The bedroom was very quiet, with the lights already turned off. Zhu Qingjia had originally intended to go inside and take a look.
However, remembering Aunt Zhang’s words that the young mistress had already gone to sleep, she returned to her own bedroom instead.
After finishing her shower, she sat at her desk, planning to flip through a few pages of her textbook before sleeping, when the door lock suddenly clicked open.
She had only turned on a single desk lamp. The light spilled across the tabletop, illuminating her face and collarbones while leaving her back in the shadows.
As soon as the eldest young mistress pushed the door open, she saw Zhu Qingjia sitting at the desk. Only the middle two buttons of her pajamas were fastened at her chest, the rest hung open, with cool droplets of water still clinging to her collarbones and arms.
She looked rather indecent.
Zhu Qingjia looked up, a subtle flicker of joy brushing past her eyes. She brushed her still damp hair behind her back, her moving arms causing her chest to rise and fall, making those soft contours vividly apparent.
“Not coming in?” Zhu Qingjia pushed her textbook forward, leaning back against her chair to leave an open space between herself and the desk.
She had sensed something was off the moment she came back. Gu Ruoling’s schedule wasn’t particularly regular, and she sometimes wouldn’t sleep until midnight. Since it wasn’t even ten o’clock when Zhu Qingjia returned, sleeping this early was definitely unusual.
Gu Ruoling walked over at a leisurely pace. “Stand up and let me sit.”
Zhu Qingjia let out a soft laugh, wrinkling her nose as she said softly, “I’ve been in class all day, I’m exhausted.”
Before the young mistress could utter a word, her arm was caught, and her waist was gripped immediately after. Within a couple of moves, she tumbled right into Zhu Qingjia’s lap.
Once again, she caught that fresh, sweet scent of peaches.
Wrapping her right arm around her shoulder, Zhu Qingjia buried her head in the crook of the girl’s neck, murmuring, “You went to celebrate Xiao Tong’s birthday, why didn’t you tell me?”
Her breath tickled her neck so much that Gu Ruoling couldn’t help but shrug her shoulder back. “Why should I tell you? You don’t tell me everything either.”
They were certainly physically close, yet psychologically, they still held onto their own reservations.
“Which thing?” Zhu Qingjia released her shoulder and wrapped both arms around her, pulling her tightly against her chest. While they had only been sitting together just now, now her entire back was pressed against her, touching the softest part of her body.
The young mistress became so shy she didn’t even know where to put her hands. Attempting to prop herself up to stand, her hand accidentally brushed against Zhu Qingjia’s thigh. She instantly snapped her hand back. “Let go of me.”
“Just like that?” Zhu Qingjia obediently let go of her hands, but her two long legs blocked the space to the left and right, leaving absolutely no room to escape.
Just as the young mistress tried to step away, the leg she was using for support was bumped. Losing her balance, she was about to fall straight onto the floor.
Fortunately, a pair of hands caught her around the waist and lifted her up. In the next moment, she found herself sitting squarely on Zhu Qingjia’s lap.
“There really was one thing I didn’t tell you, I apologize.” Gu Ruoling gently lowered her raised hand.
“I told someone else that you are my girlfriend. Do you mind?”
With the skin of their thighs pressing together, Gu Ruoling felt cool and very comfortable to hold.
Their relationship had never been clearly defined. To call them wives, they lacked true emotional depth, to call them partners, they hadn’t engaged in any substantive sexual relationship.
The emergence of the word girlfriend left Gu Ruoling deeply satisfied.
“I don’t mind. So, what does a girlfriend need to do?”
Hearing the young mistress’s question, Zhu Qingjia gave it some serious thought. “I will take you to watch movies, stroll in parks, visit exhibitions, and eat delicious food. I also want to take you along to interesting seminars and activities at my university.”
Gu Ruoling didn’t speak, quietly listening while leaning against her shoulder.
“Do you think these things sound boring?” Zhu Qingjia asked. After all, the young mistress had been different from ordinary mortals since birth, the world she had seen was surely far more spectacular.
“I’m looking forward to it,” Gu Ruoling imagined it in her mind. “I’ve barely experienced any of the things you just mentioned. Besides, I was asking what I need to do as your girlfriend just now, I wasn’t asking about you.”
She looked incredibly charming when she threw tantrums, and Zhu Qingjia found it adorable every single time, wishing she could just swallow her whole.
