"Qin, you really don't need to work so hard. You're so beautiful and delicate, and the professor is so strict. You’re not even part of the core research team. If you just show a little vulnerability, I can help you!"
Qin Nian’s pen paused, and her entire body tensed up.
"Mas, I don’t know what you’re talking about. If you have nothing important to say, please leave."
"Qin, I like you. Can’t you tell? If you’re with me, my family can protect you. You could stay here permanently—wouldn’t that be wonderful?"
Mas spread his arms arrogantly, waiting for Qin Nian to throw herself into his embrace.
"You’re mistaken. I only care about academics. If you leave now, I can pretend none of this happened. Otherwise..."
Qin Nian had spent the most time in this archive room and knew the location of every single item inside.
"Hah, Qin, you Eastern women are all the same—saying no when you really mean yes. Since you’re shy, I’ll take the initiative."
Mas lunged at Qin Nian, but she dodged.
He hadn’t expected her to evade him, but this only excited him more. He’d been eyeing this little lamb for a long time.
At first, he thought she had caught the professor’s favor, so he hadn’t dared to act. But when he realized she was only assigned to the archives and not the core research team, his courage grew. Today, he’d finally seized his chance.
The disparity in strength between men and women, combined with the cramped space of the archive room, meant Qin Nian could only evade for so long before Mas caught her.
As the man’s revolting scent closed in, Qin Nian plunged her pen deep into his neck.
The sounds of overturned cabinets and chairs failed to draw anyone’s attention, confirming Mas had sent everyone away beforehand.
His family held considerable influence here, but Qin Nian still acted.
Watching Mas clutch his neck and collapse, her hands trembled slightly. She pinched her thigh hard to steady herself.
Now, what should she do? She’d succeeded in defending herself, but handling the aftermath was the real challenge.
Suddenly, footsteps echoed outside the door. Qin Nian’s nerves tightened, and her hand groped for another potential weapon.
Instead of knocking or unlocking the door, a familiar voice spoke.
"Xiao Qin, it’s me—the professor."
"Professor."
Remembering the exclusive notebooks she’d been allowed to access, Qin Nian lowered her makeshift weapon and responded.
"Is he dead? Are you hurt?"
There was no interrogation, only calmness—as if he were asking about her day or what she’d eaten.
"I’m fine, Professor. I killed someone."
"No. An intruder tried to steal lab documents. You were delivering a file for me. Open the door."
The professor outside had already slipped on white gloves. When the door opened, he only paused briefly at the sight of the blood on Qin Nian.
"Clean yourself up, stay composed, and change your clothes. Remember—you saw no one today. You followed my instructions, delivered the documents, and made sure people saw you. You didn’t cry. Excellent. You can even grab a coffee."
"Professor, what about you?"
"Don’t worry about me. The less you know, the safer you are. They wouldn’t dare touch me."
Qin Nian quickly tidied herself, took a file, and left. Along the way, she deliberately mentioned her errand to others, exchanging a few words before parting.
Back in the archive room, the professor wiped the pen clean of fingerprints, erased the chaotic footprints, and rearranged the scene. He stepped in the blood to obscure the original traces with his own shoe prints.
An hour later, a gunshot rang out, and the lab’s alarm blared.
"What’s happening? Why is the lab surrounded?"
Following the professor’s instructions, Qin Nian had chatted with several people after delivering the file and even stopped for a coffee. The bitterness of the unsweetened brew steadied her nerves. When she tried to return to the lab, she found it swarming with people.
"Qin, it’s you! Someone broke in to steal research data. The professor caught them, but the thief had a gun. The professor was injured and taken to the hospital."
"The professor’s hurt? How bad is it?"
Qin Nian’s anxiety spiked.
"Not too serious, I think. He walked out on his own, though he was covered in blood."
"They say the thief was Mas. This is huge—you know how critical the professor’s research is."
"Mas? Then he’s..."
Qin Nian dug her nails into her palm.
"Mas is dead, but his family won’t let this slide. Still, the professor isn’t someone they can mess with. Anyway, this doesn’t concern us. With the professor injured, classes will probably be suspended."
Qin Nian nodded absently.
"Good thing you were out delivering documents. If you’d been here, you might’ve been in danger."
She wanted to visit the professor, but the hospital was under tight security, making it impossible to get close.
In the following days, even the campus was in chaos. Eventually, news spread that Mas’s family had suffered heavy losses.
Qin Nian forced herself not to dwell on it. Since she couldn’t see the professor, she threw herself into her studies, even forgetting to call home. By the time the professor resumed teaching, the opportunity to contact her family had passed.
Perhaps due to the incident, lab security became stricter. Everyone was searched upon entry and exit, and their daily interactions were closely monitored.
Shen Xianjun and Hu Jun only had two days of leave, but since they hadn’t taken their previous days off, they were given an extra day. After visiting their children, they returned to their duties.
The grass skirts became a hit among the kids, who eagerly plucked leaves to weave their own, nearly stripping the trees bare.
Yang Yufen facepalmed when she saw the children prancing around in their leafy attire. At bath time, they even refused to part with them.
"Grandma, keep them for us! We want to wear them tomorrow!"
Dabao clung to Yang Yufen’s arm, whining, while Erbao and Wang Xing blinked their big eyes pleadingly. In the end, Yang Yufen hung the skirts on the wall.
As "Journey to the West" soared in popularity, the neighborhood kids transformed into Sun Wukong, celestial maidens, and demons.
Every day was a spectacle of wild antics, but there was one upside—homework was finished much faster now. No one wanted to miss the show, and since the reruns aired when they couldn’t watch, completing assignments became a priority.
"Yufen, we bought the house!"
Gui Xiang excitedly shared the news with Yang Yufen.
"That’s wonderful! Now you can settle down properly."
"It’s a bit remote, but there’s land for farming. My husband feels more secure with soil under his feet. After seeing your greenhouse vegetables, he got the idea—winter vegetables sell high, and we don’t know much else. If it weren’t for you, we’d never have started the noodle shop. We can’t keep taking advantage of your kindness."
