Contractual Cohabitation GL - Chapter 3

After this little interlude, the distance between the two people’s hearts seemed to have closed significantly. Jing Xiaonan took out two sets of clothes suitable for horseback riding, one for herself and one for Ye Luochen, and the two of them changed separately. Jing Xiaonan also thoroughly washed her face, which drew a light laugh from Ye Luochen.

But when Jing Xiaonan had the saddle settled and helped Ye Luochen mount the horse, Ye Luochen’s eyes, previously full of smiles, were again filled with nervousness.

“It’s alright, it’s alright,” Jing Xiaonan vaulted onto her own horse, offering comfort, “Jinghua has a very good temperament. Pay attention to keeping your two feet straight in the stirrups and hold the reins firmly.”

By this time, Jinghua had already taken a few big steps carrying Ye Luochen outside the stable. Ye Luochen tried to turn around to look at Jing Xiaonan, silently sending out a distress signal, but Jing Xiaonan, who had just caught up, seemed to remember something else, turned back toward the stable, and shouted, “I’ll be back in a moment.”

Now Ye Luochen was truly a bit nervous. Jinghua seemed quite excited to be basking in the sun outside the stable after a long time and walked farther step by step. Ye Luochen sat obediently on the horse’s back, listening to Jing Xiaonan’s words, keeping her legs straight in the stirrups, only hoping that Jing Xiaonan would hurry back.

And Jing Xiaonan did not let her down. Sure enough, she guided Jingju to gallop and catch up. When she was alongside Ye Luochen, she pulled the reins to stop, the two horses standing very close.

Ye Luochen secretly let out a sigh of relief, her whole body relaxing considerably. Jing Xiaonan smiled at her, leaned over, placed a black safety helmet on Ye Luochen’s head, then tightened the straps and fastened the buckle.

So she had rushed back just now to fetch this for her.

Ye Luochen subconsciously touched the buckle, which carried Jing Xiaonan’s warmth. She looked up at her, only finding this short-haired person’s smile very warm, and for a moment, she was somewhat mesmerized.

“Look.” Jing Xiaonan pointed ahead. Ye Luochen followed her slender arm and saw a field of white flowers not far away, with blooming flowers swaying in the wind. With the clear blue sky as the background, it was truly beautiful.

Jing Xiaonan, however, turned her head to look at Ye Luochen’s profile.

Gentle moon-like eyes, slender willow-leaf eyebrows, a petite and exquisite nose, and naturally rosy lips. Even the curve connecting her neck to her jaw was so graceful.

Jing Xiaonan was somewhat lost in thought.

Once upon a time, she also rode the same horse with a laughing girl. The girl would nestle in her arms, pointing at the white clouds, pointing at the cattle and sheep in the distance, and when tired, would softly coo and call her “Jing… Jing…”

She remembered that in spring, they picked cherries together, and she would bring antiseptic wipes to clean a few and hand them to her mouth.

She remembered that in summer, they went to the vegetable market together, and when she was sweating profusely, she would carefully wipe it away for her.

She remembered that in autumn, they went to see the jacaranda. The pale purple flowers on both sides of the street ignited all romantic feelings, and a gust of wind passed, and the two of them were lost in the purple world.

She remembered that in winter, she lowered her eyes when leaving at the airport.

Her heart tightened, and Jing Xiaonan turned her face away.

“What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”

Concern was revealed in her words. Jing Xiaonan opened her eyes, hiding a certain emotion deep within.

“I’m fine.”

She didn’t explain, nor did she make excuses to put her off. Ye Luochen continued to look at her like that, until Jing Xiaonan curled her lips and smiled at her, a smile with a bit of comfort, a bit of helplessness, and a bit of apology.

No longer pressing the issue, Ye Luochen’s gaze fell back onto the flower field surrounding them, “Is this also planted by the aunties you know?”

“Ah… not entirely.” Jing Xiaonan dismounted, “This flower field is very large. This corner is what I planted. But the rest was planted by Aunt Zhou for her deeply loved girlfriend. Aunt Zhang likes a colorful world, so the remaining area is planted with all sorts of fresh flowers.”

Seeing her dismount, Ye Luochen originally wanted to follow her down. Just as she was contemplating the specific procedure, she heard the words ‘Aunt Zhou’s deeply loved girlfriend.’ Her eyes instantly widened, making her look somewhat cute.

“Are you saying… Aunt Zhou and Aunt Zhang, they, they…”

Walking around to Ye Luochen’s other side, Jing Xiaonan offered her hand for Ye Luochen to hold, helping her dismount. As she answered, she couldn’t help but show a bit of respect and longing: “Aunt Zhou and Aunt Zhang’s love began when they were in their twenties and lasted through over ten years of trials and tribulations. In that era, it was particularly difficult. Aunt Zhou later founded a nursing home, mostly for elderly people like us who have no children or family to care for in their later years. The nursing home was managed well later on, and Aunt Zhou entrusted it to others before moving here to settle down with her beloved Aunt Zhang.”

Listening to her words, Ye Luochen was somewhat moved, and her heart stirred. Women and women… Is this really possible?

Perhaps due to distraction, as Ye Luochen was swinging her leg over the horse’s back, her supporting foot on the stirrup suddenly slipped. Her entire body leaned forward, with only her hand still grasped by Jing Xiaonan, and she tumbled towards her.

