“Of course I didn’t do anything!”
Jiang Ling yelled back, her face flushed with shame and annoyance. “And also, who’s ‘yours’, huh!”
This person always tried to take advantage of her the moment she let her guard down, what a troublemaker!
When Xu Nuo entered, Song Meng and Lin Xiaoyu immediately reined themselves in, simultaneously letting go of Jiang Ling’s tightly held hands. They exchanged a silent look and then tactfully avoided each other’s gaze.
“I was only gone for a tiny moment, and you two were about to do this and that to my Ling Ling-chan? I won’t allow it!”
Xu Nuo, filled with righteous indignation, spread her arms and rushed toward Jiang Ling. “I’m Ling Ling-chan’s loyal dog!”
Jiang Ling, looking exasperated yet clearly used to this, swiftly dodged aside and watched as Xu Nuo’s head plunged straight into the sofa, followed by a miserable cry.
“Ah!”
“First, my name is not ‘hey’… No, first, pets are not allowed in our dorm; second, you’ve fallen so many times, why don’t you ever learn your lesson?”
Jiang Ling poked at her green-haired head, picked up the glasses that had fallen nearby, and held out her hand to Xu Nuo. “Hurry and get up.”
“Uwu…”
Without her glasses, Xu Nuo’s eyes looked vacant. She tearfully grabbed Jiang Ling’s hand to get up, her face still a little aggrieved. “Then you shouldn’t dodge, you know.”
“No way.” Jiang Ling shook her head without hesitation. “With someone like you who’s always pushing your luck, if I don’t dodge, you’ll definitely start trying to strip my clothes off.”
“Uh, cough cough!”
Xu Nuo blushed and coughed at being called out. She quickly put on her glasses and then, in a flash, pounced toward Song Meng, eyes shining. “How’s Xiao Ling?”
Seeing her like this, the jumbled emotions in Song Meng’s heart settled down considerably. She pulled out her phone to show Xu Nuo a photo of Xiao Ling.
Meanwhile, Jiang Ling leaned in toward Lin Xiaoyu and whispered, “Are you tired?”
She’d never seen Lin Xiaoyu so earnest with people before. Feeling helpless, she also worried a little.
“…No.”
Lin Xiaoyu clearly guessed what Jiang Ling was thinking, awkwardly averting her eyes and denying it.
Xu Nuo, satisfied with the photos, suddenly slapped her forehead. “Right, I almost forgot—Sister Bai Xue told me to call you all to go film some promotional materials. My brain is hopeless!”
Hearing this, Jiang Ling immediately looked at Song Meng. “Just call me when it’s time, I’ll get going now, okay?”
“Mm.”
Song Meng knew what mattered most, so she didn’t question or tease at this moment, just nodded in agreement, waving goodbye as Jiang Ling left.
After heading out, Jiang Ling and Lin Xiaoyu followed Xu Nuo to the location for shooting the materials.
Because there were a lot of people collecting autographs at the convention, they picked a relatively quiet corner. According to Xu Nuo’s plan, they filmed the materials for their fans.
With this, the performance finally came to a successful close.
After returning home, Fang Wannian decided to stay over. The group treated themselves to a hearty hot pot, the atmosphere warm and harmonious.
In the corner, Xu Nuo gulped down low-alcohol liquor, then cried out, “I’m Ling Ling-chan’s dog!” only to be stuffed with a wad of tissue by Mo Ran as a temporary fix.
“Videos of your performance are already circulating online. The response is great, I’m really satisfied with what I’ve seen.”
Bai Xue was checking the reviews on a short video app, nodding in approval.
Sitting next to her, Jiang Ling giggled and quickly added, “And Auntie said she won’t interfere with Xiaoyu’s decision anymore!”
Bai Xue looked up at Lin Xiaoyu. “Really?”
“Yes, she and I have… reconciled, I suppose.”
Lin Xiaoyu hesitated for a moment but decided to use the word “reconciled” to sum up the conversation she’d had with her mother just minutes earlier.
“In that case, this event is a resounding success.”
