Qiao Jing looked at Zhan Nanqing with a puzzled expression, just about to ask him when she was pulled over by him.
Zhan Nanqing turned on the camera feature, pressing his face right up against Qiao Jing’s, and hit the shutter button.
But that was still not enough.
Zhan Nanqing then took Qiao Jing’s hand, entwined their fingers together, and looked at the photos with satisfaction, a big smile spreading across his face.
Noticing this, Qiao Jing also cooperated and curved her lips into a smile.
Zhan Nanqing kept snapping photos with his phone for a while before finally letting go, then started to fiddle with his phone.
However, during the time he was setting up the photos to post to his Moments, he could always feel a gaze on him.
He didn’t even need to think to know it was the gaze of his brother, who was clearly jealous again.
But Qiao Jing couldn’t care less about whether his brother was jealous; after all, Qiao Jing was now her boyfriend.
Qiao Jing looked helplessly at Zhan Nanqing and saw him posting to Moments.
She took her eyes off him and prepared to rest against the back of the chair when her phone suddenly vibrated a few times.
Qiao Jing took out her phone and saw that Zeng Xiangyang and Lin Yun had sent messages.
She first opened the chat with Lin Yun to read his message.
"Let’s find some time to have a meal together tomorrow."
Qiao Jing frowned slightly and typed a reply.
"What’s up? Is there something?"
Lin Yun quickly responded to Qiao Jing’s message.
"Can’t I ask you out if there’s no reason? Come if you like."
Seeing Lin Yun’s petulant message, Qiao Jing rolled her eyes wordlessly and exited the chat with him, then opened the chat with Zeng Xiangyang.
"Master, can you have a meal with me tomorrow? And teach me to play King of Glory, and there’s also... a rather abrupt favor to ask."
Qiao Jing typed with a puzzled expression.
She couldn’t think of anything besides gaming that might be Zeng Xiangyang’s so-called abrupt favor.
Zeng Xiangyang’s message came through.
"Master, could you invite Brother Lin Yun too? I want to play with him, but he never agrees when I ask. So, I have to turn to you."
Qiao Jing pursed her red lips, curious whether these two had a telepathy, messaging her at the same time with almost identical requests.
She opened Lin Yun’s chat again and typed a reply.
On the other end of the phone, Lin Yun "hmmphed," pretending to be reluctant as he typed his response.
"Didn’t you say you can’t be asked out if there’s no reason? Now suddenly you’re available for a meal? You’re acting way more important than I ever could."
After reading the message, Qiao Jing rolled her eyes in exasperation.
"Are you going or not?"
She knew that with Lin Yun’s mischievous nature, he liked to say these annoying things, but he didn’t mean any harm.
She had tried to correct Lin Yun a few times before, but he would revert to his old ways in less than a day, so finally she gave up on the idea of teaching him.
Only then did Lin Yun reply to Qiao Jing.
"Tomorrow night, 8 PM, barbecue restaurant."
The words ’barbecue restaurant’ gave Qiao Jing a bit of a headache, and she was reminded yet again of the last time rumors had started at a barbecue restaurant.
"Let’s change the place."
She definitely didn’t want a repeat of last time, and she had to keep her distance from Lin Yun this time, staying as far away from him as possible.
Otherwise, if some paparazzi followed and took photos again, it would surely cause another commotion.
Lin Yun sent several speechless emoticons in a row, and before Qiao Jing’s patience reached its limit, he finally replied to the message.
"No need to change, rest assured, I will disguise myself when I go out. But I’m almost annoyed to death. I’m just a gamer, not some big star. Why do paparazzi follow me everywhere I go?"
After much insistence from Lin Yun, Qiao Jing ultimately agreed to go to the barbecue restaurant.
"Be careful when you go out, so that what happened last time doesn’t happen again."
She herself wasn’t affected by the incident, but Lin Yun, the public figure, was the one who was actually impacted.
Although Lin Yun wasn’t some idol superstar from the entertainment industry, just a gamer, his incredibly good looks meant that his popularity was no less than that of any hot celebrity.
Seeing that Lin Yun had replied a few times acknowledging her message, Qiao Jing sent the time and location to Zeng Xiangyang.
If it weren’t for Zeng Xiangyang wanting to go, she might not have agreed to Lin Yun’s request.
She was concerned that another incident like last time could affect Lin Yun, especially with the world competition just around the corner.
For some reason, she had a vague and uneasy premonition lurking in her heart.
After sending Zhan Nanqing back to Purple Garden, they both returned to Nantai Apartment.
Just as Qiao Jing was about to take off her clothes, Zhan Qipei approached her, offering to help her take off her coat and wig.
She looked up at the man who was currently pursing his lips, intently helping her take off her coat.
"Zhan Qipei, I can do it myself."
She could guess why Zhan Qipei didn’t like her cross-dressing, because it made things inconvenient for this despicable man.
When she was in disguise, this despicable man couldn’t casually touch her or hold her, for example, or else it would lead to the situation that had just occurred.
Zhan Qipei’s lips were tightly pursed into a taut, uncurving line of ice as he quickly helped Qiao Jing take off the male coat and wig, revealing her lustrous black hair once more.
Just as he was about to carelessly throw the wig aside, Qiao Jing stopped him.
"Don’t just throw it anywhere, or else the hair will become frizzy. If Zhou Yunze asks for Nanqing’s help again next time, I could still go and assist."
Zhan Qipei’s hands paused as he knitted his brows.
"Next time, let her find another guy to help her."
He no longer wanted Qiao Jing to dress as a man. Considering what had happened that evening, the likelihood of Qiao Jing in disguise attracting rivals in love was even greater.
Moreover, when Qiao Jing was in disguise, he couldn’t hold her in his arms as he usually would without causing misunderstandings.
This was too much trouble. Qiao Jing’s disguise not only attracted female rivals for him but also restrained his hands.
Hearing Zhan Qipei’s words, Qiao Jing furrowed her brows and seriously responded.
"But everyone has already assumed I am Nanqing’s boyfriend, and it’s too late to change that now."
Having chosen to help Zhan Nan, she was determined to follow through to the end.
If they switched boyfriends suddenly, not only would it be inconvenient, but given that the people of the upper class in the capital all knew each other, it would be easy to be exposed.
Zhan Qipei’s brows were tightly furrowed, his dark eyes fixatedly looking at Qiao Jing.
Qiao Jing could feel the air thick with jealousy doubling, and to avoid Zhan Qipei, that despicable man, getting handsy with her later, she quickly made her way back to her room.
After returning home and quickly finishing dinner, Qiao Jing prepared to go out to meet Zeng Xiangyang.
The man’s voice suddenly sounded from behind her.
"Where are you going?"