The television was showing the scene where the male and female leads chased each other through the rain.
The background music was excessively melodramatic, with the violin screeching as if someone were facing a tragic separation or death.
“Ding-dong—”
The doorbell rang.
Chen Ping'an’s muscles instantly tensed, and his hand instinctively reached toward the small of his back.
Jiang Nuan raised a hand and lightly patted his rigid arm twice, signaling him to relax.
Most of the members of Squad Zero were in this building.
That man… although he often made her grit her teeth with frustration, she had to admit that wherever he was, there was usually nothing to fear.
She moved Jiangjiang off her lap and walked toward the entryway in her slippers.
A deliveryman in a dark blue uniform stood outside. Behind him was a waist-high white cardboard box bearing the logo of an appliance brand.
“Are you Miss Jiang?”
Jiang Nuan nodded.
“Someone ordered our company’s latest high-tech women’s washing machine for you. Could you please sign for it?”
A washing machine?
Jiang Nuan was utterly baffled. She stepped aside and let him push it in.
The cardboard box was wheeled to the center of the living room. Chen Ping'an also stood up and came over, curious to see what it was.
Once the packaging was removed, the two of them fell silent at the same time.
It was… a sakura-pink washing machine.
Its design was round and adorable, with a cat-ear-shaped lid on top. The control panel was cream and pink, and even the drain-hose connector had been shaped like a paw print.
The whole thing looked like a prop pulled straight out of a girls’ manga.
Chen Ping'an asked, “Did you buy this?”
Jiang Nuan stared at the pink cat ears and shook her head.
Could it have been Zhang Qiang?
She did need a separate washing machine.
The pajamas she had changed out of that day were still lying in the bathroom. Although there was a washing machine in the building, washing that particular set there would be inconvenient.
But how could the timing be this perfect?
“One moment.” The deliveryman pulled a terminal from his pocket and scanned the shipping-information code on the side of the box. “Let me check the name of the person who placed the order.”
The screen lit up.
The deliveryman looked down at the terminal, his mouth falling open. “The person who placed the order is a Mr. Lu Shiyan.”
His voice suddenly caught.
Something else appeared on the screen.
The deliveryman’s eyes darted over the terminal, and his expression froze for a moment.
Then he quickly put on a professional smile, steadying his voice.
“Sorry, I read that wrong. It was a Mr. Zhang Qiang. He said this house was supposed to have one installed already.”
Jiang Nuan: “…”
Chen Ping'an: “…”
The deliveryman must have seen the note attached to the order.
He maintained that professional smile throughout, rushed through the sign-off procedures, and hurried out the door before he had even properly removed his shoe covers.
Once the door closed, Jiang Nuan and Chen Ping'an stared at each other.
It was hard to imagine a washing machine in this color appearing in Lu Shiyan’s shopping cart.
He had probably searched for “women’s washing machine,” seen that the top-ranked result had the most positive reviews, and calmly clicked “Place Order.”
The washing machine was installed in the bathroom of Jiang Nuan’s bedroom.
Jiang Nuan tossed the pajamas she had changed out of into the machine and pressed the start button.
The machine gave a soft chime, and a little spinning cherry blossom lit up on the panel.
She stared at the rotating flower for a moment, then turned and left the bathroom, closing the door behind her.
Out of sight, out of mind.
Back in the living room, Jiang Nuan sank into the soft sofa again and picked up Jiangjiang.
She opened a fresh bag of potato chips and continued watching the old movie.
Chen Ping'an held himself back for a long while before finally speaking.
“…I have a question.”
Jiang Nuan ran her fingers along the fur on the cat’s back. “What is it?”
“Your squad leader… is he always like this?”
Jiang Nuan’s fingers paused. “Like what?”
Chen Ping'an considered his wording for several seconds. “You know… interrogating people in the basement and making blood spray three feet one minute, then ordering a pink cat-ear washing machine online the next?”
The movie’s background music happened to stop.
Jiang Nuan fell silent.
“…Don’t ask.”
Chen Ping'an wisely shut his mouth.
Jiangjiang rolled over on her lap, exposing her belly, and yawned without a care in the world.
He really was that kind of person.
Violent in his methods, and completely unconcerned with what others thought of him.
He never accepted refusal, and he never explained himself.
Jiang Nuan rubbed Jiangjiang’s belly. Her gaze fell on the bag of chips in her hand. She stuffed one into her mouth and chewed it to pieces.
Footsteps came from the direction of the basement.
Qinian walked upstairs.
He was wearing nothing but a loose dark-gray long-sleeved shirt, and a chilly scent of blood clung to him.
