After finishing dinner at home, Jian Yiling was about to head back to her study when Yu Xi arrived.
"Grandma Jian, I'm here to see if Yiling can join me for some gaming. I hope she's free tonight?" Yu Xi greeted with a warm and considerate demeanor, impressing the elders with his charm. With his excellent academic record and admission to a prestigious university, he had always been the "ideal child" in the eyes of others, naturally earning their trust.
Old Madam Jian had no objections. "It's up to my little darling whether she wants to go. If she's willing, I certainly have no problem with it. But you must bring her back before eight o'clock."
The opportunity to have fun was there, but it came with a strict time limit. This wasn't the first time Yu Xi had come to the Jian house to take Jian Yiling out; his previous good behavior led Old Madam Jian to agree without hesitation.
"Not an issue!" Yu Xi confidently declared, patting his chest.
Jian Yiling hesitated for a moment as she looked at Yu Xi. However, recalling that she still owed Zhai Yunsheng a favor, she ultimately agreed to go along with him.
They headed next door, where Yu Xi led Jian Yiling into the entertainment room. He brought her to a corner filled with computers. It turned out he really did bring Jian Yiling for gaming. But she quickly realized it was to play alongside Zhai Yunsheng, who was already seated at one of the computers.
Upon seeing Zhai Yunsheng again, Jian Yiling wasted no time and immediately asked, "Have you thought about what you want?"
"Not yet," he replied casually, resting his chin on one hand as he smiled at her.
Yu Xi chimed in, "Yiling, I'm the one who invited you this time. I want to rank up, and I asked Sheng Ye to help me, but he insisted on bringing you along first!"
Yu Xi's exasperation was evident; after all these years of knowing each other, it seemed ridiculous that getting Zhai Yunsheng to help him required the presence of a girl. To be honest, Yu Xi wasn't too keen on the idea of playing games with Jian Yiling. The game they were about to play was somewhat violent and not particularly suitable for her. However, Zhai Yunsheng had insisted on her presence, leaving Yu Xi with no choice.
He looked at Jian Yiling with a pleading expression. "Yiling, please help me out! Given how quickly I exposed Ji Ming and Qiu Yizhen's chat logs today, can't you lend me a hand?"
For the sake of ranking up, Yu Xi was willing to go to great lengths.
"Did you post the logs?" Jian Yiling initially thought the messages had come from those she had been in contact with.
"I did post them, but it was Sheng Ye who did the work behind the scenes," Yu Xi admitted, careful not to claim credit for Zhai Yunsheng's efforts.
At this, Jian Yiling's gaze shifted back to Zhai Yunsheng. His shirt seemed perpetually unbuttoned, with one or two buttons consistently left undone at the chest. He wore a gentle smile, his deep-set eyes focused on her.
"Why do you want to help me again?" Jian Yiling inquired, recalling the debt from their last encounter.
"Who said I wanted to help you?" Zhai Yunsheng countered, dismissing her question. "Yu Xi mentioned he couldn't stand seeing his neighbor's sister being targeted by some scum, so I figured I'd lend a hand."
Standing behind Jian Yiling, Yu Xi widened his eyes. When did he ever say that? However, he had indeed made similar comments, so Zhai Yunsheng wasn't entirely wrong.
Yu Xi thought for a moment before saying, "So, are we going to play or not? I promised Grandma Jian that I'd have Yiling back by eight! We need to make the most of our time!"
The sooner they started, the more games they could play, which would determine whether he could successfully rank up that evening.
Without replying, Jian Yiling took a seat in the empty chair next to Zhai Yunsheng. She adjusted the gaming chair to her height and powered on the computer, ready to dive into the gaming world alongside them.