"So little food, do you think I can't afford groceries or what?" Jian Shichu threw down his chopsticks, visibly annoyed, "Go make some more!"
"…" Ye Qingci was speechless. After a while, she spoke up: "For a healthy body, feeling hunger and cold in moderation is key. Eating until you're seven-tenths full is just right. There's no need to make more."
"When I tell you to do something, just do it. Who needs all this backtalk?" Jian Shichu swore to be the tyrant."
Ye Qingci frowned at him, "I want to see my big brother. If you want to eat, I can make it for you another time."
The words "another time" oddly pleased Jian Shichu.
Used to barking orders and never allowing anyone to defy him, Jian Shichu actually curved his lips into a lazy smile and said, "I'll let you off this time. Next time you must prepare eight dishes!... No, twelve!"
Ye Qingci: "…"
Why did they call him Jian Shichu? He obviously should be called Pig Jian Shizhu!
"Let's go," Jian Shichu stood up, "I'll take you to see your big brother!"
Leaving the living room, Jian Shichu kept his gaze straight ahead and said indifferently, "Ye Qingci, remember this. Today you can go back with your big brother, but you know very well what you should and shouldn't say. If you don't want to cause trouble for the Ye family, just behave. Tomorrow afternoon after school, Xiao Ying will pick you up at your school gate."
Ye Qingci was stunned, "Pick me up for what?"
Jian Shichu glanced at her sideways, and a crushing pressure instantly swept towards Ye Qingci, "To cook for me!"
Ye Qingci's fingertips trembled, and she fell silent.
Jian Shichu at this moment was somehow different from the one in the living room just before.
This Jian Shichu, compared to just before, was more like an emperor commanding from high, alone in his awe, leaving no room for doubt or defiance.
Ye Qingci bit her lip and did not make a sound.
She knew that Jian Shichu was serious; if she didn't want to cause trouble for the Ye family, she had no choice but to obediently follow his words.
Fortunately, Jian Shichu did not threaten her with the Ye family to make her reveal the whereabouts of Shuijing and the baby.
Otherwise, caught between the Ye family and Shuijing, she would face an excruciating dilemma and probably feel like the only way out was death.
In fact, Jian Shichu had considered using the Ye family to threaten her into revealing where Shuijing and the baby were hiding.
But he intuitively felt that even if he threatened her with the Ye family, she would not divulge Shuijing and the baby's hiding place, considering how she faced torture as if she had resigned herself to death.
All that would accomplish would be to drive her into a corner, leading to her death.
Now that Ye Qingci was his, Jian Shichu's woman, how could he use such lowly means to drive his own woman to death?
Suddenly recalling her kiss, Jian Shichu shifted his gaze to her lips.
It was evening, the sky merging into dusk, with the sunset casting a warm, golden hue over everything.
Her delicate little face was impeccably jade-white, as if bathed in a thin layer of light.
Her soft lips were glossy and ripe looking, like jelly coated with honey.
Jian Shichu suddenly regretted his decision.
He shouldn't have agreed to let her leave!
But by now, they had already left the villa, and Ye Jingzhi's car was almost within reach.
On the side of the road, a wheelchair rested quietly under a kapok tree.
In the wheelchair sat a young man, silently sitting there.
White shirt, dark pants – his attire was simple, but its simplicity was elevated to an ethereal grace by the demeanor of its wearer.
He watched Ye Qingci approach with calm eyes, his handsome features resembling a serene, ancient jade set amongst scenic mountains and rivers, exuding a soothing power.
Seeing him, Ye Qingci rushed over quickly, flung herself in front of him, wrapped her arms around his waist, and buried her cheek in his chest, sobbing, "Big brother!"
Seeing her cling to a man, burying her face in his chest, flames of fury shot up to the top of Jian Shichu's head.
He reached out and grabbed Ye Qingci's arm, pulling her into his arms. Leaning down slightly, his lips brushed against Ye Qingci's ear as he said fiercely, "Clause nineteen of the agreement: no man is allowed to touch you!"
Feeling Ye Jingzhi's gaze on her back, Ye Qingci struggled, "Jian Shichu, let me go!"
Jian Shichu's eyes, sparked with fury, fixed on her, his eyebrows gradually furrowing... Was she so eager to leave his side and throw herself into Ye Jingzhi's embrace?
What was wrong with him, Jian Shichu?
Far from loosening his grip, the clasp of his hand on Ye Qingci's became even tighter.
Ye Qingci felt as if her arm was about to be crushed by him, pain causing cold sweat to break out on her forehead.
"Seventh Master!" Ye Jingzhi suddenly spoke up, "Please release my sister first, so we can talk this out properly."
The sound of Ye Jingzhi's voice brought the nearly frantic Ye Qingci to a moment of clarity.
She couldn't allow her relationship with Jian Shichu to become too stiff in front of her big brother.
Her brother would worry about her!
Moreover, if she angered Jian Shichu, he could harm the Ye family.
She owed the Ye family a debt of gratitude that she could never repay in this lifetime; she couldn't burden them further because of her own issues!
She steadied her emotions, tip-toed to whisper in Jian Shichu's ear, "Let go of me for now, and I'll make you lots of delicious food tomorrow, alright?"
Her soft lips brushed against his ear, her breath like the fragrance of orchids.
The enchanting aroma lingered around Jian Shichu.
The wind lifted her soft tresses, caressing his face with a tickling sensation.
The strength in his grip on her wrist unconsciously weakened a great deal.
Seizing the opportunity, Ye Qingci pulled her wrist from his palm, turned around to face Ye Jingzhi again, and tried to muster a smile, "Big brother, I'm fine, Seventh Master and I were just playing around!"
Jian Shichu's eyebrows twitched slightly.
This was the first time she had called him "Seventh Master."
The feeling...was quite nice!
Anyway, anything related to her always felt incredibly good to him.
Thinking of the intimacy between them just moments ago, a pleased smile curled the corners of Jian Shichu's lips.
She said she would make him lots and lots of delicious food tomorrow.
Yeah!
Very good, very good indeed!
He was already looking forward to it!
Standing behind Jian Shichu, Xiao Ying looked at Ye Qingci with a touch of surprise.
Their young master had always been a man of his word, solitary and supreme, with others bending to his will, obeying him.
For the first time in his life, he had seen his young master compromise with someone else.
And that someone was a woman he had only recently met.
It seemed that what the books said was true—fate really was an ineffable thing.
Before encountering it, no one knows what they will become in the future.
Ye Qingci ran to the back of Ye Jingzhi's wheelchair, "Big brother, let's go back."
She pushed Ye Jingzhi to the side of the van, helped him into the vehicle, and the bodyguard loaded the wheelchair into the car.
Ye Qingci got into the car, closed the door, and without giving Jian Shichu as much as a glance, the car sped away.
A viciousness flashed across Jian Shichu's eyes.