Hangzhou, a shopping mall nearing nightfall.
At the entrance of the mall building, Qin Yuxin stood as a beautiful piece of scenery. She wore a pale pink short-sleeved shirt paired with blue jeans and canvas shoes, topped with a dark blue jacket. She had applied light makeup and carried a crossbody bag.
Whenever a couple passed by, the man would invariably let out a series of pained yelps for mercy while the woman shot back a sour, jealous look. Qin Yuxin checked the time on her watch, completely indifferent to the gazes of the crowd.
It was 5:10 PM. Seeing that it was ten minutes past their agreed time, her brow began to furrow with displeasure. She pulled out her phone, scrolled to Ye Feng's contact, and was just about to dial when a taxi pulling up at the curb nearby made her lower the phone. She walked toward it slowly.
"What?! Fifty yuan for a mere ten kilometers? Not even a profiteer is as black-hearted as you!"
Ye Feng, who was about to exit the taxi, felt his eyes twitch violently upon hearing the fare the driver quoted.
Damn it, this was ten kilometers, not twenty! Even thirty yuan felt like too much to Ye Feng, yet this guy was asking for fifty. Was he being slaughtered like a pig?!
The taxi driver was a balding middle-aged man. Hearing Ye Feng's complaint, he didn't panic at all. Instead, he chuckled and explained, "Young man, you wouldn't understand. Remember the cosmic lifeforms and the monster invasion from three days ago?"
Ye Feng didn't feel like talking but nodded nonetheless; after all, he had participated in that battle himself.
"It's good that you know. Because of the destruction three days ago, the shortcut from where you hailed me to here hasn't been repaired yet. I had no choice but to go against my conscience and take the long way around."
The driver began to pour out his grievances, causing Ye Feng's eyes to twitch even more. He had specifically checked earlier: to restore Hangzhou to its former state, roads were the top priority. Using special materials, they had been under repair for two days, meaning traffic had returned to normal as of this morning.
It was already evening and traffic still couldn't pass? Who was he trying to fool?
"I say, Ye Feng, the meeting time has already passed. Why are you more sluggish than a woman? I've been here forever."
Ye Feng had intended to argue further with the driver, but Qin Yuxin's voice rang out at that moment, making his body stiffen slightly. He tossed a fifty-yuan bill at the driver—don't ask why he used cash, just know he had a habit of carrying change.
Tossing the money, closing the door, and turning around—the three movements were executed in one smooth motion without a second's pause.
However, seeing Qin Yuxin's stunning outfit, Ye Feng dazed for a moment before awkwardly explaining, "This isn't my fault. I should have arrived right on time, but you have no idea about that taxi driver. He took the long way on purpose and scammed me out of fifty yuan!"
As he spoke, he sounded more and more aggrieved, effectively stifling the reprimand Qin Yuxin had been holding back.
"Alright, alright, stop giving me excuses. Come eat dinner with me, and then accompany me to buy some things." She couldn't take it anymore; she immediately interrupted him and walked into the mall.
What Qin Yuxin didn't notice was the look of joy that flashed across Ye Feng's face. He was clearly happy. Though he didn't know why she had asked him to go shopping, not only was he getting a free dinner, but he had also silenced her complaints at the cost of a simple walk around the mall. Despite the fifty-yuan scam, he knew that shops inside malls were very expensive.
This was a net win.
Five hours later...
The once-spirited Ye Feng was now carrying countless shopping bags of all sizes. He sat on a rest seat near the mall, looking completely dejected. Feeling the ache in his arms and his trembling legs, Ye Feng felt that the body he had trained for a year and strengthened with Light was utterly useless.
He had miscalculated. He never imagined that a self-disciplined, strong-willed woman like Qin Yuxin would be so terrifying when it came to shopping!
Ye Feng finally understood why so many men online said that accompanying a woman shopping was more painful than being killed. In the past, he would just scoff and laugh at their lack of backbone; now...
Looking at the still-hyped Qin Yuxin, Ye Feng felt a chill down his spine. A bad premonition shot straight to his head!
"Ye Feng, there's a dress over there that looks so good! Hurry up and keep up!"
Hearing that voice, Ye Feng instantly felt the dinner lose its flavor. This wasn't a net win at all—this was losing everything down to his underwear!!!
