Right after getting dumped, He suddenly learned that his best buddy was the legendary cold-as-ice school beauty. - Chapter 75

At this point, Lu Yibei no longer thought Ji Qingqing had come just to peek.

Yet, from the simple question “Where am I sleeping?”, Lu Yibei caught a clue.

At the very least, the heroine hadn’t forced herself to just share the bed with him.

Great, great… sigh.

Wait—was that something to be glad about? Moving too fast might not actually be a good thing…

But Lu Yibei, why are you sighing?

He asked himself, then… sighed again.

First, Lu Yibei made space for Miss Ji.

He rolled up the bamboo mat and laid it out neatly on the floor.

Then he pulled a bed sheet from the small wardrobe and spread it over the mat.

“You sleep here,” Lu Yibei said.

Putting the sheet directly on the floor would wrinkle it too easily. He pointed at the bamboo mat: “I’ll just sleep here…”

Thankfully, the room wasn’t big, but there was enough space for both mats.

Ji Qingqing’s lips curved slightly: “Do… I really have to sleep on the floor?”

“Where does a guest ever sleep on the floor?”

“A noble and virtuous young hero.”

Virtuous, my foot.

Lu Yibei thought: there’s no way he could let her sleep on the floor. Even if she could fall asleep, he’d feel too guilty.

The air-conditioning had already cooled the room. Lu Yibei tossed her the remote: “You can adjust it.”

Ji Qingqing pressed a few buttons and set it to twenty-six degrees.

She kicked off her slippers and sat on the bed edge, her white socks resting on the bamboo mat he was about to sleep on.

She pressed down her heels, lightly tapping her toes with delight.

Ji Qingqing scanned the room over and over. Small as it was, she never seemed to get enough.

She checked every corner, making sure nothing was overlooked.

Meanwhile, Lu Yibei’s eyes followed the subtle movements of her feet.

“…Give me your socks,” he said.

“Uh…?” Ji Qingqing frowned, as if he were a pervert. “Didn’t eat enough tonight?”

Didn’t eat enough my ass!

“I’ll wash them for you,” Lu Yibei said helplessly. “By morning, they’ll be dry—you can wear them again.”

“Oh.”

Ji Qingqing lifted her foot, hooked her fingers into the heel of her pristine sock, pulled it over her toes, and peeled it off. She wiggled her cute, round toes.

She did the same with the other sock and handed both to Lu Yibei.

No matter how he took them, it felt slightly awkward… but he didn’t overthink it. He clutched the socks and headed to the bathroom.

Ji Qingqing’s gaze followed the tank top on his back.

Lu Yibei, confident in his own uprightness, didn’t close the door. He meticulously scrubbed the socks—over and over.

“Do they really need that long?” Ji Qingqing asked.

“…I want them clean!”

Only then did Lu Yibei realize he’d been scrubbing them for multiple rounds.

“Were they that dirty?”

“…Nope.”

“Mm…” Ji Qingqing hummed lightly, and Lu Yibei caught a certain undertone in it.

He quickly rinsed the detergent, ready for a final wash.

Ji Qingqing said again:

“I’m a bit hungry.”

“Order delivery.”

“Who knows what time it’ll get here? Don’t you have anything to eat… hmm? Can I have this spicy beef noodles?”

“If you don’t mind.”

“Mind what?” Ji Qingqing pouted. “You don’t have some fancy-rich-girl filter for me, do you? I eat instant noodles even when I play games with you.”

She grabbed the electric kettle and headed to the bathroom, shoving Lu Yibei aside to fill it with water.

“Check my skills,” she said.

She glanced at the socks again: “Scrub carefully—don’t tear them.”

“…They’re fine.”

Weird way to say it. He was just washing socks like any normal person.

Ji Qingqing plugged in the kettle.

Lu Yibei clipped the little white socks on the drying rack, then hung them on the outdoor rod.

The water boiled.

Ji Qingqing had already added the seasoning packets to the noodle cup. She poured in the hot water, then asked as Lu Yibei returned to the bathroom: “What are you doing?”

“Looking for a toothbrush… I bought a three-pack before, should be one left.”

“Oh.”

“Found it… it’s cheap and hard. Brush gently.”

“Mm. Save some noodles for you?”

“Save a little broth—I’ll taste it.”

“Okay.”

Ji Qingqing sat cross-legged on the mat, careful not to dirty his bed.

When she opened the noodle cup, the familiar aroma wafted up.

Lu Yibei came over and sat beside her: “Your cooking skills are good.”

“Of course. Boiled the water till it was piping hot,” Ji Qingqing said. “You eat first?”

“You go ahead. I’m fine.”

“Mm.”

She slurped noodles in big bites, no pretense.

Her little lips moved adorably, even while eating.

Lu Yibei watched, finding her cuter than the noodles themselves.

Ji Qingqing noticed his gaze and tucked her hair behind her ear: “Not hungry?”

He wanted to say you look delicious, but he’d already been called cheesy enough tonight. Save that for next time.

After texting Zhao Sun a quick “won’t return,” he said to Ji Qingqing:

“Tell your roommates. They’ll worry.”

She hesitated: “…How should I put it?”

Lu Yibei: …Obviously, staying over alone at a guy’s place in the middle of the night isn’t exactly something to casually tell people.

But this ‘mess’ was her doing, and it was reasonable for him to handle the aftermath.

He thought a moment:

“Just tell them we stayed up late for midnight noodles. I went home; you stayed out.”

She looked at him, wary:

Night noodles? He went home? She stayed out?

All three things were happening in the same room, at the same time.

Ji Qingqing’s expression was cautious: “You’re such a liar, Bad Bei.”

“No, it’s not lying. Just… the art of words.”

Lu Yibei sighed: “I write novels, even fantasy—I can handle a little storytelling, right? …Fine, I’ve always been honest with you.”

“Ha.” Ji Qingqing chuckled coldly, yet still posted in the dorm chat exactly as he said—Bad Bei, Bad Bei… clever, she liked that.

Lu Yibei rummaged through the wardrobe.

Ji Qingqing, blowing on noodles, asked: “What now?”

“Sleeping in military uniform won’t be comfortable.”

“…Right.”

She’d forgotten she was still in her uniform.

He pulled out a pair of shorts and a black T-shirt.

Though the clothes were oversized for her, the elastic waistband kept the shorts secure. The T-shirt, seldom worn by him, fit her perfectly and spared her from seeing anything… unspeakable.

The heroine demanded propriety while wandering the martial world.

Lu Yibei reminded himself of that.

Ji Qingqing finished most of her noodles, leaving a few for Lu Yibei.

She took the clothes into the bathroom, closed the door, then reopened it: “Don’t peek.”

Closed again.

Lu Yibei slurped noodles, listening to the subtle sounds from inside, completely calm.

Peek? He didn’t need to see. Just the sounds alone were enough to make him savor three bowls.

…Though, on reflection, it was definitely… intense.

He had somehow ended up spending the night in the same house as the heroine.

Even if not the same bed, they shared a roof.

He’d probably never encounter something this intense again.

…Hmm? Hadn’t he thought the same thing before?

Lu Yibei sighed, noticing Ji Qingqing’s phone vibrating.

He glanced at it.

His hand shook.

It was a video call.

The caller ID read…

Mom.

“…Shit.”