For the first twenty-odd years of his life, Ji Yucheng had only ever lived side by side with his career, his days cold and desolate.
This was the very first time someone had faced him with such a bold, fiery confession. Inevitably, his face heated a little.
But if he really took Ning Sui’s words to heart, then he would be nothing but a laughingstock.
Clearly, Ning Sui had only dragged him out to use as a shield in order to reject his foolish younger brother.
…Still, whatever had transpired between Ning Sui and Ji Zhilin just now, judging from the scene, it looked as if Ning Sui had finally decided to cut things off completely.
The eldest young master silently approved of his little wife’s decision.
What was so good about that idiotic brother of his anyway? His brain was filled with nothing but his so-called white moonlight.
009 stubbornly pressed its suspicion: “Then what about the fact that he touches you every single day? How do you explain that?”
“Couldn’t it be something like… skin-hunger syndrome?” Ji Yucheng found the idea of Ning Sui falling in love with him at first sight far too casual, far too easy.
After all, Ning Sui was an orphan. Skin-hunger syndrome was usually triggered by psychological trauma and long years of loneliness during one’s growth.
Every time they had physical contact, Ji Yucheng could feel the faint surge of pleasure from him, an unmistakable symptom of skin-hunger.
The only strange thing was that Ning Sui seemed to reject any physical contact with anyone else, only tolerating, no! craving contact with him alone.
But really, in a world as absurd as this one, where even he himself had ended up a vegetative man bound to a ridiculous system, was it so impossible that Ning Sui’s illness would manifest in this strange, one-person way?
009 sneered, unconvinced: “A normal case of skin-hunger doesn’t make someone obsessed with touching another person from head to toe. And it sure as hell doesn’t make them fantasize day and night about giving someone else a bath!”
Ji Yucheng, for once, instinctively defended his little wife, his tone cold: “Just be a system properly and stop talking nonsense. Ning Sui isn’t that filthy.”
But the moment his words fell, Ning Sui pushed his wheelchair into the villa.
The butler came up, looking like he meant to take over the task of caring for his vegetative young master.
Ning Sui’s eyes suddenly lit up. “Is it time to give Ji Yucheng a bath?”
Even without seeing his expression, the sheer eagerness in his voice made it obvious what he was thinking.
Ji Yucheng: “……”
009: “Tch.”
The butler nodded. Even back when the eldest young master had been healthy, he had been a notorious clean freak. Now that he was bedridden, he still had to be bathed daily.
Hiring outsiders wasn’t suitable. The butler had raised the Ji brothers from childhood, even held them when they were babies. With him doing it, the eldest young master would not resist.
Sure enough, Ning Sui said hurriedly, “Since Ji Zhilin has left, please, go eat dinner. I’ll bathe him instead!”
“But…” The butler looked hesitantly at the silent figure sitting in the wheelchair. If the eldest young master really had awareness, he might be angered by anyone else’s hands on him.
But now, the man had no consciousness, and this was his legal spouse…
Ning Sui’s voice brimmed with excitement: “I have to cultivate feelings with my husband!”
Inside, Ji Yucheng howled at the butler: If you dare agree, pack your things and get out!
Sharing a bed with his little wife was one thing, but being bathed by him was another matter entirely.
That would only serve to remind him he was nothing but a puppet, a lifeless vegetable and worse, it would expose the hideous scar running across his once-perfect abs.
“Very well, you do it.” The butler, moved almost to tears, thought: what a wonderful little spouse.
He hurriedly pressed the elevator for Ning Sui.
Ji Yucheng: “……” Excellent. Consider this your one unexcused absence.
Ning Sui pushed him into the elevator.
Ji Yucheng’s mood had been shadowed, but hearing Ning Sui’s buoyant footsteps, his feelings turned complicated.
As a man who could not move, he was keenly aware of the effort it took to bathe him. To lift a nearly one-meter-ninety tall man into a bathtub, to scrub him down limb by limb, lifting each arm and leg, it was exhausting.
The butler always ended breathless after.
If not for his attachment to the Ji family and the sky-high salary, Ji Yucheng doubted he would still be doing it.
Every time bath time arrived, the butler sighed and groaned. Though unable to move, Ji Yucheng heard it all.
And yet, Ning Sui, why did he look as happy as if he had just found five million yuan just for giving him a bath?
Ning Sui filled the tub with water, testing the temperature carefully, before wheeling Ji Yucheng inside.
The steam curled up, dampening Ji Yucheng’s black hair. Ning Sui reached out to smooth it back, revealing his fine, porcelain-white forehead.
