Chapter 64: Unexpected Homecoming Moments

But suddenly, I felt excited about starting high school and growing up.

Xiao Heqing slowly rested her forehead against Lin Zheng Ran’s back, her face growing more shy by the second.

“This is digging into my back! What’s that you’re holding? You’ve been clutching it since yesterday?” Lin Zheng Ran asked out of the blue.

“Is it really digging in?” Xiao Heqing whispered, adjusting the box’s position. “It’s a gift for you. I’ll show you when we get home.” After fixing it, she asked, “Better now?”

“It’s better now.”

Before taking Xiao Heqing home, she nervously asked on the way, “By the way, are your uncle and aunt home?”

“They’re not home. Just go straight to the shower when we get there.”

“Okay.”

At the doorstep, she slipped off her dirty shoes and put on the ladies’ slippers. Though her shoes were filthy, her socks stayed white, and her small feet remained spotlessly clean.

She headed to the bathroom to take off her puffy coat but realized she was still holding the gift.

Lin Zheng Ran took off his muddied coat and reminded her, “You can just set the gift down. I won’t peek ahead.”

He knew she’d been preparing this gift for a while.

After all, for the past two weeks, she’d been distracted, clearly focused on something—probably this. Lin Zheng Ran didn’t want to spoil the fun with pointless meddling.

Hearing that, Xiao Heqing cutely placed the box on the ground. “I’ll give it to you after I shower.”

As she took off her coat, a mud spot from it accidentally stained her sweater.

Xiao Heqing gasped in panic, “Oh no, the sweater’s dirty too! I have to wash it.”

She pulled off the sweater, revealing a pure white undershirt underneath. But in her clumsiness, the mud from the sweater smeared onto the undershirt.

Blushing and startled, Xiao Heqing stared at the mud on her undershirt.

“The undershirt’s dirty now too! Everything’s ruined!”

Lin Zheng Ran was speechless, wondering how she could be so awkward.

“What are you doing? Do you have to get mud on every piece of clothing?”

Xiao Heqing didn’t know why she was so clumsy. She hung her head in embarrassment, her small hands slowly picking at the mud on her undershirt.

She wanted to say it wasn’t on purpose.

Lin Zheng Ran sighed and turned to the bedroom. “I’ll grab you some pajamas. Wear mine until your clothes dry.”

Xiao Heqing murmured in agreement, and soon the bathroom filled with hot water sounds as she locked herself inside.

Sure enough, from when she squatted in the mud to save the puppy, her pants and underlayers were all soiled—everything except her underwear, which was still clean.

And her bra.

While showering, Xiao Heqing mimicked Lin Zheng Ran’s habit of knocking her head in frustration. “What are you doing? He said he doesn’t like useless girls, and here you are, being as dumb as can be!”

She squeezed out body wash and shampoo.

She soaked her body and lathered up with foam.

Lin Zheng Ran lay on the bed in the bedroom, reading a book and listening to the sounds of Xiao Heqing showering.

He thought back to yesterday afternoon—besides Xiao Heqing, that fool Lily wouldn’t try to say something silly to him too, would she? These two were way too much.

From the bathroom, Xiao Heqing called out, “Lin Zheng Ran! Which towel is your mom’s? Which one should I use to dry off?”

“My mom and dad share one. Use mine—the white one with the blue edge. I just washed it yesterday anyway.”

“Huh? Yours?” Even through her words, you could feel how embarrassed Xiao Heqing was right then.

“Just make do with it. We don’t have any others.”

“Okay! Got it!”

In the bathroom, Xiao Heqing rinsed her head under the hot water. She glanced at the blue-edged towel hanging on the wall and bit her lip. “That’s his towel,” she murmured, her eyes fixed on it. Suddenly, a thought crossed her mind, and she turned down the water a bit.

She reached for the towel and slowly, very slowly, considered bringing it to her nose.

But just as it neared, she blushed furiously, shut her eyes, and quickly hung it back up. She cranked the water full blast to wash her face and cool off.

In her mind, she repeated:

“I’m not a weirdo. I’m not a weirdo. I’m not a weirdo. I can’t do that kind of thing.”

After another ten minutes, Xiao Heqing finished showering. Her loose ponytail cascaded down her shoulders as she slipped into Lin Zheng Ran’s pajamas, surprised at how oversized they were.

The top alone reached halfway down her thighs.

And it carried such a strong scent of him.

Xiao Heqing peeked out from the bathroom, checking if Lin Zheng Ran was in the living room. Seeing he wasn’t, she carefully wrapped her hair in a towel.

Girls’ hair takes time to dry, so bundling it up like this helps it not get too wet and avoids catching a cold.

Then, like the lady of the house, she gathered her dirty clothes and headed to the balcony to load them into the washing machine. She’d been here so many times growing up that she knew where everything was in Lin Zheng Ran’s home.

After loading the clothes, she grabbed the mop and cleaned up the water on the bathroom floor. Then she hand-washed the towel and, by chance, spotted Lin Zheng Ran’s socks he’d left in his shoes.

Lin Zheng Ran, hearing her bustling around from the bedroom, stepped out to see what was up.

He found her acting like she owned the place—the washing machine was running, the mop was set aside, and the little girl was at the sink washing the towel.

Oh, and she’d thrown his socks in to wash too.

“What are you up to?” Lin Zheng Ran asked her.

Xiao Heqing turned around. “Washing the towel.” She held up his socks. “And I figured I’d wash your socks while I was at it. All done now.”

“Huh?” He was confused. “Isn’t there a washing machine? And these socks are from this morning—they’re not that bad.”

“The machine’s busy with our clothes. I thought since I had time, I’d just wash the towel. As for your socks, we went out, so better to have fresh ones. They’ll dry quick anyway.”

She wrung out the water from the socks. “Go back to the bedroom and relax. I’ll cut up some fruit for you. I saw apples and pears on the table—which do you want?”

Lin Zheng Ran: “.”

Lin Zheng Ran: “Apple.”

“Okay, I’ll cut it up for you soon.”

Watching her hang the clean towel and socks on the balcony to dry, Xiao Heqing came back and neatly placed the mop.

Once done, she let out a satisfied sigh.

“All finished.”

She sat on the sofa, picked up a small knife, sliced the apple, stuck in a few toothpicks, and expertly arranged it on a plate before carrying it to Lin Zheng Ran’s bedside.

“Here you go. Just eat up.”

[After Fairy He and the Red Heaven Demon Dog battled fiercely, covered in blood and grime, you brought her to your home. In gratitude, she washed your clothes, cleaned the house, and prepared fruit for you. These items carry Fairy He’s life essence spiritual energy—touching them grants you +1 Strength and +2 Charm.]

Xiao Heqing hurried to the bathroom, unwrapping the towel from her head to blow-dry her hair. But when she grabbed the hair dryer, she paused—it was new, and she didn’t know how to use it.

“Lin Zheng Ran, how does this work? Could you show me?”

Lin Zheng Ran sighed deeply and went over. “It’s like this.” He showed Xiao Heqing how to use it, then noticed her hair reaching midway down her back.

When it was in a ponytail, he hadn’t realized how long it had gotten.

Once she got the hang of it, she started fumbling with blowing her hair dry—it looked like hard work.

Lin Zheng Ran said, “For all the stuff you’ve done, let me help. Hand me the dryer and stand here.”

“”