Chapter 33 Entanglement [Changed profile picture?]

"Easy-to-know inkstone?"

Yin Xiao could barely control her voice, her fingers clenching in surprise, the phone pressing so hard that her fingertips turned white.

Yi Zhiyan stopped, slowly raised his head and turned around. His eyes lit up the moment he saw her. The warm yellow light shone on his face, faintly revealing the tips of his reddened ears.

He ran up to her with the sweater in his arms, reached out, grabbed the sleeve, and held it up to her nose.

"Honey, smell this."

The fuzzy threads brushed against the tip of my nose, causing an intermittent itch, while the rich fruity aroma dominated every sense.

Yin Xiao was even more confused. She sniffed and asked, "Huh? What did you spray?"

Yi Zhiyan took out a bottle of light orange fragrance spray and handed it to her. Yin Xiao held it in her palm and gently shook it, then curiously sprayed some on the back of her neck, and the sweet orange scent immediately filled the air.

It really does smell like that, just like the shower gel she likes.

She closed the lid and raised her hand to return it to him, but her wrist was suddenly grabbed, and a weight settled on her shoulder as Yi Zhiyan lowered his head and leaned against the back of her neck.

Warm breath gently caressed her skin, like a thin veil wrapped around her neck, providing a soft, enveloping sensation.

She blinked in confusion, feeling strong arms tightly encircling her waist, like threads binding her more and more tightly.

Soft lips and nose brushed against the back of her ear, their barely audible breaths making her tremble slightly.

Was he smelling her scent?

Realizing this, Yin Xiao's pupils dilated in surprise, and she instinctively raised her hand, pressed it against her chest, and pushed it away forcefully.

"Let's hug for a while, okay?" The slightly hoarse voice spoke clearly.

Yi Zhiyan supported her back with his palms, then slowly pulled her down into his arms, almost completely enveloping her, silently preventing her from escaping.

"I feel terrible, I don't want to drink, it smells awful."

He looked down, and a strand of his hair brushed against her cheek.

"Oranges...smell so good."

—

Yin Xiao was woken up by the heat.

The warm morning light pierced through the thin gauze curtains, making the room bright. Yin Xiao looked down at the forearm wrapped around her waist, and tried to pull away, but couldn't. The next second, her back was pressed even closer, so close that she could almost feel Yi Zhiyan's strong heartbeat.

"Are you sober now?" Yin Xiao pried his fingers apart, squeezed his fingertips hard, and asked irritably.

"Um……"

Having just woken up, Yi Zhiyan's voice was hoarse, and he was still sleepy. He lowered his head and hugged her tightly, his head pressing against her shoulder strap without any restraint.

Yin Xiao raised her hand and gave his head a vicious rub.

"Do you remember what crazy thing you did last night?"

"I remember." Yi Zhiyan's voice was muffled. "Actually, you could have ignored me."

"...Do you know you really look like a kitten when you're like this?" Yin Xiao gently patted the top of his fluffy hair. "I won't abandon a kitten."

"Then will you abandon me?" Yi Zhiyan asked repeatedly.

"I won't abandon you."

Thinking of last night, Yin Xiao wrinkled her nose awkwardly. "You're just particularly sensitive to smells when you're drunk, right? I asked Fang Yiwen last night, and he said to just give you a very fragrant pillow to hug."

Yi Zhiyan replied softly, "This trick used to work, but it might not work now."

"Um?"

"I just want to hold you..."

He wrapped his arms around her waist and slowly stroked upwards, his arms pressing so hard that her bones went numb.

Startled, Yin Xiao immediately dodged away, turned around, and raised her hand to press against his forehead, preventing him from getting closer.

“I have something to do at school today, and I’ve made plans with my roommates. You should…” She grabbed the sweater from the blanket and threw it at his face, “Just make do with your clothes.”

The familiar sweet scent bubbled in the air. Yi Zhiyan smiled helplessly, pulled off her sweater and hugged it to her chest, sat up, looked at Yin Xiao who had rolled out of bed, and slowly began to complain.

"I'm sober now and I don't know what to do. You dumped me way too fast."

"Who told you to hug me so tightly last night? My arms are sore and numb. If you hug me any longer, it will affect my writing of my thesis today." Yin Xiao said, raising her hand and punching her arm hard.

"I was wrong." Yi Zhiyan put on his glasses, got up and followed her to the dressing room, then changed the subject. "I'll take you there later. I'm going to the airport anyway. I'm going to Xiamen to take care of some company business these next few days."

"Is this the project you mentioned before that you were working on with Brother Lu Wen? Why was it brought forward?" Yin Xiao put on a dark brown sweater and closed the wardrobe.