A few strands of hair had stuck to his skin with sweat. His eyes, usually so full of swagger, looked somewhat listless now.
He glanced at the sofa.
Then he became displeased.
His gaze traveled back and forth between Jiang Nuan and Chen Ping'an.
Even though there was enough room between them for an entire person.
The next second, he strode over on his long legs and sat directly in the empty space between Jiang Nuan and Chen Ping'an.
Once seated, he edged closer to Jiang Nuan and used his shoulder to shove Chen Ping'an farther away, arrogantly claiming the center of the sofa.
Chen Ping'an was pushed half a seat toward the armrest.
At the same time Qinian sat down, he reached over, took a chip from the bag of tomato-flavored chips beside Jiang Nuan, and popped it into his mouth.
Crunch.
He tilted his head toward her. His beautiful eyes narrowed slightly as they settled on her still-reddened eyes.
His eyelashes trembled.
“Nuannuan.” He leaned a little closer, drawing out the final syllable lazily. “I missed you so much.”
Before he had even finished speaking, he had already let his head droop onto her shoulder.
The weight pressing down made Jiang Nuan tilt toward him.
Jiangjiang let out an unhappy meow, shot him a disdainful look, and then stood up and leaped onto the coffee table.
Jiang Nuan’s shoulder sank. She tried to push the fluffy head away with one hand. “You still smell like blood. Get up.”
“I’m not getting up. The squad leader wouldn’t let me come upstairs. He locked Ye Que and me in the basement and made us watch a live demonstration for over an hour.” Qinian’s voice was muffled against the sweater at her shoulder. “There was blood everywhere. It was terrifying. You have to make it up to me.”
“Your own fighting style isn’t exactly much better,” Jiang Nuan said speechlessly, turning her head to look at the half of his face that was visible. “How do you have the nerve to tell me you were scared?”
“That’s different.” Qinian raised his head slightly, wearing an expression that clearly said, I’m so pitiful—figure out what to do about it. “Doing it yourself and being forced to watch are completely different things, okay? Besides, I don’t know what got into the squad leader today. He was especially brutal.”
Jiang Nuan did not respond. Deep down, she could vaguely guess why he had been especially brutal today.
Chen Ping'an silently reached over and scooped up Jiangjiang, who had been trying to sneak a bite of the snacks from the coffee table. He held the cat against his chest like a fluffy shield.
He looked at Qinian hanging off Jiang Nuan’s shoulder while Jiang Nuan pushed his head away with an expressionless face.
Chen Ping'an’s expression grew extremely complicated.
The squad leader, who could dispassionately beat someone into a bloody mess, had gone out that morning to buy Jiang Nuan a huge bag of snacks and a pink washing machine.
Qinian, whose combat ability ranked near the top of the Federation and who was said to have a terrible temper, still carried the basement’s chill with him as he clung to someone’s shoulder and acted spoiled.
And the person involved was simply pushing that head away with an expression of pure disgust.
Chen Ping’an held Jiangjiang tightly, making his presence as inconspicuous as possible.
The relationships within this team were far more complicated than he could understand. It was best not to even try.
The man’s head was unbelievably heavy. After leaning against her, he showed no intention of getting up.
She tried to push him upright with her shoulder, but Qinian seemed to anticipate the move. He lowered his center of gravity, pressing down even more firmly.
She gave up. Even through his sweater, she could feel his hair brushing against her. “Qinian, did you find any clues while searching Area A?”
“…Can’t you let me rest for thirty seconds first?” Qinian’s voice came from beside her shoulder, much quieter than before.
“Five seconds have already passed.”
“You’re so heartless.”
Despite saying that, he made no attempt to move.
The old movie on the television shifted to a quiet long shot. The rain had stopped, sunlight pierced through the clouds, and the piano began to play a slow, gentle melody.
Qinian’s breathing gradually grew softer.
Jiang Nuan could tell that he hadn’t fallen asleep. He had merely closed his eyes and was resting quietly.
She turned her head slightly. From this angle, Qinian’s eyelashes looked very long.
There were faint dark circles beneath his eyes. He looked exhausted, and his whole body seemed to have grown thinner.
Since Qi Sui went missing, he probably hadn’t had a proper night’s sleep.
Jiang Nuan stopped trying to push him away. She gently raised a hand and rubbed his fuzzy head, just as she did Jiangjiang’s.
The potato chips in her hand had been replaced with preserved plums, making far less noise.
The living room fell quiet.
Only the old movie’s soft piano music remained, along with the steady breathing against her shoulder.
