Chapter 906: Can I Marry Him?

Li Luo and Ying Chanxi hadn't bathed together in a long time.

In fact, since the 20th of last month, Ying Chanxi hadn't seen Li Luo at all—now it had been over three weeks.

Besides, when they returned to the countryside for the New Year, Ying Chanxi always bathed at her own home before sneaking onto Li Luo's rooftop to his room.

So if you counted it properly, the last time they bathed together was over a month ago.

Though they had already seen each other naked countless times, every time Ying Chanxi walked into the bathroom with Li Luo, her cheeks still flushed slightly.

Two slender, snow-white arms fluttered to cover herself, her tiny, glistening toes curling tightly as she hurried into the bathroom in quick, light steps.

Li Luo followed behind, placing both sets of middle school uniforms on the sofa, then stepped into the bathroom.

After closing the door, he gently pulled her from behind into his arms and kissed her cheek.

Then he skillfully untied her hair tie, helped her bind her long hair into a bun, revealing her fair, smooth back.

Ying Chanxi stood still, letting Li Luo do as he pleased; when she felt her hair was secured, she walked into the shower area, turned on the hot water, and adjusted the temperature.

At this point, Li Luo had also entered, still holding her from behind, but his hands were no longer well-behaved.

Ying Chanxi's face grew even redder, feeling Li Luo's hot palms mischief-making on her body; she squirmed slightly, but offered no resistance.

"I prepared a dress—would you like to wear it later?" Li Luo whispered in her ear, blowing warm air.

Hearing this, Ying Chanxi felt her ear tingle, but after thinking for a moment, she whispered softly: "Maybe we should just wear the uniforms?"

For Ying Chanxi, compared to any formal dress, the uniform held more meaning.

Li Luo paused slightly at her words, then nodded gently: "You're the Birthday Person—whatever you say. We'll wear the uniforms."

Saying this, Li Luo reached out one hand, grasped Ying Chanxi's small hand holding the showerhead, and let the hot water cascade over both of them.

More than half an hour later, the two stepped out of the bathroom.

Ying Chanxi's face was flushed, her steps weak and unsteady.

Finally back on the living room sofa, she picked up the uniforms and put them on again.

At this point, Li Luo had also changed into his uniform, walked into the kitchen, and took out the ingredients prepared that morning one by one.

Ying Chanxi stepped forward, curious, and glanced—there was steak, pasta, large shrimp, various vegetables, and some desserts.

"Western food?"

"Yeah, don't you like it?"

"Anything you make, I like," Ying Chanxi said, copying Li Luo's earlier bathroom posture, wrapping her arms around him from behind, though her head could only peek out beside his arm, "You go ahead and cook—I'll go rest in my room?"

"Mm, go ahead."

Li Luo didn't think much of it, assuming Ying Chanxi was just tired from walking all day.

But after Ying Chanxi tiptoed and kissed him on the cheek, she hurried back to her room—not to rest, but to fish a small plastic square from the pocket of her changed clothes and quietly slip it under the bedside.

After doing this, her face turned as red as a freshly boiled kettle.

Yet she still felt it wasn't enough; her heart pounded wildly, and she pulled out her phone, opened the three-person group chat with Xu Youyu and Yan Zhusheng, and typed furiously.

5:30 p. m.

Night had already spread across most of the sky outside the window.

Li Luo came to Ying Chanxi's bedroom door and knocked.

When Ying Chanxi opened the door, Li Luo saw her face was deeply flushed; he frowned, reached out to feel her forehead, confirmed she wasn't feverish, then asked curiously: "What were you doing in there?"

"N-nothing at all————" Ying Chanxi looked guilty, hurried out of the bedroom, and quickly changed the subject: "Are we eating dinner?"

The moment she said this, she already knew the answer.

Because the living room was now dim, with only a few dim wall lamps glowing above the TV cabinet.

Besides that, only a few slender candles on the dining table were slowly burning, casting a warm golden glow that lit up the lids of the dishes.

"Come eat," Li Luo took Ying Chanxi's small hand, led her to the table, and pulled out her chair.

Then Li Luo sat across from her, gestured with his hand: "Take it slow—start by lifting the lid on the right."

Ying Chanxi blinked curiously, obeyed, and lifted the corresponding lid—inside was a vegetable salad.

