You are all bad women! Don't come over!

"Oh..."

"What, not willing, huh?" Xia Qingrou sniffed discontentedly.

Shen Mochen spread his hands, "Look at my skinny arms and legs, what if I can't beat him?"

Xia Qingrou snorted, "Hey, didn't you take care of those hoodlums before? They all seemed really scared of you, so you must be quite strong in a fight!"

"That was before, I don't fight anymore!"

"Why not?"

Shen Mochen calmly explained, "Because now I'm a respectable person, winning lands me in jail, losing lands me in the hospital, neither is worth it."

Xia Qingrou paused, seemingly deep in thought.

"Besides, she might not be upset due to a breakup, maybe it's something else?" Shen Mochen added.

"... Could be, yeah." Xia Qingrou lowered her head to think, "Her... temper has been not so great recently, that could be a reason..."

Shen Mochen's eyes widened as he said on purpose, "No way, does she also have her period?"

Xia Qingrou glared at him irritably, "Why couldn't she, you are really rude, you know!"

"It's just... she looks like a primary school student..."

"I got mine for the first time in fifth grade, too!"

Shen Mochen raised his hands, thankful the topic had shifted successfully, "Alright, alright, I was wrong, I shouldn't have underestimated her... But, it's really hard to believe."

Xia Qingrou purposefully twisted Shen Mochen's mouth, "Dummy, don't ever say that in front of Xuexue, okay?"

Shen Mochen nodded in agreement, making humming noises.

Two days later, the Moon Conjunction ended, which meant someone could take a vacation.

According to the previous agreement, it was Han Muxue's turn to take a vacation. However, she was going to use up all of her accumulated leave.

Buque members had eight days of leave each month, and the timing was flexible as long as one did not take leave during the five days of Moon Conjunction.

Since the timing wasn't fixed, and everyone might encounter emergencies, it was common for someone to have less time off. If one couldn't use up the leave in a given month, it could be carried over to the next.

If someone didn't want to take leave, or hadn't used up all their vacation time by graduation, it could be counted as "overtime" and paid out at double the "overtime rate."

Xia Qingrou, as the person with the most overtime in 0819, had nearly two months of accumulated leave, but she neither considered taking a long break nor planned to immediately exchange it for money.

She had joked about saving it until she retired and then cashing out all the "overtime pay" at once to buy herself a sports car.

Shen Mochen thought that with her income level, she wouldn't be able to afford a sports car with a few months' salary. But everyone needs to have dreams; after all, what if they come true, like winning the lottery all of a sudden?

After breakfast, Xia Qingrou dragged Shen Mochen to watch TV in the living room. A boring soap opera was playing on TV, and Xia Qingrou was absorbed in it, holding a bag of potato chips, eating one for herself, feeding one to Shen Mochen.

"Watch it, you prodded my nose..." Shen Mochen shook his head.

"Hehehe..." Like a child who did something wrong, Xia Qingrou giggled foolishly and then put the chip into Shen Mochen's mouth again, licked the residual flavors off her fingers, and handed him another, "There, another chip for you, okay?"

"Putting fingers you just licked into my mouth..."

Xia Qingrou flared up, sucked on her fingers again, and then jabbed them forcefully toward Shen Mochen's mouth, "Are you disgusted by me?"

Shen Mochen dodged while laughing, "No, no, stop it... I'm not disgusted!"

Xia Qingrou pouted and turned her face to one side. "Hmph, don't even think about kissing me again... and even if you do, I won't let you use your tongue!"

"Eh..." Shen Mochen poked Xia Qingrou's arm.

"Don't touch me!" Xia Qingrou flipped her sleeve haughtily.

"I was just joking with you," he said. "How could I despise you?"

"Hmph!"

Shen Mochen took Xia Qingrou's hand and pulled her into his arms, whispering with a chuckle near her ear, "I've licked you all over—how could I possibly be disgusted by your saliva?"

Xia Qingrou's face turned red, and she immediately pinched Shen Mochen's mouth. "Don't say that!"

Shen Mochen was confused. "Don't say what?"

Xia Qingrou's face flushed with embarrassment as she threatened in a low voice, "Don't mention what we do to each other..."

"Is it because you almost suffocated me?"

"Still complaining about me!" Xia Qingrou huffed, pinching Shen Mochen's waist. "You are also disgusting. You always choke me, and it tastes so weird!"

The two of them tussled on the sofa. Han Muxue came out of the room in her wheelchair.

Xia Qingrou immediately got off Shen Mochen feeling embarrassed, straightened her clothes, and smiled, "Xuexue, are you off for a break yet? Have you been told where to go by your aunt? Let me take you!"

"No need," Han Muxue turned her face away, saying coldly.

"Eh—just let me take you!" Xia Qingrou clung to Han Muxue fondly, as she always did.

Suddenly, Han Muxue became furious. She forcefully pushed Xia Qingrou away, her voice tinged with hysteria, "So annoying, what exactly do you want from me!"

Xia Qingrou stumbled backward, and although she didn't fall, she was evidently dazed by Han Muxue's push.

Her expression changed as she clenched her fists, a look of wanting to cry on her face, "Xuexue, what's the matter? Have I upset you somehow?"

"...It's not you who's wrong; it's my own problem," Han Muxue stared blankly at Xia Qingrou, then lowered her head in pain, guilt flashing in her eyes, her tone agitated, "You're not wrong; it's my own problem!"

"Are you dealing with some trouble? Just talk to me about it," Xia Qingrou said softly.

"I'll be fine after a few days rest."

Han Muxue said quietly, but her voice again carried irritation and that deep-seated, anxious urge to escape.

Xia Qingrou asked cautiously, "Then, may I take you part of the way?"

Without further words, Han Muxue turned and walked away. Xia Qingrou, seeing this, hurriedly grabbed Shen Mochen and followed.

In reality, Han Muxue didn't need Xia Qingrou to take her, for Liu Chaoyan was already prepared, sitting at the wheel of the six-seat SUV.

Seeing the two trailing behind Han Muxue, Liu Chaoyan frowned slightly but said nothing, simply gesturing for them to get into the car.

Xia Qingrou helped Han Muxue into the vehicle, then folded up her electric wheelchair and placed it aside. Liu Chaoyan reminded everyone to buckle up with a smile, then gently pressed on the gas pedal.

Xia Qingrou was quiet throughout the ride, while Liu Chaoyan occasionally spoke to Han Muxue. Xia Qingrou wanted to butt in several times but held back, instead, she quietly nudged Shen Mochen, signaling him to say something to make it easier for her to join the conversation.

Shen Mochen pretended not to understand and gazed out of the window at the scenery instead.

About ten minutes later, the car stopped by a sentry station on the outskirts. A middle-aged woman and a middle-aged man stood nearby.

Seeing the car arrive, they immediately linked arms, smiling and waving at the vehicle.