Qin Wuyue leaned against the window, her gaze calm as she looked out at Huanxing Town in the distance.
She had been here when it was still a pile of ruins. She never expected such a huge change when she came back.
“Heh…” After watching for a while, a cold sneer unconsciously curled at the corner of her mouth.
She withdrew her gaze, straightened up, and stretched her arms high above her head.
The thin fabric of her nightgown clung tightly to her body with the movement, outlining the full curve of her chest, her slender waist, and her plump, perky hips in perfect detail.
A satisfied sigh escaped her lips. “Mmm…”
Traveling always put her in a good mood, giving her a sense of relaxation completely different from being at home.
She turned and sat down on the chair by the bed, crossing one smooth, long leg over the other. The tip of her foot lifted her slipper, gently swaying it as she took out her phone and began browsing absently.
There was no alcohol in the room. She wasn’t actually very fond of drinking. The reason she had taken the initiative to drink at Lan Lan’s house was entirely because she had been influenced by her.
Plus, with Xia Yanran not by her side, she had felt a slight urge to change her image a little.
Others didn’t know that the usually strict and disciplined Chief was actually very reliant on this kind of mental beverage in private.
According to her, it helped with sleep, though the effect was minimal.
Her eyes were fixed on the screen, but she wasn’t taking anything in. Her mind was completely occupied with replaying the events of today.
After what happened today, she was even more certain that her initial deduction was correct.
That brat next door was definitely not as simple as he appeared.
Just think about it. A young man who just turned eighteen. Even if the tragedy of his childhood made him mature a bit earlier, it still couldn’t change one fact.
He grew up under his sister’s wing. To put it more bluntly, he was a flower raised in the “greenhouse” of the Nest City. He couldn’t possibly withstand the “harsh cold” outside the Nest City.
This harsh cold, of course, wasn’t referring to temperature, but to the emergencies that occur when facing Rift Beasts.
Sometimes Qin Wuyue felt that human behavior was very awkward and contradictory.
The outside world was already so dangerous, yet they still had to create a small so-called paradise, giving those young ones a comfortable environment to grow up in. Shouldn’t they start training them from childhood to become qualified warriors?
It was simply… foolish beyond belief.
She had asked Lan Lan this question before, but the answer she got was, “You don’t understand. Maybe you will in the future, or maybe you never will.”
She was still young back then and almost punched Lan Lan over it.
Returning to Lin Yu, his performance today was practically perfect. When the King Beast suddenly appeared, he neither cowardly fled nor recklessly charged forward.
Instead, he chose the most effective and direct method within his capabilities: providing intelligence and acting as a mobile tool for an action-impaired ability user.
It was the absolutely correct choice. But placed on a young man of only eighteen, who had received no professional training, it felt very off.
She tilted her head back, looking at the light on the ceiling.
‘Just what happened to you? It’s like you’ve completely… become a different person…’ She muttered softly, a complex expression surfacing in her gaze.
Actually, there was one more thing she only realized later. That was when she was discussing the matter concerning her daughter with Lin Yu today.
When he sincerely said he only saw her daughter as a friend, she had felt… happy…
Why was she happy? Why should she be happy? Why could she be happy?
Thinking of this, she lightly furrowed her brows, bit her lower lip, and her fingers gripping the phone unconsciously tightened.
If it were anyone else, they might know what this feeling was.
But for Qin Wuyue, her thinking was naturally different. She never questioned herself, never doubted herself.
‘It’s not my problem. That kid must have done something.’
‘Could it be… he awakened some kind of ability?’
This hypothesis suddenly made many unreasonable points explainable.
Why his performance far exceeded his age.
Why, when facing him, she always felt like she was being led by the nose, her emotions inexplicably tugged along.
And why… she felt a trace of inappropriate relief because he rejected her daughter.
‘Mmm, it must be like this.’
She curled the corner of her mouth, feeling she had discovered the truth.
‘An ability to influence others’ minds? Or something else…’
Just as she became convinced that Lin Yu had awakened and wondered what ability he might possess, her door was suddenly knocked.
Knock, knock, knock.
‘Huh? Who’s that at this hour?’
She got up and went to the door. Opening it, a flash of surprise crossed Qin Wuyue’s eyes when she saw the person outside.
It wasn’t surprise at the person, but…
“Yanran, what’s this?”
Qin Wuyue raised an eyebrow, not knowing what her daughter was up to this time.
Xia Yanran’s current attire was vastly different from her usual style.
She wore a long trench coat that reached her calves, the buttons fastened tightly all the way to the top. Aside from a small section of slender ankle wrapped in pure white stockings and a small stretch of neck above the collar, no other skin was exposed.
