’Jiang Youchen... is coming back?’

’This soon?’

Baili Jing, who was always so composed, wore a rare, frozen expression.

Yuan Shiyao, sitting behind him, glanced at his terminal’s message and couldn’t quite understand.

The Jiang and Baili families were old family friends, especially since Baili Jing’s late mother and the current Jiang Family Head, Jiang Yi, were close childhood friends.

So after Baili Jing returned to the Baili family, he would often stay over at the Jiang residence.

He and Jiang Youchen were supposed to have a good relationship. So why did he seem so unhappy to hear that Youchen had confirmed his return to the First District?

’Did they have some kind of falling-out?’

Yuan Shiyao raised an eyebrow.

However, he didn’t pay much mind to the entanglements between two males and turned his head to continue watching the performance on stage.

It just so happened to be the entrance of the character played by Jiang Qingli.

The girl, wearing a flawless white robe, walked into the crowd. The moment she clasped her hands together in front of her chest, the light fell perfectly on her, meticulously carving out every strand of hair. She was heart-shakingly beautiful.

She recited her lines woodenly, but Yuan Shiyao could no longer hear a single word.

The young man’s heartbeat grew stronger and stronger, so much so that he had to lower his head to hide his emotions.

He took a sip of water. ’No wonder a Divine Servant can capture people’s hearts,’ he thought.

If Jiang Qingli told him to do anything at that moment, he would do it without question.

-

Arriving home that night, Jiang Qingli threw herself onto the sofa, kicking her legs a few times in discontent.

Yi Nuo came over to ask what was wrong, but she just let out a long sigh, buried her face in a throw pillow, and said nothing.

After a moment, a gentle hand stroked the top of her head.

Baili Jing sat down beside her and said softly, "Are you too tired? You worked hard today, baby. You were really great."

Jiang Qingli slowly moved to rest her head on his lap, a little embarrassed. "Stop complimenting me. I know I was terrible. The head of the drama club looked absolutely horrified."

When she recited her lines, her face was expressionless, her voice was monotone, and her delivery was completely wooden. The expressions of the entire group went from stunned amazement to silence.

After changing out of her costume, Jiang Qingli even overheard the club head telling Ke An that if Bai Yiyi couldn’t make it and they had to use Jiang Qingli, they would need to hire a voice actor to dub her lines live...

On the way back, Lin Xiyue had also told her that the incident was already on the campus forums, with everyone saying she was like a wooden post.

It was a huge embarrassment.

The prideful Chairman Jiang buried her face in the arms of her film-emperor Beast Husband and vented her frustration. "Why didn’t you pass any of your acting skills on to me!"

"I’m sorry, baby. It’s all my fault." Baili Jing took all the blame. "How about we do some special training?"

Jiang Qingli huffed. "No way. I know exactly what you’re planning."

’Anyway, today was just a one-time thing, filling in for Bai Yiyi. I won’t have to go back. Forget it, forget it.’

Just then, Gu Nian’s voice came from behind them. "Sister, the rock sugar and pear soup is ready."

"Coming!"

Jiang Qingli padded over in her slippers, her steps cheerful.

After she left, the expressions of the two males in the living room turned somewhat grim.

Baili Jing looked at the ever-silent Gray Wolf Butler. "You received the news too?"

Yi Nuo grunted in affirmation. "The Family Head contacted me as well. There will likely be a dinner party. She hopes you can convince the young miss to at least meet with them."

After three years, with Jiang Youchen returning to the First District, the dinner party was bound to be extremely grand.

And for the Jiang family, who wanted to see Jiang Qingli, the dinner party was the best excuse.

’I just don’t know, given Qingli’s current state, whether seeing her family will trigger any memories, or if it will just expose her to more danger like last time...’

Baili Jing pinched the bridge of his nose. "This matter... let’s tell her about it later."

He glanced toward the dining room. What he was actually more worried about was whether she would "taste" the rabbit tonight.

At this moment, Baili Jing suddenly recalled that Jiang Youchen had told him more than once that he was too jealous.

He was absolutely right.

Baili Jing admitted it. He was jealous of everyone who got close to Jiang Qingli.

