The morning schedule was packed tight; while teaching the students, she also managed to get some physical exercise in herself.
It wasn’t until the lunch hour that Yu Qingling finally found a moment to rest.
She sat alone by the edge of the empty classroom with her lunch box. Compared to the minced pork noodles she had eaten that morning, the work meal tasted like chewing wax. She glanced at her phone from time to time, slowly finishing her meal.
With an hour left before the afternoon shift began, Yu Qingling felt bored. After hesitating for a good while, she took the initiative to start a video call with Bei Qiuqiu.
The call was picked up in a second. In the frame, the shadows of trees were dappled, and the girl’s smile was brighter than the sunlight, holding a half-eaten popsicle in her hand.
While licking the melted ice cream from the corner of her lips, she asked, “Sister, have you eaten?”
Yu Qingling glanced at the empty food container and spoke honestly. “I ate. It wasn’t as good as the noodles you made.”
Bei Qiuqiu immediately grinned like a little fox. Her pleasant, melodic voice came through the phone, full of temptation. “How about Sister stays with me again tonight? I’ll make you breakfast again tomorrow morning~”
This condition was very enticing. Yu Qingling hesitated for a moment and asked, “Are you still afraid to sleep alone?”
Bei Qiuqiu curled the corners of her mouth downward and nodded pitifully.
Yu Qingling’s hesitation vanished instantly, and she agreed.
After hanging up the video, Xiao Li led a strange young woman into the classroom. The two were walking arm-in-arm, chatting and laughing, appearing very close.
Xiao Li held out a trendy milk tea with both hands. “Coach Yu, this is my best friend, Jiang Xiaoyang. Today is her first day working at the company; she’ll be our new receptionist. Please look after her, Coach Yu!”
Yu Qingling shifted her gaze away from their linked arms and nodded.
Jiang Xiaoyang said, “Coach Yu, this is the milk tea I bought for my colleagues. I didn’t know what flavor you liked, so I bought the most popular one from the shop. Give it a try.”
Yu Qingling took it and offered a word of thanks.
She stared slightly blankly at the backs of the two as they walked away.
The noble ladies of the other world were often like this too, gathering in groups of two or three to talk and laugh.
As for her, she had always been alone, out of place among those girls.
Yu Qingling suddenly felt an impulse to have a “bestie.”
Then, the first image that flashed in her mind was the sight of Bei Qiuqiu just now, sticking out a small tip of her red tongue to lick the milky white ice cream from her lips.
In the afternoon, there was only one two-hour class. After seeing off the students once class ended, Yu Qingling walked out of the classroom, planning to go see her cherished “divine weapons.” Her gaze accidentally swept past the front desk, where she saw two figures huddled together from a distance.
The steps she intended to take toward the equipment room paused. Yu Qingling walked forward a few paces and saw clearly that Xiao Li and her best friend were sharing a single piece of pastry. They had only one small spoon, taking turn after turn.
Yu Qingling was shocked. Eating like this, wouldn’t they accidentally consume each other’s saliva?!
She stood frozen on the spot, forgetting to leave for a moment.
Xiao Li and Jiang Xiaoyang, who were happily sharing a piece of mousse cake, only then noticed Yu Qingling standing nearby.
Seeing her staring fixedly at the empty cake box, Xiao Li felt a pang of guilt. Would Coach Yu scold them for snacking during work hours?
She quickly tried to curry favor. “Coach Yu, you want to eat this too, right? I’ll buy one for you!”
However, the point Yu Qingling was focused on was different: “You two… why are you eating the same piece of pastry?”
Jiang Xiaoyang hurriedly scrambled to put the empty box into the trash can. “We’re best friends! Coach Yu, I’ll treat you to afternoon tea tomorrow!”
The implication was that she hoped Yu Qingling would overlook their slacking off for the sake of the snacks and tea.
Yet, Yu Qingling shook her head vigorously and turned to leave.
So, sharing a single piece of pastry was considered a natural thing between best friends? She found it hard to accept for a moment!
In the other world, when noble ladies gathered, everyone had their own individual portion of snacks!
The people of this world were too open-minded—not only was their clothing revealing, but their best friends even shared utensils!
Forget it, forget it. She would rather be “best friends” with the specialized training swords and sabers in the equipment room.
At the front desk, Xiao Li and her friend looked at each other in confusion.
Jiang Xiaoyang asked, “Babe, I won’t get fired on my first day of work, will I?”
Xiao Li gave a dismissive wave. “No, no. Coach Yu looks icy, but she’s actually a very good person. Besides, she hates meddling in other people’s business the most. Our lives are safe.”
