Chapter 193 – My Lady Heroine in the Holographic Online Game – The Hot Spring Inn (07)
When Bai Tang woke up, he found himself lying in someone’s arms.
He lifted his head and immediately met a pair of smiling eyes.
“Morning, Tang Tang,” Qi Hongyi tugged at the blanket covering them, clearly reluctant to get up.
“Morning~” Bai Tang usually had a bit of morning temper, but today he had finally gotten enough sleep and was in a rare good mood.
“We agreed to go to the hot spring inn. Should we get up now?”
Whether Bai Tang got up or not, Qi Hongyi was the one benefitting from their closeness, so he didn’t mind enjoying a bit more time cuddling.
“Get up!” Bai Tang jumped up, full of energy as he opened the wardrobe to pick out clothes.
Ever since he arrived in this world, his parents and older brothers never let him go out to play, saying the outside was dangerous. The only places he was allowed to go were the nearby park and the Qi family’s house. But now, he could finally go out and have fun openly and freely.
“Tang Tang, wear the blue one. Blue looks lively and cute,” Qiu’er said, pointing to a blue tracksuit.
“White is better. It looks clean and non-threatening,” said Xiao A, closing a thick notebook while wearing glasses.
“According to the female lead’s schedule, her family has hit a financial crisis. She’ll be working part-time at the hot spring inn today. Based on her protagonist halo, there’s a 90% chance the host will run into her. It’s best for the host to strike first and leave her no room to nitpick.”
“You can even analyze the female lead’s halo?” Qiu’er looked skeptical.
“You don’t believe I have that function? Want me to show you?” Xiao A shot it a glance.
“Show me, then. Go on and—Hey! I said show the data, not strip your clothes! You pervert—!” Qiu’er screeched.
“I have to take off my clothes to transmit the analysis video to you…”
Bai Tang abruptly cut off the connection to both systems with a snap. They were too noisy—his head hurt.
One Qiu’er was already a handful. Thankfully, Xiao A was usually calm and silent. Who would’ve thought the two would constantly bicker once put together?
Bai Tang casually picked a white tracksuit. After changing into it, he looked even more innocent and pure.
It was like he had “I’m easy to fool, come scam me!” written all over his face. Yet he was completely unaware, walking downstairs just like that.
Qi Hongyi, who had been waiting downstairs for Bai Tang to get ready, paused for a breath when he saw him.
He knew the boy was beautiful. If last time he looked like a little angel, then this time he was more like a down-to-earth little angel—livelier, more approachable, and even cuter.
“I’m ready, let’s go!” Bai Tang eagerly pulled Qi Hongyi toward the car.
After helping Bai Tang, who sat in the passenger seat, fasten his seatbelt, Qi Hongyi handed him a bottle of milk and a toasted nut sandwich.
“To make it to the hot spring inn before dark, you’ll have to make do with a light meal for now.”
In truth, Qi Hongyi had wanted Bai Tang to eat properly before they left, but Bai Tang was too excited. He wasn’t particularly interested in the hot springs themselves, but he was interested in the inn’s facilities. He’d heard the place was built to simulate a forest, and he was dying to see it.
“Thank you! These are all my favorites,” Bai Tang said with a sweet smile as he opened the packaging.
Even though the male lead had no memories from their past worlds, he always seemed to remember what Bai Tang liked to eat. Bai Tang was overjoyed. Not even the news that they’d soon run into the female lead, Jiang Yiran, could dampen his mood.
Spending time alone with his beloved made even the air taste sweet.
Qi Hongyi didn’t mention breaking off the engagement again. Instead, he confessed his feelings once more. This was their official date. Bai Tang couldn’t help smiling and even started humming a little tune.
Seeing how happy Bai Tang was, Qi Hongyi’s mood also lifted. As long as the boy was happy, he was willing to do anything.
At three in the afternoon, they arrived at the hot spring inn.
The inn covered a large area and was located in a rather remote place. Despite this, it was quite well-known. The inn was divided into several zones, so even if one area was booked out, it didn’t interfere with business in the others.
Qi Hongyi had reserved one of the hot spring areas—the one closest to the forest. He had a feeling Bai Tang would like it.
Sure enough, after putting down his luggage, Bai Tang ran straight toward the forest outside.
“It feels just like a real rainforest~” Bai Tang took a deep breath. Even the air smelled fresh.
“Do you like it? There’s a swing over there too,” Qi Hongyi said, taking on the role of a tour guide as he led Bai Tang through the artificial forest.
“A swing!” Bai Tang’s eyes lit up.
This artificial forest was a public area, so Bai Tang couldn’t openly turn into a little squirrel to play—but swinging on a swing was perfectly fine. He realized he might never have been on a swing before.
The swing was simple in design: a wooden plank and some vine ropes. The vines were tied to both ends of the plank and hung from a tree branch. It looked rustic and charming—Bai Tang loved it.
He sat on the swing and gently rocked back and forth. It gave him the sensation of being a little squirrel again, swaying between tree branches.
“Yiyi, can you push the swing for me?” Bai Tang turned to Qi Hongyi and asked sweetly.
The sudden nickname caught Qi Hongyi by surprise and filled him with delight. He walked behind Bai Tang and began to gently push the swing.
“A yi” sounded too much like “auntie,” so “Yiyi” it was instead. Hmm… come to think of it, even Su Su used reduplicated nicknames for his partner.
Bai Tang recalled his good friend Bai Chuansu from the beastman world. He wondered how Su Su was doing now. Had he managed to bring the Demon Lord back home…
“Higher! Push me higher! Hahaha…”
The forest echoed with Bai Tang’s joyful laughter.
