Chapter 383: Gap Moe
Onscreen, the female ghost with a blood-covered face suddenly looked up at the camera as the movie’s protagonists let out piercing screams.
Jiang Qingli hadn’t even felt scared yet when Que Feiling wrapped his arms around her.
Not far away, Yan Yan tearfully threw herself into the arms of the male beside her. She clung to him tightly, their bodies inseparable. The male blushed deeply, then lifted her onto his lap and comforted her in a soft voice.
Before snuggling into the handsome guy’s arms, Yan Yan glanced back and gave Jiang Qingli an "Impressive, right?" look.
Jiang Qingli gave her a thumbs-up in return.
Before she could even lower her hand, the young man holding her waist suddenly trembled and whispered for help, "So scary..."
She couldn’t see his face, but she could clearly feel his shoulders trembling slightly.
But whether from extreme fear or something else, Jiang Qingli could clearly feel how tense he was. His hands were around her waist, but they were barely touching her. Only his hair gently brushed against her side.
’Could someone scared out of their wits still be this much of a gentleman?’
’This seemed less like panic and more like a premeditated move.’
The thought had barely crossed her mind when a powerful arm wrapped around her shoulders and pulled her to the right.
A fresh, pleasant scent enveloped her as Jiang Qingli was pulled fully into Qin Muye’s embrace.
The Prince held her close, gritting his teeth as he exposed the other man’s shamelessness in Jiang Qingli’s ear. "He’s faking it. Ignore him."
’Others might not know, but how could *he* not?’
’That damn bird could rip out a Mutant Beast’s heart and lungs on the battlefield without batting an eye. Why would he be scared of some cheesy, plot-hole-ridden horror flick from the last century?’
’The female ghost’s wig was about to fall off, and the fake blood was appallingly bad—just as clumsy as that damn bird’s acting.’
’He would never allow Que Feiling to use such a despicable trick to get close to his female master!’
Having been exposed, Que Feiling felt a little sheepish.
This was, indeed, his plan.
After leaving the hospital room that afternoon, Que Feiling had carefully considered his persona and decided he lacked contrast.
He usually tried to project more masculine charisma in front of her.
But Qin Muye was already leagues ahead in the "powerful" lane. Besides, Qin Muye also came with "tsundere" and "simp" attributes, giving him plenty of contrast already.
He could try using his wealth, but Jiang Qingli wasn’t short on cash. Plus, the "domineering CEO" lane was already occupied by two different types—Ye Linyuan and Xie Youchen—making it difficult to carve out his own style.
After racking his brain, he still didn’t know how he could possibly attract Jiang Qingli.
But Yan Yan’s actions just now had given Que Feiling an idea.
’From now on, he would be the pitiful, love-starved male who was tough on the outside but soft and helpless on the inside.’
’It was mortifying... but the lights were dim, so no one could clearly see his expression.’
’It was perfectly normal for males to pull all sorts of stunts to court a mate. There was no shame in it.’
’Besides, Miss Jiang didn’t seem to physically reject him. Maybe he could use this chance to get a little closer...’
Que Feiling lowered his voice and looked at Jiang Qingli with a stammer. "My apologies, Miss Jiang. I... I rarely watch these kinds of movies. I didn’t scare you, did I?"
He was afraid of displeasing Jiang Qingli, so he used it as an excuse to sit up straight.
But his new, upright position was slightly closer to her than before.
Jiang Qingli waved a hand, her eyes still fixed on the screen. "It’s fine. These things don’t really scare me. If you’re scared, though..."
Thinking his ploy was working, Que Feiling’s eyes immediately lit up as he looked at her.
Qin Muye shot him a wary glare and mouthed one word: "Scram."
Que Feiling raised an eyebrow. "Make me."
His triumphant little smirk infuriated Qin Muye.
Under the watchful eyes of the two males, Jiang Qingli offered her suggestion. "If you’re scared, you can go hide in the study for a bit. I’ll message you when it’s over."
She patted Que Feiling’s arm reassuringly. "It’s fine. We’re in a corner; no one will notice."
