Misunderstanding

When Lin Xiao rode his electric scooter back to the yard, Qin Yanan had already placed four large bags of snacks at the door of Lin Xiao's room.

As for her, she leaned against the doorway, staring curiously at the snack bag, her eyes full of inquiry.

Hearing footsteps, Qin Yanan turned her head to look at Lin Xiao, but hesitated in her heart.

Based on previous speculation, Lin Xiao should like him.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have sold those priceless treasures to themselves as if they were free.

These past few days, I've been busy with the matter of announcing the engagement.

Unfortunately, the family did not agree because of the other party's power.

Instead, this led to another argument with her family.

This is also why she came out as the year draws to a close.

This cold, temporary shelter seems a little more secure than home.

Lin Xiao was naturally unaware of Qin Yanan's thoughts. Seeing that she had already brought the things back for him, he quickly put down his electric scooter.

"Ms. Qin, thank you very much this time."

Thinking that Qin Yanan had helped him a lot, and seeing that he had bought so many snacks, he decided to give her half of them.

This way, you can express your gratitude while concealing your true purpose for buying so many snacks—killing two birds with one stone.

Upon seeing this, a smile flashed across Qin Yanan's eyes, further confirming her thoughts.

These snacks were indeed specially bought by Lin Xiao for me, but he didn't want to ask directly, so he handed them to me under the pretext of a thank-you gift.

She suppressed her subtle emotions and did not refuse, reaching out to take the two large bags of snacks.

It felt heavy in my hand, and my fingertips inadvertently touched Lin Xiao's hand again, which was still icy cold.

She frowned slightly, but still smiled and said, "Then I'll accept it without hesitation. I haven't bought any New Year's goods yet, so these snacks will come in handy."

As she spoke, her gaze fell on Lin Xiao's slightly pale face, and her tone softened unconsciously as she said, "Also, please stop calling me Miss Qin all the time. It's too formal. Just call me Ya Nan."

Lin Xiao paused for a moment, then quickly nodded: "Okay, Ya Nan."

He could sense the gentleness in Qin Yanan's tone, and his heart stirred slightly, but he didn't think much of it.

I assumed that the other person was just easygoing and didn't like formalities.

He quickly took out his key, opened the door, and went inside.

"Come inside and sit down for a while, have some hot water, it's windy outside."

Qin Yanan nodded, picked up the snacks, and went inside, casually sitting down on the sofa.

Lin Xiao quickly turned around to boil water, but secretly calculated the time to fall asleep.

He glanced at his phone in his pocket; there were less than four hours left until his next dream.

I still need to make some preparations and get Qin Yanan away as soon as possible.

Qin Yanan sat in the chair, her gaze casually sweeping across the room before finally settling on the two large bags of snacks remaining in the corner.

Then a faint smile appeared on her lips, and she asked casually, "You're planning to save these two packs and eat them slowly?"

She wondered to herself, how Lin Xiao knew that she liked sweet and sour flavors.

She bought all the kinds of food she liked, but she didn't say it out loud.

Lin Xiao brought over a cup of hot water and handed it to her. Hearing this, she quickly mumbled, "Yes, I'll keep it for myself and eat it slowly. Anyway, I have nothing to do during the New Year."

He avoided Qin Yanan's gaze, his eyes darting away.

However, at this moment, the mark that Yu Jiuyou had planted in Lin Xiao's body suddenly stirred slightly.

Immediately, a subtle chill ran through him, causing him to shiver involuntarily.

Qin Yanan saw all this, her brows furrowing even more, and asked with a hint of worry, "What's wrong? You're feeling cold and distracted, are you feeling unwell?"

Her worries grew stronger; Lin Xiao's unusual behavior made her uneasy.

"No need, no need, I'm really fine." Lin Xiao quickly dodged away, forcing a smile and saying, "I probably just caught a chill from riding the electric bike. I'll be fine after a rest."

"By the way, Ya Nan, what have you been up to these past few days? I haven't seen you at all. And you seem a bit unhappy."

He deliberately changed the subject, partly because he didn't want to be pressed about his own affairs.

On the other hand, he did notice the worry in Qin Yanan's eyes.

Upon hearing this, Qin Yanan's smile faded slightly.

She picked up the hot water and took a sip. After a moment of silence, she said softly, "It's nothing serious, just some trivial matters at home. I came out for a walk to clear my head."

She didn't go into details about the annulment of the engagement, the family feuds, or the oppression from those in power.

She didn't want Lin Xiao to know, nor did she want to involve him.

Lin Xiao naturally noticed that she didn't want to say more, so he didn't press her further. He simply nodded and said, "It's good to relax. Although this area is remote, the environment is quite nice. You can take a stroll around when you have time."

As he spoke, he discreetly took out his phone, glanced at the time, and pondered how to politely ask the guest to leave.

Qin Yanan was incredibly perceptive; she immediately noticed his urgency, and a thought stirred within her.

He put down his water glass, stood up, picked up his two large bags of snacks, and said with a smile, "Alright, I won't disturb your rest any longer. You should rest well, and if you feel unwell, remember to call me."

Lin Xiao was overjoyed and quickly nodded, "Okay, I understand, thank you, Ya Nan. I'll see you off."

Qin Yanan waved her hand: "No need to see me off, it's just upstairs, I'll go back now."

She walked to the door, then stopped, turned to look at Lin Xiao, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Lin Xiao, if you encounter any difficulties in the future, just tell me. Don't bear it all alone."

After saying that, he picked up the snacks, turned around, and walked out of the yard without looking back.

Lin Xiao was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, and only breathed a long sigh of relief after Qin Yanan's figure had completely disappeared from the intersection.

He quickly closed the door, walked briskly to the pile of snacks in the corner, and began to tidy them up.

He carefully selected three sweet and sour snacks from the remaining two large bags: preserved plums, dried hawthorn, and dried tangerine peel.

During that time, I also ate some snacks to replenish my energy.

Soon, night fell. Lin Xiao closed the door, lay down on the bed, and began to prepare to fall asleep.

He could feel that as time went on, the cold, dark mark within his body seemed to become more and more active.

Finally, as time went on...

The familiar dizziness swept over me again, and my vision gradually blurred.

When Lin Xiao opened her eyes again, the room's furnishings had all disappeared.

Instead, a surge of abundant spiritual energy brought him a sense of comfort.

At this moment, the sky in the Cangxuan Realm had just begun to brighten.

Before Lin Xiao could act, the door was suddenly kicked open, and the Netherworld Sect disciple who had brought him there the night before burst in.

However, upon seeing Lin Xiao, who was pretending to rub his eyes and had just woken up, his expression froze, and he exclaimed, "You, you didn't run away?!"