Chapter 74

The snow fell all night. The next day, Su Xingjie drove over, politely bringing a few more gifts. Yan Qingqiu went to take them from her hands, muttering, "Why are you being so polite?"

"It's fine. I just felt like buying them. We'll eat them together later. I want to enjoy myself with you," Su Xingjie said with a smile.

She had bought a huge pile of snacks. The butler went to the back to get her suitcase. Su Xingjie's room was arranged right next to Yan Qingqiu's, and the maids had already cleaned it up the day before. The butler said, "Miss Su used to come here to play often when she was little. The master said that room is yours now. You can come and stay whenever you like."

Su Xingjie smiled. "I wasn't that young by then. I was already in middle school."

"Middle school is still young; just thirteen or fourteen," the butler said.

Su Xingjie realized how much time had passed. Once she entered the room, she couldn't help but laugh. They had grown up, yet the butler and Yan Fu still treated her like a child. The room was decorated in pink.

"Speaking of which," Su Xingjie said, "Uncle Butler never got married, huh? I've never seen him date anyone."

"I asked him last time too. He said fate hasn't arrived yet."

"We even tried to set him up with boyfriends and girlfriends back then, but none of them worked out."

When Su Xingjie mentioned it, Yan Qingqiu really did recall a bit. She let out a soft "hiss." "Didn't we also recommend our English teacher? But once she made us stand in the corner as punishment, we crossed her off the candidate list when we got back. After that, we forgot about his lifelong matter."

"And that forgetting lasted many years," Su Xingjie laughed.

Yan Qingqiu pressed her hands together. "Sin, sin!"

As she said that, Su Xingjie laughed so hard she started hiccupping.

The butler came in from outside to serve tea. He saw Yan Fu standing out there, not having come in. The butler said curiously, "What's wrong, master? Go in and say it."

Yan Fu looked at the butler, hesitating.

"What's there to be embarrassed about?" the butler asked, puzzled.

Yan Fu said, "They're talking about your lifelong matter."

"Ah, that is a bit embarrassing." The butler also stood at the door.

The two of them stood outside waiting. After quite a while, the tea the butler was holding nearly turned cold. He knocked on the door and asked, "Would the young ladies like some tea?"

"Yes, yes, yes," Yan Qingqiu said, nodding. She went to open the door, took the tea, and passed it over for Su Xingjie to take a cup. Su Xingjie held it in her hands and said, "Thank you, Uncle Dong."

Yan Qingqiu couldn't hold back her laughter and drank her tea with her back to him.

The two of them hung out upstairs for a while, then thought of Song Qingre.

"Where is she?" Su Xingjie asked.

"These past few days she's been working hard to show off, cooking downstairs," Yan Qingqiu said.

"Oh, right. Yesterday one of my business partners asked me to pass along her account info."

Yan Qingqiu's brow twitched slightly, and she said with a hint of wariness, "What's going on?"

"It's just that a few partners are asking if she has time to collaborate. After the last cooperation, people at my end have been looking for her nonstop. Song Qingre is very famous; she's just low-key domestically."

Yan Qingqiu enjoyed hearing others praise Song Qingre too. When they praised her, she felt proud herself—maybe because they had gotten their marriage certificate, because they were wives now.

She lay back on the bed and said regretfully, "Well, there's no helping it. Song Qingre said she wants to have a nice New Year and isn't accepting any collaborations for now. I don't know if these days will delay her earning money."

When it was time to eat, the two of them went downstairs together.

"It's snowing again," they said, looking outside.

The snowflakes drifted down gently. There was no wind, and it was very quiet.

Song Qingre had changed into very homey clothes: a white fleece jacket over a knitted sweater, her hair casually pinned up, with one strand falling against her cheek.

"What's wrong?" Yan Qingqiu asked her.

"I should have done a style like this for the runway show."

They ate downstairs. A fish head soup had been simmering since morning, milky white in color, bubbling gently in the pot.

Yan Fu took the initiative to thank Su Xingjie, saying that Yan Qingqiu had caused quite a few troubles at her company lately and that he appreciated her taking care of her. Su Xingjie was flattered by the words and accompanied him in a toast.

Just as they were eating happily, the doorbell rang from outside.