Que Feiling: "..."
He was petrified on the spot. All the follow-up moves he had just planned were suddenly useless.
Now it was Qin Muye’s turn to look smug.
The Prince’s hand on Jiang Qingli’s shoulder slid down to her waist, pulling her entirely into his embrace. He gave a blatantly arrogant arch of his brow. "That’s right. We wouldn’t want you to get too scared."
Then, he slowly sounded out three syllables: "Scar-e-dy cat."
Que Feiling: !!!
’That stinking leopard, throwing his weight around because he has her favor!!!’
If Jiang Qingli weren’t here, Que Feiling would have already transformed into his Vermilion Bird form and gotten into a brawl with Qin Muye.
He was secretly grinding his teeth, just about to find an excuse to stay, when slender fingers suddenly covered his eyes.
Yan Yan let out another short shriek and hid in the Beastman’s arms.
Through the gaps between her fingers, Que Feiling saw an even bloodier scene appear in the movie. Someone with less courage would likely have been trembling with fear.
And just before it appeared, Jiang Qingli had raised her hand to block his view.
She had done it even after Qin Muye exposed his lie.
In that moment, Que Feiling’s heart softened completely, and he felt a pang of guilt.
’I shouldn’t have taken advantage of her compassion...’
’But the persona was already established. Changing it now would only make him more unlikeable.’
Que Feiling apologized to Jiang Qingli in his heart. He decided he had to make it up to her, then stood up and went to the study.
With him gone, Qin Muye was finally satisfied.
But thinking about how considerate Jiang Qingli had been, he still felt a twinge of jealousy. "Why bother with him? Who the hell does he think he is?"
"All right, just focus on the movie."
Jiang Qingli grabbed a bottle of orange-flavored nutritional supplement from the side table and shoved it into Qin Muye’s hand. "Here, have some fruit."
Her comment made Qin Muye laugh. He pulled Jiang Qingli with him as he leaned back,
and as if sensing something, his gaze flickered behind them.
Que Feiling hadn’t gone far. He was squatting by the second-floor railing, peering down at them like a prisoner staring through iron bars at the free world outside.
Naturally, Qin Muye wasn’t going to pass up such a perfect opportunity to assert his dominance.
He leaned in, about to kiss the girl in his arms.
But Jiang Qingli anticipated his move and pushed him away.
"What’s wrong?" Qin Muye asked, confused.
"They’re about to show how the woman became a ghost," Jiang Qingli said.
Qin Muye: "..."
Qin Muye glanced at Yan Yan, who was already holding hands and kissing two handsome guys in front of them. He then looked over at his other colleagues, who were texting sweet nothings to their long-distance partners. Finally, his gaze landed back on Jiang Qingli.
Her expression was serious, her focus absolute.
She was the only person in the entire group who was seriously watching the horror movie...
Qin Muye felt he understood her a little better now, and he found this contrast in her character all the more adorable. "You like horror movies?"
"They’re all right. Some of them are pretty interesting."
Jiang Qingli’s lips curved into a smile.
’Actually, she used to be a bit scared of them. But back when she first started dating Baili Jing, he starred in a horror movie. She dragged him along to watch it with her, and it took them four or five days to get through the whole thing.’
’It was terrifying, but every time Baili Jing comforted her, there were perks.’
’Like getting to touch Brother Baili’s abs, or hugging his tail...’
’During that period, Jiang Qingli watched nearly every well-known horror movie available. She eventually developed an immunity and could even appreciate many of the interesting details.’
’Of course, she could never tell Qin Muye any of this.’
’Otherwise, for the foreseeable future, Qin Muye would insist on watching movies while fooling around every single day, as if competing to erase her memories of other males.’
’Come to think of it, it had been a long time since she’d seen Baili Jing...’
’Thinking about her memories with him made her really want to see him again.’
Jiang Qingli sighed. Suddenly, she felt a gentle tug on her fingertips.
Glancing to the side, she saw Qin Muye was right beside her ear, his breath hot. "I’ll come find you tonight, okay? There’s something I need to ask you."