Chapter 59: He Really Hid a Woman!

“How much did you spend?” After the taxi driver left, Qin Xuan asked with an impassive face.

“One, ten, hundred, thousand...” Liu Qianqian counted on her fingers. “It’s about ninety thousand, I think. There’s still a lot left in the card. Actually, there were some really expensive things I didn’t buy. Xiao Qin Xuan, see how considerate I am for you?”

Qin Xuan rubbed his forehead in silence.

“Bring it in,” he finally said. The shopping was done—what more could he say?

It wasn’t that Qin Xuan was particularly distressed over the ninety thousand... It was that the card had been given to him by Zhao Long. In fact, who knew how much Master’s bottle of liquor could really fetch? If it wasn’t valuable, then Qin Xuan certainly couldn’t accept fifty thousand from Zhao Long for nothing—he’d have to pay him back at some point.

Now, with Liu Qianqian blowing through such a sum in one go, what would he use to pay it back?

“Here, these are the kitchen secrets you asked for—eighteen books in total. Some you’ve read before.” Liu Qianqian picked out one of the bags and tossed it to Qin Xuan.

He opened it and found it really did contain a stack of books: “A Guide to Culinary Arts,” “Delicious Home Cooking,” “The Essence of Sichuan Cuisine”...

Eighteen volumes in all!

Qin Xuan suddenly felt this girl was ruthless. Now Shuixian would have plenty to study—though who knew if that scatterbrain could actually learn anything...

“La~ la~ la~” Liu Qianqian hummed a little tune as she went upstairs, hauling all her new clothes into her room. She was quite pleased with herself, certain that her wardrobe now surpassed that of Dongfang Qingwan.

Little did she know, the clothes Dongfang Qingwan had brought to the villa were only a tiny fraction of her actual collection...

“Whew, I’m exhausted. Time for a bath.” Liu Qianqian grabbed some clothes and headed downstairs, tossed her phone on the table, and went into the bathroom.

Without looking up, Qin Xuan continued poring over the culinary books. He needed to pick out the basics for Shuixian—otherwise, with eighteen books, even he wouldn’t know where to start.

“The misty night is my one true love...” Suddenly, Liu Qianqian’s phone rang with a particularly cringeworthy pop song. Qin Xuan paid it no mind and picked up. “Hello?”

“Hello? This is Hua Rong. I’m looking for Liu Qianqian—is she there?”

“Oh, she’s in the shower. Professor Hua, would you like to call back in a bit?” Qin Xuan replied politely.

“No need. You’re Qin Xuan, right? I thought you seemed like a decent kid when we met. And yesterday, you handled those foreign exchange students from Japan beautifully—ha ha!”

“Ah, it was nothing.” Qin Xuan felt a little awkward. He hadn’t expected that incident to have spread so widely.

“I like you, kid. I’ll tell you what I meant to tell Liu Qianqian—just pass it on to her for me, all right?”

“Of course, Professor Hua.”

“It’s all sorted. I’ve taken care of her enrollment—she’s in Class Two, Chinese Department, School of Humanities. Make sure you both attend military training tomorrow. If there are any issues, just call me.”

“Thank you, Professor Hua.”

“Oh, don’t mention it. By the way, Qin, I see you and Liu Qianqian are getting along well. Sigh, she’s had a hard life. I can’t meddle in young people’s affairs, but you’d better not let her down, understand?”

By the end, Hua Rong’s tone had turned quite serious.

“Uh, Professor Hua, I think you’ve misunderstood...” Qin Xuan was a bit exasperated.

“You silly boy, let’s not beat around the bush. I never said you shouldn’t be together. To me, Liu Qianqian is like a half-granddaughter... Sigh...”

“Half-granddaughter?” Qin Xuan was puzzled.

“Yes, although my son never amounted to much, I always considered her mother a daughter-in-law of the Hua family. It is lamentable—things change, people part, and all that’s left is empty sorrow...”

A true professor of literature, even his speech was poetic, and Qin Xuan felt a tinge of melancholy himself.

“All right, that’s enough. Just pass on the message, will you?”

“No problem.” Qin Xuan hung up, feeling a little strange. He turned to see Liu Qianqian opening the bathroom door stealthily, peeking out.

“What are you up to?” Qin Xuan frowned.

“Nothing.” Liu Qianqian stepped out, mysterious as ever. Qin Xuan noticed she’d already changed into one of her new outfits—a black chiffon dress with a floral pattern, cinched at the waist with a delicate bow. Her bare feet peeped out beneath the hem, and as she moved, she looked like a black butterfly—lively, charming, and with an added hint of elegance.

“Hee hee, Xiao Qin Xuan...” Liu Qianqian approached with an air of mischief.

“What is it?” Qin Xuan asked, feeling something was off about her.

She didn’t answer, but leaned in close, sniffing all around him. She sniffed here and there, leaving Qin Xuan utterly baffled. “What are you doing?”

“Xiao Qin Xuan, you dare lie to me.” Having confirmed her suspicions, Liu Qianqian straightened up, hands on hips, and glared at him.

“What did I lie about?” Qin Xuan was genuinely confused.

“Come clean—are you hiding a woman in this villa?” Liu Qianqian demanded.

“What? What’s gotten into you?” Qin Xuan touched her forehead—she felt perfectly normal, no fever.

“I’m not being ridiculous. There’s only the scent of sandalwood on you—no other fragrance at all.” Liu Qianqian stepped back, dodging his hand.

“Isn’t it normal for me not to smell of perfume?” Qin Xuan was perplexed. “What does that have to do with hiding women?”

“But when I went into the bathroom just now, it smelled wonderful—like walking into a garden. If you’re not hiding a woman who just took a bath, then what is it?” Liu Qianqian pouted.

Qin Xuan was speechless.

Shuixian’s scent... He had completely forgotten about that. It was said women had sharp intuition, and it seemed true—Liu Qianqian had figured it out in an instant.

“Well? Xiao Qin Xuan, you’d better confess, or else I...” Liu Qianqian tried to sound threatening but suddenly realized she didn’t know what to say next.

“Or else what?” Qin Xuan nearly laughed.

“Hmph! Or else I’ll cut you off!” she declared, shaking a tiny fist.

“All right. Door’s to the left—I won’t see you out,” Qin Xuan replied with a chuckle.

“You! You’re infuriating!” Liu Qianqian huffed and stomped upstairs. She certainly had no intention of leaving.

Soon, bangs and thuds could be heard from upstairs...

Qin Xuan finished organizing the cookbooks, took a shower, and went up to find Liu Qianqian still rummaging through every corner, which he found quite amusing. “Well? Did you find the woman I’m hiding?”

“Hmph!” she snorted, refusing to admit defeat, but she had turned the entire upstairs upside down and found not a trace of another woman.

“I’m tired. I’m going to bed. I’ll look again tomorrow—hmph!” Liu Qianqian shot him a glare and retreated to her room, slamming the door behind her.

Qin Xuan shook his head and went to his own room to rest.

...

The next day dawned bright and clear, with a high of thirty-two degrees Celsius—a perfect day for military training, and a day universally loathed by freshmen across the country.

Qin Xuan got up and opened his door, then froze in surprise.