Chapter 484: I Love You

With all six pairs of eyes fixed on her, Jiang Qingli tossed the paper balls with the names onto the table, swirled her finger above them a few times, and finally closed her eyes and picked one.

She opened the first paper ball, revealing the name "Qin Muye."

While they were preparing for the draw, Qin Muye had been staring intently at Gu Nian and Yuan Shimo, wary of them trying to pull any more stunts behind the scenes. So when he saw his name, he stared blankly for two seconds before it registered.

The Prince immediately grabbed Gu Nian’s arm and flung it aside in disgust. He then wrapped an arm around Jiang Qingli’s shoulders and raised an eyebrow at the others, utterly failing to conceal his smugness.

The corner of Gu Nian’s mouth twitched.

The movement was subtle, but Qin Muye caught it instantly. "What? Unhappy with the result?"

Gu Nian glanced at the hand Qin Muye had used to shove him away, then smiled. "The Prince’s luck is as good as ever."

If anyone else had said it, Qin Muye wouldn’t have batted an eye. But coming from Gu Nian, it sounded particularly snide.

Qin Muye scoffed. "No matter what I do, at least I’m more honorable than certain people who resort to underhanded tactics."

He was making a snide remark about Gu Nian tampering with the mini-program. Gu Nian, in turn, pressed his lips together in apparent disapproval. "Prince, Senior Yuan just wanted a chance to get closer to Qingli. You don’t have to say that about him."

Qin Muye: ?

Seeing the argument about to drag in a third person, Jiang Qingli clapped a hand over Qin Muye’s mouth and shot a glare at Gu Nian.

The two, who had been arguing fiercely just a moment ago, were forcibly silenced by Jiang Qingli. They could only shut their mouths and glare daggers at each other.

To prevent an argument from breaking out every time a name was drawn, Jiang Qingli sped up the process.

The results of the draw were laid out on the table in order:

Qin Muye, Gu Nian, Break, Baili Jing, Xie Youchen, Break, Ye Linyuan, Yuan Shimo, Yuan Shiyao, Yi Nuo.

Since Jiang Qingli had drawn the lots with her eyes closed, it was completely random, and no one objected.

Qin Muye made a show of looking at his watch. "It’s getting late. You all should head back."

He was clearly trying to shoo them out. The other Beast Husbands didn’t linger, rising to their feet and leaving.

Only Gu Nian paused before leaving to hook a finger around Jiang Qingli’s, whispering something in her ear.

Qin Muye was pouring a glass of water for Jiang Qingli. When he turned back and saw this, he nearly choked on his anger. He was about to erupt, but Gu Nian had already vanished.

’That damn green tea rabbit!’

Qin Muye was simmering with rage he couldn’t vent. He paced around the room once before plopping down forcefully next to Jiang Qingli, grabbing her hand and wiping it.

Just then, he noticed Jiang Qingli had taken a picture of the results and sent it to Xie Youchen and Yuan Shiyao.

Xie Youchen still wasn’t awake, so he probably wouldn’t see the message until the next morning.

Compared to the quiet chat with Xie Youchen, the one with Yuan Shiyao was far more animated.

But the sentences were filled with grandiose yet barely suppressed excitement, and even subtle hints of comparison to the others. Qin Muye was left speechless as he watched.

What disgusted Qin Muye the most was Yuan Shiyao’s wall of text.

’So many densely packed words, he was starting to forget what the word "like" even meant!’

’Fawning.’

’Way too fawning.’

Qin Muye was scornful, but then it occurred to him that he had never actually confessed his feelings to Jiang Qingli.

’Did all those other guys out there win her over with sweet talk?’

’Come to think of it, among all the Beast Husbands, he was probably the worst with words...’

A conflicted feeling welled up inside Qin Muye.

Seeing more messages coming in from Yuan Shiyao, Qin Muye gently nudged Jiang Qingli’s shoulder with his own and coughed loudly twice.

