“Let’s start with a Shimakaze cosplay.”

“Poi!”

“Try on this princess dress, too.”

“Ooh! It’s so gorgeous!”

In the room, Xia Zhibai took beautiful dresses out of the closet one by one. Ruo Xiaoxi put them on, struck poses for her, and let her take as many photos as she wanted.

Go ahead, take them. Ruo Xiaoxi wasn’t stingy with photos or anything.

But the poor thing was so focused on the dresses that she let her guard down completely. She had no idea Xia Zhibai was slowly turning up the heat—she didn’t even realize she was the frog in the pot.

It started with a sailor uniform, followed by a miniskirt. After a few cosplays, the outfits gradually began to show more and more skin. It wasn’t until she put on a little succubus costume that she realized something was off.

“Sister Xia, isn’t this outfit, um, a little too revealing? I don’t think… I don’t think we can take photos in this! These are already dangerous photos! Wait, let me cover up my southern hemisphere!” Ruo Xiaoxi cried, shocked and embarrassed.

Xia Zhibai sat with her legs crossed in a dark blue dress, raised her phone, and snapped another burst of photos.

She captured every bashful move Ruo Xiaoxi made as she tried to cover her upper body. The flash went off again and again while Ruo Xiaoxi shouted and tried to snatch the phone.

“Nope.” Xia Zhibai stood up and held the phone high above her head. Watching the little shorty jump up and down on the spot made her laugh. There was no way she’d let Ruo Xiaoxi get it.

“Ugh, I’m not playing with you anymore. I’ve tried all the dresses on, anyway. Hmm… If I had to rate them, they’re all really pretty. And they look expensive, too.” Ruo Xiaoxi gathered the dresses hanging over the chair.

Trying on dresses was always so much fun. Time flew by like she was in a flow state, and she didn’t even notice.

She glanced at the clock. In the blink of an eye, it was already 8:40 p.m.—getting pretty late. Ruo Xiaoxi was going to change out of the little succubus outfit, tidy up, and head home.

“Are you going home?” Xia Zhibai asked, watching her gather her things.

“Yeah. It’s almost nine. I should head home.”

“It’s almost nine already. The buses have stopped running, so why don’t you stay at my place tonight? You don’t even have to change—you look pretty good in that outfit.”

“Huh? N-no, it’s fine. I can walk home.”

“It’s not safe for a girl to walk alone at night. You should stay at my place and go back tomorrow.”

“No, no, no. It’d be too much trouble for you, Sister Xia…”

“It’s no trouble, no trouble, no trouble. There’s plenty of room for two people in my bedroom.”

“I really am a lot of trouble. I-I toss and turn in my sleep, and I get up to pee in the middle of the night. Sometimes I’m so out of it that I just pee in the bed. That’s why I never sleep with anyone else.”

“If I cuddle you, you won’t toss and turn. I can turn on the light when you need to pee, and if you wet the bed, I’ll wash the sheets. There, problem solved.” Xia Zhibai had an answer for everything, displaying all the tolerance of a gracious hostess. She really did have a big heart.

“Really, I can’t. I still think I’d be too much trouble for you. Your humble guest will take her leave now. Let’s hang out again sometime!” Ruo Xiaoxi said politely. Both of them were being more courteous and deferential than ever.

It was just like relatives passing red envelopes back and forth during the Spring Festival.

Of course she was refusing! If she wasn’t, Xia Zhibai would have her all tied up before she knew it!

Sure enough, before she even reached the door, Xia Zhibai had already stepped in front of it.

“It’s fine, isn’t it? Are you really that unwilling to stay at my place?” Xia Zhibai glanced at the darkening sky. Ruo Xiaoxi couldn’t even beat another woman in a fight, so the thought of her walking home at night was genuinely worrying.

If Ruo Xiaoxi really insisted on going home, Xia Zhibai would have to call a cab and take her there herself before she could relax.

But wasn’t there a better solution right in front of her? No need to go to all that trouble—Ruo Xiaoxi could just stay the night.

Ruo Xiaoxi looked up at Xia Zhibai, meeting her eyes, and said in a slightly aggrieved voice, “You just want to sleep with me…”

“I don’t. I was just thinking about how some pretty girl spent the whole day flirting with me like crazy. She must really want it, and I can’t just pretend not to notice, right? Of course I should respond to her hints.”

“Who wants it? Don’t make things up!”

“Then why were you flirting with me so much? Doesn’t that mean you want me to do something to you, but you’re too embarrassed to ask outright? I’ve figured out how you feel. And even though I’m giving you what you want, you’re still pretending to turn me down.”