Those closed eyes, shadowed by thick brows, if they ever opened, they would surely be filled with overwhelming presence.
His lashes were long…
Ning Sui’s heart itched, his fingers itched, and he couldn’t help but reach out and flick them lightly.
A tingling sensation rippled from those lashes straight to Ji Yucheng’s heart. He wanted to reach up and scratch the itch, but his body would not move. All he could do was endure, every nerve hypersensitive.
When he woke, he swore, he would pluck every single eyelash off this little wife of his.
Vengeful by nature, Ji Yucheng plotted venomously in his heart.
And then he heard Ning Sui swallow.
Ji Yucheng: “……”
“I knew it! I knew it!” 009 wailed, on the verge of collapse. “Ji Yucheng, you’re finished! He wants to devour you alive!”
Whether it was the steam or his own temper, Ji Yucheng’s handsome face felt hot as fire. “Shut up!”
The water was filled too high. Ning Sui felt hot and parched, but instead of going out for a drink, he gulped down more saliva.
He turned off the tap, poured some body wash into the water, then crouched down to unbutton Ji Yucheng’s shirt.
In truth, actually bathing him was far more difficult than Ning Sui had imagined. Ji Yucheng was too tall, his broad back pressed against the chair.
Even with the buttons undone, the shirt was stuck. By the time he dragged it off, removing the trousers became another battle.
Bracing himself, Ning Sui wrapped the nearly one-meter-ninety body over his own shoulder, struggling and blushing as he forced the pants down, eyes squeezed shut the whole time.
When he finally lowered him into the tub, his strength faltered. The vegetative man slipped straight into the water.
Ning Sui’s heart lurched, he shot out a hand to protect his head.
As a result, both of them toppled into the bathtub together.
“Ah!” Ning Sui cried out.
Ji Yucheng thought his hand must have been hurt. Was it that painful?
But the next second, Ning Sui gathered his head up carefully, running frantic fingers over the back of his skull. “Did you hit your head?”
Ji Yucheng froze.
“No? Thank goodness. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” Ning Sui apologized over and over, before scrambling out of the bath, wiping the water from his face.
The man in the tub lay pale and silent. Ning Sui wrung out a towel and began wiping his body.
No matter whether his strokes were light or heavy, Ji Yucheng could not react.
A sudden pang of pity stirred in Ning Sui’s chest.
This man, once the peerless genius admired by all, and now, overnight, reduced to such a pitiful state.
At first, people came often to visit. But as the months dragged on, fewer and fewer appeared. One by one, they defected, betting on Ji Zhilin instead. Everyone said Ji Yucheng would never wake again.
And worse, if he bumped or was mishandled, he couldn’t even voice pain. He could only be manhandled in silence.
If there truly was consciousness trapped in this body, it must be unbearable.
With that thought, Ning Sui’s mischievous intent vanished. His movements grew gentle, earnest, each stroke a quiet respect.
Ji Yucheng had no idea what his little wife was thinking. He only knew that the greedy, restless hand that always pawed at his abs had suddenly become restrained.
Compared to the butler’s rough scrubbing, Ning Sui’s touch was delicate, meticulous, as if cherishing every inch of him.
For the first time in years, his obsessive need for cleanliness felt soothed.
Like his voice, Ning Sui’s massage carried a calming rhythm, easing even Ji Yucheng’s weary soul.
Finally, when it came time to wipe his face, Ning Sui leaned down.
One hand cupped Ji Yucheng’s striking jaw, the other gently swept across his chin.
Ji Yucheng felt his warm breath ghost over his collarbone, hot and intimate.
His body, powerless to resist, grew taut with tension.
But still, he could not move.
All of a sudden, Ji Yucheng caught the faintest trace of a fragrance rising from Ning Sui’s body, the herbal scent of the bathwater they had both tumbled into earlier.
That body wash was no ordinary soap. It had been a prescription concocted by the old master’s hand-picked traditional physician, a desperate attempt to treat a hopeless case.
The formula did little more than stimulate blood flow and keep his muscles from atrophying after long months of immobility.
And yet apart from Ji Yucheng himself, there wasn’t a second soul in this household who carried that distinct herbal aroma.
In that instant, it was as though Ning Sui had been marked! Tagged unmistakably with Ji Yucheng’s personal imprint.
Before this, Ji Yucheng had not felt the slightest sense of being married but now, all at once, he was struck by the sudden, almost blinding realization: he had a wife.
After the bath, Ning Sui carefully helped him into fresh clothes. His limbs trembled from the effort, but he still managed to hoist his nearly one-ninety husband back into the wheelchair.