“Considering you’re a novice starting out, I’ll give you the most important task.” Zhu Qingjia massaged her waist, but Gu Ruoling quickly pinned her hand down. “You’re misbehaving.”
“You’re misbehaving too, I learned it from you.”
“Nonsense, I was just curious that day.”
“Oh? You even put your hands on me. I have what you have, why didn’t you just touch yourself?”
“Don’t change the subject, you haven’t finished what you were saying earlier.” Unable to beat her in an argument, Gu Ruoling reached out to cover her mouth, only for Zhu Qingjia to gently press a kiss into her palm.
Before she could catch her breath, she heard Zhu Qingjia say, “Your task is to like me.”
Not curiosity, not desire, but pure affection.
Zhu Qingjia was confident that she could accompany her to the end of her life, while simultaneously giving her a beautiful love story.
Gu Ruoling’s life had always lacked companionship and affection, she had missed out on the fresh experiences that her peers enjoyed.
“Then as your girlfriend, can we hold hands?” the young mistress began to question.
“Yes,” Zhu Qingjia nodded.
“Can we hug in front of other people?”
“Yes,” Zhu Qingjia continued to nod.
“Then… can we kiss?”
“Yes! ” Zhu Qingjia slammed on the brakes but failed to stop in time.
The young mistress threw her arms around her neck, intending to kiss her. Since she had already received permission, exercising a bit of her rights as a girlfriend shouldn’t be an issue.
However, Zhu Qingjia leaned her torso backward, even pulling an arm free to cover the girl’s mouth.
“What are you doing!” The young mistress slapped her hand away, having finally summoned the courage to be bold for once.
“Are you sure you want to kiss in this kind of environment?” Zhu Qingjia glanced around the dimly lit room where they couldn’t even see each other’s faces clearly.
“What’s wrong with this place?” The young mistress cared only about satisfying her curiosity.
“A first kiss is very important. I don’t want it to start in such a careless manner.” Zhu Qingjia leaned closer until her nose brushed against the other’s. It felt as though moving a mere half-inch forward would allow her to touch those pink, moist lips.
Yet she didn’t. She merely nudged her cheek with her nose. “Your body temperature is rising, are you hot?”
The intimate touch felt like a kitten licking its fur.
“It’s late, I’m going back to sleep.” The young mistress jumped down from her lap, opened the door, and left.
As Zhu Qingjia smoothed out her pajama pants that had been wrinkled from being sat on, the door cracked open again. A small head popped through. “I’m only leaving the door unlocked for ten minutes.”
Gu Ruoling truly left the door unlocked for only ten minutes. When Zhu Qingjia walked over, the phone on the bed was displaying a ten seconds countdown. She managed to slip under the covers within the final few seconds.
The young mistress was wearing a camisole nightgown tonight. Lying under the blanket, she exposed only her shoulders, collarbones, and two thin straps. At first glance, it looked as though she wasn’t wearing anything at all.
Zhu Qingjia yanked the blanket upward, covering the lower half of the young mistress’s face.
Gu Ruoling ducked her head completely beneath the blanket, then quietly crept closer to Zhu Qingjia.
A muffled groan echoed in the darkness, and the culprit was instantly caught. “Where are you touching?”
Her chest was suddenly pinched, and Gu Ruoling barely had time to process that she had just been taken advantage of.
“I didn’t do it on purpose, but you did!” The young mistress began kicking her with her legs.
Zhu Qingjia didn’t let her have her way, squeezing her legs tight to prevent her from moving any further.
“What did we say this morning? It has to be an equivalent exchange.” Zhu Qingjia wrapped her arms around her waist, pulling her flush against her chest as she whispered, “In the future, think twice before taking advantage of me, because I will always pay you back.”
The young mistress fell silent, suddenly realizing just how close she was to her. The place her fingertips had brushed earlier was as soft as water, carrying a faint citrusy scent like fresh grass, yet laced with a crisp coolness.
Keeping her hands obediently tucked against her chest, warmed by the fervent body heat and enveloped by a reassuring scent, she fell asleep in no time.
Hearing the long, steady breathing in her arms, Zhu Qingjia opened her eyes in the dark. She let out a long sigh. In the first twenty years of her life, she had never given a thought to physical desires. Yet after sharing a bed with her for just a few short days, she had taken several showers during the night. Fearing she would notice, she had returned to her own room every single time.