The butler wondered who it could be. He went to the door to look, and upon seeing who it was, he didn't open it. The butler turned to glance at the people in the house, then walked in and whispered a few words in Yan Fu's ear.

Yan Fu's brow instantly furrowed, and his tone turned cold. "Don't open it."

Yan Qingqiu asked curiously, "Who is it?"

Yan Fu said, "No one. Just eat first."

"It's Fu Sang," Song Qingre said, her tone calm and unruffled.

Yan Qingqiu was drinking soup. The warmth hadn't even reached her stomach before she reacted. Her eyes wide open, she asked in confusion, "What's she here for?"

"Probably to cause trouble," Song Qingre said.

Yan Qingqiu carried her own bowl and went to the door. Yan Fu called out to her, but she didn't hear. She just stood by the door and peered outside. Through the door, she asked, "You here to beg for food? You've come all the way to my doorstep. When are you going to pay me back?"

The car was clearly Fu Sang's, but the window wasn't rolled down, so she couldn't see inside.

"Xing Xing, come quick. Fu Sang is here."

Su Xingjie also imitated her, carrying her own bowl over. As soon as she approached, Fu Sang's car window rolled down.

The two of them exchanged a glance through the car window. Su Xingjie stood firmly by Yan Qingqiu's side. She let out a cold snort and bowed her head, eating her rice.

Yan Qingqiu said, "Tell me, if she's come to my house begging for food, should I give her a sip of fish soup?"

"Would you be willing to part with what Song Qingre made?"

"As expected, my good sister knows me. No way I'd let her eat it." Fu Sang had left a scar on Song Qingre's stomach, and Yan Qingqiu would never forget that for the rest of her life.

Fu Sang didn't say anything, trying hard to ignore the provoking Yan Qingqiu. She gripped the steering wheel and kept staring at Su Xingjie. Su Xingjie sneered, "Shameless, aren't you?"

Su Xingjie eventually tempered her cursing. Considering their past cooperation, she asked one thing: "You're not really here to claim your roots, are you?"

"I'm just returning to my own place."

Su Xingjie said, "You're making me sick. Do you have no shame? I suspect you got plastic surgery—not on your face, but on your heart. Do you have any sense of decency left at all!"

Back then, Su Xingjie had helped Fu Sang scold Song Qingre plenty of times. Fu Sang never imagined that one day Su Xingjie would be cursing at her.

Su Xingjie got more and more worked up as she cursed. "If I were you, I'd get out of the country immediately and never dare to come back for the rest of my life."

Yan Qingqiu pulled Su Xingjie back to the living room to get food, but Su Xingjie turned her head and kept cursing.

Yan Fu called out, "Aren't your dishes getting cold, you two?"

They went back to the table and ate properly, cleaning every last bite of the dishes—not a single bit left for Fu Sang.

After eating, the courtyard gate opened.

Yan Qingqiu sat between Song Qingre and Su Xingjie, the two of them as if protecting her. Fu Sang walked in step by step, wearing a gray coat, like a closing model making a grand entrance.

Yan Fu watched her approach and was silent for a long time. Fu Sang glanced around the layout of the Yan residence. "My old room was on the second floor. There was a mirror inside, facing the bed."

Yan Qingqiu didn't speak. So what if it was, so what if it wasn't? It wasn't some special arrangement. Song Qingre liked mirrors; perhaps Miss Yan had set it up for her.

Yan Fu said, "The paternity test from before—you sent it to me?"

At this, both women turned to look at him. Su Xingjie looked at Fu Sang with a very displeased expression. Fu Sang disgusted her. The thought that she had once been so good to her in her blind stupidity made her sick. Comparing the two, her Qiu Bao was a celestial maiden. Su Xingjie said, "What are you doing? What paternity test? I don't know anything about this. Don't I know your background well enough?"

Yan Qingqiu, afraid she'd get too worked up, patted her hand. "Xing Xing, calm down. Don't let her make you sick."

"I told you before I went through secondary differentiation and became an alpha," Fu Sang said.

Su Xingjie didn't take her words seriously at all. "Hasn't your profile always said alpha? Were all your past experiences fake?"

"That was just for public consumption," Fu Sang said. "Everything on my resume is false."

