Chapter 13: My Hand Is Itching! Must… Pet…

Mǐ Qiū realized she had forgotten to feed Ruǎn Bái Bái. It was supposed to eat and drink at this exact time. She had been so engrossed in her novel lately that she’d completely lost track.

Just then, Zhù Shāngchén slowly said to her, “I’ve already fed it.”

Mǐ Qiū finally let out a sigh of relief.

Now she didn’t have to worry about it anymore. Otherwise, Ruǎn Bái Bái would have been frantic by now.

“Oh, thank you so much. If it weren’t for you, Ruǎn Bái Bái would still be starving. It can’t stand being hungry at all. The moment it gets hungry, it starts jumping around, rolling over, and protesting my neglect with all its might.”

To express her gratitude, Mǐ Qiū offered her hand for a handshake.

As their hands clasped firmly, Shěn Qīnghuái, who was leaning against a bookshelf with one knee slightly bent, casually walked between them, bumping their hands apart.

Then, in a slow drawl, he said, “Sorry, I didn’t see you.”

At that moment, Mǐ Qiū could have sworn she saw a golden wolf with a long tail and a snow leopard secretly sizing each other up.

At first, Mǐ Qiū thought it was just her imagination, but then she suddenly saw a tail swaying behind Shěn Qīnghuái. It was real, and fluffy, and looked so soft~

So, she stealthily reached out and stroked the golden wolf’s exposed tail. A tiny little pet like this probably wouldn’t be noticed, right?

He might look fierce, but his spiritual body was just so adorable.

Mǐ Qiū couldn’t control her hand. She didn’t notice Shěn Qīnghuái’s eyes were lowered, a faint, almost imperceptible smile playing on his lips.

Wow! It was so nice to pet! The texture was hard to describe!

“It seems Guide Mǐ Qiū enjoys doing mischievous things in secret.”

Shěn Qīnghuái then added with a touch of傲娇 (ào jiāo – prideful arrogance), “If you’re going to touch it, then touch it all you want…”

Mǐ Qiū quickly waved her hands, laughing awkwardly. “No, no, that’s alright.”

Getting caught like this was really uncomfortable!

Oh well, she thought, it’s not like his is the only spiritual body out.

Mǐ Qiū fixed her gaze on the tail of Zhù Shāngchén’s snow leopard, preparing to sneak in a pet when no one was looking.

But then she heard Shěn Qīnghuái’s voice from behind her, drawling, “Guide Mǐ Qiū—”

Mǐ Qiū froze on the spot. With his voice that loud, wouldn’t everyone have heard?

In the end, she had no choice but to retract her guilty little paw.

Shěn Qīnghuái didn’t forget to add, his voice a few shades deeper than usual as he stood beside her, “I don’t permit you to touch other people’s spiritual bodies.”

Fine, then. Even if her hand was itching, Mǐ Qiū had to give up, lest he find some other way to tease her about it.

Hè Chí, dressed in a pure white lab coat, saw Mǐ Qiū walking towards him, looking a bit lost and listless. He pulled a piece of dried insectoid mango from his front pocket.

“Dried mango? Want one?”

Mǐ Qiū could actually tolerate the jerky-like taste, but its shape, a complete insectoid mother, was something she really couldn’t examine too closely.

Mǐ Qiū said, “Didn’t I give you two pieces last time? You’ve kept this all along.”

“Yes.”

“If you like it, I have a whole big bag. I can give them all to you.”

Hè Chí replied, “Oh, that would be great.”

Shěn Qīnghuái and Zhù Shāngchén, in different corners of the room, had already glanced at Mǐ Qiū countless times.

Under the current circumstances, Mǐ Qiū couldn’t continue reading her book. If they saw it, how embarrassing would that be? It wasn’t anything else, really, just that some of the scenes inside were a bit explicit, with some… stimulating situations thrown in every now and then.

Just thinking about it made her a little excited!

Mǐ Qiū announced, “Well, I’ve finished all the books I wanted to read, so I’ll be heading back now.”

Only Shěn Qīnghuái knew that her fidgeting and hiding were not the actions of someone who had finished a book. She clearly wanted to keep reading. What a little liar!

So, Shěn Qīnghuái said, “Alright, then I’ll walk back with Guide Mǐ Qiū.”

Mǐ Qiū suddenly felt the gazes of the other two men on her, sending a chill down her spine.

Maybe she should stay here a bit longer. It wouldn’t be right to leave with just one of them.

It would make it seem like she wasn’t on good terms with the others.

If that happened, then after her mission was over, they’d surely gossip about her behind her back.

Sigh, Officer Hè was right. Don’t offend people, don’t offend people, definitely don’t offend people!

Especially the distinguished guests on the island. Important things must be said three times.

Mǐ Qiū could only be on her best behavior and wait for everyone to leave together.

It was still early. When they weren’t looking, Mǐ Qiū, with lightning speed, snatched the novel she had just been reading.

The others were clearly not interested in the kind of books she read and had all found their own suitable reading material.

The atmosphere in the island bookstore was exceptionally quiet.

Currently, there were only the four of them on the island, so they could probably read for as long as they wanted.

Even if it got dark, it wouldn’t matter.

The bookstore had a self-service water dispenser and coffee machine.

