Chapter 226: Before the Trip
Li Mu rarely wore women's clothes, but today was an exception.
Underneath, she wore a thin white cotton shirt, and on top, a light jacket.
The main reason it looked like women’s clothing was because of the colorful design and the way it showed off the body’s curves.
Even with the jacket on, her figure still looked very graceful, with a slim waist, a nicely shaped backside, along with her noticeable chest, giving her whole body a charming, attractive look.
It would have looked even better if not for her cold, expressionless face.
Li Mu stood in front of the bathroom mirror, looking at her body with a blank face, and finally sighed softly.
She didn’t know when it started, but somehow, her body could now be described as graceful.
And somehow, she even started thinking about dressing up to please men...
It gave her a strange and hard-to-explain feeling.
Picking up the makeup from the sink, she began putting on some base makeup.
Her makeup products weren’t expensive, but they were affordable and worked well.
Because her facial features and bone structure were already very good, the makeup just made her look even better. She didn’t need it to cover any flaws.
"Sister~ aren't you doing the cleaning today?"
Xiao Jing had also finished putting on her makeup. From messy drawings at first to something proper now, her makeup skills had clearly improved a lot.
"Not today. If you see a dirty spot, wipe it yourself," Li Mu said.
"Sister, you dressed up so nicely today to attract brother-in-law, right?" Xiao Jing teased.
Li Mu paused for a moment. That strange feeling in her heart grew stronger.
Maybe it was because she had never carefully dressed up for a man before...
Actually, she had never dressed up carefully for a woman either.
She turned to glance at Xiao Jing. After putting on her lipstick, she stood up and went to the kitchen to cook.
Most of the dishes had already been prepared before she started putting on makeup. Only a pot of rib soup was still slowly cooking.
Li Mu set the lunch on the table, then crossed her arms and leaned back against the kitchen cabinet, crossing her legs and looking out the kitchen window.
From that angle, she could see the main gate of the neighborhood.
"Sister! Sister! Let’s buy New Year’s Eve dinner online this year!"
Xiao Jing ran over with her phone. "Look! We just have to steam it a bit and it’s ready to eat! It looks really good!"
"I’ll cook by myself when the time comes," Li Mu replied.
"Cooking is so much trouble..."
Recently, Li Mu’s fridge had been filling up with food for the New Year. A whole rack of ribs, whole chickens, whole ducks, all frozen solid inside.
Even though she had been living alone for a few years, this was actually the first time she had prepared food for the New Year.
In the past, she usually just ordered delivery, but after the holiday, very few restaurants stayed open.
"Will brother-in-law come to our house for the New Year?" Xiao Jing asked. "Otherwise, it’s just one person and one ghost... feels kind of lonely."
Li Mu’s eyebrows twitched. She hadn’t thought about it before, but after hearing Xiao Jing say that, she realized it really would feel cold and lonely spending the New Year with just a ghost.
And honestly, it sounded a little creepy too.
Xiao Jing kept talking beside her. "Did you buy fireworks? I want to set off fireworks on the rooftop on New Year’s Eve!"
"They banned fireworks last year," Li Mu said.
"Oh..." Xiao Jing’s face looked full of disappointment.
At that moment, Li Mu noticed Yu Fan walking through the neighborhood’s main gate.
Without even thinking, she leaned closer to the window, trying to get a better look, worried she might have seen the wrong person.
"Yu Fan is here. Get ready to open the door," Li Mu said as she straightened up.
She picked up a large bowl she had prepared earlier and poured the cooked rib soup into it. Then she started washing the pot and wiping down the stove.
Before she even finished cleaning, the doorbell rang.
Xiao Jing, who had been waiting by the door, immediately opened it and poked her head out. "Brother-in-law! You look really handsome today!"
"I'm always this handsome," Yu Fan said as he took off his shoes outside. He asked curiously, "Why are you so happy?"
"Because today my sister looks super pretty!" Xiao Jing said proudly, hands on her hips. "My sister is number one in the world!"
"Your sister has always been pretty."
"But today she looks just like a fairy!"
"Yes, yes, as pretty as a fairy," Yu Fan said, half laughing, half helpless.
These days, with the internet, you could see lots of beautiful girls online. But saying someone looked like a fairy... that was hard for him to imagine.
After changing into slippers, he closed the door and called out. "Li Mu, I'm here to freeload again!"
"Next time just take my key," Li Mu replied from inside. "You come every day and keep ringing the doorbell."
Yu Fan casually took off his jacket and placed it on the shoe cabinet. Then he headed straight toward the dining room.
Xiao Jing followed behind him like a little tail, still mumbling. "I think even fairies aren't as pretty as my sister."
They walked through the small living room and pushed open the half-closed dining room door. Yu Fan entered with his usual bright smile. But the next second, his smile froze.
He stared at Li Mu, who had just walked out of the kitchen and was taking off her apron. His face went blank.
Li Mu hung the apron on a hook next to the fridge. When she turned around and saw his stunned look, she couldn’t help but let a small smile slip onto her usually calm face.
That strange feeling she had earlier about trying to impress a man disappeared completely. Her mood instantly lifted when she saw Yu Fan’s dumbfounded expression.
Yu Fan had clearly dressed up too. His hair had been neatly cut to show his forehead, and the sides were trimmed very short, only a few millimeters. His hair was slicked back nicely with gel, making him look energetic, handsome, and more mature.
Li Mu had never seen him wear this outfit before, but it fit him perfectly and made him look even taller and stronger.
Wasn’t he trying to impress her too?
"Dressing up so nicely today... what are you planning?" Li Mu asked with a smile. "Trying to charm some girls?"
Seeing how carefully Li Mu had dressed up too, Yu Fan immediately realized that his surprise had been ruined. He smiled a little helplessly and said, "I was going to invite you on a trip."
"And if I was going to charm someone, it would be you," he added as he walked up and gently hugged Li Mu from behind. Taking a deep breath, he caught the light scent of her hair oil from her hair tips.
"You dressed up like a fairy today. You really surprised me."
Li Mu gently pulled away from his arms and sat down at the dining table, a smile she couldn’t hide still on her face.
"Let’s eat."
"If you go out dressed like this, other men won’t be able to take their eyes off you," Yu Fan said as he sat next to her.
He then turned and gave Xiao Jing a look for spilling the travel plan.
"This trip will be three days. You’ll need to pack some clothes later," he added.
"Okay," Li Mu nodded.
"And bring some makeup too, in case you need to touch up."
"I’ll take off my makeup later. I only put it on to show you, as a little surprise."
Li Mu didn't like the idea of being stared at by other men.
"It's definitely a surprise. You even look better now than you did when you won that top singer award," Yu Fan said, his eyes glancing toward her chest.
Big... big...
Li Mu followed Yu Fan's gaze, then lowered her head to glance at it, her face slightly flushed.
"Could you not be so perverted?"