Jiang Qingli snapped out of it, sent a few messages to end the conversation, and switched off her terminal. She reached out to pat his head, a smile playing on her lips. "I know, I know. There’s a little puppy here, too."

"About time you remembered."

Though his words were a complaint, Qin Muye nudged the palm of her hand with his nose, tucking his snow leopard ears under her fingers.

After a bit of petting, Jiang Qingli went to take a shower. When she came out, she started looking over some documents. Not wanting to disturb her, Qin Muye just leaned against the headboard and waited.

His snow leopard tail swayed back and forth, now and then, out of boredom.

As midnight approached, Jiang Qingli finally finished her work and slipped into bed.

The air conditioning was blasting, but the space under the covers was already toasty from Qin Muye’s body heat.

Jiang Qingli switched off the light and snuggled into his embrace.

’Though people often teased Qin Muye for being all brawn and no brains, she had to admit, he made a very comfortable pillow.’

Jiang Qingli remembered something. "By the way, are you leaving right after the award ceremony, like Que Feiling?"

Qin Muye frowned. "He’s attending your award ceremony?"

"Mhm, he didn’t tell you?"

"..." Qin Muye closed his eyes. In the darkness, his face nearly contorted.

’He could hardly admit that they had argued like a couple of schoolboys on the phone for ages before angrily hanging up on each other.’

’And now that damn bird was turning right around and coming here.’

’Heh, just wait until we’re in the First District. We’ll see if I don’t pluck him bald!’

Qin Muye was much more mature now, his tone betraying nothing. "A week after your award ceremony is that person’s birthday. I’m required to attend, so I’ll head back after that."

"That person" was the Emperor—Qin Muye’s mother.

Jiang Qingli recalled that he never used to attend the Emperor’s birthday banquets. It seemed his stance had softened...

It seemed the rift between mother and son was, imperceptibly, beginning to close.

Jiang Qingli gently touched the spot over his heart. "I’ll go with you."

Qin Muye grabbed her hand and kissed it. "You’re my wife."

It had been too long since he’d been able to touch her. One kiss wasn’t enough; he couldn’t help but kiss her again, and then again... until he had a perfectly normal reaction.

But he knew Jiang Qingli was exhausted today, so he had no intention of taking things further.

He dutifully placed her hand back down, pulled her tightly into his arms, and finally planted a kiss on her cheek. He buried his face in the crook of her neck, inhaling her scent.

"That’s it?" Jiang Qingli was well aware of his state. "That’s not like you."

"Keep talking and I really will transform and have my way with you," Qin Muye huffed, nuzzling her cheek.

He didn’t need Jiang Qingli to point it out; Qin Muye knew he had changed a great deal.

Before, he had detested everyone, including himself.

But now, Qin Muye sometimes felt that things weren’t so bad.

Since getting together with Jiang Qingli, Qin Muye had learned to understand things he never did before. He started trying to think of others. He had actively grown into a true male and, more importantly... he had learned how to love.

The woman in his arms was breathing evenly. The mere thought that he was the one to possess this gentle, tranquil moment filled Qin Muye with infinite tenderness.

"Jiang Qingli."

Qin Muye suddenly spoke, the words he usually found too sappy to say tumbling out without obstruction.

"I love you."

The moment he finished, his face burned, and he was grateful that Jiang Qingli was asleep.

’This wasn’t the right place. My voice was too quiet, and those three words felt so flat! Dammit, this is so frustrating! I need to find somewhere private to practice tomorrow!’

His mind raced with jumbled thoughts for a long while before he finally sighed, resolving to check out that website the damn bird had given him to get some pointers.

With that thought, Qin Muye propped himself up and gently kissed Jiang Qingli’s cheek.

Just as he pulled back, a pair of hands suddenly cupped his face.

And then came Jiang Qingli’s smiling reply—

"You silly puppy. I love you, too."