Chapter 91: The 3rd Love Letter
"She killed her arranged marriage partner. According to the investigation, she did it on their first meeting."
In other words, before they even met, before the scheduled meeting, Yan Qin had already decided to kill him.
It’s a common practice for minor noble families to marry off their non-Awakened members.
Yan Qin just had the bad luck of being matched with a good-for-nothing womanizer who liked to ’hit’ people.
He was a Half-awakened with low spiritual power and, just like Yan Qin, was not favored by his family.
Judging the action, not the person, Lin Yu actually found himself admiring her.
She knew the guy was no good and that she would be abused if she married him, so she acted decisively. A ruthless one, indeed.
"Keep a close eye on her for now. Don’t let her cause any trouble," Ling Yanzhi said with a frown.
He was still somewhat looking forward to the results of Yan Qin’s Awakening.
If Jian Yu’s Awakening failed, or if her health didn’t improve, they would at least have a backup plan for her.
’I’ll ask Pei Yin about it later.’
He didn’t want to miss even a one-in-a-thousand chance.
"Oh, right, Chief," Lin Yu remembered something. "During the investigation into Xu Sheng, our people discovered that Qin Xianzhao took a half-month leave and never went home."
Not going home meant he never went back to ask about the necklace.
Xi Yu’s sharp mind immediately seized on the implication.
His voice was chilling. "He lied to me. He knew where the necklace came from and deliberately kept it from me."
His black tentacles surged, and one of them shot out, punching a large hole in something.
The force of it sent a chill down Lin Yu’s spine.
It was so fast, even faster than when he issued a Yellow Card. Jian Yu hadn’t seen it clearly, and she blinked, lost in thought.
Lin Yu collected himself. "Both he and Xu Sheng have submitted applications to return to the academy tomorrow."
They were probably coming back for the Beast Taming Competition.
He wondered what excuse Qin Xianzhao planned to use to placate Xi Yu.
Ling Yanzhi didn’t even raise his eyelids. "What did he do during his leave?"
"Xu Sheng took him to a few auctions. The Qin and Xu families are on good terms, but Xu Shaoqing usually looks down on Qin Xianzhao, so it’s surprising to see them interacting."
Lin Yu lowered his head.
"After what happened to Xu Shaoqing, I saw Xu Sheng appear near Jian on the surveillance footage twice."
"However, we later determined they were just heading in the same direction. We tailed him for a few days but didn’t find anything suspicious."
"Three days ago, Xu Sheng took leave, left the academy, and had a meal with Qin Xianzhao off-campus."
"At the auctions, Xu Sheng bid on jewelry that girls like—necklaces, bracelets, and so on. He was bidding on behalf of Qin Xianzhao, and the items are still in Qin Xianzhao’s possession, not yet gifted."
Lin Yu felt that something was off about them.
He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, couldn’t figure it out, so he decided to just lay out the details as clearly as possible.
Jian Yu’s gaze drifted away from her textbook, unfocused.
’Jewelry?’
’It couldn’t be Qin Xianzhao who sent me the love letter, could it?’
As someone who judged by appearances, Jian Yu’s mood soured instantly.
’Creep.’
’He’d better hope I don’t find him.’
’I’ll curse him to death!’ Jian Yu fumed internally, her little face tense, her expression cold and merciless.
People in this world really loved going to auctions.
Taking leave to go have fun was perfectly normal.
’Let’s think about this from another angle.’
Jian Yu pursed her lips, looking like she wanted to say something but held back.
"What is it, baby?" Ling Yanzhi lowered his head, looking at the reddish tip of her nose.
He placed his palm on her forehead to check her temperature.
Jian Yu was listless and leaned back from the force of his touch.
She ended up lying sideways in his arms. "Maybe he communicated with the Qin Family and already asked about the necklace."
Lin Yu nodded. "That’s also possible. I overlooked that."
He wasn’t so skilled that he could monitor a person’s every move.
