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Gu Si immediately got up from Ning Qingyan’s lap, sat upright with his legs tightly pressed together, and assumed a serious posture.
He was immensely grateful that he had worn a loose, long robe today. Even though his body was reacting excitedly, the fabric covered everything securely.
Otherwise, if Ning Qingyan and Wen Shijin saw it, he would die of embarrassment on the spot and book a flight out of here tonight.
Compared to Gu Si, who was flustered and guilty, Ning Qingyan remained calm. As she meticulously wiped a tiny drop of water off her fingers with a tissue, she sighed helplessly:
“Brother, you should know him by now. He’s always bossing me around. This time, he insisted on lying on my lap and having me feed him desserts. I’m too weak to resist him, so I could only let him bully me…”
Hearing her speak such nonsense so seriously while wiping her fingers, Gu Si’s ears turned red. He immediately bent over, clutching his stomach in an attempt to cover up, then quickly got up from the sofa and rushed to his bedroom while saying:
“The dessert must’ve been bad! My stomach hurts—I’m going back to rest. I’ll skip dinner.”
Gu Si ran off as fast as he could, making a quick exit from the living room.
Wen Shijin, with his usual gentle expression, suddenly became serious and told Ning Qingyan earnestly:
“If he bullies you again, call me. Don’t just let him do as he pleases, or he’ll take it further. Got it?”
Surprisingly, Wen Shijin believed Ning Qingyan’s words without question.
Looking at the serious-faced man, Ning Qingyan suddenly found him inexplicably adorable—like an overprotective father warning his daughter not to be fooled by some rascal outside.
She obediently nodded and, with a slight coaxing tone, replied:
“I know, brother. Next time, I’ll call you.”
Only then did Wen Shijin relax, a faint smile appearing on his lips. His voice returned to its usual warmth:
“Dinner’s ready. Let’s eat.”
Ning Qingyan responded with a cheerful “Okay” and followed Wen Shijin to the dining table.
Because Yun Danyi had suddenly fallen ill, they had only eaten half of their previous meal. Ever since her rebirth, Ning Qingyan had been eating slowly to take care of her stomach, so she hadn’t felt full at the time.
While she ate, Wen Shijin went to call the other two for dinner. However, one was busy cooling himself down with a cold shower, and the other was completely immersed in work, forgetting to eat altogether.
At first, Wen Shijin worried that there would be too much leftover food and that it wouldn’t taste good the next day. But to his surprise, Ning Qingyan alone finished three-fourths of the dishes. The remaining one-fourth, not wanting to waste food, was eaten by Wen Shijin with some effort.
After all, they had barely eaten all day, so their appetites were quite strong.
Once she was full, Ning Qingyan leaned back in her chair, too stuffed to move.
Seeing her discomfort, Wen Shijin went to get her some digestive tablets and poured her a cup of warm water. His voice was gentle as he said:
“Rest for a while. Take the medicine in about ten minutes before going to sleep, or you’ll feel bloated all night.”
Ning Qingyan obediently nodded, thanked him, and then lay in her chair playing on her phone while she waited.
Wen Shijin, gazing at her, unconsciously showed a hint of affection. He sat down to keep her company, picking up a book from the shelf and quietly reading beside her.
The two of them sat in silence, each doing their own thing, yet the atmosphere was inexplicably warm and comfortable, without any awkwardness.
For some reason, if it were anyone else sitting beside her, Ning Qingyan felt she would have to exchange a few words to maintain her usual cheerful persona.
But Wen Shijin had a natural presence that made those around him feel at ease. Sitting next to him, she didn’t have to overthink or put up an act—she could just relax and do whatever she wanted.
Perhaps that was the charm of true warmth.
Meanwhile, the online world was far livelier than reality.
Yun Danyi’s stunning, almost unreal appearance, combined with his blue-and-white basketball uniform and 183 cm height, gave him an unmatched youthful aura.
With Heartbeat Acceleration already being a massively popular show, and him suddenly appearing as a special guest—only to end up coughing blood and being rushed to the hospital—it caused a social media frenzy.
From afternoon to evening, discussions about him trended in the top three on Weibo.
Soon, all discussions about Yun Danyi’s illegitimacy were wiped from Weibo, making everyone marvel at the Yun family’s power.
At the same time, Heartbeat Acceleration‘s official account launched its final vote for Who Is the Undercover Player?
Ning Qingyan had been pushed down from third to fourth place thanks to her fans’ efforts.
However, after Gu Si’s flirtatious comment at noon, rational viewers—who had previously been neutral—began voting for her, shooting her back up to second place.
Gu Si himself was now in third.
It became clear that people suspected Ning Qingyan because Gu Si had been “seducing” her, trying to make her fall for him and avoid confessing to another female contestant.
As a result, anyone who got close to Ning Qingyan was now just as suspicious as she was.
Lying in bed after showering, Ning Qingyan scrolled through Weibo and saw all the accusations against her.
She had worked so hard to maintain her “sweet and innocent” persona, yet now she was at risk of losing everything.
She quickly opened her Green Tea System to check her favorability stats and available skills.
She found a purchasable skill: “A Weibo post of your choice will trend at #1 for 24 hours (30 favorability points required).”
She exchanged for it but decided to wait for the right moment to use it—misusing it could backfire.
She shut off her phone and closed her eyes.
Meanwhile, Gu Si hadn’t left his room since his incident on the couch.
After taking a freezing shower and punching a sandbag for a while, he finally calmed down.
Yet, the sensation of Ning Qingyan’s soft fingers brushing against his lips still lingered in his mind, making his face flush all over again.
Blaming it on being single for too long, he opened his phone and searched:
“Why do I get hard from the slightest touch of someone I like? Am I sick?”
Doctor’s response:
“It’s a normal physiological reaction. Some people are just more sensitive.”
Gu Si: “How do I fix it?”
Doctor: “Do it a few more times.”
Gu Si: …
That was impossible.
As he gloomily washed his underwear the next morning, he suddenly heard a knock at the door.
“Brother, breakfast is ready.”
Startled, he instinctively threw his underwear across the room before quickly coughing and responding:
“Got it! I’ll be right there!”