Chapter 21
【This is scary! This female lead is truly terrifying! As expected of a demon king-level character, she easily guessed that there’s someone behind you teaching you those things. It seems I need to be more careful.】
Zuo Bian countered 555 in her mind, ‘But it’s easy to guess, isn’t it? My mind wasn’t working well before, and suddenly I know so many cheesy lines. Any normal person would think I learned them from somewhere.’
555: …
【I see that you do have a lot of cheesy lines now, I’m almost dying from your cheesiness. Why don’t you try on Pinru’s clothes?】(referring to the mistress in a popular drama who wore the wife’s clothes)- like A mistress taking over the wife’s possessions or role
‘If we want excitement, we should go all the way?’ Zuo Bian tentatively finished the sentence.
555 felt conflicted, unsure whether it was a good or bad idea to let the host access the internet. Its initial intention was to let Zuo Bian surf the web more and become a “bad woman,” but it felt like she was going astray.
True to her name, she was leaning towards the left, but never in the right direction.
Zuo Bian and Qin Ai strolled through the Chang family garden, passing through flowerbeds and finally arriving at a pond.
It was a full moon tonight, and the bright moon hung high in the sky, casting a cool glow.
The clear water reflected the bright moon, and fish swam to the surface, leaving ripples that shattered the silver moonlight.
Zuo Bian leaned against the railing, looking up at the night sky. “The moon is so beautiful tonight*.”
Qin Ai’s eyes flickered, but she was looking at Zuo Bian’s profile. “It is beautiful.”
Zuo Bian looked away from the night sky and asked with a smile, “Qin Ai, what are your hobbies? I heard from Xiao Tian that you used to be very good at video games. Do you still play?”
“Not anymore, I don’t have time.” Qin Ai rested her left hand on the railing, the moonlight reflected on the water illuminating her stunning face.
Zuo Bian sensed a hint of loneliness from Qin Ai. She tilted her head in confusion. “But are you really that busy now?”
Qin Ai’s expression faltered for a moment, her voice low. “Actually, I’m not that busy.”
At first, she was very busy, so busy that she wished she had three heads and six arms, wishing she could be in multiple places at once. After everything was on track, she could have taken a step back from work, but she seemed to be punishing herself, escaping from something, immersing herself in endless busyness.
Her life had become all about work, all about Qin Group, leaving no space for herself.
“If you’re not that busy, you can find something you want to do. What are your hobbies? If you don’t know, you can try everything like me, and then you’ll know what you truly like.”
Qin Ai said, “Hobbies… It’s been too long, I can’t remember.”
“If you can’t remember, then find new ones.”
Zuo Bian’s words were so matter-of-fact, as if it should be that way. And it was—it should be that way.
“Mm, you’re right. Do you like piano? I can play for you next time.”
“You can play the piano? I want to hear it! You must look beautiful playing the piano.” Zuo Bian looked at Qin Ai with sparkling eyes.
“It’s been a long time since I last played. It might not sound good.” Although she said that, Qin Ai’s eyes were filled with a hint of amusement.
Zuo Bian smiled. “It’s already impressive that you can play the piano. I tried playing the piano at home before, but I couldn’t understand anything. My parents and brother still complimented me insincerely. Besides not being able to play the piano, I have no musical talent, I can’t sing well either.”
“I want to hear it.”
Zuo Bian quickly shook her head. “I told you it doesn’t sound good, I’m too embarrassed to sing.”
Qin Ai turned sideways, resting her elbow on the railing, her long, jade-like fingers against her cheek. “Didn’t you say we should reciprocate? I’ll play the piano for you, and you sing for me.”
Zuo Bian frowned in distress, but she felt that Qin Ai was right.
“Okay, I’ll sing, but don’t laugh at me.”
“Okay.” Qin Ai was already smiling.
Zuo Bian took a deep breath, facing the water. She slowly opened her mouth and sang, “Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are…”
Zuo Bian accidentally kicked a pebble into the pond, shattering the reflection of the moon and startling the fireflies hiding by the shore. Tiny lights flickered and danced, truly resembling a sky full of stars falling to earth.