"I managed you for over a year. You've been at the company for three years. You've always been like this. When did you ever change? Show me a change if you can." Su Xingjie jabbed at her with every word. "Uncle, don't believe her. She's had plastic surgery, and her character is terrible."

Fu Sang had only one thing to say: "But a paternity test can't be fake."

"Also, I remember everything. One winter, I fell and asked you not to tell my dad. Do you remember that?"

Su Xingjie, firmly loyal to her beliefs, wouldn't waver or doubt Yan Qingqiu for a second. "But you asked me to tell Fu Ye."

"Oh, right. Fu Ye and Luo Xi know about that too." Fu Sang looked at Yan Qingqiu and asked with a smile, "Do you remember?"

Yan Qingqiu didn't remember, but this time she didn't cower. She continued her nonsense. "I had a car accident before. It left me with aftereffects. I don't remember a lot of things. That's not a secret either."

With that, everyone looked at her—even Yan Fu.

"Car accident?" Yan Fu frowned.

Yan Qingqiu nudged Song Qingre with her elbow and said, "Right? You know about this too."

Song Qingre nodded in support. "Indeed, it was very serious. Qiuqiu even stayed in the hospital for a long time."

"What about the medical records?" Fu Sang asked, extending her hand. She only believed in reports. "Show them to me, like I showed the paternity test."

"I threw them away long ago. I didn't want my dad to worry." Yan Qingqiu then looked at Su Xingjie. "Xing Xing, I remember you still have her plastic surgery records, don't you?"

Su Xingjie nodded, defending her. "Uncle, don't believe her. She has issues in her head. She only looks a bit like Qiuqiu; she's just here to make money."

Fu Sang insisted on one point: her paternity test was legitimate. She said, "I did this test together with Dad at the hospital, and I told him about our past interactions. Now, if Yan Qingqiu can just say one or two things related to Dad, I'll leave."

Fu Sang was trying to provoke discord. She knew full well that Yan Qingqiu had no memories. And she deliberately called him "Dad," just to disgust Yan Qingqiu.

Yan Qingqiu was indeed disgusted. She also began to understand why the system had deleted her memories—it was to pave the way for Fu Sang's return. The paternity test was even simpler; the system had probably altered the data before.

Yan Fu had been silent all along, his hands folded, deep-set eyes sunken, impossible to read. No one could guess how he would resolve this. On one side was Fu Sang, on the other Yan Qingqiu. "Three years ago..." He squinted. "Three years ago, if you were my daughter, my daughter should have liked Fu Ye. Do you like him?"

Fu Sang was silent, not understanding why Yan Fu had only managed to spit out that one sentence after all this time.

"What?"

Yan Fu said, "You say the current Qiuqiu isn't my daughter, and that you are. Fine. I don't have many other impressions of my daughter, but the biggest one is that she liked Fu Ye with all her might and hurt all of us until we couldn't breathe. Now she doesn't like Fu Ye. Sometimes I do feel she isn't like the old Qiuqiu. But you don't like Fu Ye either, so by that logic, you're not like her either."

Fu Sang frowned. How can I not understand this logic?

"You say you don't remember those years either, that you only recently woke up and became Fu Sang. Right?"

"Yes. I can't explain it either. Probably just like her—suddenly not knowing anything, only having memories after waking up." Fu Sang said deliberately, "Maybe I had a car accident too."

"So, this is all very strange," Yan Fu said. "So who among you likes Fu Ye?"

Fu Sang couldn't understand. "You're using whether we like Fu Ye to determine this?"

"Yes. This is the easiest thing to determine right now. My most vivid impression of my daughter is that she liked Fu Ye, liked him so much that everyone around her suffered for it. If you are my daughter, once you regain your memories, you should also like Fu Ye, right?"

Both Yan Qingqiu and Fu Sang remained silent.

"You don't like Fu Ye, and she doesn't like Fu Ye. So you might both be my daughters," Yan Fu said.

Fu Sang understood now. Liking Fu Ye was just a pretext; Yan Fu wanted to keep Yan Qingqiu around.

She said, "Don't we have the paternity test?"

"I had one done with her too. Maybe the hospital made a mistake when we were younger. I have two daughters, twins. You're one of them," Yan Fu said.

