Zhan Qingyue didn’t intentionally schedule his business trip for Valentine’s Day.

The trip was very important and needed either him or Zhan Qingyuan to handle it personally.

He had originally planned to delegate it to Zhan Qingyuan, who was currently in a difficult period, dealing with a woman he couldn’t get over in A City.

However, when Zhan Qingyuan took over as the deputy general manager, he found that the project was a mess and was too overwhelmed to go on the trip.

So, Zhan Qingyue had to go himself.

By the time he finished negotiations, it was already 6 p.m.

The host, President Lin, stood up and extended his hand to Zhan Qingyue with a smile, saying, “It’s been a pleasure working with you, Mr. Zhan.”

“Likewise,” Zhan Qingyue shook his hand politely.

“Young and talented, Mr. Zhan. It’s impressive to see someone so capable at such a young age. Us older folks feel quite inferior,” President Lin praised. “I’ve booked a place nearby to celebrate. Let’s go together.”

“Thank you for your kindness, President Lin, but I have an 8 p.m. flight and must head back.”

“Such a rush?” President Lin was puzzled. “Don’t you want to stay overnight?”

Zhan Qingyue replied, “Today is a special day. If I don’t get back, I might not be able to explain.”

President Lin thought, “You don’t seem like someone who needs to explain anything to anyone.”

Realizing it was Valentine’s Day, he understood and said regretfully, “That’s a shame. I was hoping to chat more with you.”

President Lin had originally intended to find out if the young Zhan Qingyue was single, and if so, introduce his daughter to him.

Now it seemed there was no hope.

It was a pity that such an outstanding man was already taken.

Meanwhile, the woman who had won Zhan Qingyue’s heart was at home, playing a game as a female warrior in a 2v2 arena.

With a scream from the female warrior, Ning Qiuxui’s screen turned black and white as the warrior lay on the ground, defeated.

At the same time, her headset blared with the voice of number , “Oh my god, how did you die again? My ranking is dropping because of you. You’re really messing things up.”

Today, when No.1 Hammer saw Ning Qiuxui online after a long time, he happily invited her to play 2v2 and hoped to subtly ask about Qi Yu to see how he could join the club.

However, he didn’t expect Ning Qiuxui to be so inexperienced.

Her performance was like that of a newbie, with a zero-win and five-loss record.

He had just managed to reach platinum rank and was about to drop back to gold.

Ning Qiuxui, who had no idea about arena strategies, was clueless. “I’m trying to position myself. Don’t you know you have to play cautiously in the arena? If you can’t win a round, you should retreat and wait for skills to recharge.”

Ning Qiuxui, who had only done PvP, didn’t understand arena tactics.

The opponents, who had a healer, took advantage of the situation.

Once Ning Qiuxui fell, they relentlessly attacked the top player and quickly defeated him, ending their game.

“Let’s keep queuing,” Ning Qiuxui eagerly said. “It’s my first time in the arena. Even though I got beaten badly, I’m enjoying the game. I’ll do better next time.”

“You say that every time!” The top player was exasperated. “Did something happen to you? Who upset you? I’ll deal with them!”

Ning Qiuxui replied coldly, “Oh, it’s Qi Yu who upset me. Go deal with him.”

“… Never mind, you can keep worrying then.”

“??? Have some decency.”

Ning Qiuxiu couldn’t understand how Zhan Qingyue’s dark-hearted charm was so compelling.

She remembered that Tang Yu—also known as the number one hammer—was initially boasting about how he would smash Chi Yu into a state of disarray.

So how did he end up being his fan now?

“This is respect for strength, do you understand? Respect!” Tang Yu said, then, with a gossipy tone, added, “Sis, you and Chi Yu aren’t really involved, are you? Did you fail in confessing to him, or did you not receive his confession and are feeling upset?”

“…” Ning Qiuxiu had actually just wanted to play some games to pass the time during this holiday filled with dog food.

Instead, the number one hammer himself wanted to queue up with her for the arena, and since she had nothing else to do, she happily agreed.

“No,” Ning Qiuxiu said, “I just wanted to increase your game difficulty. Queue up quickly.”

Number One Hammer: “…”

He wanted to cry.

Why on earth did he think of teaming up with Ning Qiuxiu?

It turned out that female celebrities playing games were all just a scam.

Ning Qiuxiu successfully dropped Number One Hammer’s rank to Gold, feeling quite satisfied.

After closing the game amidst his lamentations, she was about to take a shower when she heard a knock on the door.

Who would be knocking at this late hour? Ning Qiuxiu wondered as she rubbed her aching shoulders and went to open the door.

When she saw the person standing there, she was stunned, even wondering if she should rub her eyes to check if she was seeing things.

“Surprise.” Zhan Qingyue smiled.

He was still dressed in a formal business suit, wearing a tie, looking as if he had just finished negotiating with the President of the United States.

This made him holding a large gift box seem somewhat out of place.

“…” Ning Qiuxiu didn’t know how to react. She was touched, but with this dog’s unpredictable antics, she feared she might not be able to resist causing some harm to the patient.

