Classmate Li Zhuangsheng doesn’t want to be reborn

Chapter 694 Punishment
"I'm going back."

As Hu Mengdie stepped out of the bathroom, Li Zhuangsheng smiled and said to her.

"It's so late, are you still going to ride your electric scooter home?" Hu Mengdie asked with a worried expression as she moved gracefully.

"Yes, I'm fine, don't worry!" Li Zhuangsheng shook his head.

"You won't get home until after midnight, so why don't you just stay out tonight?" Hu Mengdie glanced at Xie Jiangqing and smiled gently.

"You want me to sleep here?" Li Zhuangsheng asked, somewhat surprised.

He glanced at the room; there were two large beds, enough for three people to sleep in.

Li Xiuyu is afraid of the dark and being alone, so Li Zhuangsheng would never leave him alone under normal circumstances. But Yi Yunshui is home tonight, so it's not a bad idea for him to sleep here.

Xie Jiangqing remained silent upon hearing this.

"Then let's sleep..."

"I'm not sleeping with you!" Hu Mengdie laughed and pulled Xie Jiangqing's arm. "Jiangqing and I will share a bed. You can sleep by yourself!"

"what--"

Li Zhuangsheng sighed in disappointment.

Xie Jiangqing smiled smugly: "What 'ah'? Men are like clothes, don't you understand?"

"Then I'll go back—"

"It's so late and cold outside, why don't you just sleep here? I don't mind!" Xie Jiangqing frowned.

She was also worried about Li Zhuangsheng's safety.

"Okay, okay..." Li Zhuangsheng lowered his head and sent a text message to Li Xiuyu to let him know.

It was already very late, so Xie Jiangqing took a shower and went to bed. The three of them didn't have the energy to do anything else.

"Wow—" Xie Jiangqing hugged Hu Mengdie, snuggled against her, and deliberately exclaimed loudly, "So soft, so fragrant!"

"If you keep doing this, I'm going to confiscate Hu Mengdie's property!" Li Zhuangsheng said, both amused and exasperated, before putting on a stern face.

Upon hearing this, Xie Jiangqing gripped Hu Mengdie's arm tightly: "Tch, this is my best friend, what right do you have to confiscate it!"

"She's still my wife, I can confiscate her things whenever I want!"

"Pah, shameless! Have you even gotten a marriage certificate? You're calling me 'wife' all the time!"

The two exchanged a few words before Hu Mengdie stopped them, and the room quickly returned to silence.

Li Zhuangsheng lay on the bed with his eyes closed, unable to sleep. He was a bit of a light sleeper and found it difficult to fall asleep alone in an unfamiliar bed.

After some time, a faint rustling sound came from the bed next door; someone had quietly gotten out of bed.

"Who needs to use the restroom?" Li Zhuangsheng didn't open his eyes and didn't care.

However, the voice came towards him, and almost instantly reached his bedside, then lifted his blanket and crawled in.

Li Zhuangsheng was so frightened that he quickly opened his eyes and looked at the person who had come in with a look of horror, because he really didn't think that the person who had climbed into his bed was Hu Mengdie.

The result was unexpected; it really was Hu Mengdie.

"Why are you here?" Li Zhuangsheng asked in a low voice, both surprised and delighted.

"Shh, don't wake her up," Hu Mengdie said.

"Oh, oh!" Li Zhuangsheng's voice softened as he reached out and hugged Hu Mengdie. "Is it cold outside?"

"Are you stupid? The air conditioner is on."

"Oh, that makes sense." Li Zhuangsheng chuckled slightly.

He held the other person in his arms, a feeling of indescribable joy welling up inside him. They hadn't shared a bed since that summer break during their freshman year of college.

He smelled the fragrance on Hu Mengdie and felt incredibly nostalgic. "You stepped on my hair, you idiot."

"Sorry, haha."

"Are you so happy?"

"I'm so happy, just holding you like this, even if we don't do anything, I'm still happy!"

"So, you're satisfied with this?"

Li Zhuangsheng suddenly realized what he meant and quickly shook his head: "No, no, could it be that you want to..."

Hu Mengdie laughed, her voice tinged with a hint of teasing and mockery: "Jiang Qing is sleeping right next to me, what are you planning to do?"

Li Zhuangsheng's initial excitement immediately deflated: "I don't want to do anything. Do you think I'm that kind of lustful person?"

That wretched Hu Mengdie, she knew perfectly well what was going on, yet she deliberately provoked me.

"Why are you here?" Li Zhuangsheng asked.

He thought Hu Mengdie would continue to be aloof, but tonight she actually took the initiative to throw herself into his arms.

Hu Mengdie looked into Li Zhuangsheng's eyes, which shone like jewels in the darkness: "If you don't like it, then I'll go back."

Li Zhuangsheng quickly hugged her even tighter: "No, I didn't say I didn't like it! I like it, I like it very much!"

"I know you have trouble sleeping in unfamiliar beds and you definitely can't sleep alone, so I came to keep you company."

Hu Mengdie finally revealed her purpose for coming to Li Zhuangsheng's bed.

"How did you know?" Li Zhuangsheng asked curiously.

"Of course it wasn't someone who told me, so I wrote it down." Hu Mengdie blinked. "It must be that I, this wicked woman, have cultivated some kind of sorcery to spy on your mind and that's how I found out!"

Li Zhuangsheng paused for a moment, then gave a wry smile. Was it really necessary... to keep arguing with me?

"Thank you for being here." Li Zhuangsheng buried his face in Hu Mengdie's arms. "I feel much better with you by my side."

"Hehe..." Hu Mengdie chuckled softly, then suddenly lowered her voice even further, almost whispering in Li Zhuangsheng's ear so he could hear her clearly, "You know what? Xie Jiangqing isn't actually asleep yet. She heard everything we just said perfectly."

Li Zhuangsheng was initially startled, but then realized that he hadn't said anything particularly unusual, so he felt relieved.

"She's not asleep, what are you doing here?" Li Zhuangsheng asked in the same volume.

“It’s just so she can hear it,” Hu Mengdie laughed. “It lets her know how deep our feelings are. I’m a bad woman, you know, I want to show my friends the side of you who loves me the most, to maintain appearances.”

"There's no need to show this, I've always loved you."

"Hehehe..." Hu Mengdie sneered, and said quietly, "Xie Jiangqing is really pitiful."

She had long known about Xie Jiangqing's feelings for Li Zhuangsheng, but she had been pretending not to know.

Hu Mengdie only discovered this while the group was hiking, through Li Xiuyu's account. When she first realized this, she felt betrayed.

So when she later intentionally distanced herself from Xie Jiangqing, it wasn't just a scheme to get Xie Jiangqing to go see Li Zhuangsheng so that she and Li Zhuangsheng could have a legitimate opportunity to meet. It also reflected her truest feelings and impulses.

In fact, she also understood how innocent Xie Jiangqing was in this matter.

To be fair, she was the one who "interfered," since Xie Jiangqing and Li Zhuangsheng had known each other since elementary school.

But reason is one thing, and feelings are another.

I am Li Zhuangsheng's wife. So what if you, Xie Jiangqing, came first? Does that give you the right to like someone else's husband?

You're my best friend, and you actually have a crush on her husband! Even just thinking about it is forbidden, absolutely forbidden!
Good heavens, I can't believe I didn't realize that! And you didn't tell me either!

Betrayal by your best friend is the most infuriating!

(End of this chapter)