Little Bodyguard(GL) 20

Chapter 20

Zhuo Zhi froze, her mind a jumble of colors and blankness.

Only her lips moved, uttering a question that sounded almost like a murmur, “Be… what…”

Li Qinyue chuckled for a while before repeating, “Girlfriend.”

Zhuo Zhi remained motionless, this time not even her lips moved.

Li Qinyue waved her hand in front of Zhuo Zhi’s face, “Not the ‘friend’ kind of friend, the ‘girl’ kind of girlfriend.”

Zhuo Zhi wanted to tell her that there was no need to explain further. After all these days of training, she wouldn’t misunderstand anymore.

Li Qinyue just wanted to be in a relationship, no matter what, no matter with whom, she just wanted to be in one.

Before, Li Qinyue was dissatisfied with this and that. Now the problem had landed on her, Zhuo Zhi.

Zhuo Zhi wished she could turn into a statue. This was the most difficult question she had ever encountered in her eighteen years and three months of life.

But the waiter started serving the dishes. Li Qinyue leaned back in her chair, her posture languid and elegant, not a hint of nervousness.

Zhuo Zhi, on the other hand, shifted back stiffly, scraping her chair against the floor again, her gaze fixed blankly on the candle holder on the table.

The waiter was handsome with a pleasant voice. He announced the dishes and told them to enjoy their meal.

Zhuo Zhi really wanted to ask him to wait, repeat the names of the dishes again, or perhaps perform some kind of noodle-pulling show. Ideally, like in those famous hotpot restaurants, there would be three or four waiters hovering around their table, providing endless chatter and service.

“Here,” Li Qinyue picked up her knife and fork, carefully cutting the meat, “Let’s eat first.”

“Yes, yes,” Zhuo Zhi responded, but she only held the cutlery in her hand, her body still frozen.

Li Qinyue cut the meat on her plate into even pieces and placed it beside Zhuo Zhi’s plate, swapping theirs.

Zhuo Zhi looked down at the beautifully arranged plate, scenes from old TV dramas flashing through her mind.

“I know how to use a knife and fork,” Zhuo Zhi murmured, “I’ve eaten Western food before.”

“I didn’t say you didn’t know how to,” Li Qinyue smiled at her, “I’m afraid you’ll get tired.”

Zhuo Zhi felt like she was seeing a ghost. Someone who would rather throw away her dishes than wash them, someone who would toss aside documents without bothering to organize them, was actually concerned about her getting tired?

Zhuo Zhi’s gaze was too direct. Li Qinyue picked up her wine glass and raised it towards her, “This is the treatment you get as a girlfriend.”

Zhuo Zhi twitched the corner of her mouth, forcing a smile.

“Cheers,” Li Qinyue said.

Zhuo Zhi picked up her glass, hesitating.

“Just a toast,” Li Qinyue said helplessly, “It’s not like we’ll become a married couple after this drink.”

“Oh, okay,” Zhuo Zhi clinked glasses with her.

Li Qinyue took a big gulp of wine, frowned, and sighed.

“Sigh…”

“Sister,” Zhuo Zhi hurriedly said, “That’s not what I meant, I just feel…”

“Fake,” Li Qinyue said.

“?!” Zhuo Zhi’s face was full of question marks.

“Fake girlfriend,” Li Qinyue explained, “Pretend to be my girlfriend on necessary occasions, be my shield, that’s all. Look how scared you are.”

Zhuo Zhi couldn’t help but let out a long sigh of relief.

Li Qinyue forked a piece of meat into her mouth, chewing and looking at Zhuo Zhi, her expression a bit resentful.

Zhuo Zhi chuckled, finally feeling the muscles in her face relax. She said, “Sister, don’t misunderstand.”

“Did I misunderstand anything?” Li Qinyue said, “Aren’t you just disgusted by me?”

“I’m not disgusted by you,” Zhuo Zhi paused, “It’s just that you’re so sudden, too sudden.”

