“What are you two young ladies staring at?”

That sudden voice scared the life out of me. I turned around cautiously… and found myself looking at a giant face of Lei Meow Meow.

It was Lu Le. The grinning Lei Meow Meow that was printed across his T-shirt was impossible to miss. Because he was wearing a mask, he didn’t recognize me right away—but he definitely recognized Xiao Lei.

“Miss Divine Emissary, what a pleasant surprise. It’s been a while.”

He looked at me next, nodded politely.

“You’re the young lady from the boutique, aren’t you? Fancy running into you again.”

I was still wearing the same mask he once complimented—said it looked good on me, even.

Xiao Lei, still on high alert, leaned in and whispered, “Who’s this guy?”

Excuse me? You’re seriously asking me that now? Do I look like I’m in any position to explain?

It’s only been, what, a month since you got yourself kidnapped by Lei Meow Meow’s crew for stalking Lu Le? And you’ve already forgotten the guy’s trademark pompadour and his constant mask? What are you, a goldfish?

Meanwhile, neither senior Changpu nor Sis Qiuluo had any idea they were being followed. Honestly, we might need Lu Le’s help here, so there wasn’t much time for backstory.

I just ripped off my mask, took off my hairclip, and let my bangs fall forward—basically the same look I had back when we met at Lose Moonlit.

“Huh? You’re… Miss Lingmeng?”

His eyes widened in surprise, and the whites of his eyes—already intense—expanded even more, zeroing in straight on my chest.

He blurted out, “Did you get breast enlargement surgery recently or something?”

Excuse me?? Who just comes out and asks something like that? What kind of person asks such private questions about a girl?!

“They’re real! Okay, maybe it’s complicated, but they’re real! No implants!”

I got kind of defensive. As annoying as these things are, I don’t want people thinking they’re fake!

“I mean, back then…”

He clearly had follow-up questions. So Lei Meow Meow never told him about me, huh?

“Long story. No time. Actually, you showed up at the perfect moment—we need your help.”

“What kind of help?”

I peeked out from behind the vending machine and pointed towards senior. “See that girl with the black-and-white striped hair?”

Lu Le nodded.

“They’re being followed.”

“Aren't you two the ones following them?”

Excuse me? What kind of logic is that? This isn’t stalking—it’s protective surveillance!

“No, we’re shadowing them, but someone else is too. See those two guys in floral shirts and sunglasses?”

By now, the “sisters” were close enough to us that the two following behind them were still visible, tailing them at a distance. One of them even started munching on stir-fried noodles from a takeaway box. Honestly, it made me a little hungry.

I explained, “The girls’ café got harassed this afternoon—some gang punks tried to shake them down. They got taken care of and handed over to the cops, but I’m worried their buddies might be looking for payback.”

“Makes sense. The underground shops here in Tianping aren’t exactly strangers to gang activity. Those gutter rats get detained all the time, but they’re repeat offenders. A few days inside and they’re back out like nothing happened.”

Lu Le gave his take like the seasoned ex-gangster spy he was.

“If it’s revenge, they won’t make a move in a crowded main corridor like this. They’ll wait until it gets quiet—some alley or side road. Best thing to do is keep the girls on the main route, then grab a cab from the pedestrian area entrance and go straight home.”

“That won’t work… They can’t go home.”

It was a good plan, sure—if we could actually do it. Unless we come clean with Qiuluo, Senior can’t exactly “go home.” Technically, she doesn’t have one.

Speaking of which, I got a new message from senior. She and her “sister” had just passed by us without realizing.

[Junior, did you not see my message?! HELP ME!]

She’s texting while walking—what if her sister sees her phone? Isn’t that risky?

I texted back:

[What do you want me to do?]

[I’ll lead my sister toward the riverside road. Meet me at Mifeng Street. Let me crash at your place for a bit!]

That… won’t work either.

I’d have to rush back home, get Xiao Lei to wheel my main body out, then wait at Mifeng Street to pick her up. There’s no time for that. And the riverside road is risky at night—hardly anyone’s around. The perfect spot for those punks to make a move.

We eventually decided to just intercept them right here.

“Brother Lu, can you come with us? Maybe having more people around will spook those tailing them.”

“Sure thing.” He tugged on the hem of his Lei Meow Meow shirt. “Big Sis wouldn’t be where she is today if not for you two.”

“…You don’t feel even a little embarrassed wearing that shirt?”

