236: Chapter 236 He complains about being tired, but his body tells a different story.

The Alph moved steadily along the night road.

Xu Qingya leaned back in the aviation seat, kicked off her flats, and stepped on the floor wearing a pair of little white socks.

She tilted her head to look at Shen Nian, who was curled up in the seat beside her.

Shen Nian kept her knees together, her hands resting on her legs, sitting very properly.

Xu Qingya took a bottle of mineral water from the armrest box and handed it over.

"Drink some water."

Shen Nian took it, unscrewed the cap, and took a small sip.

"Thank you, Sister Xu."

Xu Qingya did not rush to speak.

The streetlamp lights outside the car window swept across Shen Nian's profile one by one.

Early twenties, with fair skin, the way she lowered her head to drink water made her look like a college student.

"Shen Nian."

"Hmm?"

"When did you start liking Jiang Fan?"

The water in Shen Nian's mouth almost sprayed out.

She hurriedly covered her mouth with the back of her hand and coughed twice.

Xu Qingya did not rush her, just watching like that.

Shen Nian screwed the bottle cap back on, her face turning red all the way from her neck to the tips of her ears.

"I..."

"Don't be nervous. Just chatting casually."

Shen Nian lowered her head, her voice so soft it was almost inaudible.

"When participating in The Sound of Nature."

The car was quiet for a few seconds.

Xu Qingya reached out and gently patted Shen Nian's head.

"Little girl."

Shen Nian looked up at her, not understanding what those three words meant.

Xu Qingya withdrew her hand and leaned back in a comfortable posture.

"If you like him, fight for it. Why do you think Su Yuyan came today? If you don't reach out, others will take it away. Relying solely on that well-behaved appearance won't last long with Jiang Fan."

Shen Nian raised her head and bit her lip.

"I didn't think about fighting for anything. As long as I can stay by his side, that's enough."

Xu Qingya let out a laugh.

"Not fighting? When his side is full of people, you won't even have a place to stand."

Xu Qingya turned her head to look at her.

"You went and asked for the role of the Jade Rabbit Spirit yourself, right?"

Shen Nian nodded.

"Right, this is the first step." Xu Qingya's tone calmed down. "After entering the crew later, act well. Don't let him think you're a useless vase."

Shen Nian clutched the mineral water bottle and didn't make a sound for a long time.

Xu Qingya closed her eyes and leaned against the back of the seat.

"Su Yuyan is not an easy person to deal with, and Tang Yingxue also has a fiery temper. At your tier, going in makes you mere cannon fodder."

"In the future, if you have any issues, you can come to me."

Shen Nian was stunned.

She looked at Xu Qingya's profile with closed eyes.

Xu Qingya was competing with her for the same man.

Logically speaking, this Diva should be wishing she would just disappear.

Shen Nian bit her lip, not knowing whether she should ask or not.

Xu Qingya still had her eyes closed, her voice echoing in the carriage.

"Don't overthink it. I'm not trying to win you over."

"Then why, Sister Xu, did you..."

"Because you're no threat." Xu Qingya's lips curved up slightly. "Besides, having one more person on my side is better than letting Su Yuyan pull you over."

Shen Nian: "..."

Fine, it sounded quite sincere.

——

Li Cheng's commercial vehicle entered the outer ring road.

Jiang Fan leaned against the front passenger seat, closing his eyes to rest.

Today's events spun around in his mind.

Four women appeared at the Orphanage at the same time, and the gunpowder smell at the dinner table almost blew up the Orphanage.

Mother Fang's scolding was not undeserved.

But Xu Qingya's performance today wasn't an act.

From entering the kitchen to help cut vegetables to proactively washing dishes, she had chatted with Mother Fang for the entire afternoon.

That woman standing by the sink wearing a floral apron was completely different from Diva Xu on stage, stepping on high heels and making tens of thousands scream with a single word.

Although Su Yuyan was powerful with throwing money around, there was always a barrier between her and Mother Fang.

Shen Nian was young and still in the stage of trying to please people.

Song Siyi was one of their own, no need to compete.

Xu Qingya's thoughtfulness today shouldn't be left out in the cold.

"Brother Fan, where are we going?" Li Cheng asked.

"To Xu Qingya's place."

Li Cheng turned the steering wheel to the right and changed lanes onto the ramp.

"I knew it."

Jiang Fan opened his eyes and glanced at him.

"You don't know shit."

"Teacher Xu cut vegetables all afternoon today, and her hands are even red. What is she even after?" Li Cheng glanced at Jiang Fan from the rearview mirror. "It wouldn't make sense not to go check on her."

Jiang Fan didn't answer.