“How come I don’t know anything about that? I-I really don’t have those kinds of intentions.”

“You little minx, I know~” Xia Zhibai smiled faintly.

Ruo Xiaoxi froze, gradually realizing there might have been some kind of misunderstanding.

“N-no, I can’t. I just remembered I have plans tonight. I need to go.”

“You have plans tonight? With who? A girl?”

“A-a friend…” Ruo Xiaoxi nervously pinched her fingers. Actually, it was a young lady.

Xia Zhibai frowned slightly. This Little Green Tea had spent the whole day on a date with her, and she was still thinking about other women? She really needed to be taught a lesson.

“Here.” Xia Zhibai suddenly took a piece of candy out of the cupboard.

“What…?”

“A throat lozenge.”

“………………” Ruo Xiaoxi fell silent.

“Sister Xia, I really wasn’t trying to seduce you. You must’ve misunderstood what I meant. Sister Xia, you can’t be so lewd. That’s not—”

“If you didn’t mean to, then why were you flirting with me like that? You flirted with me, so you owe me—flesh for flesh! That’s fair, right?”

Before Ruo Xiaoxi could finish, Xia Zhibai scooped her up. Her two little white-stockinged feet kicked in the air. That was the downside of being short: a big sister could pick you up with ease and do whatever she wanted.

“No! Don’t…”

“When a woman says no, she means yes.”

“Aaaah! I’m not tsundere! I really mean no!” Ruo Xiaoxi shook her head over and over, making a “

“Wait, wait, wait! I’m getting a call! My phone’s ringing!”

Just as Xia Zhibai was getting ready to give her a proper “lesson,” Ruo Xiaoxi’s phone suddenly rang. Xia Zhibai ignored the first call, but when it rang a second time, she went to get the phone.

“‘Internet-addicted girl’…? What kind of contact name is that? Here, answer it.”

Ruo Xiaoxi lay on the pillow and took the phone. “Hello? Nono.”

Hmph. So it really was another woman—and Ruo Xiaoxi was even calling her by such an affectionate nickname.

She’d make sure Ruo Xiaoxi forgot all those other women today and could think of no one but her.

“Xiaoxi, why didn’t you come over? Didn’t we say we’d go to your place and play games together? I charged my laptop and everything. Where are you?” A very sweet girl’s voice came from the other end of the phone.

“Ah, I… mm… I’m at my grandma’s house right now, so… ha… so…” Ruo Xiaoxi turned and shot Xia Zhibai a furious glare as Xia Zhibai rustled around and tickled her.

“Huh? When did you go to your grandma’s? Honestly, you forgot about our plans? Oh well, maybe next time… Hmm? Why are you panting?”

“Huh? A-am I? Ah, I’m out for a night run…”

“Ohhh, so you’re running… Hmm, something feels a little… Xiaoxi, your voice sounds kind of… suggestive. You’re okay, right?” Even the girl on the other end sounded a little embarrassed.

“I’m fine. I’m running, that’s all. I’m not very strong, so I wanted to get some exercise… Eek!”

“Huh?! What happened? Why did you suddenly yelp?”

“I-I’m fine! I just tripped.” Ruo Xiaoxi stammered.

“Be careful! I won’t keep you on the phone and interrupt your run, then. It’s dark out, so watch where you’re going. I think I’ll study for a bit. I’ll come over to your place tomorrow. Good night!”

“O-okay. Good night…”

“♪♪♪~” “♪♪~”

“♪♪♪♪~” (Ruo Xiaoxi singing.jpg)

The call ended. At the other end, the girl beneath the desk lamp set down her phone and gazed at the screen, relieved.

“Maybe I can go running with her sometime, too.”

She’d never heard that Xiaoxi went on night runs. Even a delicate girl like her wanted to get some exercise… She’d really misunderstood her.

She’d wondered if Xiaoxi might have gone off to hang out with another girl on Qixi Festival. But it turned out she’d gone to her grandma’s and that was why she hadn’t come over. Of course. Xiaoxi had said she… liked her.

There was nothing she could do. Since Xiaoxi had gone to her grandma’s, they’d have to leave it for today and hang out tomorrow instead.

She picked up the politics textbook lying open on the desk and began studying it in earnest…………

“…Use the two points above to plug the loopholes below, and make sure approval procedures are completed promptly for key internal security areas and valuable items. The principle governing security work in key internal areas is: ‘Whoever is in charge is responsible’…”