Before Lin Wanning could gather her thoughts, Long Aotian walked into the private room, carrying a copper teapot in his hand.
"Have some water first. The food is still being prepared," he said, placing disposable cups on the table and pouring the liquid.
As the dark red liquid flowed out, the three girls immediately caught the pungent scent of ginger.
"Brother, is this brown sugar ginger water?" Lin Wanning asked.
"Yeah, drink a couple more cups. I can boil more if it’s not enough." Earlier, Long Aotian had brought some sales staff and foremen to eat at this restaurant, bringing in a steady stream of workers.
Borrowing the kitchen to boil some water was no trouble for the owner.
"Thank you, Brother Long," Hu Yuying said with a smile as Long Aotian finished pouring her cup.
"If you keep being so polite, I might just have to knock some sense into you," Long Aotian teased, lightly tapping her head.
Between them, there was no need for thanks.
Hu Yuying rubbed the spot where he had tapped her, grinning playfully. "Got it, Brother Long."
Li Qingxue watched the scene quietly. The moment she saw Long Aotian pour the brown sugar water, her gaze locked onto him, unwavering.
So he remembered. Even if it was just a simple misunderstanding, he still remembered.
Her expression shifted slightly, her small hands clutching her clothes tightly.
She really, really wanted to ask Long Aotian—would he, would he ever care for her like this too?
She wanted so badly to ask this infuriating man why he treated her so well.
Didn’t he know that being this kind to a girl would… would…
"What are you spacing out for? Drink up. Feeling touched by how amazing I am? Hahaha..."
Li Qingxue pursed her lips and rolled her eyes. One day, she’d straighten this rascal out.
"After the meal, you girls head back first. I’ve got some business to take care of, so I won’t be able to walk you home," Long Aotian said, setting down his chopsticks and wiping his mouth.
"Mm, got it, Brother Long."
"Be good at school. I’m heading out now." Without thinking, he reached out and ruffled Hu Yuying’s long hair.
Watching his retreating figure, Li Qingxue pulled a tissue from her pocket. "You two keep eating. I’ll be right back."
Seeing the tissue in her hand, the other two didn’t question her.
Li Qingxue stepped out of the private room and quickened her pace, catching up to Long Aotian.
"You—"
Before he could finish, she grabbed his hand. "Don’t talk!"
She dragged him into a private room at the end of the hallway.
Once inside, she closed the door and stood with her back to him, silent. Long Aotian was utterly confused.
She told him not to speak, yet now she was facing the door like she was reflecting on her mistakes?
"Qingxue, you—"
"Wait. Don’t say anything yet."
After speaking, Li Qingxue took a deep breath, then swiftly turned around, stood on her tiptoes, and pressed her lips to his.
Her soft lips brushed against his, her eyes hazy with emotion as she blinked slowly. Gazing at his stunned expression, she whispered, "I think I must have lost my mind."
"You’re not crazy. You’re just messing with me."
Li Qingxue let go of him and turned her head away. "I just heard my roommate say that kissing a guy is supposed to feel magical. I wanted to try it but didn’t know who to ask. Turns out, it’s not as amazing as they made it sound."
Long Aotian sighed. "You’re such a fool. Why do you believe everything people say?"
Li Qingxue avoided his gaze. "I… I know I’m being stupid."
"Can you talk to me like you used to?"
She looked up at him, her eyes slightly red. "Help this fool find her way back to reason."
"Did something happen?"
Li Qingxue shook her head. "I’m not feeling well, and my emotions are all over the place. Don’t tell anyone, or I’ll strangle you."
With that, she pinched his waist hard.
"Ow! Take it easy."
"If it hurts, why didn’t you dodge?" Li Qingxue asked, puzzled.
Long Aotian flicked her forehead lightly. "If I dodged, who would you pinch?"
"If you’re feeling down, just tell me. I’ll always be here to listen. And don’t listen to your roommates—they’re just kids who don’t know anything."
He flicked her forehead again, watching her wince before continuing, "You really are silly, getting curious about everything."
