Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Cheng Gui didnât bring his servant girls and imperial bodyguards. That was quite unusual. He brought Ming Shu to walk along the river banks.
There were many people releasing river lanterns along the banks. The river lanterns floated on the water like stars in the sky. The entire river was lit up and seemed vibrant.
Ming Shu looked at the surface of the river. Her thoughts seemed far away.
Little Beastie popped its head out from Ming Shuâs sleeve. It tilted its head and reached out with its paws to pat Ming Shu.
âWatch out.â
A bunch of little kids ran over happily. Cheng Gui pulled Ming Shu closer to him to prevent her from being jostled.
âWhat are you thinking about?â
Ming Shu eyes spun and the mysterious emotion in them disappeared. She stuffed Little Beastie back in her sleeve.
âWhere are you taking me?â Ming Shu didnât want to walk. The time it took to replenish energy was greater than the time it took to consume energy.
âDidnât I say it already?â Cheng Gui said. âWalk with me. Thatâs all.â
âWhat is so nice about walking?â It was all the same sights. She could just find a place to eat.
âDonât you think that this beautiful scenery makes it very suitable for a date?â
Ming Shu shook her head. âNope.â
To her, beautiful scenery involved good food.
Of course, Cheng Gui didnât understand this.
At this moment, he just wanted to strangle this crazy person who didnât understand romance at all. Look at the other ladies. They were all so shy.
Can I change targets?
Cheng Gui suddenly turned. They were standing on a bridge. The river flowed below them and the river lanterns floated into the distance.
The manâs face was really handsome. The lights congregated in his dark eyes and formed a very beautiful image. His figure inverted in this scenery and it seemed really dreamy.
âMiss Liu, I donât like to beat around the bush. I will just say it directly.â Cheng Gui tried to make himself appear normal. âI like you, Miss Liu. I want to be with you.â
âWhy do you like me?â
Why? How will I know!
If it was not for the mission, why would I bother with an idiot like you!
âYou donât need a reason to like someone. When I saw you, I felt that we met each other in a past life before. I feel very happy when I see you and I want to be with you.â
Spending half of my life alone so that I can like you when I see you.
This sentence suddenly appeared in Cheng Guiâs mind. He shocked himself.
He... liked her?
F**k, was he crazy?!
Cheng Gui sized up the lady in front of him. Although she was really pretty, she was not an extreme beauty. Her temper was not good and she would hit people whenever she felt like it. What was there to like about this person?
Yes!
It must be his mistake!
Cheng Gui cleared his thoughts. âMiss Liu, what are your thoughts? If you donât like me now, you can try and interact with me for some time. You will definitely like me after that.â
âYou are so confident?â
âOf course.â I have the money, the power, and the face. Why will I not be confident?
Ming Shu opened her mouth, but before she said anything, there was an uproar within the crowd.
âWoah! They are lighting Kongming Lantern over there. Letâs go over there quickly!â
âReally? Letâs go and take a look too.â
Ming Shu was squeezed to the edge. The crowd rushed in a certain direction.
Because this happened suddenly, Cheng Gui was separated from Ming Shu. They were kept apart by the moving crowd. He didnât know if he saw wrongly, but he felt that her eyes seemed gentle with a tinge of... love.
Cheng Gui looked at her carefully. The lady wore a faint smile and there were waves in her eyes. However, the emotions that he saw just now were not there.
It must have been an illusion due to the lights.
Cheng Gui didnât get an answer that night. When the crowd dispersed, Ming Shuâs attention was captured by food.
He felt that she did it on purpose, but he couldnât get angry and force an answer out of her.
Once the time passed, Ming Shu broke away from Cheng Gui and went to wait for Qin Ling at the city gate. However, there was no sign of Qin Ling even after she waited for a long time. The crowd was dispersing. She frowned.
[Qin Ling is with the male protagonist.]
Ming Shu: â...â There is always someone trying to snatch my chef!
âWhere?â
[Guest... this has nothing to do with you.]
âHow is this not my problem? This affects my future.â
[...] Now, it has upgraded to a life issue? You are amazing, Guest.
The system pointed out a direction for Ming Shu instantly.
âI realize that you know quite a lot of things.â
[Of course.] The Harmony System was very pleased with itself. It didnât realize that Ming Shuâs smile was a little eerie.
â
âHey, are you okay?â Qin Ling shrunk in a corner and poked the person that was squeezed in with her. âAre they gone?â
The person seemed really uncomfortable. He spoke in a hoarse voice after a moment: âDonât make a sound.â
Qin Ling shut up. Her heart was still palpitating furiously.
Butterflies in her stomach?
Your head. She was just scared.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
She met this person suddenly just now, and then she was being chased.
âQingqing must be waiting for me now...â Qin Ling muttered.
At this moment, unsteady footsteps sounded. Qin Ling hurriedly cupped her mouth and didnât even dare to breathe loudly.
âI saw them running in this direction. Why have they disappeared?â
âHe is injured. They must not have gone far!â
âSplit up and search...â
Qin Ling heard footsteps coming toward them. She even saw a tall shadow. In that instant, Qin Ling felt that her heart stopped.
Someone grabbed her wrist and dragged her out of the dark.
The air turned still.
The people that were attacking them froze on the spot. When they were rushing out, someone fell to the ground and panted heavily as though he was fighting for air.
But, he was not dead.
Qin Ling saw the figure that was being blocked by the man.
Ming Shu grabbed Qin Lingâs other hand. The man was stopped and looked at the person who just appeared.
He didnât know if this person was a friend or foe. He was on his guard.
Ming Shu smiled. âLet go!â
Let go of my chef!
Who says you can touch her!
The man didnât say anything. He swung his sword at Ming Shu.
âNo!â Qin Ling gasped softly. She stood between the two of them. The tip of the sword was just a palmâs length away from her. Her face turned white. âThis... this is my friend.â
Ming Shu took the chance to attack the man and pulled Qin Ling over. âHurry up and run.â
Qin Ling trusted Ming Shu more so she followed and ran away with Ming Shu.
The man: â...â
The fighting sounds behind them got further and further away until they couldnât hear anything.
The two of them only stopped when they saw people ahead of them.
âHu, hu...â Qin Ling panted heavily. She turned and looked behind them. âQingqing... that person... will be okay, right?â
âYou still want to save him?â Ming Shu placed her hands on her hips. âYou canât even protect yourself. You will just be a burden if you follow him. You left so that he could run away faster, do you understand?â
Qin Ling: â...â
âI will not go back and save him.â Ming Shu thought that as the female protagonist, Qin Ling was trying to be really kind. She waved her hand. âGo and save him yourself if you want to save him.â
Qin Ling: â...â I never said anything about saving that person.
She knew that if she went back, someone as useless as her would just be more trouble. She was just worried that the man would die.
Ming Shu put down her hand and walked toward the village. âSo hungry, letâs go back and have supper.â
Qin Ling asked instinctively, âAre you not full from dinner?â
âI can still eat.â I can do it!
â...â