Chapter 236 - Does Loving Someone Need a Reason?

Chapter 236: Chapter 238: Does Loving Someone Need a Reason?The glimpse of skin that Michelle revealed made Li Yifei’s heart race, but he immediately corrected his thoughts and carefully examined the situation where the zipper and hair were tangled together.

Perhaps because Michelle had tried to disentangle herself for a while, her hair and the zipper were now very tightly intertwined, and Li Yifei could only carefully tease her hair out bit by bit. However, he couldn’t do the same for the last part.

Li Yifei pinched Michelle’s hair with his left hand, along with the clothing, and grabbed the zipper pull with his right hand. He first pulled it up twice, then down once, and finally, Michelle’s hair was completely freed.

But by doing so, the zipper went all the way down to Michelle’s waist, and the two sides fell apart, revealing a large portion of her back and even the straps of her transparent bra were clearly visible.

Li Yifei suddenly felt his face heat up, as if he intentionally pulled open Michelle’s dress, and at that moment, Michelle let out a gasp, quickly turned to face Li Yifei, and covered her chest with her hands in an instinctive defensive gesture.

Li Yifei gave an embarrassed smile and said, "Michelle, I’m truly sorry, I didn’t mean to."

Michelle’s face turned beet red; she didn’t dare look at Li Yifei. She liked him, indeed, but such a sudden incident caught her completely off guard, making her whisper shyly, "Brother Li, I know, it was me who asked you to come in and help."

"Then I’ll step out," said Li Yifei, feeling that staying in such a small space with Michelle was incredibly intimate, so it was better to slip away.

Just as Li Yifei was about to push the curtain aside and leave, Michelle suddenly mustered the courage and said, "Wait, Brother Li."

"Oh, what else is there?" Li Yifei stopped walking and turned back to look at Michelle.

With her head bowed, Michelle spoke softly, "Brother Li... I’m afraid my hair... might get caught again, could you... help me pull up... the zipper?"

Michelle’s bashful demeanor was incredibly enticing, and Li Yifei’s heart fluttered again. He couldn’t possibly refuse such a request from a girl, and with a bright smile, he said, "No problem, turn around."

Michelle slowly turned around, exposing her back to Li Yifei once more, who now seemed very composed. As he helped pull up her zipper, he said with a smile, "Michelle, your skin really is fair, just like your name suggests."

"Really?" Michelle didn’t expect Li Yifei to say something like that at this moment, but there wasn’t a trace of indecency in his tone, so she didn’t feel too uncomfortable, and even subconsciously responded with a query.

"Of course, it’s true. I bet if you went to a public bathhouse, lots of women would be envious of you."

"You’re actually right," Michelle laughed lightly.

But after saying that, both of them suddenly fell silent, as a conversation about a women’s bathhouse between a man and a woman seemed too suggestive.

"Alright," Li Yifei, realizing the awkwardness, quickly zipped up Michelle’s dress and hurried out.

Before long, Michelle also came out, looking stunning in the light yellow dress. To alleviate the earlier awkwardness, Li Yifei naturally complimented her, and Michelle quickly regained her composure.

After trying on the dress, Michelle was ready to leave, but Li Yifei immediately said, "You look so good in that dress, why not buy it?"

Michelle blushed, and whispered to Li Yifei, "Brother Li, I don’t have much money, and this dress costs over a thousand, I can’t just splurge."

Li Yifei smiled and said, "I don’t have much money either, but I have a suggestion. I’ll put up half, and you put up half, and we’ll buy the dress together. What do you think?"

"Go halves? But you can’t wear it," Michelle said confusedly, looking at Li Yifei with a mischievous smile. She imagined what Li Yifei would look like in that dress and couldn’t help but find it amusing.

"You little devil, what are you thinking? I meant I’ll give you half as a gift, and you buy the other half. Is that clear now?"

"So, would that mean I’m accepting your gift?"

Li Yifei laughed and said, "You’re still paying for half of it, so wouldn’t that mean you bought it yourself?"

Michelle pursed her lips and smiled, "Okay then, which dress do you think I should buy?"

"I think this light green one suits you best. The dress is like lotus leaves, and you’re like the lotus flower."

Joy lit up in Michelle’s eyes as she said, "Alright, then I’ll take this green one."

Indeed, the two of them split the cost and bought the green dress, which left the salesperson rather bewildered. Having worked in the store for so long, the salesperson had seen men buy for women or women purchase for themselves, but never before had a man and a woman come together and each paid half.

