The next day.
By the time the sun was high in the sky, I still had absolutely no intention of leaving my room.
Just thinking about what had happened yesterday made me feel too embarrassed to face Su Liumeng again.
Her confident, vow-like promise still echoed in my ears.
So much for “we’re not cohabiting.”
On the very first night after moving in, she had already stolen my first kiss.
If I stayed a few more days, what else might happen?
I didn’t even dare imagine it.
I had never considered before that Su Liumeng could be so assertive—borderline domineering, even.
Compared to her, I really did feel like a blank sheet of paper.
Above me, the ceiling had been deliberately painted a soft sky-blue, decorated with countless delicate star-shaped patterns—a testament to how much thought the villa’s owner had put into the place.
Feeling a little down, I wondered if moving into Villa No. 3 had basically been like walking into a lion’s den.
Granted, I did have a somewhat conservative personality.
But… I didn’t think that was necessarily a bad thing.
Weren’t we both raised by the Su family?
How come she didn’t get the same upbringing I did?
Muttering faint complaints in my heart, I tried my best to appear calm as I pushed open the bedroom door.
I yawned.
Surprisingly, Su Liumeng wasn’t inside the villa.
Only the smell of food drifted faintly from the kitchen.
When I got to the dining area, I saw four dishes and one soup already set out on the table, still steaming gently.
There was a balance of proteins and vegetables, all with a light and mild flavor—it was clearly a meal designed to be healthy and nutritious.
I went to the kitchen, took out two sets of bowls and chopsticks, and then sat down in a chair to wait for Su Liumeng to come back.
Five minutes later, the door unlocked with a soft beep, and Su Liumeng walked in carrying an armful of bags.
“There really aren’t enough daily supplies in this villa,” she said, glancing at all the stuff she had bought.
The more she looked, the more she felt like there could never be enough.
She noticed the way I was staring at the food longingly and said,
“No need to wait for me—you can go ahead and eat.”
“How could a guest eat first? It’s always the guest who follows the host’s lead, not the other way around.”
“You cooked this meal. There’s no way I’d do something so rude as eating without the cook.” I pouted and swung my legs again.
“Alright then, I’ll try not to go out next time and eat with you right away.”
The dining table was a long rectangle.
Su Liumeng pulled out a chair next to mine and sat down too.
During the meal, it was extremely quiet.
Neither of us said a word.
Even the clinking of chopsticks and bowls was almost imperceptible.
I snuck a glance at Su Liumeng—she looked totally unfazed, as if nothing had happened yesterday.
While I breathed a sigh of relief, I also quietly scolded myself.
Seriously—
Why am I acting like some girl in the honeymoon phase of her first relationship?
It was just a kiss.
Who took advantage of whom?
That’s still up for debate.
Anyway, I definitely wasn’t going to be scared if she brought it up again.
But the confidence I’d built up in my head completely shattered the moment Su Liumeng put down her chopsticks.
My heart leapt straight into my throat.
“Um—”
“The sun’s really bright today, huh?”
Before she could say anything, I blurted out the first thing that came to mind in a panic.
People always pretend to be busy when they’re unbearably awkward.
Su Liumeng glanced sideways at me.
Outside, the sky was still shrouded in dark, heavy clouds.
It didn’t take her long to figure it out—this girl… don’t tell me she’s still embarrassed.
She laughed silently in her heart, but her face remained unreadable, as if she had truly forgotten what happened yesterday.
Just how pure can someone be?
All it took was one little kiss to get her like this.
Su Liumeng suddenly felt an intense curiosity:
If the day comes where she gets kissed so much her lips go numb… what kind of expression will she make then?
“Yes, the sun’s quite bright today,” she replied with casual indifference.
When she echoed my ridiculous weather comment, I buried my face into my bowl, staring at the few grains of rice left, my shy gaze tinged with frustration.
What kind of stupid tone is that supposed to be?
“I’m not a kid anymore,” I grumbled, stressing every word.
“Please talk to me in a tone appropriate for adults. Thank you.”
“Alright.”
Su Liumeng deliberately ignored how my voice still had a hint of softness I couldn’t quite shake.
I looked up on instinct—only to meet her gaze as she watched me eat, her eyes brimming with indulgence.
Fine.
Whatever.
So what if I’m like a kid?
Who doesn’t want to be doted on?
It’s just that people always get weirdly prideful.
They get all flustered and indignant and suddenly feel the need to defend what little dignity they think they have as an “adult.”
I was still finishing up my meal when I noticed Su Liumeng counting on her fingers, as if she were working something out.
I swallowed the last grain of rice.
“What are you calculating?”
“I’m planning out everything that needs to be done after the baby’s born,” she said matter-of-factly.
“You’re only just eighteen now. By the time you’re a senior in college, the baby will be starting kindergarten. We’ll probably have to put them in full-day care.”
“…Uh.”
My current life was already something I’d never imagined as a child.
If you think about it, while other college students are still attending lectures in classrooms, I’d be walking a ghost baby to and from school.
That mental image… honestly felt kind of surreal.
But then again, as a future Ghost Emperor, does my kid really need to go to school?
“We’ll deal with that when the time comes,” I mumbled vaguely.
The door had been slammed shut with full force, and all I caught was the sight of Si Xinyan’s completely flushed earlobes.
Leaning my back against the door, the chill seeping in through the thin fabric of my nightdress helped me, as I gasped for breath, slowly recover some of my senses.
Thump, thump, thump.
My heartbeat grew faster and faster.
The moment I closed my eyes, all I could think about was that moment of physical closeness with Su Liumeng—how our soft bodies pressed against each other.
The lingering sensation still had me completely flustered.
Damn it.
As someone who’s a total face-con, have I just been captured by Su Liumeng?
I silently cursed my own weakness.
