"Hey." Chen Jingyun greeted the dark lord with a smile.
She was not in the slightest worried about what Li Minghao would want to talk to her about. She didn't think she made any mistakes nor anything suspicious, so whatever he wanted to talk about, she was sure she could breeze through it.
Besides, there was hardly anything she had to hide from him... aside from her relationship with Fu Wang, her best friend being undercover and nearby, the principal helping her family, Yu Yan's important identity in and out of the case, and- okay, fine!
She will admit it.
She was hiding tons of stuff from him.
Despite him coming forward with the bodyguard idea, she didn't know to what extend she should trust him, the guy hardly tells her anything about himself, so why should she tell him anything more about herself?
He was also the one who went and read a whole file about her and her history, so if he wanted to know more he could find it out on his own. Just like he found out about her disguise.
For now, if he wanted to be a bodyguard (which she stills doesn't understand nor know his motive) he could just stick to being around her, knowing her whereabouts at all times, and making her do exercise at 5 AM just to recover her physical capabilities.
She wasn't being spiteful nor anything, no. She didn't even hate Li Minghao. In fact, she thought he was a pretty quiet guy that whenever he opened his mouth it would be to spit fire or make others laugh. She enjoyed his company and his personality because it was one of a kind. She also respected and admired him as he was no ordinary guy. He obviously put a lot of work and thought into anything he did which made him a very honest guy when it came to commitment. He was also intelligent, observant, and held a lot of finesse when it came to stealth work.
Thinking about that made Chen Jingyun's smile turn a bit bitter.
Sensing her change of mood, Li Minghao arched his eyebrow.
"Is something bothering you?"
Chen Jingyun quickly shook her head.
"No, I'm fine!"
Li Minghao stared at her for a few seconds before letting it go. Instead of pursuing it, he poured a cup of tea for her. The steam flowed out of the cup as it was being filled.
"It will warm you up and help you sleep later."
"Thank you."
"And, if you feel chilly, now's the time to go grab a jacket or a blanket. We might stay here for a little while."
"I think I'm good like this."
"You sure?" Li Minghao asked tentatively as he looked her up and down. She was only wearing an oversized white t-shirt and some basketball shorts. Considering her height. weight and clothes, he doubted this girl would be completely fine in this chilly weather.
"One hundred percent." Chen Jingyun made an OK sign.
Li Minghao still didn't believe her, however, he didn't fight her. Instead, he got up, went into the room, and picked a blanket for her to use.
"It's better if you don't get sick." He handed her a neatly folded blanket.
"...Thank you."
In the end, Chen Jingyun accepted the blanket with gratitude and put it to use.
Falling into a short while of silence, the two of them got comfortable in their seats. Li Minghao took his time to sip on the tea while Chen Jingyun played with the mist coming from her cup of tea while simultaneously enjoying the unique warmth of the blanket under the cool weather.
Currently, it was a bit late into the evening. However, the city was still very much alive, after all, it was a Saturday. The nightlife was strong in this province with the lights shining so strongly the poor night sky's stars couldn't be seen. What a pity.
"Alright, I got a few questions I would like you to answer." Li Minghao started with a calm voice. He was in no rush, nor did he sounded demanding. His tone was like that of a casual conversation despite the choice of his words.
Chen Jingyun looked at him, catching sight of his beautiful side profile under the moonlight, but having no time to properly admire it.
"Sure." She said lightheartedly as if she had nothing to hide and she would tell him anything he wanted to know.
This was a half-truth, and they both knew it.
Which is why Li Minghao turned to look deeply into her eyes, with his eyes full of meaning.
"And I want you to answer honestly. I know you have been hiding some things about yourself and your current situation."
Chen Jingyun placed her chin on her palm, arching her eyebrows with interest.
"What kind of things am I hiding?"
Li Minghao smiled.
"Just a couple of little big things... I'm sure." He lowered his voice in such a way Chen Jingyun had to lean closer to listen to him better.
"Care to expose me?" She maintained her cheeky mood. Whatever it was, she was sure she could handle it.
"I know there is something going between you and Fu Wang." Li Minghao simply stated.
"How so?" Chen Jingyun still didn't give him the affirmation stamp.
At this, Li Minghao shrugged like a know it all.
"From what I have seen in the little time I got to observe you and your current social circle, you and Fu Wang seem to share a special dynamic. One that not even his close buddies even have. I know that you can be cute and somehow sweep guys off their feet to spoil you as their little brother, but this is not the case with Mr. Fu."
Chen Jingyun let out a laugh and swept one of her side bangs behind her ear while the other side charming hung on her other side of her face.
"You think I'm cute?"
For the first time, Li Minghao showed signs of losing his cool. He closed his eyes, pulled back, and covered his face. He took a few seconds to compose himself.
"For the sake of information and detail, yes, you are in fact cute. Do not take this a flirting attempt."
"Oh, I didn't know you could flirt Li Minghao." Chen Jingyun covered her mouth in fake surprise.
Such a rare opportunity to tease Li Minghao, why not take it?
Rolling his eyes, Li Minghao waved her off and continued.
"As I was saying, you and Fu Wang have a very peculiar relationship. One that is bound to raise some eyebrows and suspicions."
"Why?" Chen Jingyun was interested.
Li Minghao pursed his lips. In a different situation, he would have been a little more subtle. But he couldn't- no, she couldn't afford subtle, not with her head as a target.
"Because the guy is in love with you."