Chapter 168: Chapter 168: Watching All Night

Jiang Qingli hadn’t yet grasped the unusual meaning behind Ye Linyuan’s words when he suddenly looked away.

His long fingers tapped on his knee. Ye Linyuan gave a soft cough and spoke, as if casually, "I’m returning to Central City next month."

Her attention was immediately diverted upon hearing this.

She saw the car window behind Ye Linyuan and the faint lights outside, and asked, "Where are you now?"

Ye Linyuan glanced at the coordinates. "Fourth District, F073 District."

The young man leaned back, allowing her to get a better view of the night scenery behind him.

Ye Linyuan seemed to be on a street near the outskirts. Holographic advertisements floated in a staggered arrangement at low altitudes, their virtual idols waving to the street below. In the distance, a levitating skiff drifted past, trailing a banner with blessings for the upcoming Moon Festival.

The Empire’s resources were distributed in decreasing order from Central City outward. The Fourth District was close to the Central District and had many agricultural bases developed for the Upper City District. Its nightlife was nowhere near as bustling as Central City’s, but it had a charm of its own.

Jiang Qingli grabbed a nearby throw pillow and flopped onto it, whispering to him, "I’ve never been over there. It looks beautiful."

Ye Linyuan sat up straight. His gaze swept across her face, pausing for a few seconds before he said in a deep voice, "Come next time."

Thinking he was just saying it casually, Jiang Qingli didn’t take it seriously and replied with a smile, "Okay."

The rain outside seemed to have gotten heavier. The pitter-patter sound easily coaxed out a person’s primal sleepiness.

Jiang Qingli rubbed her eyes, propped the screen up a little higher, and rolled over to sit up. "Is it going to rain where you are tonight?"

The room was brightly lit. The girl leaned against the headboard, just like on all those nights they had spent together, her eyes filled with a warmth that could melt a person’s soul.

It felt as if something warm and soft had gently brushed against his heart, making it tender.

Ye Linyuan’s voice softened without him realizing it. "No."

"It’s raining pretty hard here."

"I know."

"How do you know?"

"..."

To such a simple question, Ye Linyuan fell suspiciously silent.

It wasn’t that he had lied; it was that he found it strange himself.

For the past few days, Ye Linyuan had been checking the weather in the First District, a habit he never had before leaving it.

He couldn’t even explain this change to himself.

Fortunately, Jiang Qingli didn’t press the issue. Instead, she picked up a book and leaned against the headboard to read.

She’d pretty much figured it out. Ye Linyuan hadn’t called her for anything important; he just didn’t want her going to someone else’s room on a Monday.

It was a good opportunity to get some reading done and cram the key points Yuan Shimo had marked for her.

Sure enough, Ye Linyuan didn’t say much else to her. He swiped open another screen that seemed to be a map, covered with dense red dots and routes.

Separated by a screen, they were each doing their own thing, yet it felt surprisingly harmonious.

Occasionally, when Jiang Qingli looked up, her gaze would inadvertently meet those serpentine, golden vertical pupils. His stare was so intense it felt tangible, sliding from her cheeks down to her collarbone and shoulders.

Even though his darkly handsome face showed no major expression, her skin grew warm under his gaze, as if she were being gently coiled around and devoured by a snake...

Outside the window, the night grew deeper.

Sleepiness gradually washed over her. Jiang Qingli’s head began to nod, and she fell asleep hugging the throw pillow against the headboard.

In her daze, she seemed to hear someone talking. A deliberately hushed voice sounded like it was giving a report, but it was cut off midway by the young man’s deep voice, and everything fell silent again.

Sleeping sitting up was, after all, not very comfortable.

Not long after regaining consciousness, Jiang Qingli struggled to open her eyes.

The light was a bit dazzling, and an unconscious sound escaped her throat.

"Did I wake you?"

The deliberately lowered voice spoke, and only then did Jiang Qingli realize the video call hadn’t ended.

Ye Linyuan sat on the other side of the video call, his posture relaxed, but his vertical pupils were still fixed on her.

’Why are we still on the call? I thought Ye Linyuan would have hung up by now.’

