Chapter 737: Alliances and Rivalries: The Three Women

Yan Zhusheng didn't plan to wash her hair today, so she wrapped her long locks in a Mao Jin and didn't stay in the bathroom long.

About twenty minutes later, she stepped out of the bathroom wearing a pajama set.

But Ying Chanxi, lying in bed listening to the sound of water, felt this time stretch out unbearably long.

Only when Yan Zhusheng and Li Luo emerged from the bathroom, damp with steam, did Ying Chanxi turn her head—and then sullenly rolled over, turning her back to them.

Knowing Yan Zhusheng had once bathed with Li Luo was one thing.

Lying in bed, watching Yan Zhusheng pull Li Luo into the bathroom to bathe together while she herself listened outside to the sounds of water—that was entirely another matter.

But when Yan Zhusheng and Li Luo also got into bed, and Li Luo pulled her into his arms, wrapping her in the familiar comfort of their usual sleep routine, Ying Chanxi's previously tense body gradually relaxed.

"Did you get mad just now, sister?" Yan Zhusheng peered over from Li Luo's other side, asking Ying Chanxi, "What were you thinking, listening to me and Li Luo bathing?"

Li Luo heard this and flushed with embarrassment—he thought, Zhusheng, why do you always pick the worst possible moment to bring this up?

Ying Chanxi's already loosened composure was stirred again by Yan Zhusheng's deliberate provocation; her cheeks puffed up, and she glared at Yan Zhusheng: "You talk too much. Aren't you annoying?"

"Sister's so mean," Yan Zhusheng ducked behind Li Luo's shoulder, half her face hidden, whispering to him, "Li Luo, look—Xixi's always this petty. She secretly bathed with you today too."

Ying Chanxi clenched her teeth and swung a punch fueled by three years of cultivation at the real-life Pikachu.

She'd expected Yan Zhusheng to dodge as nimbly as last time.

But Yan Zhusheng didn't dodge—instead, she deliberately lifted her body slightly, letting Ying Chanxi land a light punch on her shoulder.

It didn't hurt at all.

Yet Yan Zhusheng put on a wounded expression, snuggling into Li Luo's arms and murmuring softly, "Li Luo, look—sister hit me."

Li Luo: "..."

Ying Chanxi was furious at her own sister—and had no outlet for her anger, her face flushed crimson.

Fortunately, Xu Youyu was nearby, chuckling as she pulled Ying Chanxi into her broad chest, stroking her head and soothing her: "There, there, stop arguing."

"What's there to argue about?"

"Tomorrow night, when you bathe, just invite me and Zhusheng into the room."

"We'll sit outside and listen to you and Li Luo bathing—won't that be fair?"

"I—I..." Ying Chanxi froze at Xu Youyu's suggestion, blurting out instinctively, "I don't want to..."

"Then it's your problem," Xu Youyu said. "We're already this close—what's the big deal?"

"Li Luo's already seen you naked and touched you everywhere—do you really think you can be with another guy now?"

"What do you think, Xixi?"

"I..." Faced with such a direct question, Ying Chanxi couldn't speak.

Deep down, she still wanted to claim Li Luo all for herself.

But she also knew clearly that things had already spiraled beyond her control.

And she understood well that both her senior and Zhusheng also loved Li Luo deeply—they were already bound by ties too strong to sever.

"Look," Xu Youyu whispered gently beside Ying Chanxi's ear, "Li Luo's villa is already renovated."

"Each of us has our own bedroom."

"And personal spaces designed just for us."

"You have your collection room, Zhusheng has her recording studio, and I have my cocktail bar counter."

"Living together like this, isn't it actually quite happy?"

"After this National Day holiday ends, I'll announce to everyone at school that I've broken up with Li Luo."

"Then you just take over—you'll be Li Luo's officially recognized girlfriend at school."

"This..." Ying Chanxi listened until the end, then blushed faintly and whispered to Xu Youyu, "You don't need to make that official announcement anymore..."

"Huh?" Xu Youyu was stunned. She paused, then asked, "Why not? You don't have to worry about my feelings on this."

