Panda Cub – Chapter 8

Go to sleep

“President Jing, what do you mean by this?”

The few men stood up, their faces darkening as they watched Jing Dan pull their prey behind her in a protective stance.

With an expressionless face, Jing Dan stood in front of a woman who had already drunk enough to be flushed and red-eared, facing those men head-on, and said directly, “I’m taking this person away.”

Hearing her words, the expressions of the men slightly changed, and they were silent for a moment, taking into account Xu Zhihuan.

“President Jing, even if you want to take the person away, it also depends on whether she is willing to go with you, doesn’t it?” The leader’s gaze pierced over Jing Dan’s shoulder, looking at the woman. She, stung by his look, shrank a little.

Her eyes slowly reddened, and she shook her head, her figure staggering slightly, but she still tried to distance herself from those men.

At this moment, a pair of hands reached out from the side and steadied her.

The woman looked up and saw an extremely beautiful woman, her eyebrows and eyes calmly fixed on the back of the person standing before her, her eyes showing some fluctuation.

She was stunned, looking at these people who stood by her side. Experiencing such treatment for the first time in this circle almost moved her to tears.

“She has made it very clear. She is willing to leave with us,” Jing Dan said coldly.

At this time, Xu Zhihuan also noticed the situation here. She came over and, with just one glance, understood what was happening.

She looked at Jing Dan’s indifferent face and then at the woman behind her with slightly reddened eyes. A flicker of dark light passed through her eyes, somewhat displeased that Jing Dan was actually protecting her.

“Zhang Yuan, what are you doing?” Xu Zhihuan asked in a faint voice.

The man called Zhang Yuan, hearing Xu Zhihuan speak in such a tone, was suddenly alarmed, with cold sweat about to break out. He quickly said, “Nothing, nothing, just discussing some matters with President Jing. Now that we’re done, we’ll take our leave.”

Saying this, he carefully gauged Xu Zhihuan’s expression, and seeing that she was unreactive, he wiped his sweat and hurriedly led his people away.

Unexpectedly, President Xu held Jing Dan in such high regard.

After the crowd had left, Xu Zhihuan turned to look at Jing Dan and said with a light laugh, “Nothing serious happened, right?”

Jing Dan’s face remained cold, and her perception of Xu Zhihuan worsened. Despite her seemingly taking her side just now, those people had dared to pull such a stunt on her turf, which surely wasn’t their first time; they were all tarred with the same brush.

Seeing that she was ignoring her, Xu Zhihuan let out a helpless chuckle and spoke with the tone of someone who had been around the block, “Jing Dan, that’s just the way this circle works. These matters are all consensual, and intervening too much could actually hinder their progress.”

Her gaze fell on that woman as she spoke these words.

The woman’s face turned pale under that gaze, and she lowered her head to avoid making eye contact.

Jing Dan did not respond to her words but simply stated, “It’s getting late, we should head back now.”

Without giving her another glance, Jing Dan glanced at the two people behind her and took the lead heading out.

He Ying watched Jing Dan’s retreating figure and smiled faintly, supporting the woman as she followed in Jing Dan’s steps, leaving Xu Zhihuan behind with a suddenly gloomy expression.

The three of them arrived outside, and Jing Dan led them straight to her car. She then lowered her eyes toward the woman who could no longer stand on her own and was leaning on He Ying, pondering over what to do next.

It wouldn’t be right to leave someone who couldn’t even stand up by themselves behind and go back alone, would it? Auntie had said not to trust others too easily, so what if something happened to her after being abandoned? And what about He Ying?

He Ying steadied the woman and, looking at Jing Dan’s contemplative expression, spoke faintly, “I didn’t drive here.”

The implication was clear: you’re expected to give me a ride back.

Jing Dan understood her meaning but upon lifting her eyes and seeing her smug, smiling demeanor—as if she had Jing Dan all figured out—Jing Dan felt a little displeased.

This was only their third meeting; what made her think that Jing Dan would look after her?

“You didn’t drive here, so just go back the way you came!” Her tone was somewhat harsh; thinking about how she was teased and taken advantage of last night made her angry. How could there be such a demoness like He Ying! She must be a sly fox spirit!

He Ying blinked slowly, puzzled about what had made the other person angry again. She hadn’t provoked her, had she? She was merely stating the fact that she indeed hadn’t driven.

“Fine, you steady this person, then look after her on your own, and I’ll be on my way.” He Ying chuckled lightly, pushing the woman towards Jing Dan and, as expected, saw her immediately take two steps back, raising an eyebrow in response.

“You don’t want to take care of her, yet you’re telling me to leave; what should be done with this person, then?”

Jing Dan: “……”

She glanced at the woman giving her a pleading look and, in the end, allowed He Ying to help the woman into the car.

But once in the car, she felt a bit troubled, as she surely couldn’t just bring the person back to her place!

“Where do you live?” He Ying asked the woman.

The woman was completely befuddled by the alcohol; she had been stubbornly holding on to her willpower before, but now, knowing she was safe, the effects of the alcohol overwhelmed her, and she could barely keep her eyes open, let alone speak.

He Ying sighed softly and said to Jing Dan, “Drive to a hotel.”

