Mwah, pinch!

When she woke up in the morning, Ye Mian instinctively propped herself up on the bed and sat up. Her hands sank into the soft quilt, the texture completely different from her usual cotton-linen bedding set.

The room, however, was empty and silent, save for the sound of her own breathing.

With her eyes half-closed in sleep and her mind not yet fully awake, she looked around in a daze for a long while before realizing this was Jiang Chen’s home.

Yet Jiang Chen was nowhere to be seen.

Ye Mian immediately got out of bed and slipped her feet into a pair of soft, perfectly fitting slippers, only to discover that the black cotton slippers she had worn yesterday had been replaced.

A pair of pale yellow, candy-colored cotton slippers were neatly placed on the floor, in the exact size she usually wore.

She called out twice, "Jiang Chen."

There was no answer in the vast villa.

Ye Mian checked her phone; it was already eleven in the morning.

No wonder he wasn't around.

Jiang Chen was so busy every day; he must have gone out by now.

At this thought, Ye Mian relaxed a bit. Opening WeChat, she saw a message from Jiang Chen.

[Jiang Chen: Rest well. I'll be back tonight.]

Was he telling her to wait for him?

Ye Mian blinked. She didn't have anything else to do today anyway; school hadn't started yet, and she had plenty of free time.

She hadn't washed up last night, and Jiang Chen had kept the heating on very strong.

Waking up, she felt sticky all over.

Walking into the bathroom, Ye Mian was startled to find that it wasn't just the slippers that had been replaced.

A new toothbrush and cup had been placed on the bathroom counter, along with a completely unopened tube of toothpaste. Next to them were two neatly boxed towels, accompanied by full sets of body wash and shampoo.

Although they had only lived together for a month, he seemed extraordinarily attuned to her habits.

Ye Mian looked at her reflection in the mirror, and the smile on her face refused to fade.

By noon, Ye Mian was sitting cross-legged on the sofa doing stretches, her eyes glued to her phone as she chatted with Jiang Yuan.

In the meantime, Lin Shan stopped by to drop off a dress, as well as the password for the fingerprint and digital locks, telling her she could go out for a stroll if she got bored.

Finding herself truly bored, she got up and headed to the studio.

Everyone at the studio was busy these days.

Zhou Yan, despite being a top-tier live streamer, made a rare appearance at the studio.

Seeing Ye Mian arrive, Zhou Yan wore a hesitant and evasive look.

Ye Mian could tell at a single glance that she had something to say, but felt uncomfortable discussing it over the phone.

So, she walked decisively over to Zhou Yan's desk, tapped on it, and said, "Come inside with me."

Ye Mian was an owner, after all, and had her own office at the studio, albeit a small one.

Sitting in her office chair, Ye Mian poured two glasses of water—one for herself and one for Zhou Yan—before looking at her and asking gently, "Have a seat. Tell me, what's going on?"

She was usually very serious when working, and it was precisely this seriousness that made most people forget her young age.

Zhou Yan was no exception.

Looking at her boss, who was of a similar age to herself, Zhou Yan sat down and took two deep breaths, ultimately lacking the courage to speak the whole truth.

"Boss, I want to resign."

Ye Mian was not entirely surprised.

Zhou Yan had co-founded the studio with her, and now she had truly made it big, becoming a top-tier live streamer with millions of followers.

Once a person gained value, their choices multiplied.

Ye Mian neither urged her to stay nor told her to leave.

She simply asked what Zhou Yan planned to do after resigning.

"I... am getting married. My husband-to-be doesn't want me to continue in this industry, and he will pay the breach-of-contract penalty for me."

As soon as Zhou Yan finished speaking, Ye Mian looked at her in surprise.

To be honest, she had considered the possibility that Zhou Yan might go solo, or sign with another agency, but she truly never expected her to choose to get married right at the peak of her career.