Fu Sang laughed coldly.

See? No matter what Yan Fu said, he just refused to admit that Yan Qingqiu wasn't his daughter.

Yan Qingqiu listened from the side as well.

She felt uncomfortable all over. She didn't want to be seen as liking Fu Ye, and she didn't want her dad to be attacked like this. She thought of what Su Xingjie had told her yesterday: only the real Qiuqiu would love Song Qingre that much. And she did love her that much. She was more like Miss Yan than Fu Sang was.

Song Qingre gently held her hand, and Yan Qingqiu felt stronger. She parted her lips, looked at her father who was in a tight spot, and said, "Dad, I don't like Fu Ye."

Yan Fu's brow twitched slightly, his eyes seeming to hint that she shouldn't speak.

Yan Qingqiu couldn't help herself. "I just don't like him. Who likes Fu Ye? Not even dogs would."

Yan Fu suppressed his voice, his eyes behind his glasses stern.

Yan Qingqiu said firmly, "I didn't like him before either. Liking or not liking can't be faked." She looked at Fu Sang to see what she would say, and she pressed her as well: admit you like Fu Ye, admit that you used this body to do many disgusting things, none of which I did. I'm drawing a line with you.

Fu Sang didn't look at Yan Qingqiu, nor at Su Xingjie. She looked at Yan Fu and said, "Now you should believe me, right?"

"So you're the one who liked Fu Ye, the disobedient one who tormented us..." Yan Fu didn't even want to call her Qiuqiu. "You still remember those two slaps I gave you, don't you?"

Yan Fu's expression was clear. At this moment, he preferred a Yan Qingqiu with no memories, who bounced around calling him "Dad" every day. He'd rather have a "fake" than this person who tormented him. He pressed again and again, "Do you remember? Was it you?"

Yan Fu: "If it's you, I'll publish an announcement to recognize you. If not, then go back. I'll hire a lawyer."

Fu Sang pointed at Yan Qingqiu. "If I'm your daughter, then what about her? How will you resolve this?"

Yan Fu stared at Yan Qingqiu for a few seconds, then spat out a few words. He had made up his mind. "Have her move out."

Fu Sang's eyes lit up. "Yes. I wasn't obedient before. Dad, I'll change."

Yan Fu stood up directly. "Since you like Fu Ye, I have nothing more to say."

Yan Qingqiu rubbed her hands together, lowered her head, then reached out and squeezed Song Qingre's hand. Song Qingre didn't say much either. She stood up and said, "Qiuqiu, give Uncle some time to think it over."

Fu Sang said sarcastically, "Think about it a thousand times, ten thousand times, the result will be the same."

Yan Qingqiu obediently said "Mm," and went upstairs to pack.

She still had a lot of things she hadn't taken. Song Qingre said she didn't need to; they had everything over there. Yan Qingqiu took the little doll she had won last time and pulled out the iron box from the cabinet. "Our marriage certificates," she said.

Song Qingre hummed in acknowledgment, her eyes turning tender.

Yan Qingqiu had a lot of stuff—things everyone had bought for her, and also many that Yan Fu had bought. She couldn't carry it all in one trip.

She ran back and forth several times. The butler came over and said, "The master said not to take too much stuff." Mainly, he still wanted something to remember her by. After she moved away, what if she never came back?

"Dad, I'll be going now..." Yan Qingqiu exchanged a glance with Yan Fu, who was downstairs gripping a newspaper. She could see the reluctance in his eyes. Yan Qingqiu felt that was enough.

Fu Sang sat nearby with her legs crossed, raising her eyebrows, wearing a smug expression, trying to throw all the frustration from earlier back at Yan Qingqiu.

Yan Qingqiu simply ignored her.

Su Xingjie also came down with her suitcase. She hadn't even unpacked, so packing up was simple.

"Where are you going?" Fu Sang asked.

"Going with Qiuqiu," Su Xingjie said. "I already made up my mind yesterday. Qiuqiu is my best—my only best friend. I'll always believe in her."

Song Qingre held Yan Qingqiu's hand. "I naturally believe in the person I've firmly chosen."

Yan Qingqiu had no idea where she was going either. She squeezed their hands and swore to the heavens, "Don't worry, I haven't been wasting money lately. Finding a place to stay will be a breeze."

