Chapter 15: Embrace

Qingmei vaulted over the back wall and into the courtyard, only to see Ning'er pacing back and forth with a worried expression. "Ning'er, what's wrong?" Upon hearing that voice, Ning'er felt a wave of relief and immediately rushed over to where Qingmei stood. "Miss, why are you back so late? You don't know how worried I was. If... if something had happened, what would I have done?" Ning'er looked at Qingmei with concern. "Didn't I come back safe and sound? It's fine, I have the ability to protect myself." "Since Miss says so, then Ning'er can rest easy." "Ning'er, go get some rest. I'll sit here by myself." "Alright, Miss." Qingmei sat at the stone table in the courtyard, resting her chin in her hands as she drifted into a daze. She didn't know why her mind was filled with the image of Nan Qingcheng. How could this happen after only meeting once? Besides, that Nan Qingcheng was truly something; he had stolen her first kiss for no reason, and now he was nowhere to be found. Did he think she was the type of person he could just kiss whenever he pleased?

Just as Qingmei was lost in her wild thoughts, a pair of hands suddenly wrapped around her waist, and she was pulled into an embrace that felt both familiar and strange. She turned her head and saw Nan Qingcheng’s devastatingly handsome face. "Is Mei'er thinking of me?" His hot breath puffed into Qingmei's ear, making the air feel heavy with intimacy. Having never allowed a man to get close to her in her past life, Qingmei was exceptionally sensitive now, and her entire body stiffened. To make matters worse, Nan Qingcheng had accidentally hit the nail on the head, causing a rosy flush to bloom on Qingmei’s fair, delicate face.

Nan Qingcheng watched the shy Qingmei and couldn't resist pinching her reddened cheeks. "My Mei'er is just too cute." Qingmei broke free from his embrace, stood up, and glared at him huffily. "Who's cute? You're the cute one! Your whole family is cute!" Qingmei looked a bit tsundere now. She didn't know why, but she felt a strange sense of emptiness after leaving his arms, and she shook her head, speechless at her own feelings. Nan Qingcheng looked at the huffy little person before him and let out a chuckle. "You... what are you laughing at?" Nan Qingcheng walked up to Qingmei and suddenly pulled her back into his arms. "Alright, I'll stop laughing." Heaven knows how addicted he was to the feeling of having her by his side.

Qingmei looked at the smiling Nan Qingcheng before her and truly doubted if Ning'er had lied to her. Where was the coldness? He was clearly a goofball. Qingmei stayed in his arms, feeling that his embrace was very reassuring. Without realizing it, her small hands wrapped around his lean waist. Nan Qingcheng’s body stiffened for a moment; he hadn't expected her to respond. He had thought it would take a long time to pursue Mei'er, but it seemed... was she ready to accept him now? "Alright, I'm leaving. I'll come to see you tomorrow, hmm?" Nan Qingcheng left a light kiss on her cheek, and then only a glimpse of his ink-colored robes remained. Qingmei pouted, "Coming and going like a ghost..." She turned and headed into her room to sleep.

"Yo, little Mei'er, your romantic luck is truly good. Yesterday, you and Nan Qingcheng... I saw it all." As soon as Qingmei entered the space the next morning, she saw Yan Lie lying on a lounge chair in his bright red robes. Qingmei immediately felt a playful urge. "Hmph, jealous, aren't you? He’s better-looking than you!" Yan Lie took great pride in his face, and upon hearing Qingmei say this, he immediately disagreed. "What? How is that Nan Qingcheng better than me?" He said, smoothing out his red hair. "He's better than you in every way. Alright, teach me alchemy." Yan Lie was still fuming over Qingmei saying he wasn't as good-looking as Nan Qingcheng. "Go learn from the books yourself, I'm just..." Before he could finish his sentence, Qingmei watched as Yan Lie shrank, and shrank, and shrank, reverting back to his original mimic form. Qingmei stared blankly, then suddenly burst into laughter. Can you imagine the scene where someone is talking to you aggressively, only to suddenly shrink and become unable to speak? Yan Lie looked at Qingmei with resentful little eyes, like a scorned woman. If only his cultivation hadn't been depleted, would he have to suffer this? Qingmei finally stopped laughing and realized Yan Lie was already gone, so she decided to get back to work.