Ji Zhiyu breathed a slight sigh of relief, his perspective on certain aspects of this scumbag changing as well.
He had originally expected this person to act like a green tea and rat him out, trying to sow discord in his relationship with his older brother.
Yet even though Shen Li offered an explanation, Ji Zhouye clearly did not believe a word of it. Pointing straight at Ji Zhiyu, he demanded, “Is he a public restroom door?”
Ji Zhiyu was left speechless.
“Older brother.” Looking at Ji Zhouye’s current state, Ji Zhiyu felt a creeping numbness at the scalp.
A chilly, piercing gaze swept over from Ji Zhouye. “Shut your mouth.”
One of them dared to throw punches, while the other took a beating only to turn around and defend the assailant; neither of them had any respect left for him.
Unconvinced, Ji Zhiyu protested, “So what if I hit him? I was standing up for you! Older brother, how can you scold me just for some outsider?”
“You think you have the right to throw punches just because you have a reason?” Ji Zhouye furrowed his brow slightly, his tone laced with impatience.
“He counts as a person, sure, but he is just a scumbag,” Ji Zhiyu retorted with utter disdain.
The atmosphere froze, plummeting to freezing temperatures in an instant.
Shen Li suddenly felt that he must be quite talented to make these two brothers go at each other’s throats like this.
Stepping forward to stand beside Ji Zhouye, he tried to smooth things over. “I hit him too; I just did not aim for the face.”
He had wanted to defuse the tension, but someone refused to appreciate the gesture.
“We do not need you standing here acting all fake and putting on a show.”
Shen Li sighed inwardly. This younger brother had quite the fiery temper. Ji Zhouye possessed an unforced authority, whereas Ji Zhiyu simply exploded on the spot, venting his dissatisfaction directly without beating around the bush, straight-tempered and hot-headed.
Though Ji Zhouye was angry, even without much expression on his face, he made everyone around him acutely aware of his wrath.
An icy aura radiated from his entire body. “Ji Zhiyu, get the hell out of my sight!”
“Fine, I am leaving! Older brother, you are just showing blatant favoritism.” Ji Zhiyu stormed off, cursing as he went.
He had originally planned to spend the night here, but the sight of that man made his blood boil, and on top of that, his older brother was openly siding with the guy. Staying here would only invite misery, so he saw no reason to subject himself to self-inflicted torture.
Being irritated was one thing, but staying put might just result in getting force-fed dog food, and he certainly did not have any masochistic tendencies.
Watching him leave, Ji Zhouye stared at his retreating back. “If I ever catch you spouting nonsense in front of Mother, I will break your damn legs.”
He had not even found the time to settle the score regarding last time.
Ji Zhiyu fell silent.
He finally surrendered to brute force.
Then again, it was not as though he lacked spine; after all, in Jiangcheng, how many people actually dared to cross him?
With grievances too heavy to voice, he could only seek solace from his childhood sweetheart.
Ji Zhouye sat down on the sofa, his gaze falling onto the motionless person standing nearby. “Get over here.”
Shen Li hesitated briefly.
Walking over, he was signaled by a glance from Ji Zhouye to take a seat.
Shen Li sat down beside him, leaning lazily against the back of the sofa. “What is it?”
A cool fingertip brushed against the corner of his lips, lightly tracing the skin. Shen Li froze, his heart slamming against his ribs as his body went rigid.
After studying him for a moment, Ji Zhouye pulled his finger away from Shen Li’s lips. “When someone hits you, do you not know how to hit back? Are your hands just for show?”
“He is your younger brother.” At that moment, Shen Li began to seriously doubt whether Ji Zhiyu was truly his biological brother.
Which older brother allowed an outsider to beat up his own sibling?
Cupping the back of Shen Li’s neck, Ji Zhouye forced him closer. “Whose brother he is matters none. Throwing punches is wrong, period.”
Feeling the warmth of Ji Zhouye’s palm and meeting those pitch-black eyes, Shen Li replied softly, “He is still young. A little reasoning would do; there is no need to resort to brute force. Besides, if it really came to blows, your brother could not beat me.”
“Moreover, your younger brother just wanted to vent some frustration on your behalf, so it is no big deal.” Shen Li looked at Ji Zhouye with his captivating, amorous eyes.
