Chapter 60: A March of Protest?

Liu Qianqian was wearing a black patterned dress, leaning sleepily against the doorway of her own room, her slumber undisturbed, a broad expanse of snowy white on her chest falling right into Qin Xuan’s line of sight.

There’s an old saying: “A glimpse of cleavage guarantees popularity.”

If Qin Xuan were to take a picture of her now and post it online, she’d become an overnight sensation—no doubt about it.

Of course, he would never actually do such a thing.

“Hey, sleepyhead, time to get up.”

“Ah…” Liu Qianqian started in alarm, springing to her feet. Seeing it was only Qin Xuan standing before her, she huffed in annoyance. “How dare you disturb my sleep! What punishment do you deserve for this crime?”

“Oh, come off it. Today’s the first day of military training. Don’t you want to go to school anymore? Second class, Chinese Department, College of Humanities. Call Professor Hua when you get there. I’m not looking after you anymore.”

Without another glance, Qin Xuan headed downstairs.

“Hey, hey! Wait for me, little Qin Xuan. I’m hungry!” Liu Qianqian hurried after him.

“So tell me—why were you squatting at my bedroom door so early in the morning?” Qin Xuan curled his lip. Always thinking about food—how did she never manage to gain any weight?

“I wasn’t squatting there early in the morning…” At that, Liu Qianqian’s annoyance flared. “I was there all night, thank you very much! I wanted to see if there’d be any strange noises coming from your room, but I ended up falling asleep halfway through.”

“Strange noises?”

Qin Xuan was both amused and exasperated.

“Yeah. If you were hiding a woman in this villa, there’d definitely be some odd sounds… Hmph! I’ll stake out your room again tomorrow night.”

She was determined to expose any woman Qin Xuan might be hiding.

Looking at her rather thin frame, Qin Xuan shook his head. “Enough of that. Don’t be so foolish anymore, or you’ll fall ill and give me even more trouble. You’ve got a perfectly good bed but you insist on squatting at my door. Of all the people I’ve met, you’re the silliest.”

“Well, if you’d just come clean with me…” Liu Qianqian became misty-eyed, her voice quavering. “You’re the only friend I’ve ever had, and now even you are keeping things from me…”

As soon as her tears appeared, Qin Xuan found himself at a loss.

“All right, all right, let’s eat. I swear I haven’t hidden any women—at most, maybe a female demon.”

Qin Xuan gazed at her, torn.

“A female demon?”

At once, Liu Qianqian’s tears vanished, replaced by a beaming smile. “Oh! Is it that flower spirit in the back garden?”

“You already knew, and yet you still asked?” Qin Xuan was thoroughly vexed.

“Hey, don’t forget—I’m a swordswoman too, you know. I sensed the demonic aura ages ago. But since you mentioned the villa’s wards, I didn’t pay it much mind…”

“Well, since you already know, I’ll tell you.” Qin Xuan sighed.

He’d intended to keep it from her a bit longer, but here he was confessing after just one night. Clearly, Liu Qianqian had her tricks—she knew that acting pitiful and crying was the most effective way to deal with men.

“Her name is Narcissus, and she’ll be the housekeeper here from now on.”

“Narcissus? Housekeeper?”

Liu Qianqian was still a bit confused, but soon her attention was caught by the two steaming bowls of rice porridge on the dining table.

“Wow, it smells delicious! Did Narcissus make this?”

Unable to resist, she hurried over and picked up a bowl. The porridge looked quite ordinary, just white rice, but there were some odd ingredients mixed in.

Qin Xuan took a bowl as well and saw that some medicinal herbs had been added.

“Go on, try it,” Qin Xuan urged, still uncertain what Narcissus’s first attempt at cooking would taste like. There was nothing else in the villa but rice, so expecting her to create a culinary masterpiece was out of the question.

After all, even a clever demon can’t cook without rice…

It was just breakfast anyway; they’d make do.

Qin Xuan took a mouthful of porridge and was surprised to find it rather good. The texture was just right—not too watery, not too thick.

The medicinal herbs added little flavor, light and unobtrusive, but beneficial for one’s health.

Slurp, slurp—

In just a few sips, Liu Qianqian had finished her bowl.

“Little Qin Xuan, is there any more?”

“I’ll check the kitchen.”

Qin Xuan stood up—he’d nearly finished his own bowl and was still hungry.

But when he reached the kitchen doorway, he was stunned. Though he hadn’t used this kitchen before, he’d seen it when it was covered in dust.

Now, it gleamed: the floor and tiled walls shone so brightly they reflected his image like a mirror. Everything was perfectly arranged, spotless.

Next to the door, an electric rice cooker was still steaming. Qin Xuan opened it and found plenty of hot porridge left—more than enough for the two of them.

“A true demoness of the kitchen—a culinary genius. If anyone dares call her dumb, I won’t stand for it.”

Qin Xuan silently praised Narcissus, thoroughly satisfied with her performance. It seemed making her the housekeeper had been a wise decision indeed. He scooped another bowl of porridge and returned to the dining room.

Seeing Qin Xuan emerge with another steaming bowl, Liu Qianqian’s eyes sparkled. Abandoning her empty bowl, she dashed into the kitchen and soon returned with a giant bowl piled high with porridge.

“Little Qin Xuan,” she called suddenly between mouthfuls.

“Yes? What is it?”

“Where’s Narcissus? I haven’t even seen her yet.”

Liu Qianqian was curious—what did a female demon capable of making such delicious porridge look like?

“She’s shy. You’ll meet her some other time. Don’t go scaring her off, or you’ll never get breakfast like this again,” Qin Xuan warned.

“Oh…” Liu Qianqian was a little disappointed, but for the sake of such a wonderful breakfast, she decided to bear it.

Suddenly, Qin Xuan’s phone rang.

He glanced at the screen—it was a call from Su Muqing.

“Hello, Teacher Su?”

“Qin Xuan, it’s settled! The college held an emergency meeting early this morning; they’ve decided to amend your disciplinary action,” Su Muqing’s cheerful voice rang out.

“Oh? How have they changed it?”

“The expulsion has been revoked. It’s now just a formal warning, and the fine’s been canceled. Plus, those exchange students from the Land of the Sun who were involved in the fight all got warnings too. Ha!”

“That’s odd. Why call a meeting so early in the morning?” Qin Xuan was surprised.

“You’ll find out when you get to campus. Remember, be there before eight—today’s the first day of military training, don’t be late!” Su Muqing said mysteriously, then hung up.

Qin Xuan pondered, realizing that the “make a big deal out of it” plan must have worked. He quickly turned on the living room TV, just in time to catch the morning news from Jinling TV.

“…In response to the recent incident, more than a thousand students at Jinling University have announced plans for a protest march and have already filed applications with the relevant authorities. Jinling Evening News, Xici Hutong, and other newspapers and online forums are all reporting on the story, putting the Business School of Jinling University right in the spotlight. In response, the school’s business school dean stated: The previous disciplinary decision was made solely by Vice Dean Li Hongkai, which seriously damaged the feelings of the Chinese people and harmed the friendship between the two nations… Therefore, the business school has issued a new decision: Vice Dean Li Hongkai will be suspended and investigated, Qin Xuan’s original disciplinary action is revoked, and all participants will receive warnings…”

Qin Xuan was stunned.

A protest march?

No doubt about it—this had to be Zhou Xiaoyu’s handiwork!