“Then why did she shake her head just now?”
“Uh, that… I’m not sure either.”
A figure entered the martial arts hall and walked toward the front desk.
Xiao Li quickly poked her friend with her finger, signaling that someone was coming and ending the conversation.
Today, Bei Qiuqiu was wearing an academy-style cream-white dress. Her slightly wavy, long hair was parted and loosely tied behind her ears on both sides. She looked youthful and charming, and her voice was very sweet. “Hello, miss. I’m looking for Yu Qingling. Does she have a class right now?”
Xiao Li spoke first. “Coach Yu’s classes for this afternoon have already ended. And you are…?”
“I’m her friend. Where can I find her?”
A polite little beauty makes people lower their subconscious defenses more easily. Xiao Li left her friend behind and took the lead. “I’ll take you to her. Coach Yu should be in the equipment room right now.”
Bei Qiuqiu thanked her quickly and followed Xiao Li’s pace.
Xiao Li led her toward the very back of the first floor. “For the past two days, Coach Yu has particularly liked staying in the equipment room to scrub the gear used during training. I don’t know why.”
As they spoke, they arrived outside the equipment room. Xiao Li pushed the door open, saw that Yu Qingling was indeed there, and said, “Coach Yu, someone is looking for you. It’s a very pretty younger sister.”
Yu Qingling turned her head and saw a head peeking out from behind Xiao Li, smiling brightly at her.
Once the person was delivered, Xiao Li left.
Bei Qiuqiu walked in. “Good afternoon.”
Yu Qingling seemed to be lost in thought; it took two seconds before she returned the greeting and continued with her work.
Bei Qiuqiu crouched down and, after watching for a while, said, “Sister, let me help you scrub.”
Yu Qingling nodded and handed her a rag, saying seriously, “Be careful, don’t let them get bumped or scratched.”
Bei Qiuqiu suddenly thought of Xiao Li’s words. “Sister, the girl at the front desk said you’ve particularly liked staying here to scrub the equipment these past two days. Why? This isn’t your job.”
“Because these are all very precious…” She caught herself and didn’t say the words “divine weapons.”
Bei Qiuqiu touched the training saber in her hand with confusion. It was just a very ordinary, common prop sword—she had often come into contact with them on film sets before. She truly couldn’t understand what was “precious” about it.
Suppressing the doubt in her heart, Bei Qiuqiu followed Yu Qingling’s example, meticulously cleaning the hilt and blade before wiping them dry.
By the time the two had cleaned all the equipment, it was already late.
Yu Qingling suggested, “Shall we order takeout?”
Bei Qiuqiu nodded. As long as she could be with the person she liked, she could eat anything.
Furthermore, she had come here with a purpose. For the private lesson later this evening, she wanted to keep an eye on her rival and prevent him from using his proximity to “gain the moon first.”
Yu Qingling took out her phone, found the delivery app, and ordered from the same restaurant they had eaten at once before in the apartment.
In the lounge area behind the first floor of the martial arts hall, there was a dedicated space for employees and students to eat. After the food was ordered, Yu Qingling led her to the lounge.
A few people were scattered on the sofa chairs in the lounge, eating their work meals. The takeout arrived quickly.
Just as the two finished their dinner, Xiao Qingtian tracked them down.
Yu Qingling had no good feelings toward this “bound” male lead. She checked the time; there was still half an hour before the private lesson began. She spoke coolly, “It’s not time for class yet.”
Xiao Qingtian directly dropped to one knee. “Qingling, thank you for saving me last night. If it weren’t for you, I might not have seen this morning’s sun.”
Yu Qingling couldn’t see what he was playing at, but as soon as Bei Qiuqiu saw him drop to one knee, she immediately felt unwell.
One knee!
What does this rival want to do!!!
Xiao Qingtian spoke with deep affection, “Qingling, I will never forget the debt of saving my life. I…”
Bei Qiuqiu interrupted him. “Isn’t the saying ‘to work like an ox or a horse’ to repay it! That’s fine, remember your words today!”
Xiao Qingtian choked. What does “work like an ox or a horse” mean?!
He wanted to tactfully express that he could “offer his hand in marriage” as repayment!
“No, that’s not what I meant. Qingling, listen to me…”
His words were interrupted again. “Or do you want to give money? That’s also an option. How much do you plan to give? In other words, how much is your life worth in your eyes?”
Xiao Qingtian choked once more.
When Bei Qiuqiu put it that way, Yu Qingling thought it sounded like a great idea. “I accept the money.”
Xiao Qingtian: “???”
This was not the outcome he wanted!