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

After the car came to a stop, Shen Mochen was the first to get out, followed by Liu Chaoyan from the driver's seat, as Xia Qingrou helped Han Muxue unfold her wheelchair again.

"Captain Liu, hello..." The middle-aged couple nodded and bowed toward Liu Chaoyan, smiling ingratiatingly.

"Uncle and Auntie, long time no see. You're looking better and better," Liu Chaoyan said with a slight smile, pulling Shen Mochen over.

The middle-aged man was startled, "This is..."

Liu Chaoyan introduced, "He is our new team member, called Shen Mochen. Cai used to be on the team but has since retired, and Shen has taken her place."

The middle-aged woman stared at Shen Mochen, "Is this person, a boy... or a girl?"

"Hello, Uncle and Auntie. My name is Shen Mochen, and I'm a male," Shen Mochen said with a smile, taking the initiative to reach out his hand.

"Shen, these two are Xuexue's parents," Liu Chaoyan introduced Shen Mochen again.

Shen Mochen nodded, as he had guessed their identities even without Liu Chaoyan mentioning it.

Han's mother quickly took Shen Mochen's hand, her face half ingratiating and half flattering, "Oh, sorry about that... I thought you looked like a boy, but there aren't many boys with superpowers, and you're even prettier than some girls..."

"Hehehe..." Shen Mochen politely smiled, "No problem, it happens quite often."

"Does Mr. Shen live with the other team members?" Han's father suddenly asked.

"Yes, he moved into what used to be Cai's room..." Liu Chaoyan answered for Shen Mochen, "He is Xia's boyfriend and is always very proper."

A hint of envy and complexity flashed through Han's father's eyes, then he chuckled dryly, nodding and saying no more.

"Oh dear, our Xuexue hasn't caused you any trouble, has she?" Han's mother held Shen Mochen's hand, her smile beaming.

"No, on the contrary, I often have to bother her. On the battlefield, it's her who's been protecting me!" said Shen Mochen.

"Really? There hasn't been..."

"Are you annoying!"

Before Han's mother could finish, she was interrupted by a sharp voice.

It was Han Muxue. She rolled forward in her wheelchair, a look of impatience across her face, and then briskly pulled her mother's hand away.

"Go back now!" Han Muxue commanded, without looking back.

Seeing this, neither Han's father nor mother showed the slightest displeasure. They smiled apologetically and somewhat awkwardly at Shen Mochen and the others, then turned to go to their car.

They had also come in a car, a rather new-looking compact car worth roughly a hundred and fifty thousand.

Liu Chaoyan watched Han Muxue's retreating figure, hesitated for a moment, but then walked over.

By this time, Han Muxue had already settled into the back seat with her mother's assistance, while Han's father was folding the wheelchair to place it in the trunk.

"Do the Lady Liu have any instructions?" Han's father and mother wore eager faces.

"I'd like to say a few words to Xuexue," Liu Chaoyan said with a gentle smile.

After hearing this, they dutifully sat in the front driver's and passenger seats, freeing up space for Liu Chaoyan and Han Muxue to talk.

"...What is it?"

Sitting inside the car, Han Muxue looked up at Liu Chaoyan standing outside the door, her eyes flickered slightly, and her quivering eyelashes resembled those of a wounded butterfly.

"You've worked hard. Rest well," Liu Chaoyan bent down and gently embraced the other person.

Han Muxue leaned gently into Liu Chaoyan's embrace, her eyes reddening.

The car slowly started up as Liu Chaoyan watched the other drive away, her expression inscrutable.

On the car ride, Han Muxue, shivering, pulled a small purple plastic bear from her pocket.

It looked very old; one ear was even missing. The little bear's head had a small loop, apparently meant for a keychain.

Yes, it was just a cheap trinket, probably costing only a few cents wholesale.

Staring at it, tears began to fall from Han Muxue's eyes. She slowly closed her eyes and, upon opening them again, they carried a pained resolve.

She opened the car window and flung the little bear out with all her might.

As the tiny bear left for good, Han Muxue suddenly felt as if a piece of her heart had emptied; she slumped against the car door, unable to hold back her tears, like a deeply wronged child.

...

On the way back to the dormitory, Xia Qingrou asked Liu Chaoyan curiously, "Yanyan, what did you say to Xuexue just now?"

Liu Chaoyan, smiling, steadied the steering wheel, "I told her to rest well and not to worry about team matters."

"Mmm, it feels like without Xuexue, we're not as safe as before..."

"It's okay, I'm here. I'll definitely keep Xia Sister safe."

"Hehe, that's true, Yanyan, you have a superpower too!" Xia Qingrou said this, then fell somewhat silent.

"Eh... Yanyan, do you know why Xuexue has been ignoring me these past few days?" Xia Qingrou pursed her lips and whispered the question.

"Is that so? It shouldn't be," Liu Chaoyan tilted her head, "Is it because Xia Sister has been sticking close to Shen lately, making little Xue jealous?"

"Hmph, that's what I thought too!" With a slight uplift in spirits, Xia Qingrou turned and made a fierce face at Shen Mochen, "I knew it was you, the vixen, driving a wedge between sisters! From now on, I won't let you bewitch me and drift apart from Xuexue again!"

Shen Mochen pursed his lips and glanced at Liu Chaoyan again. Coincidentally, she was also looking at him through the rearview mirror, her gaze calm.

Their eyes met, then quickly parted.

After returning to the dormitory, the three didn't say much. Xia Qingrou brought out playing cards, calling for a card game. Xiao Xingshuang refused, but Liu Chaoyan joined for a while before Xia Qingrou went to cook.

At noon, Xia Qingrou finished preparing lunch, and the four of them dined at the table.

After lunch, Liu Chaoyan got up to clean up the dishes and said casually, "By the way, I'll be taking a two-day leave for the separation month in a few days. While I'm gone, Xia Sister, please take over as team leader temporarily."

"No problem, leave it to me!" Xia Qingrou confidently patted her chest, "Speaking of which, Yanyan, you didn't really take any leave last month either. You should take more time off this time! Leave the team to me!"

"No need, I'm just attending a banquet, two days is enough," Liu Chaoyan said with a faint smile, gently sweeping a lock of hair behind her ear.

Xia Qingrou cheerfully helped Liu Chaoyan clean up, "What kind of banquet is it that you need to take leave for? Is it some big noble again?"

"Yes, a very big noble."

"How big? Bigger than your family?"

"Hehehe, Xia Sister, their family is much more powerful than mine. In all of Gaotang State, there is no family more influential than theirs. Moreover, those invited to the banquet include not just families from Gaotang State but also many VIPs from the Capital!"

Xia Qingrou was extremely curious, "That's amazing! What kind of banquet is it, a wedding?"

Liu Chaoyan glanced at Shen Mochen not far away and said with a light laugh, "No, it's a birthday celebration. In a few days, it will be a young miss's coming-of-age ceremony. She is a very beautiful young miss, you know."