The living room was very quiet.
Lu Shiyan had taken the others out early that morning to deal with the aftermath of yesterday’s battle with the Sweepers.
The house was so large and empty that it felt excessive. The only sounds were the soft rustling of snowflakes occasionally striking the windows and the clattering coming from the kitchen, where Qinian had been rummaging through the refrigerator for quite some time.
Jiang Nuan was curled up on the living room sofa, teasing Jiangjiang.
The orange cat lay lazily across her legs, belly to the ceiling, looking as though it couldn’t care less if the sky came crashing down.
Cats were great.
At least they couldn’t say things that left people upset and confused.
Her mind was a mess.
The words Lu Shiyan had said in the study yesterday continued to echo in her head.
“It’s because I want to keep you by my side. That’s why I want everything that comes with you, too.”
She didn’t know what category that sentence belonged in.
If it was a confession…
Then everything Lu Shiyan had done became far too complicated.
He was the one who had established the rules of their transaction. He was also the one who had forced her into this situation.
If a person in control suddenly said, “I want to keep you,” and a prisoner was suddenly told, “I built this cage because I like you,” then although the processes were different, was there really any essential difference in the outcome?
If it was merely another tactic… then again, the expression on his face when he said it hadn’t looked like an act.
Besides, “try not to assume the conclusion beforehand” was something she simply couldn’t do.
Jiang Nuan—the transmigrator, the college freshman, the unlucky girl currently surrounded by six men—couldn’t stop herself from drawing conclusions in advance.
It was the survival skill that had kept her alive this long, thank you very much.
Jiangjiang rolled over and yawned, revealing a pink little tongue.
Jiang Nuan lowered her head and rubbed it.
Cats were wonderful.
She decided that in her next life, she would be a cat.
Qinian came out of the kitchen with a plate of oranges and set it on the table.
He was wearing a loose black hoodie today, a glimpse of his beautiful collarbones showing beneath the neckline. His hair was barely styled, with stray strands falling between his brows. He looked like an annoyingly handsome guy who hadn’t quite woken up yet.
The other end of the sofa sank beneath his weight.
After sitting down, he casually picked up an orange and began peeling it. “Who upset my Nuannuan?”
“Would telling you actually help?” Jiang Nuan glanced at him listlessly.
Qinian peeled the orange in a few quick motions, separated out a segment, and held it to her lips. “Of course it would! Tell me who it was, and I’ll go beat him up!”
Jiang Nuan opened her mouth and bit down on the orange segment. It was sour with a hint of sweetness, and actually tasted pretty good.
She slowly chewed and swallowed it. “Lu Shiyan.”
Qinian had just stuffed a piece of orange into his own mouth when he suddenly choked. His entire body convulsed with violent coughing.
His face went from white to red to purple. The piece of orange nearly shot out of his nose.
Expressionless, Jiang Nuan turned around and smacked him hard on the back twice.
The force was so great that Qinian pitched forward.
“Gently—gently!” Qinian managed to croak out. After finally swallowing half the orange segment, he wilted for a couple of seconds. “Are you patting my back or hammering me?”
“Obviously, I’m hammering you.” Jiang Nuan withdrew her hand without a trace of emotion.
“…”
Qinian grimaced and raised a hand to wipe away the tears that choking had brought to his eyes.
His beautiful eyes stared at her for several seconds before he suddenly sighed. “Did the captain say something to you that’s got you all worked up?”
The way he said it sounded unusually mature, not at all like his usual self. Instead, he had a bit of his older brother’s air about him.
Jiang Nuan blinked. “How did you know?”
If she hadn’t been certain that Qinian didn’t possess any mind-reading abilities, she would have started to suspect him.
Qinian arched a brow and tossed another orange segment into his mouth. “Because you haven’t been yourself since you came out of the captain’s study yesterday.”
“And besides…” He chewed twice before continuing, “My brother and I were among the first to join Zero Squad. We’ve been through life-and-death situations with the captain for so long that I understand him better than anyone.”
“A person like him…” Qinian stuffed another orange segment into his mouth and continued indistinctly, “Once he decides he wants something, he’ll use every possible method to hold on to it. Even if that method is completely bastardly.”
