42: Chapter 42 Living in the Present

Meng Yawen trusted Zhao Xiaoshuai's words implicitly; she put on her goggles, took a deep breath, and dove down.

This small pool was certainly no challenge for her. Like a mermaid, she dove flexibly into the water and swam slowly along the bottom of the pool.

A moment later, she resurfaced, clutching a sparkling gold bracelet in her hand.

"Wow! There really is a treasure here. Look, look! It seems to be gold, and it's so beautiful!"

Meng Yawen held the bracelet happily, gazing at it incessantly; she clearly liked it very much.

Unexpected surprises bring extra joy.

For example, finding ten yuan on the street might not seem like much, but it can bring a better mood than a hundred-yuan paycheck.

Not to mention "finding" such a beautiful bracelet that clearly looked valuable.

This happiness would last for at least a whole day.

Zhao Xiaoshuai didn't actually know what style girls liked. Chu Ziqing always picked things out herself and kept urging him to buy them; he just had to pay.

So, at the time, he just chose one that was expensive enough, but it seemed the result was not bad.

"Yeah, you are really lucky today."

Zhao Xiaoshuai chimed in, but the smile on Meng Yawen's face quickly faded, replaced by reluctance:

"I don't know who dropped it. I'll take it to the front desk in a bit and ask who the last group to book this place was."

After all, as a university student who hadn't fully stepped out into the world yet, Meng Yawen still possessed that precious innocence in her heart.

Zhao Xiaoshuai watched this "silly girl" who wouldn't keep found property, smiling to himself. He didn't remind her; he'd wait until she actually tried to take it to the front desk.

Fortunately, Meng Yawen wasn't truly foolish; after a moment of thought, she realized something was wrong.

"That's not right. The pool water gets changed and disinfected at noon; it's impossible for such a valuable bracelet to have been left behind!"

"And we are the first group to book the pool this afternoon; logically, it's impossible to find something left behind."

"Could it be that the cleaning staff didn't see it?"

Meng Yawen furrowed her cute little brows, analyzing it point by point, when she suddenly saw Zhao Xiaoshuai smiling secretly on the side.

She seemed to suddenly understand something!

"Hey! Xiao Shuai, did you buy it and then deliberately throw it into the water to tease me!"

She realized it now, thinking about it; with the depth Zhao Xiaoshuai was swimming at, he might not have been able to see the bottom of the pool.

Zhao Xiaoshuai finally couldn't help but laugh out loud a few times, then waded over and personally put the bracelet on her.

"Take a look, how is it? Do you like it?"

Meng Yawen shook her wrist a few times; the affection in her eyes was practically overflowing.

"Mm, I love it!"

Liking the gift was one thing, but the "thought" behind this gift made her even happier.

At close range, this swimsuit fully realized a value far exceeding its price, highlighting Meng Yawen's two greatest assets even more conspicuously; one could only say it was truly well-designed.

Meng Yawen was gazing at the bracelet, and Zhao Xiaoshuai was gazing into the abyss; both of them were equally happy and satisfied.

"I haven't even thought about what gift to give you next, yet you've given me so many gifts, and you're so good at picking them—I love every single one!"

"I'm almost covered in things you've given me now."

When Meng Yawen spoke with Zhao Xiaoshuai now, she would often act spoiled, subconsciously treating him as a very intimate person.

Moreover, during their conversations, she would involuntarily have physical contact with him.

Just like now, the arm that Zhao Xiaoshuai was holding was almost sinking into the abyss.

Feeling the softness and elasticity against his arm, Zhao Xiaoshuai spoke casually:

"Does this mean the next thing I need to get you is lingerie? I got it. I'll pick out a set for you tomorrow, or do you want to go pick it out with me?"

"Oh, you're so annoying, that's not what I meant at all."

Meng Yawen shyly splashed a handful of water at him.

The two played in the water for a while, but Meng Yawen ultimately couldn't bear to let the bracelet soak in the water, so she hurriedly ran back to the changing room to put it away.

Sitting by the pool, Zhao Xiaoshuai pulled up the system to check Meng Yawen's profile.

The effect of this little surprise was quite good.

Those two swimsuits and other intimate interactions had only added 3 points of favorability in total.

But this last little surprise added a full 10 points; the favorability was now at 363 (Like), which wasn't far from love.

He had improved his stamina quite a bit recently, but he still couldn't compare to Meng Yawen.

She was still full of energy, while he had no strength left, so it was time for this lesson to end.

As they were preparing to leave, Meng Yawen suddenly thought of something.

"Hey, I just realized, why are the sizes of the two swimsuits you bought for me so perfect? If I bought them myself, they might not even fit this well."

Zhao Xiaoshuai just pointed to his eyes, "My eyes are the ruler," and after saying that, he scanned her from top to bottom again.

Meng Yawen giggled for a while; she clearly didn't quite believe it. She just felt that he might have extraordinary connections and had obtained her measurements from somewhere.

However, under the influence of her affection, this behavior became "thoughtfulness" rather than an invasion of privacy.

After teasing a few more times, Meng Yawen remembered that Zhao Xiaoshuai couldn't drive and asked tentatively:

"Are you still busy this afternoon? Do you want me to act as your temporary driver?"

Since they had met, their relationship had become very intimate, yet she knew very little about Zhao Xiaoshuai.

What did he do? Where did he work or run a company? Where was his home? What did he like to do in his spare time?

Everything, absolutely everything, she was eager to know.

Zhao Xiaoshuai naturally couldn't let her have her wish.

He couldn't let her know that his job was just wandering around, meeting strangers, and having endless money to spend.

After a moment of thought, he came up with an excellent excuse:

"It's fine, I'll just call a driver to pick me up. Isn't your mother still in the hospital? You should spend more time keeping her company during this period and try to get her discharged before the new year."

"Alright then."

Holding Meng Yawen's pitiful little hand and shaking it slightly, he took out his phone and sent a location to Ling Rui.

No explanation, no room for refusal.

Through testing, he discovered that if he spoke softly or tried to please Ling Rui, her favorability would drop slightly, but when he spanked her or gave her orders, it would rise significantly.

This woman had a perverse craving for the pain and commands he bestowed upon her.

So, thinking of this, he sent another message to Ling Rui: "Obey traffic laws."

Otherwise, he was genuinely worried about some accident happening, though he was mainly worried about other people.

"Then I'll wait with you; I want to stay with you a little longer."

This sentence once again stirred up some of Zhao Xiaoshuai's fading memories.

He remembered that when they first started dating, Chu Ziqing often said she wanted to stay with him a little longer.

But he didn't know when it started to gradually change into "Go to work quickly."

He waved away these memories and refocused on the girl he was holding by the hand.

"People always change, and no one can say for sure what the future holds. Only the present is real."