Jiang Yiran, carrying a tea tray, paused mid-step and glanced outside thoughtfully. She saw a handsome man pushing a cute young boy on a swing—the two of them clearly having a great time.
For some reason, the scene stung.
So this was what it meant to be rich. Ever since she transmigrated into this world, the only place she’d made a name for herself was in the gaming world.
In reality, she had very few friends. Her family wasn’t doing well, and now that both her parents had lost their jobs and were in debt, she was forced to work part-time to support them.
That boy’s smile—it was genuinely irritating. Just like that persistent begonia flower always clinging to Qing Ge in the game. It made her deeply uncomfortable.
“Jiang Yiran, what are you spacing out for? Go deliver the tea to the guests,” said the front desk manager, squinting at her as he walked by.
“Ah, yes.” Jiang Yiran snapped out of it and quickly carried the tray toward the swing.
“Here is your tea set,” Jiang Yiran said, placing the afternoon tea on the stone table.
“Tang Tang, they’ve got your favorite roasted chestnuts,” Qi Hongyi said, lifting the boy off the swing.
Bai Tang clomp-clomp-clomped over to the tea table. He took a whiff of the chestnuts’ sweet aroma and said to Jiang Yiran, “Thank you.”
When Bai Tang was happy, Qi Hongyi was happy too. He tapped his card on the scanner on Jiang Yiran’s wristband. “You can head back now. We’ll call you if we need anything.”
Things develop fast these days—even tipping is done by card. Most of the people who come to the hot spring inn aren’t short on money, and they’re generous with tips. That was exactly why Jiang Yiran chose to work part-time here.
Qi Hongyi was clearly generous, but for some reason, Jiang Yiran felt a surge of irritation when she saw Bai Tang smiling so contentedly while enjoying his afternoon tea.
He looked exactly like Yi Zhi Haitang—not only in appearance, but also in name, and even the way he ate. Could he actually be Yi Zhi Haitang?
Once that thought took root, she couldn’t shake it. Smiling as she carried the tray away, she actually headed back into the inn to check the guest records for today.
This area had been privately booked, so finding information about Bai Tang and Qi Hongyi was actually very easy.
“Those guests seem pretty wealthy. I’m worried I won’t serve them well, so I wanted to check if the inn has any notes on their preferences,” Jiang Yiran said to the front desk.
Some rich people had strange quirks—if you happened to trigger one of their sore spots, the best case might be getting fired, and the worst? Ending up blacklisted by the wealthy and never finding work again.
It was a perfectly reasonable excuse. The receptionist didn’t suspect a thing. And since it wasn’t sensitive data—just general preferences guests had willingly provided—she pulled up the guest info for the booked section and handed it to Jiang Yiran. Qi Hongyi’s name was clearly listed.
“Wow, you’ve got good luck. Young Master Qi is the founder of Wulin Chronicles! He’s—” the receptionist said with admiration, listing off all of Qi Hongyi’s achievements: his sharp business acumen, exceptional talent, prestigious background, and more.
“I saw a young man with him. Who is he?” Jiang Yiran asked.
“A young boy? Is he very delicate-looking, cute, and likes eating nuts…”
“Yes, that’s him. Young Master Qi even ordered a lot of nut snacks for his afternoon tea.”
The receptionist smiled, “You don’t know? That’s Young Master Qi’s fiancé—the young master of the Bai family.”
Jiang Yiran learned quite a bit about Qi Hongyi and Bai Tang from the front desk. Every time she heard Qi Hongyi on the phone instructing them to prepare this or that for Bai Tang, her heart sank a little more.
She had a vague feeling that things weren’t supposed to turn out this way. The person who should be close and intimate with Qi Hongyi was her, not that boy named Bai Tang.
At this moment, the female lead’s aura completely dimmed. The receptionist had worked at the hot spring inn for a long time and knew a lot of inside information about the upper class.
She blurted out the rumor she’d heard recently about Qi Hongyi and Bai Tang’s broken engagement. “They say Young Master Qi doesn’t like Young Master Bai and wants to call off the engagement. But today he brought him here and seemed so considerate. I really don’t understand the world of the rich…”
Jiang Yiran smiled quietly to herself.
Bai Tang played all afternoon. That night, Qi Hongyi wanted to take Bai Tang to soak in the hot springs but was refused.
“No, no, no!” Bai Tang shook his head frantically. Getting into the water was like death to him.
Qi Hongyi casually said, “Could it be that Tang Tang is scared?”
“N-no, I’m not! I’m just… just tired. Yes, I’m tired and want to sleep.” Bai Tang pretended to yawn.
“Alright then, looks like I’ll be the only one soaking tonight. You stay in the room and rest. I heard from 7 to 9 PM, the inn will be doing electrical maintenance. The power might be unstable, and the room could lose electricity. Make sure to cover yourself well so you don’t catch a cold,” Qi Hongyi said slowly.
Bai Tang swallowed nervously. “Power outage, huh…”
Coincidentally or not, right after Qi Hongyi finished speaking, the lights flickered several times.
A cold draft blew through, making Bai Tang shiver. The dark, cold atmosphere felt spooky, as if there were ghosts.
“Alright then, since we’re here, I’ll accompany you to the hot springs,” Bai Tang said, puffing out his little chest.
“Thanks for the company, Tang Tang,” Qi Hongyi said affectionately, ruffling the boy’s hair. He didn’t call Bai Tang out on his bluff but instead took him outside.
Author’s note:
Jiang Yiran’s female lead aura can sense changes in the plot. So… what will she do next?