Daytime.
In front of the sink.
"Ha~~"
This was Gu Yan's third yawn.
Last night, he had been out wandering with Leng Qingqiu until very late, almost three or four in the morning before they returned.
But, shouldn't an ordinary person be less exhausted after staying up late?
As he washed up, he grumbled in his mind, "I'm a Xiantian martial artist, after all. Staying up late shouldn't make me feel this drained, right?"
At that moment, a graceful figure walked up beside Gu Yan.
The owner of the figure picked up a newly purchased toiletry item and greeted, "Good morning, Gu Yan. Didn't sleep well last night?"
Her voice carried a hint of concern, as well as the crispness of the morning.
Thump! Thump!
Hearing her voice, Gu Yan's heart skipped a beat. He turned to look at her.
It was Leng Qingqiu, who had just woken up!!
And with his heart racing like crazy!
The person before him... was truly Qingqiu!
Gu Yan instantly perked up, and all the trivial matters from the previous night were tossed aside: "Yeah, I dreamed that you came to sneak into my room at night, Qingqiu. It got me so excited I couldn't sleep all night!"
Huh?
"Who would sneak into your room? What nonsense are you spouting!"
Leng Qingqiu was momentarily stunned, then scolded him with a mix of embarrassment and annoyance. She snorted lightly, "Seems like you've already decided where we're going today, huh? Otherwise, why would you be spouting such foolishness first thing in the morning?"
Gu Yan chuckled softly and leaned slightly closer to Leng Qingqiu: "Where we go doesn't matter. What matters is..."
"Going out with you."
Thump! Thump!
Leng Qingqiu's heart immediately began to race. She curled her lips into a smile: "Smooth talker. You're such a charmer."
"Ah... Qingqiu... you're so cute..."
"Shut up..!"
After scolding him with a mix of shyness and irritation, Leng Qingqiu began to wash up.
But to be fair, even though she said that, she felt the same way.
Where they went didn't matter at all. In fact, due to her experiences over the years, she had developed some resistance to going out.
But... this time, it was with Gu Yan.
For some reason, she felt a little excited.
[What's wrong? Are you happy about going out with your furnace?]
[I can sense your excitement~]
[But I think you should still keep yourself in check. After all, you're still the Night King.]
At that moment.
Xiao Leng suddenly popped up and said something cryptic to Leng Qingqiu.
"Xiao Leng, what do you know? I've always been reserved, okay?"
Leng Qingqiu immediately retorted in her mind.
Honestly, Xiao Leng always did this. Did she really need to remind her of such things?
She had always maintained her aloof Night King demeanor, hadn't she?
[.....You better be.]
"Shut up! Today is the perfect day for me to win over Gu Yan's heart. Xiao Leng, don't just pop up and disturb me!"
To ensure that this rare outing wouldn't be affected, Leng Qingqiu sternly warned Xiao Leng.
But Xiao Leng, who would usually respond with something like [You'll regret this], was surprisingly obedient this time.
[Don't worry, I think you and the furnace are doing just fine. I won't disturb you two while you're out.]
Xiao Leng was still Xiao Leng.
But the words she spoke didn't sound like something she would say.
Leng Qingqiu was a bit suspicious, but she didn't dwell on it: "I'll borrow your words to reply—you better be."
[........]
After a moment of silence, Xiao Leng went quiet.
My other self, you've even learned to joke with me now...
You've really changed.
........
........
Outside.
In the courtyard.
"Ha~~ Good morning, brother-in-law, sister."
"You guys are up so early..."
Leng Ling'er yawned, looking utterly exhausted as she walked out, fully dressed.
Gu Yan was growing impatient. The longer this took, the less time he had to spend with Qingqiu.
Did this brat not understand anything? He looked at the sluggish Leng Ling'er and immediately put on a lecturing tone: "Kids should act like kids."
"How can you be so listless at such a young age? It's unacceptable!"
Leng Qingqiu, standing beside him, nodded in agreement: "Ling'er, didn't you go to bed early last night? Why are you still so tired?"
"No, no, it's not my fault, sis!"
"Last night, I slept terribly!"
"Plus, I had a nightmare!"
Seeing that the two were about to bombard her with questions, Leng Ling'er quickly explained.
"A nightmare? What nightmare? You little brat, always making excuses."
"You! Trash Gu, the nightmare was about you! I dreamed that you were completely bewitched by a woman who looked just like my sister!"
"You scumbag!"
Gu Yan and Leng Qingqiu: ???
Gu Yan immediately fired back with a barrage of questions: "Do you even hear yourself? Does any of what you're saying make sense?"
"And a woman who looks like your sister? Your sister is right here........"
At that point.
Gu Yan's heart suddenly skipped a beat.
Wait a minute, a woman who looks like Qingqiu... isn't there one right here?
Not just similar, but identical.
Although he and Xiao Leng, that personality, didn't have much of a relationship, they had made a deal.
Thinking of this, Gu Yan's tone became slightly guilty: "She's right here, isn't she?"
Huh? Why did his tone suddenly weaken?
Leng Qingqiu, standing beside him, suddenly became alert.
Was Gu Yan hiding something from her? A woman who looked like her...
No, there couldn't be such a coincidence.
Wait, earlier this morning, Gu Yan had mentioned dreaming about her sneaking into his room.
Even Gu Yan wouldn't have such a perverted dream, right?
He must be covering up something else...
Ah, Leng Qingqiu understood.
This jerk must have secretly gone to her and Ling'er's room last night to eavesdrop or something.
What a creep!
Leng Qingqiu had already labeled Gu Yan with another title.
Anyway...
Gu Yan would never betray her. She believed in him.
So...
Leng Qingqiu decided to defend Gu Yan's reputation: "Ling'er, stop making things up. Your brother-in-law would never go after another woman. You said it yourself—it was just a dream..."
At this, she turned to Gu Yan and smiled kindly: "Gu Yan, you would never do something like that, right?"
Gu Yan looked at Leng Qingqiu and nodded repeatedly: "Of course, of course! I could only ever love you, Qingqiu! Even if you didn't want to be with me, I'd still cling to you no matter what!"
Hearing this, Leng Qingqiu's heart swelled with joy: "I hope so."
And just then.
"Meow~~"
A small black cat walked over and affectionately rubbed against Leng Qingqiu's ankle.
Startled by the sensation, Leng Qingqiu froze.
Leng Ling'er, however, was delighted. She crouched down and reached out to pet the cat's head: "Wow! It's a kitten!"
"Brother-in-law, you have a cat? What's its name?"