A few more days passed, and Su Wanying came running to Xu Honglei’s home as though it were her own.
“What’s wrong? Look at how flushed you are. Did someone boil you?” Xu Honglei teased her with a grin while handing her a cup of chilled sweetened water made by boiling fruit.
Su Wanying gulped down a large mouthful, then let out a long breath of relief. Under the cool breeze from the Air Conditioner, she began complaining irritably to Xu Honglei.
“Don’t even mention it. I don’t know what got into Li Hu. In this scorching weather, he insisted on dragging me out for a stroll and even said we should go to The Bund. What’s so interesting about The Bund? The sun nearly scorched my skin off.”
“And fine, if he wanted to go out, then we could go out—but he wasn’t even willing to buy me an ice cream. He insisted that ice cream was unhealthy and that popsicles were more refreshing.”
Xu Honglei said with a grin, “Your Romantic Partner being with you is the purest form of frugal virtue. Mm, wonderful. This is love—the purest love, untainted by the impurities of money!”
Su Wanying rolled her eyes at him. “Love, my foot! This girl can’t love anymore. I can’t take it, so I came here to seek refuge from disaster.”
As she spoke, she gulped down another large mouthful of chilled Sweetened water, smacked her lips, and said, “You really know how to enjoy yourself. In this scorching weather, a sip of fruit-boiled sweetened water feels wonderful!”
“I don’t like drinking those beverages from outside. They’re full of flavoring and additives, so they aren’t healthy. At least when I make my own, I use real ingredients and can drink it without worry.”
“That’s true. In this scorching weather, it’s easy to get overheated!”
Xu Honglei asked with a cheeky grin, “How about I, this handsome man, help you cool that heat down?”
“You stinking men—why do you think about that sort of thing the moment you see a woman? Can’t you talk about anything serious?” Su Wanying said, gazing at Xu Honglei with alluring eyes.
Xu Honglei understood at once. As he moved forward to help her unfasten her clothes, he said with a cheeky grin, “I didn’t mean anything else. I want to help you cool off.
“In this scorching weather, why wear so many clothes? Wearing fewer will keep you cooler!”
“You’re a rascal. Why are you like a teddy bear? Every time I come to your house, you bully me. You even took the First Prize from me. You got quite a bargain.”
“I’ve known Tiger for so many years, and he still hasn’t touched me. If he found out about what happened between you and me, he’d be furious enough to spit blood.”
“He’s an idiot. I understand you better than he does!”
In this era, Air Conditioners were uncommon even in a Big City like Huhai City. They were even less common in Old Houses, which had little insulation and consumed a great deal of electricity.
The older generation had grown accustomed to hard times. Electricity bills cost little, and they could afford an Air Conditioner, but they could not bear to buy one. Some people even bought one but refused to use it.
Xu Honglei was different. In this life, he intended to enjoy himself, so he was willing both to buy an air conditioner and to use it.
On that scorching summer day, Su Wanying stayed at Xu Honglei’s home from ten in the morning until after two in the afternoon, enjoying the Air Conditioner. Xu Honglei did not let her off either.
After Xu Honglei had initiated her several times, Su Wanying gradually came to enjoy that sort of thing as well. She even took the initiative herself; otherwise, she would not have come running over on her own.
Moreover, Xu Honglei handled every aspect well. During that sort of thing, he took good care of Su Wanying’s feelings and kept her supplied with delicious food and drink.
In this era, treatment like this was enough to satisfy a Modest young woman like Su Wanying, who came from a wage-earning family.
However, while the two of them were enjoying their time together, knocking from outside interrupted them.
“Who is it?” Xu Honglei’s voice held a trace of impatience.
“It’s me, Li Hu!”
Hearing that voice, Su Wanying, who had been reclining contentedly in Xu Honglei’s arms, turned pale with fright, and her body began to tremble.
She clung to Xu Honglei’s arm and looked at him helplessly, as if begging him to hurry and drive away the person outside.
Xu Honglei, however, calmly pulled on a pair of boxer shorts and swaggered out.
Xu Honglei’s home consisted of two rooms. One was the Master bedroom. He had partitioned the other into two halves: the Spare Bedroom and a small living room, where the door was located.
When Xu Honglei was young, he lived in the half-sized Spare Bedroom, but he now lived in the Master bedroom.
Xu Honglei opened the door and said impatiently, “Why did you come here in this scorching weather? I was taking a midday nap!”
“Has Wanying been here?” Li Hu asked while peering into the house.
“Are you sick? Wanying is your romantic partner. Why come ask me? How would I know?”
A refreshing wave of cool air poured out. Li Hu tried to squeeze into Xu Honglei’s home, but Xu Honglei blocked him with an outstretched hand.
“Hey, hey, hey, what are you trying to do? Don’t tell me you think Wanying is inside taking a midday nap with me!”
“No, that’s not what I mean. I want to go inside and cool off!”
“How can you be so thick-skinned? I didn’t invite you in, so why are you coming inside? Hurry up and get lost. I still want to take a second sleep later, and I don’t have time to entertain you!”
“What time is it already, and you’re still sleeping? If you sleep again, will you even be able to fall asleep tonight?”
“What’s it to you? I’m a solitary person now, so no one can control me anymore—least of all you!”
“Lei, I heard Auntie Li from the street say that Wanying has been coming over here a lot lately. Is that true?”
Xu Honglei smiled and said irritably, “You believe what those gossips say? They could bring a dead person back to life with their gossip.
“Besides, isn’t Wanying your girlfriend? You should know more about her whereabouts than I do. Why are you asking me?”
Li Hu gave an embarrassed laugh. “No, that’s not what I meant. I feel like Wanying has been acting strange lately. She was fine a few days ago, but I don’t know what happened over the past few days. She seems unhappy.”
“What have you been doing these past few days?”
“Nothing much. I accompanied her shopping. Isn’t it normal for a boyfriend and girlfriend to go shopping together? Besides, don’t all girls like shopping?”
“Are you sick? Did water get into your brain? In this scorching weather, why wander around aimlessly under the sun? The sun would melt anyone alive!
“Maybe Wanying got fed up with the heat but felt too embarrassed to tell you, so she went to a mall, Supermarket, or large clothing store to enjoy the Air Conditioner!
“As for girls liking to go shopping, they go shopping to buy things. Shopping is what gives them that thrill. Did you buy anything for her?
“Don’t tell me you only browsed and bought nothing. Were you planning to live on your relationship as though it were food?”
“I don’t have any money!” Li Hu laughed sheepishly, looking embarrassed.
“Don’t come asking me about money. You’re not my good eldest son. Go ask your parents!”
After saying this, Xu Honglei ignored him and slammed the door shut.