So Yan Luqing reached out a forefinger and poked his shoulder, “Hey.”

“Teacher Gu, this afternoon I want to go out for a bit.”

Only then did Gu Ci raise his eyes to look at her.

“You’re the master of this villa,” he leaned back lazily, looking at her with amused interest, “why are you asking my permission?”

Yan Luqing: …Indeed, damn, why was she doing that?

No, she had to stand her ground.

“Then I’ll change it now.” Yan Luqing cleared her throat again, and like a family head she spoke solemnly to Gu Ci: “I’m notifying you, I’m heading out now, not sure when I’ll be back.”

Gu Ci, after hearing this, smiled at her and said warmly: “All right, go on then.”

“…………”

Although—why was it that even after changing her phrasing, it still seemed like she was asking his permission.

Yan Luqing left the house filled with complaints toward Princess Ci, yet all that grievance was soon replaced by excitement once she got in the car.

To be safe, Yan Luqing brought Big Black today, because she felt that for an occasion where she wouldn’t need to use her hands, it was wiser not to bring Little Black.

The address the old grandpa gave was just as he had said, a certain teahouse in the city. He had specially mentioned it was at a teahouse, probably to prevent her from thinking they were going to some deep mountain forest—this made Yan Luqing trust the old grandpa and this so-called eldest senior brother a few degrees more.

At last, when she arrived, the old grandpa was still the same as the first time she saw him, even wearing the same clothes. The “eldest senior brother” in his mouth was a steady-looking young man not yet thirty, tall and lean, with a kind countenance. Yan Luqing first exchanged WeChat with the eldest senior brother, then under the old grandpa’s arrangement, the three of them entered the inner room of the teahouse, almost completely insulated from noise, and thus officially began her very first live hypnosis.

“Your eldest senior brother has been a test subject before. Generally speaking, the best choice for a first hypnosis target is someone who both completely trusts you yet isn’t too familiar with you, so he’s very suitable.” The old grandpa spoke as he handed her the prop. “The hypnosis inductions I taught you, you can try each method on him.”

Yan Luqing received the glowing prop, then began recalling the content of the lessons, as well as the actual hypnosis records she had watched. Fixing her gaze on the eldest senior brother’s eyes, she recited the words she ought to recite.

She didn’t know how long it took to complete the entire procedure, but what she hadn’t expected was… she actually succeeded.

For every method afterward, as long as it was one she had learned, she actually succeeded with all of them.

When the eldest senior brother was woken, he stood up and praised her: “Junior sister, amazing! Your talent is far too high, you’re much more skilled than I was back then!”

When Yan Luqing walked out of the teahouse she was still in a daze, even feeling as if she had opened the door to a new world.

——Could it be she really was a buried hypnosis genius?

But this exaggerated sand-sculpture thought only lasted for a while. Once she calmed down she realized, this time’s success was only because what she did was merely guiding someone into a hypnotic state—commonly called aiding sleep—it was still far from the ultimate goal of eliciting someone’s innermost words.

But she was still happy.

This was the very first step toward success!

She was finally going to know what Gu Ci meant when he said those words that day! She would no longer have to guess to the point of doubting her own life—!

……

Yan Luqing maintained a state of high excitement until before she returned home, but upon entering the house, she belatedly felt a little guilty.

The ultimate purpose of going out this time was only to deal with Gu Ci.

She thought about it. She couldn’t let Gu Ci know, but her conscience felt uneasy. Thinking how pitiful it would be when soon he would have to reveal his heart to her, she thought—

Then she would give him some flowers again!

Yan Luqing acted the moment she thought it. She immediately dismissed Big Black, then went alone to the small side garden.

Picking flowers was unoriginal, and she had already given them twice. So Yan Luqing thought of the flower crowns she had once learned to weave with her sisters—crowns that, when finished, could be worn on the head as adornment, looking very fairy-like.

Yan Luqing imagined for a moment what Princess Ci would look like wearing it. He would definitely look every bit a princess.

She instantly grew even more enthusiastic.

Just right, the branches and leaves of this flower—whether in length or in flexibility—were perfectly suited, so she plucked and wove a ring at the same time.

Making a flower crown was the sort of task where one easily drifted off in thought. As she wove, Yan Luqing once again began recalling that entire afternoon, and also gazing toward a bright future.

After all, all along she had gone to seek the old grandpa’s teachings, including this present trip out, with the essential purpose of seeing through Gu Ci’s inner heart.

Every time she thought of how, in the near future, she would hypnotize him—her mind even already beginning to imagine that sort of scene—Yan Luqing at once felt exhilarated and guilty. The more she wove this crown, the stronger the guilt grew.

