Long ago, Qiu Huai had strongly suspected that the various explosive rumors about him at the company were spread by Jing Nian.
But he had no proof.
Jing Nian just wanted to add a little fun to his otherwise mundane life. After all, where in real life could one find so much gossip?
The car slowly approached the residential complex. Jiang Jue thought it over and felt he still needed to clear his name.
No cheating! And definitely no stepmother!
Who on earth had corrupted such a perfectly good child?!
“A’Nian, actually…”
Before he could finish, a dark shadow suddenly darted in front of the car.
Fortunately, the car wasn’t going fast. Jiang Jue slammed on the brakes, and the seatbelt held tight. Aside from lurching forward slightly, Jing Nian wasn’t hurt at all.
The only unhappy one in the car was probably Little Rabbit.
He had just poked his head out of the scarf to get some fresh air when the whole rabbit went flying, smacking solidly against the windshield.
Splat.
He flattened into a rabbit pancake.
Under the streetlight, Jing Nian saw the large wolfdog that had just dashed past—no leash in sight.
Little Rabbit rubbed his reddened nose and threw a few furious punches toward the blurry, retreating silhouette of the dog behind the windshield.
Who’s so irresponsible, walking a dog without a leash?!
Could you even afford to pay if a rabbit life was lost?!
Then he turned and glared fiercely at Jing Nian, silently demanding:
Why didn’t you hold onto me?!
Jing Nian pouted, shrugged, and nonchalantly turned to look out the window.
My fault, huh?
Little Rabbit spoke with his fists. He gathered strength in his legs, leaped onto Jing Nian, and unleashed a flurry of rabbit punches.
Jing Nian had never lost a fight in his life, but ending in a draw with Little Rabbit every time wasn’t ideal either.
Jiang Jue couldn’t help but chuckle. He reached over and gently stroked Little Rabbit, saying softly, “Don’t be angry. It’s not A’Nian’s fault; my driving is just too poor.”
Oh?
Jing Nian blinked.
I think your driving skills should be just fine.
For Jiang Jue’s sake, Little Rabbit temporarily spared Jing Nian. He nudged Jiang Jue’s palm with his head, and as the man’s fingers gently rubbed, he soon melted shamelessly into a rabbit pancake.
Hmph, Nian Nian, look at him! Can’t you learn to be a little gentler?!
Jing Nian got annoyed seeing his shameless display, puffing out his cheeks and turning away.
Jiang Jue immediately sensed Jing Nian’s displeasure. He hurriedly placed Little Rabbit back into Jing Nian’s arms, then—his mind going blank—reached out and patted Jing Nian’s head too.
Jing Nian froze.
Little Rabbit froze too.
Little Rabbit hopped anxiously forward.
Hey, mister, it’s one thing for you to pet the rabbit, but how dare you take advantage of Nian Nian?!
Humans can pet rabbits, but humans can’t pet humans!
Nian Nian belongs to the ex-husband! Once the ex-husband returns, he can become the husband again!
You can be the top or the bottom, but you can’t be the third wheel!
The rabbit chattered silently for a long time, not daring to make a sound. He leaped onto Jing Nian’s head, waving his little paws frantically to wipe away the scent.
Frowning, Jing Nian plucked the rabbit off his head and looked at Jiang Jue, who acted as if nothing had happened.
Truly a master—his flirting skills were top-notch, even using the rabbit as part of his play.
Three people in the car, each with their own thoughts. In reality, Jiang Jue was already secretly regretting crossing the line just now.
Not only was it disrespectful to Jing Nian, but it was also torture for himself.
Whenever he encountered A’Nian, he just didn’t want to part again. He no longer wished to reach out through those layers upon layers of obstacles; he only wanted to pull the person into his arms, meld them into his very bones and blood, and never separate again.
“Your body temperature feels a bit low. Let me turn up the heater a little.” Jiang Jue found something to do to distract himself.
For some reason, A’Nian’s body temperature had always been lower than others since childhood. They had consulted many renowned doctors over the years, but none could find the root cause.
Jing Nian greeted the security guard at the entrance of the residential complex, and the car drove right in.
After unbuckling and getting out of the car, Jiang Jue handed him the large and small gift bags from the back seat, along with a carefully prepared dinner.
“I didn’t know what you liked, so I just bought a few things randomly. Have the dinner while it’s still warm when you get back, and rest early.”
This is called “random”?
Jing Nian stared at the scattered gifts, which added up to at least six figures, his face full of question marks as he hesitated whether to accept them or not.
…Well, it’s not like the guy is short on money. Might as well treat it as charity for a beggar.
Jing Nian took the gifts and, unusually, offered a word of concern, “Thank you. Be careful on your way back.”
In the eyes of a lover, even an ordinary person becomes a beauty; in Jiang Jue’s eyes, A’Nian was the epitome of sweetness.
With just one sentence from A’Nian, Jiang Jue was left dazed and disoriented. By the time he snapped back to reality, A’Nian had already scurried home with the large and small gift bags, taking quick little steps, tap-tap-tapping away.
Sigh… such a mercenary little thing.
It seems giving gifts was the right choice.
…
Back home.
The chatterbox rabbit, who had been holding back all the way, could finally speak.