“Ah.” Ye Luochen exclaimed softly.

Although she was around 165 cm tall and had a slender figure, she was relatively light. However, as she fell from a height, the impact was significant after all. Jing Xiaonan, holding her, retreated several steps. It seemed as though she might stabilize her body, but just then, a certain vague thought flashed in her mind, and the two fell backward together.

Jing Xiaonan’s back hit the ground, crushing several flower stems, and it was vaguely painful. Ye Luochen, held to her chest, was cushioned a lot and was essentially unharmed, lying sprawled on top of her.

“Are you alright?” Ye Luochen propped up her upper body and quickly asked. Unlike before, her tone was clearly much more worried this time. Her slightly curled long hair naturally fell from the back of her neck onto Jing Xiaonan’s face. Ye Luochen wanted to see Jing Xiaonan’s expression to confirm if she was hurt. She raised a hand to brush the strands away and tucked them behind her ear. The whole set of movements appeared very feminine.

The fall was not very light. Jing Xiaonan frowned slightly. Also out of concern for the other party, she first looked up to check Ye Luochen to make sure she was okay.

In this posture, Jing Xiaonan was lying on her back, her hands protectively encircling Ye Luochen’s shoulders and back. Ye Luochen’s legs were somewhat astride Jing Xiaonan’s waist, a few strands of hair still falling near Jing Xiaonan’s face, and the two faces were separated by no more than thirty centimeters.

Jing Xiaonan stared blankly at this stunningly beautiful face. A few strands of dark hair falling from above tickled her, a tickle that reached her heart. It was as if a familiar yet strange feeling surfaced. The parts of her body in contact with Ye Luochen through their clothes began to feel hot, and this feverish restlessness gradually spread.

Uh! Jing Xiaonan, with a slight flurry, sat up, forcing Ye Luochen to move back a little. The two of them were now kneeling facing each other.

“I’m fine, the ground isn’t hard. How about you?”

“I’m fine.” Ye Luochen lowered her head, avoiding Jing Xiaonan’s gaze, tidied her hair a little, seemingly somewhat flustered, but quickly returned to composure: “I’m really sorry.”

“No, it was my carelessness.” Jing Xiaonan first climbed up from the ground, then pulled Ye Luochen up. The flowers in the field were well-planted and reached the height of their waists. After looking at each other in silence for a while, Jing Xiaonan suddenly remembered many similar scenes in movies, and a phrase slipped out:

“Is your foot okay?”

“No, it’s fine.” Ye Luochen answered quickly, and was somewhat confused. She looked at Jing Xiaonan, only to see the latter say “Oh” with a hint of disappointment.

Since there was nothing to do, Jing Xiaonan took Ye Luochen’s hand, and they began to stroll through the flower field. Jingju and Jinghua watched from a distance, occasionally following a few steps behind.

“Do you like white a lot?” Ye Luochen asked, looking around.

“Actually, I like green.”

“Why is that?”

“Green has a feeling of exuberance, it’s lush, full of life, and relaxing for the eyes.” Jing Xiaonan thought for a moment and added, “However, white really suits you. Your temperament, your personality—it complements you very well.”

“I also think green suits you very well.”

“Haha, as long as it’s not the color of a hat. I’d still stay away from things like the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.”

“Hmm?” Ye Luochen was taken aback, then immediately understood and laughed.

“When did you discover you liked girls?” Ye Luochen asked again.

“Hmm, it was a gradual process, I suppose. As a child, I noticed I was different from typical girls; I liked to play with weapons/martial arts. When puberty began, I felt a strong desire to protect women, whereas with boys, I could only be casual friends/buddies. I was a late bloomer; I didn’t understand what was going on until I was sixteen or seventeen.”

Ye Luochen nodded. Jing Xiaonan asked her in return, “And you?”

“Me? I don’t know.”

Stopping in her tracks, Jing Xiaonan looked at her with an incredulous expression, her grip on Ye Luochen’s hand tightening slightly. “You don’t know if you like girls?”

“Mmm… you could say that. I’ve never been able to like any boys. I can’t say why, I just always feel they are too rough, not as delicate or clean as girls. As for women, I think I’ve mostly just had friends, and some girls have pursued me. I don’t reject it, but I haven’t fallen for anyone either.”

Jing Xiaonan was still unable to completely calm down, staring at the ground. So, this woman was a blank slate emotionally.

“Are you very surprised?”

“To be honest, yes, a little.” Jing Xiaonan answered truthfully, but suddenly frowned. She didn’t want to mention her past. She quickly glanced around, trying to find a suitable distraction. “Luochen, look, over there is where Aunt Zhou and Aunt Zhang live.”

Ye Luochen indeed looked in the direction she pointed. A small house in the distance, nestled in the flower field, looked like a paradise. There were two chairs and a table on the balcony. Even from this distance, one could feel how much the owners loved this kind of life.

“Should we go over and say hello?”

“No need,” Jing Xiaonan said, lifting her hand to check her watch, “We have plans for the evening, and after falling like this, I’m afraid we should go back to shower and change clothes.”

“Mhm.” Ye Luochen nodded obediently, saying nothing more.

“Do you get seasick?” Jing Xiaonan suddenly asked.