Avoiding Her Archrival, Too Ashamed to Face Him

"I... I've eaten too much spicy food lately, and it gave me too much internal heat. That's why my nose accidentally started bleeding."

Lu Xiaoxiao tried to make her voice sound natural, her gaze drifting elsewhere, not daring to land on his face. "Don't get the wrong idea. I really didn't get a nosebleed because I peeked at you in the shower."

Shao Enci propped his chin on one hand, his gaze resting lazily on her face as though waiting to see what else she could make up. "If it's internal heat, you should drink more cooling herbal tea. Why are you deliberately avoiding me?"

Ever since they had ended the video call, he had sent her several messages, but she hadn't replied to a single one.

He had been about to go find her when Qiu Boye sent him a message: [Lu Xiaoxiao took my wife to a café. I'll send you the location. Remember to come, and don't disturb the two of us.]

Shao Enci sent back a perfunctory reply: [Okay.]

He returned to the present, his gaze settling on her face again. His long, fair fingers rested on the back of her hand, his fingertips tracing gentle circles as he asked tentatively, "Lu Xiaoxiao, you video-called me while I was showering this morning and saw me. I wasn't even embarrassed, so what are you embarrassed about?"

A seductive smile played at the corners of Shao Enci's eyes, and his lips curved upward. "Or... have you fallen for me?"

Did I like him?

Lu Xiaoxiao quickly asked herself, then immediately denied it. She stared at the tabletop, not daring to meet his eyes, and forced herself to look calm. "I told you, I'm not embarrassed. It's purely internal heat."

Not wanting to keep going back and forth with him, she picked up her phone and sent Meng Yuan a message: [How's your talk going? Do you want me to come over?]

Her phone didn't light up right away.

Meanwhile, in the private room, Meng Yuan was already trapped on Qiu Boye's lap. She tried to break free of his embrace and pushed him several times, but he held her even tighter.

With no other choice, she raised her hands and pounded on his chest. "Qiu Boye, let go of me!"

Qiu Boye tightened one lean, strong arm around her slender waist and grabbed her wrist with his other hand. He leaned down until his forehead pressed against hers, a trace of amusement in his smile, as if she were his prey and he might devour her at any moment.

"Yuanyuan, you only need to answer one question now, and I'll let you go."

"What question?"

"Have you and He Xi kissed? Where has he touched you? Is he a better kisser, or am I?"

Meng Yuan hadn't expected the question to be a trap. She turned her face away as though she couldn't be bothered to look at him. "Of course He Xi is a better kisser. He's a thousand, ten thousand times better than you."

Qiu Boye gently grasped her chin with his well-defined fingers and turned her face back toward him, a faint smile playing on his lips. "You've never even kissed me. How did you compare us?"

Meng Yuan was at a loss for words. She swatted his hand away, both angry and embarrassed. "He's definitely better than you anyway."

"In that case, I'll just have to demonstrate in person so that Miss Meng can make a proper comparison."

As soon as he finished speaking, Qiu Boye gripped her chin, lowered his head, and kissed her.

Meng Yuan's pupils contracted slightly. She froze for two seconds, her mind going blank.

When the tip of his tongue slid between her lips and teeth, she caught a very faint scent of tea.

It took Meng Yuan three seconds to come to her senses, and she began pushing him away.

But the more she pushed, the more passionately he kissed her.

Only when she finally couldn't breathe did Qiu Boye pull away.

His lips still held the warmth of the kiss, and his voice was low and husky, with an intimate note. "Well? Am I a better kisser than He Xi?"

Meng Yuan's eyes reddened. She clapped a hand over her soft, swollen lips, furious and upset. "Qiu Boye, you bastard!"

He's such a good kisser. He must have kissed plenty of women out there. Aah, I'm not clean anymore!

The more she thought about it, the more aggrieved she felt. Her first kiss had been meant for He Xi, yet that dog of a man had stolen it!

Qiu Boye's heart ached at the resentful look on her face, and a barely perceptible jealousy surfaced in his eyes. "You're happy when He Xi kisses you, but it's not okay when I do?"