Sweat clung to his brow by the time he finished pushing Ji Yucheng out of the steaming bathroom and down the stairs toward dinner.
Just then, the butler rushed in, flustered. “Young Madam, a guest has arrived.”
“A guest?” Ning Sui blinked in surprise. Today, the old master was away, and the Ji family mansion was unusually quiet.
Who would choose this timing to come knocking at their door?
He wheeled Ji Yucheng forward, and the sight that met him froze his steps.
Sitting elegantly on the sofa was a young woman with long curls tumbling over her shoulders. She wore a knitted white designer set that screamed of wealth. At the sound of approaching footsteps, she turned sharply toward them.
“You’re Ning Sui?” she demanded, her voice sharp as the cloud of heavy perfume that assaulted his nose.
Fresh from bathing both himself and Ji Yucheng, Ning Sui found the overpowering scent unbearable. He immediately steered the wheelchair aside, trying to dodge it.
“And you are…?” he asked cautiously.
Judging by that pointed hostility in her tone, could it be that this was one of Ji Yucheng’s ex-girlfriends?
“Don’t you dare pretend you don’t know me!” The woman’s face hardened with rage. “If it weren’t for that accident, the one marrying him would have been me. Before you married him, don’t tell me you never once heard my name?”
Ning Sui blinked, genuinely at a loss. He truly had never heard of her.
He had only been shoved onto the stage at the last minute, forced into the role of Ji Yucheng’s spouse. How could he possibly know the illustrious Second Young Master’s past love affairs?
But wait, wasn’t the gossip outside always saying that Ji Yucheng was pure and restrained, a man who had never had a single relationship?
Had the information he’d gathered been wrong?
Thinking about it again, before the accident, Ji Yucheng had been the very picture of a flawless man, and men like him were still men at the end of the day.
Handsome beyond compare, wealthy beyond measure… how could someone like that have never dated anyone at all?
Curiosity pricked Ning Sui. He lowered his gaze toward the man in front of him.
His hands gripped the wheelchair handles tightly, his body leaning ever so slightly forward.
A subtle movement, but Ji Yucheng caught them immediately. He knew exactly what this little wife was thinking.
Who is she?
Ji Yucheng himself was just as baffled. The great Young Master’s memory was legendary, at any banquet, he could recall a voice after hearing it once.
And yet, listening to this woman, he could not for the life of him recognize who she was.
The butler, seeing how much more pleasing Ning Sui had become in his eyes, quickly whispered an explanation for fear that this trivial matter would stir conflict between the young couple. If that happened, who would be left to bathe the young master?
“This is the young lady of the Qu family,” the butler murmured. “Her elders once did the Ji family a favor. Years ago, there was indeed talk of a possible marriage alliance, but that discussion never left the old master’s lips. The young master himself never even met her in person.”
So it was true. What Miss Qu said wasn’t entirely false, had there been no accident, perhaps she might have had a chance.
But things had already settled. Ji Yucheng was married. And as for Ning Sui, his vegetative husband was his one and only source of income.
If anyone wanted to take that away from him, they’d have to step over his dead body first.
Ning Sui calmly pushed Ji Yucheng’s wheelchair closer, then sat down right beside him.
Pouring a cup of tea, he slid it gracefully across to the woman. His lips curved in a polite smile. “Well, now we’ve met. So tell me, Miss Qu, are you staying for tea?”
009 gasped in Ji Yucheng’s mind. “Holy hell, your little wife’s eyes are blazing with murder.”
Ji Yucheng: “…”
Qu Jiahan’s face darkened instantly. She slammed a hand on the sofa arm. “You only got him by taking advantage of his accident! Just wait until he wakes up, you’ll see clearly. A man like him would never like someone like you!”
Ning Sui still wore the same refined smile, his voice unfailingly civil. “Then I suppose we’ll only know for sure when he wakes, won’t we?”
009’s voice quivered with glee. “He’s still smiling! Do you see this? Who in the world keeps smiling at their rival in love? It’s terrifying!”
009 continued, panic rising, “I’m honestly worried now. If what he said earlier is true, if three years ago he really did fall for you at first sight then when it comes to anyone trying to steal you away, his possessiveness will be terrifyingly extreme… ”
“Enough chatter in my head,” Ji Yucheng snapped coldly. “You’re being paranoid. Has he done anything extreme yet?”
But just as those words fell
Crack….
The porcelain teacup in Ning Sui’s hand shattered into jagged shards.
Qu Jiahan: “…”
Ji Yucheng: “…”
009, faintly triumphant: “See? What did I tell you?”