Recently, the operations team had mentioned to her that Zhou Yan seemed very close to her top donor. If this fiancé happened to be that top donor...

To be frank, live streamers who got together with their top donors rarely lasted long.

She and the operations team had long since briefed all the streamers on the consequences of doing so, making sure to explain things clearly.

She had even emphasized this point multiple times during meetings: never meet fans offline.

Therefore, Ye Mian’s expression turned somewhat more serious. "Have you thought this through?"

Zhou Yan nodded with a blushing face, looking entirely resolute.

"Alright, then go handle the handover with the operations team."

Ye Mian said nothing more, for there was truly nothing left to say.

Everything she needed to say had already been made clear to Zhou Yan by operations.

Choices belonged to the individual.

Except...

Ye Mian added, "However, I will need to take back your current account."

An account with that many followers was also the result of the company pouring money into its operation.

Zhou Yan's face paled slightly; clearly, she was reluctant, but since this clause was written into her contract, she had no grounds for refusal.

...

After dealing with Zhou Yan's matters, Ye Mian consulted with the operations team, deciding that once Zhou Yan completed her handover, they would select a streamer with a similar style to take over the account.

Zhou Yan's departure was undoubtedly a loss.

However, she now possessed the capability to bear such risks.

This incident did not dampen Ye Mian's good mood.

When she first founded the studio, it was merely to test the waters, and now that it had spawned so many internet influencers, she was already quite satisfied.

Having caught this favorable trend, the money she had earned was more than enough to support her in pursuing even greater endeavors.

...

The winter of that year dragged on with unusual slowness.

As soon as Ye Mian returned to Half-Mountain Island, she saw a car parked in front of the door. The house had no lights on, casting a dim shadow over the scene.

Walking up to the car, Ye Mian saw Jiang Chen sitting inside.

Noticing her return, Jiang Chen unbuckled, pushed open the driver's side door, and said gently, "Let's go, we're going to get dinner."

His movements were entirely natural.

Ye Mian stood dumbfounded.

After climbing into the driver's seat, it dawned on her to retort, "Do you take me for your chauffeur? I'm applying for a salary."

Jiang Chen chuckled softly. "Alright, how much do you want?"

Ye Mian replied, "One thousand eight hundred. It's an auspicious number."

Jiang Chen raised his eyes to look at her. "Did you acquire your studio through armed robbery, or what?"

Ye Mian answered, "Of course not. It's just rare to run into someone as rich as you."

...

After dinner, Ye Mian still wanted to drive Jiang Chen back to Half-Mountain Island, but the moment they stepped outside, Lin Shan was already waiting by the door.

Thinking of the driving experience of Jiang Chen's car, Ye Mian clicked her tongue, feeling a tinge of regret.

Her expression was caught by Jiang Chen, who smiled and ruffled her hair. "Go on, you drive."

Delighted, Ye Mian immediately took the wheel, driving all the way down to the entrance of her own residential building.

When Jiang Chen dropped her off at her doorstep, she waved to him and said, "You should head back now."

Hearing this, Jiang Chen turned to leave.

Just like that? So straightforward?

Ye Mian frowned slightly, reached out, and grabbed his hand. "Did you forget something?"

Jiang Chen looked back at her in puzzlement.

Ye Mian looped her arms around his shoulders, tilted her head up, and said, "A kiss."

Jiang Chen was momentarily stunned. He leaned down so that his gaze met hers, his eyes reflecting only her figure, and pressed a light kiss to her cheek.

Reaching up to touch his face, Ye Mian pecked him on the lips, and then laughed softly in his ear, "There. Now you can go back."

...

In the end, when Jiang Chen left, his footsteps were slightly unsteady.

Sitting in the car, he gazed out at the boundless moonlight outside the window, counting down the days until they would meet again.

The image of the blushing girl closing her door lingered vividly in his mind.

Today was a bit ordinary, but tomorrow will be wonderful.

(End of this chapter)