Chapter 15

Ying Quhe’s muscular chest rose and fell with his breathing.

Xi Mi’s fingertips slid from his smooth forehead down the bridge of his nose, past his philtrum and thin lips… finally poking his cheek. Only after she had played to her heart’s content did she cover him with a summer blanket.

She sat back on the sofa, where a stretch of her leg was enough to reach Ying Quhe’s head.

Testing the distance, she reached out her foot and nudged Ying Quhe’s ear with her big toe.

Pulling her foot back, Xi Mi sank contentedly into the sofa. The rich flavor lingering on the tip of her tongue from drinking left her immensely satisfied, and she soon fell asleep. She had a dream bursting with sweetness: Ying Quhe had turned into a cute little white bear, stretching out his arms to her and asking for a hug in a deep yet babyish voice.

By the time Ying Quhe woke up, it was already six in the morning, faint blue dawn light spilling through the window. He sat up, his body aching all over, the summer blanket slipping down to his stomach. He looked down at the blanket, then glanced up to see Xi Mi sleeping sprawled out on the sofa.

His temples throbbed with a dull ache, and his memory of last night was a complete blank.

He had a low alcohol tolerance, never drinking more than two glasses of red wine at a time. He had never tasted liquor like this before, having always viewed it as a crude drink that ruined the palate.

Last night’s incident… was a complete accident.

His mouth felt parched. He got up, drank some water, and washed his face. He made no effort to keep quiet, intentionally making noise, but the little girl showed no sign of waking from her dream.

Soon after, he spotted the shattered liquor jar in the dining area and noticed the bruise on the girl’s instep. Suddenly… a realization struck him.

Could he have… lost control after drinking last night? Attacked the girl with the liquor jar, and even… injured her foot?

Ying Quhe rubbed his temples in frustration, unable to recall a single detail.

Xi Mi woke up with a yawn, stretched, and stood up. “Mr. Ying, are you feeling better?” she asked.

Ying Quhe looked at her with a conflicted expression. “Last night, I…”

“Do you remember what happened last night?” Xi Mi limped over to him, pointing at her bruised foot. “Last night, you crawled on the ground, hugged the liquor jar, and smashed it against my foot. I cried up a storm, and you smashed up a storm.”

“…” Ying Quhe’s brow furrowed even deeper.

The little girl let out a snicker and gave his shoulder a light nudge. “Don’t look so serious! I was just joking. Last night, after you drank, you suddenly collapsed toward me, and the liquor jar fell right onto my foot. No matter how much I called out, you wouldn’t wake up, and you were way too heavy for me to carry to bed, so I just left you…”

Ying Quhe took liquid medicine from the hotel’s first-aid kit and signaled for her to sit down.

A bruise like this would fade in a few days, and she wasn’t that delicate anyway; a minor injury was nothing to her. Yet Ying Quhe insisted on applying the medicine for her.

At the thought of Ying Quhe dabbing the medicine with his fingers and rubbing it onto her foot, Xi Mi couldn’t help but shiver. A blush spread to her ears, leaving her whole face burning hot. Flustered, she snatched the bottle from his hand. “I’ll do it myself.”

*

At breakfast, Tian Jian noticed the bruise on her foot and asked around a mouth full of food, “Mimi, what happened to your foot? Hey, your shoes are really pretty! Where did you buy them?”

Ying Shengnan rolled a spring roll for Tian Jian, added a splash of sweet vinegar, and handed it over. “Do you like them, Jianjian?”

“I do!” Tian Jian had cried all night, leaving her eyes red and swollen, yet she still put on a smiling face.

Xi Mi felt a pang of sympathy for Tian Jian. Stuck between her brother and her lover, she must be having a miserable time.

After breakfast, Xi Mi went back to the ancient town to pack her things. As she was leaving, the landlady nagged affectionately, “You foolish girl, not coming back last night and not even bothering to call! I was worried sick! Here, this is your pay for helping out at the shop the past few days. Once you get to Jinyang, take good care of yourself and do well in the competition. I’ll watch the livestreams to support you!”

When Xi Mi arrived, she hadn’t brought a single piece of luggage; when she left, she carried only a small bag. Reluctant to leave, she embraced the landlady, tearfully saying, “Landlady, wait for me to win the championship and come back to make you a feast of whole ducks!”

The landlady still worried about her, but once she saw her out the door and into Ying Quhe’s car, her heart finally settled into place.

Ying Shengnan and Tian Jian had taken an earlier flight back to Jinyang. Because Xi Mi lacked an ID card and couldn’t go through airport security, Ying Quhe accompanied her by car instead.

Halfway through the trip, they ran into Nan Qing at a highway rest stop. Xi Mi bought a bottle of water, handed it to Ying Quhe, and pointed toward Nan Qing. “Mr. Ying, it’s Miss Nan.”

Ying Quhe unscrewed the cap, took a sip, gave a flat “Oh,” and turned back into the car.

Just an “oh”? A single “oh” upon seeing his blind date match? What kind of blind date partner was that? Just as Xi Mi was about to head over and say hello, Ying Quhe rolled down the car window and called to her, “Time to go.”

Getting into the car, Xi Mi asked him, “Mr. Ying, why didn’t you greet Miss Nan?”

“Why should I greet her?” Ying Quhe asked back.

“Aren’t you two…”

Ying Quhe cut her off. “We aren’t friends.” He sounded a bit impatient, taking a sip of water to suppress his irritation.