Jiang Nuan thought that assessment was almost frighteningly accurate.
Qinian tilted his head as he studied her. Then, all at once, realization dawned in his eyes. “So I’m guessing the captain said something that scared you?”
Jiang Nuan didn’t answer. Her fingers sank into Jiangjiang’s soft fur.
She didn’t want to admit that she had been “scared.”
She was just annoyed and frustrated. That was different from being frightened.
…Fine. Maybe she had been a little frightened, too.
Silence stretched for several seconds.
Qinian studied her expression for another few moments.
Then the half-peeled orange in his hand slipped to the floor.
“No way!”
His eyes widened, and he sprang up from the sofa. His voice shot up a full octave. “The captain confessed to you?!”
His voice was absurdly loud.
Loud enough to be heard through the door and the walls.
Jiangjiang had been half-closing its eyes and enjoying the lap pillow. The sudden shout startled it so badly that it launched itself into the air, leaped off Jiang Nuan’s legs, and went scurrying beneath the TV cabinet with a string of frantic meows. Its speed rivaled the accuracy of its owner Ye Que’s aim.
“It wasn’t a confession!” she forced out through clenched teeth. “Could you keep your voice down?”
She glared at Qinian, her heart pounding wildly.
She hadn’t confirmed anything yet. She hadn’t even figured out how to respond. And Qinian had already decided what it was.
Worse still…
A click came from the door lock.
Jiang Nuan’s breath caught. She turned stiffly toward the entryway.
Jiang Ce pushed the door open, with Ye Que following behind him.
Cold air and snowflakes poured in from outside. A thin layer of snow coated the shoulders of Jiang Ce’s coat, and the wind had reddened his face slightly.
Ye Que followed him in, dressed in a black combat suit that hugged his tall, lean frame. A faint wisp of smoke still curled from the muzzle of the sniper rifle in his hand.
Apparently, there were still a few Sweepers left to clear out outside.
But that wasn’t the point.
The point was that the two of them had come in at exactly the wrong time! Qinian’s mouth—and his voice, which was practically a loudspeaker—had betrayed her. With their hearing, there was no way they hadn’t heard what he had just said.
Jiang Ce stopped in the doorway. His gaze first landed on Jiang Nuan’s face, then slowly shifted to Qinian, who was sitting beside her with a look of utter shock on his face.
His Adam’s apple bobbed.
He took off his coat and hung it on the rack by the entryway, doing so with slightly more force than necessary.
Ye Que leaned his sniper rifle against the wall. The gun struck the floor with a dull thud.
He didn’t even take off his coat. Instead, he strode across the living room and went straight to Jiang Nuan.
He braced one hand against the back of the sofa beside her.
Then he planted one knee on the cushion and sank down on her left.
Bending over, he looked down at her with dark, fathomless eyes. He was so close that Jiang Nuan could see his thick eyelashes.
The smell of gunpowder mingled with the cold air from outside and washed over her. He seemed as though he hadn’t quite managed to leave the battlefield behind.
“Yesterday at noon?” His voice was slightly lowered. “Was that why he called you to the study?”
The sudden closeness made Jiang Nuan tense. She instinctively tried to retreat, but there was nothing behind her except the soft backrest of the sofa.
Jiang Ce walked over and sat down on her right.
The sofa sank beneath him.
He was simply too tall and broad.
His broad shoulders nearly filled the entire right side of her vision. Even just sitting there, he was like a solid wall, hemming her in.
His body heat seeped through their clothes, almost burning against her skin.
“Nuannuan.” He lowered his head to look at her. “Tell us.”
Jiang Nuan sat on the sofa.
Ye Que loomed directly in front of her, one arm braced against the back of the sofa, nearly boxing her in beneath him.
Once Jiang Ce sat down beside her, his entire body was swallowed by Ye Que’s shadow.
Qinian sat to her left. Though he had been laughing and joking just moments ago, he had fallen silent now, his legs crossed. His beautiful eyes were half-lidded as he looked at her, his expression plainly saying, “We all heard it. Stop pretending.”
She was surrounded on three sides, hemmed in by their presence, their warmth, and their scent.
