Lotus Feet

Soaking in warm water, Chu Lian felt all her fatigue disappear, stretching lazily. She played with the water with her small hand, a few strands of hair lightly veiling her body in the misty steam, making her figure appear dreamlike and indistinct.

"This place is quite nice, but it lacks the feeling of home. Maybe I'll visit often in the future, but I won't stay long." Chu Lian tilted her head, suddenly thinking of Ying Zheng, then quickly shook her head to get his image out of her mind.

She gently exhaled, "Why did I suddenly think of him?" A wry smile appeared on her face; she didn't expect to think of this man. Honestly, although she didn't give face to Qin Shi Huang verbally, she actually respected him in her heart for his willingness to sacrifice himself for the stability of the world.

What was even more admirable was that he did this without leaving any trace for future generations to admire. It can be said that apart from unifying China, most of his deeds were either altered or fabricated by later generations to cover up the truth.

He might have predicted what the future would be like before making that decision, but he still chose to do so. It must be said that only someone with great courage and a saintly heart can achieve this. China's history never lacks passionate men or unparalleled heroes, but there are very few ancient heroes like him.

"I wonder if my original world would be like this." Once she relaxed, all sorts of strange things came to mind. Thinking of Qin Shi Huang was just a passing thought. After putting aside thoughts of him, other matters began to surface.

"La la la, I love bathing, my skin feels so good. I love bathing, my skin feels so good. I love bathing, my skin feels so good~~" As she thought about various things—unforgettable, sad, joyful—she unconsciously sang this cute song.

Well, she only knew this one line and was unaware of the song's name or any other lyrics. But does singing in the bath really need to be so particular?

She bathed for nearly twenty minutes, washing herself clean before changing into a pure white lace nightgown and stepping out. She folded her clothes neatly and placed them on her travel bag, planning to sort them out in the next city. Unfortunately, with only a little over an hour left, there was no way the clothes would dry, so she had to leave them like that.

Exiting the bathroom, she saw the girls still eating in the hall and thought to herself that since she was already full, there was no need to disturb them. So, she used her spiritual power, making her wet hair quickly turn smooth and flowing in seconds.

Don't complain about why she didn't use this to dry her clothes. After all, she had just figured out how to use spiritual power in this basic way and was barely able to apply it to her body, let alone extend it to her clothes.

"There's still an hour left; I should sleep a bit first." She looked at the laptop on the nightstand, hesitated for a moment, and decided not to use it. Instead, she picked up Tina, who was lying on her pillow, placed her on Chu Chu's bed, and climbed up to rest her eyes.

Outside, Chu Chu and Inori noticed that Chu Lian had finished bathing. Not seeing her come to the living room, they guessed that she must have gone to sleep after eating and bathing.

"Big sister is asleep, so I can~" Watching the two girls, her eyes lit up as a plan formed in her mind.

"Cousin Xiuer, Sister Inori, I'll go take a bath first. You guys eat here. Look, my clothes are stained with food; I should change." Although she had just bathed, she ate so much that she got some food stains on her clothes. If she didn't want to carry those stains to the next city, she'd need to wash again.

"Go ahead, go ahead. I'm too full to move right now." Li Xiuer's face was slightly flushed, seeming a bit embarrassed, but she still gave a timid smile and nodded.

"I'll call the waiter later; you go first. Don't take too long." Inori looked into Chu Chu's eyes and said with some implication.

Chu Chu was startled. As expected, Inori and her sister have a connection, deducing her intentions from her words. Fortunately, she didn't stop her, or she would have failed for sure.

"Thank you, Sister Inori." This "Sister Inori" was spoken with genuine affection, clearly showing she accepted the title. Hahaha, as long as I'm not stopped from being close to my sister, calling her sister is nothing.

She stood up happily, saying, "I'll go first; you guys take your time, no rush." With that, she really headed towards the bathroom...

Her face and hands were covered with food residues. Without washing thoroughly, wouldn't that ruin the taste when she savors the most delicious meal later?

After cleaning up, she opened the bathroom door, saw that Li Xiuer and Inori weren't paying attention to her, and quietly slipped out, tiptoeing to Chu Lian's bed, where she gazed at the sleeping figure with an extremely excited smile: "Big sister, I'm here."

Her delicate ears twitched; Inori heard the sound in the room, feeling a sudden, inexplicable pain in her heart. She placed her hand on her chest, lowering her head: "What's happening to me? Why do I feel a slight pain?"

