Xia Miao often had an inexplicable confidence in herself.
To put it nicely, she was simply too outstanding, hence her self-assurance.
To put it bluntly, she was downright narcissistic.
Xia Miao believed herself to be beautiful, wealthy, and blessed with a charming personality. She was also brilliant, quick-witted, kind-hearted, innocent, and pure… In short, from head to toe, she possessed countless virtues.
So of course, she was bound to be well-liked.
No. 13 clearly had normal tastes—there was no way he wouldn’t like her, right?
The current situation was strange.
No. 13 was a tall, imposing man, while Xia Miao was a much smaller woman in comparison. Yet, it was Xia Miao who exuded an overwhelming presence, while he seemed to be the one at a disadvantage.
Xia Miao strained to tiptoe higher, her bare foot pressing into his shoe, her toes leaving faint imprints—like tiny flaws appearing on an otherwise flawless young man.
"Hey, come chase after me," Xia Miao said, her beautiful eyes sparkling, utterly shameless. She curved her lips into a bright smile. "If you manage to win me over, I’ll have every right to kiss you!"
Her logic seemed different from most people’s, her words oddly phrased, yet the implications were enough to make anyone’s heart skip a beat.
No. 13’s Adam’s apple bobbed slightly. His blue eyes flicked toward her again and again before he suddenly realized something he hadn’t noticed before.
She had said that the moment she first saw him, she had fallen for him.
And now that he thought about it, the first time they met, he had noticed her immediately too.
Perhaps it was the hormones—dopamine and the like—flooding their systems, thickening the air with an intangible tension that pulsed with an overwhelming force, making hearts race uncontrollably.
No. 13 tried to keep his gaze steady, but he wasn’t entirely successful. For some reason, he felt nervous, his eyes drifting slightly. "If you really want me to pursue you, then it’s not like I—"
Suddenly, the room lit up with a warning red light.
In an instant, No. 13 was shoved out of the room.
"Time’s up—five minutes! The alarm’s about to go off, get out!"
With a loud bang, the door slammed shut.
No. 13 stood outside in silence for a long moment.
Not long after, a shoe was tossed through the gap in the door, landing in his hands.
"You have to fix this for me!"
The next second, the door closed completely, leaving no further movement.
No. 13’s eyelid twitched. His tall frame radiated an aura of frustration and annoyance.
Earlier, he had told Xia Miao that her room had top-tier security measures—as a single woman, if a second person stayed in her room for more than five minutes, an alarm would sound, and the armed response team would arrive at lightning speed.
She remembered that part well.
But what annoyed him now was that he had forgotten to tell her one crucial detail: as the room’s owner, she could easily override the restriction with a simple command. Because he hadn’t mentioned it, he had been unceremoniously kicked out.
Come to think of it, this was the second time she had thrown him out.
No. 13’s mood was… complicated.
She kept insisting she had fallen for him at first sight, yet she sure didn’t hesitate to push him out the door.
After leaving the rest area, he ran into some of his fellow patrol members.
No. 7’s eyes lit up. "Where’d you pick up a lady’s shoe?"
No. 8 gasped excitedly. "Is it Cinderella’s glass slipper?"
No. 7 frowned. "What’s a Cinderella?"
No. 8 launched into an explanation: "It’s an old fairy tale! At midnight, the princess loses her magic and turns back into Cinderella. She runs away from the ball, leaving behind a glass slipper. The prince finds it and uses it to track her down, and then they get married and live happily ever after!"
No. 7 had never heard such an ancient story, but No. 8’s enthusiasm was contagious. The two of them stared at No. 13 with sparkling eyes.
No. 8: "Do you need help finding the girl who lost her shoe?"
No. 7: "This feels like the start of a romantic love story!"
No. 13 smiled pleasantly. "Are you two feeling like you haven’t had enough training drills lately?"
No. 7 and No. 8 shuddered.
"Oh right, I still have to patrol the dining car!"
"And I still need to finish that incident report!"
The two hurried off in perfect sync, terrified that if they lingered even a second longer, they’d end up as No. 13’s punching bags.
Those who hadn’t interacted much with No. 13 might assume he was always cheerful, open-hearted, and friendly—a genuinely good guy. But those who truly knew him understood that beneath that sunny exterior was a battle-crazed madman.
The bloodstains on the walls of the interrogation room? Most of them were courtesy of No. 13.
This man might look warm and bright, but in reality, he was colder and more ruthless than anyone.
So seeing him now, holding a delicate white high-heel in his large hand, created a bizarre contrast—like cold steel cradling something soft and warm. The dissonance was striking.
No. 7 muttered under his breath, "He’s never been the type to pick up someone else’s shoe before. Something’s off."
No. 8, ever the quick thinker, scoffed. "What’s so off about it? It’s not like he actually found a princess to fall in love with!"
Xue Fufu stayed out very late before finally leaving the first-class cabin.
The more time she spent with Long Shenting, the more she learned about him.
Turns out, he had stomach problems, was afraid of the dark, and often suffered from insomnia. Not only that, but he also carried painful childhood memories.
His father had passed away early, and his mother had raised him with an iron fist, treating him more like a household tool than a son.
As a result, he had never had any friends growing up. Xue Fufu was his first. With her around, he felt at ease.
Tonight, despite his chronic insomnia, Long Shenting had fallen asleep easily while holding Xue Fufu’s hand. She had waited until he was deep in slumber before quietly slipping away.
But just as she was about to return to her room, a man’s voice called out from behind her.
"Xue Fufu, where have you been coming back from?"
Xue Fufu froze, then turned to see Ming Zhenduan smirking at her.
Ming Zhenduan said, "I’m sure you wouldn’t want anyone else to know you sneaked into the first-class cabin, right?"
Xue Fufu tensed. She hadn’t expected Ming Zhenduan to have followed her. After forcing herself to stay calm, she asked, "What do you want?"
Ming Zhenduan chuckled. "Relax, I’m not here to cause trouble. I just want to borrow your ID card for a bit."
If Xue Fufu could use an ID card to mingle with the wealthy in first class, why couldn’t he?
Sometimes, rubbing shoulders with the powerful was the fastest way to change one’s fate.
