hands gliding from Li Luo's chest down to his waist, gently tugging the bathrobe's sash.

Soon, the robe loosened on either side, revealing glimpses of his chest and abdominal muscles.

Xu Youyu licked her lips seductively, fingers tracing his chest, sliding left and right, finally sliding the robe completely off his body.

Feeling the fingertips on his chest, Li Luo felt a tingling numbness, his whole body trembling slightly as if electrified.

Sensing Li Luo's reaction, Xu Youyu smiled and took his hand, placing it on her waist.

Li Luo felt he was gripping a strap—and realized it was the bathrobe's sash.

But not his own—this was Xu Youyu's bathrobe sash.

That meant…

If he wanted, a simple tug would reveal a breathtaking sight before his eyes.

Thinking of this, Li Luo's head grew hot—he completely forgot the editor's warning at the room's entrance.

His mind was filled only with the image of Xu Youyu lying in the bathtub, head tilted, bare shoulders exposed, blushing sweetly as she smiled at him.

Without hesitation, Li Luo pulled the sash—the bathrobe loosened.

But the next second, Xu Youyu herself tugged open her robe, revealing the thin nightdress beneath, laughing as she leapt off him and dashed into the bed beside him.

Li Luo: "..."

Looking at the empty space on his body, then turning to see Xu Youyu curled up under the covers, Li Luo sighed deeply.

Seeing this, Xu Youyu couldn't help but stifle a smug laugh, glancing down at his lap and teasing, "Husband~ You're a little too enthusiastic, aren't you?"

Hearing this, Li Luo quickly rolled to his side, turning his back to Xu Youyu, then quietly tugged his pants twice to ease the discomfort.

Then he took a deep breath, yanked off his bathrobe, tossed it aside, pulled back his covers, and slipped inside.

After turning off the room's light, Li Luo shouted loudly, "Sleep!"

For some reason, Xu Youyu actually detected a hint of grievance in it.

The room was now pitch black. Xu Youyu shuffled to the edge of the bed, extended his leg, and swung it over to the adjacent bed, nudging Li Luo and whispering, "Hey, are you mad?"

"No," Li Luo grumbled. "Just go to sleep."

"Looks like you're really mad." "Really not," Li Luo said helplessly.

He'd finally figured it out—Xu Youyu loved playing this game, always leaving him in this agonizing limbo.

He'd be better off not falling for it again and bringing himself more suffering.

Otherwise, this young, vigorous body of his simply couldn't take it.

But Xu Youyu still wasn't convinced, worried he might truly be angry, so he crept stealthily over from the other bed and poked Li Luo's face.

Li Luo opened his eyes and saw Xu Youyu, clad in a nightgown, leaning over him, looking concerned.

Below that, in the hazy moonlight, was a faint, deep hollow—indistinct in the dim glow, yet fatally alluring, luring outsiders to plunge into it.

"Really not mad?" Xu Youyu whispered.

Li Luo looked at Xu Youyu, his expression resigned. He raised a hand and pinched his cheek gently. "Relax. I'm not that petty. Go to sleep early—we're going to the beach tomorrow."

Hearing this, Xu Youyu finally eased a little.

But before returning to his own bed, he lowered his head and lightly kissed Li Luo's cheek. "Goodnight, hubby~"

"Mm…" Li Luo touched his cheek and nodded. "Goodnight."

"Aren't married couples supposed to sleep together?"

"... You're never done, are you?"

"Haha~" Xu Youyu scurried back to his own bed, grinning as he pulled the covers over himself. "Anyway, I don't mind—if you get lonely in the middle of the night, come over here to find me~"

"... Sleep!"

…

January 30th, morning.

Li Luo felt a suffocating pressure and suddenly opened his eyes to see someone lying atop him.

His chest felt heavy… He glanced down and realized why he'd felt so constricted.

How could he not feel suffocated?

"Awake?" Xu Youyu grinned, resting on his chest. "I got up before you this time, little lazybones~"

"What time is it?"

"Past eight."

"Mm…" Li Luo rubbed his head. He hadn't expected to sleep until eight.

Mostly because yesterday's teasing had stirred him up—even after his mind cooled down, his body still burned.

As a result, he'd lain in bed for hours, tossing and turning, barely falling asleep until who-knew-what hour.

And now, first thing in the morning…

"Are you really uncomfortable?" Xu Youyu blinked. "It was pretty lively even while you were asleep."

"Senior… I advise you to say less."

If not for the mature soul dwelling in this young body, Li Luo couldn't imagine what might have happened in this room.

"Say 'wife,'" Xu Youyu corrected sternly. "Husband's being bad."

Li Luo: "... Can we get up first? Then go downstairs for breakfast—we'll miss it if we don't hurry."

"Got it~"

After getting up, the two washed up in the bathroom, changed into clean clothes, and went downstairs to eat breakfast.

Soon after they sat down, Qianzhou, who'd received a message from Li Luo on QQ, strolled over and joined them at their table.

Watching Li Luo and Xu Youyu eat breakfast intently, Qianzhou couldn't tell what they'd done in the room last night.

So he simply said, "Today's all free time. Any plans?"

"Let's tour the hotel first," Li Luo said. "Then head to the beach in the afternoon."

The Edison Hotel itself sits by the sea, but its interior space is vast.

Walking from the hotel to the beach would take several minutes.

If you stop to admire the scenery along the way, it might take ten or more minutes to exit the hotel grounds.

Inside, there's a large artificial lake, a man-made seawater pool, and some tropical groves.

Just the hotel's interior alone could pass for a minor attraction.

Since they'd be staying in Qiongzhou City for nearly a week, Li Luo wasn't in a rush to reach the beach—wandering the hotel first wasn't bad.

Qianzhou nodded in agreement. "When you head to the beach this afternoon, let me know."

"You need to tell me that too?"

"For other authors, no," Qianzhou said helplessly. "But you two are minors—I came to Qiongzhou City specifically to keep an eye on you."

"If anything happens while you're at the beach, I won't be able to explain it."

"Don't worry—we won't bother you."

"Alright," Li Luo nodded. "Let's have lunch together then."

"OK."

After chatting, Qianzhou left temporarily, not disturbing the young couple.

After breakfast, Li Luo and Xu Youyu returned to their room to change into swimwear.

"Hey," Xu Youyu opened his suitcase, pulled out two swimsuits he'd bought earlier, and grinned at Li Luo. "Which one should I wear—this one, or this one?"

Saying this, she picked up one set and fiddled with it in front of Li Luo.

Li Luo looked at the two swimsuits in Xu Youyu's hands and pointed without hesitation to the light blue one on the right: "Wear this."

"Mmm? Why not this one?" Xu Youyu lifted the black one on the left, smiling as she leaned close to Li Luo. "I remember when we bought swimsuits, you stared at me in this black one for ages—so why don't you like it now?"

"Because I like it too much." Li Luo reached out, took the sexy black swimsuit, and carefully put it back into the suitcase. "So others will surely like looking at it too."

"Oh~ So someone's just being petty?" Xu Youyu laughed even more brightly. "Are you already jealous of imaginary rivals?"

"Don't talk nonsense," Li Luo said seriously. "I think this blue one looks good too."

"So the black one's better, then?" Xu Youyu said this, chuckled, and reached for the black swimsuit. "Then I'll wear this one."

"No!" Li Luo quickly stopped her and confessed honestly, "Fine, I just don't want anyone else to see you wearing this swimsuit."

"Ee~" Xu Youyu burst into a delighted smile at this, patting Li Luo's head. "Why didn't you say so sooner? Then I'll listen to you."