"Jian is as sharp as ever."
Receiving the compliment, Jian Yu’s ears turned red.
She lowered her head and turned a page, pretending to still be reading.
Ling Yanzhi chuckled softly and gently pinched her earlobe.
His movement paused as he realized something.
’Pei Yin said he was going to make earrings.’
’But baby doesn’t have pierced ears.’
"Chief?" Lin Yu prompted softly.
Ling Yanzhi nodded.
Lin Yu turned and left.
Jian Yu stared, dumbfounded.
’How did they even communicate?’
The book was pulled away, and Jian Yu watched it go with longing eyes.
The exam was just around the corner, and she was used to last-minute cramming, pulling all-nighters to study right before a test.
"It’s too late, baby," Ling Yanzhi said, lifting her into his arms.
In the process, she accidentally kicked Xi Yu in the chest.
Jian Yu quickly turned her head. "I—"
The window flew open, and Pei Yin flew in.
Forgetting to apologize, Jian Yu stared blankly as he folded his wings.
"One-Two. Three-Four. Five-Six. Two days per person."
Pei Yin laid out the schedule the moment he arrived. "On the seventh day, let baby choose."
And today just so happened to be Sunday.
Jian Yu really wanted to shout, ’Su Peisheng, bring all the men to my bed!’
Her eyes darted around, and she tightened her grip on Ling Yanzhi’s neck.
The atmosphere had grown a little tense.
’Is this really necessary?’ Jian Yu wanted to say. ’The bed is big enough. We could all sleep together.’
’No, I can’t break my pitiful damsel persona.’
Jian Yu kept her face expressionless, only a flicker of timidity showing in her beautiful, large eyes.
She controlled her voice perfectly, making it sound soft and weak. "I choose Yanyan."
"Yanyan! Brother Yan!" Red Snake called out twice. "Yu Baby, good baby, how about we call him Brother Yanyan from now on!"
Jian Yu pursed her lips, silent.
"She’s chosen, so we’ll be turning in," Ling Yanzhi said as he carried her back to the bedroom. He was no longer secretly gloating; he was openly triumphant.
Xi Yu followed behind them.
Pei Yin grabbed him. "Don’t break the rules."
CRACKLE! ZAP!
Jian Yu didn’t even need to look back to imagine the fight breaking out behind her.
But she hadn’t expected Xi Yu to climb into bed sporting a black eye.
He said, full of self-righteous justification, "You guys can have your schedule. Baby needs me, so I’m staying."
Ling Yanzhi was not surprised in the slightest.
He didn’t even open his eyes.
Jian Yu shifted a couple of times, found a new position, and went back to sleep.
...
「The Quiz」
The atmosphere was relaxed.
Because there was no proctor.
Professor Lin was the only teacher who used paper-based exams.
Everyone said he enjoyed grading exams with a red pen.
Jian Yu didn’t believe it at first, not until she saw the exam paper with her own eyes.
There were a ton of questions. The exam was five hours long, and the multiple-choice section alone took her three hours.
Jian Yu gripped her pen, her eyes aching and her hand growing tired from writing.
The exam ended.
She was completely wiped out from all the writing.
"Yu," Shen Gu said, getting her attention.
Jian Yu looked up.
A pink envelope appeared out of thin air, as if held by something unseen, and slowly descended in front of her.
She tore it open, took out the letter, and habitually tipped the envelope upside down.
A badge fell with a soft clink into her palm.
Jian Yu traced the small bird pattern on it with her fingertip, then closed her hand around it.
It was an abstract-style bird, its species impossible to identify.
Her brain hadn’t been working last night, but looking at it now, she realized it couldn’t be Qin Xianzhao.
He didn’t have this kind of power.
Jian Yu picked up her pen and drew the bird pattern. "Shen Gu, have you seen this symbol before?"
Then, realizing it would be easier, she held out the badge. "This one."