She also wore soft indoor slippers on her feet. Her entire person was wrapped up airtight, exuding a deliberately conservative feeling, completely different from her usual preference for sporty, casual outfits that showcased her youthful vitality.
Xia Yanran pursed her lips, an unnatural blush on her face.
She first quickly glanced left and right down the corridor. After confirming no one was there, she spoke like a thief, “Mom, let’s go inside first. Help me take a look.”
“Ah? Okay.” Qin Wuyue was amused by her daughter’s mysterious manner and smiled indulgently, stepping aside.
“Look at what? So secretive.” She allowed her daughter to push her into the room, casually closing the door behind them.
“Let’s talk inside.” Xia Yanran’s heart was pounding fiercely as she answered vaguely.
Soon, Qin Wuyue knew what her daughter wanted her to see.
Once inside, Xia Yanran pressed her mother to sit on the edge of the bed.
Then, under Qin Wuyue’s puzzled gaze, she turned her back to her mother, took a deep breath, and with slightly trembling fingers, untied the belt and buttons of her trench coat.
The trench coat slowly slid off, piling up on the carpet at her feet.
The clothing underneath instantly made Qin Wuyue’s eyes widen and her red lips part slightly. For a moment, she didn’t know what to say.
Xia Yanran tried hard to straighten her spine, attempting to appear natural, but her crimson earlobes and slightly trembling shoulders betrayed her nervousness.
Her fingers unconsciously twisted tightly together, placed in front of her flat stomach. She lowered her head and asked in a voice as thin as a mosquito’s buzz, shy and embarrassed:
“Mom… d-don’t just stare. Do you think… Lin Yu… will he like it?”
“Ah? Oh…” The name from her daughter’s mouth snapped the momentarily stunned Qin Wuyue back to reality. Her cheek twitched slightly, and her gaze, now complex, fell on the set of…å ªç§° “bold” underwear her daughter was wearing.
“This… ahem.” Qin Wuyue cleared her throat, trying hard to be objective. “He should… probably like it?”
She frowned slightly, her eyes lingering on the lace, straps, and nearly transparent gauze. The more she looked, the more something felt off. “But Yanran, this set of underwear… why does it look so familiar to me?”
Qin Wuyue propped her chin with one hand, tilting her head slightly as she carefully examined her daughter standing in front of the full-length mirror under the light, wearing only the underwear.
The girl’s body was in that wonderful period between youth and maturity. Her well-developed curves, set off by the deliberately chosen, highly seductive underwear, created a strange fusion of innocence and sexiness.
Xia Yanran observed her reflection in the mirror while nervously waiting for her mother’s evaluation.
“Familiar?” She bit her lip. “Is there? No way. The shop assistant recommended it to me.”
She certainly couldn’t admit that she had bought it based on her mother’s underwear style.
Just like Lin Mowei, she had her own little scheme. Since Lin Yu hadn’t outright refused to let her go over tonight, in her understanding, that meant it was allowed.
However, even though she didn’t plan to do anything, this opportunity had to be utilized well. Choosing good “bedding” was very important.
If Lin Yu couldn’t hold back, then she would naturally go with the flow.
Before coming here, she had already indulged in such fantasies in her room. Each fantasy made her heart race and her cheeks burn, yet it was filled with thick sweetness and anticipation.
“Oh.” Qin Wuyue nodded. “You’re going to wear this to… find Lin Yu?”
Xia Yanran turned around. After the brief adaptation period, she wasn’t as shy anymore.
She blinked her eyes at her mother, a sweet smile all over her face. “Yeah, I said I wanted to sleep with him tonight. He didn’t object.”
Looking at her daughter’s radiant expression, Qin Wuyue’s eyes darkened. A wave of irritation rose in her heart, and she almost blurted out “no,” but she stopped herself immediately.
Even though Lin Yu only wanted to be friends with her daughter, her daughter’s genuine feelings for him were real. And… she seemed to have no reason to object.
Qin Wuyue took a deep breath, her smile a bit stiff as she tugged at the corner of her mouth. “Well, alright then. But you can’t force him, you know.”
“I know, I know.”
Having received her mother’s affirmation, Xia Yanran’s confidence instantly multiplied. She bent down to pick up the trench coat from the floor and put it on.
“Then I’m going over. Mom, you rest early.”
“Mmm, okay…”
Bang. The sound of her daughter closing the door seemed to strike her heart, making her heartbeat skip a beat.
She frowned deeply, placing one hand over her heart.
She bent over, her long hair covering her face. A suppressed voice slowly sounded, “Damn brat, it’s all your fault… Just what did you do to me…”
*
On the other side…
Lin Yu didn’t know what he had done to Qin Wuyue, but he did know that Xin Yao was about to do something to him very soon.