Although she had inherited memories, this was still Ji Fei's first time seeing Qin Rong in person.

Qin Rong had an adorably sweet appearance, with a delicate nose and cherry lips. Her round doe eyes held the innocence characteristic of a college student, and her fair, baby-soft skin looked irresistibly smooth.

To describe her more accurately, she was like an unworldly princess from an ivory tower, her naive and innocent nature evident at first glance.

"Big brother, didn't you hurt your hand? Please stop pulling me," Qin Rong protested weakly.

Qin Zhao unceremoniously pushed Qin Rong in front of their mother. "Mom, I just saw little sis getting too cozy with some punk. You better interrogate her properly before she gets deceived by some good-for-nothing!"

Upon hearing this, Qin Rong immediately tried to explain, feeling both wronged and anxious. However, her voice remained soft and lacked any assertiveness.

"Big brother! You can't talk about Yue like that. He's not a punk. How can you judge someone by their appearance? Just because he dyed his hair... wears earrings... and has tattoos, does that make him a bad person?"

As she spoke, Qin Rong's eyes welled up with tears. She looked as devastated as if someone had dismissed her artwork as worthless. Though she didn't dare to talk back too much, she couldn't help but mutter under her breath.

"Many celebrities in the entertainment industry look like that too. Big brother, except for not having tattoos, you've dyed your hair all sorts of crazy colors before!"

"Am I talking about his looks? I'm talking about his behavior, the way he..."

Qin Rong's face immediately turned crimson. "Big brother!"

Qin Zhao couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence. Fuming, he turned away, saying, "I don't have time to deal with you right now. I'm going to pick up Xinyue!"

With that, Qin Zhao stormed out.

Qin Rong hung her head dejectedly, but didn't forget her manners. "Mom, big sis, second sister-in-law, I'm home. Please... please don't listen to big brother's nonsense. Yue is a good person."

The Qin family was generally quite open-minded, as evidenced by their children's marital situations.

However, they had already heard the details from Ji Fei, and as Qin Rong's family members, they couldn't help but view the situation with some bias.

With that appearance, coupled with that behavior, he seemed like nothing but trouble!

They couldn't imagine their sweet little Qin Rong standing next to a boy like that.

Qin's Mom anxiously asked, "When did you start dating behind our backs? Who is he? Is he a student, or is he working already? How long have you known him?"

Qin Yan also frowned and said, "Little sis, didn't you agree to text the driver to pick you up before you boarded the plane today? Did this man bring you home instead? Why didn't you let us know you were back? Did he tell you not to inform your family?"

Having been deceived and hurt by men before, Qin Yan was particularly vigilant and sensitive in this regard.

Qin Rong stood in the living room, feeling as if she was facing a tribunal. Although only Qin's Mom and Qin Yan looked serious, while Ji Fei was merely enjoying the drama, Qin Rong felt immense pressure.

After all, it was her first time dating, and she was actually panicking inside.

"He's Cheng Miao's older brother. We've known each other for quite a while," Qin Rong quickly explained. "You trust Cheng Miao, right?"

Hearing this, Qin's Mom and Qin Yan felt slightly relieved, at least he wasn't a complete stranger.

[Cheng Miao? Oh, Qin Rong's college roommate and best friend. They're very close, and she used to come to the Qin house to play often.]

Qin Rong was about to nod, surprised that even her usually aloof second sister-in-law knew who Cheng Miao was. It seemed that her second sister-in-law did pay attention to her after all. She felt a bit happy, thinking her sister-in-law had changed.

However, when Qin Rong turned to look at Ji Fei, she found that Ji Fei wasn't looking at her at all, as if she hadn't just spoken.

Qin's Mom anxiously continued, "So when did you two start dating? Why didn't you tell anyone in the family? You know we won't interfere with your love life, but we need to know about it..."

Qin Rong quickly answered honestly, "I didn't mean to hide it from you. We only agreed to date during this recent field trip for inspiration."

As she spoke, Qin Rong began to blush. "He had been pursuing me before, but I was hesitant. During this trip, I realized he's really a great person. He not only took good care of our entire team but also rushed to the forefront to solve problems when we encountered difficulties. He's so brave and responsible."

As Qin Rong spoke, her eyes sparkled with admiration, a gentle and sweet look spreading across her face. She had clearly fallen into the throes of first love.

Qin's Mom and Qin Yan were still worried, after all, love is blind. Qin Rong's words couldn't be taken at face value.

Qin's Mom asked curiously, "Is he also an art student at your school?"

Qin Rong answered honestly, "No, he's not. He was temporarily hired by our professor to assist with our field trip."

Just as Qin Rong finished speaking and the others were about to ask more questions, they were interrupted by an abrupt voice.

[Pfft~ So all those impressive things Qin Rong mentioned were just part of his job?]

Qin Rong immediately looked at Ji Fei in shock. Qin's Mom and Qin Yan also realized what was happening and were about to intervene in this sudden development.

But then they saw Qin Rong anxiously trying to explain, "But he's really very kind and gentle with me. Even when I'm clumsy and make mistakes, he's always super patient."

Uh... she didn't notice the problem?

Since she wasn't looking at Ji Fei while speaking, Qin Rong just thought she had heard Ji Fei's comment and, feeling her boyfriend was being doubted, rushed to explain.

Ji Fei found it a bit strange that Qin Rong suddenly looked at her while speaking, but didn't think much of it. She assumed Qin Rong was probably just showing off her boyfriend and seeking approval.

Qin's Mom and Qin Yan breathed sighs of relief.

Qin's Mom quickly said, "Alright, your dad and second brother aren't here right now. We'll talk more when they get back in the evening. You've just arrived home, go rest for now."

Qin Rong obediently nodded, and Qin Yan hurriedly accompanied her sister upstairs, planning to find an opportunity to explain the situation with Ji Fei.

A little while later, Qin Rong sat dumbfounded on the bed, staring at Qin Yan with wide eyes. "Big sis? You..."

Qin Yan sighed, "You'll understand once you experience it yourself. We just hope you won't be too shocked when it happens, so Ji Fei doesn't notice. For now, only mom, dad, and us siblings can hear it."

Qin Rong asked, "If that's really the case, why not let second sister-in-law know that we can hear too?"

Qin Yan let out another sigh and said, "This is such an unbelievable thing, we're worried that if Ji Fei finds out, it might backfire on her. Besides, normal people wouldn't want their inner thoughts to be heard by others, right? Although we've received a lot of help from this and... well, enjoyed some gossip together, your second brother has actually been secretly looking for real masters who might have an effective solution. At the very least, we hope Ji Fei's thoughts won't leak out anymore in the future. Let her enjoy it privately if she wants."

Qin Rong didn't quite understand but nodded obediently.

Qin Yan patted Qin Rong's head and then said in her most serious tone, "Remember, this is Ji Fei's secret. Never mention a word of this to outsiders. If it's not handled properly, Ji Fei could be in danger."

It was rare for her big sister to speak so seriously, so Qin Rong nodded earnestly, though she still had doubts about the whole situation.

Afterward, Qin Yan, still concerned, inquired about the progress of the relationship. Learning that they hadn't crossed any lines came as a relief.

Soon, Qin Rong's phone rang, and her expression made it clear it was her boyfriend calling.

Qin Rong looked at Qin Yan expectantly. Just as Qin Yan was about to leave to give her some privacy, they suddenly heard wailing from downstairs.

That was... Qin Zhao's voice?