"I never cared much about such things anyway. Announcing I was his girlfriend in front of his roommates was just a moment of impulsiveness—I didn't think it through."

"After this holiday ends, let's stick to what we agreed before..."

"No." Li Luo spoke up for the first time during the girls' conversation.

Holding Yan Zhusheng, he shifted closer to Ying Chanxi and Xu Youyu, wrapping both girls' heads in his arms, then whispered to Xu Youyu: "I've already introduced Xixi to my roommates as my girlfriend."

"Huh?" Xu Youyu was completely stunned.

Ying Chanxi's face turned bright red; she whispered to Xu Youyu, "Sorry, senior... it's like this... just before the holiday..."

Ying Chanxi explained the full story.

After hearing it, Xu Youyu sighed and rubbed her forehead: "So that's how it is... Li Luo, you really have guts..."

"Cough..." Li Luo's hands were both propped up by the girls, leaving him no way to hide his embarrassment—he could only look up at the ceiling to ease the tension.

At that moment, Yan Zhusheng squinted from the other side, peering over with clear displeasure at Ying Chanxi and Xu Youyu.

"You're both Li Luo's girlfriends now—what about me? I need to tell his roommates too."

"Why are you in such a rush?" Ying Chanxi snapped. "You're never even at Ningshan Campus—when Li Luo goes to you, isn't he still your boyfriend?"

Yan Zhusheng puffed out her cheeks, suddenly feeling cheated.

She'd thought she and her senior had launched this offensive together—how had things turned so that she was now lagging behind?

"I don't care." Yan Zhusheng gripped Li Luo's arm tightly, though her grip offered no softness, "You've both made it official—what's one more?"

"This is different," Xu Youyu cleared her throat, now siding with Ying Chanxi, soothing Yan Zhusheng: "I never really agreed with Li Luo announcing two girlfriends at once."

"That's why I stepped back—I let Xixi take the front, but tried to avoid overlapping."

"Li Luo is already a minor public figure online—his private life will be magnified by outsiders."

"With today's internet so advanced, if his roommates blab and this leaks, it'll seriously affect him. Even if we don't know whether the impact will be good or bad, if we can prevent the risk at its source, we should."

"Zhusheng, don't forget—you're a public figure too. Yuan Auntie is so famous now; as her daughter, you're always under the spotlight."

"If Li Luo were exposed as having two girlfriends, and both were unknown to the public, maybe the heat could be suppressed."

It's just gossip about a public figure's romantic escapades.

But if the name Yan Zhusheng gets mixed in, think about it—this would at least be a Weibo trending topic in the top three, wouldn't it?

Xu Youyu analyzed at length; Yan Zhusheng listened silently, sinking into complete stillness.

She often truly preferred directness, doing whatever she wanted without hesitation, but she wasn't entirely stubborn or capricious.

Once Li Luo's interests were involved, she immediately listened.

Yet the unhappiness inside her still remained.

"So I can still drag Li Luo to bathe with me anytime—I won't let you stop me," Yan Zhusheng said, refusing to suffer any loss; since they chose not to go public, she'd reclaim some rights elsewhere.

"Cough… that's not a big deal," Xu Youyu said without objection, then hugged Ying Chanxi and urged, "Xixi, you've already seen it once today—what's a few more times? It's better than Zhusheng insisting on announcing her status right in front of Li Luo's roommate."

After Xu Youyu whispered sweet nothings in her ear, Ying Chanxi realized it made sense; after hesitation, she nodded in agreement: "But you can't deliberately do it in front of me—for example, if I need to find Li Luo, you can't immediately drag him off to bathe."

"Of course not," Yan Zhusheng said, her expression slightly satisfied after gaining Ying Chanxi's consent, nodding to accept the condition: "I'm not as petty as you are."

"You're the petty one," Ying Chanxi huffed. "As soon as you found out I and the senior had both announced we were girlfriends, you panicked—look at how frantic you were just now, like you wanted to bite someone."

Hearing this, Yan Zhusheng narrowed her eyes but couldn't refute it, so she stayed silent, marking this grudge for later revenge.

