After taking a relaxing beauty bath, Ji Yan sat at her vanity with a face mask on. She rubbed thick body lotion into her skin, her palms moving in repetitive circles along the smooth, pale lines of her legs.
Li Chuchu suddenly pushed open the bedroom door. Her voice was devoid of any particular emotion as she said, “President Ji, dinner is ready.”
Tearing off the mask and tossing it aside, Ji Yan scrutinized her face in the mirror for any sign of fine lines. She waved a hand dismissively. “Mm.”
Li Chuchu felt it was inappropriate to either stay or leave, so she simply stood upright by the door, waiting in silence.
The feeling of being watched while being waited on was uncomfortable. Ji Yan finished her skincare routine perfunctorily and walked up to Li Chuchu. She reached out and stroked Li Chuchu’s chin. “I still prefer it when you’re being obedient.”
With that, the two walked to the dining table, one behind the other. Ji Yan stared at the fairly sumptuous breakfast on the table and raised an eyebrow in satisfaction. “I think this is the first time I’ve eaten a breakfast you made. The presentation is quite good.”
Setting out the cutlery, Li Chuchu lowered her head and forced a reserved, stiff smile. “President Ji flatters me.”
Ji Yan took a small taste of the lean meat porridge. She pursed her lips and instructed, “Stop calling me President Ji. It makes me feel like you’re intentionally being resistant.”
“Okay, I’ll be careful next time.” Noticing that the other woman had a good appetite, Li Chuchu’s shoulders slumped in relief.
Stirring her spoon, Ji Yan looked up at her and brought up a casual topic. “The doctor I made an appointment for you last time, did you take the child to see them?”
“I did.”
“What did they say?”
“We’re waiting for imported specialty medicine from abroad, so for now, he’s still undergoing routine treatment.” When talking about her child, a glimmer of comfort appeared in Li Chuchu’s eyes. It seemed that all the humiliation she endured became trivial at that moment.
“Is the money enough?” Ji Yan asked, picking up a piece of fried egg and biting into the crispy edge.
“It’s enough.”
“If it’s not, just ask me.”
“Okay.”
The conversation came to an abrupt halt, leaving only the clinking of utensils in the dining room. It seemed that aside from intense physical interaction in bed, the two had almost nothing to talk about.
Li Chuchu ate very little before putting down her utensils and asking cautiously, “Is the breakfast to your taste?”
Ji Yan was eating with gusto. After a busy night, she needed to replenish her energy. “Not bad. Make it tomorrow, too.” This simple answer carried a heavy implication.
Li Chuchu’s fingers instinctively curled into her palms. She asked for clarification, “Are you staying overnight tonight?”
Ji Yan pulled out a tissue to wipe her lips and sneered, “What? Are you that afraid of me staying over?”
“That’s not what I meant. I just thought if you were staying, I should prepare the ingredients in advance.”
“You don’t need to worry too much about those trifles.” Ji Yan stood up and pushed her chair back, preparing to go to the bedroom to change. She suddenly turned back and added, “Didn’t you say you weren’t feeling well earlier? I won’t take advantage of you tonight.”
“I’m fine,” Li Chuchu said quickly, afraid of missing any opportunity to make money. “I need the money. I don’t want to spoil your mood.”
“Do I look like a hungry wolf who will die if she goes one meal without it?” Ji Yan’s dry humor didn’t make Li Chuchu laugh; it only made the atmosphere more awkward. “Don’t worry about the child. I promised to help you, and I will see it through to the end.”
“Thank you,” Li Chuchu said solemnly, which made Ji Yan laugh in spite of herself.
Ji Yan tilted her head to examine the woman before her. She wasn’t stunningly beautiful, but upon closer inspection, there was a certain quality to her that made one want to dig deeper. “Our relationship is an equal exchange. You don’t need to say thank you.” Ji Yan checked the time and prepared to head to the office for a meeting.
Li Chuchu spoke up suddenly, “After you fell asleep, you kept calling her name for a long time.”
Ji Yan pressed her tongue against her cheek. She kept her back to Li Chuchu, not wanting her to see the loneliness of her unrequited love. “Mm. You dream of what you think about during the day. It’s normal.”
“If you like her that much, why do you do this?” Li Chuchu asked the question that had been puzzling her, but then, feeling it was too forward, she quickly apologized. “I’m sorry. It was presumptuous of me to ask about your privacy.”
Ji Yan returned to the table and sat back down. This was a split-second decision. She couldn’t explain why; it was just an impulse.
“Because I’m a scumbag. On one hand, I’m obsessed with my white moonlight, and on the other, I vent my frustrations recklessly because I can’t have her. Isn’t that a total contradiction?” Ji Yan’s matter-of-fact answer perfectly packaged her hypocritical devotion.
“There’s a reason why Miss Su hates you,” Li Chuchu responded, taking another risk.
Ji Yan wasn’t angry; she actually agreed with the assessment. “Maybe it’s just my competitive nature. If I got her easily, I probably wouldn’t like her as much. Even I think my obsession with her is sick.”
“You have too many women around you. It will only push her further away.”
“I’ll find every way to bind her to me, even if I only get her body. Of course, none of this is for you to worry about.” Ji Yan stood up, took out her wallet, and tossed a card onto the table. “The child is small; you need money for everything. Also, go get a gynecological check-up. I don’t want to hear it hurts too much as an excuse next time.”
Ji Yan was a walking contradiction, contradictory in words, actions, and emotions. Even so, it didn’t change the fact that she was bad to her core, yet she remained wrapped in a few stray threads of kindness.