Yan Qingqiu now felt that her earlier foresight had been absolutely right. She'd thought she might one day leave the Yan family, so she had deposited all her wages into the bank for fear of running out of money. Now it would come in handy.

Yan Qingqiu looked at her dad at the door, her nose stinging. She raised her hand and waved.

In her heart, Yan Qingqiu knew—she could feel it—that her dad loved her. Perhaps he just hadn't figured out how to face her yet, given the sudden appearance of another daughter.

Probably Yan Fu hadn't even done a paternity test with her yet.

After all this, she felt a weight lifted from her shoulders. She no longer had to pretend, no longer had to spin lie after lie.

She truly didn't remember what the previous transmigrator had done.

Those filthy deeds weren't hers!

She, Yan Qingqiu, was pure and spotless!

Exaggerating, exaggerating!

Yan Qingqiu let out a heavy breath. She was relieved!

She ran off quickly.

Su Xingjie carried her suitcase, thinking acutely: Uncle's eyes were full of affection for Qiuqiu. Was Uncle like her, desperately trying to pull his own daughter back to shore?

Fu Sang followed out of the living room, trying to take Su Xingjie's bag, but Su Xingjie quickly got into the car. Song Qingre's car drove off first, with hers following slowly behind.

Fu Sang came out of the living room. She wanted to see with her own eyes Yan Qingqiu being kicked out the front gate. She clenched her hand tightly, and then she saw Song Qingre's car slowly drive into the neighboring courtyard.

The gate of the courtyard opened slowly, and the villa inside was completely transformed.

The neighboring courtyard!? What a joke?

Fu Sang trotted over and saw Song Qingre's courtyard was clean and tidy. Snow piled up against the roses, and the flowers in the glass greenhouse were blooming in a riot of colors. The house that had once seemed like a dead residence had become a beautiful castle of roses. It was truly lovely. She'd looked at it for years, but this was the first time she truly appreciated the abandoned courtyard next door.

It was hard to understand how a weed-choked grave had turned into a gentle castle.

Yan Qingqiu was also puzzled, feeling something was off. She had fully planned to take Song Qingre out to stay somewhere.

Had Song Qingre planned it in advance? That's why she'd started fixing up the house early.

"Get out of the car," Song Qingre said.

Yan Qingqiu snapped back to reality. She hopped out of the car and said, "Are we living here from now on?"

"Yes," Song Qingre said. "Don't like it? Scared? The maids and butler will come in the afternoon."

"Uncle Dong?" Yan Qingqiu asked.

"No, newly hired ones."

Yan Qingqiu still felt something was off. "...You're not trying to trap me with this house, are you?"

Song Qingre frowned. "What trap?"

"Like, you keep threatening to go home, and I get anxious and beg you to stay. For instance, if Fu Ye comes to cause trouble, you say, 'Forget it, I won't ruin your relationship, I'll leave,' and I say, 'No, no, no, don't go.'"

Song Qingre let out a laugh and couldn't help but stroke her hair. "Oh, so that's what you've been thinking."

Yan Qingqiu nodded. "I thought you were deliberately scaring me, using moving as a threat to make me beg you to stay."

Song Qingre said, "You can think of it that way too." She turned to look at Su Xingjie. "Can you carry all that?"

Su Xingjie nodded that she could.

Song Qingre walked ahead of them. It was cold outside, but the heating system must have been on for a while—not a hint of chill could be felt inside; it was warm. Song Qingre brought out slippers for them to wear. The cabinets and tables inside weren't empty; they seemed specially prepared, as if waiting for this day. Song Qingre led them upstairs, saying the second floor was warmer and letting them pick their own rooms.

This wasn't Su Xingjie's first time here, but the memories were too old, mostly faded. Back then, they'd spend entire afternoons lying around at Song Qingre's house—Song Qingre quietly painting while the two of them did homework together.

Song Qingre said, "A bit forgotten? It's very different from before. I changed quite a few of the old styles."

"I can see that."

Yan Qingqiu had come here before, but she'd always taken one look and left because she was scared. This time, she paused and remembered a small thing. She pointed at the corner of the wall. "I stacked coins here."

"Hmm?" Song Qingre looked at her.