"Hmm." Yi Zhiyan lowered his eyes, his fingers unconsciously tracing the smooth hem of his clothes, carefully concealing the emotions in his eyes, and casually brushed it off, "Just dealing with some small matters."

Yin Xiao didn't ask any more questions. She returned to her bedroom and glanced at the pale yellow sweater on the bed.

Several creases on her sleeve were too conspicuous, so she pursed her lips and raised her chin without ceremony.

"Give me back my sweater."

—

When they arrived at the library, Dai Lan and Zhao Xiaoxun were gesturing to each other. Yin Xiao went over and saw that the Word document was still at the Abstract stage.

"How come I remember you were writing keywords the day before yesterday?" Yin Xiao asked casually, hanging her backpack on the back of the chair.

"Hehe, you're not mistaken, I really can't write anymore, I'm starting to regret choosing this topic..." Dai Lan slumped weakly on the table, repeatedly tapping the space bar.

"Want to go out and find some inspiration?" Zhao Xiaoxun propped her head up with one hand, swiped the screen a couple of times, and held her phone up to them. "Our college is having a team building event, and the class representative from the next class is trying to recruit people. There's a new music bar that just opened across the street at Golden Eagle, wanna go?"

"Going to a bar to find inspiration for your thesis? Are you crazy or am I?" Dai Lan glanced at the screen, her eyes widening. "Wait, wait... Zhang Qingyue is going too? She, she was the champion of the last poetry competition, isn't that her? She's a second-year graduate student, right?"

"Don't get agitated..." Yin Xiao said worriedly, steadying the water glass that was about to be overturned. "It's her."

"I need to go! When? Let's go!"

Zhao Xiaoxun grabbed Dai Lan and said, "Tomorrow, at six o'clock in the evening... you should think about the paper on your own first."

She gently stroked Dai Lan's hair and looked up to ask Yin Xiao, "Xiao Xiao, are you coming? Should we tell Sister Yin Yi? After all, your family seemed very anxious when we went to karaoke last time."

"It's okay, as long as I don't drink, I'll be fine." Yin Xiao pointed to Zhang Qingyue's photo on her phone. "I also want to soak up some of that celestial energy."

After the agreement was made, Zhao Xiaoxun announced the number of participants in the group chat. Yin Xiao habitually clicked on Yi Zhiyan's chat box and briefly explained her plans for the next few days.

Yi Zhiyan seemed very busy and hadn't replied to any messages since boarding the plane. He wouldn't be back in Anlin until the day after tomorrow at the earliest. However, because of his last-minute business trip, his parents, who had originally planned to come to Anlin, didn't come with Yin Yi and said they would wait a few days.

The two elders' intentions in their surprise attack were all too clear, but fortunately, Yin Xiao no longer had to worry about being exposed.

After having dinner at the cafeteria and returning home, before it was completely dark, Yin Xiao drew the curtains in the living room and went to the kitchen to pour water.

She had just returned to the living room with her glass when someone knocked on the door. She frowned, put the glass on the coffee table, and went to open the door.

"You are..." Yin Xiao stared at the man outside the door for a few seconds, then asked uncertainly, "Brother Qi Xu? Yi Zhiyan is away on a business trip, he's not home."

"I know." Qi Xu put his arm behind his back and pulled out the little girl who was eating a lollipop behind him. "Lu Wen is also in Xiamen. Xiao Jiu was making a fuss at home wanting to play with you, so I had no choice but to come over."

He apologized in a low voice, "I'm sorry, I didn't have your contact information, and those two busy people from Qingdao aren't replying to messages, so I could only check if you were home first. Xiao Jiu is really causing a ruckus..."

"It's okay." Yin Xiao squatted down. Xiao Jiu was staring intently at the dragonfly on the window. She waved to Xiao Jiu, "Xiao Jiu, is it cold outside? Come in, okay?"

The little girl turned her head, smiled at her, and threw a lollipop at her.

Half an hour later, the puzzle pieces were scattered on the carpet, and Xiao Jiu, so sleepy, collapsed onto the sofa, leaving the living room in a tense silence.

Yin Xiao picked up her water glass and walked towards the central island counter. Qi Xu unexpectedly spoke in a low voice, "Yin Xiao, do you have time to chat?"

"What?" Yin Xiao asked casually as she washed the water glass, took a tissue to wipe the water stains on the table.

"Yi Zhiyan won't tell you, but I feel it's necessary to tell you." Qi Xu walked to the pool, his tone serious to the point of being somewhat solemn.

Yin Xiao stopped what she was doing and turned to look at him. "What is it?"

“He went to Xiamen this time because Yizhi discovered that we were competing for the project and started to suspect Lu Wen’s company. We were worried that if we investigated further, we would find out Yi Zhiyan’s real plan…” Qi Xu paused and glanced at her.

