“You… you—you… what are you doing?” Her voice quivered like a plucked string, as Li Muyan’s hand drifted closer through steam that curled like pale silk.

“Of course I’m carrying you out. You plan to stay like this?” His tone was stone-flat, like a door already half-closed.

“No need! You go out, I’ll get up myself.” Suspicion flared like thorns; her body warned her, yet in water she felt soft as kelp.

“Don’t be shy~” His chuckle rippled like a pebble tossed in a pond, and his fingers dipped toward the tub like a curious fish.

“Alright, Muyan, let’s head out.” Ye Yiyi’s voice cut in like a breeze through paper screens. “Coco still needs her bath. Look how shy she is. We know she’s home. Let’s go.”

Hope relit inside Tang Coco like a small lantern. She thought, This is what a good girl is—gentle, knowing, warm as spring light.

“Yiyi, you spoil her.” Li Muyan clicked his tongue, a faint storm bottled behind his eyes. “Fine. I’ll let you off this time.”

They left. The door shut with a soft thud, sealing the room like a lidded teacup. Coco finally loosened her breath and eased from the tub like a wary cat.

“Tss! That really hurts.” She rubbed her head, pain pricking like cold rain.

She dried off, then slipped into pink underwear, a white tee, and pale seven‑eighths pants. Her long hair flowed like dark riverweed; too much trouble to blow‑dry, so she let it drape.

Downstairs, she skimmed past Li Muyan lounging smugly on the sofa like a sun‑fed lizard. She headed for the kitchen, where Ye Yiyi sorted things with hands neat as folded cranes.

“Coco, what’s for dinner?” Yiyi’s smile shone sweet as honey under warm light.

“I’ve planned the dishes. Just get ready and feast.” Pride flickered in her eyes like a small victorious flag.

“Looks like Muyan was right. Keep this up and we’ll get fat.” Yiyi teased, her laugh bright as windbells.

“Relax, beauties don’t gain weight~” Coco winked, then set to work, movements smooth as water over stones.

A pink apron wrapped her like a blush. Her slender fingers coaxed vegetables like jade slips. That focused gaze burned steady, and Yiyi’s cheeks ripened like peaches.

Coco noticed the silence, then turned. Yiyi stared, blush lingering like evening glow. “Hm? Yiyi, what’s wrong?”

“Ah… ah? N‑nothing.” Her voice scattered like sparrows.

“Really?” Coco’s eyes narrowed, doubt weighing like a pebble in the sleeve.

Yiyi panicked and shifted the wind. “About the gear you wanted—I asked. Our school’s got a DJ entertainment club. Almost no members. They’ve got a set. You can borrow it.”

“Oh? That works. I’ll check it tomorrow.” Coco’s mood settled like tea leaves.

“Mm… then I’ll step out. Call me if you need me.” Yiyi fled like a startled deer, and Coco laughed softly, then kept cooking, flame steady as a small hearth.

Dinner was nourishing, a balanced spread like a careful garden. She didn’t cook too much; she couldn’t bear to feed two beauties into round dumplings.

After the meal, Li Muyan and Ye Yiyi watched TV in the living room, blue light flickering like fish scales. Tang Coco returned to her bedroom.

She locked the door with a click, clean as a seal on red wax. She sat on the bed; tonight, she’d test her Anomaly Power.

“System, start.”

“…”

Silence pooled like ink. Disappointment sank through her chest like a slow stone.

She considered slipping into that state from that day, that red‑haired self like fire behind glass. But if it worked, that self wouldn’t obey. If Yiyi or Muyan saw, trouble would sprout like weeds.

She exhaled and let it go. She fell onto the bed, sleep gathering like soft snow.

Across the ocean, in America’s A City, daylight blazed bright as brass. In a standalone villa, the air pressed down like a heavy quilt.

An elder who looked past sixty sat in a carved wooden chair like an old tree. Opposite stood two people: a black‑skinned youth in a suit, and a blonde beauty in tight leather, black boots biting the floor like paws.

“Mr. Smith, the three sent to Huaguo have lost contact.” The youth spoke carefully, words placed like tiles.

“The ones investigating that sudden special signal?” The old man’s voice carried years like river silt.

“Yes.” Respect stiffened his spine like a rod.

“Mm. Seems it’s not simple.” His gaze darkened like gathering cloud.

“Useless. Can’t even handle this.” The blonde cut in, sharp as a blade. “Grandpa, how about I go?”

“Jo, you really want to?” He looked at his granddaughter, love soft as worn velvet. “It may be dangerous.”

“Relax. I’ve trained at home so long. I’ll be fine.” Her smile flashed like steel in sunlight.

He thought it through, silence ticking like a metronome. “Alright. Time to temper you. This family’s future will lean on you.”

“Don’t worry, Grandpa. I’ll get it done.” Joy lifted her chin like a swan.

“The mission isn’t important. Your safety is.” His warning landed like a steady hand on her shoulder.

“Got it. I’ll depart tomorrow.” She turned, resolve crisp as a folded map, and prepared to head for Ninghai City in Huaguo.