His eyes darkened, and his thin lips parted slightly as he struggled to control his emotions. "Yuanyuan, I'm your future husband. Could you stop always taking his side?"

While he was speaking, Meng Yuan seized the chance to lower her head and bite the back of his hand, refusing to let go.

She only released him when she tasted blood.

Qiu Boye frowned at the bite, but made no attempt to pull away. He merely looked at her and lowered his voice. "You can bite me or hit me, but could you... stop liking He Xi?"

Meng Yuan didn't answer right away. Sitting on his lap, she fell silent for a few seconds. When she spoke, her tone was much calmer than before. "Qiu Boye, if we really do get married someday, I'll accept it. But right now, could you please not interfere with the choices I'm making? I have a life of my own, and I don't want to be led astray by the obsession you brought back with you when you were reborn."

Qiu Boye went still, his gaze dimming. He pressed his lips together briefly. "Yuanyuan, I'm doing this for your own good..."

"For my good or yours?" Meng Yuan's voice sharpened as she shot him a cold look. "To put it bluntly, you're just selfish. You only think about what you want and have never considered whether I'm willing."

Just as Qiu Boye was about to say something else, the private room door was suddenly pushed open.

Lu Xiaoxiao and Shao Enci stood in the doorway. Catching the two in such an intimate position, they couldn't help freezing.

A moment later, Shao Enci covered Lu Xiaoxiao's eyes and whispered beside her ear, "I told you, going in would only disturb them, but you wouldn't listen. Now it's awkward, isn't it?"

Lu Xiaoxiao: "..."

She had sent Meng Yuan several messages without receiving a reply and had been about to go into the private room to find her, but Shao Enci had stopped her. Grabbing her hand, he said, "You saw all of me this morning. Aren't you going to give me a little compensation?"

Lu Xiaoxiao frowned. "What compensation do you want?"

Shao Enci raised a hand and pointed to his right cheek. "Here."

Without hesitation, she rose on tiptoe and bit his cheek hard.

Shao Enci hissed in pain and raised a hand to touch the faint teeth marks on his cheek. His lips curved helplessly. "Lu Xiaoxiao, why did you bite me again?"

"Wasn't that the reward you wanted? What's wrong?" Lu Xiaoxiao said with an innocent look.

Shao Enci's lips curved upward, a smile spreading to the corners of his eyes. "You should be grateful I have a good temper. Otherwise, I'd take you into a private room right now and give you a proper punishment."

When Lu Xiaoxiao heard that, her heart skipped a beat. She suspected that Meng Yuan hadn't replied for so long because that brat Qiu Boye was bullying her, so she hurried into the private room.

Shao Enci followed after her. "Qiu Boye asked me to come here so I could get you out of the way. What's between them is something they need to resolve themselves."

Lu Xiaoxiao didn't listen. She pushed the door open and saw Meng Yuan sitting on Qiu Boye's lap.

Meng Yuan hurriedly stood up and walked quickly to Lu Xiaoxiao's side.

Lu Xiaoxiao put an arm around her shoulders. Seeing her slightly swollen lips and reddened eyes, she asked, "Did he bully you?"

Meng Yuan shook her head. "...Let's go back."

Lu Xiaoxiao's gaze lingered on Meng Yuan's face for a moment before she looked away and led her out.

"Meng Yuan." Qiu Boye's voice came from behind them. "Give me three months, okay? If you still don't like me then, I'll let you go."

Meng Yuan stopped but didn't turn around. "I'll only give you one month."

Qiu Boye's thin lips moved, but in the end he kept the words lodged in his throat and managed to force out one word. "Okay."

Just then, 037's voice sounded in Lu Xiaoxiao's mind: [Task 29: In a KTV, kiss your archrival passionately for three minutes in front of your best friend. Countdown: 59 minutes, 59 seconds.]

Qiu Boye, who was very close by, unexpectedly heard the system's voice, and surprise crossed his face.