"Try teasing me again, and I’ll knock some sense into you!"
......
Back in the private room, Li Qingxue sat down and sipped the brown sugar ginger water quietly.
"What were you doing earlier?" Lin Wanning whispered.
The blush on Li Qingxue’s cheeks, which hadn’t fully faded, deepened at the question.
Before she could answer, Lin Wanning added even more quietly, "I went to the restroom just now."
Li Qingxue’s heart tightened as she scrambled for a response.
Lin Wanning suddenly chuckled. "We’ll talk another time."
Li Qingxue pressed her lips together and nodded slightly.
On the way back…
"Qingxue, watch out for the cars."
Faced with Hu Yuying’s concern, Li Qingxue didn’t know what to do.
She felt like a terrible friend. The emotional turmoil made her feel as though she had betrayed Hu Yuying.
It was unbearable.
"What’s wrong?" Hu Yuying gently took her hand, sensing her unease.
"Nothing." Li Qingxue held her hand but couldn’t shake the guilt. Finally, she asked, "Yuying… do you like Long Aotian? Not just as a brother, right?"
Caught off guard, Hu Yuying froze before meeting her gaze.
She didn’t know how Li Qingxue had figured it out, but her heart told her it was time to be honest.
So she nodded softly. "Yes. He’s more than just a brother to me."
Hearing her answer, Li Qingxue exhaled in relief. "I’m sorry."
"Don’t apologize. Because I can’t say it’s okay."
Hu Yuying kept holding her hand as they crossed the street. "Brother Long is wonderful. There are probably many people who like him, and I’m just one of them. So, Qingxue, you really don’t need to apologize."
She turned to Li Qingxue with a smile. "Besides, didn’t you say it yourself? If someone else likes him too, then it’s fair competition."
"Is that really how you feel?" Li Qingxue asked seriously.
Hu Yuying nodded without hesitation. "I care about Brother Long, so I care even more about his happiness."
"My feelings for him are like sunlight warming my heart. I truly, truly want him to be happy because he deserves it."
"Even if that happiness isn’t with me… at least this sunlight once shone on me too."
"I need help testing potential book titles—I’m terrible at naming things, dear friends! Any suggestions from you brilliant minds? Let me soak up your creativity and expand my horizons. Love you all!"
e school belle recognized by the whole school, a genius girl from the kendo club. She also has a hidden identity, the youngest legendary demon hunter. Chen Shuo just transmigrated and found himself turned into a weak, helpless little vampire. He was caught by Su Xiyen and taken home at the very beginning. Since then, Chen Shuo's life creed only had two items. "First, classmate Su Xiyen is always right." "Second, if classmate Su Xiyen is wrong, please refer back to item one." Many years later, Chen Shuo, who had turned back into a human, led a pair of twins to appear in front of all the vampires to share the secret of how he turned back into a human. "It's simple, I tricked a female demon hunter into becoming my wife!"
m back to his original world. In the end, he realized he had overthought things. [Hey, why is Shen Manni, the female lead, acting strange? Shouldn't she be fawning over the male lead at this point?] [Zhou Qiaoqiao, are you sick? Weren't you supposed to break off your engagement today?] [Damn it! An Youyi, please do your job as an undercover agent and sell my information to the protagonist, you idiot!] ... At this moment, Xu Mo himself didn't know that these female leads had already heard his inner thoughts. Then they decided not to play by the rules. Xu Mo: Please respect my profession as the big villain!
d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!
had the chance to commit theft legally, would you do it? In the year 2050 of an alternate world, global peace has become the norm. To raise public awareness about crime prevention, nations including China, the United States, Russia, and the United Kingdom jointly launched a reality show—The Thief Game. All stolen items obtained by participants would be converted into cash by the show’s producers. In an instant, every applicant went wild with excitement. While everyone’s attention was fixated on gold shops and jewelry stores, Chen Feng, holding the Kaito Kid character card, smirked and said, "Jewelry? I think the crown jewels of the British monarchy would be perfect."
