Сhаpter 4: Dеlibеrаtеlу Disgusting Qi Mubai
“I cаmе to seе you. Dоn’t wаlk bу thе rivеr аnymоrе in thе futurе, so Brоther Mubai won’t wоrrу.” Qi Mubаi rаisеd his hаnd, wаnting to раt Su Nuаnnuan’s heаd, but shе dodgеd.
“I understand. Bу the wаy, Brothеr Mubаi, how did уоu know I’d be bу the river yеstеrdау? Weren’t уоu аt а gathering with friеnds?”
Su Nuannuаn’s question stаrtled Qi Mubаi. Had shе discoverеd sоmеthing? Yestеrdаy, he had bеen sесretly mеeting with Su Mаnjing, nevеr ехpеcting her tо apреаr in that place.
“I was just worried аbоut you, Nuannuan. Тhаnkfully, Brothеr Мubai arrived in time yesterday. It scared me to death.”
Su Nuannuan sneered inwardly. How shameless! Who gave him the nerve to claim he saved her so casually?
“I’m sorry, Brother Mubai. Yesterday, I saw a really big rabbit. I was curious and chased after it, then accidentally slipped and fell into the water.”
Su Nuannuan hid the disgust in her eyes. She suspected someone had tampered with the riverbank. The rabbit had appeared just in time to lure her toward the river, and the soil there happened to be loose. Everything was too coincidental.
But who was behind it? Qi Mubai? Su Manjing? Or both of them? And why had Li Beixiao appeared in that place?
“You like rabbits? Then Brother Mubai will get you a few.” Qi Mubai wore a gentle, spring-like smile on his face. How sophisticated!
“Yes, I like them.” Su Nuannuan rubbed her nose. She really did like them—it had been a long time since she’d eaten spicy rabbit.
“I’ll buy you a few another day.” Qi Mubai’s eyes flickered. Su Nuannuan really was easy to fool.
This spring outing had been organized by Su Manjing. On the surface, it was a company outing hosted by Qi Mubai, but only they knew what they were really up to.
It seemed they had been doing something shady that day! They probably thought she had stumbled upon their affair and accidentally fallen into the river.
“Brother Mubai, Mom said that once I’m discharged from the hospital, I’ll visit your family.” Su Nuannuan shyly avoided looking at Qi Mubai.
Qi Mubai stiffened for a moment before quickly recovering. His position in the Qi family was somewhat awkward. Everyone thought he was the legitimate eldest son, but his mother wasn’t the current Madam Qi.
Not many people knew about this, but it wasn’t a complete secret. Just a little longer—once he married Su Nuannuan, he’d see who dared look down on him then.
“Brother Mubai, aren’t you happy? Do you not want me to come…” Su Nuannuan looked at Qi Mubai with teary eyes, as if she might burst into tears at any moment.
Qi Mubai’s eyes flickered again. “How could that be? Brother Mubai is just too happy. I’ll be waiting for you at the Qi family home.”
“Great, Brother Mubai. Then tell me, what does your mother like? I’ll prepare something.”
Su Nuannuan sneered inwardly. I’ll disgust you to death. Others might not know, but she was well aware that Qi Mubai and Madam Qi were like fire and water.
Qi Mubai’s identity was something to be hidden, not just because he was the child of a mistress, but also because of another scandal.
Qi Mubai’s mother was Madam Qi’s own younger sister. The younger sister had climbed into her brother-in-law’s bed, and Madam Qi despised the mother and son pair.
But she had no choice but to endure it. If this scandal were exposed, the Qi family would suffer greatly.Qi Mubai forced a smile and said, “Anything will do. As long as it’s from you, Mother will like it.”
“Then, Brother Mubai, do you think your mother will like me?” Su Nuannuan looked at Qi Mubai with hopeful eyes.
Qi Mubai had never felt so tormented as he did at this moment. Suppressing the embarrassment in his heart, he stiffly replied, “She will. She definitely will. Nuannuan is so adorable.”
