Looking at the girl behind the door, his gaze landing on those rabbit ears on her head, Lu Zhe’s eyes darkened slightly.

He turned his head, only to see Li Dongliang beside him holding his gray rabbit, completely stunned, staring fixedly at the girl’s rabbit ears, his expression gradually turning into that of a lovestruck idiot.

Lu Zhe’s thin lips pressed together. He stepped forward and pushed the girl inside, completely blocking Li Dongliang’s line of sight.

“Zhe… Zhe-ge.” Li Dongliang looked shocked, just like the gray rabbit in his arms, dumb and dazed. “Zhe-ge, you’ve been hiding a rabbit spirit at home?”

Heavens, that girl was too pretty.

She even wore those snowy-white, fluffy rabbit ears. So cute, like an actual rabbit spirit. Even if the ears were fake, he really wanted to touch them.

“You can leave.” Lu Zhe stood at the door. His pitch-black eyes swept over Li Dongliang coldly, directly issuing an order for him to get out.

Li Dongliang usually knew this deskmate was hard to get along with and not someone to provoke. Now, being glared at, his heart trembled instinctively. “Alright, alright, I get it, I get it.”

He wasn’t the type who lacked tact. Seeing the girl in that outfit inside, it was obvious she and Lu Zhe were preparing for some exciting role-play.

How could he dare be a third wheel?

Still, this deskmate of his was really something. He actually hid such a beautiful girl in his place. No wonder in the past, when the school beauty chased after him, Lu Zhe remained unmoved. Back then, many people thought he didn’t know what was good for him.

Now he finally understood what was going on. After seeing the girl inside, the school beauty was nothing.

The door slammed shut in front of him.

Li Dongliang awkwardly rubbed his nose.

He looked at the gray rabbit in his arms and sympathetically rubbed its head. “Kid, your love life is really rough. I even wanted to bring you to meet your future wife, but who knew your father-in-law had other plans. Looks like it’ll have to wait till next time. Just endure your heat cycle for now. I’ll go back and tell them to give you an extra meal.”

Li Dongliang slunk away with the gray rabbit in his arms.

The door closed.

Su Ci looked at Lu Zhe and asked him, “What kind of expression is that? Surprise or shock? Why did Li Dongliang come back with you?”

The tall boy outside the door earlier—carrying a pink backpack and wearing pink shoes and socks—was obviously Li Dongliang.

Lu Zhe carefully studied the rabbit ears on top of the girl’s head, and only then distinguished that they weren’t her real ears.

He sighed. “He wanted to come in and sit.”

Lu Zhe didn’t tell her that Li Dongliang had foolishly brought his gray rabbit over to look for a mate. If she knew, she would definitely be angry.

He asked her, “Why did you come?”

“I’m almost unable to maintain my human form anymore. Of course I had to come find you.” They had indeed kissed many times that day, but in a few days she really wouldn’t be able to keep it up.

All the timing was recorded by Fugui.

That day, Lu Zhe had lost control. At the start, he could still count. By the end, he had forgotten to keep track.

His gaze deepened a little. “When did you get here?”

“I took an early morning flight and arrived at noon.” Su Ci glanced at him. “I waited for you for so long. Didn’t you feel even a little surprised when you saw me?”

Lu Zhe didn’t respond.

Shock outweighed surprise.

Just now outside the door, suddenly seeing her with those rabbit ears on her head, he had thought her real rabbit ears had popped out again.

Su Ci didn’t expect him to say anything pleasant. She looked at Lu Zhe with a bright smile and pointed at the headband on her head. “I told you before, these rabbit ears look a lot like my real ones, right?”

“Mm.” Not as pretty as her real ears.

Su Ci asked again, “I’m very cute, right?”

Lu Zhe was already used to her narcissism. “Mm.” If she wasn’t cute, who would be?

Getting his response, Su Ci took off the rabbit-ear headband right in front of him, her eyes carrying a hint of smugness. “But even if I’m cute, I’m not letting you touch!”

Who told him not to look for her all this time? He could look but not touch, let him be tormented.

Lu Zhe: …

Su Ci tossed the headband aside. She walked to Lu Zhe’s side, her watery eyes looking at him pitifully, her tone lazy. “Lu Zhe, I’m hungry. I haven’t eaten anything from noon till now because I was waiting for you.”

She was lying.

She had eaten airplane food at noon, though it tasted awful, so she only ate half.

The coldness in Lu Zhe’s eyes faded. “Why didn’t you message me?”

“To give you a surprise. And you still haven’t said whether you were happy to see me.” Su Ci leaned closer to him. The boy’s body temperature was still icy cold.

Lu Zhe lowered his eyes and answered softly, “Mm.”

He put down his backpack. “Sit first. I’ll go make dinner.”

Su Ci nodded.

Watching the boy walk into the kitchen, she smiled like a sly little fox that had successfully stolen something sweet.

Normally, when Lu Zhe ate alone, he was casual — anything to fill his stomach. But now that there was someone else, he took out all the ingredients stored in the fridge.

Su Ci stood at the kitchen doorway, watching the tall figure of the boy in front of the counter. Her delicate brows and eyes were filled with amusement.

She used to think that men wearing aprons must look kind of silly. But now, looking at Lu Zhe, she realized wearing an apron depended on the person.

Watching Lu Zhe cook, no matter how she looked, he was pleasing to the eye.

Ugh, this person really matched every bit of her aesthetic.

“Lu Zhe, my room is still there. Were you hoping every day that I’d come back?” Su Ci leaned against the kitchen door, speaking lazily.

When she returned, she was surprised to find her room exactly the same as when she left — and very clean, not even a speck of dust on the desk.

