Chapter 74: I Wasn't the First to Strike! This Is Awkward!

When Chu Lin was still in a daze, he realized that Liu Xiaowan’s slender fingers were once again busying themselves on his chest. She mumbled even more confusedly, “Yan Yan, why have you gone flat? There’s nothing left?”

Chu Lin finally understood.

This lovely young woman hadn’t sobered up from the wine. She must have gotten up to use the bathroom and, in her muddled state, wandered into the wrong room—his. The apartment his sister rented only had one bathroom out in the living room; none of the bedrooms had their own. How awkward was this?

This was probably one of the reasons why so many young couples prefer not to live with their in-laws. After all, it’s not unusual for young people to have a few drinks now and then, and that can easily lead to embarrassing situations—especially when there’s only one bathroom in a small apartment. A little tipsy, half asleep, and it’s perfectly normal to stumble into the wrong room.

The real trouble is when the daughter-in-law walks into her father-in-law’s room, and the door isn’t locked. If the father-in-law is a decent man, all is well; if not, things can spiral into headlines—like that story from last year when a son was away on business for months, and his wife ended up pregnant by her father-in-law and dragged him to court. Or the recent report about a father who slept with his son’s girlfriend, prompting the son to fight him and the mother to beat up the girlfriend. It’s moments like these that truly test one’s character.

A beautiful woman delivered right to a scoundrel—would he really be able to resist?

Chu Lin felt his throat itch, and with the alcohol swirling in his veins, an irrepressible urge pulsed through his nerves. Sometimes, alcohol really can hijack your emotions.

He’d never considered himself a saint, but he thought he had enough self-control to fight off the sudden impulse. Especially here, in his sister’s apartment, with her alluring friend in his arms.

But then Liu Xiaowan murmured again, “Yan... Yan, what are you... pressing against me...? Let me move it away...”

Damn it! Chu Lin’s restraint snapped in an instant.

Big sister, I’m trying so hard to hold back, and your hand is only making it worse. You’re pouring oil on the flames.

It’s not his fault—she’d already said she was single.

Chu Lin rolled over, and in the darkness, strange sounds erupted almost immediately.

A muffled moan.

Time slipped by.

When the night faded and the morning sun rose above the hills, a notification about the Atlantis map refresh appeared in Chu Lin’s mind.

He woke up groggy, patting his aching head—the aftermath of too much wine. He reached out and his hand brushed against a soft, snow-white arm. That jolted him fully awake, his mouth dry as he looked at Liu Xiaowan beside him. Memories of the night before flooded back.

Damn!

Chu Lin rubbed his forehead in frustration. He swore he’d really tried to restrain himself last night, not wanting to cause a scene in his sister’s home. But that beautiful woman just kept stoking the fire. Yes, it was all her fault for making the first move. Maybe he could blame his thoughts, but last night, his mind was hijacked by alcohol and desire.

But now—how was he supposed to explain to his sister that he’d slept with her best friend? That half hour couldn’t be summed up in a few words.

To avoid awkwardness, he hurriedly dressed, slipped out quietly, and left the apartment. His heart pounded all the way back to his Panamera, where he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Time trickled on.

Chu Yan woke up groggy as well. She fumbled at her side, found nothing, and opened her eyes in confusion.

“That Xiaowan, getting up so early?” Chu Yan glanced at the time, muttered to herself, and walked into the living room. Her gaze immediately landed on the gift Chu Lin had brought her, which she hadn’t had time to open the night before. Now, curiosity got the better of her; her brother always knew how to pick gifts that delighted girls.

With that thought, she opened the box. Inside, she found two pearls, a price tag, and a national inspection certificate—enough to make her cover her mouth in shock.

Those two pearls were worth two hundred thousand?

“That brat has money to burn, doesn’t he?” Chu Yan grumbled, but her heart swelled with joy at her brother’s thoughtfulness.

Suddenly, she noticed her brother’s door wasn’t closed and frowned. “That kid can’t even be bothered to shut his door when he sleeps.” She closed the pearl box, walked to the room, and peeked inside. Clothes belonging to her best friend were strewn across the floor, and that same friend lay sound asleep. Chu Yan was stunned.

What?

She stepped inside, immediately catching a strange scent. Combined with the scene before her, even a pig could guess what had happened.

Her brother was gone, obviously having slipped away.

“That scoundrel,” Chu Yan couldn’t help but curse her brother. She hurried forward to wake her friend. “Xiaowan, wake up, wake up...”

“Yan Yan, it’s so early, let me sleep a bit longer,” Liu Xiaowan mumbled.

“Sleep? Do you even know what’s happened?” Chu Yan was exasperated.

A moment later, Liu Xiaowan woke up, glanced around, and seemed to piece things together. She looked as though she might cry.

“It wasn’t a dream?” Her eyes widened, and she hurriedly reached down to check herself, feeling a flood of regret.

“What?” Chu Yan didn’t understand, so she sighed. “Get dressed first; I’ll wait for you in the living room.”

Liu Xiaowan opened her mouth, at a loss for words, and clawed at her hair in frustration. It took her a while to get dressed and come out. The first thing she asked was, “Where is he?”

“Um, Xiaowan...” Chu Yan quickly pulled her aside, took out her phone, and played a video for her. “Look, this is from the security camera—you walked into my brother’s room yourself. He didn’t leave all night...”

The footage made Liu Xiaowan groan and tug at her hair even harder. “Yan Yan, I came to celebrate with you, and ended up giving myself to your brother for free?”

“Who said it was for free?” Chu Yan hastily grabbed a delicate box from the messy table and stuffed it into Liu Xiaowan’s bag. “Look, my brother left you a gift as compensation.”

“You think I don’t know that was meant for you?” Liu Xiaowan exposed her immediately. “Yan Yan, at least try to pretend!”

Chu Yan was speechless.

Just then, Liu Xiaowan’s phone rang. Seeing the caller ID, she answered quickly—and her expression darkened at once.

“What’s wrong?” Chu Yan noticed immediately, guessing something serious had happened. After all, even being slept with by her brother hadn’t rattled her friend like this.

“It’s my mother-in-law—something’s happened at the hospital again,” Liu Xiaowan replied without hesitation, hurrying out the door.

Chu Yan could only sigh softly. She knew her friend’s hardships—choosing the wrong man meant having to bear all the consequences alone when things went wrong, enduring pain while he took the easy way out and left her with a mountain of trouble.

Thinking about how her best friend had been bullied by her own brother, Chu Yan grabbed her phone and dialed him with a scowl.

Meanwhile, Chu Lin was already driving back to the farm. When he saw his sister’s call, he knew exactly what was coming. Sure enough, as soon as he picked up, a string of curses poured through the phone.

After being berated, he managed to stammer, “Sis, just tell Xiaowan it was all because of the alcohol. If it comes down to it, I’ll take responsibility!”

Chu Yan snapped, “You already brought your girlfriend home—what responsibility can you take?”

“Don’t be so shallow, sis,” Chu Lin replied righteously. “No one ever said you could only have one girlfriend these days!”

Chu Yan was stunned by his answer. Where on earth had her brother learned to talk like this?

All she could do was snarl, “Get lost.”

“Sure thing!” Chu Lin replied cheerfully, and hung up.

Chu Yan stared at her phone, fuming, utterly lost for words.