Cen Zhi Ning glanced at Jin Yi Han without changing her expression and probed tentatively,
“You two know each other?”
Jin Yi Han’s expression stiffened slightly. Cen Zhi Ning’s tone wasn’t her usual clingy, coquettish one—it even carried a trace of scrutiny.
He suppressed his anger.
“I don’t. What’s wrong?”
“Then why were you staring at her the whole time? Don’t tell me you don’t love me anymore?”
For a split second, his composure cracked.
“How could that be?”
“I won’t allow you to stare at other women like that. It makes me feel insecure.”
Jin Yi Han’s eyes darkened like ink. He lowered his head to gaze at her and let out a soft chuckle, pulling her into his arms.
“Wife, if I ever look at another girl again, I’ll gouge my own eyes out.”
【Host, host! It dropped another five percent. You’re amazing! The possessiveness level is at 30% now.】
Ah, that works too?
【When you feel the other person’s love and your sense of security increases, your possessiveness decreases.】
Heh.
She knew it. Jin Yi Han loved it most when she got jealous.
Soon, Bai Xiaorou brought over ice and a clean towel.
Jin Yi Han took them and gently pressed the ice against her reddened hand.
He looked up at her, eyes filled with anxiety and almost self-reproachful tenderness.
“Bear with it. It’ll stop hurting soon.”
As he iced the back of her hand, he subconsciously blew on it softly.
Cen Zhi Ning didn’t have much of an appetite. After eating a little, she left the restaurant with Jin Yi Han.
After the snowfall, the streets were blanketed in white. Their breath turned into mist the moment they exhaled.
Biting on the straw of her milk tea, Cen Zhi Ning walked shoulder to shoulder with him toward their apartment.
Snow crunched softly underfoot. She was enjoying the sound when one of her shoes stepped into a muddy puddle. Seeing her snow boots stained with grime, her face fell.
“Jin Yi Han, today is really unlucky!”
After being with her for so long, Jin Yi Han already understood her little temper. He coaxed her patiently.
“Shall we go to the mall and buy a new pair?”
“No, I want this pair.”
“But it’s dirty.”
She was already in a bad mood and deliberately made things difficult for him.
“So what if it’s dirty? You’re just going to throw it away? That fickle? Can’t you just wipe it clean for me?”
She had only been teasing him unreasonably, but to her surprise, his tall figure crouched down in front of her, carefully wiping her shoe with a tissue.
His movements were gentle. The sharpness in his lowered eyes faded, replaced with a barely noticeable indulgence.
Cen Zhi Ning widened her eyes. He wiped carefully, even blowing lightly over the surface of the shoe as if he could blow away the mud.
She couldn’t hold back anymore.
“Alright, you won’t be able to clean it completely.”
Only then did he stand up and extend his hand to her, his tone full of indulgence and helplessness.
“Happy now?”
Her expression turned slightly awkward. So he had known all along that she was in a bad mood.
She slipped her hand into his palm.
“It’s okay.”
Her cheeks were rosy, tiny snow crystals clinging to her lashes. The atmosphere was just right.
Jin Yi Han intertwined their fingers, his gaze falling on her slightly parted lips, his eyes gradually deepening.
He slowly leaned down, testing the waters, wanting to taste the warmth and sweetness so close at hand.
People in love were probably all like this—wanting to be close anytime, anywhere.
But just one second before his lips touched hers, Cen Zhi Ning’s eyes curved slyly. She lifted her pale hand and blocked his lips.
“Jin Yi Han, am I prettier, or was that girl prettier?”
He caught her fingers and rubbed them in his palm, frowning slightly as he glanced around in confusion.
“What girl?”
“…”
Pointless question.
Jin Yi Han lowered his gaze to her and tried to kiss her again when his phone rang.
Cen Zhi Ning snuck a glance at the caller ID: “Mu Chenchuan.”
【Host, run! Mu Chenchuan and Jiang Jingmian are upstairs. Don’t let them see you!】
Her expression froze.
Jiang Jingmian?
Wasn’t he overseas working as an idol? Why was he back?
Jiang Jingmian also came from an extremely privileged family. His family was involved in heavy industry, military manufacturing, logistics, and even had some gray-background dealings.
Because he lacked parental love, depression had plagued him. In the original novel, he was drawn to Bai Xiaorou’s perseverance. Over time, he fell in love with her, frequently threatening suicide to force the kind-hearted heroine to stay. In the end, he even wanted to die together with Bai Xiaorou.
He was the second male lead Cen Zhi Ning had successfully攻略—lowering his depression index into a safe range.
After that, she panicked and lied that she had a terminal illness and was about to die. She told him not to look for her again, saying she didn’t want him to see her miserable in the late stages of illness.
Before her fake death, she tearfully told him to live well for her, to see the beauty of the world on her behalf.
He believed her, even erected a tombstone for her, and began living properly from then on.
Tsk.
If he recognized her now, not only would her攻略 mission collapse, who knew what kind of terrifying consequences would follow?
Wind at her heels, she hurried toward the dessert shop across the street.
As she walked, she told Jin Yi Han,
“Take the call first. I’ll go buy a slice of cake.”
Jin Yi Han frowned. He hung up the call, about to chase after her, when Mu Chenchuan called again persistently.
The restaurant manager had probably told Mu Chenchuan that he had brought his girlfriend to eat.
Only after he saw Cen Zhi Ning’s figure step into the dessert shop across the street did he swipe to answer, raising a lazy brow.
“You’d better have a damn good reason.”
Mu Chenchuan sounded excited.
“Bro, you brought your girlfriend to eat? Let your brothers see what your little rose looks like!”
Cen Zhi Ning’s game username was “A Flower from the Next Village.”
Jin Yi Han had always called her Little Rose.
For a long time, Jin Yi Han had been addicted to the game. It was only when he planned to meet Little Rose offline that they realized the mighty Young Master Jin had fallen into an online romance—completely captivated by some online enchantress and even preparing to meet in real life.
After all, Jin Yi Han was the top elite of the academy. Countless girls flocked to him every day, yet he was arrogant, never letting women near him. At twenty, he was still a virgin—yet he had fallen for an online relationship.
Jin Yi Han leaned against the wall with his hands in his pockets and snorted coldly.
“Get lost. No meeting.”
Mu Chenchuan smacked his lips.
“Turn around and look at the fourth floor of the restaurant.”
Jin Yi Han looked up and indeed saw Mu Chenchuan and Jiang Jingmian.
Mu Chenchuan leaned rebelliously against the railing, one hand resting on the cold stone banister. He wore an ivory silk shirt, a slender cigarette between the fingers of his other hand. Through the swirling smoke, he waved at him with a roguish grin.
Jiang Jingmian, with his gray-white fluffy curls and delicate features paired with pale skin, lazily held a cup of coffee. A faint gloom lingered between his brows as he pointed at Mu Chenchuan in front of him, as if trying to distance himself.
The three of them had been close since childhood.
With a playful smile at the corner of his lips, Mu Chenchuan said,
“A-Mian just got back to the country these past two days. We’ve asked you out so many times and you wouldn’t come. Now that we finally ran into you, come up and have some fun.”
“I said I’m accompanying my wife. No time.”
“Bring sister-in-law up too!”
Jin Yi Han tilted his head slightly, lifting his eyelids lazily.
“I’ll ask her first. She’s thin-skinned.”
“Yo, since when does Brother Han respect someone’s opinion so much?”
Before Mu Chenchuan could finish, Jin Yi Han hung up with a sharp snap.