“Xinglan, can you put your hand on Xiaoxi’s waist? Move a little closer… Yes, yes, like that!”
A series of click-click shutter sounds followed. Da Tianxin lowered her phone with a satisfied smile.
“Um, I have one last tiny request. Could you two…”
“You’re pushing it, Da Tianxin! Cut out the crooked stuff and die!”
Watching the two tangle together on the sofa, Xiaoxi shook her head helplessly… Is this the obsession CP fans have for shipping?
She suddenly felt that she absolutely must not let Da Tianxin and Yin Ling’er meet, or else who knows what kind of chemical reaction might happen. The thought alone was terrifying…
“Just let me take one more picture… Besides, plenty of people ship you two now. How is that crooked?”
Da Tianxin’s words made Ye Xinglan stop. She blinked at the retracting tentacles… Could she brag later about single-handedly taking on the Blood Moon Witch?
“Here, see for yourself—”
Da Tianxin opened her phone and typed “Eternal” into the video site. The next moment, a bunch of related videos popped up underneath.
For example, “Explosive! Eternal Star and Blood Moon Witch play out Enemies to Lovers for real,” “Blood Moon Witch and Eternal Star were already girlfriends during the Great Chaos Era? First full analysis on the web!” and “Scientific discussion: who tops and who bottoms between Eternal Star and Blood Moon Witch?”
Ye Xinglan froze. Normally, any news about Eternal Star would catch her eye immediately, but the past two days she’d been busy calming Xiaoxi down and hadn’t noticed the latest online updates.
And Xiaoxi’s plan had indeed been very successful, even including videos of Ye Xinglan angrily speaking out for the Blood Moon Witch… But Ye Xinglan wasn’t interested in that at all.
She pointed directly at the video discussing who tops and who bottoms.
“I want to watch this one!”
“Oh, right! Xiaoxi, I prepared a little surprise for you too. It’s in your room. Go check it out~”
Da Tianxin sat cross-legged on the sofa and started watching videos with Ye Xinglan.
Xiaoxi tilted her head. A surprise from Da Tianxin? That mysterious?
When Xiaoxi pushed open the door to her room, her eyes went wide.
A pile of gift boxes stacked up like decorations under a Christmas tree… Wait, weren’t these all the gifts from the Eternal Star Fan Club earlier?
“After the Association inspected them, I asked if I could take these away. They agreed, so I brought them all back.”
Da Tianxin’s voice came from the living room: “After all, it’s my responsibility to deliver these gifts to Eternal Star herself. But you two were busy the past couple of days, so I never had the chance to give them to you~”
Xiaoxi had been retired for a long time and never paid much attention to fans, so she had little concept of them, let any real feeling. Now seeing so many gifts, she could feel their heavy weight.
But… thinking about Da Tianxin, Xiaoxi couldn’t help shivering. Are all my fans like Da Tianxin?
Still, these gifts represented others’ good intentions, so Xiaoxi began opening them one by one, carefully examining each.
The gifts were all sorts of oddities—everything from abstract and funny items, but it was clear they were carefully chosen, each beautifully wrapped.
As Xiaoxi unwrapped, she got absorbed. Soon she realized that CP fans like Da Tianxin were actually a minority.
Most people liked Eternal Star for perfectly normal reasons.
Many had enclosed handwritten letters with their gifts. Some wrote about how Eternal Star inspired them to study hard and get into their dream university.
Others asked if she had any plans to come out of retirement. Some thanked Eternal Star for saving them from a magic creature… Reading them warmed Xiaoxi’s heart.
Xiaoxi finally understood why Mu Xingmin used to tell her that fans were her motivation to keep going—even though Mu Xingmin found work annoying.
“Hey, this is…”
After opening several gifts, Xiaoxi spotted a familiar package in the pile—wasn’t that the gift Ye Xinglan had meant to give to Eternal Star?
So Da Tianxin had brought this back too. Well, after going full circle, it’s finally in the right hands.
The box Ye Xinglan had prepared was fairly large.
Xiaoxi suddenly grew curious about what Ye Xinglan had prepared for Eternal Star. She’d been so mysterious when preparing it.
Xiaoxi couldn’t wait to open the gift. But as soon as she lifted the lid, before she could see what was inside, a black blob shot out with a whoosh.
…
Meanwhile, Ye Xinglan had just finished watching that video about who tops and who bottoms.
She slammed a hand on the table in annoyance.
“What a crappy video! Total nonsense!”
Ye Xinglan was angry because the video spent ages “scientifically analyzing” and giving examples… only to conclude that Eternal Star was the top?
What did they mean by “Eternal Star once defeated the Blood Moon Witch in one blow, and now desperately blocks the Balance Scale to protect her—clearly has the vibe of a top”?
Bull! With Xiaoxi’s tiny frame? Just the other day she was crying and begging under me, right?
I could beat her with two hands tied… not that I necessarily need hands anyway.
Just as Ye Xinglan was fuming, a small gasp came from the bedroom. At the same time, a strange sensation rose in her heart.
What’s… Wait! Da Tianxin said she brought back all the gifts meant for Eternal Star. She didn’t bring back mine, did she?
Ye Xinglan rushed into the bedroom. Sure enough, Xiaoxi was holding her bleeding hand.
A black blob writhed in the corner, extending a few tiny tentacles that looked a bit scary.
Xiaoxi was staring at the letter in the box addressed to Eternal Star.
Ye Xinglan had also slipped in a letter, but the content compared to the others… well, the difference was huge.
Ye Xinglan quickly stepped in front of Xiaoxi to block her view. She knew exactly what she’d written in that letter.
Let’s just say she’d made full use of everything she learned from gaming with Da Tianxin.
“Are you okay, Xiaoxi? Your hand…”
Ye Xinglan felt regret. She’d forgotten she’d prepared such a big gift for Eternal Star.
Who knew it would end up in Xiaoxi’s hands by a twist of fate…
“This little injury is fine… So what exactly is that thing, Xinglan?”
Xiaoxi’s gaze shifted to the black blob in the corner—a strange, tentacle-like creature.
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Uh huh, wasn’t going to hurt her she said…