The patter of drizzle pulled Jiang Wangyue back. She set the student ID at the edge of the desk and got up to close the window.
Slacking off was out of the question, coasting along waiting to die wasn’t her style. The original host had already offended the beast husbands to this degree, if she didn’t do something to change their fixed impression of her, and didn’t go learn how to use mental power, then come the next rampage she really might kick the bucket.
How did that line go again? This household was falling apart, and she was the one stuck patching it back together.
With the rain outside growing heavier, she slept well, waking refreshed and clear-headed, so clear-headed that even those weird, rainbow-colored clothes in the wardrobe looked pleasant to her.
As if. Her teeth practically ached.
She really couldn’t wear these out in public, it was bad enough to suspect the original host had bought up every ugly outfit in this world. She opened her terminal, meaning to check the original host’s account balance and consider buying some normal clothes.
By Federation law, beast husbands had to hand over 80 percent of their assets to their Female master after marriage. The original host had married five, Yun Miao alone, a Legion Major General, had piled up an outrageous fortune, never mind the other four. So even as profligate as the original host had been, that string of zeroes in the account still blinded Jiang Wangyue.
Thinking of her own pitiful three-digit bank balance in her past life, she felt a pang of bitterness.
She ordered a few passable outfits and quickly closed the shopping interface. It wasn’t her money, spending it always left her a little guilty.
Interstellar delivery was faster than she’d imagined. She’d placed the order and gone to wash up, and before she even came out of the bathroom, the terminal showed the package as received.
Wait. Who signed for it? The front door?
She hurriedly wiped her face and strode out of the bedroom. But the moment she stepped out, she ran smack into Ji Li. Fortunately he reacted fast, catching her around the waist with one arm and steadying himself at the same time.
Jiang Wangyue felt something tickling her face. She turned to look and saw a pair of quivering black ear-feathers right in front of her, one of the Shadow Falcon’s beast-form features. She couldn’t resist reaching up to stroke them gently.
The instant her cool fingertips brushed the ear-feathers, Ji Li unconsciously tightened the arm around her waist. An unfamiliar sensation, like a current running through him, suddenly had his heart racing.
Once Jiang Wangyue came to her senses, her face went hot, how was this any different from groping him? Ah, no, she and Ji Li were a lawful, properly registered married couple, so it didn’t really count as groping.
But Ji Li had already regained his composure. After making sure she was steady on her feet, he quickly let go and stepped back twice. Realizing she’d just been found distasteful, she ground her back teeth. All thanks to the stereotype the original host had left behind!
“Female master, your package.” Ji Li’s clear, crisp voice was flat as ever.
She looked down at the few parcels in his other hand and instantly understood. “Ah, thanks.”
She took the packages and went back into the bedroom, leaving Ji Li to stare at the door closing in front of him, his fingers curling on their own.
She was too thin. The thought flashed through his mind, before it could fully unfurl, his abruptly buzzing terminal cut it off. He glanced at the message, then turned and went downstairs.
The clothes Jiang Wangyue had bought were all basics, the simplest white tees and black pants, and with the high ponytail she’d thrown her hair into, she transformed in an instant from a villain skulking in the shadows into a fresh, sunny college girl. Looking at her finally pleasant reflection, she flashed a peace sign.
She came down to the living room with a light step and unexpectedly saw Yun Miao standing in the kitchen doorway. He looked to be in much better shape than before. Remembering how she’d been building a snowman in his mental sea the day before, she felt a little awkward. Before she could figure out how to apologize, Yun Miao had already walked past without so much as a glance.
Great. Ignored again.
She shrugged, unbothered, grabbed a tube of nutrient fluid, and headed outside sipping it. The post-rain air carried the raw smell of earth. She took a deep breath, then stretched luxuriously. The motion lifted the hem of her shirt, baring a stretch of pale, slender waist, almost dazzling in the sunlight.
Lan Xue, just then drawing his own curtains, happened to catch the sight. His gaze froze, his throat bobbing rapidly on its own, the hand gripping the curtain tightening.
Oblivious to the gaze behind her, Jiang Wangyue frowned and opened her terminal at a new-message alert.
【The bar’s got a new batch of goods in. Want to come play tonight?】
The contact was labeled Tinar, that aristocratic female who used to run wild with the original host. The two of them were a textbook case of birds of a feather.
Jiang Wangyue narrowed her eyes and moved her fingers to reply.
【Which bar?】
【Night Tryst.】
After confirming there was only one Night Tryst bar on the Central Star, she didn’t hesitate to file an anonymous report on it, then blocked Tinar. One good deed for the day, done.
Hearing footsteps behind her, she turned. It was Lan Xue. The man in off-white loungewear had a soft smile playing at his lips as he strolled over to stand before her.
Her gaze moved from his long hair, draped obediently over one shoulder, to that pair of fuzzy white ears with faint markings on top of his head, and her hands started to itch. She really wanted to touch them, to see how they differed from a Samoyed’s.
A glint flashed through Lan Xue’s eyes, and he leaned down slightly toward her. The white strands lifted on the breeze and brushed across her face, she instinctively squinted. Then she heard his smiling voice.
“Does the Female master want a feel?”
She blanked. A feel of what?
Wait!
Her eyes flew wide, her heartbeat suddenly racing. Is he actively inviting me to touch his ears?!
Faced with the fuzzy beast ears right within reach, Jiang Wangyue needed no thought at all and reached straight out. If not now, then when!
As expected, they were soft, the fine fluff pressing against her palm, rubbing at her skin with a hint of warmth. The cartilage beneath was springy, a little pressure could knead it into all sorts of shapes, and the moment she let go it sprang right back.
Lan Xue’s ears, hidden under the white hair, gradually reddened, but mercifully the ears weren’t as sensitive as his tail, or with the girl rubbing and pinching like this, he’d probably… Jiang Wangyue did have a good sense of limits, though, and lowered her hand once she’d had her fill.
Lan Xue might be a scheming big cat, but he was willing to let her touch his ears! Forget it, any cat that let her touch its ears was a good cat!
Utterly unaware that he’d just been issued a Good Cat card, Lan Xue let out a soft breath.
One more round and he really… wouldn’t have held out.