Rinka clutched her chest and ran home to put on a bra—well somehow thankfully, she actually had one.

Even with a bra, though, there wasn’t much to see up front. Slightly better than Haitang or Zhao Zhao, maybe, but barely. Probably around half a Tangerine, if we’re comparing.

“So, where are we going today?”

Although Rinka had promised a surprise, I couldn’t help asking while we were on the subway.

“You’ll see. It’s a nice place. Just get off with me at Pingcheng New Street Station and follow my lead.”

“Wait—are we going to see Old Yan?”

Yan Liuzhuan lived nearby in one of the high-rise apartments.

“Nope, nope. Today is our date. No need to call Liuliu along.”

The way she said that gave me a strange, almost guilty pleasure… Was I the homewrecker now?

“We’re going somewhere that’s really special to me,” she added with a mysterious smile.

That only made me more curious.

“Now arriving at Pingcheng New Street Station…”

With the station announcement ringing out, Rinka grabbed my hand and pulled me off the train. Hand in hand, we really did look like a couple. Her hands, now transformed, were soft and plush—pleasant to the touch. I gave it a few extra squeezes, and she blushed, yanking her hand back.

“Kai-chan, that counts as sexual harassment!”

It was my second time here, but stepping onto the ancient-looking cobblestone path of Pingcheng New Street, I still felt a sense of wonder at its mix of modern and old-fashioned charm.

Maybe it was the transformation, or maybe just her mood, but Rinka was unusually cheerful—skipping along the cobbled street like she was playing hopscotch, twirling now and then, urging me to keep up. Her pale pink skirt flared like a blooming flower.

The street was lovely, yes—but it didn’t change the fact that today’s weather was absolute hell.

The stone slabs on the road shimmered from the heat, hot enough to cook an egg. The traffic cones at the entrance of the pedestrian zone had been softened and slumped over in despair, scorched by the blazing sun.

Naturally, there weren’t many people outside. Most had taken refuge in the shops lining the street.

Just standing still in long pants was exhausting. And yet Rinka still wanted me to walk faster? Wearing a skirt really was the way to go. Her white legs were flying with every step—it sure looked breezy for her.

The shops had their air conditioners on full blast. Just passing by their entrances was tempting enough to make my feet involuntarily turn toward them. But Rinka ignored all that temptation, laser-focused on her destination like a pilgrim on a sacred journey.

“Hey, Rinka, when we pass the bookstore, let’s stop in and see Senior Li Jianlian.”

Of course, he wasn’t there—he was still working at Aqua World. But Rinka doesn’t know that. I just needed an excuse to soak up some cool air.

She hesitated, then nodded. “Sure, it’s on the way anyways.”

The bookstore’s AC was heavenly. Rinka glanced at the counter, where a chubby middle-aged woman sat, and sighed in disappointment.

“Looks like he’s not here today. Guess we’ll keep going.”

She turned to leave.

“Are you seriously able to walk away after feeling this cooling air? Is your will made of iron?!”

There was no way I was letting this moment of salvation go. I stepped deeper into the store.

“Kai-chan! Stop being difficult!”

She grabbed my collar to drag me out, but being in her girl form, she didn’t have enough strength to move me. We ended up stuck in a tug-of-war at the entrance.

The woman at the counter probably thought we were a squabbling couple. She watched us with the warm, knowing smile of an older generation… Uh, shouldn’t store staff stop public domestic scenes like this?

During the struggle, Rinka’s foot triggered the automatic door. A wave of heat rolled in like a living thing and slapped against my back. That sealed it—I wasn’t leaving. I’d become an unmoving Shiba Inu, dead set on staying¹.

This AC was life itself. Let no man tear us apart. No one!

“Kai! If you keep this up, I’m gonna get mad!”

I turned and saw Rinka’s pouty little face scrunched in frustration. Her grip tightened.

“Just five more minutes! Please let me stay five more minutes!”

To the right of the register was a cozy reading nook divided by a half wall. A few linen-covered armchairs stood in the corner, where customers could read their newly bought books and bask in the AC. The perfect hideaway.

But then, in my peripheral vision, I froze.

There, sitting in one of the chairs, head bowed over a book, was a girl with long, inky-black hair that shimmered like a star-streaked galaxy. Her hair was so thick it draped around her like a shawl, flowing over the back of the chair like a sleek silk blanket.

She looked up. For a split second, surprise flickered across her otherwise icy expression—but she quickly dropped her gaze and pretended nothing had happened.

It was Old Feng.

I’d only seen her once before—in a blurry video shot by Xiao Lei—but that signature long, impossibly black hair was unforgettable.

After being missing for more than half a month, here she was—in a bookstore. Despite everything, I felt a strange sense of joy, like I’d just recovered something precious.

“She’s got such beautiful hair… and, wow, her chest is huge too.”

Maybe because I’d stopped resisting, Rinka followed my gaze and saw Old Feng too. She gave her own chest a quick pat, sighed in defeat, and started poking me in the forehead.

“Hey... Kai-chan. We’re on a date, and you’re ogling some other girl. What’s that about?”

Okay, sure, technically it was a date—but not that kind of date. Still, this wasn’t the time to get into that. I couldn’t let this chance slip by. I had to get Old Feng’s contact info. It was now or never.

I pressed my hands together in apology. “Sorry, Rinka. I need to go talk to that girl.”

“What?! You’re seriously going to hit on someone in front of me?!”

The clerk lady’s gaze sharpened like a laser. She now saw me as human garbage.

Even under that judgmental glare, I walked into the reading corner, determined and unashamed.

As I got closer, I saw the book in Old Feng’s hands—it was supplementary study material for the third year of high school. I couldn’t help wondering… Without an ID, as a person off the grid, where was she living now? Who was taking care of her?

From her clothes, it looked like she was doing okay. She wore a clean, black dress, and even had jewelry. A simple pearl necklace around her neck and a matching bracelet on her wrist. Against her black hair and black dress, the pearls glowed with a soft, luminous sheen.

She noticed my approach and looked up, emotionless.

Coming up with a pickup line was hard. I took the plunge.

“Hi there, beautiful lady. Have we met before?”

...

Aaaand I instantly wanted to punch myself.

What kind of low-tier opener was that, Chang Kai?! You absolute normie failure!

But thankfully, even as a young woman, Old Feng still had the soul of a “grumpy uncle near forty.” She didn’t recoil—she just stared at me, then coolly said:

“Don’t think so.”

End of conversation.

No matter what her body looked like, her economy with words hadn’t changed.

From her momentary surprise earlier, I knew she recognized me. But she didn’t acknowledge it.

I got it. To her, I was just a regular customer—not someone she could trust with her secrets.

I adjusted my glasses and went in for Round Two.

“Maybe we haven’t met… but the moment I saw you, I felt like we had. It must be fate—”

“It’s your imagination.”

End of conversation.

Yep, this was hopeless. I sucked at pickup lines, but Old Feng… she had the rare talent of being able to kill a conversation in seconds.

“Then aren’t we getting acquainted now? I’m Chang Kai, by the way. May I ask your name?”

She rolled her eyes and went back to reading. Clearly not interested in chatting.

But I wasn’t giving up. I waited. Eventually, when she saw I wasn’t going away, her brows tensed slightly—not a frown, but definitely annoyed.

She muttered coldly, “Huangfu Fei.”

Not Feng anymore? Wait—Huangfu?

That surname... why does it sound so familiar?