Thankfully, it wasn’t Star Nest coffee. This brand of coffee had sugar and milk in its ingredients, which made it much more enjoyable to drink.

She hadn’t been much of a coffee drinker before, but during the three years she spent preparing for the college entrance exams, coffee became a necessity for late-night study sessions.

So, she gradually grew to like coffee, but only the sweet kind. She still couldn’t quite handle bitter coffee. When she got tired from reading her novel, a cup of coffee was a great way to perk up.

Seeing this, Hè Chí showed more concern for her. “You should drink less coffee. It stimulates the nerves and keeps you excited, but it can also affect your sleep.”

Mǐ Qiū had something to say about that.

“It’s still the afternoon, not nighttime yet. A little coffee is fine. In fact, I feel quite comfortable when I have a cup in the afternoon.”

After finishing her cup of coffee, Mǐ Qiū was full of energy again.

She returned to her spot and continued with the story.

Mǐ Qiū once again opened Fiercely Doting on My Delicate Darling.

The broad-shouldered, narrow-waisted man was dressed in royal attire, his clothes predominantly black, adorned with red gems on the shoulders and belt.

He observed the woman, lifting her chin with one hand, his thumb stroking it gently, feeling the fragrance of the woman lingering on his fingertips. Once that scent was on you, you couldn’t stop.

Moonlight streamed through the window lattice. A romantic scene was about to unfold…

A sound came from the window. It was the vampire prince, sitting on the windowsill. He turned just in time to see the scene.

The woman’s beauty, her slender swan-like neck, he loved the bluish-purple veins under her fair skin. The moment the blood surged, it was like a fine wine aged for millennia, a taste to be savored…

But right now, she was in a room with his dearest brother.

Her slightly parted cherry-like lips made him lick his own.

The man’s extremely sensitive ears heard the sound from outside the window.

He knew who was peeping at them.

Yet, he didn’t stop his actions. He didn’t draw the curtains, but instead tightened his grip on her chin and gently kissed her.

Then, a knock came at the door.

Outside was another one of the heroine’s admirers.

…

Mǐ Qiū could hardly contain her excitement.

She cackled like a “dark fairy.”

Mǐ Qiū held her breath, not daring to look any further.

If it weren’t for the three shadows that had appeared behind her, Mǐ Qiū wouldn’t have dropped the novel in her shock.

The open page just happened to be the kissing scene.

To avoid further embarrassment, Mǐ Qiū prepared to quickly pick it up.

Zhù Shāngchén picked it up first. He did, however, close the book without looking.

Shěn Qīnghuái said, “It’s getting late. Isn’t Guide Mǐ Qiū planning on leaving?”

Only then did Mǐ Qiū look out the window and realize that the sky had already started to darken. It was time to leave.

Anyway, she had already finished the crucial part of the plot, so Mǐ Qiū was content.

Hmm, I’ll wait until tomorrow to read the rest.

But why did the three of them always sneak up behind her without making a sound?

She was almost exposed! That was a close call. Actually, she had a faint feeling that they had seen something…

Half an hour later, the three of them walked out of the island bookstore together. Mǐ Qiū noticed they were all silent.

So, she took the initiative to start a conversation again, asking them what they had gotten out of their trip to the bookstore.

Zhù Shāngchén, of course, spoke from the perspective of a professional sniper, talking about the use of some heavy firearms and so on. Hè Chí, naturally, talked about his experiments.

Shěn Qīnghuái, however, was different. He said he wasn’t very interested in books. He was more of a hands-on person.

“I also know what Guide Mǐ Qiū is interested in.”

Mǐ Qiū seemed to understand what he was about to say and pulled him closer.

This was exactly what Shěn Qīnghuái wanted. He deliberately lowered his voice.

“Guide Mǐ Qiū is very interested in men.”

Oh, well, that was… ridiculous.

Mǐ Qiū didn’t agree with him; she couldn’t possibly agree with his view.

But she didn’t deny it either, simply because he had seen through her too many times.

So, Mǐ Qiū began her silent protest.

Anyway, the more you say, the more you’re likely to make a mistake. It’s better to just keep quiet…

Finally, they returned to the wooden cabin, the place where Mǐ Qiū felt most comfortable.

Ruǎn Bái Bái had been waiting for her impatiently. Although it had already eaten and drunk its fill, because Mǐ Qiū wasn’t there, the little bunny was like a wilted eggplant.

It had been hopping from one end of its box to the other. This was what Ruǎn Bái Bái did when it was anxious. Mǐ Qiū had no choice but to strictly regulate her reading time each day.

With this plan, she would never forget about Ruǎn Bái Bái again. She held Ruǎn Bái Bái in her arms and coaxed it for a long, long time. Ruǎn Bái Bái was so sleepy it couldn’t keep its eyes open. Mǐ Qiū knew she had finally lulled it to sleep.

Holding Ruǎn Bái Bái, she could feel how delicate its bones were, incredibly soft.

Mǐ Qiū couldn’t bear to hold it too tightly and placed it back in its little nest.

Watching Ruǎn Bái Bái sleep soundly, Mǐ Qiū was very happy. Now, when she should have been lying down to rest, Mǐ Qiū discovered…

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