Originally, she thought Lu Zhe would move back to his old room. After all, his storage room was so cramped it didn’t even have a proper bed.

Now it seemed obvious — Lu Zhe must have been hoping she would return.

Pride settled between Su Ci’s brows. She had figured it out: Lu Zhe liked to say one thing while meaning another.

On the other side, Lu Zhe’s chopping movements didn’t pause. His voice was cool. “I didn’t have time to clean it up.”

“Guess whether I believe that.” Su Ci was certain he had kept the room for her. Otherwise, he had time to clean her room but no time to move his things over?

Believe him? As if.

Su Ci was in a great mood. She walked into the kitchen and stood beside Lu Zhe, her whole body leaning bonelessly against his back. “Lu Zhe, lying in such a childish way— even my little brother wouldn’t stoop to that.” Su Ci felt no shame at all about the casual lies she herself told all the time.

The girl’s body was soft, warm, and carried a sweet maidenly scent. She lazily pressed herself against his back.

Lu Zhe’s gaze darkened slightly. His voice was cold. “Stand properly.”

Su Ci was like a little demon made to torment people. How could she possibly listen to him? Her thick skin was legendary. “I’m so hungry I can’t stand straight.”

Lu Zhe: …

And just one second ago, how exactly had she walked in here from the door?

In the end, Su Ci pestered and nagged until Lu Zhe carried her out. Only then did she obediently sit at the dining table waiting to be fed.

Lu Zhe made three dishes. The colors were beautiful and the aroma enticing. Su Ci picked up a slice of meat — tender and well-stir-fried — and shot Lu Zhe a satisfied look.

Just then, Su Ci’s phone rang.

A call from an unfamiliar number.

Su Ci answered, and immediately He Ermeng’s voice came through. “Cici, where did you go?”

Su Ci: “Where I go has nothing to do with you.”

Beside her, Lu Zhe could clearly hear the male voice on the other end. He quietly continued eating.

“I saw you took leave and didn’t come to school today. I was worried about you. I went to the Su family looking for you, and Auntie Su said you went to D City. Is something urgent going on? I can accompany you.” On the other end, the little tyrant He Ermeng sounded anxious.

These past two days, seeing Su Ci had felt like a dream to him. Then today, she suddenly didn’t come to school — he worried so much he only now managed to get through to her.

“I don’t need you to accompany me.” Su Ci rejected him immediately. “Do you have anything else? I’m eating.”

He Ermeng lowered his voice and spoke gently for once. “Cici, when are you coming back?”

“I don’t know.” Su Ci replied casually.

He Ermeng, very eager: “Cici, just tell me when you return. I’ll pick you up at the airport.”

“No need!”

He Ermeng wanted to say more, but Su Ci cut him off directly. “If there’s nothing else, I’m hanging up.”

“Wait, wait.” On the other end, He Ermeng took a deep breath, and for once his voice held a rare hint of shy embarrassment. “Then Cici… come back soon. I’ll miss you a lot.”

The next second, Su Ci hung up immediately.

She put her phone down and unexpectedly met Lu Zhe’s pitch-black eyes.

Suddenly, she felt a strange pang of guilt.

“That person is really annoying.” Su Ci quickly explained, obediently. “He likes me, but I don’t like him. Don’t worry — even if I’m far away, I’ll keep both my heart and my body clean.”

“Besides, he’s not as handsome as you, and his grades aren’t as good as yours. How could I like him?” Su Ci shot a little look at Lu Zhe. “You can relax.”

Lu Zhe glanced at her lightly and placed food into her bowl. “Eat.”

After dinner, Lu Zhe was in the kitchen washing the dishes.

Su Ci had gone to shower early. She had been running around all day, the weather was hot, and she had perspired quite a bit.

No one knew how much time passed, but after Lu Zhe finished cleaning the plates and utensils and tidying up the kitchen, he came out just in time to see the bathroom door open.

Steam drifted out from inside.

The next second, he saw Su Ci walk out wearing nothing but a white bath towel, slippers on her feet.

“I forgot to bring my clothes.” Su Ci held the towel at her chest and explained to him.

During the time she lived at the Su house, her room had its own bathroom. She disliked how stuffy it was after showering, so she had gotten used to wrapping herself in a towel and walking out before getting dressed.

Lu Zhe turned his gaze away, avoiding looking at the girl’s overly pale and smooth exposed shoulders and her beautiful collarbones. “Hurry back to your room and put on clothes.”

Su Ci had been a little shy at first, but when she realized Lu Zhe didn’t dare look at her, she immediately wanted to stir up trouble. “The hot water was too hot just now. I’m feeling a little dizzy. You carry me back to my room.” She even pretended to lean against him.

The girl’s small face was indeed flushed from the heat, fair with a rosy tint, but her dark eyes were bright as ever — not even a trace of dizziness.

Lu Zhe really wanted to pinch her face. How could she be this thick-skinned!

He tried to push away her soft, clinging body, his face stiff and cold. “Stand properly.”

Su Ci seemed boneless, and everywhere his hand touched felt soft.

Su Ci, wearing soft-soled slippers, angrily tapped his leg with her toes. “I can’t stand properly!”

She once again deeply questioned whether Lu Zhe was even a man.

She was wrapped in a barely secured towel, and when she looked at herself in the mirror, even she had blushed — she couldn’t be more seductive.

Yet Lu Zhe acted blind, completely ignoring her beauty and her allure!

The girl wasn’t strong. Her kick to Lu Zhe’s calf felt like scratching an itch. Seeing her resentful gaze, Lu Zhe sighed and leaned forward, lifting her into a princess carry.