Mo Ran, after firmly blocking Xu Nuo’s mouth, grinned as she raised her glass. “Let’s have a toast, shall we?”
“Cheers!”
The lively clamor, the clinking of glasses, and the fizz of bubbles all blended together into the quiet night.
By the time they finished dinner, it was already late into the night.
Seeing the clock hand pass one, Jiang Ling endured her splitting headache and slowly got up. “That’s it for me. I need to rest.”
She grabbed two bottles of ice water from the fridge and stumbled toward her room.
Seeing this, Lin Xiaoyu also stood up. “I’m heading back too.”
Once inside, Jiang Ling twisted open a bottle cap, gulped down a couple mouthfuls to settle her stomach, then quickly stripped off her clothes and dashed into the bathroom for a hot shower.
“Ha… “
Fresh out of the shower, Jiang Ling let out a long breath and contentedly stepped out of the bathroom. “Xiaoyu, I’m done.”
Called over, Lin Xiaoyu responded, striding over and naturally using a towel to dry Jiang Ling’s hair. “Why didn’t you towel off first?”
“Oh, I’ll blow-dry it in a minute anyway.”
Jiang Ling laughed, shook her head, and hopped away to blow-dry her hair.
Lin Xiaoyu watched her, said nothing more, and turned to shower herself.
When she came out, she saw Jiang Ling already half-asleep, slumped by the bed, hair dryer still in hand. Water dripped from her hair onto the sheets, leaving damp marks.
Lin Xiaoyu immediately frowned and went over to straighten Jiang Ling up, her face helpless. “Did you really fall asleep while blow-drying your hair?”
“Mm?”
Jiang Ling, half-dreaming, let out a muffled hum, the hair dryer falling from her hand as she curled up, satisfied and ready to sleep.
“Get up and finish drying your hair before you sleep.”
Lin Xiaoyu reached out to pull Jiang Ling’s arm, but Jiang Ling pushed her away gently, as if tickling.
“No more, no more~”
She was muddled with sleep and began to act spoiled without holding back, even inching closer and snuggling against Lin Xiaoyu’s knee.
“Sigh.”
Lin Xiaoyu let out a barely audible sigh. She couldn’t just leave her like this, so she slipped her arms around Jiang Ling’s waist and slowly sat her up in her lap. Jiang Ling, limp as a boneless cat, just sagged down again.
After several tries, Lin Xiaoyu clicked her tongue and simply held Jiang Ling on her lap, picked up the hair dryer, switched it to medium, and began to dry Jiang Ling’s hair for her.
Jiang Ling sat astride her knees, the hum in her ears making her frown. She opened her eyes, still dazed, and the first thing she saw was Lin Xiaoyu’s bare collarbone.
She sobered up instantly, hurriedly looking at their position. Her ears turned bright red in an instant. “Y-you, what are you doing!”
Lin Xiaoyu pulled her back in. “Drying your hair.”
“Do you really have to use this position to dry my hair?!”
Jiang Ling snapped back in embarrassment, but Lin Xiaoyu just gave her a calm glance and slowly repeated what had just happened.
This made Jiang Ling blush even more.
She reached up in embarrassment, gently grabbing Lin Xiaoyu’s slightly trembling wrist. “I’ll do it myself.”
“It’s fine.”
Lin Xiaoyu shook her head, continuing to dry her hair, her voice slow. “On the way back, I thought for a long time about how I could properly thank you. After all, you really helped me a lot with this.”
Hearing this, Jiang Ling felt a surge of satisfaction and pride. Her smile was radiant. “You don’t need to be so formal. Your sincerity is enough.”
“No, I must thank you properly.”
Lin Xiaoyu switched off the hair dryer, set it aside, then grasped Jiang Ling’s slender waist with both hands, pulling her closer.
The slight gap between them instantly disappeared, Lin Xiaoyu’s pants button brushing against Jiang Ling’s skin.
Jiang Ling instinctively tried to clamp her legs together, but Lin Xiaoyu’s strong hands slowly pried them apart.
“So I’ve decided—”
“To give myself to you.”