He looked genuinely puzzled. “Embarrassed? Why? I’m proud of Big Sis.”

“Mhm! Meow Meow-chan is the best! I want a shirt like that too!”

“You’ve got good taste, Miss Divine Emissary. This was a special order from the official Lei Meow Meow Fan Club. Join up and you’ll get one for free.”

“Sign me up!”

“As Fan Club President, I hereby approve your membership.”

Wait, he’s even the president?

“Ahem!” I cleared my throat loudly. “Can we maybe focus?”

Just then, the two stalkers walked past us. One of them was now eating a crepe instead of noodles. Honestly, their casual-food-disguised surveillance was top-tier. If Xiao Lei hadn’t spotted them, I’d have mistaken them for tourists.

“Senior!” Xiao Lei waved and ran over, suddenly throwing her arms around her. That full-body hug turned her completely red in the face.

“Ah—Di—” She caught herself. “Xiao Lei?”

Lu Le and I followed close behind. One of the stalkers caught my eye and immediately looked away, something off in his expression.

“I’m Chang Lingmeng, Xiao Lei’s friend,” I said, stepping forward. “Just call me Lingmeng.”

“Huh?”

Senior had seen me without glasses before, but now her gaze dropped to my chest in surprise. She recovered quickly and introduced herself: “Ah, I’m Li Changpu. This is Li Qiuluo.”

Lu Le asked innocently, “Same surname? Are you sisters?”

Senior waved it off fast. “N-No, not at all.”

Qiuluo, on the other hand, looked delighted. Her lips curled into a smirk as she teased, “Does it matter, little Changpu? Sooner or later, we’ll be sisters anyway, right?”

She still thinks senior Changpu is dating her brother… Honestly, telling her the truth now would feel cruel. That her “future sister-in-law” doesn’t exist, that’s just her transformed brother in a maid uniform.

“This is Lu Le.”

Qiuluo gave him a once-over, then commented, “…Nice hair.”

“We were just heading upstairs for some shopping,” Xiao Lei said, throwing a meaningful glance at senior. “Wanna come with us?”

Senior hadn’t even answered before Qiuluo stepped in: “No can do. I promised the owner I’d see her home. It’s my job.”

“Oh come on, we’ve got enough people here to keep her safe. You can head back, Sis Qiuluo.”

“No way. If I don’t get her home, the owner might dock my pay.”

Like sister, like brother. That obsession with money runs deep… actually, it kinda reminds me of myself.

“Excuse me, ladies!”

The two floral-shirt stalkers suddenly approached us. Their tone didn’t sound very gang-like at all.

Weirdly, the one who’d been eating all this time turned out to be a girl—she was now gnawing on a soy-braised chicken wing.

The short-haired guy pulled out a handful of business cards and handed them to us.

“I’m Lin Ziye. This is Sharo... Hey, stop eating for a sec, would you? You’re representing our image here.”

Sharo gave him a massive eye roll and kept chomping her chicken wing.

Something about Lin Ziye gave me the same vibe as Wu Qinglan—flirty, flashy, clearly used to being the center of attention. Though to be fair, Qinglan’s already proven that deep down, she’s a quirky rich girl in denial.

I looked down at the card and raised an eyebrow. Definitely not street thugs—but also not here for anything good.

“Peach Cat Maid Café… manager?”

Lu Le added, “Oh yeah, I know that place. Just opened on the fifth floor, right? Took over a whole skybridge section. Still under construction the last time I checked.”

“Skybridge?” I blinked. “What do you mean?”

“They’ve got storefronts in two separate buildings and connected them using the overhead walkway. Now it’s an open-air café straddling both sides.”

Skybridges are kind of a signature thing around here in Tianping Commercial District, but hardly any place gets to claim one for themselves. This guy’s gotta have deep pockets.

“Exactly,” Lin Ziye said proudly. “I want to build the best maid café in the city. And the heart of a great café is its maids—which is why I’m scouting only the best.”

He turned to senior, eyes full of sparkles.

“I’d love for Miss Saki to join our café. Salary and terms are all negotiable.”

Knew it. He’s here to poach her.

“Huh? Me? Not… Xiao Jiu?” Senpai looked completely caught off-guard.

“No, no—you. Miss Saki. You have the potential to be… the Queen of Maids!”

What does that even mean?!

“I’m sorry, but I can’t accept your offer.”

And just like that, senior turned him down flat.