Sweetie, don't look at him, kiss me.

She regretted asking the question as soon as she asked it.

Why does this sound so awkward? It's like they're probing into his past, like they're wondering if he's ever cooked noodles or meals for others before.

Ji Linzhou looked up at her.

His gaze fell on her face, his unfathomable eyes revealing no emotion, though his lips seemed to twitch slightly.

"No."

He said, his voice was calm, yet carried a reassuring certainty: "You are the first."

Lin Qingmian lowered her head, staring at the steaming hot water in the bowl, and her ears began to burn again.

She buried her head in her noodles, not daring to say another word. Ji Linzhou didn't urge her either, and the two of them finished their meal in silence.

After finishing their noodles, Ji Linzhou went to wash the dishes, while Lin Qingmian sat on the sofa, scrolling through messages on her phone.

Fang Shiyang sent her a string of exclamation marks on WeChat: 【Baby, you're actually an acquaintance of our CEO! You kept this from me for so long! What's your relationship? Friends? Classmates? Distant relatives? Tell me quickly!】

Lin Qingmian stared at the screen for a few seconds, then typed and sent: 【A friend of a friend. Not close.】

Fang Shiyang replied instantly: [You're kidding me! The way he looked at you in the office is what you call not knowing each other? I've worked with him for five years, and this is the first time I've ever seen him look at someone like that!]

Lin Qingmian didn't dare reply to her, so she simply closed WeChat and opened Moments.

Ji Xingqing posted a new update—a photo of herself and Ji Xingye, captioned: [It's so good that someone's back! Finally, someone to play games with!]

In the photo, Ji Xingye is wearing a casual gray sweatshirt, her hair is a little messy, and she has a faint smile on her lips. She looks better than she did in the hospital yesterday.

Lin Qingmian's gaze lingered on that face for two seconds before sliding over it expressionlessly.

She no longer cares about him.

I really don't care anymore.

Just seeing his face still brings back memories of the past twenty years, and those beautiful moments she once thought would last forever.

That's not love, it's just habit.

Habits take time to break.

"What are you looking at?"

Ji Linzhou's voice came from behind, carrying the dampness of freshly washed dishes.

Lin Qingmian quickly locked the screen, flipped the phone over, and placed it face down on the coffee table: "It's nothing."

Ji Linzhou sat down beside her, the sofa sinking slightly. The crisp, snowy scent emanating from him, mixed with the faint smell of cooking in the kitchen, inexplicably brought a sense of peace.

Lin Qingmian subconsciously moved closer to him, but then realized her movement was too obvious and quickly stopped.

Ji Linzhou, however, did not notice her subtle actions.

He leaned back on the sofa, turned his head slightly to look at her, and said in a low voice, "There's something I want to ask you."

"What?"

"About Su Tingwan." He paused, his gaze falling on her face. "Do you still want me to continue acting with her?"

Lin Qingmian was stunned for a moment.

She looked up and met his gaze.

The man's expression was serious, completely different from his usual indifferent and aloof demeanor. He just looked at her, waiting for her answer, as if her answer was very important.

"I..." Lin Qingmian opened her mouth, but for a moment she didn't know what to say.

"If you don't want to," Ji Linzhou's voice softened slightly, "I'll stop."

"I can directly disclose that I'm secretly married."

Lin Qingmian's heart skipped a beat.

She recalled the snobbish faces of the Ji family, Lin Qingqing's threats, and Su Tingwan's pitiful appearance in front of the media.

She knew very well what it meant to publicly announce her secret marriage.

The Ji family won't let her go, Lin Qingqing won't let her go, the media won't let her go, and Su Tingwan certainly won't let her go either.

But if they don't say anything... Ji Linzhou will have to continue playing the role of an engaged couple with Su Tingwan in public.

Every day he continued to act out a scene with Su Tingwan, she felt more and more suffocated.

"I..." She clenched her fingers, her voice muffled, "I don't know."

Seeing her conflicted expression, Ji Linzhou suddenly chuckled softly.

He reached out and ruffled her hair, the gesture carrying an unconscious tenderness: "Then think about it some more."

"No rush."

Lin Qingmian's hair was all messed up by his rubbing, but for some reason she didn't want to get away.

She lowered her head and mumbled a reply, "Mmm."

The night outside the window was quiet. Only a warm yellow floor lamp was on in the living room, casting the shadows of the two people very close to each other on the floor.

"Ji Linzhou," she suddenly spoke, her voice very soft.

"Um?"

Why are you so good to me?

She looked up at him earnestly: "We're clearly just... in a marriage of convenience."

Ji Linzhou withdrew his hand from the top of her head, but he did not answer immediately.

He gazed at the deep night outside the window and remained silent for a long time.

Lin Qingmian thought he wouldn't answer anymore, until she heard his deep voice echo in the quiet living room—

"Perhaps because you are my wife."

He turned to look at her, his gaze deep and unfathomable: "Even if it's a marriage of convenience, it's a contract I signed."

"I'm a person who always keeps my word."

Lin Qingmian stared at him for a few seconds, then suddenly smiled.

Her eyes crinkled into crescents as she smiled, like the moon outside the window: "Then you must always keep your promise."

"Um."

He responded with a soft voice, yet it carried the weight of a promise.

Lin Qingmian didn't say anything more. She leaned back on the sofa and looked at the bright moonlight outside the window.

The weight that had been pressing on my heart for so long seemed to have finally loosened a little bit.

Lin Qingmian has been living a very regular life lately.

Every morning when she woke up, there was warm water and the ointment for the day's dressing change already placed on the bedside table; breakfast was always prepared on the dining table, sometimes it was porridge and steamed buns, sometimes sandwiches and milk, and occasionally there would be a signature snack from a shop that she had casually mentioned once.

After she finishes breakfast, Ji Linzhou will take her to school.

She parked the car some distance from the school gate, got out of the car ahead of time, and walked in by herself.

Although she was occasionally photographed getting out of luxury cars and the photos were posted on forums, the school had already clarified the situation once. In addition, she had good grades and was low-key in her interactions with others, so the rumors gradually faded away.

At lunchtime, she would grab a quick bite at the school cafeteria or library, occasionally having lunch with Yao Yingyu.

Ji Linzhou would message her on WeChat, asking, "Have you eaten?", "Have you changed your medicine?", "Does your hand still hurt?". She would always reply very briefly—"I ate", "I changed it", "It doesn't hurt"—and then unconsciously smile at the screen.

If Ji Linzhou has time after school, he will personally pick him up.

If he gets too busy, Bai Cheng will bring another car. Bai Cheng's attitude towards her is much more respectful than before, probably because he already knows from Fang Shiyang that she is Miss Sleepless.

When she got home in the evening, Ji Linzhou would sometimes arrive first, and sometimes later.

He's going home earlier and earlier. In the past, he would often work overtime until late at night, but now he can usually see people before eight o'clock.

Sometimes he would bring groceries back, and the two of them would work together in the kitchen—actually, he was the one doing most of the work, while she could only sit at the table and watch, occasionally handing him a condiment bottle or something with her left hand.

After about a week of this, Lin Qingmian gradually got used to his presence.