Michelle promptly put on the green dress and, holding onto Li Yifei’s arm, sweetly said, "Thank you, Brother Li."

"Thank for what? If I had enough money, I would have bought it for you outright."

Recently, because of Su Yiyi and Chu Xiaoyao, Li Yifei had indeed spent quite a bit of money. Although his salary was now slightly higher, it was still manageable for one person, but supporting three people was becoming quite tough.

Moreover, Li Yifei didn’t really have any special plans for his money. To him, money was never the issue; it’s just that there had been no need to dip into that particular sum.

At this moment, Michelle’s eyes were bright with joy. The fact that Li Yifei had gone halves with her on the long dress made her even happier than if he had bought it for her outright. Not to mention anything else, the dress seemed like something they both owned together; wearing it made her feel as if they were already an item.

After wandering around the mall for a while, Michelle went to try on more clothes. Li Yifei sat resting on one of the shop’s sofas. Then a woman came in, saw him, and looked around in surprise before approaching Li Yifei.

"You here shopping with your girlfriend?" It was Lin Qiong, who stood before Li Yifei, still glancing around.

"No, it’s just a colleague from work I’m with, oh, you know her—it’s Michelle."

Lin Qiong’s eyes widened and she said with a displeased expression, "Why are you out shopping with Michelle?"

Li Yifei said with a hint of amusement, "We’re good friends; what’s wrong with keeping her company while she shops?"

Lin Qiong plopped down next to Li Yifei and said fiercely, "I’m warning you, don’t get any funny ideas about Michelle."

"Look, sister, our relationship is completely innocent, so could you please not talk to me in that tone?"

Still somewhat skeptical, Lin Qiong said, "Really? I think Michelle has pretty deep feelings for you. Don’t you go playing the field, I don’t care if you mess around with others, but if you dare to hurt Michelle, I won’t let you off the hook."

"Ah, you really are a cop, aren’t you? Always assuming guilt before finding evidence—I can’t be bothered with you. Michelle is coming out, you can go ask her yourself."

Michelle, brimming with excitement about trying on her clothes, saw Lin Qiong with Li Yifei the moment she stepped out, which suddenly made her feel guilty. The last time she and Lin Qiong had seen Li Yifei walk with Xu Shanshan, Lin Qiong had realized she was interested in Li Yifei. Now that Lin Qiong saw them shopping together, she would definitely overthink it.

"Michelle, you look really beautiful," Lin Qiong greeted Michelle and then stood up, taking Michelle’s hand and giving her an up-and-down look.

Feeling all the more self-conscious under Lin Qiong’s scrutiny, Michelle said with her face flushing, "Lin Qiong, what a coincidence to see you here shopping too?"

Lin Qiong, after all, was a cop, a graduate from the police academy with good grades and insight into psychology. Just by looking at Michelle’s shy demeanor, Lin Qiong could already tell there was something off.

"This dress is really nice." Lin Qiong led Michelle in front of a fitting mirror, moving her a bit away from Li Yifei, before frowning and whispering, "Michelle, do you know Li Yifei has a girlfriend?"

Caught off guard by Lin Qiong’s direct question, Michelle stuttered, "I-I know that."

Lin Qiong glared at her and said, "You know, and yet you’re with him? Have you lost your mind? Even if you’re going to be the other woman, we should at least find someone wealthy, not someone like him."

"Lin Qiong, what... what are you talking about... what other woman..." Michelle’s face turned even redder at Lin Qiong’s accusation. She had never thought about being the other woman; if that were the case, many had approached her back in university.

"I’m sorry, I was too harsh, and I spoke out of turn, but Li Yifei really does have a girlfriend, and they’re even living together now."

"I... I know that too," Michelle quickly added, "I was just bored today, so I invited Brother Li to go shopping with me. It’s not like that between us..."

"Not like that?" Lin Qiong frowned and then smirked, "Look at your expression and then look in the mirror at how you glance at Li Yifei—you clearly have feelings for him."

Michelle bit her lip and said, "Lin Qiong, I truly appreciate your concern, but I know what I’m doing. I like Brother Li, and if he likes me back, then I’ll be with him. If he loves his girlfriend, then I will wish them well."

Lin Qiong’s eyes widened in shock and said, "Are you crazy? With your qualities, you could have anyone; why tangle yourself up with Li Yifei? He has neither money nor power, and it’s not as if he’s particularly handsome—he’s just average. What on earth do you like about him?"

Michelle turned to glance at Li Yifei, then smiled at Lin Qiong and said, "Do you need a reason to love someone?"