An Yang lowered his head to look at Nie Xiaoqian's jade-like skin and near-perfect proportions, and a certain part that should have already stood at attention in the morning grew even more engorged.
"You little imp..."
An Yang took a deep breath, and casting all hesitation aside, he flipped over to pin Nie Xiaoqian beneath him, lowering his head to seal her lips.
Anyway, she was his own woman; why bother overthinking it.
"Don't... Mph!"
A night of spring winds!
Nie Xiaoqian lay in his embrace, saying with worry, "An Yang, after all, humans and ghosts walk different paths. Can your body handle going on like this?"
An Yang rested his head against her cascading waterfall of long hair, gently inhaling the faint fragrance of her locks, and didn't care in the least: "It's fine, usually resting for a night is about enough, and plus I practice Kunlun Art every morning—you still couldn't drain me dry!"
"What are you even saying, what drain-dry or not drain-dry!"
Nie Xiaoqian gave him a reproachful look and frowned, suddenly remembering that it wasn't currently nighttime, and her expression changed slightly!
"Oh dear, it's already morning now, and you just had your way with me—you should go practice Kunlun Art."
Feeling his head groggy and his whole body somewhat exhausted and weak, An Yang rolled over and said, "Making a fuss over nothing, let me lie on you and sleep for a bit first."
Nie Xiaoqian's cheeks turned slightly red, but her attitude was resolute: "No way, if you don't go practice, you... you won't be able to perform at night."
An Yang's mind instantly cleared!
Arriving at the park, An Yang fished out his phone to check the time: 8:31. Old Qin and Old Man He had already finished two games of chess. He let out a yawn and sat down on his own to cultivate, beginning to recover his consumed physical strength.
Nie Xiaoqian really would drain his vital energy!
After retiring, the two old men were bored out of their minds all day long, and furthermore, having long known about Song Hanshan asking An Yang out yesterday afternoon, there was no way they would let him off easily, taking turns dropping pieces while teasing him.
"An Yang, why did you come so late today?"
"Tsk tsk tsk, your complexion looks a bit pale."
"Well, well, it really is—what's going on here?"
"Haha, young people sure know how to play, but speaking of which, you still need to pay more attention to your health!"
"What do you mean by that remark, could it be that little Song kept An Yang up late last night?"
"Hahahaha, I'm afraid it's not as simple as just staying up late."
An Yang opened his eyes from the chair, looking helplessly at the two old men playing a double act—one playing the good cop and the other the bad cop, one looking full of concern and the other lacking all old-man decency. Looking at that demeanor, they didn't look like chess players at all; they were clearly gossiping housewives.
Moreover, what they said didn't touch upon the facts in the slightest.
He and Song Hanshan had no relationship whatsoever. It was true that he had expended energy on a woman, but not an ordinary one—rather, a strikingly beautiful and alluring female ghost.
Time ticked away, and An Yang repeated his routine day after day. Although it was already late August, the heat of summer did not diminish in the slightest, still raging across this city.
The period of two months was drawing to a close, and the summer jobs of An You and Xiao Xueer were also nearing their end.
That evening, An Yang was snuggling on the sofa with Nie Xiaoqian watching TV when his phone suddenly lit up. The screen displayed a somewhat cold yet very pretty girl's avatar, with the three characters Xiao Xueer floating above it.
"What is this girl calling me for?"
An Yang frowned and casually picked up the phone.
"Hello?"
"Hello, is that Brother An Yang?"
Xiao Xueer's voice was neither as soft and gentle as An You's nor as sweet as An You's; her voice was naturally very cool, but at this moment she deliberately turned it soft and sweet, especially that utterance of Brother An Yang, which made him feel immensely comfortable.
"Is that Xueer? Looking for me, is something the matter?"
"It's like this, Xiao You's and my work has already ended, and our wages have also been collected today. I said I wanted to treat Brother An Yang to a meal—I wonder if Brother An Yang has free time recently?"
"Of course I have time. When would you like?"
An Yang agreed without hesitation; anyway, he still had a few days until the next mission world.
"Ah, that's great! Let's make it tomorrow. This is my very first paycheck in life, after all!"
"Alright!"
With the words spoken, Xiao Xueer didn't hang up the phone, and it was unclear what she wanted to say; on the other end of the line came the sound of faint breathing.
"...Oh right, Brother An Yang, and about that matter in the car last time, truly thank you."
An Yang was stunned for a moment, then said, "It's nothing, just a minor trouble, don't always keep it on your mind. School is about to start soon, you should properly prepare for university."
Xiao Xueer fell silent for a moment.
"I won't forget it!"
An Yang said with a bitter smile, "You're still young, and the road ahead of you is very long. Since you didn't get hurt this time, let it go. Just learn your lesson, and don't dwell on it and harbor it in your heart."
...What I'm talking about is the matter of Brother An Yang saving me.
An Yang said offhandedly, "What's there to it? You're my sister's good friend, which makes you my sister too—it was only right."
The other end of the phone fell silent once more.
"Because Brother An Yang is very handsome, and a really good person too, that's why I'll always remember that scene when Brother An Yang stepped forward."
An Yang was startled, and hurriedly steered the conversation away.
"Let's not talk about that. I don't think I even asked which university you got into."
