Lin Xingwan held her breath, gazing at Zhou Jinbai's handsome face, so close she could barely breathe.
"How does it feel?"
"Quite good," Lin Xingwan managed, trying to regulate her breathing.
"Comfortable?"
Lin Xingwan stared blankly at the man before her. She knew he was asking about the comfort of the mattress, but her mind, damn it, wandered.
Especially with the faint scent of lemon that wafted into her nostrils, Lin Xingwan felt as if she were drunk, her head swimming.
She remembered a line from a movie she'd seen: "Beauty is like a wolf or a tiger, it crumbles a person's will. Not to mention touching, one cannot even think about it!"
Wasn't this exactly the scene described?
Didn't this man know his looks could easily incite crime?
Zhou Jinbai waited for a long time, but the woman beneath him remained silent.
Instead, her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes didn't know where to rest.
The suit jacket she wore was open, and the buttons of her shirt, due to the angle, revealed a hint of her décolletage.
Zhou Jinbai felt a sudden, inexplicable heat.
He had the urge to continue.
"When choosing a mattress, you need to consider its comfort when lying on it, its breathability, and... its size, whether it makes noise."
After speaking, Zhou Jinbai stood up, pulling Lin Xingwan up with him.
The series of movements were fluid and natural, appearing entirely unforced to any observer.
"Madam, your husband is correct. This is the breathability test for this mattress. It can even allow smoke to pass through, and it has undergone multiple impact tests without making any sound."
The salesperson explained with a smile. Zhou Jinbai asked, "Do you like it?"
Like what? The mattress or him?
Lin Xingwan was certainly not a love-struck fool, but couldn't this man phrase his questions without leaving room for imagination?
"Please deliver it to XX District, XX Building, XX Unit."
As the two emerged from the supermarket, Lin Xingwan looked down at her empty hands and said to Zhou Jinbai, "Why don't you wait in the car? I want to pick out a birthday gift for Grandma. You're carrying so many things, it must be too heavy."
"No need to buy a birthday gift." It wasn't her real birthday!
"No, birthdays are meant to receive gifts. It's not because the birthday person wants a gift, but because the ritual is important."
Lin Xingwan's tone was very firm as she said this.
"Alright, I'll take these things to the car first."
They parted ways, and Lin Xingwan took the elevator to the sixth floor of the mall.
She walked directly towards a traditional Chinese jewelry store and was immediately drawn to a seashell brooch.
It was small but exquisite. The edges of the shell were inlaid with gold wire, which was bent into shape and firmly attached. The handle of the fan was adorned with a small pearl and some tassels.
Lin Xingwan could even imagine how beautiful this brooch would look on Zhou Jinbai's grandmother.
"Please wrap this brooch for me," Lin Xingwan said to the salesperson standing nearby.
"Certainly, please come this way." The salesperson took the brooch and walked towards the cashier.
After Lin Xingwan paid, her gaze fell upon a very exquisite jewelry box.
The jewelry box was only palm-sized, but it refracted colorful light under the illumination.
If this brooch were placed inside this jewelry box, it would look stunning!
"Let me see that box," Lin Xingwan said.
The salesperson immediately placed the box in front of Lin Xingwan. "Miss, you have excellent taste. This box is a replica of a Qing Dynasty lacquerware mother-of-pearl jewelry box. The main body of the box is made of sandalwood, which is rarely found in a century. The patterns on it are all made from imported scallop shells. The craftsmen go through processes of boiling, steaming, shaping, cutting, inlaying, and polishing... An experienced mother-of-pearl master can only make three such jewelry boxes in a year. It has extremely high collection value."
Lin Xingwan brought the mother-of-pearl jewelry box to her nose and inhaled. A faint woody fragrance wafted to her senses.
Before she could ask the salesperson to pack the box as well, she suddenly heard Lin Shirou's coquettish voice.
"Shaoting, will you buy it for me? Please? I really love the jewelry here. I have to shoot a historical costume advertisement tomorrow, and I want to wear the jewelry you give me, so I'll feel like you're always by my side."
"I can't say no to you. Whatever you want today, I'll pay for it."
"What if I wanted the stars in the sky?"
"Then I'll get you the stars... Xingwan?"
Gu Shaoting's handsome and elegant face flashed with guilt upon seeing the woman inside the shop staring at him expressionlessly, but it was quickly replaced by surprise.
"Sister, how come you're here?" Lin Shirou immediately let go of Gu Shaoting and looked at Lin Xingwan with apprehension. "Sister, please don't misunderstand. Shaoting and I have nothing. I just felt dizzy a moment ago, and Shaoting helped me."
After speaking, Lin Shirou looked like a child who had done something wrong, appearing lost and helpless, which made Gu Shaoting's heart ache.
"You owe me an apology, because I've never given you a second thought." Lin Xingwan often wondered what brand of trash bag Lin Shirou was, to be so full of it.
"Shouldn't you be at the company at this hour?" Gu Shaoting's tone was accusatory. He offered no explanation for what had just happened.
Lin Xingwan's cold gaze fell on Gu Shaoting. "I apologize for not being at the company. I happened to stumble upon my fiancé meeting his sister-in-law."
Her tone was mocking, her eyes filled with disdain.
The salesperson nearby, upon hearing this, began to look at Gu Shaoting and Lin Xingwan with contempt.
"People with dirty minds see everything as dirty. In your eyes, there's no pure friendship between men and women, only those sordid, ambiguous transactions, right? Lin Xingwan, I've explained this enough times. Gu Shaoting and I have never done anything to betray you. Believe it or not." Gu Shaoting's demeanor was furious. "You say I don't believe you, but what about you? Don't you feel the same way?"
Gu Shaoting's ability to twist facts was astounding.
Did they need to be caught in the act to prove their relationship?
"Shaoting, we're here to buy things today, not to argue," Lin Shirou said pitifully, tugging at Gu Shaoting's arm. "Don't make me too embarrassed, please, can we go?"
Lin Shirou's eyes were filled with tears, as if she were about to cry any second.
"How could I possibly embarrass you?" Gu Shaoting's tone softened slightly. "Didn't you say you saw a piece of jewelry you liked here not long ago? Where is it?"
Lin Shirou lowered her head dejectedly. "I suddenly don't want it anymore. I want to leave."
Lin Shirou kept talking about leaving, yet her feet didn't move an inch.
This made Gu Shaoting's heart ache. They both loved each other deeply, but because of Lin Xingwan, they had to be secretive.
Shirou had already endured too much hardship. If she didn't get the jewelry she liked today because she had to avoid Lin Xingwan, Gu Shaoting felt like a complete failure as a man.
He couldn't give her marriage, but could he not even fulfill a small wish?
"Go get the jewelry you like, darling," Gu Shaoting coaxed Lin Shirou.
Lin Shirou said cautiously, "The jewelry I like is... over there..."
Saying this, she pointed to the brooch on the counter.