He waved his fist, “Don’t let me catch that unleashed dog and its owner, or else this little rabbit will pound them into pancakes!”
Jing Nian casually placed the paper bags on the sofa.
He opened the dinner, and the aroma immediately filled the air. “With your build, you’d be the one getting flattened into a rabbit pancake.”
Jiang Jue’s cooking suited his taste perfectly. He eagerly shoveled two mouthfuls of food, squinting with delight at how delicious it was.
Moreover, the man, worried that he might not like washing chopsticks, had thoughtfully prepared disposable utensils for him—certainly not the kind that comes with takeout.
Good food heals everything. The shadow of being tricked by the puppy earlier that evening vanished instantly.
Meanwhile, the little rabbit went from cursing the dog to its owner, and from the owner to the pet shop that sold the dog. Finally, after getting thirsty and tired, he noticed that in the dinner packaging Jing Nian had opened, there was also a box of carefully selected timothy hay.
His eyes instantly lit up, “Nian Nian! There’s timothy hay!”
Jiang Jue hadn’t just prepared dinner; he had also freshly squeezed Jing Nian’s favorite hot orange juice—not too much, just enough to satisfy a craving.
Jing Nian took a few sips. “So, a few stalks of hay are enough to win you over? What about all those snacks I’ve fed you?”
“That’s different,” the little rabbit said, munching on the hay as he went to wreak havoc on the luxury packaging bags on the sofa. “Nian Nian is family to this little rabbit. It’s only right that you’re good to me.”
Outsiders have no obligation to be good to the little rabbit, which made Jiang Jue stand out even more!
Rich, handsome, gentle—there was practically nothing to criticize, except he seemed a bit old.
Jiang Jue had bought Jing Nian several winter coats and sweaters. Knowing that Jing Nian disliked dressing too formally, he had chosen styles that were casual and loose-fitting. There was also a scarf worth over a hundred thousand.
The little rabbit glanced at the expensive logos and merely sighed in admiration before burying his head back into the bags, rummaging through.
After finishing his meal and wiping his mouth, Jing Nian simply went over and dumped everything from the packaging bags onto the floor.
Just as Little Rabbit had expected, there was another small box wrapped in multiple layers at the very bottom—a tiny outfit bought just for him.
A bright red rabbit costume.
With the New Year approaching, wearing this would be festive and cheerful.
Little Rabbit was so overjoyed that he hopped twice in excitement. But his happiness was short-lived, as Jing Nian snatched the outfit right out of his hands.
“Tsk, such a lavish gift, and it’s for a silly rabbit,” Jing Nian muttered.
He held up his phone, took a photo, and searched online. “It’s even a custom-made piece. Wonder if I could sell it on the secondhand market.”
“Bad Nian Nian! Don’t even think about it! Why don’t you sell your own clothes instead?”
Jing Nian had received plenty of new clothes, while Little Rabbit had only this one and even that was under threat of being sold off.
Little Rabbit lunged forward, snatched the outfit back, and swiftly slipped it on. Standing in front of the mirror, he admired himself. “Only such a beautiful outfit is worthy of Little Rabbit’s status!”
“Yeah, yeah, Lord Rabbit. Now hurry up and wash yesterday’s dirty clothes.”
“Have you no conscience! Making a rabbit do laundry!”
“Nian Nian has hands and feet—can’t you handle such a small household chore yourself?”
Little Rabbit hopped onto the sofa. Suddenly, Jing Nian spread his ten fingers wide and waved them back and forth in front of him.
Those hands were slender and fair, with skin so delicate it seemed almost translucent. Despite wielding soul-binding chains daily to capture ghosts, not a single callus marred them. “I’m a young master, a rich family’s young master! I never do housework!”
Little Rabbit scoffed. “A young master whose family fell from grace, huh?”
Jing Nian poked him with a finger, sending him tumbling over. He lifted his head, gazing at the empty rental apartment, and let out a deep sigh.
Gu Yehan’s driving force for working so hard in the mortal realm was to provide for Jing Nian. But in the man’s understanding, “providing” was quite different from what ordinary people meant.
Whether it was food, drinks, or entertainment, everything had to be the best in the world. Any novel or rare item—sometimes even before the imperial palace had gotten their hands on it—Gu Yehan would already have procured it for Jing Nian.
At the height of Gu Yehan’s indulgence, Jing Nian didn’t have to lift a finger for meals, dressing, or washing. Even walking required being carried by his father.
To this day, he couldn’t understand why, after entrusting him to Qiu Huai, Gu Yehan hadn’t left a single penny behind, heartlessly condemning his precious child to a life of poverty.
Now, he had no one to back him up in fights anymore. Fortunately, he had learned to rely on his own fists, and his habit of extravagant spending had been forcibly corrected.
During his poorest days, he survived on underworld employee meals.
That crab was so not fresh!
Jing Nian went back to his room to change into pajamas. When he came out, he found that Little Rabbit was no longer basking in the joy of his new outfit. Instead, he had reverted to his rabbit instincts, wreaking havoc on the newly bought tissue box, scattering tissues all over the living room.
“…”
“Little Rabbit—!”
“Tissues are expensive, you know—!”