Sitting on the edge of the bed with both hands braced against it, my legs swung slightly back and forth.
An inexplicable sense of shyness welled up in me, so intense that I wanted to bury my head under the covers.
A guy being even shier than a girl…
What the hell is going on here!!
Just like how Su Liumeng once said I was uptight and a bit introverted.
I lay flat on the wide bed, hugging my soft light-colored blanket, tossing and turning endlessly, unable to fall asleep.
Sigh, I guess I’ve been thoroughly bewitched by beauty.
Staring wide-eyed into the darkness, I let out one final lament.
How would I dare decide anything about the ghost baby on my own?
Everything could only go according to her will.
The villa district was a bit far from the school grounds.
This area was exceptionally quiet—I didn’t hear a single trace of the military training drills.
Three days later.
I was just about to head out for a walk when Su Liumeng told me a few words and then vanished again.
By now, I was used to her disappearing act.
Even back when I lived with the Su family, she often disappeared without a trace.
There were over thirty villas in this area.
The security setup left almost no blind spots. I hadn’t walked very far before I’d already spotted at least twenty surveillance cameras.
Observing the camera positions and instinctively avoiding their view had become second nature to me—almost muscle memory.
In front of Villa No. 7, a familiar figure made me pause.
“Maomao?”
“What are you doing here?”
Shangguan Xiyue had just closed the security door when she saw her best friend standing outside.
“I came home,” she said, clearing her throat lightly.
“This… is your house?” I looked up at the luxurious, gold-trimmed building, my mouth twitching unconsciously.
“And you said you weren’t some rich young lady?”
I clenched my fist, tempted to punch her shoulder, but then remembered my current lack of strength.
Hitting her isn’t realistic—it’d only make her feel good.
I could only lower my hand sheepishly.
“I didn’t lie… I’m not like Su Liumeng, that kind of noble lady,” Shangguan Xiyue quickly organized her words.
“Having a bit of money and being from a big prestigious family—there’s still a difference.”
After all, someone with zero background wouldn’t be elected student council president.
She sighed.
“I didn’t tell you everything before because I didn’t want you to feel burdened being friends with me.”
I quickly understood and smiled gently. “It’s enough for me to know who Maomao is.”
Shangguan Xiyue glanced around.
“Where’s Su Liumeng? Strange, she’s not with you?”
“She had something to take care of,” I replied, then suddenly shot her a look and changed the subject. “Are you still avoiding me?”
“These past few days, you haven’t contacted me or asked to play games together.”
There was a strange hint of disappointment in my eyes.
When your best friend starts drifting away, anyone would feel a little sad.
“Silly girl.” Shangguan Xiyue looked at me with a complicated expression.
“You’re in a crucial stage of your romance right now—I have to give you two some space.”
“Think about it. If I dragged you out to play games and go shopping all the time, what would Su Liumeng think of me?”
She patted me on the shoulder and sighed.
“As your best friend, and also as someone a few years older than you, I can’t pretend I don’t know anything when you don’t notice these things.”
“I always have to think for you, don’t I?”
Instinctively, I grabbed the sleeve of her shirt—but then abruptly let go.
“We’ve known each other for how many years now?”
“Watching our relationship grow more distant… honestly, it hurts.”
“I understand the concerns you brought up too.”
“But Su Liumeng isn’t the type of person to be so petty. I don’t think she’d overthink it like that.”
Shangguan Xiyue was someone who always knew her boundaries.
When we first met, she would pinch my cheeks and joke around with me.
But after understanding how I felt, she always did the right thing at the right time.
“Xinyan,” she suddenly called my name.
I was slightly stunned, then replied, “Yeah? I’m here.”
“Do you remember what you said a year ago?”
“What did I say?” I had said so many things, I couldn’t possibly remember.
Shangguan Xiyue still remembered clearly.
She helped jog my memory: “You said your life was too exhausting. That you hoped one day you’d meet someone you loved, and just live a peaceful, ordinary life with them.”
“You may have forgotten, but I haven’t.”
“That’s why, ever since you told me what kind of person you were looking for, I’ve been quietly paying attention for you in real life.”
“I’d even mentally prepared myself that you might be a 200-kilogram fatty. I was ready to accept you, because you’re my only brother. But I never expected you’d turn out to be such a beautiful little girl.”
“I’d thought through every possibility about you—except for the fact that you weren’t even straight.”
At this point, her gaze turned slightly resentful.
“Let’s just say… your voice online was way too misleading.”
“You really don’t need to be so guarded around me.”
“I’m sorry…” I whispered, rubbing my fingertips.
My voice was soft, like a mountain spring.
Shangguan Xiyue looked at my current expression, her eyes filled with even more helplessness.
“I’ve said so much, and you still haven’t realized what I’m trying to say?”
“I’m really worried about you. If you were dating someone else right now, they’d have gobbled you up—bones and all.”
…Well, maybe not even bones would be left at this point.
The excuse I once gave her—Shangguan Xiyue, being a rational adult, probably only half-believed it.
After that, she never brought it up again, probably not wanting to reopen old wounds.
What was in the past… should stay in the past.
Girls have a strong sense of pride.
Some things are hard to talk about.
Shangguan Xiyue fully understood that.
My big, pretty eyes were briefly lost in thought—until I felt her gently stroke my head.
“Still confused?” she asked.
“What I mean is… if I could accept you even as a chubby Duffy pig, and still selflessly introduce potential partners to you—doesn’t that mean no matter what kind of person you are, or what kind of relationship you’re in, it wouldn’t change our friendship?”
“Sigh… you’re like this… never mind. Let’s not overthink it. Keeping things simple is nice too.”
Shangguan Xiyue muttered to herself.
“This world is too complicated anyway. Trying to understand all the deceit and backstabbing…”
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