In the private dining room,

Big Couch-Potato Qin was running frantically all over the room, trying to find a charger somewhere nearby.

Things with Cold Snake really weren’t a joke. If he didn’t reply to her soon, he’d be lucky to get away with only losing a chunk of flesh once Ning Muxuan came back tomorrow.

The mark Ice Snake had bitten into his shoulder yesterday still hadn’t faded. The neat row of tiny teeth marks remained clear as ever.

Just thinking of Ning Muxuan’s eyes, cold as snow, staring at him as if he were already dead…

Qin Heng felt a chill creep down his back. Cold sweat had already soaked through his shirt.

The results of all that frantic searching were easy to guess—nothing. It seemed wild chargers really didn’t exist.

Big Slacker scratched his head like mad.

“What do I do?! What do I do?!”

“Wait! That’s right!”

“I’ll go find Colonel Zuo and the others. Maybe they brought a charger. Those two are my last lifeline now! They have to have one! Please!!!”

Qin Heng hurried downstairs…

“Steward Ling, where has the banquet been arranged?”

Qing Nianyi opened the door. Her butler had been waiting outside for some time.

“To answer you, young miss: it’ll be in private dining room 630 on the sixth floor, in half an hour.”

Qing Nianyi nodded. The corners of her mouth lifted slightly, and an unprecedented gentleness softened her brow. Her brilliant smile was like cherry blossoms opening in the morning sun, their petals drifting like a dream.

Seeing the young miss full of life again, Steward Ling finally relaxed. Then, as if something had just occurred to him, he suddenly spoke.

“...Young miss, at the opening of the banquet earlier, were you looking for something? If I’m not mistaken, you were looking for someone?”

Qing Nianyi was startled at first. Then excitement surged through her, and she turned to Steward Ling.

“Steward Ling, do you know who I was looking for?!”

Her voice was light and eager, brimming with anticipation. Her Mu Zi eyes shimmered with rosy light as she looked straight at Steward Ling.

The butler nodded, wearing a smile that gave nothing away.

“I was right beside you, young miss. I saw you gazing at one particular spot, so I made a point of noticing who was there.”

“At the place you were looking toward, a little way from the crowd, there were two people standing.”

“You should have met one of them before, young miss.”

Qing Nianyi could barely contain her excitement. Her heart surged like a rising tide, impossible to hold back.

Her peerless face lit up with a radiant smile, her eyes sparkling with a hundred charms. Even her usually gentle voice had grown a little brighter.

“Who?!”

Looking at the young miss beaming before him, Steward Ling seemed to understand something…

Steward Ling smiled and replied.

“Feng Xun, the young master of the Feng Group. You met once at a company banquet two years ago.”

“As for the person beside him, I don’t know who they are. But the two seemed to be getting along well, so I assume they’re friends…”

At that, the smile in Qing Nianyi’s eyes deepened. Even her hands, clasped behind her back, began to dance with joy.

—Feng Xun.

Though they’d only met once, Qing Nianyi still remembered what he looked like.

When their companies worked together, the chairman of the Feng Group had personally introduced Feng Xun to her.

Even if it had been years and her memories had grown hazy, she was certain the person who’d met her eyes at the banquet wasn’t Feng Xun. That left only one possibility…

Qing Nianyi bounced lightly on her toes, pressing both hands to her chest. She was as happy as a child.

The thought that she’d soon see the one in her heart sent joy rushing through her, impossible to suppress—like morning dew meeting the sun.

…She wanted to close the distance and meet him, not just watch him from afar.

She wanted to hear his voice right beside her, not as a hollow echo in her mind.

She wanted to feel that warmth for herself, to feel the longing that had bewitched her…

If—if only she could…

She also wanted him to get to know her…

From a distance, he looked delicate and handsome, with a tall, slender build. He even seemed younger than her…

Younger than her…

“If he’s younger than me… ugh!”

At the thought, another unfamiliar feeling took root in Qing Nianyi’s heart. In an instant, a faint blush spread across her cheeks.

…

Steward Ling stood beside her, staring blankly at Qing Nianyi.

In all these years, this was the first time he’d seen the young miss behave so “improperly.”

But he didn’t interrupt or remind her. He simply waited quietly at her side.

A kind smile rested on his face as he gazed fondly at Qing Nianyi—the child he had watched grow up…

At this moment, she—

—was finally no longer a refined doll bound by noble etiquette, a flawless and elegant young lady…

Now, hope shone in her eyes. Every smile and frown brimmed with the charm and liveliness of a young girl. This was how she should be at the height of her youth—free from shackles, unconfined.

This was how it should have been…

But after the master and mistress left, the young miss shut her heart away. She devoted herself to growing into the person they had expected her to be, enduring pressures she should never have had to face. Under that crushing weight, she forced herself to become someone outstanding—even though she didn’t know what it all meant.

Sometimes, when he looked at Qing Nianyi, he’d almost feel that the young miss wasn’t living for herself anymore. It was as if her attachment to the master and mistress was the only thing keeping her from allowing herself to die…

Still, the changes in Qing Nianyi couldn’t possibly have come from nowhere. What could have affected the young miss so much in just half a day? Aside from the person she’d been searching for at the banquet, he couldn’t think of anything else…

A little while later, Qing Nianyi finally came back to herself. She saw Steward Ling beside her, gazing at her kindly.

Qing Nianyi immediately regained her usual graceful composure. She gently brushed the hair beside her cheek and smiled, her cherry lips parting softly.

“I’m sorry, Steward Ling. I got a little distracted just now.”

Steward Ling shook his head and glanced at the watch on his wrist.

“Not at all. The banquet is about to begin, though. Is there anything else you need to prepare, young miss?”

As if reminding her of something, Steward Ling gave Qing Nianyi a knowing smile.

Qing Nianyi understood at once and glanced around…

Then she slowly spoke.

“There are a few things I still need to prepare. Could I trouble you to greet the guests who’ve already arrived?”

“Of course, young miss.”

As soon as Steward Ling left, Qing Nianyi hurried back into the room.

She looked at the shattered mirror scattered across the floor and at the slight wrinkles in her dress, remembering what had happened not long ago…

W-what was I doing…? How am I supposed to see him looking like this?!

If he sees me looking so “unkempt,” he’ll think I don’t take him seriously…

That absolutely cannot happen!!!

Qing Nianyi quickly pinned up her hair, went to the washroom, found another mirror, and started fixing her appearance.

She took several different dresses from the wardrobe and tried them on one after another. After quite a while, she finally chose a black evening gown she was happy with.

Looking at her slender, beautiful reflection, Qing Nianyi felt grateful for the first time that she’d been blessed with such a lovely face. It might give him one more reason to linger…

She wanted to show him her charm, too. She hoped he’d praise her, admire her, and even…

L-like myself… ngh!

At the thought, Qing Nianyi’s cheeks flushed again. She cupped her pretty face in both hands, lost in thought.

But the sweet smile slowly spreading across her face made it clear she was looking forward to something wonderful…