Chapter 30: A Maid, A Visit, and Pan-fried Dumplings

With her hair nearly dry, Cheng Lan’s fingertips gently smoothed Qin Jinxuan’s light blue strands, ensuring no lingering dampness remained.

“Have you helped others dry their hair before?” Qin Jinxuan asked, her eyes narrowing slightly, a hint of languor in her tone.

Cheng Lan’s technique was simply too comfortable, entirely unlike someone performing the task for the first time.

“That’s right,” he confirmed.

“My past life self?” Qin Jinxuan pressed further.

“Mhm,” he responded simply.

‘Not just you, actually.’

Cheng Lan, however, kept that latter thought to himself.

“All done, it’s completely dry now,” he announced, turning off the hairdryer and casually placing it on the nearby coffee table.

He then gave the young woman’s back a light pat, his palm gliding over the delicate, warm skin beneath the fabric of her nightgown.

“Thank you~” Qin Jinxuan chirped, turning to flash Cheng Lan a sweet smile, her light blue hair shimmering softly under the light.

“Can I ask you to dry my hair again sometime?” she whispered, her fingers idly twirling stray wisps by her ear, her gaze holding a touch of cautious anticipation.

“Perhaps when you have another dazzling performance, hah—” Cheng Lan yawned.

“Go on, get some rest; I’m about to sleep myself,” he said, waving a hand to urge Qin Jinxuan home.

“Alright,” the young woman replied, nodding with a hint of regret as she picked up the hairdryer from the coffee table and ambled toward the door.

Her hand rested on the doorknob, but she paused, feeling it would be a shame to simply leave.

She pulled open the door, stepped out, and just as it was about to close—

“Goodnight~” Qin Jinxuan suddenly poked her head back in, winking at Cheng Lan.

“Goodnight,” he replied, sounding rather listless.

Only then did Qin Jinxuan smile, retract her head, and gently close the door.

Cheng Lan first glanced at the closed door, then turned his head, staring blankly at the ceiling.

He was genuinely quite exhausted.

No sooner had he returned home than he and Lidoa immediately began reorganizing the entire house.

The items he had brought back from the World Rifts (TL Note: A dimensional rift leading to other worlds) were considered serious contraband in Huaguo, and thus had to be meticulously hidden.

After all that tidying, Cheng Lan felt utterly disoriented.

He would rather dismantle dozens more robots than endure another full house cleanup.

Lost in thought, he slowly closed his eyes.

“Master, it’s already half past nine, time to wake up~”

Lidoa’s voice, like melted honey, gently flowed into Cheng Lan’s ear.

“Isn’t today Saturday… just let me sleep a bit longer…” Cheng Lan mumbled, rolling over and burying his face in the pillow.

“But…” Lidoa hesitated, her small hand gently resting on his arm as she continued, “Sister Jinxuan is also visiting~”

As she spoke, she gently shook Cheng Lan’s body.

‘Qin Jinxuan? Why is she here?’

Cheng Lan rolled back over, his eyes grudgingly opening to a slit.

Hmm… wait?!

Cheng Lan’s eyes snapped open, fixing on Lidoa, who was perched by the bed—the young woman was clad in a black and white maid outfit.

Lace trim accentuated her already fair skin, making it appear even more luminous, while her silver-white twin tails cascaded over her shoulders, remarkably eye-catching.

“Where did you get that maid outfit?” he blurted, his drowsiness instantly dissipating.

“I just bought it~ Don’t you think it suits me?” Lidoa asked, tilting her head, her sky-blue eyes sparkling, her twin tails swaying gently with her movements.

“Why would you buy a maid outfit?”

“Master… didn’t you say I could just buy whatever clothes I liked?” Lidoa’s voice held a hint of grievance, her small hand clutching the lace trim of her skirt, as if fearing his disapproval.

“So you bought this?”

Lidoa nodded vigorously.

Cheng Lan closed his eyes once more, remaining silent for a few seconds before opening them again, seemingly resigned, and sighed, “Fine, keep it. It actually suits you quite well.”

“Really?!” Lidoa exclaimed, so delighted that she bounced directly onto Cheng Lan’s body.

“Cough!” Cheng Lan grunted, stifled by her weight.

“Ah! My apologies, Master…” Lidoa scrambled to get up, her cheeks flushing faintly.

“Alright, alright, just get off me.”

‘Now he wouldn’t be able to sleep even if he wanted to…’

‘Could this girl have done that on purpose?’

After a quick wash, Cheng Lan pushed open his bedroom door, only to be enveloped by a rich aroma that held him captive for several seconds.

“It smells amazing!”

He couldn’t help but take a deep breath, following the scent—at the kitchen entrance, Qin Jinxuan was busy, clad in a white ruffled apron, a white bow hairband tied atop her head, which swayed gently with her movements.

Today, she wore a light blue sailor uniform, its pure white sailor collar softly draped over her shoulders, and her white pleated skirt bounced lightly as she moved, revealing the ‘absolute territory’ (TL Note: A Japanese slang term referring to the exposed skin between a mini skirt and thigh-high socks, often considered alluring in anime/manga) of a young woman.

Noticing footsteps behind her, Qin Jinxuan quickly turned, and upon seeing Cheng Lan, a captivating smile bloomed on her face, like the warmth of spring sunlight: “Good morning~ I hope I didn’t wake you?”

“Thanks to you, I was planning to sleep in, but now I’m wide awake,” Cheng Lan remarked, walking over to her, pouring a glass of water from the nearby kettle, and gulping it down.

“Oh… I’m sorry,” Qin Jinxuan stammered, her ears flushing slightly, her movements slowing by half a beat.

“Given how delicious your breakfast smells, I’ll forgive you,” Cheng Lan said, waving a dismissive hand.

“Thank you~” Qin Jinxuan’s eyes brightened as she quickly added, “Why don’t you wait for me in the dining room? Breakfast will be ready in a flash!”

Soon, she meticulously placed the prepared breakfast dishes onto the dining table.

Freshly cooked pan-fried dumplings, golden and crispy, sat beside an enticing, aromatic omelet.

Lidoa also arrived in the dining room at this point, pulling out a chair and sitting down obediently.

Gazing at the delicious food on the table, she couldn’t help but exclaim, “Sister Jinxuan, your breakfast smells wonderful!”

“Thank you~” Qin Jinxuan responded with a smile, her gaze flitting between Cheng Lan and Lidoa.

“Quickly, try it and tell me how it tastes!”

Cheng Lan, however, didn’t immediately reach for his chopsticks, instead turning his head to look at Lidoa.

“I would never add anything strange to the food!!!” Qin Jinxuan declared, her face flushing crimson at Cheng Lan’s reaction.

Then, as if in a huff, she picked up a pan-fried dumpling, blew on it gently a few times, put it in her mouth, chewed vigorously, and swallowed.

“See?! Nothing happened at all!”

Cheng Lan remained unmoved, only putting a pan-fried dumpling into his mouth after Lidoa confirmed that there were no issues.

The first sensation was the golden, crispy exterior, and the moment he bit into it, the savory juices flooded his mouth like a torrent.

Following that was the plump, tender meat filling, leaving a rich aroma between his lips and teeth.

“Holy hell!” he exclaimed.

“What’s wrong?” Qin Jinxuan immediately tensed.

“Nothing, it’s just too delicious,” Cheng Lan mumbled, simultaneously snatching several more dumplings and stuffing them into his mouth, his eating speed noticeably picking up.

Witnessing his ravenous reaction, Qin Jinxuan’s anxious heart finally settled, and she quietly let out a long breath, a smile unconsciously curving her lips upward.