Meanwhile, in the bedroom, Chu Chu's night raid had just begun.

Caressing Chu Lian's cheek, Chu Chu gazed at her white lace nightgown, hesitated a few times, and then refrained from pulling it off. Instead, she lowered her head, extending her fragrant tongue to gently lick her lips before slowly moving downward.

Chu Lian's body had her unique fragrance mixed with the scent of bath soap, creating a pleasant, intoxicating aroma.

Chu Chu's face wore an intoxicated expression, her eyes trailing downward until they landed on Chu Lian's bare jade feet.

Her ten toes were as tender and white as the freshest scallions, the toenails resembling glossy pink pearls, the curves exquisite, and her skin like creamy jade, fair as snow. Tiny blood vessels faintly appeared beneath the skin, making her feet seem like the most perfect work of art.

Before such beauty, Chu Chu couldn't control herself. She leaned back, gazing at the pair of jade feet, slowly inching closer...

"Mmhm~" In her sleep, Chu Lian felt a tingling sensation at her toes and involuntarily shifted. Her subconscious believed she had accidentally touched something, so she didn't wake up. After waiting for a while and seeing she didn't awaken, Chu Chu continued her actions.

In her dream, Chu Lian saw herself sitting barefoot by a pond, where a playful little fish gently nibbled at her feet underwater, tenderly and softly. The movement of her feet touching the water brought an inexplicably soothing sensation.

"Heh, what a playful little fish." As her feet moved, the fish followed her, brushing her skin with its lips, seemingly enamored with the warm touch, reluctant to leave.

"There's no helping you…" Feeling it was time to go, Chu Lian shook her head, speaking to the fish in the water. She extended her foot, placing a soft toe into its mouth, letting it suckle before pulling away. "I must go. You little rascal, don't do this next time; I probably won't return."

As the perfect feet moved away, the fish in the water reluctantly stuck its head out, opening and closing its mouth rapidly as if saying something.

Chu Lian's body shrank slightly, pulling her legs closer and turning a bit in her sleep. This movement startled Chu Chu, making her realize that Chu Lian was waking up and that she couldn't continue savoring.

To avoid making Chu Lian dislike her, and to prevent her from discovering that she would do such things while she slept, Chu Chu quickly decided to leave before she fully awoke.

But before leaving, she needed a scapegoat...

Before Chu Lian could open her eyes, Chu Chu hurriedly ran to her bed, shook Tina awake from her nap, and placed her at Chu Lian's feet before quietly retreating to the bathroom.

Rubbing her eyes, Chu Lian sat up, looking at the clock on the bedroom wall and realizing it was not even 8:20 yet, meaning she had only slept for half an hour.

Recalling her dream and feeling a slight dampness at her toes, she turned and saw Tina lying there, a bit surprised but then smiling and shaking her head: "So it was Tina. When did she start liking to lick people's feet? What a strange dream, and a strange cat."

Stretching lazily, the drowsiness from her bath vanished completely after the nap. Indeed, more sleep is good.

After daydreaming for a while, Chu Lian noted the time approaching 8:30 and decided it was time to prepare, so she got out of bed.

"Big sister, you're awake?" Just then, Chu Chu walked in while combing her hair, smiling mischievously at her.

"Mm, had a weird dream, then woke up." Chu Lian didn't mention the dream's details, but Chu Chu could guess the general content based on recent events.

However, she wasn't foolish enough to expose herself. Instead, she took Chu Lian's hand, leaning on her shoulder, saying, "Big sister, we're heading to the next city. I don't care about sightseeing; as long as I'm with you, anywhere is fine~"

"You know, being so clingy isn't good. You must learn to be independent." She knew it was useless to say, but as an elder sister, she had to say it.

"Yes, yes, sister. Let's wait for them in the living room. After eating, they need to wash again." Chu Chu replied playfully, tugging at Chu Lian's hand.

"Inori, have you rested enough?" Chu Lian asked as she entered the living room and saw Inori sitting on the sofa, seemingly lost in thought.

"Yes, Lian, I'm fine." Inori lifted her head, giving a gentle smile, choosing to hide her inner turmoil and present her best side to her.

"Okay, we'll leave shortly." Chu Lian sat beside her, looking at the tidied living room, feeling her mood lighten.

Gazing sideways at her face, Inori felt her heart grow confused. "Lian, what exactly is your place in my heart?"

That night, a plane took off under the cover of darkness, flying from Chang'an to Tai'an, and onward…