After the Divorce, I Ended Up with My Ex-Husband’s "White Moonlight" [Transmigration] - Chapter 38

Two weeks ago? She and Qin Shi had only just officially defined their relationship today! Unless she had the power of prophecy, how could she have been following Huo Yan specifically because he was Qin Shi’s cousin back then?

Did I just dig a giant pit for myself? She shouldn’t have admitted so readily that she bought it. But then again, if it was in her room, it was technically hers.

Ning Qi flipped the magazine over and over, then looked at Qin Shi with total sincerity. “If I told you that I didn’t even know this book existed until now, would you believe me?”

Qin Shi remained silent, her gaze speaking volumes: You admitted it quite happily just a moment ago, didn’t you?

Fine, even I wouldn’t believe me! Ning Qi panicked. Should she confess the truth? But the “truth” involved her knowing things about this world that she shouldn’t. And she really didn’t know about this specific magazine! It was a total setup!

“Qin Shi, I really haven’t read it,” Ning Qi explained, hoping a logical defense would work. “If I had, why would I have looked at it so intently just now? Right?”

She widened her eyes, trying to look as honest as possible. But instead of softening, Qin Shi seemed even more annoyed.

“Is it that good?” Qin Shi asked with a fake, chilly smile. “Worth such an ‘intense’ look?”

“Just how handsome is he?”

“Since it’s still in your hand, why don’t you take a few more looks?”

“Um… Qin Shi, are you jealous?” Ning Qi studied her for a moment, arriving at the only logical conclusion. In theory, someone like Qin Shi shouldn’t be so petty, but in practice, she looked exactly like a jealous lover.

“What if I am?”

Ning Qi froze. She expected Qin Shi to hide it or deny it, but the other woman had admitted it with startling boldness. Since when was being jealous something to be proud of?

It wasn’t that Qin Shi wanted to be proud, but there was a bigger issue at hand. “You still haven’t answered me. Who was it that said yesterday they only knew about him from the internet?”

Ning Qi recalled her words. Right—she had claimed her knowledge of Huo Yan came from the web. Yet here was a physical magazine of the man in her home, while there wasn’t a single one of Qin Shi.

“Okay, I was wrong,” Ning Qi apologized fluently.

Seeing Qin Shi’s stern face, Ning Qi realized she really had messed up. Even if a guy was “god-tier” handsome, a girlfriend shouldn’t be caught gushing over him—especially when she didn’t have any photos of her own girlfriend lying around!

If the roles were reversed and she saw Qin Shi admiring another man like that… yeah, it wouldn’t taste very good.

Qin Shi felt a bit better seeing how quickly she apologized, though she kept her expression firm. “You still haven’t said when you bought it.”

“I really don’t remember!” Ning Qi raised three fingers in a vow. “Truthfully, I don’t even know where you pulled this book from!”

“From there,” Qin Shi pointed.

“Where?” It was too vague.

“The shelf,” Qin Shi coughed slightly and looked away.

“The bottom of the shelf?” Ning Qi looked over. Then, a memory clicked. That shelf had been missing a leg and was a bit wobbly. Yesterday, she had grabbed a random, unimportant-looking book from the study to prop it up. She had planned to replace the whole shelf eventually.

“Qin Shi, you…” Ning Qi’s voice was colored with complex emotions. “You pulled it out from under the shelf?”

Qin Shi clearly remembered the effort she had spent dragging the “evidence” out from under the furniture. Seeing the look on Ning Qi’s face, she tried to regain her dignity. “Stop laughing.”

But Ning Qi wasn’t afraid of her. She leaned in closer to the “stern” woman. “Qin Shi, why are you so cute?”

The dignified Eldest Miss of the Qin family had actually crawled around to fish out a magazine propping up a shelf, read it cover to cover, and then staged an interrogation. The more she thought about it, the more Ning Qi wanted to laugh.

She reached out and pinched Qin Shi’s cheeks. Being found out made Qin Shi’s face turn a light shade of pink. “Don’t touch me,” she muttered, though she didn’t move an inch to pull away.