Seeing Yan Zhusheng offer no reply, Ying Chanxi instantly rejoiced—she hadn't expected to gain the upper hand and win outright against Yan Zhusheng.

Li Luo watched the girls reach their agreement, quickly patted one, hugged the other, offered some reassurance, then hurriedly urged them to sleep, turning off the room's lights.

As the master bedroom's light went out.

Xu Youyu smiled warmly, releasing Ying Chanxi from her embrace, letting both Xixi and Zhusheng rush into Li Luo's arms, closed her eyes, and vanished from the scene in quiet triumph.

Deep in the night, past midnight.

Ying Chanxi suddenly woke from sleep, dreaming again of Yan Zhusheng dragging Li Luo off to bathe.

Only when she opened her eyes and stared at the dark ceiling did she realize it had been a dream.

The room was utterly quiet, save for the faint breathing of the three people beside her.

Ying Chanxi replayed the events of the night in her mind, then suddenly noticed something.

It had been Yan Zhusheng who, right before her eyes, dragged Li Luo into the bathroom to bathe together, then strutted out triumphantly.

So how had it ended up with her agreeing that Yan Zhusheng could do this anytime in the future?

Huh?!

Wasn't there something wrong here?

Ying Chanxi's head grew fuzzy; exhausted from the late hour and finding no answer, she drifted back into drowsy sleep.

When she woke the next day, last night's events were already forgotten.

…

As usual, the three girls went for a morning run.

After feeding Xu Youyu breakfast, Xu Youyu surprisingly rose early.

Probably because she'd taken the day off yesterday—though she'd been worn out by Li Luo in the bathroom, she'd rested well.

So after breakfast, unable to sleep again, she got up, washed up, changed clothes, and joined Li Luo and the others as they headed out.

Li Luo drove the three girls back to the Sky Ridge Elegant Residence villa.

Butler Liu waited there in advance, greeting Li Luo and the other three as they ascended the stairs.

At this moment, the furniture installers were already busy; Li Luo and the others glanced at the new sofa and TV in the living room, nodding in satisfaction.

Then Butler Liu led them to a guest bedroom on the second floor.

This guest bedroom sat beside the study, with a bathroom nestled between them.

Originally, the bathroom had been attached to the guest bedroom, but after Xu Youyu connected it to the study, one could now walk directly from the study into the bathroom—very convenient.

Near the window, a small section of wall connected the guest bedroom and the study.

Over the past two days, Butler Liu had arranged for workers to drill a cat hole through the wall and install a small tunnel.

On the guest bedroom side, a full wall had been fitted with a cat climbing frame, enough for the cats to leap and play freely within the room.

After walking through the guest bedroom and inspecting it, Xu Youyu and the others nodded repeatedly in satisfaction, already imagining the cats frolicking there in the future.

"The rest of the furniture is being installed gradually," Butler Liu said. "During the National Day holiday, the basic furnishings will all be completed."

"Other furnishings will be chosen slowly after you move in several months later, based on daily life needs—they'll be more suitable that way."

"After National Day, a specialized formaldehyde removal company will come to handle the work, and we expect to complete the goal by mid-December, keeping formaldehyde levels consistently below the safe occupancy standard."

"Mm." Li Luo nodded after listening, thoroughly satisfied with Butler Liu's performance: "Thank you for your trouble."

"It's all part of my duty," Butler Liu chuckled.

For a butler of his rank, Li Luo's usual requests were child's play—easy to execute.

Li Luo was also very pleased with his decision to hire Butler Liu, as it saved them considerable effort.

Otherwise, just renovating the villa would have kept Li Luo busy enough.

Lin Xiuhong had free time, but Li Luo knew his mother's capabilities well—she lacked experience in this area and would easily be cheated by renovation crews and designers.

Far less reliable than Butler Liu.

"Then we'll leave this to Butler Liu," Li Luo said after taking the three girls for one final walk-through, confirming everything was fine: "We're going to visit a friend nearby."

"Very good, please take your time."

(End of Chapter)