Yan Qingqiu looked back at her with a soft smile. It seemed that after Song Qingre's parents died, she had brought all her money to see Song Qingre. Yes, that was it. The butler had told her this part; she had a picture in her mind now. Dormant memories began to awaken.

Song Qingre asked, "Qiuqiu, do you still smell mustiness?"

Yan Qingqiu knew she was teasing her, so she sniffed seriously. "No, it's clean."

Then she saw Song Qingre take out her phone. A slight smile tugged at Song Qingre's lips as she called someone. "Come over for dinner."

The person on the other end asked, "What's the good news? You're smiling so lewdly, come on, share it so I can laugh too."

Song Qingre said, "Housewarming."

· ·

Those outside couldn't see what was happening inside. The longer Fu Sang watched, the more uncomfortable she felt. When she turned around, she saw the butler.

The butler was also looking at the neighbor's house, muttering worriedly, "I wonder if the young lady will get used to it there. We're the ones who usually take care of her."

Fu Sang stared at the butler. Wasn't he just a butler NPC? She really didn't like people betraying her.

She'd have to fire him later.

The maids at home had been sent out earlier, so they hadn't heard the inside story of the villa. Now they were all asking the butler where the young lady had gone, why she'd gone next door, and whether they should go over and help.

The maids went straight to the door to peek inside, sighing in amazement. The master had always said he wanted to send the young lady on a trip, but they hadn't expected her to leave so suddenly. Although she'd only moved to the neighboring courtyard, everything was there. It looked like fun, like a change of scenery vacation.

The butler was also pushed to the door. A few of the maids wanted to ring the doorbell, but then they saw Fu Sang and whispered, "Why is she here? Doesn't she always bully the young lady? She still has the nerve to show her face? How bold."

The butler didn't say anything; he didn't know how to explain.

Fu Sang crossed her arms, her attitude arrogant. "From now on, I'm the young lady of this house. Move my luggage upstairs."

"Has she lost her mind?" a maid asked.

"Why should she? 'Young lady'—who does she think she is?"

The maids only remembered that this person had spread rumors of "domestic violence" online and poached Su Xingjie's models. The maids held grudges.

Fu Sang was about to continue, but the butler walked to her side and said in a low voice, "Apologies, but because our master is in a bad mood and feeling hurt, you'll also have to move out and stay elsewhere these days. Also, this matter is to be kept under wraps for now and not leaked, since it concerns the family's reputation."

Fu Sang was stunned. She hadn't even moved in yet—where was she supposed to go?

And what did "not publicize" mean?

As she was thinking, Yan Fu's car drove out from inside. The butler stopped talking to her and went to open the gate.

Yan Fu sat in the back, his eyes weary, gaze looking outward. He said, "In private, you can call me Dad. But you haven't been recognized yet, so first stay somewhere outside. I'm not managing Qiuqiu either; she's all on her own. You're both over twenty now; you can't keep mooching off your parents forever. That's fair for everyone. If you still won't be obedient, it doesn't matter whether you come back or not."

Fu Sang felt like her ears were broken. What?

She raised her voice. "I'm not moving back in? You're still favoring her. You don't think I'm your daughter."

"I've already kicked her out," Yan Fu said.

"But she's living right next to you."

"That's because she likes Song Qingre and has a good relationship with her now. Song Qingre invited her. What can I do about it? You stabbed Little Re back then. Do you want me to go ask her to open her gate and let you move in?" Yan Fu frowned harshly. "Do you think you're changing? Why are you still this overbearing?"

"So you knew I was your daughter all along, and you were just deliberately doubting me to keep Yan Qingqiu around?" Fu Sang didn't feel all that triumphant. She felt more like a clown. Yan Qingqiu had left, taken her best friend, and was now living in her enemy's house.

Yan Fu didn't explain further and had the driver pull out. Fu Sang followed after him. "Where are you going?" She stared at Yan Fu and said bluntly, "Don't you feel guilty? Your own daughter wandering the streets."

Hearing this, Yan Fu no longer had any doubt about her identity. He knew clearly she was the daughter who had tormented him before. He spoke coldly. "Fine, I'll make it up to you. The Fu family just called. I'll swallow my pride and go to the Fu family to propose on your behalf—to compensate you. You've been wandering outside all these years; you've suffered. Prepare yourself well. This time, I won't stop you. You want to marry Fu Ye? Then I'll make it happen."