With a heart guilty toward Gu Ci, the ring in her hands unconsciously became bigger and bigger, the flowers added more and more, yet it also looked prettier and prettier.

Yan Luqing wove with great care, her eyes filled only with beauty and satisfaction, completely failing to notice anything amiss. Only when she finished did she suddenly realize it seemed a little too large, so large it could only serve as decoration and could not be worn on the head. So she quickly wove a smaller one.

Carrying these two crowns, one large and one small, she walked into the living room, her face alight with excitement, and asked Big Black: “Where’s Gu Ci?”

Big Black and Little Black stared intently at the two… objects in her hands.

Then answered in unison: “In the room.”

Yan Luqing nodded, her steps light as she went on her way.

Leaving Big Black and Little Black looking at each other in dismay.

“That just now, that, doesn’t it look like…” Little Black swallowed, “Bro, why do I feel like I just saw a funeral wreath?”

Big Black nodded: “Especially since there’s one large and one small—stacked together it looks… even more like it.”

……

Completely unaware of the two men’s conversation, Yan Luqing walked to Gu Ci’s room door and gave a symbolic couple of knocks.

Hearing his voice from inside, she immediately pushed the door open.

“Gu Ci—”

Yan Luqing called his name with excitement, only to discover the room was in complete darkness.

When she had left, it had been two o’clock in the afternoon. She had spent several hours at the teahouse, then lingered a while in the small garden, and now the sun had already completely set.

Gu Ci had probably even drawn the curtains, otherwise it couldn’t possibly have been so utterly dark.

Yan Luqing stood by the door, “Gu Ci, can I turn on the light?”

Gu Ci did not speak, but she heard him seemingly rise from the bed, followed by the sound of a “click.”

The light suddenly came on, and she saw Gu Ci drawing back his hand from the switch on the headboard.

He raised his eyes to look over, still black as ink, though between his brows was a faint, almost imperceptible weariness. “What is it.”

His voice was also a little hoarse.

Whether because he wasn’t yet used to the light, Yan Luqing kept feeling his face was paler than usual, his lips having lost their healthy pale pink.

When she came closer, she found his hair slightly mussed from sleep, and on his smooth forehead there lingered a faint sheen of sweat.

Yan Luqing immediately asked with concern: “Don’t you usually watch TV at this time? Are you feeling unwell?”

At her words, Gu Ci let out a quiet laugh, and that beautiful face at last, because of this laugh, seemed to come alive.

He leaned against the headboard and said: “After teaching you so much, I’m not allowed to rest?”

“………”

All right, he really did look exhausted. And the reason was perfectly valid.

“What did you come here for.” Before she could think of anything else, Gu Ci spoke again.

“Just… nothing much, really. I came to give you a little gift.” Yan Luqing felt she had probably disturbed his nap, and was a little embarrassed to keep lingering. She brought out the two flower crowns she had been hiding behind her back. “I wove these. Are they pretty?”

Gu Ci was silent for a few seconds: “……You wove them?”

“Of course.”

Not noticing Gu Ci’s expression, Yan Luqing was now intent on letting him rest. So she walked around to the other side of the bed and said: “I’ll just set them here anywhere, then I’ll leave so I don’t disturb your sleep. I’ll come call you again for dinner.”

When she had placed the two white flower crowns, one large and one small, on the table beside him, she pushed the door open and left.

Gu Ci sat there, gazing at the wreaths of flowers—things quite out of place in the room, yet still fairly pretty.

Although she had given such a thing, Yan Luqing had indeed managed to divert his attention considerably.

After a long time, a low sigh sounded in the room.

“Not too auspicious…”

But, never mind.

Since it was hand-woven, it was at least unusual.

Yan Luqing left Gu Ci’s room. When she reached the living room, she saw Big Black and Little Black staring at her with extremely stiff expressions.

She stopped at once, touched her face, and asked: “What’s wrong with me? Is there something on my face?”

“No… we just wanted to ask…” Big Black’s expression was twisted in struggle, and finally Little Black spoke up in his place: “We wanted to ask, Miss Yan, where are the flower wreaths you were holding?”

Flower wreaths?

Yan Luqing froze, then thought about it again. Actually, that way of calling them wasn’t wrong. Though this “flower wreath” wasn’t that “flower wreath”… but in literal meaning, weren’t flower crowns and flower wreaths basically the same?

So she answered: “Of course I gave them to Gu Ci. What kind of stupid question is that?”

“Miss Yan—” Big Black looked at her, words choking in his throat. After a long moment, he finally forced them out with difficulty, his voice low: “If you want to get rid of Gu Ci, you can just say it directly. Why bother to hint at it with funeral wreaths?”

“……?”

Yan Luqing: ??? Who the hell wants to get rid of him???