My Virtual Wife Stepped Out of My Phone to Find Me - Chapter 16

Qi Ying looked at Xing Xiaochu and the little kitten in her arms, saying helplessly, “Why are you apologizing again? This clearly isn’t your fault.”

The kitten mewled pitifully. When Qi Ying reached out to touch it, the little thing hissed while shrinking timidly into Xing Xiaochu’s embrace. Xing Xiaochu blinked up at the woman before her and asked, “Is it hungry, sis?”

Qi Ying scratched the kitten’s chin and glanced around before saying, “They said it was stolen from a bar. Let’s return it.”

Xing Xiaochu nodded and followed Qi Ying to find the bar.

With Qi Ying accompanying her, Xing Xiaochu felt less afraid walking at night. As she stroked the kitten’s back, she stole glances at Qi Ying, noticing her pajamas and slippers with a hint of confusion.

“Sis,” Xing Xiaochu asked softly, “how did you find me?”

Qi Ying scratched her cheek. “When I didn’t see you at home, I guessed you’d gone downstairs. Didn’t take long to find you surrounded by those people.”

Xing Xiaochu made a small sound of acknowledgment, then looked up again while cuddling the kitten. “Is your work very busy? Did you just get off work?”

Qi Ying kept her hands in her pockets and nodded. “Yeah.”

Xing Xiaochu didn’t dare ask further.

If she came out wearing pajamas and slippers, why say she just got off work?

Afraid of being annoying, Xing Xiaochu lowered her head and continued walking. A faintly sweet peach scent of pheromones reached her nose. She hugged the kitten tighter, feeling at a loss.

She wanted to ask whose place Qi Ying had stayed at—was it that peach-scented Omega’s?

She also wanted to ask why Qi Ying came looking for her so late at night—was she worried?

But Xing Xiaochu didn’t dare voice any of these questions.

As they walked in silence, Qi Ying spoke first.

“Why aren’t you asleep so late?” Qi Ying glanced at the girl. “It’s dangerous for an Omega to be out alone at night. Luckily those two didn’t hurt you—how would I explain to your mom otherwise?”

At the mention of her mother, Xing Xiaochu immediately looked up. After a long pause, she whispered, “Sorry.”

Qi Ying laughed, stopping to ruffle the girl’s hair gently. “Why apologize again? Meeting bad people isn’t your fault. Just be more careful next time—don’t go into alleys or wander alone at night.”

Xing Xiaochu squinted under the affectionate touch, much like the kitten in her arms.

Her amber eyes shimmered beautifully in the night, making Qi Ying stare momentarily before noticing her own accelerated heartbeat. She quickly withdrew her hand and pointed at a nearby bar, saying softly, “We’re almost there.”

It was a quiet bar that had already closed, though lights were still on inside.

Standing before the locked door, they exchanged glances before both looking down at the now-sleeping kitten in Xing Xiaochu’s arms.

Qi Ying tapped the kitten’s head with her finger, amused. “Fell asleep just like that? What a carefree little thing.”

Xing Xiaochu giggled quietly too.

I can’t just abandon the kitten like this. Qi Ying hesitated for a moment before asking the smiling child, “Do you want to keep it?”

Xing Xiaochu didn’t immediately look up. Instead, she gently stroked the kitten’s tiny tail before raising her eyes to meet Qi Ying’s gaze, asking timidly, “Can I really keep it? Would it cause you any trouble…”

“Trouble is inevitable,” Qi Ying moved closer to Xing Xiaochu and said with a light laugh, “But it won’t be too much work. It’s just that since it’s so small, you’ll have to take full responsibility for its care if we keep it. Are you okay with that?”

Xing Xiaochu had never kept a pet before and wasn’t sure if she could properly care for a newly weaned kitten.

Yet she truly wanted to keep it.

Seeing the child’s hesitant expression, Qi Ying knew she was deep in thought and didn’t rush her. She simply said softly, “It’s too late now. Let’s go home first. If you wake up tomorrow morning and still don’t want to keep it, we’ll bring it back. If you decide to keep it, then we will. Okay?”

Xing Xiaochu nodded repeatedly, then seemed slightly embarrassed, her eyes darting to the ground as the tips of her ears turned bright red.

Qi Ying took the initiative to hold Xing Xiaochu’s hand. The little girl looked up at her and allowed herself to be led home.

Throughout the walk, Xing Xiaochu quietly held onto Qi Ying’s palm, alternating between looking at the kitten, at Qi Ying, and at their joined hands. Her reddened ear tips twitched slightly with shyness.

When they got home, the kitten was still asleep, its tiny snores rumbling softly. It didn’t even wake when Qi Ying took it from Xing Xiaochu’s hands or when it was placed in a washbasin lined with clothes, sleeping soundly through it all.

Bending down, Qi Ying watched with interest as Xing Xiaochu squatted beside the basin and covered the kitten with a clean handkerchief. “This cat’s definitely going to get fat,” she remarked.

Xing Xiaochu looked up at her in confusion. “Why do you say that, sister?”

“Because carefree hearts lead to plump bodies,” Qi Ying replied.

Xing Xiaochu pressed her lips together and smiled.

“You’re smiling?” Qi Ying pinched the child’s cheek lightly and helped her up. “Let it sleep in the study tonight. You can check on it tomorrow morning. Now go wash up, change, and get some sleep.”

Xing Xiaochu nodded, stealing a quick glance at Qi Ying’s pajamas beneath her coat before pretending she hadn’t seen anything and heading out the door.

At the guest bedroom door, Xing Xiaochu grasped the doorknob and said, “I’ll sleep now. Goodnight, sister.”

Qi Ying nodded at her. “Goodnight.”

Only after watching the child close the door did Qi Ying return to her own room and shut the door behind her.

Today’s events had made Qi Ying realize something unusual.

What game character would call their player in the middle of the night just because they hadn’t logged in?

Although Qi Ying hadn’t played many games before, she knew that typical mobile or PC games didn’t have this feature. When players logged off, their characters would simply wait quietly until the next login.

But Xing Xiaochu was different. She worried whether Qi Ying might be in danger when she didn’t come home, going out alone to search for her.

This was highly unusual.

Qi Ying opened the game and found the customer service contact. Seeing the phone number listed, she dialed immediately. The call was answered quickly by a sweet female electronic voice.

“Hello dear designer, I’m the customer service representative for Xing Xiaochu’s Morning Diary. How may I assist you?”

Qi Ying hesitated for a long time with his mouth open before finally asking, “Why does your game have Xing Xiaochu going out to look for me in the middle of the night? What if something happens to her?”

The customer service representative sweetly replied to Qi Ying, “Thank you for your concern about Xiaochu, designer. As a highly free-form game, Xing Xiaochu possesses her own personality and consciousness. However, players shouldn’t feel overly burdened—after all, she’s just ordinary game data. Please play rationally and avoid becoming too immersed.”