Yin Xiao smiled politely, "You don't need to tell me such details. I'm not interested in your plans."

“The problem now is that your marriage to Yi Zhiyan was a crucial part of his escape from Yizhi. If someone notices you, then he might…” Qi Xu carefully chose his words, managing to utter a few words, “not be able to care about anything else.”

Yin Xiao brushed her bangs aside, rested one hand on the table, and didn't quite understand his words. "So you're telling me you want to?"

“I suggest you continue to conceal your marital relationship.” His eyes held a hint of pleading. “I can see what your current situation is. The plan targeting Yizhi is no longer his top priority. He’s too easily distracted by you. The plan has reached this point, and there’s no room for even the slightest mistake…”

"Okay." Yin Xiao interrupted him.

"You mean...you agreed?" Qi Xu straightened up in surprise, her mouth agape. "Don't you want to think about it again?"

"Okay, I agree." Yin Xiao flicked her wrist nonchalantly. "It's just continuing to hide it, just like when we signed the agreement before. I don't care."

She quietly lowered her head and absentmindedly wiped the water droplets from between her fingers.

Actually, she feels it's better to maintain the agreement now. She's not fully ready to be honest with those around her, since even her close roommates don't believe her.

For her, there's nothing wrong with a relationship that needs to be carefully protected and hidden.

"But will Yi Zhiyan agree?" Qi Xu was worried. "He asked Lu Wen for the planning company's phone number, planning to confess to you. I heard from Lu Wen that he's doing this because he doesn't want to hide it anymore."

"He still doesn't agree?" Yin Xiao touched the ring and couldn't help but confess, "Isn't it because I want to help him..."

Qi Xu didn't reply, tacitly agreeing with her statement, and left with the unconscious Xiao Jiu in her arms. Yin Xiao returned to her bedroom, took off the ring, and put it back in the drawer.

After wearing the ring for a few days, her classmates and friends all assumed she had bought it and was just wearing it for fun; no one thought it was for marriage.

So keeping it private for now is probably the most appropriate thing to do.

Let's change the profile picture first, and start hiding it from the source.

Yin Xiao opened WeChat, staring hesitantly at Yi Zhiyan's blurry profile picture. She slowly pressed the screen and entered the photo album.

—

As evening approached and the weather turned cool, Yin Xiao put on a long overcoat and went to the Golden Eagle for her appointment.

The new store opening was packed with people. The promotional discounts were huge, the equipment was novel, and they even had a band performing, creating an electrifying atmosphere.

Dai Lan, holding her laptop, squeezed into a corner of the booth, chatting with a girl with bangs, seemingly on a different wavelength from the students dancing around her.

Yin Xiao ordered a non-alcoholic cocktail at the bar, squeezed through the dance floor, walked to Dai Lan's side, and greeted the girl with bangs.

"Hello, Senior Zhang, I'm Yin Xiao, also from the School of Literature."

“Senior, this is my roommate. She got into our university for graduate school.” Dai Lan grabbed her and excitedly waved as she introduced her.

Zhang Qingyue raised her hand to shield her eyes from the glaring light above her head, looked up at Yin Xiao, and suddenly grinned, "Oh, I remember you. You got first place in the re-examination, didn't you? Have you decided on your future mentor?"

Yin Xiao was somewhat surprised when Dai Lan pulled her onto the sofa. She and Zhang Qingyue had only met in the waiting area on the day of the re-examination; she hadn't expected her senior to remember her.

"Do you know Professor Li Li? She's a very nice person, and her research focuses on ancient literature." Zhang Qingyue grabbed her wrist, her eyes crinkling with laughter. "Would you like to be my junior sister?"

"Ah..." The drumbeats made Yin Xiao's head buzz, and she nodded vigorously after a half-beat. "That's great. I took Professor Li's class on the aesthetics of the Book of Songs. The angle of his explanation was very interesting."

Zhang Qingyue raised her glass and clinked it against hers. "I'll be waiting for you, junior sister."

Dai Lan looked left and right, then suddenly hugged her laptop and whispered in Yin Xiao's ear, "Xiao Xiao, since we're already chatting like this, hurry up and add me on WeChat, I can get one too..."

Yin Xiao quickly put down her wine glass, took her phone out of her pocket, and before she could unlock it, several new messages popped up on the screen.

[Honey, I've got everything sorted out at work. I'm coming home today.]

[Did you change your profile picture?]

Why did you suddenly change your profile picture?

[Lost in a game again?]

[Whose profile picture is this?]

[Did you take this photo too?]

[Honey, please pay attention to me.]

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Author's Note: Almost finished! The main story will be completed next week! [cheering emojis] Thank you to all my darlings for your love and comments!!!