That night was absolute torment for Huo Tao.
His little girlfriend’s hand would occasionally rub against his shoulders and arms; at times, her soft cheek pressed against his bicep.And then—her small hand wandered, resting over his chest, feeling about.
Until he felt a dampness on his left arm.
Turning his head, he saw Shen Guoguo’s tiny mouth slightly puckered from being squished against him, her moist, rosy lips resting right on his arm.
Huo Tao: …
He turned his body to face left and raised his right hand to gently adjust her head position—But that hand of his had a mind of its own, brushing against her soft lips again.
The touch sent a jolt through him. Just as he tried to pull away, Shen Guoguo’s leg came up and draped itself across his waist.
In the dim light, the edge of his shirt—her shirt, now half his—slid even lower toward her waist.
He hurriedly reached to tug the fabric back up, but his palm met the smooth, warm skin of her thigh instead.
…This is torture.
He couldn’t move forward or back, so he just lay stiffly on his back—But that slender leg of hers stayed pressed against his abdomen.
Honestly, maybe they really should buy a bigger bed. His legs might not work, but every other function of a man was perfectly fine…
Huo Tao didn’t dare move a muscle.
Shen Guoguo, of course, had no idea what was happening.
In her dream, she was clutching a world-class Parma ham, drooling over its pink sheen and tender texture—firm yet springy.
If she could turn it into a hot pot or just eat it raw, how delicious would that be!
As she was drooling, the ham suddenly tried to run away.
Oh no, you don’t! She immediately hooked her long leg around it.
You dare run?
And so, in her dream, she wrestled with the ham for what felt like three hundred rounds—it ran, she chased, she caught, it escaped again.
By the time morning came, she was exhausted.
When Shen Guoguo finally woke, her wristband showed it was already ten o’clock.
Oh no.
She sat up quickly. Huo Tao was nowhere to be seen.
Looking down, she saw that her clothes were still properly on.
Then she remembered Huo Tao’s firm, muscular upper body from last night—and her face instantly turned red.
They were husband and wife… Even if something happened, it would be normal, right?Maybe she should just… enjoy him a little?
No, no! There must be love first!
Though she remembered a quote from her past life: “It’s not that you shouldn’t have a man in your bed—it’s that you shouldn’t have him in your heart.”Still, her twenty-some years of logic couldn’t quite reconcile with that idea.
Too contradictory.
While she was still struggling with her thoughts, the door opened and Huo Tao appeared—pushing his wheelchair, wearing a shirt clearly two sizes too small, and holding a new set of clothes.
Shen Guoguo quickly pulled the blanket to cover herself.
“I borrowed some clothes from Li An’s house,” he said calmly. “If you’re not hungry, let’s go buy some clothes. Check if there’s anything else we need at home—we’ll get those too.”
“Alright. Um… I didn’t do anything inappropriate last night, did I?”
She wasn’t sure. She was a lady, but faced with such temptation—and knowing she slept like a log—what if she’d done something embarrassing?
Huo Tao kept his expression calm as he set the clothes by the bed. “No. You slept very soundly.”
“Good. That’s good.”
After he left, Shen Guoguo pulled the clothes toward her and got dressed.
The clothes were clearly brand new—never even washed. It made sense; Li An worked at a textile factory, so he probably kept extra clothes for his wife at home.
But the shirt and pants were both far too big.
She rolled up the pant legs and tied a belt around her waist.
In the mirror, the loose off-white shirt paired with brown rolled-up carrot pants, her sneakers, her bun hairstyle, and her little cloth pouch she always carried—she looked like a walking piece of old-fashioned rustic charm.
Pretty cute, she thought.
She tucked two nutrient bottles into her pouch and opened the door.“Let’s skip breakfast and just go shopping.”
When Huo Tao saw her—adorable, pure, and lively—his eyes lit up.
Even Li An whistled when he saw her. “Man, how come the same clothes look so different on our wives? Mine wears them and looks normal, yours looks like a movie star!”
Huo Tao stiffened.Don’t you dare look at her like that!
Before Li An could say anything else that might make him angry, Huo Tao hurried Shen Guoguo along.
“Let’s go.”
Their first stop—buying clothes.
He took her straight to the inner city. “This shop.”
Before his injury, this store—called Jiang Shui Ban—had been the biggest clothing and accessories shop in Windsoil City.
But after a few years, it looked rather rundown.
Shen Guoguo didn’t mind at all. Clothes were a necessity, but she didn’t plan to waste money. This shop looked cheap enough—perfect.
She stepped inside.
Surprisingly, there were no robot clerks here—just a shopkeeper and a human assistant.
The shopkeeper froze for a moment when he saw Huo Tao, then broke into a warm smile.“Xiao Tao? It’s really you! Haven’t seen you in years—I almost didn’t recognize you!”
“Uncle Yang, it’s been a long time.”
Windsoil City wasn’t huge, but it was crowded enough that people rarely crossed paths unless they tried to.
“This is Guoguo,” Huo Tao said, smiling. “I brought her to your shop to pick out some clothes.”
That one sentence said everything.
Yang Ming looked at Shen Guoguo with kind, approving eyes.
It was a gaze she knew all too well—exactly how elders looked at their daughters-in-law.
Back when she used to go on blind dates—before people learned she was a farmer—others had looked at her the same way.
“Nice to meet you, Uncle Yang. You two talk; I’ll look around.”
She smiled sweetly and tactfully gave the men some space.
In this post-apocalyptic world, steel and machinery were cheap—but textiles were expensive. Farmland was scarce, and the technology for growing cotton was long lost. Cotton only existed in old records now.
Modern fabrics were all synthetic derivatives.
Manufacturing standards were simple, and designs were limited.
The young shop assistant was quick to react, bringing over a metal basket.“Just put anything you like in here, miss.”
Sticking to her principle of practical and frugal, Shen Guoguo didn’t buy much—three sets of daily clothes, one thin pajama set, two casual outfits, plus shoes, socks, and a hat.
She also got two full sets of clothes for Huo Tao, inside and out.
Then she added two towels—one for washing face, hair, and body, and another strictly for herself.
Huo Tao’s home only had one towel—for face, butt, and feet all together!
She had taken a health class before; this was simply unacceptable.
Even though towels were expensive, she clenched her teeth and bought them anyway.
Money should be spent when needed and saved when it can be. You earn money—you don’t hoard it.
After convincing herself, Shen Guoguo took the basket and went back to Huo Tao. “I’m done picking.”
Her obedient smile made Yang Ming’s heart melt.
So what if Huo Tao was a “defective”? He wasn’t poor—he could take care of her. As long as the girl was gentle and kind, that was what really mattered.
Yang Ming grinned even wider, not even bothering to look at what she’d picked.“Wrap it all up,” he told the assistant.
“We’re family—no need to talk about money. Seeing you doing well would make your father proud.”
Huo Tao was just about to reply when several men suddenly barged into the store, fierce-looking and menacing.
They shoved right between him and Yang Ming—and Shen Guoguo was pushed stumbling backward.