Not feeling touched? Well, maybe a little bit.

“Still angry?” Zhan Qingyue noticed she wasn’t speaking and reached out to pat her on the head, but Ning Qiuxui dodged.

She was really mad.

“I was just kidding. Didn’t you say you wanted a cold war? I thought this way would be more in line with that. Otherwise, if I didn’t let you enjoy the cold war, wouldn’t that just mean I’d end up in the doghouse?”

Ning Qiuxui: “……”

He actually has a point.

“The entertainment company planned to give this to you from the start. It was registered under your name,” he said, handing her a gift box. “I’m not tricking you this time. Happy Valentine’s Day, Qiuxui.”

Zhan Qingyue was rarely this sincere.

He usually preferred to set traps and lure his prey into them step by step.

But Ning Qiuxui often defied expectations, avoiding his traps in various ways, so he had to be straightforward this time.

Ning Qiuxui had been tricked by him numerous times.

Even though he claimed it wasn’t a trap, she knew it was the ultimate trap—once she fell for it, she might not be able to get out unless he let her.

Yet, the trap was so enticing that she was tempted to agree, though she felt it was too easy on him and was unwilling.

After thinking for a moment, she accepted the gift box from Zhan Qingyue and said mysteriously, “I’ve prepared a Valentine’s Day gift for you too. I’ll deliver it to your room in half an hour.”

Zhan Qingyue smiled. “I’m looking forward to it.”

Ning Qiuxui returned to her room with the gift box. Zhan Qingyue had indeed not tricked her this time.

Inside the box were sky-blue roses on top, with chocolates and a limited-edition silk scarf underneath.

He had learned from his previous mistake and avoided giving lipstick, fearing another disastrous color.

Ning Qiuxui suspected that Zhan Qingyue couldn’t have come up with such a romantic gift on his own.

She wondered if he had consulted someone like Kong Ming for advice.

After Zhan Qingyue took a shower and it was nearly midnight, he sat on the sofa, massaging his legs.

His feet hadn’t fully recovered, and after a long day, they were aching badly.

He figured he wouldn’t be able to walk tomorrow.

He was looking forward to the gift Ning Qiuxui was bringing. When he checked his phone, he saw a WeChat screenshot from Jingjing.

He opened it and was amused and bewildered.

It was a screenshot from Weibo, showing Ning Qiuxui’s post of their cat Miaomiao.

Unfortunately, Zhan Qingyue’s coat was also visible in the background.

Keen-eyed fans noticed and Ning Qiuxui had replied, referring to Zhan Qingyue as… “Daddy”?

What the heck, “Daddy”? Zhan Qingyue was unsure whether to laugh or be angry.

If this kept up, he’d end up feeling like an old father.

Ning Qiuxui, as if on cue, knocked on his door exactly half an hour later.

But instead of a gift, she was carrying a pillow.

“……” The so-called gift was just another demand for him to care for her?

“I’m here to make amends,” Ning Qiuxui said as she threw the pillow onto his bed with a bold statement.

Zhan Qingyue: “……”

Is this… a gift?!

It seems so. Ning Qiuxiu asked, “Mr. Zhan, how much did you prepare for me?”

Zhan Qingyue was both amused and helpless. “Qiuxiu, stop joking around.”

“I’m not joking. Didn’t you say you’d buy me? Now that I’m here to sell myself, you’re denying it?”

Still upset, Ning Qiuxiu stood stubbornly, refusing to sit next to him on the sofa where Zhan Qingyue had taken a seat.

He said helplessly, “Qiuxiu, I’ve never pursued a girl before. I might be a bit out of touch with the times, having been out of the dating scene for over two years.

I might not fully understand how to handle the feelings of younger girls, so I’m a bit lacking in emotional intelligence.”

“Oh, so you know.”

“So,” Zhan Qingyue took her hand, “please give me another chance to make an effort and pursue you properly. Is that okay, Qiuxiu?”

“…” The sudden straightforwardness.

After knowing each other for so long, Zhan Qingyue had always been subtly flirtatious, with her interpreting his hints on her own.

He had never been so formally clear about wanting to pursue her.

Zhan Qingyue looked up at her with a clear and serious gaze. “Is that alright?”

Ning Qiuxiu wanted to say no, but her head involuntarily nodded.

Forget it, it’s hard to find such a good man even with a lantern.

“I’ll work hard,” Zhan Qingyue said with a light smile, glancing at his watch.

With three minutes left until midnight, he added, “Miss Ning, at the end of this beautiful festival, may I take the liberty of borrowing a kiss?”

Having just been confessed to so earnestly and with her own brave and fearless attitude towards “selling herself,” Ning Qiuxiu was already a bit embarrassed.

Hearing Zhan Qingyue’s gentlemanly yet rogue-like question made her mood delicate, even slightly annoyed.

She shook off his hand and said, “…No, go away.”

Zhan Qingyue: “…”

What did he do wrong this time?

This woman’s mood changes faster than flipping a book.