With that, he called to the driver up front, "Drive!"

The car sped off, leaving Fu Sang standing in the wind, dumbfounded. The butler led the maids to the neighboring courtyard, and the gate to the Yan house she wanted to enter was shut tight.

What the hell?

Yan Fu wouldn't let her into the house, and now he was trying to marry her off?

Wasn't he just favoring Yan Qingqiu?

After only half a year together, he favored her this much?

Fu Sang didn't get through the Yan family's gate. The Yan house was empty, while the Song house next door had a steady stream of visitors.

She stood outside, buffeted by the cold wind that gave her a headache, worse off than the maids who'd gone to the Song house. Her only choices now were to wait in her car or go to a hotel.

But if she went to a hotel, what was the point of coming here today?

Fu Sang was deeply unconvinced.

The car left the villa area, and Yan Fu relaxed, lying back. The driver asked the butler, "Is the master favoring the young lady?"

Yan Fu thought of the plans he'd made with Song Qingre in the study a few days ago and said, "If I favored her, would I go to the Fu family to propose on this one's behalf? Don't talk nonsense."

· ·

Once everything was briefly tidied up,

Song Qingre stood on the balcony, her gaze drifting downward. Snowflakes floated down, and she said, "She's got persistence. She's still waiting out there."

Yan Qingqiu felt pretty annoyed seeing Fu Sang's car. She didn't want her living in her house, so she scoffed, "If she put half that persistence into dealing with..." the system, her situation would be better than this. But she just had to disrupt the free development of this world.

Yan Qingqiu suddenly got curious. What had Fu Sang been like in her previous world? Why was she so stubborn, insisting on opposing them?

She wiped the railing, pressing her fingers onto it, and noticed the gaze of the person beside her. She asked Song Qingre, "Why do you keep looking at the top of my head?"

Song Qingre looked at her and said, "Because there's writing on your head."

"!"

"What?" Yan Qingqiu instinctively reached up to touch it, but only felt the cold snow. She patted her hair. Could it be that now that Fu Sang and her dad had reconciled, the system was eager to assign tasks?

But the system hadn't told her.

Yan Qingqiu quickly figured it out. It must be the system trying to send a task, but she was always with Song Qingre, so the task was being blocked by her. The system couldn't deliver.

Song Qingre whispered softly in her ear, "It's because I could see it that I brought you to my house first."

"!"

Yan Qingqiu said, "Is it that obvious?"

Song Qingre didn't answer. Yan Qingqiu quickly asked, "What is it?"

Song Qingre acted like she was too embarrassed to say.

She walked back inside and closed the balcony door, so nobody outside could peek in. The two of them talked quietly together inside.

"It's fine. Just say it, I can take it." Yan Qingqiu rubbed her arms, mentally prepared. Anyway, she had nothing to hide now. Better to deal with this as soon as possible. She asked, "Is it more lewd or more violent?"

Song Qingre was still taking her time walking around. Yan Qingqiu couldn't take it anymore. She pressed Song Qingre down to sit on the edge of the bed.

Song Qingre said, "Both. Lewd and violent."

Yan Qingqiu sucked in a sharp breath. "How many? Like, how many..." tasks.

"Not many. Maybe three. One is very clear. One is blurry."

"Tell me the blurry one first."

"Mm... Maybe it's having a child with an alpha." Song Qingre stroked her hair slowly, pulling information out as she thought.

"..." Yan Qingqiu wasn't surprised in the least. Simple and crude! The system had warned her before not to mess around with Song Qingre, not to have a child for the villain. So it turned out it wanted her to have a child for the scumbag.

Bleh!

Yan Qingqiu gritted her teeth. "So it really is about having a child." She went on, "Then what part is unclear?"

Song Qingre said, "How many you'd have."

"No wonder." Yan Qingqiu understood. That kind of thing was too unpredictable; who knew if a single pregnancy would bring twins or triplets.

"Then what about the clear one?"

The answer was pretty much what Yan Qingqiu had guessed. All the bleeped-out words earlier must have been this. She asked, "What's the question? Go on."