“I think so too. Madam Qi will surely like me.” Su Nuannuan curled her lips. Madam Qi liking her? That would be a miracle—more likely, she’d want to kill her on the spot.
Qi Mubai looked at the innocent Su Nuannuan, his awkward expression barely holding up. Fortunately, Su Lin returned just then, giving Qi Mubai an excuse to leave.
“Nuannuan, I have some matters at the company. I should go now.” Qi Mubai patted Su Nuannuan’s head, and she instinctively leaned away.
“Ah, so soon?” Qi Mubai didn’t pay much attention to her reaction, assuming she was just sulking because he had to leave.
“Nuannuan, since Mubai has work to attend to, don’t be unreasonable.” Su Lin intervened to stop Su Nuannuan from making a scene.
“Alright then. Goodbye, Brother Mubai.” Good riddance—she hoped never to see him again. He disgusted her to no end.
“Okay. Nuannuan, take good care of yourself and recover well. I’ll be waiting for you at the Qi family home.” After saying this, Qi Mubai finally turned and left.
Did Qi Mubai really think she would go to the Qi family? He was dreaming. Even if he had saved her life—which he hadn’t—she wouldn’t go.
In her past life, when she first visited the Qi family, Madam Qi had shown them no respect at all, forcing her parents to smile apologetically for a long time.
At first, she hadn’t understood why. Later, she learned the truth about Madam Qi and Qi Mubai’s identities—and she had been blind enough to pity Qi Mubai’s situation.
Her parents had been kept in the dark until their deaths. This time, she had to find a way to prevent them from having to humble themselves again. Qi Mubai didn’t deserve it. Sooner or later, she would expose the true nature of that despicable pair.
“Nuannuan, he’s gone. Snap out of it. Mom won’t be here until noon. Have something to eat in the meantime.”
Su Nuannuan felt a warmth in her heart. These were pastries from Yuange Pavilion—incredibly delicious and always in high demand, with long lines of people waiting to buy them.
Her eldest brother was always like this—not good at expressing himself, but knowing she was picky and worried she wouldn’t eat, he’d go out of his way to buy her favorite treats.
“Thank you, big brother. You’re the best. It’s delicious.” Su Nuannuan chewed the pastry in big bites, holding back the tears welling in her eyes.
“Looks like you’re recovering well, still able to eat.” A cool voice came from the doorway, making Su Nuannuan shiver. Oh no, oh no—the most difficult person in the Su family had arrived.
“Cough, cough…” Su Nuannuan choked on a piece of pastry. Good grief, was Su Yun here to murder her?
“Drink some water. Slow down. Second Brother, stop scaring her.” Su Lin sighed helplessly.
“With her nerve, who could scare her? Why are you looking at me like that? Did that dip in the water clear your head?” Su Yun tapped her head with his slender fingers.
“Ouch, Second Brother, stop tapping. It hurts.” Su Nuannuan covered her forehead, looking pitifully at Su Yun.
“Alright, Second Brother, why are you here? Have you finished handling the company matters?” Su Lin signaled for Su Yun to stop teasing her.”All taken care of. I thought I’d drop by to see how this troublemaker managed to get herself into such a state.”
Su Yun raised his hand again, about to give Su Nuannuan a knock on the head, but before he could move, she quickly wrapped her arms around his waist in a timid hug.
“Second Brother, Second Brother, I was wrong. I swear I’ll never go near the water again. I’m sorry.”
The little girl held up three fingers, looking at Su Yun with a sincere expression. Su Yun stared back at her coolly. Did she really think he was that foolish, that easy to fool?
“Second Brother, Second Brother, I really know I was wrong. I won’t do it again next time. Please don’t be angry anymore, okay?”
Seeing that her earnest apology wasn’t working, Su Nuannuan could only switch to another tactic—the art of sweet-talking. She refused to believe her second brother could resist her deliberately softened, pleading tone.