However, in this world, Jiang Youchen was the last person who had any right to criticize him for it.

-

In fact, what Baili Jing had worried about that night did not happen.

The two of them lay in bed, just a little closer than usual, with Jiang Qingli holding Gu Nian.

Actually, Gu Nian wanted to hold Jiang Qingli, but after trying several times, he didn’t quite dare to wrap his arms around her, his hands trembling too much.

Eventually, Jiang Qingli got too sleepy, so she just pulled him into her arms, yawned, and said, "We’re sleeping like this. Otherwise, you’re not getting any cuddles."

She fell asleep not long after speaking, completely unaware of the other person’s state.

In the darkness, Gu Nian’s face was pressed against her softness, breathing in her scent, and he stayed wide awake all night.

The next day, when Jiang Qingli opened her eyes, she saw that Gu Nian still looked full of energy.

She was about to go back to her room, but Gu Nian had already brought her toothbrush over, with the toothpaste already squeezed onto it.

A few minutes later, the two of them were standing side-by-side at the sink, brushing their teeth.

Gu Nian was facing the mirror, but he kept looking at Jiang Qingli, making her face feel a little hot.

Jiang Qingli randomly brought up a topic to divert his attention. "You... you must be a good sleeper."

Gu Nian looked at the girl in the mirror, his eyes full of light. "It’s all thanks to you, Sister."

Then he added in a small voice, "I like you the most, Sister."

Jiang Qingli was rinsing her mouth. Hearing this, she nearly choked on the water.

After washing her face, she looked at her just-woken-up reflection in the mirror.

’No makeup, hair a bit of a mess... while not ugly, I’m far from looking put-together...’

She had no idea how he could look at her like this and say such ardent words.

And as she went through her routine, Gu Nian watched her the whole time, his expression both gentle and fervent.

Jiang Qingli found it a little hard to resist and deliberately put on a stern face, affecting the air of an elder. "Alright, stop with the sweet talk."

"But I really do like you."

Gu Nian said, leaning in to give her another little kiss on the cheek.

Then, before she could react, he pulled back with a smile.

At that moment, he really was like a little kid.

Jiang Qingli pinched his cheek, then went to change her clothes.

She had a packed schedule today.

In the morning, she had to go to the detention center to perform a healing session for Que Feiling. In the afternoon, she was going shopping with Lin Xiyue, and in the evening, she was having dinner with Yuan Shiyao.

...

Having learned from her last trip to the detention center, Jiang Qingli refused her Beast Husbands’ offer to accompany her under the pretext of protection and went by herself.

The trip was uneventful.

After their last session, Que Feiling’s contamination value had risen a bit, but it was still within a controllable range.

This time, Jiang Qingli spent two hours on his healing session, bringing his contamination value down to around 35%.

There was still some time left, so Mo Sinan suggested they chat for a bit to get to know each other better.

The two sat indoors, staring at each other, at a loss for words.

Ever since seeing those selfies of Que Feiling, Jiang Qingli felt a bit awkward and didn’t know where to look.

Que Feiling, perhaps thinking about the same thing, kept blushing and turning pale, his expression changing rapidly.

In the end, it was Jiang Qingli who broke the deadlock by talking about food with him.

After breaking the ice, she discovered that Que Feiling was actually quite talkative. He would look her in the eye when he spoke, his red pupils as dazzling as jewels.

DING—

The doorbell was pressed from outside, interrupting their conversation.

Mo Sinan’s voice came through. "Miss Jiang, there are five minutes left."

Jiang Qingli answered in acknowledgment.

Just as she stood up to say goodbye, Que Feiling suddenly spoke up. "Miss Jiang, excuse me... can I give you a gift?"

’A gift again?’

’The Que family is so formal. They give gifts even for official business.’

Jiang Qingli waved her hand. "No, no, that’s not necessary. The detention center and your sister have already paid me."

"It’s not about that. It’s something I wanted to give you myself... I’ve wanted to give it to you since we first met..."

His face grew even redder. He lowered his head deeply, and only managed to stammer out the rest of his sentence after a few seconds:

"Y-You can take a look first. If you don’t like it, you don’t have to take it."

As Que Feiling spoke, he took out a... feather?