By the time the movie ended, it was already evening.
Ji Nanchan noticed that Leng Bingqin was restless, squirming like a worm on the sofa. She grabbed a handful of popcorn and stuffed it into Leng Bingqin’s mouth. “You’ve fallen and hurt yourself so badly, don’t go for a walk today.”
However, her obsession with cotton candy was too strong. Not only had the little maid recovered her spirits, but her thin limbs were also full of energy. She clung to Ji Nanchan’s arm and refused to budge. “No! I have to take Fugui for a walk every day. I haven’t missed a single day. I’m fine now!”
Ji Nanchan knew exactly what she was thinking, so she gave in. “Fine, I’ll go with you. We can stop by the grocery store and I’ll buy you an ice cream.”
Hearing about the ice cream, Leng Bingqin lunged at Ji Nanchan, grabbing her head and pecking her with kisses. “Why are you so good to me? I messed up today, and you’re still buying me ice cream!”
Ji Nanchan made a bitter face, holding her hands up to block her and shrinking her neck to avoid the girl’s lips, terrified that Leng Bingqin might accidentally steal her precious first kiss in her excitement. “Hey, hey! We don’t do that kind of affection in this house!”
“Then get up quickly, let’s go!”
“Then get off me first!”
As time passed, Ji Nanchan seemed to have grown used to the habit of walking hand-in-hand with Leng Bingqin. Walking through the moss-covered alleys gave her the illusion of a simple, lifelong domesticity.
Leng Bingqin leaned contentedly against her arm, chatting about the clumsy details of her morning laundry. Ji Nanchan wasn’t angry, but she suddenly realized something. “Oh no, I haven’t hung the clothes out to dry yet.”
Leng Bingqin shook her arm, skipping along. “It’s okay! We can hang them together when we get home.”
“Qinqin, do you have any wishes you want to come true?” Ji Nanchan changed the subject, trying to lead the little useless one toward the topic of cotton candy.
Leng Bingqin kept her secret, tilting her head as she thought seriously. After a long silence, she finally spoke, “I want Chan-chan to marry me. Does that count as a wish?”
The result was unexpected. Leng Bingqin’s wish was much more intense than cotton candy.
Ji Nanchan’s mouth twitched. Great. This lie is getting deeper and deeper. I don’t know how I’m going to fix this later.
“Uh, marriage is a huge life event. Look, you can’t even handle housework yet. Once you can keep our home in perfect order, that step will come naturally.” Ji Nanchan’s scumbag rhetoric was truly something to be struck by lightning for.
The hoodwinked little rabbit started pumping her fists, cheering herself on. “I’ll work hard to learn housework and prove it to you. I’ll definitely be your supportive wife in the future!”
What exactly does marriage bring to a woman? Ji Nanchan wanted to cry. How can this silly girl not see through this?
Talking and laughing, they reached the grocery store. Leng Bingqin couldn’t hide the light of anticipation in her eyes. She darted inside like a nimble rabbit.
Ji Nanchan followed unhurriedly, thinking she needed to buy a new bottle of laundry detergent. As she stepped inside, she saw Leng Bingqin standing frozen in front of the counter, staring motionless at the empty wall shelf.
Ji Nanchan grabbed two ice creams from the freezer and turned to look at the petrified girl with a hidden smirk. Her eyes met Uncle Li’s, and the two shared a silent understanding, pretending nothing was wrong.
It felt like a thunderbolt had struck the little maid’s head, shattering her spirit. That giant tub of Little Sheep cotton candy, worth the astronomical price of 120 yuan, was gone.
Snowflakes seemed to fall in her mind as the north wind wailed. Her lips trembled, her nose twitched, and with a thud, she collapsed onto the floor, not crying, not making a sound.
This collapse actually gave Ji Nanchan a fright. “Hey, what’s wrong?” She rushed to Leng Bingqin’s side, trying to pull her up.
Perhaps the shock was too much; her soul seemed to have drifted out of her mouth. Leng Bingqin couldn’t form a complete sentence. She raised a trembling arm toward the shelf and mumbled, “Gone, it’s gone.”
“What’s gone?” Ji Nanchan had to use all her strength to pull her up. She insisted on playing dumb, refusing to tell her that she had already hidden the cotton candy at home.
Leng Bingqin shook her head stubbornly, refusing to say what exactly was gone, just repeating the word “gone.”
She had been too frugal to eat it, too frugal to buy it, and had saved her money so painstakingly, only to watch the little sheep hop away. This was more painful than a serious illness. Leng Bingqin clutched her chest in exhaustion, tears shimmering in her eyes as if she might cough up blood at any second.
“Here, here, eat the ice cream.” Ji Nanchan coaxed her, tearing open the wrapper and stuffing the popsicle into the girl’s trembling mouth.
Seeing her drowning in a river of sorrow, her legs too weak to stand, Ji Nanchan had no choice but to pick her up to leave the store, not forgetting to give Uncle Li a mischievous grin over her shoulder.
Doing something like this, Ji Nanchan was truly a maddening troublemaker!
Leng Bingqin buried her head in Ji Nanchan’s neck, large tears falling pitter-patter, yet she didn’t stop sucking on the old-fashioned popsicle. “Waaaah.”
Ji Nanchan was teasing her on purpose. Although her heart was softening, she also enjoyed how clingy and well-behaved the girl became. “How old are you, little kid? Why are you always crying?”