The Bai sisters were scooped up and taken home separately by Gu Qianran and Ji Tang. With exams over, Bai Zilu completely let herself go, toting a bag of snacks to the apartment next door every day to harass her miserable little sister who was about to enter senior year, calling it a neighborly visit when it was really just showing off.
Bai Ziyuan was so mad she wanted to smash her unlucky sister with her Constitution textbook. Damn it, once she survived the college entrance exam, she would be a hero too.
Ji Tang looked helplessly at her own gremlin and felt exhausted. "Bai Zilu, if you have the time to bully your sister, you might as well think seriously about which university you want."
Bai Zilu frowned. Something was off. Why was Ji Tang sounding more and more like her mom?
Was Madam Qin Qiufan poisonous or what? Why did she have to corrupt her innocent wife?
Bai Zilu would never bow to evil.
Ji Tang could tell Bai Zilu was tuning her out. Ji Tang leaned close to Bai Zilu's ear and murmured, voice wickedly soft, "Be good. Listen. Even after the exam you still have to study properly. If you run off to bully your sister again…" Ji Tang paused for effect. "Then I can only bully your sister tonight." The wonders of the Chinese language. This "sister" was not that "sister."
Bai Zilu: what?! What?!
Her knees went weak.
—
Bai Ziyuan closed her book and leaned against Gu Qianran with a little hum. For some reason she suddenly felt in an especially good mood. Gu Qianran lowered her eyes with a quiet smile. "What is it, little cutie? Is the recitation not sticking?"
Bai Ziyuan shook her head and burrowed into Gu Qianran's arms. She just wanted to act spoiled for a moment and admire how Gu Qianran looked when she worried over her.
She thought that her Qianran was wonderful. The best thing she had ever done in this life was falling for Gu Qianran.
Gu Qianran half closed her eyes and lazily stroked Bai Ziyuan's hair, thinking the very same thing.
Bai Ziyuan breathed in Gu Qianran's scent and let her humanities-wrecked brain unwind. Feeling the rhythm of Gu Qianran's hand, she suddenly felt like a pampered house cat being fed and raised by Gu Qianran.
Then the great Cat-Butler tugged a little too hard and came away with a small clump of the cat's hair.
Bai Ziyuan: excuse me?
Disbelieving, Bai Ziyuan gave Gu Qianran's hair a little tug too. Nothing happened.
Gu Qianran stifled a laugh and patted Bai Ziyuan's head. "Little cutie, blame the fact you chose the new humanities track."
Bai Ziyuan: why.
—
In the end, to make up for the hair casualty, Gu Qianran agreed to go shopping with Bai Ziyuan. In Bai Ziyuan's words, she needed to convert grief and anger into shopping desire and give the fallen strands a dignified farewell. Saying so, she tugged along the very reluctant Gu Qianran, eyes shining at the storefronts.
Even in her previous life, Gu Qianran could not understand the ironclad devotion some girls felt for shopping. She had once tried to present Bai Ziyuan with a thorough analysis of how painful shopping was, only to receive a look that clearly said, "Are you rebar?"
Gu the Rebar: so you dare glare at me over this, little cutie?
Still, Gu Qianran was curious what magic shopping might hold.
After much inner debate, Gu Qianran finally surrendered to Bai Ziyuan's pestering and went to the commercial district for field research.
Clothing boutique. Bai Ziyuan held up three nearly identical shirts. "Qianran Qianran, help me choose which one looks best."
Gu Qianran: they look the same.
To avoid dying on this question, Gu Qianran leaned to her ear and whispered, "My Ayuan looks good in anything." The spur-of-the-moment pet name made Bai Ziyuan's heart thud and her eyes go tender with a hint of scold. Thinking the tactic had failed, Gu Qianran added dryly, "But…"
She was too close. In public, even her voice seemed to carry a current that made Bai Ziyuan's skin tingle. However, not wearing anything would…
Bai Ziyuan: stop. She already knew what Gu Qianran was about to say.
She shot Gu Qianran another glare and turned away, cheeks red. "Qianran, stop being a rogue."
Gu Qianran: shopping is cursed.
—
After an entire morning of roaming, even Gu Qianran was a little winded, while Bai Ziyuan was still bouncing. Gu Qianran glanced toward the sun outside and smiled faintly. Let us see how long you can keep that energy.
If they kept going, they would have to walk under the sun. She still remembered how last year Bai Ziyuan got heatstroke just buying something outdoors.
One hour later.
Gu Qianran, draped with shopping bags like a pack mule, stared lifelessly at the light-of-foot Bai Ziyuan and raged inwardly. What happened to being fragile? What happened to heatstroke? Did you eat your heatstroke debuff? Or is shopping a panacea?
Medical miracle.
Catching Gu Qianran's look, Bai Ziyuan remembered she had been paying with Gu Qianran's card the whole time.
She gave a sheepish smile. "Um… Qianran, how about we grab something to eat?"
Gu Qianran, patron saint of wallets, chose silence.