Following Li Luo's instructions, she lifted the second and third lids: bacon-roasted potatoes and pan-seared chicken wings.

Appetizers.

The portions were small; Ying Chanxi picked up her knife and fork, savored each bite, but quickly finished the salad.

Across from her, Li Luo had already poured red wine, handed it to her, and raised his glass with a smile.

"To my Xixi—happy birthday, may you always be happy."

»

"Mm," Ying Chanxi's cheeks glowed even more deliciously in the candlelight, her blush shimmering in the glow; she raised her glass, tapped it lightly against his, and took a small sip.

After finishing the appetizers, they lifted the largest central lids, enjoying the seared steak, butter-baked shrimp, and cheese-baked pasta.

Paired with cream mushroom soup, though the portions looked small, they were genuinely filling.

Ying Chanxi ate slowly, murmuring as she chewed: "Why did you think of making Western food?"

"For romance, candlelit dinner is pretty classic, isn't it?" Li Luo chuckled, "Or don't you like it?"

Ying Chanxi shook her head: "It just feels a little strange."

"Hmm," Li Luo nodded, then pointed to the central lid, "Then lift this one."

"Oh." Ying Chanxi obediently reached out and opened the central lid.

There, revealed, was a small caramel crème brûlée cake, no bigger than a palm.

Li Luo took out two candles, inserted the numbers "1" and "9," lit them with a lighter, then stood up, turned off the living room wall lamps, and returned to blow out the other candles on the table.

Instantly, the living room plunged into darkness—only the two candles, representing Ying Chanxi's age, still glowed.

"Does this feel a little more familiar now?" Li Luo asked with a smile.

Ying Chanxi laughed too: "No wonder I felt like something was missing."

Every year on her birthday, this has become their routine.

At this moment, Li Luo had already taken out the guitar he had prepared in advance and began gently strumming and singing.

"Happy birthday to you~ Happy birthday to you~"

Ying Chanxi listened to Li Luo singing her birthday song, swaying slightly, tapping her fingers to the rhythm.

When the song ended, Ying Chanxi clasped her hands together, closed her eyes before the cake and candles, and silently made a wish.

After making her wish, Ying Chanxi slowly opened her eyes and blew out the candles before her.

Then Li Luo stood up and turned on the living room lights.

"What did you wish for?" Li Luo asked with a grin.

"I won't tell you." Ying Chanxi smiled, plucked the candles off, and prepared to cut the cake.

But Li Luo said, "Just eat it directly—we're just the two of us, are you put off by me?"

"I'm not!" Ying Chanxi huffed, picked up a spoon, scooped a bite, and gently nibbled it, savoring the sweetness of the small cake spreading between her teeth.

Li Luo watched her taste it, unmoving, continuing to fiddle with the guitar in his hands, humming along.

"What songs are you singing? I've never heard them before." Ying Chanxi asked curiously.

"New songs," Li Luo said with a smile. "I'm planning to make my own album—about ten or so tracks."

"So many?" Ying Chanxi was slightly surprised, but since it was Li Luo, she understood.

Yet she had already heard from Yan Zhusheng in the group chat that Li Luo had prepared a whole album for her—now he was releasing his own? That meant over twenty new songs?

His creative speed was astonishing.

Ying Chanxi thought of this but said nothing more.

Today was her birthday; she wouldn't dwell on serious matters—enjoying the moment was what mattered most.

So Ying Chanxi stood up, carried the small cake over to Li Luo's side, listened to him hum his new song, and occasionally fed him bites with her spoon.

The two ate slowly, and time soon reached seven in the evening.

Ying Chanxi had drunk half a glass of red wine; the flush on her cheeks had fully spread, her nerves unusually lively, a hazy, half-drunk euphoria settling over her.

Her mind was still clear—even still remembering the small iron box.

After finishing the cake, she eagerly fetched the box, placed it on the coffee table, and said to Li Luo, "Come on, I'm opening it."

"Cough, wait a moment," Li Luo said, quickly putting down his guitar and pressing his hand over the box's lid. "We agreed—no matter what's written on the wish slips, you won't get mad."

"I know, I won't get mad," Ying Chanxi said, pulling his hand away and flipping open the box.

Dozens of small slips lay quietly inside; at a glance, it was impossible to tell who wrote which—each one had to be opened individually.