“Oh, then take your time to get used to it,” Li Qinyue took another bite of meat, chewing slowly.

Finally able to eat, Zhuo Zhi, although she had only fought one match, her muscles had been tense from observing the situation in the cage from the beginning. Her last opponent was indeed very skilled, and in the end, Li Qinyue’s actions had almost stopped her heart. So now, the hand holding her fork was actually trembling.

Li Qinyue glanced at her, “Just tell me, did I cut the meat well for you?”

“Yes,” Zhuo Zhi quickly said.

Li Qinyue smiled, “Just tell me, is it good to have me as your girlfriend?”

Zhuo Zhi’s face had already turned as red as a cooked shrimp. After a while, she said, “Yes.”

Their dinner lasted quite a while. Li Qinyue slowly ate her dessert, occasionally staring out the window in a daze, until night fell.

She tilted her chin towards the window and said, “Do you know why I brought you here for dinner?”

Zhuo Zhi looked out. The city lights of Nanhai City had lit up, indeed much more beautiful than the scenery during the day. So she said, “Because the night view here is very beautiful.”

Li Qinyue smiled and looked at her, “Can you see the stars at night on your mountain?”

“When the weather is good,” Zhuo Zhi said, “Actually, you can see them from the villa complex too.”

“It’s not the same, the moon always looks brighter in your hometown,” Li Qinyue asked, “Are the stars more beautiful, or are the city lights more beautiful?”

“Both have their own beauty,” Zhuo Zhi answered sincerely.

“You always answer sincerely without any bias,” Li Qinyue sighed, then suddenly changed the topic, “In the future, if Aijia asks you who’s more beautiful, her or me, what will you answer?”

“Should I be your shield in front of her?” Zhuo Zhi asked.

“Yes,” Li Qinyue suddenly felt a little pathetic.

“She’s beautiful, but my eyes are only for you,” Zhuo Zhi said.

“Tsk,” Li Qinyue sighed and took out her phone from her bag.

“Alright, let’s go back,” she said, looking at the time.

They left the restaurant and went downstairs. Lingzi was waiting by the car.

Seeing them approach, he opened the car door, being very polite to both Li Qinyue and Zhuo Zhi.

There was no driver this time. Lingzi was driving himself. He asked Li Qinyue, “Sister Yue, going to ‘Shengge’?”

“No, back to the villa complex,” Li Qinyue said.

“It’s still early,” Lingzi glanced at Zhuo Zhi through the rearview mirror, “Master Little Sister, you won a big victory today, shouldn’t we celebrate?”

“Ah…” Of course, Zhuo Zhi didn’t want to celebrate, but refusing in front of Lingzi, who knew about the situation, would seem like she was in a hurry to go home to do something. Zhuo Zhi hesitated for two seconds.

Li Qinyue looked at her, “Do you want to go have fun?”

“Not really,” Zhuo Zhi didn’t know what to say. For her, going to a bar was really boring.

Li Qinyue suddenly smiled and said to Lingzi, “Drive us to San Yi Road, then you can go home.”

“Not taking me to play?” Lingzi looked unhappy.

“I’ll take you next time,” Li Qinyue glanced at Zhuo Zhi, “Today is our time together.”

Lingzi’s eyes widened. Zhuo Zhi’s face flushed, and she looked at Li Qinyue, wondering if the pretending to be a couple act was starting now.

However, Li Qinyue didn’t say anything more. She leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes to rest.

Lingzi was sensible and drove quietly without speaking. Zhuo Zhi stared ahead for a while, then glanced at Li Qinyue from the side. She had a feeling that from now on, her heart would never be at ease again.

The car stopped on San Yi Road. This was the shopping center of Nanhai City, never lacking in people.

Even on a winter night, the streets were crowded. Zhuo Zhi thought for a moment and realized it was Saturday.

“Are you going shopping, Sister?” Zhuo Zhi asked.

