The Housekeeper

Early in the morning, after finishing his workout, Long Aotian couldn't wait to rush to the subway station. Having spent the night away from home, lying alone in his dormitory bed, he found it hard to fall asleep—his heart had grown too accustomed to having someone by his side.

Just one night apart, and he already missed his little darling terribly.

The feeling of being unable to live without someone is this: when you can't see them, your heart grows restless.

After stepping out of the subway, he sprinted all the way home, flung open the door, and hurried toward the bedroom.

Pushing the door open, he was just about to pounce onto the bed and smother his little darling with affection when—

He saw two graceful figures nestled together in sleep, their delicate forms faintly visible beneath the covers, like a mesmerizing painting that stole one’s breath away.

Hu Yuying, hearing the noise, drowsily opened her eyes. Spotting Long Aotian frozen awkwardly at the doorway, she smiled softly and soothingly patted Lin Wanning, who had stirred uneasily in her arms from the disturbance.

In a soft, gentle voice, she said to Long Aotian, "Go buy some breakfast."

"Alright." Long Aotian nodded, quietly stepping back and carefully closing the door behind him.

"Mmm~" With Long Aotian sent off to fetch breakfast, Hu Yuying stretched lazily on the warm bed. After last night’s massage from Lin Wanning, her body felt wonderfully relaxed, and she couldn’t help but let out a contented hum.

She got up gently, dressed herself, and casually pinned up her slightly disheveled long hair with a claw clip before returning to the bedside. Her fingertips lightly brushed over Lin Wanning’s nose.

Lin Wanning, feeling the ticklish sensation, instinctively burrowed deeper under the covers, rubbing her nose against the blanket.

Watching this, Hu Yuying couldn’t help but chuckle.

Soon, Lin Wanning peeked her little head back out from under the covers, her eyes still hazy with sleep. She blinked at Hu Yuying, adorably rubbing her eyes before finally waking up properly.

Scratching her messy hair, she called out, "Sister..."

"Hurry up and get dressed. Long Aotian went out to buy breakfast."

At these words, Lin Wanning’s half-yawn abruptly stopped, and she scrambled out of bed to start putting on her clothes.

Hu Yuying laughed. "Are you really afraid of being seen by him?"

Lin Wanning paused, then blinked in realization. After all, they’d already tried every imaginable—and mortifying—position together. What was there left to be shy about?

So she clung to Hu Yuying, whining playfully. "Sister, did you enjoy last night’s massage?"

"Mmm, it was wonderful." Hu Yuying stretched again, and Lin Wanning took the chance to wrap her arms around Hu Yuying’s slender waist. "Then I’ll give you massages every night from now on."

Just then, the sound of the front door opening echoed through the room.

Lin Wanning released Hu Yuying and quickly tried to tidy her messy hair.

"Here, take my hair tie." Hu Yuying handed hers over, and soon Lin Wanning’s long hair was pulled up into a neat ponytail.

This time, Long Aotian didn’t barge in directly. Instead, he knocked first.

"Come in, we’re decent," came Lin Wanning’s voice.

Only then did Long Aotian push the door open.

The moment he saw the two of them, he cleared his throat awkwardly. "Breakfast is ready. Come eat."

Lin Wanning merely covered her lips, suppressing a giggle at his behavior.

Hu Yuying, however, rolled her eyes. He acted all proper now, but once they were in bed, he was the least restrained of them all.

"Long Aotian, I’ve noticed something," Lin Wanning said between bites of breakfast. "You don’t like eating fried dough sticks, do you?"

Hu Yuying had actually noticed this long ago. Back when they were still in Haiwan City, she once tried making fried dough sticks for him, but he refused to eat them. In the end, she had to make him pancakes instead.

Now, she too turned to Long Aotian, curious about his aversion to the breakfast staple.

Hearing the question and feeling Hu Yuying’s gaze on him, Long Aotian’s lips twitched. He didn’t quite know how to explain.

Truthfully, he used to enjoy fried dough sticks—especially paired with a bowl of savory tofu pudding.

But ever since transmigrating into this world and learning that his original fate was to die clutching half a moldy fried dough stick by a trash bin, he’d developed an instinctive revulsion toward them.

So he simply said, "I just don’t like them."

Both Hu Yuying and Lin Wanning could tell this wasn’t the real reason, but they didn’t press further. After all, everyone had foods they disliked.

Over breakfast, Hu Yuying shared her concerns with Long Aotian—the same ones she’d discussed with Lin Wanning the day before.

"So I was thinking… maybe we should just have Wanning and Qingxue move in with us."

Long Aotian understood her worries. From their very first day in Capital City, Li Qingxue had been the one to welcome them at the train station.

The bond between them ran deep. Seeing Li Qingxue unhappy and alone, it was only natural that Hu Yuying, as her close friend, wanted to help.

"Mmhm! After the beating you gave Ye Liangchen and Xue Shaohua, they wouldn’t dare cause any real trouble. But they’re like toads—disgusting even if they don’t bite," Lin Wanning chimed in.

"You could call the police, but Ye Liangchen hasn’t actually done anything extreme. Instead, he keeps harassing Qingxue under the guise of their nine-year ‘friendship.’ It’s infuriating!"

Long Aotian knew exactly what she meant. Those two were experts at being insufferable—always acting in the name of "what’s best" for someone while completely disregarding others’ feelings.

From the moment he’d met Li Qingxue, she had always been cheerful, optimistic, and full of life—as if all the world’s joy resided in her.

But seeing her reduced to tears by Ye Liangchen’s antics, powerless to stop him…

"Alright. Once the workers arrive later, I’ll talk to the foreman about prioritizing one of the rooms. The weather’s getting colder, and right now, there’s no proper door or windows—it’d be freezing."

Hearing this, Lin Wanning excitedly burrowed into Hu Yuying’s arms. "The three of us can finally share a bed again and whisper secrets all night!"

"We’ll invite Qingxue out this afternoon—none of us have major classes then."

Watching their delighted expressions, Long Aotian couldn’t help but smile too.

On the way to A University after breakfast, Hu Yuying walked beside Long Aotian and said softly, "Thank you… for always indulging me."

Gazing at his back, an indescribable warmth spread through her chest.

It seemed no matter what she asked, Long Aotian always yielded to her wishes. Even back then, despite his grumbling threats to "spank her," he’d inevitably give in…

"Do we need ‘thank you’ between us?" He glanced back at her with a grin. "Besides, didn’t I promise to always put you first? If I don’t spoil you, who else would I spoil?"

"My dear little wife…"