Chapter 545: Chapter 505: The Condition for Ripening

Heeding Grandma Gu’s secret reminder, Li Qian accepted Mary Galoway’s invitation.

After accepting Mary Galoway’s invitation, Li Qian had originally intended to take her to Cafeteria No. 3, but after a moment’s thought, he changed direction and headed straight for the back gate.

Li Qian didn’t know why Grandma Gu had suddenly sent him a voice transmission telling him to accept Mary Galoway’s invitation.

But he knew there had to be a deeper meaning. Grandma Gu clearly wanted him to spend time alone with her. ’In that case, I might as well take the initiative and create the opportunity myself.’

He led Mary Galoway to a unique little restaurant near the school’s back gate. They found a small table in the main dining area and sat down, both in a pleasant mood.

They had barely sat down and ordered—the food had yet to arrive—when a familiar voice suddenly rang out.

"Li Qian, it really is you!"

Hearing the familiar voice, Li Qian immediately looked over and spotted a stunning figure near the entrance.

The newcomer was none other than Li Lanying, whom he hadn’t seen in a while.

"Li Lanying!" Seeing her, Li Qian immediately greeted her with a broad smile, but inwardly, he was already grumbling.

’What are the odds? Of all the people to run into, it had to be her.’

’Any other time, I wouldn’t have cared; it would just be a matter of setting another place at the table.’

’But today was different. Right now, I’m on a "mission" from Grandma Gu.’

’If her barging in disrupts the rhythm of this "mission," or worse, causes some complication, this is going to get messy.’

Though he was grumbling on the inside, Li Qian had already decided what to do. He smiled, extended a hand, and made an inviting gesture.

"Great timing. We just ordered, but the food hasn’t arrived. Why don’t you join us?"

Li Lanying walked over with a smile. "Since an old classmate is asking, it would be rude to refuse."

She sat down with an easy grace, and the three began to chat. Li Qian introduced the two women to each other.

The two young women shook hands, all smiles. It was a picture of harmony—after all, they were both gorgeous, and the sight drew the attention of many of the guys sitting nearby.

They all shot envious glances at Li Qian, marveling at his incredible luck with the ladies.

"What brings you two here to eat?" Li Lanying asked a little while later, her curiosity piqued.

"We just ran into each other at the library," Mary Galoway said in a soft voice. "Brother Qian is my savior, you know. It’s not often I see him, so of course I have to thank him properly."

Li Qian shook his head with a wry smile. "Look at you, bringing that up again. I’ve already told you, saving you was just the right thing to do."

"Besides, didn’t we agree that this meal is on me?" Li Qian said in a teasing tone. "Before, it was just you. Now that our classmate Li Lanying is here, there’s no way I’m letting you pay."

When Mary Galoway looked like she was about to protest, Li Qian cut her off. "Not another word. If you really want to thank me, you can treat me to a meal next time. For today, this is settled."

"Alright!" Mary Galoway’s eyes lit up as she gazed at Li Qian and nodded.

Li Lanying, sitting beside them, showed no change in expression, but inwardly she couldn’t help but feel a pang of jealousy.

Although she was well aware that she wasn’t in Li Qian’s league, that didn’t mean she was okay with any other girl making a move on him.

Most importantly, as far as Li Lanying was concerned, even though Mary Galoway was pretty, there was still a considerable gap between her and Li Qian.

’If even she dared to actively pursue him, why should I be the one to back down just because it’s hard?’

Li Qian, for his part, didn’t think too much about it. When the food arrived, he dug in with gusto and asked casually, "By the way, Lan Ying, what brings you here?"

"I don’t have class this afternoon. I kept hearing that the food here is good, so I thought I’d come try it," Li Lanying replied nonchalantly.

Of course, that was just an excuse. In reality, she did have class this afternoon—she had simply chosen to be "class-free" for the moment.

She hadn’t come for its reputation, either; she had never even heard of the restaurant. And she wasn’t the type to go out of her way just to satisfy a craving.

The real reason she was here was that she had spotted Li Qian and Mary Galoway walking together on campus and, overcome with curiosity, had followed them.

The rest of the meal passed without incident, but sitting across from two girls—two very beautiful girls, at that—Li Qian couldn’t shake the feeling that the atmosphere was a bit odd.

After lunch, Mary Galoway took the initiative to ask, "Brother Qian, do you have any classes this afternoon?"

As soon as he heard this, Li Qian thought, ’Here’s my chance!’ He immediately replied, "No, I don’t. Do you have something in mind, Mary?"

"I heard that if you follow the road behind the school, it leads to a mountain where you can see a Dragon Patterned Forest. This time of year, the leaves of the Dragon Pattern Trees have all turned golden-yellow and are supposed to be beautiful. How about we go take a look?"

Li Qian’s heart filled with even more joy. He had been trying to create an opportunity for them to be alone, and now one had just presented itself on a silver platter.

The only problem was the third wheel, so he fixed his gaze on Li Lanying.

He asked, "Lan Ying, what about you? What are your plans?"

The implication in Li Qian’s words was perfectly clear.

Li Lanying, of course, understood his unspoken meaning. She gave a charming smile. "Is that right? A place that beautiful? Well then, I’ll have to go see it too!"

Li Qian sighed in resignation. He couldn’t just tell Li Lanying to leave for no good reason.

So, he could only agree with a "smile." Just like that, the three of them set off, chatting as they walked, and soon arrived at the foot of the mountain.

It was called a mountain, but in reality, it was just a small hill. A great number of Dragon Pattern Trees were, however, planted on it.

The three of them walked into the forest. Li Qian looked around and shook his head. "Only about a third of the Dragon Pattern Tree leaves have turned golden-yellow. It’s a bit lacking. We’ll probably have to wait a while longer for all of them to change."

Hearing this, Mary Galoway’s lips suddenly twisted into a strange smile. "It is a bit of a shame. Not quite perfect."

She looked at Li Qian and continued, "However, I’ve heard there’s a way to make the Dragon Pattern Tree leaves turn yellow ahead of schedule."

Upon hearing this, Li Lanying’s interest was immediately piqued. "Oh? And how do you make the Dragon Pattern Tree leaves turn yellow ahead of time?"

Mary Galoway chuckled. "It’s simple. All you need to do is water them with enough fresh blood."

With that, she turned her head to look at Li Qian and Li Lanying, her sunny, brilliant smile gone, replaced by one that was utterly cold and sinister.

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