Zuo Bian continued singing, her gaze fixed on the flying fireflies.
“The sun goes down slowly in the west, crows fly home in flocks, stars blink their little eyes…”
Her pitch was mostly accurate, and it was evident that her technique was still immature, but her voice was clear and pleasant to listen to.
In Zuo Bian’s eyes, the fireflies dancing around were stars on the ground. But in Qin Ai’s eyes, Zuo Bian was the star that had entered her world.
A star that seemed to burn eternally, constantly emitting light and heat, trying to illuminate her world.
After finishing the last line, Zuo Bian turned to Qin Ai and asked nervously, “How was it? Was it bad?”
“Not bad.” Qin Ai replied.
Hearing this evaluation, Zuo Bian beamed. “That’s great, I thought it would sound terrible.”
“It wasn’t bad.” Qin Ai shook her head slightly.
Zuo Bian’s face suddenly flushed red. She whispered to Qin Ai, “I need to use the restroom.”
“Mm.”
Zuo Bian lowered her head and hurried away, thinking to herself that she shouldn’t have drunk so many drinks before coming.
Actually, 555 had reminded her, but Zuo Yuan had said that Xiao Bian could drink as much as she wanted, and if it wasn’t enough, he could buy more. So Zuo Bian couldn’t resist the temptation and drank three boxes of Wangzai milk and two bottles of Wanglaoji herbal tea.
It seemed that excessive pampering from family members was also not a good thing. Zuo Bian felt a little sad.
With 555’s guidance, Zuo Bian easily found the restroom. After finishing her business, she walked out with light steps.
‘555, I should have listened to you and not drunk so many drinks.’
Zuo Bian chatted with 555 in her mind while walking back, following her memory.
【It seems that your most reliable teammate is still me. As the system assisting you in completing the mission, I suddenly feel a heavy burden on my shoulders. Hmm? It seems like there’s some plot fluctuation happening on the female lead’s side. Host, hurry back.】
Zuo Bian quickened her pace, even breaking into a run. The dress she was wearing restricted her movements, slowing her down.
Zuo Bian barely arrived in time to see the moment when Qin Ai and Hu Miaofu fell into the water together from the broken railing. With a splash, water sprayed up, attracting the attention of others nearby.
Zuo Yuan, who had finally escaped from Old Master Chang, and Chang Wenyan, who was anxiously searching for Zuo Bian and Qin Ai, appeared. Zuo Yuan grabbed Zuo Bian, who was about to jump into the water to save them, while Chang Wenyan quickly took off his jacket and jumped in.
Both Hu Miaofu and Qin Ai were dressed in white, so Chang Wenyan couldn’t tell who was Qin Ai. Hu Miaofu was struggling violently, making Chang Wenyan subconsciously swim towards her.
Qin Ai, who knew how to swim, had already reached the edge of the pond. Zuo Bian extended her hand towards her, and Qin Ai grabbed it, pulling herself ashore.
“Qin Ai, are you okay? How did you fall in?” Zuo Bian saw that Qin Ai’s white clothes were starting to become transparent, and she remembered there were men present.
Zuo Bian anxiously looked around, her gaze landing on her brother, Zuo Yuan.
“Brother, lend me your jacket.” Without waiting for Zuo Yuan’s reply, Zuo Bian pulled the jacket off his shoulders and draped it over Qin Ai.
Zuo Bian sighed in relief. “Qin Ai, you should be warmer now, right?”
Qin Ai wrapped the jacket around herself, her body starting to warm up. “Thank you for the jacket.”
“You’re welcome, it’s what I should do.”
Zuo Yuan, who had been robbed of both his jacket and his sister: ??? Do you think I’m invisible?
******
Author’s Note:
“The moon is so beautiful tonight” is also a “meme phrase”, but our Xiao Bian is blissfully unaware of this fact.
T/N: I didn’t catch that until I read the author’s note 😂 After searching online, I discovered that “The moon is beautiful tonight” means “I love you” , using a poetic phrase to express a romantic sentiment.
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