Chapter Fifty-six: Perfectly Marinated!

It was obvious that after Grandma arrived, Ruoxi became much more well-behaved, even gentler toward Lin’er…

“Ruoxi, would you like to come walk with me?” Grandma asked her, and of course, she couldn’t refuse.

Watching the two of them walk away, the rest of the family finally unloaded the groceries they had brought back. It seemed there would be no need to buy any more food for the New Year.

Meanwhile, Zhiyi was lying in her secret room, flipping through photos. The sight of Qin Xuan irritated her—so many days had passed and he hadn’t even sent her a single message!

“Zhiyi, come out for dinner,” Nan Zhengyi knocked on her door, not entering directly.

Zhiyi set the photos aside and slowly made her way downstairs.

“Later, you’ll come with me to a gathering, all right?” Nan Zhengyi suddenly said as she was sipping her porridge.

“Me?” Zhiyi pointed to herself in surprise.

“Yes, it’s a good chance for you to meet some of your peers,” he replied, pretending to sound nonchalant.

Zhiyi instantly saw through his intentions. She set down her chopsticks. “I’m not going!”

“What do you mean, not going? It’s just a chance to meet people,” Nan Zhengyi said calmly. “That boy from the Qin family isn’t right for you.”

“How do you know Qin Xuan isn’t right for me?” Zhiyi’s stubbornness flared up.

“He’s already dating Ruoxi. Why are you getting yourself involved?” Nan Zhengyi grew angry at the thought—back in the army, he used to beat Qin Jianguo at every fight, never losing once. Now his daughter was about to be stolen away by that man’s son! He had never suffered such humiliation before!

Zhiyi’s heart was stifled and aggrieved by his words. She stood up, ignored her parents, and ran back to her room, locking the door. Hugging her photos, she felt inexplicably lost and empty.

…

Once he finished his chores, Qin Xuan sneaked back to his room to play games, leaving Lin’er searching everywhere for him.

“Brother! Let me feed you some apple,” Lin’er dragged a stool over to sit beside him, watching as he played his game. Surprisingly, he wasn’t losing as badly as usual today.

Qin Xuan obediently opened his mouth, but without warning, accidentally bit her finger instead of the apple. Thankfully, it didn’t hurt much.

Still, Lin’er felt embarrassed. She stuffed the apple into his mouth, quickly withdrew her hand, and hid it behind her back, rubbing the spot where he had bitten her, feeling a strange tingling…

“Huh? Why are you still here?” Qin Xuan was curious as to why Lin’er hadn’t left.

“I’m watching you play,” she shook her head.

“Oh… What did Mom tell you this morning?” he asked after a moment’s thought.

Lin’er’s lips twitched. “I can’t tell you that!”

“Come on, tell me and I’ll play games with you,” Qin Xuan coaxed.

“Okay.” Lin’er grinned mischievously, leaned in, and whispered in his ear, “Mom told us to show some restraint!”

Qin Xuan was so startled he nearly flung his mouse across the room!

“You! Don’t talk nonsense!” Qin Xuan pushed her away as she nearly leaned onto his shoulder.

Lin’er protested, “I’m serious! Ask Mom if you don’t believe me!”

Would he dare ask? Was she trying to get him killed?

Qin Xuan ignored her after that. Finding it a bit boring, Lin’er eventually left him alone and went off to look for Ruoxi.

…

Zhiyi sat gloomily in her room, repeatedly opening and closing Qin Xuan’s chat window.

Finally, unable to resist, she called him.

Qin Xuan was still struggling to win his game when he saw Zhiyi’s call pop up.

“Zhiyi? What’s up?” he asked, puzzled as to why she was calling.

“Qin Xuan…” Zhiyi hesitated, and after a moment, Qin Xuan couldn’t take it anymore.

“Did something happen?”

Trying her best not to sound upset, Zhiyi asked, “Can I come spend New Year’s at your place?”

“What?” Qin Xuan was taken aback. “Did something happen at home?”

“I’ll explain when I get there, okay?” There was hope in her voice.

“Well… All right,” he agreed after a moment’s thought. His parents knew Zhiyi, after all.

Once Zhiyi had his consent, she quickly packed a few clothes and slipped out while her parents were away.

Fortunately, there were plenty of flights around the New Year, and soon she was on a plane bound for Qin Xuan’s city.

After hanging up, Qin Xuan shrugged helplessly. He meant to tell Ruoxi and the others, but as soon as his game started, the thought slipped his mind.

Even after lunch, he still hadn’t remembered—a little awkward, to say the least.

That afternoon, Zhiyi stood at the door, radiant, and knocked.

Lin’er was surprised anyone would be visiting at this time, but when she opened the door, she saw Zhiyi beaming at her.

Lin’er: This must be a hallucination!

With a “bang,” she shut the door again.

Zhiyi almost got hit by the door, jumping in fright. As she reached out to knock again, Lin’er opened up.

This time, Lin’er rubbed her eyes in amazement. “Sister Zhiyi! What are you doing here?”

“Huh? Qin Xuan didn’t tell you?” Zhiyi was confused.

“He’s been playing games all day!” Lin’er answered indignantly.

“Is it okay if I spend New Year’s here?” Lin’er listened to her question, puzzled.

“Of course! We’re friends!” Lin’er took her by the hand and led her inside.

“Where’s Qin Xuan?” Zhiyi looked around but didn’t see him.

“He’s still playing games!”

“Oh… I want to see him,” Zhiyi said shyly.

Lin’er’s eyes widened: Was she just letting the wolf in the door?

Still, she pointed the way to Qin Xuan’s room, then ran out to find Ruoxi—Sister Ruoxi! The homewrecker’s come right to our house!

Sure enough, when Zhiyi found Qin Xuan, he was furiously typing away at his keyboard, clearly trash-talking his teammates.

“Hey!” She tapped him on the shoulder from behind. Qin Xuan jumped, spinning around to see Zhiyi.

“That was fast!”

Zhiyi looked around his room, tossed her bag onto his bed, and replied, “Of course! I missed you—how could I not hurry?”

“Stop! Didn’t we agree not to say things like that?” Qin Xuan hurriedly covered her mouth.

“It’s fine. It’s just the two of us here. If neither of us says anything, it’s all good.” Zhiyi raised her brows playfully.

Seeing her so completely unladylike, Qin Xuan couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

Zhiyi flopped onto his bed. After a day of travel, she was exhausted.

Watching her, Qin Xuan reached out… and pulled the covers over her exposed stomach.

“Why don’t you get some sleep?” he suggested.

“All right… I’ll just sleep here,” she said, rolling over and wrapping herself in his quilt.

Qin Xuan stared at her, appalled—her shoes! She hadn’t taken them off! Even if they weren’t on his bed, it still felt unsanitary.

He sighed helplessly, walked to the foot of the bed, and took hold of her ankle. As he was about to remove her shoes, he hesitated—was this really appropriate?

But for the sake of his bed, he ended up taking off both her shoes and socks. Ugh, the smell was something else!