The Morning Skirmish

The first ray of dawn pierced the dark horizon. The wind howled against the villa’s windows, a mournful wail. The villa district, far from the city’s clamor, welcomed morning.

Lying on Qin Haiyue’s luxurious bed, Ye Xingmian quietly opened her eyes.

She felt terrible.

The person behind her held her like an octopus. Qin Haiyue was a full 1.8 meters tall and weighed much more than Ye Xingmian, who had long suffered from malnutrition. Under such a disparity, being pinned down all night had left her sore and uncomfortable.

She tried to move slightly, attempting to break free from Qin Haiyue’s embrace.

But her movements only woke the other girl. The person behind stirred, and then a voice thick with sleep sounded by her ear.

“Awake?”

Qin Haiyue’s sleeping posture was far from graceful. Her hair was a mess, and her face lacked its usual refinement and coldness. It made her seem almost human.

Ye Xingmian didn’t move. She gritted her teeth and glanced at the bright sky outside the window.

“Let me go… I… we should go to school.”

Qin Haiyue ignored her words. Instead, like a big golden retriever, she hugged even tighter, pressing against Ye Xingmian’s chest until she could hardly breathe.

“Don’t move. Let me hold you a while longer.”

Ye Xingmian’s face immediately fell. She wanted to struggle but now dared not move.

She was afraid of angering Qin Haiyue and getting kicked off the bed.

The villa’s heater had been on all night, but Ye Xingmian didn’t care about the electricity bill. At least it was warm—unlike the cold she felt at the Lin house. Qin Haiyue held her for a while longer before finally letting go.

Ye Xingmian got out of bed.

She was wearing the pajamas Qin Haiyue had given her yesterday. At least she hadn’t been forced to sleep naked. On the chair by the bed, she found the clothes she had changed out of last night. She was about to put them on when something occurred to her, and she froze.

“Um…” She turned to Qin Haiyue, who was changing clothes as if nothing were amiss. Her face showed hesitation.

“What should I wear? I can’t exactly go to school in a skirt, can I?”

“Whatever.”

This girl!

Her hidden hand clenched into a fist. She continued, neither servile nor overbearing, “Do you have any other clothes? Like thicker pants or something…”

“Of course I do.”

Qin Haiyue sat on the edge of the bed. After a day and night together, she felt the girl’s wariness toward her had lessened—a good sign. After a moment’s thought, she smiled wickedly.

“Want them? Call me ‘hubby’ and I’ll give them to you.”

“You!”

Ye Xingmian’s eyes widened. She never expected Qin Haiyue to be so shameless. Was this something to joke about?!

“So? Think about it. On one hand, you go to school in girl’s clothes and die of embarrassment. On the other, you just call me ‘hubby’ and avoid that. Which is better?”

Ye Xingmian fell silent.

She said nothing and walked straight out of the room.

“Where are you going?”

“To dig my clothes out of the trash.”

Qin Haiyue was stunned. She hadn’t expected such resolve. Was the girl that厌恶 her?

Naturally, Qin Haiyue, lacking patience, had no self-awareness. After a moment, she relented, irritation creeping into her voice.

“Don’t go! I’ll find you some, okay?”

Ye Xingmian stopped and looked back at her uncertainly.

“Tch.”

Qin Haiyue immediately regretted it. She thought she shouldn’t have called her back. Since the girl dared to disobey, why not just strip her and throw her out?

Though she wanted to take it slow, her nature hadn’t changed. Whenever something displeased her, her impatience flared like wildfire, urging her to destroy all the groundwork she had laid.

But she was in a good mood now, not enough to act on that thought. She stared coldly at the girl until Ye Xingmian subconsciously lowered her head, as if blaming herself for doing something wrong. Then she coldly looked away.

“Stand there. I’ll get you clothes.”

She walked to a corner of the wardrobe. She had specifically bought clothes for the girl yesterday, not just skirts. She had prepared school clothes and some neutral winter wear.

After all, if you’re going to play a role, you have to play it thoroughly. She didn’t want suspicion from others over trivial matters.

“Here, take them.”

She tossed the clothes onto the bed, her face cold again.

“…Thank you.”

Ye Xingmian quietly thanked her and put on the clothes one by one. She finally breathed a sigh of relief. During the process, her hair strands kept falling into her eyes, making her frown.

“Can you take me for a haircut?”

She had thought about it before but gave up due to financial issues. Now that the gullible Qin Haiyue claimed to be her lover, she admitted she might be a bit bold, but with Qin Haiyue’s resources, a haircut shouldn’t be a problem, right?

“Hm? Sure. What hairstyle do you want? I’ll communicate with the stylist in advance.”

“Hairstyle?”

Ye Xingmian asked blankly. Having grown up as an ordinary boy, she rarely paid attention to men’s hairstyles, let alone women’s.

“Yes. You have to have some idea, or how will they cut it?”

“Uh… actually… I just think long hair is too conspicuous… it might raise suspicion… so I want to cut it short…”

“Short? No way!”

“Huh? Why…” The unexpected refusal left Ye Xingmian puzzled. Why was the other girl so strongly opposed to a haircut?

Frowning, Qin Haiyue leaned close, towering over her. In a voice full of pressure, she said, “I said no. If you dare cut your hair short, I’ll break your legs.”

“What?” Ye Xingmian’s pink eyes froze for a moment, then turned fearful. Looking into Qin Haiyue’s oppressive blue eyes, a chill ran down her spine. She truly believed Qin Haiyue would follow through.

“Understand?”

“Y-yes…”

“Mm.”

After the threat, leveraging her height advantage, Qin Haiyue patted Ye Xingmian on the head. In truth, she really liked the girl’s long hair—soft, fluffy, and pleasant to touch. It was also beautiful, which was one reason she forbade cutting it.

“By the way… might these clothes be too eye-catching? Won’t they attract attention?”

“What now?”

“It’s just…” Ye Xingmian looked at her new clothes; they didn’t look cheap. She didn’t understand why Qin Haiyue was willing to spend so much money on her. But instead of feeling happy, she felt afraid. What would the class monitor and her sister think when they saw her?

But Qin Haiyue seemed truly annoyed. She cut off Ye Xingmian’s words.

“I told you to wear them, so wear them. Why so much nonsense? If you keep blabbering, get out and walk to school.”

“O-okay…” Ye Xingmian muttered inwardly. Same old Qin Haiyue, no change at all.