Vol 2 Chapter 129: Cake
The Valentine’s Day chocolate exchange event finally ca to an end in a strange atmosphere filled with both joy and lancholy.
After a brief mont of emotion, Veronica quickly composed herself and resud her usual self-control, quietly dealing with tasks from the physical world while sitting on the sofa.
Just when she thought the day’s activities were over and nothing else was going to happen, she noticed that Lin Xiaolu and the others still seed rather busy, hustling around the counter.
Were they cleaning the tools used to make the chocolates? But if it was just cleaning, why was it taking so long?
Mildly curious, Veronica waited until Bai Jingxuan walked past the sofa after leaving the counter and asked, “What are you guys up to now?”
Bai Jingxuan hesitated for a mont. But seeing it was Veronica who asked, she quickly tossed that hesitation aside and replied honestly, “We’re making a cake.”
“A cake?”
That caught Veronica a bit off guard. “You even bought cake-making kits?”
“Yep! We were originally planning to finish the cake right after the chocolates this afternoon, but it turned out way more complicated than we thought.”
Bai Jingxuan let out a weary expression at just the right mont. “So when you ca ho, we were still watching tutorials trying to figure it out.”
Probably because neither Lin Xiaolu nor Xia Liang were paying attention to this side, Bai Jingxuan just went ahead and called Veronica “Mom.” Doing sothing behind the others’ backs gave Veronica a strange feeling, but she didn’t dwell on it. As usual, she accepted the title and continued asking:
“Why are you guys still trying to make a cake today? If you’re tired, you could just rest and make it tomorrow.”
In her mind, the girls probably got inspired after buying chocolate-making tools and materials and wanted to challenge themselves with a more difficult dessert. The old Fangting team had done stuff like this before—it wasn’t surprising.
“Tomorrow would be too late. We have to finish it today.”
But Bai Jingxuan shook her head and dropped a bombshell that made Veronica’s heart skip a beat: “We’re making it to celebrate Xiaolu-jie’s dad’s birthday.”
“…Huh?” The news hit so suddenly that Veronica couldn’t even respond with words—just a confused sound.
And then, in an instant, she realized—if what Bai Jingxuan said was true, she might be in a very awkward position right now.
It wasn’t strange that these girls knew her birthday. After all, she had once ntioned it to Bai Jingxuan while using her Lin Yun identity. Lin Xiaolu, being her daughter, should naturally know. As for Xia Liang, with her intel-gathering skills, it was only a matter of ti before she learned about it through the other two.
“Today’s his birthday? That’s quite the coincidence.”
Trying to stay calm, Veronica ran calculations in her head while asking stiffly, “So what’s the plan for celebrating?”
“Xiaolu-jie said we’ll make a cake, video call her dad, and then send the cake back to the physical world.”
Bai Jingxuan didn’t notice Veronica’s subtle change in expression and replied naturally, “She already talked to a shop clerk yesterday and arranged everything.”
“I see. That actually sounds like a nice idea.”
Veronica grew more and more uneasy, shifting her gaze toward Lin Xiaolu while trying to maintain a relaxed facade. “Do you think you guys will finish the cake in ti?”
“Hmm… almost, I think?”
Bai Jingxuan blinked a few tis, then suddenly exclaid, “Ah! I nearly forgot—Xia Liang-jie asked to co here and get her phone!”
With that, she looked down and began rummaging around the low table next to the sofa, supposedly searching for Xia Liang’s phone.
But Veronica knew—there was no phone there. She’d been sitting here the whole ti, and the table was clearly empty.
She looked up toward the counter, where Xia Liang was working with Lin Xiaolu. Xia Liang seed to notice her gaze and gave her an exaggerated wink from across the room.
Veronica let out a long sigh.
Now she understood everything.
Without a doubt, among the three girls, only Xia Liang knew the truth about her identity. After learning that today was her birthday and that Lin Xiaolu wanted to make her a cake, Xia Liang had clearly anticipated this entire scenario.
She’d deliberately sent Bai Jingxuan over with the flimsy excuse of retrieving a phone, knowing full well that Bai Jingxuan was too honest to lie. All Veronica had to do was ask a few casual questions, and Bai Jingxuan would spill the beans about the cake without worrying about Lin Xiaolu’s intentions.
Just like that, Xia Liang managed to pass the ssage along and clue Veronica in on what was happening.
So now the question was—what should she do?
Veronica thought for a mont, then quickly ca to a conclusion: No matter what, she couldn’t stay here.
“Xuan.”
Having made up her mind, she pretended to take a call, then looked at Bai Jingxuan with a serious expression. “Sothing ca up. I need to step out for a bit. You guys rember to rest early.”
“Oh… huh?”
Bai Jingxuan looked up from the low table, confused. “You’re going out? But it’s already really late.”
“Can’t help it. Soone ssaged —urgent.”
Veronica stood straight up, gave Bai Jingxuan a reassuring pat on the shoulder, and said, “Don’t worry, I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
With that, she left the lounge area and headed toward the exit of the observatory room. On the way out, she had to pass by the counter, where she saw the cake on the table in front of Lin Xiaolu—already mostly finished.
“Sorry, urgent stuff ca up. I need to step out.”
Putting on a convincing act, Veronica looked at Lin Xiaolu and Xia Liang with a calm face. “If you guys get tired, rember to rest early.”
“Huh? Going out now?”
Lin Xiaolu, previously focused on decorating the cake, turned to Veronica with a surprised look and asked nearly the sa question as Bai Jingxuan. Only this ti, her eyes darted nervously to the cake. “But… this…”
“I heard you’re making it for your dad’s birthday, right?”
Veronica nodded, as if discussing sothing that had nothing to do with her. “I think it’s a great idea. Good luck—he’ll be happy.”
“Um… thanks?”
Lin Xiaolu’s expression was a little awkward as she accepted the blessing. She bit her lip. “So… is it really sothing urgent? I an… we’re almost done with the cake. If you could just stay a little longer, we could—”
“Sorry.”
Veronica forced herself to wear a slightly regretful look. “I really do think it’s aningful, but there’s sothing I have to take care of. I’ll send him a birthday ssage myself afterward.”
Saying this, she didn’t give Lin Xiaolu a chance to persuade her any further. She turned and walked straight toward the exit.
Once she left the observatory and put so distance between herself and the building, her footsteps grew quicker and quicker—until finally, she broke into a jog, almost like she was running away.
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