One day in early May, Lu Chen and Ei returned home from school and opened the door.
"I'm home~"
The moment Lu Chen stepped inside, a blast of freezing air hit him square in the face, making him sneeze on the spot.
"..."
"Whoa, why is it so cold?!"
He stood shivering in the living room, glancing around in disbelief. If Qiqi hadn't been quietly sitting on the sofa reading a book, he might've thought Cryo Hypostasis had resurrected and followed them home.
Even Ei instinctively went on alert, but everything in the room seemed normal—no sign of enemies.
Still, it was freezing. The temperature felt like it had dropped to at least minus ten, like they'd stepped into December.
They exchanged a look, then turned their eyes toward Qiqi on the sofa.
Hearing the commotion, Qiqi's large rose-colored eyes lifted from her book. When she saw Lu Chen, the blankness in her gaze noticeably softened.
"It's Lu Chen… good afternoon…"
"Good afternoon, Qiqi…"
Lu Chen braved the chill and stepped into the living room. A glance at the AC confirmed it—set to the lowest temperature.
But the real culprit wasn't the AC—it was the dense Cryo element filling the air. Ever since Lu Chen gained a Cryo Vision, he hadn't unlocked any talents yet, but he'd become especially sensitive to Cryo energy.
Qiqi had basically turned their four-bedroom apartment into a walk-in freezer...
"Qiqi, did you feel the room was too hot?"
Qiqi gently set her book aside and nodded her tiny head. "It's nice and cool like this… very comfortable…"
Lu Chen gave her a helpless look. This wasn't "cool"—this was borderline deadly...
If he stayed here all day, he'd become "cool" too—literally.
He glanced toward Venti's room. The door was tightly shut, and faint rhythmic thuds could be heard from inside.
Venti had no classes today, so he came home early.
Was he totally unaware?
Maybe it was the wind field he'd set up—not only blocking sound but also sealing off external temperatures.
Well, time to share the experience.
Lu Chen opened the door. Sure enough, Venti was inside, practicing jazz drumming alone. Lu Chen activated his Anemo Vision and sneakily disrupted Venti's wind field.
Cold air flooded the room in an instant.
"Why is it so cold?!"
Venti reacted even more dramatically than Lu Chen, sneezing over ten times in a row before staring toward the doorway in disbelief.
"Did you bring Cryo Hypostasis back with you?!"
Lu Chen snorted. "Cryo Hypostasis would be easy—just beat it up... Come see for yourself."
Venti eyed Lu Chen and Ei suspiciously, then threw on another layer and grabbed a bottle of wine before following them out.
The whole scene felt like déjà vu from their time in the snowy mountains.
The moment he stepped into the living room, Venti understood. It was Qiqi's Cryo Vision—she'd turned their home into a giant refrigerator.
"Does little Qiqi like it this cold?"
Qiqi sat quietly on the sofa. Seeing the three of them gathered around, she seemed to realize she'd done something wrong.
"I'm sorry… Qiqi is a zombie…" she said, lowering her head.
Seeing her like that, Lu Chen couldn't bring himself to scold her—he just felt a headache brewing.
Her body really wasn't suited to warm environments. Qiqi loved cold places. She'd even unconsciously fall asleep on the floor. Sometimes she'd open the fridge, stand there without eating anything, and just let the cold air blow on her for an hour...
Everyone from Teyvat had their quirks. Ei would sneak into the kitchen and accidentally blow up pots. Venti's room always reeked of alcohol and echoed with nonstop music. And Qiqi—she turned rooms into frozen wastelands...
The more Lu Chen thought about it, the worse his headache got.
Who knew how many more issues he'd have to deal with in the future…
"We should install a separate AC for Qiqi's room," Venti said, taking a sip of wine to warm up.
Lu Chen nodded. A regular unit wouldn't cut it—he needed something like a cold storage system specifically for Qiqi.
No sooner said than done. Lu Chen dismantled the air conditioners from the living room and his own bedroom and had them all moved into Qiqi's room. Then he called up a seller to order a more powerful unit.
Watching Lu Chen bustling around, Qiqi quietly pulled out her diary and began writing.
"The room is hot, but I shouldn't bother Lu Chen. I won't use Cryo carelessly."
"I have poor memory, so I forgot I used the Ice Blood Talisman several times. I should write it down next time I cool the room."
"Set the AC to the lowest. The remote is usually on the coffee table."
Venti, curious about her serious scribbling, peeked over.
"Oh? So little Qiqi forgot how many times she used her ability!"
Lu Chen wiped sweat from his forehead and glanced over too.
He imagined the scene: Qiqi felt hot, cooled the room. A while later, she forgot she had, so she cooled it again. Then again…
Infinite loop.
So this is what "fish memory" looks like...
Lu Chen walked over and saw the book Qiqi had been reading—How to Improve Memory: 100 Ways to Make Your Child Love Learning.
He wasn't sure how effective that would be.
Qiqi seemed a bit shy about people reading her diary. When she noticed Venti sneaking a look, she gently closed the book.
"Alright, alright, I won't peek~" Venti muttered, dragging his slippers back to his room.
Once the door closed, the sound of drumming resumed from within.
Lu Chen was curious too, but he respected others' privacy, so he turned to leave.
Unexpectedly, Qiqi held out her diary to him, like a child handing homework to a parent.
"It's Lu Chen… you can read…"
"These are Qiqi's notes… are they correct…"
Lu Chen was caught off guard, but he took the diary and flipped through it curiously.
Inside, he found a detailed log of her entire day—notes and reminders, down to the tiniest things.
"In the morning, do stretching exercises or my body will get stiff."
"There's coconut milk at the store downstairs. I like it, but I must pay. Last time I didn't and caused trouble for Lu Chen."
"The TV remote is on the coffee table or the sofa."
"Remember to sleep at night. Even if I can't, Lu Chen said I have to, so I will."
"Turn off the lights before sleeping. Lu Chen said I must sleep in the bed, not on the floor. If not, he'll be angry."
"Lu Chen said…"
As he read on, Lu Chen let out a quiet sigh.
In her condition, Qiqi couldn't even handle daily life without someone guiding her—and she was so obedient, it was almost heartbreaking...
Helping them adjust to this world… was going to be a long road.