“I know…” Xi Mi paused before adding, “You’re blind date partners.”

Ying Quhe spat out his water. Xi Mi quickly pulled her neck back and admitted her mistake. “I’ll shut up, I won’t say another word! I shouldn’t pry into your business, Mr. Ying.”

Ying Quhe lowered his eyelids and asked, “Once we reach Jinyang, where do you plan to go?”

Xi Mi’s mind went blank; she hadn’t made any plans at all. “When we get there… I’ll figure it out,” she said. “I’ll look around and see if there are hotels where I can check in without an ID.”

“Even if there are, do you think a young girl like you should be staying in a place like that?” Ying Quhe was at a loss for how to lecture her. The girl had no sense of self-preservation whatsoever.

Xi Mi replied naively, “If they’re brave enough to take me in, why shouldn’t I be brave enough to stay?”

Ying Quhe shot her a look, immediately silencing her into absolute stillness.

“Since you’re so brave, stay at my place. No ID required, and you can pay me room rent at hotel rates.”

“…” Xi Mi was caught off guard.

“What? You looked like nothing in heaven or earth could scare you a second ago, and now you’re afraid?” Ying Quhe looked at her.

Xi Mi looked back at him, recalling the man who had collapsed onto the floor after a single drink of strong liquor last night. What on earth did she have to fear? If anyone should be afraid, it was him!

With her accommodation pleasantly settled, Xi Mi bowed her head and started scrolling through Weibo.

Right after yesterday’s competition ended, Xi Mi gained two hundred thousand followers in a flash. Her direct message inbox was overflowing, so she tapped through them one by one to clear the notifications.

Halfway through scanning her messages, she spotted a Weibo account named “Xi Mi Fan Club”.

She had assumed it would be an alt account with followers in the single digits, so clicking on it gave her quite a surprise.

This “Xi Mi Fan Club” actually had more followers than she did.

She had two hundred and fifty thousand followers, while this “Fan Club” boasted two million two hundred and fifty thousand.

The “Fan Club” even had a yellow V verification tag^[1]: Bestselling author Ji Donglin, representative work 《Sweetheart Love Formula》.

The pinned post on “Xi Mi Fan Club v” read:

“Sorry, everyone. Yesterday, I accidentally turned into a diehard fan of Xi Xi Xi Mi. On a sudden impulse, I changed my handle for fun, but now I can’t change it back because my old handle was immediately claimed. I’ve already contacted Weibo customer service, and the staff is currently handling it. Please don’t unfollow me, everyone! I’m still your Ji Donglin.”

Below were the comments from his fans:

“It’s fine, Male God! Even if you change your handle to ‘Cheap Follower Boost’, I still won’t unfollow!”

“Man, I thought your account got hacked. Male God, you really… where’s your IQ?!”

“Male God doesn’t need an IQ, his looks are enough!”

Xi Mi had originally wanted to brag to Ying Quhe that she finally had her own fan club. But when she turned around and saw him holding a magazine, thoroughly absorbed in his reading, the words died on her lips. She settled for chuckling quietly to herself instead.

Ji Donglin sent her a direct message: “Xi Xi Xi Mi, I’m your diehard fan and the leader of your fan club! Are you coming to Jinyang tomorrow? Interested in meeting up? I’m currently planning to write a food-related romance novel and would love to pick your brain. (≧▽≦)/.”

– Xi Xi Xi Mi: “But I don’t know you.”

– Xi Mi Support Group: “That doesn’t matter! We can meet up in person. I set up a Penguin^[2] fan group for you. Come join us, there are tons of your fans inside. Penguin Group: 242929433, write ‘Xi Mi’ for verification!”

Xi Mi logged into her long-neglected Penguin account. Her contact list was sparse, but the moment she joined the group, her screen was flooded with messages saying “Welcome Empress Xi Mi to the group!”

The Penguin app chimed incessantly while her phone vibrated without pause. The noisy commotion caught Ying Quhe’s attention. Noticing his look of utter disdain, Xi Mi was so startled that she hastily powered off her phone.

Ying Quhe closed the magazine in his hands and held out an open palm to her. “Give me your phone.”

T.T…

So, just because it was too noisy, he’s confiscating my phone?

Xi Mi obediently handed her phone over. After turning it on, Ying Quhe decisively uninstalled Penguin, opened WeChat, added her as a friend, and handed the phone back to her.

Xi Mi stared at the new contact on her friends list and asked, “Mr. Ying, is this you?”

His avatar was a standing turtle wearing a red necktie with a cigarette dangling from its mouth.

What a decadent-looking turtle…

Ying Quhe gave a low “Mm,” idly tapped on his phone, and casually opened an old game to kill time.

Xi Mi craned her neck and was surprised to see Mr. Ying playing Tetris. Watching him set up one clear line after another was strangely satisfying. She asked, “Mr. Ying, can I have a turn?”

Ying Quhe paused the game and passed the phone to her. “One minute left.”

Xi Mi took over the game. A “7” piece was descending, on track to slide right into the gap for a glorious line clear, but Xi Mi’s finger slipped. The “7” turned into an “L”.

What should have been a glorious string of line clears turned into a jammed mess, all because of her slip of the thumb.

As a Virgo with severe OCD, Ying Quhe practically bristled.

Stinky brat, are you doing this to take revenge on society? 🙂