“We can shop or not,” Li Qinyue replied.

“Are you meeting someone?”

“I’ll meet them if I want to, I won’t if I don’t want to.”

Zhuo Zhi was a little confused, following Li Qinyue, “What are we doing here, Sister?”

“I never saw you ask me where I was going or what I was doing before,” Li Qinyue looked at her, “Why are you asking today?”

“It’s different today.”

“How is it different?” Li Qinyue stopped and looked down at her, smiling.

Zhuo Zhi paused, unable to speak.

“Don’t be shy,” Li Qinyue suddenly reached out and pinched her cheek, “Today, you’re my girlfriend.”

“Fake,” Zhuo Zhi emphasized.

“Pretend it’s real,” Li Qinyue said.

“There’s no one we know here,” Zhuo Zhi looked around defensively.

Li Qinyue didn’t let go of her hand, stretching her soft cheek like a monkey’s.

“Little monkey,” she said, “You have to practice, otherwise we’ll be exposed when we meet someone, wouldn’t that be troublesome?”

“What will happen if we’re exposed?” Zhuo Zhi asked about the worst-case scenario.

Li Qinyue looked at her seriously, “I’ll have to marry scum like Zhang Xitan.”

“After what happened to him, Grandpa Li wouldn’t introduce him to you anymore, right?” Zhuo Zhi frowned.

“If it doesn’t become public, my father and grandfather can still introduce me to many, many people,” Li Qinyue looked at her, “You’ll understand when I take you to meet them one day.”

Zhuo Zhi didn’t speak, she just nodded.

Li Qinyue finally let go of her hand but didn’t leave Zhuo Zhi’s side.

Her hand slid down Zhuo Zhi’s shoulder, brushed against her arm, and landed beside her hand.

“First,” Li Qinyue opened her palm, waiting for Zhuo Zhi, “When couples go shopping, you have to hold my hand.”

Zhuo Zhi’s anxiety bubbled up like a fish blowing bubbles in water.

She rubbed her hands against her clothes before tentatively reaching out, “I sweat easily when I’m hot.”

“I don’t mind,” Li Qinyue squeezed her hand tightly and started walking, pulling her fake girlfriend along aimlessly.

Zhuo Zhi looked around. There were many pairs of girlfriends on the street, holding hands and even wearing matching outfits.

She and Li Qinyue weren’t strange, they didn’t attract any odd looks. It was just that Li Qinyue was so beautiful that people couldn’t help but glance at them.

Zhuo Zhi walked beside her, feeling proud, yet also feeling like a green leaf, a little ashamed.

At the edge of the road, the traffic light turned red, and people started gathering at both ends of the crosswalk, facing the flow of cars.

Across from Li Qinyue and Zhuo Zhi was a couple. The girl was holding an ice cream cone, probably cold, barely taking two bites and just rubbing her hands. The boy quickly took the ice cream from her, held her hand, and put it in his pocket.

Li Qinyue looked thoughtful. She pulled Zhuo Zhi’s hand and asked, “Why did you say you sweat easily when you’re hot, in the middle of winter?”

Zhuo Zhi was stunned, “I, I just have this kind of constitution.”

“A constitution that makes you sweat all the time?” Li Qinyue looked at her sideways.

“I sweat easily when I exercise or when I’m nervous…” Zhuo Zhi stopped.

Li Qinyue’s eyes curved into a smile like a fox’s, “You’re nervous holding my hand?”

“Oh,” Zhuo Zhi didn’t deny it, “I’ve never held hands with a friend while shopping.”

“A friend…” Li Qinyue frowned in dissatisfaction, “Then we made a mistake.”

Before Zhuo Zhi could react, Li Qinyue suddenly raised her hand and brought it to her lips, her lips gently brushing against Zhuo Zhi’s fingertips, a gentle kiss.

“Has a friend ever kissed your fingertips?” Li Qinyue asked softly, her lips curving into a smile.