“What skin-hunger syndrome? This wasn’t a symptom. This was nothing short of obsessive, pathological possessiveness.”
Ji Yucheng: “…”
The tea cup broke into pieces, the sound sharp and shocking in the heavy silence, enough to cow everyone present. One woman, one man, and even the supposed vegetable himself.
Ning Sui flushed with embarrassment, crouching at once to pick up the fragments. “The cup was cracked already!” he stammered quickly.
Absolutely not because I was worried someone was trying to cut off my money tree!
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[Translator]
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ChaptersChapter 1 · The WeddingChapter 2 · New Target!Chapter 3 · Moved OnChapter 4 · Personal Information of Ji YuchengChapter 5 · Liked Ji Yucheng for 3 Years?!Chapter 6 · Love Rival?!Chapter 7 · Domineering PossessivenessChapter 8 · Obviously Very CuteChapter 9 Part 1 · Can’t be SeperatedChapter 9 Part 2 · Can’t be SeperatedChapter 10 · A blonde Guy…Chapter 11 · Dangerously Close to love?Chapter 12 · Confrontation with Ji ZhilinChapter 13 · Accidental DiscoveryChapter 14 · System 009 upgradedChapter 15 · Battery charging!Chapter 16 · Young Master was MiserableChapter 17 · Did Ning Sui treat you like this before?Chapter 18 · Was this what happened last night before you went to bed?Chapter 19 · He really got to the bottom of thisChapter 20 Part 1 · Don’t look at him, he was shocked too!Chapter 20 Part 2 · Don’t look at him, he was shocked too!Chapter 21 · Because I like it so muchChapter 22 Part 1 · Pull up your pantsChapter 22 Part 2 · Pull up your pantsChapter 23 · Why does it sound like he’s jealousChapter 24 Part 1 · I will protect himChapter 24 Part 2 · I will protect himChapter 25 · He’s quite gentleChapter 26 · Young Master Ji suddenly started to stutterChapter 27 · Ning Sui’s timeChapter 28 Part 1 · They ran away as soon as they were scaredChapter 28 Part 2 · They ran away as soon as they were scaredChapter 29 Part 1 · Are you looking for death?Chapter 29 Part 2 · Are you looking for death?Chapter 30 · Hurry up and say your last wordsChapter 31 · Ji Yucheng collapsed into his armsChapter 32 · Mr. Ji, I never expected you to be such a good person.Chapter 33 · He’s so well-behaved when He sleeps…Chapter 34 · His expression was incredibly varied in an instantChapter 35 · How could it be Ning Sui?Chapter 36 · Does the young wife only like people in a vegetative state?Chapter 37 · State-based controlChapter 38 · The young master was so happy he dropped his phoneChapter 39 · You were 37 minutes lateChapter 40 · I don’t plan to get a divorce.Chapter 41 · Otherwise, would it be your turn?Chapter 42 · Both perverted and cuteChapter 43 · If they sneak away again, I’ll hold them even tighterChapter 44 · I sprained my ankle tooChapter 45 · A cat jumping on a lion’s head to play with fire.Chapter 46 · Your young master has fainted!Chapter 47 · Sui Sui, come downChapter 48 · Are you going to lock me in there?Chapter 49 Part 1 · I love you, Ning SuiChapter 49 Part 2 · I love you, Ning SuiChapter 50 · Give the snowman a heartChapter 51 · Miss you.Chapter 52 · To hold in one’s mouthChapter 53 · You are in the cloudsChapter 54 · Ning Sui hugged him for the first timeChapter 55 · Can you sit on my lap?Chapter 56 · It’s either you or it’s not.Chapter 57 · From this moment on, I am your vegetableChapter 58 · Young Ji YuchengChapter 59 · They kiss tirelessly.Chapter 60 · RipplingChapter 61 · You want to compare this?!Chapter 62 · It’s 001!Chapter 63 · I like everything about it.Chapter 64 · It seems to have been filled up a little more.Chapter 65 · Wedding rings should be exchanged between the couple.Chapter 66 · Love-struckChapter 67 · Why can’t we even be apart for a day?Chapter 68 · PerfectChapter 69 · A lifelong contract was madeChapter 70 · Extra 1Chapter 71 · Extra 2Chapter 72 · Extra 3Chapter 73 · Extra 4Chapter 74 · Extra 5Chapter 75 · Extra 6Chapter 76 · Extra 7Chapter 77 · Extra 8Chapter 78 · Extra 9Chapter 79 · Extra 10Chapter 80 · Extra 11Chapter 81 · Extra 12Chapter 82 · Extra 13Chapter 83 · Extra 14