She had originally thought she would sleep alone tonight, which would have spared her from these chaotic thoughts.
What was the point of lying together like this now?
When Gu Ruoling opened her eyes the next morning, Zhu Qingjia had already changed her clothes and was sitting by the edge of the bed replying to messages on her phone.
Hearing the movement, she turned around. “You’re awake?”
“Mhm.” Gu Ruoling rubbed her eyes. As she got out of bed, she caught the citrus scent lingering on her. “You took another shower?”
“It was a bit hot.” Zhu Qingjia’s typing speed quickened.
The air conditioning in the room wasn’t set too high, but it certainly wasn’t warm enough to make someone sweat.
Without overthinking, Gu Ruoling asked, “Who are you chatting with? You’re typing so much.”
“My roommates. They’re discussing what gift to get and picking out a cake first.” Zhu Qingjia turned her phone to show her the chat history. They were indeed discussing the matter, keeping it a secret from Xiao Tong to give her a surprise.
“Then I should prepare a gift too, since she invited me as well.”
The young mistress’s approach to gifting had always been to buy what was expensive rather than what was merely fitting. When Xiao Tong received the gift later that day, she was deeply startled. The orange box and the brand’s iconic logo gave her such a fright that she hardly dared to accept it.
Yet the giver added very seriously, “This color matches the outfit you wore last time perfectly. You must try it on.”
It was a handcrafted Hermès leather belt, meticulously designed in both color and style. Xiao Tong fell in love with it at first glance, but hesitated to accept it due to the exorbitant price.
Seeing this, Zhu Qingjia explained, “This is her sincere gift, she spent a long time picking it out. Go ahead and take it.”
After the gift was presented, Yinzi suddenly spoke up, “You two came together? Did you go out somewhere?”
Inside the private restaurant booth, Gu Ruoling sat quietly, watching Zhu Qingjia rinse the teacups with hot water.
“Didn’t I say last time that I would bring my girlfriend to meet you all? Here she is.” Zhu Qingjia placed the poured hot tea in front of Gu Ruoling, while the other three scrambled to have her pour tea for them as well.
“I knew it! Nothing ever escapes my sharp eyes.” Yinzi accepted the hot tea, looking at them with a mischievous grin as her gaze darted between them. “Who confessed first?”
Jingjing was equally curious, propping her chin on her hand as she leaned closer to Yinzi, smiling non-stop. “Who confessed first?”
Xiao Tong waved her hand grandly, acting a bit impatient. “Don’t say anything yet! I’m the birthday girl, let me guess first.”
Gu Ruoling looked at Zhu Qingjia, whose expression hadn’t changed much, though the slight upward curve of her lips betrayed her mood.
Regarding a confession, one hadn’t actually occurred. They seemed to have skipped that step entirely, establishing their intimate relationship in a more mature and direct manner.
It was she who had dropped the hints first before Zhu Qingjia sent the flowers.
If they truly had to analyze who did what, they would end up with nothing concrete.
“Jiajia.” Xiao Tong called out to her. Zhu Qingjia’s smile deepened. Following that, Xiao Tong looked toward Gu Ruoling. “Ruoling-meimei.”
Before Gu Ruoling could even look up, Xiao Tong let out a dramatic gasp, exaggerating, “Oh dear, what should I do? I forgot Jiajia won’t let us address you so intimately. I’ll just do what Yinzi does and call you Xiao Gu-meimei instead.”
“Your acting is terrible, so exaggerated.” Zhu Qingjia picked up the birthday hat from the cake and laughingly placed it on her head.
Gu Ruoling watched them laugh and joke around. She actually didn’t allow her roommates to call her by her given name.
“So! I bet ten cans of cola that Jiajia confessed first.” Xiao Tong crossed her arms, full of confidence.
“Is that right? Is that right?” They began to clamor.
Zhu Qingjia picked up her phone, opened a food delivery app, and glanced at them. “Do you want Pepsi or Coca-Cola?”
The room fell silent for two seconds before erupting into chaotic noise.
Gu Ruoling was completely startled; she had never known that three people could generate such a complex array of sounds.
Laughter, snorts, and other unrecognizable vocalizations filled the air.
Yet what felt even more distinct was the inexplicable pounding within her chest. Why was her heart beating so incredibly fast?