Chapter 6: Let That Day Be Bright and Sunny

“Ah, am I bothering you too much?”

Ji Yanli said coolly, “Or do you want to stand here and feed the mosquitoes?”

Tang Xiaohe didn’t want to, so she followed Ji Yanli back to his place.

After opening the door, Ji Yanli neatly arranged Tang Xiaohe’s things, took off his shoes, then took out a pair of pink slippers from the shoe cabinet and handed them to her. Judging by the color and size, they were clearly women’s slippers.

Seeing Tang Xiaohe a bit surprised, Ji Yanli explained, “They’re my mom’s.”

“I didn’t ask,” Tang Xiaohe said, pretending to be indifferent.

That little girl! Ji Yanli raised an eyebrow. “Fine, you didn’t ask. I just don’t want you to misunderstand.”

Sitting on the sofa, Tang Xiaohe looked around the interior. It was a classic black-white-gray modern minimalist style.

Unlike the typical image of a young man’s home, Ji Yanli’s place was simple, spotless, and the air smelled of refreshing mint—just like Ji Yanli himself.

“Do you live alone?” Tang Xiaohe was curious. Earlier at the police station, she heard Ji Yanli mention he was originally from South City, so she was a bit surprised he didn’t live with his family.

“Yeah, my family all live in the old house. This place is closer to my unit, so I live here alone,” Ji Yanli answered casually while looking in the fridge.

“Water, coffee, or cold brew tea? What do you want?”

It was late, and Tang Xiaohe didn’t want coffee, so she said, “Cold brew tea.”

She thought Ji Yanli meant the bottled drinks.

But to her surprise, Ji Yanli held a tea pot in one hand and two cups in the other, placing them on the coffee table—it was tea he brewed himself.

“This was brewed before I left in the morning, refrigerated for over eight hours. It’s just right now,” Ji Yanli poured a cup and handed it to Tang Xiaohe.

“Thanks, Officer Ji!”

“Just call me Yanli,” he said flatly, as if it was nothing special.

Tang Xiaohe took a sip and covered her smile that was about to break out. She was glad she had followed Lin Jing’s advice to move in with her.

Lin Jing was a great strategist; otherwise, how would she have the chance to enter Ji Yanli’s home, drink tea he brewed himself, and be allowed to call him by his first name so casually?
“How is it?” Ji Yanli asked.

He had lived with his grandfather for a long time; the old man loved tea and calligraphy. Ji Yanli wasn’t patient with calligraphy but liked tea brewing. Only close friends knew about this hobby, but no one shared his interest. He once regretted this but eventually accepted it as self-entertainment.

“Tsk, Da Hong Pao, right?” Tang Xiaohe took another sip and concluded.

Ji Yanli was surprised, “How do you know?”

“My dad is a heavy tea collector. None of his teas escaped my ‘abuse,’” Tang Xiaohe said and praised, “It’s brewed very well.”

Ji Yanli smiled, showing two shallow dimples, his eyes deep and shining with emotions Tang Xiaohe couldn’t understand.

Suddenly, Ji Yanli stood up. “Sit down, you can watch some TV while I get a power bank to charge the lock. It’ll be ready soon.”

At night, Tang Xiaohe brushed her teeth while looking in the mirror, thinking about what had happened that afternoon.

After the electronic lock was charged, Ji Yanli helped her carry the luggage up to the 21st floor.

After she thanked him and turned to enter, Ji Yanli was about to leave but suddenly turned back, bent close to her ear, and in a low voice, seductive and warm, said, “I saw the WeChat message you sent last time, but I forgot to reply. I don’t know if it’s too late now but thank you for your weather forecast—it made my day bright and sunny.”

Tang Xiaohe blushed deeply recalling that moment, her heart beating faster.

She wondered if such a charming man really existed in this world. She even thought of her weird blind dates before and couldn’t help but sigh at how different people could be.

But what did Ji Yanli mean by that?

Did he like her too?

Tang Xiaohe felt their relationship had grown closer but couldn’t tell if it was just friendship or adult-level flirting.

Her thoughts raced back and forth, imagining their current situation, fantasizing about life with Ji Yanli, even picturing moments where he would flirt or tease her. She swallowed nervously, not noticing that the foam in her mouth was swallowed down, making her cough and quickly rinse.

Looking in the mirror at herself still smiling foolishly, Tang Xiaohe gave herself a self-review with four words: “Bubbly idiot.”

After washing up, she fed Lin Jing’s precious pets. Feeling happy, she decided to give them an extra treat. In the fridge were some raw meat portions Lin Jing had prepared earlier, and as Tang Xiaohe defrosted it, Dry Rice Cat Zhaocai was already sitting nearby, watching intently. Zhaotao and Laifu circled her feet.

She patted Zhaocai’s head, those glass-like eyes staring in unison. If animals could talk, she guessed they’d say, “Xiaohe, you’re our god!”

Tang Xiaohe felt the happiness Lin Jing must feel raising so many pets.

People really can’t help but think and worry.

Hum humming a tune, she finished dividing the food into bowls when her phone rang.
“You know I wanna be your destiny…”

She picked up the phone; it was Lin Jing.

“Hey~”

“I’m checking up on you. Have you spoiled my babies yet?”

“Yeah, I spoiled them. Didn’t feed them, just gave drinks. Didn’t play with them, even hit them a bit.”

“Oh! What a heartless one!”

Tang Xiaohe laughed at Lin Jing’s exaggerated tone, “Alright, enough teasing. Here’s the real thing. Jingjing, I really need to thank you for the lock today!”

“What do you mean?”

Lin Jing was confused and didn’t understand what Tang Xiaohe was talking about.

“Ji Yanli sent me home. Your lock, it was very thoughtful and ran out of battery! Then he invited me to his place…”

Tang Xiaohe quickly told her about today’s events. There was a long silence on the other end; Tang Xiaohe thought the signal was bad. Just as she moved the phone closer, Lin Jing screamed into the receiver.

“Ahhh—”

Tang Xiaohe quietly moved the phone away. Her relationship with Ji Yanli was progressing, and Lin Jing was even more excited than she was.

“This guy is way too good at this!”

Tang Xiaohe nodded silently in agreement.

“At this pace, you’ll be going to his place in just a few days, getting married and having kids soon! Go for it, sister. I believe in you. Don’t waste how thoughtful my lock was~”