Chapter 428: Vying for Affection: No Bottom Line, No Morals

Jiang Qingli never expected that her secret trip back to the military base would coincide with Yuan Shiyao’s leave. He was here to see her.

She had planned to chat for a bit and then leave, but she never imagined Ye Linyuan would make such a racket.

Meeting Yuan Shiyao’s emerald-green eyes, she felt a pang of guilt for some reason. She looked away and said awkwardly, "What sound?... Oh, right, it’s not the weekend. Does the courthouse give you time off too?"

At the mention of this, Yuan Shiyao ground his teeth. He tried to keep his voice casual. "I was busy with a major case for the past two days, something to do with smuggling. It just wrapped up this morning, so now I’m taking a break."

Jiang Qingli noticed the dark circles under his eyes. "What kind of case? Have you not been sleeping at all?"

Just thinking about it made Yuan Shiyao burn with a nameless rage.

He had arrived in the Twelve Cities two days ago.

The Twelve Cities had frequent criminal incidents and plenty of lawsuits, but they were mostly minor cases that didn’t take up much time.

Yuan Shiyao had taken advantage of his brother, Yuan Shimo, being away at a conference to rush here overnight. He’d wanted to spend more time with Jiang Qingli.

But who would have known that the moment he landed, the Twelve Cities Central Courthouse would assign him to an incredibly troublesome major case!

The Chief Justice had patted him on the shoulder, saying that there weren’t many proactive and hardworking young men like him these days, and that all the residents of the Twelve Cities would be grateful to him.

Yuan Shiyao gritted his teeth and accepted the case.

For two days, he worked nonstop, his sleep time compressed to almost nothing. He was completely numb, but he finally resolved the matter just a moment ago.

However, standing at the door of the Chief Justice’s office, he overheard the man reporting to "Marshal Xie" that the case was complete. From the other end of the line, Xie Youchen had nonchalantly replied, "Find him something else to do."

Yuan Shiyao was so angry he almost coughed up blood!

’So that’s why the Chief Justice was always hovering around him these past few days,’ he thought. ’He was spying on me!’

That Xie Youchen! That immoral, unscrupulous bastard!

On the spot, Yuan Shiyao requested leave, citing extreme exhaustion. After washing up and dressing presentably, he came to find Jiang Qingli.

The people at the military base had said Jiang Qingli was on a mission and might not be around.

Perhaps even the heavens couldn’t bear to watch him suffer any longer and had allowed him to run into Jiang Qingli here.

Yuan Shiyao ignored the earlier noise and was about to speak when another "CLANG" suddenly echoed from inside.

It sounded like something much heavier had hit the floor.

This time, before Yuan Shiyao could even ask, he saw a flash of panic in Jiang Qingli’s eyes.

His heart sank.

’Looks like there’s not only someone in there, but a male.’

’From her expression... it might even be a male she has to hide!’

’It has to be Xie Youchen!’

’He went to all that trouble to obstruct me just so he could come here and seduce Jiang Qingli himself!’

’How can someone so shameless exist in this world?’

While Yuan Shiyao’s breathing grew ragged, Jiang Qingli was worried about Ye Linyuan.

’That guy usually moves without a sound. He shouldn’t be so clumsy as to bump into things in the shower. Don’t tell me he fell down or something fell on him?’

’He’s still injured. If he slipped, would it make his injuries worse...?’

Just as she was about to say goodbye to Yuan Shiyao, a weight suddenly settled on her shoulder.

Yuan Shiyao’s head was resting on her shoulder. His already exhausted expression now looked even more frail.

"What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" Jiang Qingli quickly steadied him by the waist.

"Thank you, Sister-in-law. I’m fine..." The young man propped one hand on the door behind her and straightened up slightly, struggling to stand steady. His breathing was shaky. "It’s probably because I haven’t slept at all these past two days, so..."

"Didn’t you only arrive two days ago? You’ve already pulled two all-nighters?" Jiang Qingli turned to the side, looking at his pale face with concern. "You... you really don’t look okay."

"I’m fine." The young man forced a smile. "I just came to give you this, Sister-in-law. I should be heading back. I don’t want to disturb you."