Ying Chanxi picked one at random, unfolded it: "I hope my final exam results improve, and Mom gives me fewer tutoring classes—Wei Chun."

Li Luo heard the name and leaned over curiously to look, then felt a pang of nostalgia.

Wei Chun was his cousin, the son of Wei Dongrong and Zhang Xuefen; Lin Xiuhong and Zhang Xuefen were relatives.

Later, when they entered the Affiliated Middle School, Wei Chun had been in his freshman class—until sophomore year, when he transferred to the science stream.

Now, seeing the wish slip he'd written in junior high, Li Luo couldn't help sighing.

Wei Chun's college entrance exam score fell just short of Qianjiang University's cutoff; in the end, he had to choose a low-tier 985 university outside the province.

For an ordinary person, this was already an excellent result—but for Zhang Xuefen, it was far below expectations.

Still, Li Luo had no interest in meddling in others' family affairs; after reading the slip, he told Ying Chanxi to set it aside and keep going.

Many of the classmates here, Ying Chanxi could barely remember—only with Li Luo's reminders did she recall they'd ever existed.

"I like Ying Chanxi, I hope she can be my————" Ying Chanxi kept flipping, finally found one slip, her heart suddenly hopeful—wondering if it might be Li Luo's.

But at the end, she saw the name "Shao Heqi." She was speechless, as if burned, and immediately tossed the slip away.

Li Luo reached out, caught it, glanced at it, then chuckled softly and set it aside.

In fact, this wasn't just Shao Heqi's thought.

In just a few minutes, Li Luo had already found several wish slips expressing affection for Ying Chanxi.

It could only be said that Ying Chanxi's charm was immense—for many junior high boys, she was an unforgettable white moonlight.

The two continued flipping, until suddenly, Li Luo's hand paused.

Ying Chanxi noticed his hesitation and asked suspiciously, "What did you find?"

"————Nothing."

"Is it your own slip?"

"Cough, cough————"

"Let me see."

"Maybe we should just skip it?"

"No, I want to see!" Ying Chanxi rushed over, afraid Li Luo would destroy the evidence, leapt onto him, and snatched the slip from his hand.

The next second, she looked at the slip's content: "Can Ying Chanxi just disappear? So annoying."

Seeing the words, Ying Chanxi's face froze, her fingers tightening involuntarily.

Li Luo reached to pull the slip away, but couldn't budge it; he carefully leaned down, brushed his finger against her cheek: "That was just childish ignorance—you're not mad, are you?"

"I'm not————" Ying Chanxi pouted, glanced at Li Luo, then back at the slip, and whispered, "Was I really that annoying back then?"

"No, no," Li Luo quickly shook his head. "It was all my mom's fault—she kept using your grades to needle me. It had nothing to do with you."

"And don't you remember? Right before finals, my mom forced me to study and made you tutor me."

"I argued with you, then bought this Christmas tree—do you remember?"

"It does sound like that————" Ying Chanxi slowly recalled, nodded slightly, her mood eased a little—just a little.

"Idiot," she bumped her head against his chest, releasing some frustration.

Li Luo silently endured it, then was bumped again: "Jerk."

"Mm-hmm, I'm stupid, I'm bad, it's all my fault." Li Luo pulled her into his arms, then tried to change the subject, "So where's your note? We haven't found it yet—what did you write?"

"I don't remember anymore." Ying Chanxi shook her head, slipped out of Li Luo's embrace, and curiously continued flipping through the notes until she finally found her own.

But the next second, her cheeks flushed red, and in a flash she hid the note behind her back.

But such a small trick clearly couldn't fool Li Luo—he sensed something was off and grinned, "You found it? What does it say?"

"N-nothing—"

"Let me see."

"No—maybe you shouldn't look—"

"You looked at mine—why can't I look at yours?" Li Luo smirked, stepped forward, grabbed the collar of Ying Chanxi's shirt, yanked her back as she tried to escape, pinned her onto the sofa, and easily snatched the note from her hand.

Ying Chanxi squirmed and grumbled, but realized she couldn't resist; she blushed furiously and let out a soft whimper, then turned her face to see Li Luo already reading the note—so she buried her burning cheeks into the sofa.

At that moment, Li Luo had unfolded the note, which read: "I think I've fallen for Li Luo—after I graduate from university, could I marry him? —Ying Chanxi."