"Ahem." A cough came from the other end of the line. "The topic jumped a bit too fast, Little Li'er. With you not by my side, talking to me about this will make the night especially hard to endure."
Jiang Youli burst into laughter again. "My bad. If it's really unbearable, just solve it yourself."
"Never mind. I've endured it for twenty-six years; enduring another two months is nothing."
Jiang Youli lay back down on the bed and pulled up the blanket. "Huanhuan, do you know how to sing?"
"I suppose so."
"Then sing me a song and coax me to sleep."
"Alright." There was a brief pause on the other end before he slowly began to sing, "I have a little donkey that I never ride, but one day I rode it to the market..."
...
At ten o'clock on Saturday morning, Jiang Youli, who had enjoyed a high-quality night's sleep thanks to Qi Huan's tone-deaf lullaby, cheerfully hopped into the car Qi Huan sent to pick her up.
Sliding into the backseat, she couldn't wait to scoot over right next to Qi Huan. She tilted her head and stared at the man unblinkingly.
Qi Huan's appearance was truly exceptional. His high-bridged nose, deep eyes, and slightly upturned lips all spoke of his outstanding looks.
Qi Huan looked back at her, his gaze gentle as he said, "Little Li'er, you look exceptionally beautiful today."
Jiang Youli had noticed it herself when she looked in the mirror that morning. It hadn't even been a month since she returned to Jing City, but her skin was already two shades lighter, giving her the refined aura of a wealthy socialite raised in the capital's elite circles.
In truth, she had always been the type to lighten up quickly. It was just that back in the village, she had to go up the mountain every day to gather medicinal herbs, often baking in the sun for an entire afternoon. As a result, she would get tanned again not long after regaining her fair complexion.
Now that she was in Jing City, she didn't have many opportunities to be out in the sun.
Jiang Youli returned his smile. "Huanhuan, you're as handsome as ever today. No, I should say you're even more handsome."
"If I said I dressed up specially for you, would you consider giving me a reward?" Qi Huan looked at her, joking with a hint of anticipation in his eyes.
"Sure, then I'll give you ten kisses." As she spoke, Jiang Youli leaned in close to Qi Huan. Before he could react, she cupped his cheeks with both hands, puckered her lips, and planted a flurry of loud kisses all over his handsome face.
After exactly ten kisses, she finally let go, completely satisfied.
Qi Huan hadn't expected her to be so passionate and was almost left dazed by the kisses.
However, he quickly snapped back to reality, feeling like he hadn't had enough. He gave a faint smile and said:
"It's a long journey, Little Li'er. Would you consider doing it again? Just to pass the time."
Unexpectedly, Jiang Youli pressed even closer, blowing softly into his ear as she coaxed in a low voice, "Huanhuan, just kissing isn't the best way to pass the time."
Qi Huan wrapped his arm around Jiang Youli's slender waist, pulling her against him. "As much as I'd love to do something to pass the time with you in this car, unfortunately, my legs are still too inconvenient to bring you pleasure right now."
Jiang Youli raised a finger and slowly traced circles on his clean shirt. Drawing out her words with a radiant smile, she said, "That's a real pity. I suddenly wish I had some sort of cheat code to instantly heal your legs, so we wouldn't have to spend so much time waiting on treatments."
Qi Huan, however, caught her restless finger and smiled leisurely. "It's fine, Little Li'er. Good things are worth waiting for."
Cheng Jing, who was driving, might have looked dead serious on the outside, but inside, he was silently weeping the entire time.
He just wanted to say: Please, you two ancestors, stop passing the time like this. Have some consideration for this single dog!
...
The Mimi's Hometown Restaurant was bustling with noise and excitement. All the elegant private rooms had been booked by wealthy patrons, while the first floor had been set up for a fan meet-and-greet.
Reporters from major media outlets in Jing City had been staking out the restaurant early on, all hoping to be the first to break the news revealing the true identity of the author Lili Yuanshang.
Fans of Lili Yuanshang, upon learning that their idol author would make an appearance at this event, had traveled tirelessly from all over the country. They were now gathered together, holding high illuminated support signs that read: [Lili Yuanshang, You're the Best].
Unable to enter the restaurant, the fans simply crowded around the entrance to watch.
Jiang Zhao was there as well.
He didn't dare approach Jiang Youli directly, so he figured taking this opportunity to just look at her from afar would be good enough.
Seeing so many fans holding up light signs to welcome his sister, Jiang Zhao felt genuinely happy and proud.
His sister's popularity was no lower than his own.
Suddenly, Jiang Zhao heard a jarring discussion from three guys standing next to him.
"Tch, this Lili Yuanshang is just an internet author, yet she acts like a big shot. They even organized a special meet-and-greet just to secure the rights to one of her novels."
"I heard the copyright sales for her previous three novels were all handled by her editor. She never showed her face and just collected the money."
"Do you guys think this Lili Yuanshang is a man or a woman?"
"Probably a woman. The main character is female."
"I actually think it's a male author. Although the novel 'Qingyun's Ambition' was published on a female-oriented site, the historical political maneuvering and military strategies involved... only a male author could write with such a grand scope. Books by female authors are all about petty romance and reek of narrow-mindedness."
"Yeah, makes sense. Looking at it that way, nine times out of ten it's a male author. It seems a male author writing in the female demographic is just a dimensional strike."
Blending in with the spectating fans, Jiang Zhao couldn't listen to this any longer. He turned to the three guys and said coldly, "Lili Yuanshang is a female author."
And she was his sister, to boot.
At that moment, the three guys who thought Lili Yuanshang was a man looked over at the source of the voice. Seeing Jiang Zhao wearing a baseball cap and a mask that completely obscured his face, they questioned, "How can you be so sure? Do you know her?"
Jiang Zhao simply replied, "I know her," but didn't state his sister's name.
The three guys remained stubbornly in denial:
"A female author, huh? She probably hired a ghostwriter."
"I just don't believe a female author could have such a grand vision."
"Exactly. I've read countless novels, and female authors just can't write real political intrigue!"
Jiang Zhao gave a cold snort and sneered, "Well, you guys are men, so could you write a novel like 'Qingyun's Ambition'?"
Seeing them at a loss for words, Jiang Zhao continued with a cold smile, "You're losers yourselves. You clearly haven't achieved anything, yet you somehow take inexplicable pride in your gender."
The three guys were instantly indignant. "We're not authors! Do we need to know how to refrigerate to review a fridge?!"
"Yeah! Who do you think you are, spouting nonsense here?!"
"You're obviously just a brainless fanboy!"
In the past, Jiang Zhao would have laid the three of them out on the ground by now. But times had changed, and he didn't want to cause trouble for his sister, Jiang Youli. So, he chose to treat the trio like the leaping clowns they were and ignored them.
The female fans of Lili Yuanshang who had witnessed Jiang Zhao defending their idol author began to whisper among themselves. "Hey, don't you guys think his voice sounds a lot like that new-generation singer, Jiang Zhao?"
"I think it sounds a bit like him too."
Noticing the gazes of the female fans, Jiang Zhao raised his hand and pulled the brim of his hat even lower.
Fortunately, it wasn't long before the girls' attention was drawn away by someone else.
"Wow! Is that Young Master Long of the Beijing elite?"
"It is him! He really is handsome. The woman wearing a mask next to him looks like the top-tier superstar Yu Linglong."
"It looks like Young Master Long is absolutely determined to secure the copyright of this top author's novel for his fiancée, Yu Linglong!"
