I update my girlfriend's financial power every month.

Chapter 45: First kiss one second, next second...

After visiting Slender West Lake and the former residences of famous people, Zhou Lang and Su Ying'er carried two large piles of Yangzhou University yogurt back to the hotel.

Su Ying'er really likes the flavors, especially the jasmine, rose, apple, and yellow peach aloe vera flavors.

She sent a box to her sister and her best friend via express delivery.

Zhou Lang also bought two boxes each, and sent them to his younger sister Zhou Xixi, Shen Wanrou, Tian Wei, and Mi Xue respectively.

The recipients were all girls with pleasant-sounding names, and Su Ying'er puffed out her cheeks slightly: "Brother, why are they all girls?"

"My younger sister, my sister-in-law, my sister-in-law's younger sister, my work partner," Zhou Lang explained, suppressing a laugh.

"Oh, sister-in-law, it's alright, it's alright."

Su Ying'er seemed relieved, but Zhou Lang, with a mischievous glint in his eyes, thought: Perhaps she's letting her guard down too soon...

He asked Michelle on WeChat if she was home so he could mail it to her. While typing, Zhou Lang also explained to Su Ying'er the friendship between his "first-generation colleagues" from his former company.

It's important to understand that Ling Yuanyuan's attitude towards Mi Xue was already enough to keep Zhou Lang at bay. And Su Ying'er's first reaction after hearing this was—

"Brother, could you introduce me to your friends sometime?"

Zhou Lang gave an OK sign, but then asked, "Some girls really don't want to be exposed in guys' social circles, but you're actually looking forward to it?"

Su Ying'er nodded vigorously: "Of course! Getting to know your friends will allow me to learn more about you from different perspectives."

Michelle sent me a message while I was taking a walk.

[Michelle]: Dude, you went to Yangzhou for fun?

[Michelle]: That's great, you've set me free!

[Zhou Lang]: Come and experience the local specialties: skin wrapped in water during the day, water wrapped in skin at night.

[Michelle]: Dude, what's in the water? (Evil grin)

[Zhou Lang]: ...You're so yellow it's off the charts!

[Zhou Lang]: "Skin wrapped in water" refers to soup dumplings, where the dough is filled with soup, and the soup is inside the dumpling, a metaphor for having morning tea; "water wrapped in skin" refers to the famous back scrubbing in Yangzhou, where a bath towel is wrapped around you and hot water is poured over your back.

[Michelle]: Hehe, actually I know, Yangzhou has three knives, right? Kitchen knife, barber's knife, and pedicure knife.

Back to the hotel.

Su Ying'er pounced on the bed, laughing as she engaged in a high-stakes online battle with her girlfriends.

[Loves Spicy Chicken Noodles]: Praise Ying Er!

【ฅ^Stranded^ʅ】: Beautiful Ying Er!

【ฅ^Stranded^ʅ】: Yangzhou's foot massage and foot bath are very famous, right? Has Ying'er tried it?

[Loves Spicy Chicken Noodles]: Does she even need an experience? Shouldn't her older brother or boyfriend have already given her a massage in the hotel?

【ฅ^Stranded^ʅ】: Could it be that Ying'er massaged him?

[Su Ying'er]: (Cracks open) I want to urgently recall the two boxes of yogurt from the express delivery.

【ฅ^Stranded^ʅ】：No, Ying'er~

【ฅ^Stranded^ʅ】: But since you're all traveling together, and the place you're staying has hot springs...

【ฅ^Stranded^ʅ】: Based on the experience of my sisters, here's a friendly reminder, Ying'er

【ฅ^Stranded^ʅ】：Before my first time with my boyfriend

【ฅ^Stranded^ʅ】: Remember to also give special attention to washing your belly button and ears, which are often overlooked (blushing.jpg)

Su Ying'er imagined what her best friend had said, her face flushed, and she nervously tucked the blanket between her long legs.

Zhou Lang walked into the room: "Ying'er, it seems like you're lying on my bed."

"Oh!" Su Ying'er jumped up from the bed. "I didn't notice, I went into the wrong bedroom."

She looked up and asked, "The room rate includes hot spring tickets for two, right? Which one should we go to?"

"You need to wear a swimsuit to the Slender West Lake hot springs. It's an outdoor hot spring, and some pools even have mahjong tables in the middle."

Zhou Lang said, "Hongqiaofang Hot Spring is the kind where men and women bathe separately, and you can bathe completely naked."

Su Ying'er whispered, "Then let's just wear swimsuits outdoors, otherwise it's not very interesting to swim separately from you."

When you go to a hot spring resort, you can choose from two-piece bikinis, skirted swimsuits, and one-piece swimsuits.

Su Ying'er's gaze swept over a row of high-slit bodysuits.

They all look great, and while it's generally safe to wear light-colored swimsuits for swimming, there's no such restriction for hot spring swimsuits.

