Chapter 32: Chapter 32: Kissing Him in a Squalid Memory

The moment the girl’s voice rang out, the torrential black rain seemed to pause for a few seconds.

The blond punk’s raised fist froze in mid-air, his vicious expression halting with it.

Qin Muye looked up.

As if sensing something, Qin Muye looked in Jiang Qingli’s direction.

Jiang Qingli’s eyes widened.

’Wait, did he just make eye contact with me?’

But in the next second, Jiang Qingli’s hand passed straight through the blond punk’s body.

She had lunged at nothing.

It was then that Jiang Qingli remembered this was just a memory.

Like watching a movie, she couldn’t change how the plot unfolded.

Only when Qin Muye’s Spiritual Body appeared could she find an opportunity to heal it.

Other than that, there was nothing she could do.

She couldn’t help Qin Muye in any way.

Jiang Qingli looked at the little boy with a bloody face, feeling a wave of helpless frustration.

The rain once again came crashing down, splattering against the ground.

Qin Muye was knocked down by the blond punk. Bright red blood flowed from the wound on his forehead, only to be quickly washed away by the black rain.

The three punks beat Qin Muye even more violently, their curses unending—

"So you like picking up trash! You like it, huh?! You mutt!"

"If you know what’s good for you, you’ll pay the three hundred for protection money! Otherwise, you can just wait here to die!"

"I hear that father of yours is about to be jinxed to death by you, too. What’s the point of him taking you in? He can’t even sell you, and now he’s about to lose his own life for it! HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

While being cursed at, Qin Muye had remained expressionless, almost numb.

Until he heard that last curse.

The boy’s mouth moved faintly.

"What’d you say?" The blond punk grabbed his hair, yanked him up, and squinted, ready to curse him out again.

Just then, Qin Muye suddenly erupted!

He grabbed the blond punk’s collar and viciously slammed his forehead against the other’s.

The blond punk hadn’t expected him to fight back. Caught off guard, he stumbled back. The corrosive black rain splashed into his eyes, and he cried out in pain.

Qin Muye seized the opportunity and bolted!

The other two hurriedly gave chase.

The blond punk swore, pulled out his terminal, and cursed into the call, "Didn’t get him! Damn it! The little beast ran off! Send a few more guys!"

"You useless piece of trash!" The voice on the other end grew louder. "The higher-ups just barely managed to find him! We waited a week for this lead! Just you try losing him!"

The blond punk hung up, saw the apple Qin Muye had grabbed lying by his feet, and stomped on it.

"Eat? Eat this!" He ground the apple under his foot, venting his rage until it was crushed to a pulp.

The blond punk turned and chased after Qin Muye.

Jiang Qingli wanted to follow, but when she reached the mouth of the alley, she couldn’t take another step forward.

It was as if an invisible wall blocked her path, forbidding her to leave.

Jiang Qingli had no choice but to return to the alley and crouch down beside the crushed apple to wait.

She had a feeling Qin Muye would be back.

The rain seemed like it would never stop, only growing heavier.

After an unknown amount of time, a small, thin figure slowly walked over.

The injuries on his body were even worse.

He walked very, very slowly to the crushed apple and crouched down.

Right across from where Jiang Qingli was crouching.

The boy looked at the crushed apple, his head bowed, remaining silent for a long time.

After a long while, Jiang Qingli heard a very soft sob.

’He doesn’t even dare to cry out loud?’

Jiang Qingli’s heart ached. She reached out but still couldn’t touch Qin Muye, her hand only patting the air above his head.

"You’ll have lots of apples in the future," Jiang Qingli said, her voice very soft.

A translucent snow leopard figure emerged from beside the boy’s feet.

It was heavily injured and on the verge of death.

Jiang Qingli reached out, and this time, she was able to hug the snow leopard.

She gently stroked the snow leopard’s head and fur, trying to infuse it with her spiritual power.

The surrounding scene began to fade without her noticing.

The snow leopard’s condition visibly improved.

Jiang Qingli’s lips curved into a smile. She kissed the snow leopard’s forehead. "Good boy."

After doing all this, a familiar dizziness washed over Jiang Qingli.

She fainted.

...

Qin Muye opened his eyes.

He propped his head up and sat up, seeing Jiang Qingli in his arms.

The girl had fainted. She was leaning against the crook of his arm, her brows slightly furrowed.

