Chapter 104: Once Again Trending

Shen Qing picked up a pen and signed her name for the elderly man, then casually lifted the delivery box with one hand and walked out openly.

“Hey, old fellow, why did you let the student leave?” someone called out.

The elderly man was staring at the young girl's signature, taking a picture of it with his phone for his grandson.

“Huh? What did you just say?”

“……”

*

Shen Qing grabbed a quick bite outside, and by the time she returned to Tianyuan, dusk had already settled.

“Woof! Woof! Woof!” As soon as she opened the door, Er Niu heard the sound and began circling her, wagging its tail enthusiastically.

Shen Qing smiled at it, tossed the delivery box onto the table, and hooked Er Niu up with one hand, settling onto the sofa with it in her arms.

Er Niu was well-behaved. As Shen Qing sat playing with her phone, it lay quietly on her lap, occasionally flicking its tail.

Shen Qing opened WeChat and immediately saw a message from Gu Ting.

[G: Good taste.]

This man was really quite narcissistic.

Shen Qing clicked her tongue, scrolled down, and cleared out the useless messages.

She put Er Niu on the floor, showered, and returned to the living room just as a call came in.

Seeing who was calling, her brows furrowed slightly and she pressed ‘answer.’

“Qing Qing, you picked up quickly today,” the man on the other end said gently.

“If you have something to say, say it. If not, hang up,” Shen Qing replied, clearly impatient.

A low chuckle came through, “Don’t be so fierce. I heard you appeared in an MV in Huaguo.”

Shen Qing frowned, tugging at the stray fur on Er Niu’s head, her tone annoyed, “Yeah, so what?”

“Nothing, really. When are you coming back?”

“Don’t know, depends.”

The man was silent for a few seconds before speaking slowly, “In two months, it will be Master’s memorial day.”

Shen Qing paused, and Er Niu seemed to sense her mood, turning its round, black eyes toward her, “Awo~”

“I’ll go. Hanging up now.” Shen Qing ended the call, gently tapped Er Niu’s head, and stood up to open the delivery box.

Inside were two white medicine bottles. She glanced at the instructions, which bore Old Qi’s handwritten note: One pill at a time, no more!

Shen Qing smiled, picked up the bottles, and went into the bedroom.

Er Niu watched her until the bedroom door closed, then crawled into its dog bed in the living room.

*

Shen Qing slept until ten the next morning, woken by a phone call.

She frowned, her usually elegant and rebellious features instantly covered with a frosty chill.

“Who is it?” Her voice was low, carrying a hint of fatigue, yet an icy, unapproachable aura seeped through.

Nie Huan paused on the other end, “Did I wake you up?”

The girl's voice was soft and gentle. Shen Qing was momentarily stunned; recognizing Nie Huan’s voice, her expression relaxed.

“No.” Her tone had lost its earlier coldness, sounding a bit hoarse and sleepy.

“What’s wrong?” Shen Qing asked, knowing Nie Huan wouldn’t call without reason.

“You’re trending. There’s a lot about you on Weibo and Tieba…” Nie Huan trailed off, but Shen Qing could guess the rest.

“Oh.” She responded quietly, unconcerned about online gossip.

*

“Qing Qing.” Nie Huan hesitated for several seconds before speaking again.

“Hmm?”

Nie Huan lowered her gaze and spoke gently, “Go back to sleep if you can.”

“Alright.”

Shen Qing replied, and Nie Huan hung up.

Yao Panpan sat across from Nie Huan, her face full of anxiety. Early this morning, someone suddenly exposed dirt on Shen Qing. When she checked Weibo after waking up, she was terrified and quickly called Xiao Pang and the others to Nie Huan’s house to discuss.

“It’s a total crisis, how can Qing Jie still sleep?” She propped her head up, feeling it was about to explode, her hands barely supporting her.

“What if Qing Jie has a solution?” Xiao Pang sipped his milk tea. If she could buy thirty thousand yuan worth of candy without blinking, surely she could handle this too?

Chu Yu looked grim, glanced at Xiao Pang, opened his mouth to speak, but ultimately stayed silent.

Shen Qing was wealthy, but the internet claimed she was the illegitimate daughter of the Yu family, so the money probably came from them.

But Shen Qing lived in Tianyuan, while the Yu family resided in Lvyuan. Clearly, their relationship wasn’t good.

Nie Huan glanced at them, expressionless. “If Shen Qing says it’s fine, then leave it be.”

Yao Panpan was dumbfounded, eyes wide, “Huan Jie, how are you both so unfazed?”

Xiao Pang tugged at Yao Panpan’s sleeve and whispered, “Maybe that’s why you haven’t been made official yet.”

Yao Panpan froze, “What do you mean, made official?”

“Well, Huan Jie and Qing Jie…”

Before Xiao Pang could finish, Chu Yu gave him a sharp slap, “Shut your mouth!”