He lifted his hand, and only then did Jiang Qingli notice the box he was carrying.

"They’re from the First District," Yuan Shiyao said. "There’s something from me, and also from Ai Li and Lin Xiyue. They heard I was coming to see you, so they asked me to bring their gifts along."

"I know deliveries are convenient nowadays, but I think a gift delivered in person is more meaningful."

After he finished speaking, he turned to leave, as if afraid of being a bother to her.

But after only a few steps, he stumbled and had to catch himself on the wall to keep from falling.

A friend had come from so far away to deliver gifts; Jiang Qingli couldn’t just let him leave in this state.

Jiang Qingli blamed herself for not noticing sooner that he wasn’t well.

She quickly grabbed his wrist and draped his arm over her shoulder. "You... why don’t you come in and rest for a bit?" she said gently. "The base has Energy Supplements. They can help you recover some strength after pulling all-nighters."

"Can I?" Yuan Shiyao’s eyelashes fluttered as he looked up at her. "Won’t I be a bother...?"

Jiang Qingli was about to say it was no trouble when he lowered his eyes again. "After all," he said cautiously, "you have... someone else here..." He pressed his lips together. "He would mind, wouldn’t he?"

The young man was probably in such a bad state that he couldn’t stop the cat ears on his head from popping out.

They drooped pitifully.

That made it even harder for Jiang Qingli to refuse.

She quickly came up with a lie. "The person washing up in my room is just a friend. It’s fine, he... he won’t mind..." ’...Right?’

But seeing Yuan Shiyao’s condition, she had no doubt he would collapse after a few more steps. Jiang Qingli had no choice but to help him into the room.

’Anyway, Yuan Shiyao isn’t familiar with the base. If I say it’s a friend, he probably won’t be suspicious.’

’I’ll use the intercom to have a robot bring up an Energy Supplement. It should only take about five minutes. Yuan Shiyao can have it, rest for ten minutes, and then head back. By the time he leaves, Ye Linyuan should be done with his shower.’

’The timing couldn’t be more perfect.’

Jiang Qingli’s lips curled into a slight smile, completely oblivious to the young man beside her, who was staring intently at her profile, the tips of his ears turning a faint shade of red.

...

The moment Yuan Shiyao entered the room, he picked up the sharp scent of blood.

The smell of Mutant Beast blood was thick on the armchair, and it looked fresh.

Yuan Shiyao looked at her nervously, his voice tightening. "Are you hurt? How did a Mutant Beast manage to injure you?"

The cat ears on his head shot up alertly. He didn’t look sick at all.

But Jiang Qingli was so focused on hiding Ye Linyuan’s presence that she didn’t notice the other man was no longer acting like a patient.

She tried her best to explain seriously, "It’s all been dealt with. We just came back to wash up because we got splattered with Mutant Beast blood." She pointed to the other sofa. "You can sit there. It’s clean."

’Xie Youchen got her covered in blood just from fighting a Mutant Beast?’

’How useless.’

Yuan Shiyao sneered internally.

Outwardly, however, he simply nodded to show he understood.

He weakly gripped the armrest and sat down. A subtle glint appeared in his eyes as he watched Jiang Qingli sit down next to him.

Jiang Qingli asked considerately, "What flavor would you like? All the supplements here taste pretty good."

Yuan Shiyao propped himself up on one arm and leaned over to look at the screen.

The movement brought them closer together.

Perhaps because they hadn’t seen each other in a while, he felt somehow different from usual. His breath tickled her ear, and she raised a hand to pinch the earlobe.

Yuan Shiyao pressed his lips together, pulled back slightly, and pointed to one of the options. "This one."

Jiang Qingli glanced at it. Pear-flavored.

The young man chuckled. "This icon looks a lot like the avatar you always use. A very cute pear."

He was supposedly talking about the icon, but his emerald eyes reflected only her.

The earlobe she was pinching began to feel hot.

For some reason, instead of continuing the conversation, she said rather stiffly, "Um... that flavor is pretty good... I’ll go check on my friend!"

She hurried toward the bathroom.

The moment she opened the door, a snake’s tail coiled around her and dragged her inside.

A forceful kiss pressed down on her lips, silencing the words she was about to speak.