White or light, girly colors are good choices.

But her crotch was exposed... Her face flushed.

Zhou Lang whispered something in her ear, and in the end, he still bought a one-piece swimsuit, but he chose a style with a lower slit.

After soaking in the hot spring, the two went back to their room together.

Zhou Lang took Su Ying'er's hand, and the young high school girl leaned against him.

"Ying'er, what are you going to do when you get home tonight?"

"I don't know," Su Ying'er replied with a smile, "It's my first time staying in a hotel alone with a guy, I don't know what to do."

"What activities are you doing tonight with your best friend?"

"Watching dramas and catching up on anime series."

Su Ying'er thought for a moment, then asked uncertainly, "Brother, should we go back to the hotel and watch an anime together? There's one I really like, but I'm afraid you won't get the hang of it..."

"Let me guess," Zhou Lang casually guessed, "'The Wind Blows Strong'?"

Su Ying'er stopped in her tracks.

She was astonished, staring at Zhou Lang's face: "Brother, how did you guess!"

"Are you a sports student? You mentioned before that you're interested in the Hakone Ekiden."

Zhou Lang laughed and said, "There aren't many anime about running to begin with, and this one is the most famous. I've even seen clips of it."

Su Ying'er took his hand and tightened it.

I'm willing to adopt new hobbies for her sake, and to proactively learn about the things she likes so that we can have common ground.

This made Su Ying'er, who was used to considering other people's feelings, suddenly realize that she was also being cared about.

For a moment, I felt a sense of being cherished and valued.

"Then let's go back and check!"

"OK."

……

It was late at night, one in the morning.

On Zhou Lang's bed.

The two leaned against the headboard, shoulder to shoulder, their phones connected to the room's TV, playing videos.

Su Ying'er watched "Run with the Wind" at 1.5x speed because it was a rewatch.

After a day of walking to rack up steps and a relaxing soak in a hot spring at night, the young high school girl quickly became sleepy and yawned repeatedly.

Zhou Lang tried to push her several times, but she refused to leave.

He simply reached out and pulled the little girl into his arms.

Su Ying'er's small body trembled, but she let him do as he pleased.

"Yinger, are you really trying to save on room fees tonight?"

Zhou Lang pinched her cheek; it was soft and tender, like the solidified yogurt he had drunk during the day.

"Mmm~" Su Ying'er whispered softly.

She stretched out her arms and hugged Zhou Lang's waist.

Thinking back to my best friend's reminder... well, after coming back from the hot spring, I took a thorough shower, and my body felt clean and fragrant.

"Brother, I've actually thought about it. You're the best I've ever met, and to be honest, I want to hold onto you!"

She had already anticipated what would happen next when she agreed to travel with him and share a room.

Zhou Lang hugged her tighter: "As long as you don't feel things are progressing too fast, it's fine."

He and Su Ying'er had known each other for less than a month, which was a bit fast according to his traditional thinking at the age of 26.

As for the home run, according to his original plan, they should have spent more than six months getting to know each other well before things naturally progressed.

But Su Ying'er's ideas were clearly different from his.

"Hmph~ Since you've already decided on someone, why drag it out until later if you can do it sooner?" Su Ying'er buried her head in Zhou Lang's arms, her voice trembling slightly as she spoke.

Zhou Lang tapped Su Ying'er's chin with his finger, scrutinizing her delicate face: "I don't really understand you Gen Z kids. You can have your first kiss one second and your first time the next—"

"Hmph!" Su Ying'er lowered her head even further, her voice muffled. "It's not a matter of age, it's about personality and how you like someone, right? Brother, there must be girls like that among you.

She took a deep breath, then suddenly looked up. "Brother, is my face so red it looks like it's about to bleed?"

Zhou Lang couldn't help but laugh: "If you ask me, your face is as red as molten iron burning red during a sword-forging competition."

"Oh, I hate it!"

Su Ying'er bumped his forehead against his chin. In this kind of atmosphere, how could he still be thinking about the sword-forging competition?

Su Ying'er's breathing quickened slightly as she leaned close to Zhou Lang's ear: "Brother, let's make this clear first, although I promise I've never been in a relationship, I've been training a lot—and occasionally cycling, so—I'm not sure if I've ever been in a relationship before..."

Before he could react, Su Ying'er closed her eyes and said recklessly, "Brother, I like you~ Shouldn't we do something like boyfriend and girlfriend do?"

"Yinger, I like you too." Zhou Lang replied.

Upon hearing this, Su Ying'er gave a soft hum and reached out to press the light switch on the bedside table.

The room suddenly went dark, with only two small nightlights on the bedside table remaining.

"Yinger, you?"

"Hmph~ It's the rule of the game: when you're with a handsome boyfriend, you should take the lead in the driver's seat~"