Upon hearing this, Jing Dan grunted in acknowledgment and obediently steered the car to a hotel as He Ying had instructed.

Arriving at the hotel, He Ying looked at Jing Dan, who had completely distanced herself from the situation and was not lifting a finger to help.

“……”

Who was it that wanted to save this person? Just save someone without managing the aftermath?

With a helpless laugh in her heart, alright then, that person didn’t look like someone who would take care of others.

“If you’re not going to lend a hand here, you can at least manage to book a room, right?”

Jing Dan blinked and obediently went to the front desk to check in.

With someone else present, He Ying couldn’t use her spirit powers and had no choice but to struggle to help the limp-bodied woman up, following in Jing Dan’s footsteps, and then with the aid of the hotel staff, managed to get the woman into the room.

Watching He Ying carefully help the woman onto the bed and tucking her in, Jing Dan blinked. This person seemed quite gentle now. How could she keep changing faces?

He Ying turned around and saw Jing Dan’s somewhat dazed expression, and couldn’t help but laugh, “What are you thinking about, to be so lost in thought that your soul is gone?”

She found that sometimes this person really just immersed themselves in their own world and ignored everything else, like a sullen child filled with thoughts yet chooses to remain silent.

Snapping back to reality, Jing Dan looked at her with raised eyebrows, a spectator’s amusement on her face, and restrained the urge to roll her eyes—a gesture that would be out of character for her.

Seeing that Jing Dan offered no reply, He Ying didn’t seem to mind and said, “Let’s go, take me back.”

Jing Dan glanced at the time; it was nearly eleven o’clock. She had hardly slept much that day, and if she were to take He Ying back, she was sure to end up sleeping even later.

“Well, you take a taxi back yourself. I’m tired and want to go back to sleep.”

He Ying: “…”

Listen to this, is this even human language? It’s only eleven o’clock, you’re saying you’re sleepy, are you one of those little kids who still need to grow so you have to sleep early!

Seeing that she remained silent, Jing Dan thought she might be worried about the taxi fare, so she said, “Don’t worry, I’ll cover the taxi fare!”

With that, she actually took out her phone and transferred the money to He Ying on the spot. After the transaction was done, she smiled as if she had accomplished a mission. She nodded in self-approval, perfectly satisfied, and said to He Ying, “There, the money has been transferred. Now I’ll go back to sleep first.”

He Ying: “…”

She watched Jing Dan’s departing figure with a petrified expression, still unable to believe that Jing Dan would pull off such a move, and actually left her behind to go to sleep by herself.

Go back to sleep?

He Ying snapped back to reality and almost burst into laughter at Jing Dan’s excuse. What adult would claim to be sleepy at eleven o’clock?

Shaking her head with a helpless chuckle, a flash of white light, and she disappeared within the room.

Upon leaving the hotel, Jing Dan hastened non-stop towards home. Unexpectedly, inside the living room, Jing Shiyue was sitting alone, drowning her sorrows in alcohol, which took Jing Dan aback.

Should she go to bed later and ask what happened?

Before she could make up her mind, Jing Shiyue already spotted her and waved her over.

Jing Dan obediently sat down beside her, watching her pour a glass of wine and asked somewhat confusedly, “Auntie, what’s wrong?”

It had been so long since she’d seen her like this. Since when did her aunt have moments of drinking alone in silence?

Jing Shiyue slowly smiled, shaking her head without saying a word.

Seeing that she wasn’t speaking, Jing Dan tactfully did not inquire further, merely sitting by her side in silence, keeping her company.

Jing Shiyue drank one glass after another, and even though she was a spirit, her constitution couldn’t withstand such torment. A blush crept over her pale complexion, and a mist started to form in her clear and efficient eyes, looking as if tears might fall at any moment.

Why did it happen again, why?

She drained the last of the wine from the bottle in one gulp, and when she turned to look at Jing Dan, she found that at some point, Jing Dan had transformed back into her most comfortable panda form, sound asleep amidst several soft pillows. Even the tuft of hair atop her head seemed to carry a sweet scent.

Tiny, about the size of a throw pillow, she sprawled on the sofa with all four paws spread out. Her small head tilted to one side, and it was not clear if she was fatigued from the day’s events, but she was softly snoring.

Jing Shiyue couldn’t help but smile, and her somewhat melancholic mood was greatly alleviated thanks to Jing Dan’s comforting presence.

Lifting a hand, she gently brushed away the tuft of hair on her head, the smile in her eyes growing deeper.

In their clan, she was the only one with such an undignified tuft of hair on her head, which made the already goofy and cute little panda look even more dazed, losing many appearances of astuteness.

Considering that Jing Dan’s company was a good distance away from here, and if she didn’t use her spirit powers to commute, it indeed required some time.

Should she consider buying a house near the company for her? She’ll ask for her opinion tomorrow.

Jing Shiyue carefully picked up Jing Dan. The little bundle nestled in her arms was truly just like a throw pillow, even comfortably finding a more cozy position to sleep in within her embrace without any guard up.

She smiled helplessly. With Jing Dan like this, how could she have peace of mind entrusting her to someone else?

The author has something to say:

Jing Xiaodan with her silly cowlick, always stands upright and loves to sleep!