171: You accidentally locked the door.

"You two." Tu Nan was expressionless. "Who is going to explain to me what those two words from His Majesty mean? Does it still mean agreement?"

She looked at the two of them in turn.

"...Uh, Pearl, are you afraid that His Majesty might have some opinion of you in his heart?" Kong Jiamu asked cautiously.

"No." Tu Nan was very polite. "I feel deeply honored and am moved to tears."

The two Male Beasts already knew that they hadn't handled this matter very well, but since things had come to this, they both braced themselves to comfort her.

"There are countless applications submitted to His Majesty every day; leaving a deep impression on him won't hurt." Hain tried to soothe her emotions.

"That's right, it's fine. Although Hain and I could mention your situation together when we see His Majesty, what if he's not feeling well and isn't seeing people at that time? Now..."

"Kong Jiamu!" Hain scolded, and Kong Jiamu immediately realized he had made a slip of the tongue.

Not feeling well? Tu Nan guessed that it must be because of this information he had inadvertently let slip; this was indeed news she had never heard from anyone else.

"Since things are already like this, let's just hope everything goes smoothly." She pretended not to notice the silent exchange between the two and sighed.

Kong Jiamu gave a dry laugh, spouted some nonsense, and hurriedly hung up the Video Call, dissipating.

Shaking her head, Tu Nan smiled, looked around the room, and asked Hain.

"Have all the things been moved in? We haven't really used the study here, so why don't you use it?" Hain also had a lot of official business, and sometimes many people needed to visit, so he needed that formal study even more.

Since he seemed to have successfully moved in, Tu Nan put her mind at ease and planned to continue busying herself with her own pile of matters.

Clink.

The teacup was placed back on the countertop, making a crisp sound.

Tu Nan had already touched the doorknob, but couldn't help looking back.

Hain was instantly pressed against her back, his entire warm aura surrounding her.

"Tu Nan."

He braced his hand against the door, lowering his head to coax her. "I thought you came to give me a housewarming gift."

Tu Nan looked at him, then at "her own" house, surprised that Hain could find such an excuse. The "level" of this statement was truly not low...

"This is... my house." She teased him maliciously.

"That's right, so since I moved into your house, it's even more worth celebrating." Hain was gentle and refined, as if he were truly kindly reminding her of some forgotten noble etiquette for visiting.

The tension from before gradually faded in these amorous conversations. Tu Nan gently placed her hands on Hain's waist, then suddenly slid them along his side.

"I came empty-handed, what should I do?" Her eyes swirled with emotion, and she frowned slightly. "I only brought myself."

A smile finally appeared in Hain's eyes. He bent down, scooped her up, and walked into the room, while speaking politely.

"You are too kind, it leaves me at a loss for what to do."

It was wonderful.

Except for one thing... Hain loved turning on all the lights in the room too much. He said he hoped to see Tu Nan clearly, and also requested that Tu Nan keep her eyes open.

He was always incessantly looking for his own reflection in Tu Nan's eyes.

His expression—losing composure, shedding restraint, bewildered, and filled with sighing entreaties—was constantly reflected in Tu Nan's eyes.

Making her heart feel even heavier.

So, by the time Tu Nan appeared on the first floor again, dinner time had already passed.

Fortunately, the people currently gathered in this house were a bunch of workaholics or research freaks; everyone tacitly agreed that there was no such thing as a normal meal time.

Fortunately, the little ones had a normal routine with Amy at the Kindergarten next door.

When she arrived at the dining room, she bumped into Miss Gu, who was eating what she didn't know was dinner or a midnight snack.

"...Although I'm not qualified to advise you, isn't this meal time too late for you?" Tu Nan said while taking the dinner left by the help out of the refrigerator to heat it up.

Gu Lvhai was just mechanically stuffing food into her mouth, until Tu Nan also sat at the table and started eating.

"Pearl." She suddenly spoke. "Hain came to talk to me. I have no one to discuss this with, can you listen to me talk about it?"

Tu Nan's movements paused.

She had a premonition... this topic actually wasn't suitable for her to hear. She tried to refuse: "What about Black Spade and Red Spade? You didn't tell them?"

Gu Lvhai shook her head; she had already finished eating. "They... would definitely scold Hain."

So what did Hain say?

Tu Nan stuffed a piece of meat into her mouth, swallowed it without tasting it, but still couldn't help but chime in.

"What about you? Don't you want to scold him?"

Miss Gu glanced at her resentfully, pushed the dinner plate aside, slumped on the table, listless.

"It's strange, I don't want to. I just feel relieved." She felt strange about it herself.

"He told me that he is very grateful for the help I've given him since we were young. But he never wanted to marry me; that was his mother's intention. He has refused many times, but no one listens to him."

"He told me that if everyone insists that the Young Master of the Montoya Family must marry me, then he can choose not to be a member of the Montoya Family. He actually wants to leave the Family..." Miss Gu was extremely shocked.

Tu Nan couldn't eat anymore; she put down her cutlery.

"What about you... I heard you said before that you wanted him to marry into your Family, it looks like..." At the very least, it looked like she couldn't do without him.

"I'm a good-for-nothing, this is my only achievement, isn't it?" Miss Gu smiled bitterly. "Every time my Family scolds me for being useless, I say I'm going to marry Hain, and they shut up."

"But as expected... actually, Hain doesn't think much of me either." Such a large Female Beast was looking at Tu Nan pitifully. "Actually, only you said my hobby would be very useful. Really, Pearl, you are so kind."

Tu Nan couldn't sit still anymore. She braced herself against the table and stood up, looking seriously at this special Female Beast.

But I'm actually calculating against you too. She felt guilty inside, yet breathed a huge sigh of relief upon discovering that this person's feelings for Hain were indeed not love.

She had a rough idea before, but it was never as clear as it was now.

She had always been uneasy whenever she thought about hurting the innocent Gu Lvhai. That was why she kept trying to make amends.

"I'm not kind!" Tu Nan told her. "You are the one who is kind! Believe me. You are a Female Beast! You have to find your own value. How many people go their whole lives without knowing what they are truly passionate about? Look, you are far better than those in Chaos."

"Since you've found your path! You just need to keep persisting, and the future will only get better!" Tu Nan encouraged her. "One day, you will make the Male Beasts proud of you, and make the world remember your own name."

Gu Lvhai couldn't slump anymore. She stared blankly at the passionate Tu Nan and nodded vigorously.

Once again, she willingly drank this bowl of heartfelt chicken soup from Tu Nan.

Tu Nan advised her this way, and she truly felt this way inside as well.

When she reached the third floor, her footsteps paused. She returned to her room, stared at the door for a long while, and locked it.

Tonight, she needed to be alone.

The door was indeed rattled shortly after. Tu Nan's gaze was calm and waveless as she watched the person try a few times, then give up.

From beginning to end, the person outside the door made no sound, and of course, she couldn't hear any footsteps either.

But she knew it was... Hain.

She muffled herself under the quilt, curled up, her mind filled with countless thoughts and very little emotion.

Until the window was gently tapped.

She poked her head out from under the quilt and was shocked to see Hain stepping into the room from the window.

It was as if he had just stepped over some decorative arch in the garden, so easily and with such elegant posture.

Tu Nan froze in place, not having time to speak.

After standing still, the man closed the window, and said gently:

"You accidentally locked the door."

Hain explained nonchalantly.