Qin Muye stared at her face, slightly dazed.

The events of a moment ago came rushing back as he became fully awake, and Qin Muye’s expression shifted repeatedly.

He was now so frustrated he wanted to unleash a combo of punches against the wall.

A short while ago, when he arrived, a server had told him Jiang Qingli was waiting for him in the lounge.

After he came in, the server brought over a drink, saying it was from Jiang Qingli.

Qin Muye had always been cautious and carried a poison detector with him.

After testing it and finding no poison, he figured Jiang Qingli would be unhappy if he didn’t drink any, so he took a sip.

That one sip was what triggered his mating season prematurely.

Coupled with his excessively high pollution value, he had undergone a full Beastification.

’Thank goodness she’s alright...’

Qin Muye’s fingers gently caressed the hair of the woman in his arms, a tenderness he himself hadn’t noticed appearing in his eyes.

As he carried Jiang Qingli to the sofa, Qin Muye realized he wasn’t wearing any clothes.

His beast form had torn his original clothes to shreds.

Fortunately, the lounge had a bathrobe.

Qin Muye took the opportunity to take a shower.

Just as he put on the bathrobe, the doorbell rang.

Qin Muye walked to the door. The smart lock’s display showed two people standing outside.

It was Baili Jing and Lin Xiyue.

’That sly fox really can’t rest for a second.’

Qin Muye opened the door.

The two people outside looked up to see the tall young man standing there in a bathrobe.

The bathrobe was securely tied, but Qin Muye’s slightly damp hair, languid posture, and the red mark on his neck could easily lead one’s imagination astray.

Lin Xiyue: "..."

Lin Xiyue gave a thumbs-up in her mind.

’In the lounge? As expected of Qingli!’

Baili Jing’s expression was not good. He got straight to the point. "Where is she?"

Qin Muye glanced back at the girl lying on the sofa, then looked at them, his hoarse voice laced with exhaustion. "She’s tired. She’s resting now."

Baili Jing’s eyes turned cold. He drew on all his self-control to suppress his anger as he spoke, "Mr. Qin, the banquet is still going on, and Qingli has friends to accompany. Aren’t you being a bit too domineering?"

Qin Muye looked at Lin Xiyue. "My apologies. Jiang Qingli is resting here with me today. I’ll have a gift sent to you tomorrow as an apology."

He said it was an apology, but his tone was anything but.

How could Lin Xiyue dare to accept a favor from the Prince? She quickly waved her hands. "It’s—it’s fine."

Getting the satisfactory answer he wanted, Qin Muye raised an eyebrow at Baili Jing, his tone dripping with smugness. "She agrees. Anything else?"

Baili Jing gave him a cold look. "Qingli has other friends."

"You mean you?" Qin Muye scoffed. "If I remember correctly, she’s been avoiding you, hasn’t she?"

At these words, Baili Jing’s expression turned even uglier.

But Qin Muye didn’t give him a chance to retort, slamming the door shut with a BANG.

Baili Jing stared at the closed door before him, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath.

The ache and anger welling up in his chest grew more intense.

But he couldn’t refute it.

Jiang Qingli was avoiding him. She didn’t want him. She hated him.

No matter how upset he was, he could only endure it.

- 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Qin Muye closed the door and walked over to Jiang Qingli’s side.

The sofa was spacious, but it would be a tight squeeze with him on it.

Afraid of crowding Jiang Qingli, Qin Muye sat on the floor to wait for her to wake up.

He was close enough to smell the faint fragrance on her.

Qin Muye realized this was probably the first time he had ever looked at Jiang Qingli from this close.

His vocabulary was lacking. After wracking his brain, the only word he could repeat in his mind was "beautiful."

How to put it? The more he looked, the more pleasing she was to the eye.

His gaze slid from her eyes and brows down to her lips.

Seeing those two soft, rosy petals, Qin Muye abruptly turned his face away as if he’d been burned.

His Adam’s apple bobbed unconsciously.

After several seconds, Qin Muye’s breathing calmed down a little. He turned back and looked at her lips again.

The thing he had wanted to do in his dream and just a moment ago surfaced once more.

’I want to kiss her.’

’I really, really want to.’

Qin Muye propped himself up with one hand beside Jiang Qingli, tilted his head slightly, and slowly leaned closer to her lips...