Chapter 1075

The doorbell rang just as Bernie stepped out of the bathroom, clad only in a pale gray silk robe, a pristine white towel in one hand as he dabbed at his damp hair. He opened the door to find Ivy leaning slightly forward, a playful grin on her face as she waved at him. "Hello, Brother Bernie!" Bernie looked puzzled. "Miss Xu, it's quite late. What brings you here?" Ivy held up a delicate fist, then suddenly opened it, letting a finely crafted Sichuan opera face-changing puppet dangle before Bernie's eyes. "You left this little guy at my place. Thought I'd return it." Bernie stared at the tiny puppet for a moment before chuckling. "Thank you, Miss Xu. But it's just a small toy—you could've given it to me tomorrow. No need to make a special trip." Still wearing that mischievous smile, Ivy looked utterly guileless as she pulled her other hand from behind her back like a magician revealing a trick. "Oh, but I didn’t come just for the puppet," she said mysteriously. "I’m here for a story. An