Mrs. Kiyono laughed and rose from her seat, no longer pretending to be asleep.

"Lin," she said, kneeling elegantly and seductively on the back of the sofa, asking the Literary Girl by the floor-to-ceiling window, "Is what Mr. Dubian said true? Does he really think that way?"

"If he dares to be smug, I would have taught him a lesson already," Kiyono Lin said without looking up.

"Oh—, so he's just a coward," Mrs. Jiutiao realized suddenly.

"...Scared of the two of them? It's about respect."

Dubian Che completely ignored the two ladies as he took a grape, peeled off the skin, revealing its plump green flesh, and brought it to Jiutiao Meijie's lips.

Jiutiao Meijie didn't open her mouth and gave him a sideways glance.

"I'm asking for permission to go to the station tonight to pick up a classmate," Dubian Che said.

"A classmate?"

"The classmate isn't important, what's important is that Mayi Asuka is with them. I'll send them to the hotel and come right back!"

"You're to stay put tomorrow and can only go out on the last day."

Dubian Che said he could go out tomorrow, but Jiutiao Meijie insisted it had to be on the last day. She wanted to let Mayi Asuka know who really calls the shots.

"No problem."

They nurtured mutual affection and understanding for each other, and as long as the condition to 'go out for one day' remained unchanged, everything else could be negotiated.

Only then did Jiutiao Meijie open her mouth and take the peeled grape.

"Although it's not unusual for wealthy people to indulge in various affairs and keep lovers, I've never seen ones as... harmonious as you all," Mrs. Kiyono remarked, clearly amazed.

"This only applies to the three of us," Jiutiao Meijie said as she chewed on the grape. "If he dares touch a fourth..."

"I absolutely won't!" Dubian Che assured her. "And you also know about Mayi and Mr. Xiaoquan."

"What if the same situation happens again? Forced into a corner again?"

"It won't. I promise."

Dubian Che wouldn't take on any of those "jobs" unless they specifically named who they were for, and he definitely wouldn't smile at anyone outside the group of four—no need for it, nor would he speak.

Jiutiao Meijie accommodated him, and in turn, he also had to stringently control himself, watching his every word and action.

"Lin, you need to step it up. There's only four months left until the end of the year," Mrs. Kiyono said.

"I've already captured his heart and had his body; four months is plenty," the girl with black hair said calmly, filled with confidence.

At seven in the evening, Dubian Che headed to Karuizawa Station.

At 7:33 PM, a train carrying Mayi Asuka and others, along with the evening breeze, pulled into the station.

"Mr. Dubian!" Ichiki Aoi, just past the ticket gate, waved in his direction.

Dubian Che looked towards Mayi Asuka amidst the crowd, seeing her always placid, delicate face.

She wore a white off-shoulder dress that managed to be sexy without being revealing, with just a hint of collarbone visible.

Her waist cinched, drew out alluring body curves.

Below was a knee-length flowing yellow skirt, carrying a handbag, looking very refreshing.

Dubian Che approached and said, "It must be hot in Tokyo, right?"

"So hot I could have died!" Ichiki Aoi immediately started to complain. "A high of 35 degrees and a low of 29 degrees, it's unbearable!"

"Is this Karuizawa?" Yuzao Haomei, dragging a stylish suitcase, looked around. "I don't see what's special about it, but it does feel quite cool."

"Good evening, Mr. Dubian," Hanaoka Asako greeted quietly.

"Good evening, Hanaoka," he replied.

Then, addressing Mayi Asuka, who had been staring at him since the beginning, he said, "In Karuizawa, when girls go out in the morning and evening, it's best to wear a light jacket."

"Right," Mayi Asuka nodded slightly.

Dubian Che glanced at the handbag in her hand, thought for a moment, but decided not to offer to carry it.

"Let's go; I called for a cab."

"Isn't that very expensive? I feel so bad!" Ichiki Aoi said, surprised.

"We'll split the cost."

"We should take the bus instead; I want to save some money for shopping in Karuizawa!"

"Then let Mayi, our senior, pay. She's the elder one here."

"How could..."

"I'll pay."

"Senior?!"

"Mayi, you don't have to listen to him; we're splitting it, it's settled," Yuzao Haomei persuaded.

Mayi Asuka shook her head gently, without saying a word.

Stepping out of the station and encountering a night scene completely different from Tokyo, breathing in the fresh air, the three immediately got excited and stopped discussing the cab fare.

Riding in the taxi they had called in advance, they traveled through the highlands under a brilliant starry sky.

They had booked a relatively inexpensive inn.

A room for four, with two bunk beds.

It was a three-night stay, 16,000 yen per night. They would check in on the 13th and travel back to Tokyo on the 16th when the Penyulan Festival holiday ended.

The small room seemed targeted at student groups who hadn't reached economic independence yet.

It was fun to have a noisy stay in a dorm-like inn, which was a part of the travel experience.

And during school excursions and the Wind Instrument Club camp, they were used to bunking together, a bunch of them squeezed in one place.

If it were just Mayi Asuka alone, she could afford a much better hotel, or even rent a whole villa.

"Ah, finally lying down, I'm dead tired," the three girls said as they entered the room, except for Mayi Asuka, who promptly lay down on the bed.

They cheered for the baseball team in the morning, took a ride back to Tokyo from Hyogo Prefecture in the afternoon.

After packing their bags at home, they immediately took the Shinkansen to Karuizawa, exhausted from the journey.

"Let's rest well today and go out tomorrow," Dubian Che said, standing by the window.

"Thank you, Mr. Dubian," Ichiki Aoi waved from the top bunk.

The cab fare from earlier had ultimately been paid by Dubian Che.

"Hmm~," Yuzao Haomei, also on a top bunk, was playing with her phone, laying on the bed, her two lace-trimmed short-socked legs wriggling about.

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