Chapter 92
While Qin Ai was in the cramped kitchen making hangover soup, Zuo Bian picked up the diary again.
555, who had thought it had escaped a disaster, now felt like it was truly dying, dying of embarrassment.
Zuo Bian flipped to the section where 555 had been praising itself and started reading aloud. Her pronunciation was clear, and she read with even more emotion than when she recited lines from the Green Tea Handbook.
“I was slapped in the face again today. No, I was just gently caressed by reality. I’m never wrong. If the truth is different from what I said, it must be because the heavens are jealous of my excellence.”
“Ah! This morning, I was awakened by a sense of mission. The sunlight shone on my chiseled face, and I looked in the mirror, amazed by my perfect beauty…” Zuo Bian read aloud with dramatic flair.
To 555, this was public execution. It wanted to scream like a groundhog.
Little Frog, who had been sleeping soundly, was awakened by the shameless words. It clicked its tongue, thinking that 555 was so narcissistic.
Qin Ai, who was making hangover soup in the kitchen, heard everything clearly. She glanced back and saw Zuo Bian reading the diary intently.
Her eyes were filled with amusement. Drunk Zuo Bian was clingy and demanding, a bit more difficult to handle than usual, but Qin Ai didn’t mind.
Zuo Bian didn’t read for long. After finishing one page, her eyelids started to droop.
The diary slipped from her hand and landed on the floor with a thud. Her eyes closed, and she fell asleep, half her body hanging off the bed.
She smacked her lips in her sleep, savoring the taste of the wine.
Qin Ai came out of the kitchen with the hangover soup and saw Zuo Bian sleeping soundly.
However, her posture was uncomfortable, with her lower body on the floor and her upper body on the bed. She must have been exhausted after all the commotion to fall asleep in such a position.
Qin Ai placed the soup on the small table and shook Zuo Bian’s shoulder.
Zuo Bian mumbled something and swatted Qin Ai’s hand away.
Qin Ai bent down and pinched Zuo Bian’s nose.
Suddenly unable to breathe, Zuo Bian didn’t open her eyes immediately. She groaned and shook her head, trying to get rid of whatever was covering her nose.
Qin Ai used her other hand to hold the back of Zuo Bian’s head, preventing her from moving.
Finally, Zuo Bian opened her eyes, but her gaze was hazy. She didn’t even recognize the person in front of her.
“I wanna sleep…” She rubbed her nose and tried to push Qin Ai’s hand away.
Qin Ai finally released her grip and helped her onto the bed.
“The floor is cold, get on the bed.”
As soon as she sat down, Zuo Bian’s body went limp, as if all her bones had turned to jelly. She closed her eyes contentedly. “Then I’ll sleep on the bed.”
Qin Ai held the bowl of hangover soup, her expression exasperated as she helped Zuo Bian sit up again. “Drink the soup first, then you can sleep.”
“No, no.” Zuo Bian buried her face in the pillow, her back facing Qin Ai.
Qin Ai coaxed her patiently, but Zuo Bian refused to drink, as if the bowl contained poison.
Sensing the direction the scene was heading, 555 quickly dragged Little Frog into censorship mode. It was best to leave the two lovebirds alone, even non-human entities shouldn’t be present.
“There’s a reward if you finish it. Don’t you want a reward?”
Hearing the word “reward,” Zuo Bian’s ears twitched. She finally lifted her head from the pillow.
“Reward?”
“Mm, a reward.”
Zuo Bian thought about it seriously, then smiled. “I want you to be my wife and sleep with me!”
“You’re such a handful.” Qin Ai chuckled.
But it wasn’t a burden, she was willing to do anything for Zuo Bian.
“Okay?” Zuo Bian looked at Qin Ai with pleading eyes, like a helpless puppy.
How could Qin Ai refuse her request? She brought the soup to Zuo Bian’s lips.
“I promise, just drink the soup, okay?”
“Mm-hmm.” Zuo Bian nodded obediently and drank the entire bowl of soup. After finishing it, she looked at Qin Ai expectantly, as if waiting for praise.
Qin Ai patted her head as a reward and was about to put the bowl away when Zuo Bian suddenly hugged her waist. This scene felt familiar.
Earlier, when Qin Ai had gone to the kitchen to make the soup, Zuo Bian had also hugged her, refusing to let her go, like a human piece of candy, impossible to shake off.
“Where are you going?” Zuo Bian rested her chin on Qin Ai’s shoulder, nuzzling her neck restlessly.
Her scent, a mix of her own fragrance and the aroma of wine, was intoxicating. Like a ripe peach, tempting and sweet. Qin Ai lifted her hand and cupped Zuo Bian’s cheek.
