Chapter 453: Hiding a Beauty in a Golden House

After inspecting the Spirit Stones, Qin Tuo felt quite grateful to Xue Qingqing.

After all, it wasn't easy for a young woman like her to personally escort so many Spirit Stones and deliver them to his doorstep.

With this in mind, Qin Tuo smiled and said:

"Miss Xue, would you like to come in for some tea?"

Xue Qingqing's eyes lit up. She was clearly very interested.

She also wanted to find an opportunity to spend some time alone with Qin Tuo.

But after a moment's thought, a look of disappointment crossed Xue Qingqing's face.

She waved her hand and said:

"No, thank you, Mr. Qin. I still have things to prepare for my concert. I'll come visit again in a couple of days!"

Since she'd said as much, Qin Tuo didn't press her to stay.

However, just as Xue Qingqing was about to leave, Chen Man Ni's voice called out from inside the house.

"Qin Tuo, who's out there? What's taking you so long?"

When Qin Tuo didn't return after a while, Chen Man Ni couldn't help but call out curiously.

Upon hearing Chen Man Ni's voice, Xue Qingqing couldn't help but raise an eyebrow and ask:

"Mr. Qin, are you keeping a hidden lover in here?"

As she spoke, her gaze on Qin Tuo was filled with mischievous intent.

Clearly, a sliver of doubt about Qin Tuo's character had crept into her mind.

Qin Tuo quickly explained with a wry smile:

"No, it's not like that. You've misunderstood. That's my girlfriend in there."

"What? Your girlfriend?"

A complex mix of emotions washed over Xue Qingqing. Then, she gritted her teeth and said:

"In that case, I simply must go have a look!"

With that, she marched directly into the house.

Qin Tuo watched her go, utterly baffled. He called out:

"Miss Xue, didn't you just say you had something to take care of?"

But Xue Qingqing just waved a hand, saying nonchalantly:

"It's fine! Those things can wait!"

But inside, she was burning with jealousy. 'Just who is this lucky woman?'

Xue Qingqing felt that no one in the world was a better match for Qin Tuo than she was.

She refused to accept it and was determined to see for herself just how exceptional this woman could be to have captured Qin Tuo's affection!

But as soon as she entered the room, she saw two stunningly beautiful girls sitting there.

Either one of them could be considered a peerless beauty, the kind you see once in a lifetime.

Looking at the two girls, Xue Qingqing was completely dumbfounded. She frowned, thinking, 'Which one of them is Qin Tuo's girlfriend?'

Qin Tuo, terrified the two women would get the wrong idea, quickly followed Xue Qingqing back inside.

Just as he was about to speak, Chen Man Ni and Ouyang Feifei recognized Xue Qingqing at a glance.

Ouyang Feifei, in particular, was so excited she cried out loud.

"Oh my god, is that Xue Qingqing? What are you doing here?"

Ouyang Feifei rubbed her eyes hard, thinking she must be seeing things.

Just moments before, she had been thinking of asking Qin Tuo to get them a couple of tickets, but she never imagined that the star of the concert would appear right in front of her.

After their initial shock, both women grew curious. Why was Xue Qingqing here?

Could she have some kind of relationship with Qin Tuo?

Only Qin Tuo was sharp enough to notice that something was off about the look in Chen Man Ni's eyes.

So, he quickly addressed Xue Qingqing and said:

"Miss Xue, this is my girlfriend, Chen Man Ni. She's the young lady of the Chen Family from Ming City!"

Qin Tuo introduced Chen Man Ni with great solemnity. In response, Chen Man Ni nodded at Xue Qingqing with a polite smile.

Xue Qingqing said nothing, instead giving Chen Man Ni a long, serious look-over.

Just as Qin Tuo was starting to worry, Xue Qingqing suddenly smiled and praised her generously:

"Miss Chen, you're a true natural beauty. No wonder you've got Mr. Qin so utterly captivated!"

Hearing this, Chen Man Ni asked in surprise:

"Oh? Miss Xue, do you know Qin Tuo from before?"

As she spoke, she shot Qin Tuo a suspicious glare.

Xue Qingqing gave a charming smile and said casually:

"Of course. He's even stayed at my house before!"

At these words, both women immediately turned their gazes on Qin Tuo.

Qin Tuo's forehead was instantly beaded with sweat. He rushed to explain:

"Don't get the wrong idea! I just stayed at her house temporarily. It's not what you think!"

However, the suspicious looks on Chen Man Ni and Ouyang Feifei's faces didn't fade. They clearly didn't believe a word he said.

Ouyang Feifei couldn't help but mutter under her breath.

"A woman as beautiful as Miss Xue... I doubt many men could resist her charms!"

Her voice was just loud enough for Qin Tuo to hear.

Qin Tuo grew anxious and immediately tried to explain again:

"Manni, don't you trust me? You know what kind of person I am! How could I ever do something like that!"

Seeing Qin Tuo's awkward predicament, Xue Qingqing suddenly let out a chuckle and took the initiative to explain:

"Please, don't misunderstand. My family is in the ore business, and I've worked with Mr. Qin before. That's the full extent of our relationship!"

Qin Tuo let out a huge sigh of relief. Thank goodness Xue Qingqing was willing to step up and explain. Otherwise, it would have been an impossible mess to clear up.

Still, Qin Tuo couldn't help but feel a sense of exasperation. 'This woman, Xue Qingqing... she's not doing this on purpose, is she? Creating trouble for me?'

'Otherwise, why would she have been so vague and suggestive before?'

After hearing Xue Qingqing's explanation, the doubt in Chen Man Ni's eyes finally vanished.

She then took Xue Qingqing's hand, pulled her down to sit, and began to chat warmly.

"Miss Xue, let me be the first to wish you a successful concert!"

Chen Man Ni and Ouyang Feifei both offered their best wishes for Xue Qingqing's concert.

Xue Qingqing smiled and thanked them, and the three young women, all of a similar age, quickly fell into conversation.

Qin Tuo, on the other hand, was now the odd man out, standing awkwardly to the side.

However, Qin Tuo quickly found an excuse and said:

"You all keep chatting. I'm going to go unload those ores!"

Without waiting for the three women to respond, he made a quick escape.

Outside the villa, Qin Tuo directed the driver and movers to transport the truckload of Spirit Stones to the basement for storage.

It took about two hours in total to move the entire truckload of Spirit Stones into the villa's basement.

The area was remote and quiet, and Qin Tuo planned to make full use of these Spirit Stones to cultivate here.

After seeing to the entire truckload of Spirit Stones, Qin Tuo returned to the villa's main hall.

By this time, Xue Qingqing was already saying her goodbyes to the other two women, having stood up to leave.