Xiao Xueer said, "Yizhou University of Science and Technology, Jinguan Campus. My first choice was originally Yizhou University, wanting to be together with Xiao You, but my score fell just a tiny bit short, so I could only go to Yizhou University of Science and Technology."
"Did Xiao You pass?"
"Of course. Xiao You is the top of the grade, getting into Yizhou University is no problem."
An Yang nodded, comforting her by saying, "It doesn't matter. Anyway, the Jinguan Campus of Yizhou University of Science and Technology is just like Yizhou University—it's right inside the Jinguan City University Town, and they're very close to each other. In your spare time you can still go shopping and watch movies together just like before, and Yizhou University of Science and Technology is also quite good, it's the second-best seat of learning in Yizhou Province."
Yizhou Province was a major educational province, and Yizhou University, as the best university in Yizhou, ranked in the top five nationwide. Yizhou University of Science and Technology was somewhat inferior, but it could also break into the top twenty nationwide, second only to Yizhou University within Yizhou Province.
He had to mention that he was a student who came out of Yizhou University, which was all thanks to sheer blind luck back then.
Xiao Xueer said, "No way, the campus is so big anyway, and Xiao You and I are in different majors. Even if we were both at Yizhou University, it would be impossible to attend classes together, so it's no different from now. Now that I've gone to Yizhou University of Science and Technology, on weekends or when I don't have classes, I can still go shopping with Xiao You just the same. I won't be unhappy, and besides... besides, if both Xiao You and I are in Yizhou, we can frequently meet with Brother An Yang."
An Yang was startled again: "Alright, it's just that I'm quite busy. Oh right, I haven't asked you yet—what major are you studying?"
"Civil engineering."
Cough cough... You're a girl, is studying this really a good idea?
"What's wrong with it!"
"..."
"Well, actually it's just that I randomly looked at it back then, and seeing that this major had slightly higher score requirements, I chose it—otherwise wouldn't my such high score go to waste? Does Brother An Yang think it's no good?"
...Young people are certainly willful.
Chatting with Xiao Xueer for nearly half an hour, he finally put down the phone and let out a helpless sigh.
The little girl was merely ignorant of the ways of the world, purely because of a longing for protection, a romantic yearning, and the worship of a hero, perhaps even with elements of being poisoned by manga and novels mixed in.
He comforted himself thus.
Nie Xiaoqian seemed to be wholeheartedly watching TV, except that the historical drama originally playing on television was currently in the middle of a very aesthetic bra commercial.
"Be a woman, upright and beautiful..."
An Yang looked at her amusingly: "Acting so innocent, could it be you also want to buy a set? I see yours is neither small nor sagging!"
Nie Xiaoqian's act instantly crumbled. With a chuckle, she burst out laughing and pinched him: "What are you saying, completely improper!"
An Yang rubbed her head and said with a smile, "Just a little sister, don't be jealous. In case you do get jealous, I've told you before—when you're with me, if there's anything you want to say, say it, and if there's anything you want to ask, ask it. Don't bottle it up, if you feel uncomfortable inside then my heart aches too."
The smile on Nie Xiaoqian's face stiffened, and she said hesitatingly, "But... but the elders all say the man handles affairs outside while the woman manages things inside; when a man is talking with friends, a woman shouldn't eavesdrop, nor should she interfere."
An Yang pulled her tightly into his embrace: "But those elders of yours have already died off."
Nie Xiaoqian hesitated for a bit, but still shook her head: "There's nothing to ask, I'm going to hold onto you tightly!"
An Yang immediately smiled, his arm tightening slightly around her as he said, "My little Qian is increasingly looking like a new-era woman."
Nie Xiaoqian corrected his mistake: "A new-era female ghost."
The next evening, Xiao Xueer and An You appeared dressed to the nines, both all dolled up and pretty, and found a... late-night snack stall to treat him to dinner.
An Yang spotted them from far away.
Accompanying them were also two young men.
Xiao Xueer wore a black tight-fitting dress, which set off her skin as very fair and tender, and also outlined her youthful and fiery figure even more prominently. The dress was very short, revealing a pair of slender, snow-white thighs from afar.
An You wore the Chanel dress she bought that day, forming a neat black-and-white contrast with Xiao Xueer. She wasn't as tall as Xiao Xueer, and her figure was far from being as fully developed as Xiao Xueer's, but she possessed a natural princess-like temperament.
The two young men beside them were both quite young, sporting professional attire, suited and booted, with confident smiles plastered on their faces—at a glance, they were clearly corporate elites.
An Yang walked closer and greeted them: "Have you been waiting long?"
An You glanced at him, checked her watch, and said, "Twelve minutes."
An Yang rubbed his nose, somewhat embarrassed.
Xiao Xueer was more sensible after all, sweetly calling out, "Brother An Yang~"
An Yang responded with a smile, taking the opportunity to dish out a compliment: "Xueer has grown even prettier."
Xiao Xueer smiled even more sweetly.
An Yang turned to the two young men nearby and asked, "These two must be your colleagues, right?"
An You nodded and said, "Mhm, this is Manager Chen, and this is Brother Yang."
Xiao Xueer added, "Manager Chen and Brother Yang have both taken good care of us, so I called them out along with us."
An Yang nodded with a smile, while secretly twitching the corner of his mouth.
Manager Chen...
Brother Yang...
At least give me their full names!
Before you continue