Gazing into those eyes, Ji Zhouye lost all remaining temper. Running his thumb over the back of Shen Li’s neck, he finally released him. “You really only have this much spine.”
Shen Li curved his lips into a smile.
He only had this much spine left; otherwise, he would never have ended up trapped in this estate, let alone lingering by Ji Zhouye’s side.
If he had the ability to bring Jiangqing back from the dead, and if he did not have to worry about Ji Zhouye using Jiangqing as leverage against him, he probably would never have crossed paths with Ji Zhouye for the rest of his life, let alone lowered his pride to beg him.
Yet right now, having stayed by his side, he found he no longer wanted to leave.
He had shed his burdens, and no one else could threaten him anymore.
Whether he would be allowed to stay by Ji Zhouye’s side indefinitely, however, was not up for him to decide.
Noticing him zoning out, Ji Zhouye wrapped an arm around his waist and pulled him firmly into his arms. “What are you thinking about?”
Shen Li’s eyelashes trembled slightly. “How much longer will you let me stay by your side?”
Ji Zhouye’s deep eyes darkened considerably. Pinching his chin, he forced him to look up. “The moment I grow tired of playing with you is the moment you can leave.”
Shen Li’s question had struck a raw nerve in Ji Zhouye, making him interpret the words as a sign that Shen Li wanted to leave, that he hated staying in the estate and detested being by his side.
“Then when will you grow tired of playing with me?” Sensing the shift in Ji Zhouye’s mood, Shen Li stubbornly pressed on.
“At least not yet.”
Releasing him, Ji Zhouye stood up and prepared to leave. “Shen Li, do not harbor any unrealistic fantasies. Your current position does not afford you that luxury. If you refuse to stay by my side, then you can spend the rest of your life trapped in the dark.”
He could not bear the thought of letting Shen Li linger in the shadows, which was precisely why, even after being deeply hurt by him once before, he still wanted to give him one more chance.
As Ji Zhouye strode away, Shen Li scrambled up to chase after him, wrapping his arms around his waist from behind as his voice trembled faintly. “Ji Zhouye, I do not want to leave. I want to stay by your side.”
At that moment, no matter how sincere those words were, to Ji Zhouye they sounded like nothing more than ulterior motives designed to curry favor.
Prying Shen Li’s hands apart, Ji Zhouye walked upstairs without once looking back.
The warmth of the previous night had vanished entirely by now.
Shen Li cursed himself inwardly. Why did he have to run his mouth? Why did he have to ask those unnecessary questions?
Now look at where it got him. A perfectly good day off had turned out like this, all thanks to an itchy tongue. Why couldn’t he just focus on living in the present?
Throughout the evening until dinnertime, Ji Zhouye remained shut in his study, leaving Shen Li with zero opportunities to go find him and clear the air.
When Aunt Zhao finished preparing dinner, she headed upstairs to call Ji Zhouye down, but Shen Li quickly intercepted her. “Aunt Zhao, let me go get him.”
“That works too.”
After hesitating for a good while, Shen Li finally knocked on the study door. “President Ji, it is time for dinner.”
There was no movement from inside, nor any response. Tentatively, Shen Li called out again, “President Ji.”
Shen Li only ever addressed him as “President Ji” under two specific circumstances.
First, when Ji Zhouye was angry with him.
Second, when he was feeling jealous and trying to throw passive-aggressive remarks at Ji Zhouye.
Right now, it was clearly the first scenario.
Just as he concluded that Ji Zhouye had no intention of paying him any mind or opening the door, the study door suddenly swung open. Caught completely off guard, his gaze crashed straight into Ji Zhouye’s eyes. Fleeing the piercing look, Shen Li instinctively rubbed his nose. “Umm, dinner is ready.”
Stepping past him, Ji Zhouye headed straight down the stairs without throwing a single extra glance his way.
Assuming Ji Zhouye did not want to lay eyes on him, Shen Li sensibly retreated to his bedroom, planning to eat only after Ji Zhouye finished so as not to cause him aggravation or ruin his appetite.
About ten minutes later, the bedroom door pushed open. Ji Zhouye stepped inside, his chilling gaze locking onto the person lying on the bed with a trace of callous detachment. “Do I need to get on my knees and beg you to come eat?”
Shen Li sat straight up from the bed. “President Ji, can you please stop misinterpreting people’s good intentions? I was just afraid you would lose your appetite looking at me.”