After driving for two minutes, Li Cheng muttered another sentence.

"To be honest, Teacher Xu's apron look today... was quite pretty."

"Shut up and drive your car."

"Alrighty."

——

Forty minutes later, the car stopped in front of Xu Qingya's small western-style house.

Jiang Fan pressed the access password and pushed open the door to go inside. The lights were not on, and she hadn't returned yet.

He turned on the porch light. On the shoe cabinet were a few pairs of shoes that Xu Qingya usually wore, neatly arranged.

He changed into slippers, hung his coat on the porch coat rack, and went to the kitchen first to pour a glass of water to drink.

Then he entered the bathroom.

——

Fifteen minutes later, there was movement over at the entrance.

The footsteps walked inward from the door and suddenly stopped for a moment.

Xu Qingya's gaze swept over the extra pair of men's leather shoes beside the shoe cabinet.

The corners of her mouth couldn't help but curve upwards.

She didn't make a sound, walking inside on tiptoe.

The living room lights were not on, and the bedroom door at the end of the corridor was half-open, letting out a sliver of light.

Xu Qingya walked to the bedroom doorway and heard the showerhead in the bathroom still running.

She let her hair down from the hairpin, letting it scatter over her shoulders.

She took off her outer cardigan, unzipped her long dress, and put the clothes into the dirty clothes hamper at the end of the bed.

The bathroom door wasn't locked.

She pushed the door open, and a wave of heat hit her face.

Jiang Fan stood under the showerhead with his back to the door, water streaming down his shoulders and back.

Hearing the commotion, he turned his head to take a look.

"You're back."

Xu Qingya didn't answer.

She threw the last item on her body onto the vanity sink, stepped barefoot on the wet floor tiles, and walked into the shower room.

The hot water poured over both of them at the same time.

Xu Qingya wrapped her arms around his waist from behind, her face pressed against his shoulder blades.

"I'm a bit tired today," she said in a muffled voice.

Jiang Fan turned around and looked down at her.

Her hair was soaked through by the water, sticking to her face.

"If you're tired, don't move. Let me do it."

Jiang Fan helped Xu Qingya apply shower gel all over her body.

Then he supported Xu Qingya's lower back with one hand, turned her around, and pressed her against the glass partition of the shower room.

Xu Qingya's waist slumped down a section, her hands supporting herself on the glass.

Her chest pressed against the mist-covered glass.

The icy touch made her shoulders suddenly shrink.

"It's cold..."

"Give me your hand."

Xu Qingya released her right hand from the glass and passed it back to him.

There were a few faint red marks on her fingertips—those from cutting vegetables in the afternoon.

Jiang Fan took her fingers into his mouth, the tip of his tongue sweeping across her fingertips.

Xu Qingya trembled slightly, her entire body leaning forward half an inch, increasing the area pressing against the glass.

Jiang Fan's movements stopped.

"Jiang Fan..."

"Hmm?"

"Why did you stop moving?"

"You just said you were tired today."

"I am tired, but—I didn't tell you to stop—"

The water from the showerhead poured over the two of them, and the sounds in the bathroom became denser and denser.

——

After more than forty minutes, Jiang Fan took a step back, supported her waist, and helped rinse her clean.

Xu Qingya turned around and leaned against him, letting the hot water pour over both of them.

"Jiang Fan."

"Hmm."

"Did Mother Fang scold you today?"

"How do you know?"

"After you came out of the utility room, your ears were red." Xu Qingya looked up at him, her wet eyelashes blinking twice. "What did Mother Fang say?"

"She told me to have a conscience as a human being."

Xu Qingya reached out and pinched a handful of flesh at his waist.

"Then do you have a conscience?"

Jiang Fan turned off the showerhead, grabbed a bath towel, and wrapped it around her body.

"Yes, aren't I right here?"

Xu Qingya let out a hum, wrapped in the bath towel as she walked out of the shower room.

Jiang Fan followed behind her out.

The blue system panel emerged at the edge of his retina.

[Deep Compatibility × 1, Lifespan Value + 3000]

[Current Lifespan Value: 115,300 points]

Jiang Fan flicked his mind and turned off the system panel.

Xu Qingya had already crawled into bed, pulling the quilt up to her chin, leaving only her face exposed.

Jiang Fan wiped his head—

He didn't have much hair now anyway, so it took just two wipes to finish.

He tossed the bath towel onto the rack and walked to the bedside.

Xu Qingya's hand reached out, grabbed his arm, and pulled him into the covers.

Jiang Fan smoothly lay down. Xu Qingya turned over, rested her head on his arm, curled up entirely in his arms, and fell soundly asleep within minutes.