Jiang Qingli slid under the covers and reached out to end the call.

But she was too sleepy. Her finger tapped the screen several times without hitting the button. In the end, she could only pull her hand back and mumble, "You remember to hang up..."

With that said, her head flopped back onto the pillow, and she fell fast asleep again.

’Her sleep quality is as good as ever,’ Ye Linyuan thought, his gaze landing on her face.

The screen detected the low light and automatically dimmed its brightness, casting only a faint glow on the girl’s face.

Ye Linyuan’s expression softened unconsciously, but a moment later, his brows furrowed.

Jiang Qingli had just said she had never been here before.

But according to the information he’d investigated before entering the Jiang Family, Jiang Qingli had been to the Fourth District.

When Jiang Qingli was eight, the Jiang Family participated in a charity event.

Her parents took Jiang Qingli and Jiang Youchen on a road trip from the First District to an orphanage in one of the Twelve Cities. They sightseeed along the way, stayed for a week, and then returned, the whole trip taking about two months.

Therefore, it was impossible for Jiang Qingli to have never been to the Fourth District.

Of course, this wasn’t the only flaw in Jiang Qingli’s story. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Ye Linyuan had noticed it from their very first meeting.

Although Jiang Qingli’s disguise was excellent, Ye Linyuan had lived in the Underground City for so many years that he could easily see through most facades. He had long since discovered that Jiang Qingli had a strangely familiar yet unfamiliar attitude toward everything around her, even the world itself.

She always seemed a little afraid of him, yet she also possessed the kind of dependence a baby bird has for the first creature it sees.

It was actually quite bizarre.

But—

Looking at the girl’s soft profile and the unguarded expression she’d shown him just moments ago, the space between Ye Linyuan’s brows softened.

’Forget it.’

’She doesn’t want to kill me, after all.’

’A few little secrets are no big deal.’

’If worse comes to worst, I’ll just help her hide them.’

-

When Jiang Qingli woke up again, it was already morning.

Morning light slipped through a gap in the curtains, dazing and bright.

She sat up, a strap of her nightgown slipping off her shoulder.

Jiang Qingli shook her head and staggered toward the closet.

As she walked, she grabbed the hem of her nightgown, planning to pull it off and toss it in the laundry.

She had lifted her nightgown halfway up when she suddenly felt something was wrong. She turned her head and found herself face-to-face with the palm-sized screen.

On the other side of the screen, the young man was resting his chin on one hand, his golden vertical pupils staring at her leisurely.

Jiang Qingli’s eyes widened. Her already groggy mind instantly froze. She pointed at the screen and shouted, "You, you, you, you, you—you!"

Ye Linyuan raised an eyebrow, his voice deep. "Me?"

"What are you looking at?!" Jiang Qingli’s voice rose. "Pervert!"

"I’m a snake." Ye Linyuan’s gaze drifted downward, landing on her straight, well-proportioned legs. "And I didn’t lay a hand on you."

The implication was that she was the one who had lifted her own nightgown.

Jiang Qingli: "..."

’And he thinks he’s in the right!’

Jiang Qingli viciously grabbed the screen and cursed him before hanging up, "Perverted snake!"

After hanging up, Jiang Qingli quickly changed into casual clothes and went back to her own room to freshen up.

While brushing her teeth, she looked at the lingering blush on her own cheeks in the mirror and suddenly realized something.

’Did Ye Linyuan and I really stay on a video call all night?’

’He couldn’t have... watched me all night, right...?’

Her face still burning, Jiang Qingli finished freshening up. She heard a knock, shook the strange thoughts from her head, and went to open the door.

Outside, Baili Jing was leaning against the doorframe with one hand, looking at her with concern. "Sweetie, I heard you shout just now. Did something happen?"

"Ah, it’s nothing..."

Jiang Qingli quickly waved her hands in dismissal.

Baili Jing smiled and patted her head. "By the way, sweetie, are you busy tomorrow?"

"Hm?" Jiang Qingli looked up in confusion.

"Did you forget, sweetie?"

Baili Jing lowered his gaze and sighed with feigned sadness.

"You clearly promised me last time that you’d come visit me on set."