Just as Feng Ling was still wondering why Lian Ge had come, Lian Ge noticed her, turned around, and waved at her.
“Feng Ling, you’re back. I was waiting for you.”
Feng Ling walked over, fumbling for her keys while pretending to be calm.
“What’s up? You here to hang out again? Let me be clear—I’m not playing any fighting games today.”
“No…”
Lian Ge raised the gift box in her hands.
“Do you remember this?”
Feng Ling pretended to be stumped for a moment, then said casually:
“Of course. That’s Momo Ointment. The same one Chiyun promoted before. I got a similar sample a few days ago, but I didn’t need it, so I passed it on to someone else.”
“What’s up, Captain? Did you get a promotion sample too?”
Lian Ge shook her head.
“This one I’m holding is the one you gave away.”
’Is she here to test if I care that Jiang Zhu regifted my present?’ Feng Ling thought. ’If I act surprised, that would mean I really mind him giving it away…’
’Didn’t expect Lian Ge to be that subtle.’
“Oh, so Jiang Zhu gave it to you. That’s nice.”
Feng Ling put on an expression that showed complete indifference about the regift.
“So why bring it here…?”
“I figured—what girl doesn’t need skincare? You probably never use it, that’s why you said you didn’t need it. I’m free today, so I came to teach you how to apply it.”
“Huh?”
Feng Ling hadn’t expected Lian Ge to approach her from that angle.
Before she could figure out what to do next, Lian Ge pushed her toward the front door.
With no way to refuse, Feng Ling just unlocked the door.
Lian Ge immediately nudged her by the shoulders and guided her inside.
Feng Ling’s feet moved instinctively.
By the time she realized what was happening, Lian Ge had already shoved her into the bathroom, right in front of the mirror above the sink.
The bright mirror reflected two bright magical girls—a petite girl in a cyan dress and a blue-haired girl in a white robe—pressed together at an uncomfortably intimate distance.
The sight of them so close in the mirror made Feng Ling unable to look directly.
She shifted her gaze away from herself to Lian Ge.
Lian Ge was carefully opening the package, pulling out a small flat jar of Momo Ointment.
She unscrewed the lid, scooped out a dab of the milky white cream onto her index finger, then pressed her hands together and slowly rubbed them, letting the ointment melt under her body heat.
Once her hands were thoroughly coated, she opened them and wiggled her fingers at Feng Ling.
“Feng Ling, let me apply it for you.”
“But is this really necessary while transformed? A magical girl’s body is self-cleaning anyway…”
Feng Ling instinctively found it troublesome.
She had confirmed that a magical girl’s body self-cleans, lacking various human physiological activities—even eating was optional.
Ever since becoming a magical girl, she hadn’t even taken a shower, let alone bothered with all this messy skincare stuff.
“That’s precisely because you have such good conditions that you should take even better care of your body…”
Before Feng Ling could protest further, Lian Ge’s cream-covered hands were already on her face.
Lian Ge’s fingers worked with a patience Feng Ling had never used on herself, slowly massaging the cream into her skin.
A gentle warmth of magic seeped in along with the cream—the concept of “healing” seemed to activate, making Feng Ling’s whole face feel toasty.
At first, Feng Ling’s body was stiff, but Lian Ge’s technique was unexpectedly relaxing.
After just a few strokes, Feng Ling obediently closed her eyes and enjoyed the treatment.
After rubbing it in thoroughly, Lian Ge guided Feng Ling through washing her face, then gently dried it with a towel.
When Feng Ling opened her eyes again, she saw some change in the mirror.
Her cheeks were rosier than before, with a few beads of water clinging to them, making her look as translucent as dew on fruit.
Lian Ge placed her hands on Feng Ling’s shoulders, leaned over from behind, and met Feng Ling’s eyes in the mirror.
“See? Isn’t it a little better than before?” Lian Ge asked expectantly.
“I can’t tell the difference…”
Feng Ling felt the only change was that her face had been rubbed so much it was red from poor heat dissipation—hence the rosy color.
“Things like this take long-term persistence to show results. It’s normal not to see much short-term change. Just learn the steps today, then spend a little time each day doing it. You’ll gradually see a difference.”
“You might think it’s useless for you, but sticking with it over time—just repeating the action—can also build your confidence.”
“I’ve noticed that sometimes you look disheveled, your clothes untidy. Even though a magical girl’s body self-cleans, it still looks listless. Magical girls need their own aura, too.”
Feng Ling believed that.
The upright aura Lian Ge carried was probably built up bit by bit over time.
In contrast, Feng Ling’s default state was a lack of energy—even though she could fake it convincingly on camera.
But if you looked closely, you could tell her aura was just surface-deep.
At her core, she was still the same magical girl workhorse who’d lost her proper job and could only make money by being cute during transformations.
She felt no genuine identification with her magical girl identity.
“Many things can only be cultivated through long-term effort. Even if you force yourself to be a certain way in a short time, you’re just copying the outward appearance.”
Feng Ling could hear the deeper meaning in Lian Ge’s words.
Sure enough, it was time for one of her little life lectures.
“Feng Ling, aside from going on missions with you and playing games, I’ve also been watching your livestreams lately.”
“Oh… I never saw you interact with me…”
The thought of Lian Ge spying on her streams made Feng Ling tense up.
’Is she going to crack down on my side income again?’
But Lian Ge didn’t mention that.
Instead, she praised sincerely:
“I didn’t want to bother you. I saw you making everyone laugh in the chat. It felt meaningful, so I didn’t interrupt the mood.”
Feng Ling hadn’t expected Lian Ge to approve of her streaming.
Probably the Association had no clue about online streaming, so it didn’t trigger Lian Ge’s keyword database.
That was a relief.
Now she could stream and earn money without worry.