Song Qingre registered the expression on her face. So there's still a question... She lightly whispered the question in Yan Qingqiu's ear, "If your alpha goes into heat, what do you do? A: Ignore her and mock her..."

Yan Qingqiu answered without thinking, "B, B, B, B, B. There's no way I'd ever pick A!"

Song Qingre hummed, looking at Yan Qingqiu who stood before her, full of distress. "B: You walk up to the alpha, bend your waist down low, seduce her, and say, 'Come on, f**k me until I'm pregnant.'"

Yan Qingqiu went silent. She looked down at her stomach. "This level isn't about f**king me until I'm pregnant, is it?"

Song Qingre, not blushing at all, continued, "...Mm, you say you want to do it while pregnant, that you want to have another one."

Yan Qingqiu went silent again.

This was way too spicy!

No wonder it was the second level. Damn!

"So the other task..." Song Qingre glanced at her stomach. "You can probably guess, right?"

Help the alpha through her heat, get pregnant, have sex.

"Damn, so filthy. Whoever came up with all these weird tasks has a messed-up brain. Useless, just obsessed with lewd stuff! It's not like I can just get pregnant on command! The requirements are way too high!" Yan Qingqiu cursed a streak, then looked at Song Qingre and said, "That wasn't aimed at you!"

Song Qingre comforted her. "Don't be scared. I don't think getting pregnant matters that much. It's not something you can control. Worst case, we just try every day, and it'll happen eventually."

Yan Qingqiu was still furious and cursed a couple more times, her mouth hurting but her kidneys aching in sympathy. "Bastard, so disgusting. I know this task won't bring anything good. Why doesn't it just go..." die, "Mm... why are you covering my mouth?"

Yan Qingqiu's mouth was covered by Song Qingre, who pinched her lips, playing with them a little. "It's almost New Year's. No talk of death."

"It's fine. No rush on the pregnancy. Take it slow."

Yan Qingqiu swallowed her breath. This task was way too demanding. No wonder it was all bleeped out.

"Your tasks are: 1. Help the alpha get through seven days and seven nights of heat. 2. Seduce her. 3. Get pregnant."

Yan Qingqiu was about to cry. Whether she'd ever get pregnant in her life, she didn't know, but one thing she did know: if she couldn't get pregnant, she'd have to have sex for eternity.

Even though she was upset, she said seriously, "I don't think I'd pick B either."

Song Qingre was puzzled. "Why? Scared?"

"When facing an alpha in heat, I'd probably think about tying her up, standing beside her watching her suffer with desire, wanting this and that but not giving it, sitting on her and saying, 'Wife, beg me. Say you'll give me a baby, and I'll give you a little taste.' Forcing her to say she'll have my child." Yan Qingqiu said this with great shyness, but still tried to argue, "Isn't this just something the system used to trick me? Did you misread? I don't think this is my style."

Song Qingre bit her lip. "Ah, this isn't your style yet?" She thought for a moment, glanced at the top of her head, and Yan Qingqiu looked at her expectantly. If that were the case, the task might be a lot easier—it just depended on Song Qingre's cooperation.

"Are you sure what you just said is your innermost thought?"

Yan Qingqiu had never dared to face her own thoughts directly—mainly because her imagination was a bottomless pit. She rubbed her temples. "Let me think again. I might be able to get even more lewd."

Song Qingre didn't say anything. She watched Yan Qingqiu, quietly waiting for her to continue thinking. After a moment, Yan Qingqiu said in distress that she couldn't think of anything else.

Song Qingre comforted her by having her sit on her lap, saying she had read all the text clearly. She said unhurriedly, "1: Tie up the alpha about to go into heat and help her through it. 2: Seduce the alpha, force the alpha to give you a child."

"..." Yan Qingqiu blinked. Was it her imagination, or did the difficulty just go up? Did it raise its own difficulty?

Yan Qingqiu was baffled, feeling a certain spot against Song Qingre's thigh throb faintly. She swallowed and asked, "3, what's 3?"

Song Qingre's breathing was slightly heavy, and she said softly to Yan Qingqiu, "I think at this point, you don't need to worry about the 3 or not. Instead, you should consider whether you'll even survive after completing 1 and 2."