“I’m touching!” They were acting like children now. After a bit of playful chasing, Ning Qi collapsed into Qin Shi’s arms. “Qin Shi, you can tell by my reaction that I never actually read it, okay?”

With Qin Shi’s IQ, she obviously knew that now. But she still grumbled, “Still not allowed.”

“Fine, fine.” Ning Qi snuggled into her embrace. “But I have to explain: I really didn’t buy it. It was a gift.”

She finally remembered. Two weeks ago, she had bought a stack of music scores and literature. As she was checking out, the shop owner—noticing her large purchase—had slid the gossip magazine into her bag with a knowing wink. “Young girls all love this stuff,” he’d said. Yesterday, needing something to steady the shelf, she’d grabbed it without a second thought.

“Still not allowed,” Qin Shi repeated. Even if the magazine was two weeks old and used as a shim, she wanted to make a point. “You must always remember: you have a girlfriend now!”

“Having a girlfriend means I can’t even buy magazines?” Ning Qi sat up and teased.

“I won’t look at them anymore,” she added quickly, leaning back into Qin Shi’s arms when the other woman didn’t respond. It wasn’t like she cared about gossip anyway; it was no loss to her.

“I…” Seeing Ning Qi so compliant, Qin Shi suddenly worried she had been too overbearing. They had only been “official” for a day; if Ning Qi got angry, it would be justified.

But she didn’t want to take it back. She now knew Ning Qi had no feelings for Lu Mingze, but what about others? Ning Qi’s strange “familiarity” with people like Huo Yan still bothered her, even if it wasn’t the main issue.

Just as Qin Shi was spiraling in her own thoughts, Ning Qi sat up again.

They sat face-to-face. Just as Qin Shi was about to apologize, Ning Qi smiled. “Qin Shi, I think this is a bit unfair.”

“In what way?” Qin Shi asked nervously.

“If I’m not allowed to buy these magazines, then you aren’t allowed to buy them either, right?”

“Is that all you wanted to say?” Qin Shi’s heart skipped a beat in relief.

“Of course! What else would it be? You’re my girlfriend—it’s not too much to ask, is it?”

“It’s not too much,” Qin Shi laughed. She didn’t read that trash anyway.

“Then it’s a deal!”

“Deal,” Qin Shi agreed.

“But wait,” Ning Qi frowned. “If we do that, won’t our house be completely devoid of fashion magazines? They all have photos in them.”

Qin Shi didn’t say anything, but a new idea began to take root in her mind.

Ning Qi decided it was fine. She didn’t really care for those magazines anyway. “Oh, Qin Shi, I just thought of something else.”

“What?”

“Yesterday, somebody mentioned they hadn’t seen any magazines in my room. So,” Ning Qi’s eyes curled into crescents, “care to explain how exactly you were ‘looking’ around that day?”

Qin Shi suddenly stood up.

“What are you doing?”

Qin Shi turned and smiled. “I think you’re right. I didn’t check thoroughly enough that day. So, I’m going to have a proper look at everything in my girlfriend’s room right now!”

Seeing Qin Shi actually heading for the bedroom, Ning Qi panicked. She sprinted in front of her to block the way. “Wait! Even if you’re my girlfriend, shouldn’t I have a little privacy?”

“No,” Qin Shi shook her head firmly. “I must see everything.”

“Don’t worry,” Qin Shi added, remembering Ning Qi’s “fairness” rule. “Next time, you can look through my room too. I won’t stop you.”

“Please don’t,” Ning Qi groaned. Did I just dig another pit for myself? Why am I always on the way to another pit since I met her?

She’d heard that women in love lose their IQ, and she was living proof. She used to be at least somewhat smart; now she was just a fool.

Seeing Qin Shi determined to dig up her “secrets,” Ning Qi realized she needed a drastic distraction. She hadn’t thought it through.

As Qin Shi tried to brush past her, Ning Qi’s body acted on instinct. She grabbed Qin Shi, pulled her close, and kissed her.