Another hour passed, and it was now 11:00 PM sharp. Perhaps Qin Yuxin had shopped to her heart's content, as she didn't plan to continue. This made Ye Feng overjoyed; he thought that this woman had finally finished. He made a mental note to himself: if any woman asked him to go shopping in the future, he wouldn't go.
This feeling... Heavens, only those who have experienced it can truly know!!!
Leaving the mall, Qin Yuxin arranged for someone to pack the items and deliver them to her home. She then dragged him to the subway station to take a walk by West Lake. West Lake at night was quite nice, especially since there seemed to be some sort of event today, making it particularly lively.
Seeing the eager look on Qin Yuxin's face, Ye Feng thought to himself, 'This is bad,' and tried to sneak away quietly.
"Ye~ Feng~~"
Caught red-handed, Ye Feng turned around with difficulty. A smile more painful than crying appeared on his face as he pleaded, "Qin Yuxin, Miss Qin, Little Sister... please let me go. QWQ"
"Pfft!" Seeing his expression, Qin Yuxin laughed heartlessly. Knowing what he was thinking, she grabbed his arm and said nonchalantly, "Hey, you're a man after all. Do you really have the heart to let a girl walk here alone? There are so many people; what if I get harassed?"
"Anyone who dares touch you would probably have their hand torn off."
Don't be fooled by Qin Yuxin's delicate, refined appearance. If someone truly dared to provoke her, Ye Feng could only say 'Heh.' regardless of what she said, Ye Feng was determined not to go, even if it meant death.
But then Qin Yuxin said that she would foot the bill for everything tonight. Ye Feng immediately grabbed her soft little hand and headed straight for the food street. As for "determined not to go even if it meant death"... please, what Ye Feng said has nothing to do with me, Mr. Ye.
He happened to be hungry, and with the enticing aromas wafting through the air, he was afraid he couldn't resist. But with the money in his pocket, he had to be frugal. However, since someone else was treating, whoever left was a coward!
Seeing Ye Feng become so proactive, Qin Yuxin's face turned slightly red. But seeing that his eyes were entirely fixed on food, she didn't know whether to be angry or laugh.
In fact, not only did students at the TPC academy not have to pay tuition, but they also received a considerable allowance every month. But for some reason, Ye Feng planned his three meals a day strictly and donated everything else to the Hangzhou orphanage. His reason was simple: that was the place that had raised him.
Well, that reason was undeniable. It just so happened that her parents were away on business again, and there had been no news from her brother for three days. Her friends were all out with their boyfriends. To avoid being too bored, she had called this money-grubbing, stingy guy out.
However, this person had no sense of romance at all. Seeing the way he looked at food as if it were a great beauty, and then looking at herself, Qin Yuxin couldn't help but doubt herself. Did she really have no charm at all?
It was late, and the time reached 11:50 PM. Qin Yuxin and Ye Feng, both feeling drowsy, arrived at the subway station entrance. Seeing the deserted station, the two didn't find it strange. Fortunately, they were together; otherwise, being alone in a chilly subway station would always feel a bit frightening.
Beep~~~
After waiting for about three minutes, Qin Yuxin saw the train arrive and looked curiously at the station display.
"Strange. Didn't it say the train was two minutes away? Why is it here now?"
"Ha-ah~~~"
Ye Feng let out a yawn. Feeling sleepy, he didn't care much and said casually, "Maybe it's broken or something. Let's just go. This is the last train; if we miss it, we'll have to take a taxi again."
Thinking of the taxi driver from earlier that afternoon, Ye Feng had no intention of taking another cab. Qin Yuxin agreed and they entered the train together. Seeing that it was empty except for a few people sitting further down, she lowered her guard and sat down tiredly.
As the train started, seeing that Ye Feng had fallen asleep beside her, she leaned against his shoulder. At first, she felt a bit blushed and unnatural, but seeing that he didn't resist, she slowly drifted off to sleep.
What she didn't know was that shortly after their train departed, another subway train pulled into the station. The timing of that one matched the display screen exactly...
•
Yesterday updates! At this point you might told me to consider updating at this time instead of later hour like usual but my schedule are messed up already so no, I'll just try better! You can found more chapter on my Patreon here—↓
patreon.com/EBBYRITH.
—feel free to visit it!↑