The skin beneath her fingers was soft and smooth. If she applied a little more pressure, she would leave a mark.
Her voice lowered, she said, “I’m not going anywhere, I’m just putting the bowl back in the kitchen. I’ll be right back.”
Zuo Bian, with her alcohol-addled brain, thought about it carefully, then nodded, reluctantly releasing her grip.
As promised, Qin Ai returned after putting the bowl away.
As soon as she approached the bed, Zuo Bian pulled her down eagerly.
But she was too hasty. She lost her balance and pulled Qin Ai down with her.
The world spun, and Zuo Bian found herself lying on the bed, Qin Ai’s hand supporting her head, her long black hair cascading down, obscuring most of her vision.
Their faces were close, their breaths mingling, the temperature rising.
Qin Ai’s eyes, hidden in the shadows, were bright, like burning embers.
Zuo Bian looked at Qin Ai with hazy eyes, sensing something was wrong, but she couldn’t process the information.
“Qin Ai…” She simply called out Qin Ai’s name, not even knowing why she did it.
Each time she called out her name, it was a declaration of her passionate love.
Qin Ai, who had been silent, chuckled softly. Her usually cold and aloof features softened, leaving only tenderness.
She lay down beside Zuo Bian and pulled the blanket over them.
Zuo Bian turned towards her, hugging her waist and burying her face in Qin Ai’s chest.
The soft and fragrant scent filled her senses. She nuzzled Qin Ai’s chest contentedly, a blissful expression on her face.
Qin Ai didn’t do anything else, she just lay there, holding Zuo Bian.
The bed was small. It was fine for one person, but it felt cramped with two people.
To avoid falling off, they were pressed close together. But this closeness also brought their hearts closer. Holding each other, it was as if they were holding the entire world.
They felt content and safe.
The pig-shaped alarm clock on the bedside table ticked away, time passing slowly. The sunlight streaming through the small window gradually lost its warmth.
The setting sun cast long shadows, stretching the shadow of the small pot of rain lilies by the window.
As the last rays of sunlight disappeared below the horizon, the bustling city lit up, but the small apartment remained dark.
Qin Ai opened her eyes in the darkness. She turned her head and saw the faint light from the building across the street.
She had woken up alone in the darkness many times before.
Forced to shoulder the responsibility of reviving the Qin family at such a young age, she had to deal with the mess her father and grandfather had left behind, the bloodsucking relatives, and the people who wanted to devour the Qin family. She had to hide her vulnerability and fight back with an iron fist.
Qin Ai had always been willful, doing whatever she wanted. Her family, unlike other families, hadn’t opposed her hobbies, they had supported her.
But fate had been cruel, and she had to give up the things she loved, like playing the piano and racing.
Zuo Bian had barged into her life, seeing through her facade and recognizing the real her.
After all these years, she couldn’t go back and start over, she couldn’t become a professional pianist or a race car driver.
The piano and racing could only be hobbies now. But even though she had time, and wasn’t as busy as before, she had deliberately ignored her own desires.
It was Zuo Bian who had helped her rediscover those forgotten passions. Qin Ai was happy to be able to experience those feelings again.
At this moment, she heard Zuo Bian groan softly. She pressed the button on the bedside lamp, and the room was bathed in light.
Zuo Bian opened her eyes, her gaze still hazy. She smiled before even seeing Qin Ai’s face. “Qin Ai, good morning.”
“It’s not morning anymore, it’s evening.”
“Hmm?” It took Zuo Bian a moment to process this. Then she saw the lights in the building across the street. It wasn’t morning, it was evening.
Her stomach growled.
“Hungry?” Qin Ai asked, her voice laced with amusement.
Zuo Bian didn’t feel embarrassed. She nodded naturally. “Mm, I’m hungry.”
“I’ll make you something to eat.” Qin Ai got out of bed.
Zuo Bian rubbed her face, trying to wake herself up. She was sober now, but she still had a headache.
If it weren’t for the hangover soup Qin Ai had made, she would probably still be feeling groggy.
Looking at Qin Ai’s back as she went to the kitchen, Zuo Bian said apologetically, “Sorry, Qin Ai, I shouldn’t have drunk so much. I made you take care of me.”
Qin Ai turned to look at her. “You are a bit troublesome when you’re drunk, but I don’t mind. There’s not much food left in the kitchen. How about noodles for dinner?”
“Okay.” Zuo Bian smiled and nodded, her heart warm.
The noodles were quickly cooked, the aroma filling the small apartment. Zuo Bian felt even hungrier.
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