Returning to the room.
Lu Junyue instinctively wanted to place Shen Zhiyi back on the sofa.
Territorial awareness.
The bed was his.
The sofa was hers.
But seeing the woman nestled in his arms sleeping so soundly, Lu Junyue sighed silently and turned to place her on the bed.
He gently covered her with the quilt and went downstairs.
At this moment, the morning sun was rising, and the sky had already brightened.
The servants were already busy with their work.
Lu Junyue approached a middle-aged servant. “Wang Ma, revise the Lu family’s meal plan. Prepare more nourishing dishes recently—ginseng, sea cucumber, old hen soup—whatever is most nourishing.”
Wang Ma looked puzzled. “Young Master Lu, the old madam prefers light meals and has never liked such heavily nourishing foods.”
“I’ll be eating them.”
“Young Master Lu, but you rarely eat at home?”
“From now on, I’ll be coming back for meals regularly.”
After giving his instructions, Lu Junyue returned to the room.
He crossed his arms and casually found a position to lie down on the sofa.
The sofa was hard, not as comfortable as the bed.
More importantly, while the two-seater sofa was just right for the petite Shen Zhiyi, it was quite a challenge for him to fit on it.
Lu Junyue could only half-sit, half-lie, resting his head against the backrest. His gaze fell on Shen Zhiyi lying in the bed.
Her profile was unexpectedly quite beautiful.
After a night of turmoil, drowsiness washed over him, and he soon fell into a deep sleep.
…
Shen Zhiyi didn’t wake up until afternoon.
Upon opening her eyes, she saw Grandma Lu standing by the bed with an angry expression, pointing at Lu Junyue’s nose and scolding him furiously.
“You useless boy! How could you let little Zhiyi take a bullet for you! You’ve disgraced our Lu family!”
Turning to look at Shen Zhiyi, the old woman immediately switched to a doting expression.
“Little Zhiyi, you’ve suffered. Here, choose a tool to punish this good-for-nothing properly!”
Following Grandma Lu’s pointing finger, Shen Zhiyi saw a row of “torture instruments” laid out before Lu Junyue.
A keyboard, durian, rope, whip…
The items became increasingly questionable further down the line.
Lu Junyue wore a faint smile on his face, like a silent threat.
“Grandma, I did all this willingly.” Shen Zhiyi hugged the old woman’s arm, trying to mediate peace.
Grandma Lu’s eyes reddened as she gently patted Shen Zhiyi’s hand.
“This boy is lucky to have a good wife like you.”
“Grandma doesn’t have much to give you.” She called for the butler. “Old Li.”
The old butler entered carrying a property deed and keys.
Grandma Lu handed the property deed and keys to Shen Zhiyi.
“This seaside detached villa in Huajing is for you.”
System: [Host darling, Huajing’s villas are in the best location in the capital. This seaside detached villa is the crown jewel in the most central position—unobstructed views, beautiful scenery, worth 900 million!]
Shen Zhiyi’s eyes curved into happy crescents, her smile appearing exceptionally well-behaved as her voice turned sweeter.
“Thank you, Grandma~”
“Oh my, little Zhiyi’s voice is so sweet. Call me Grandma a few more times.”
“Grandma~ Grandma~”
Lu Junyue: “?”
How had his stern and rigid grandmother become this high-pitched, doting old woman under Shen Zhiyi’s influence?
He turned to leave but was stopped by Grandma Lu.
Grandma Lu: “Little Zhiyi, not punishing Junyue shows your consideration. But as an elder, I cannot let this go unpunished.”
The old woman’s face turned serious, the powerful aura of the matriarch of the household instantly radiating from her, carrying immense pressure.
Shen Zhiyi remembered Ji Yanli saying that the Lu family’s matriarch was a formidable figure.
After all, among the many wealthy families in the capital, Grandma Lu was the only woman who held power as the head of the household.
Lu Junyue sighed helplessly, “Grandma, I’m your own grandson.”
Grandma Lu remained impartial, “You used to be. But now that Xiao Zhiyi has married into the Lu family, she is my dear granddaughter-in-law.”
“You are an outsider.”
“?”
“Your punishment is to copy the Book of Male Virtues a thousand times. Once you’re done, submit it to Xiao Zhiyi for review. If she’s not satisfied, make it two thousand copies. Still not satisfied? Then four thousand!”
“…”
Lu Junyue left with a cold expression.
In this battle between grandmother and grandson, Grandma Lu emerged victorious once again.
Shen Zhiyi was curious, “Grandma, does the Lu family really have something like male virtues?”
Grandma Lu patiently explained.
“Of course we do.” The old lady even reflected a little, “It’s true that the Lu family has a bad reputation outside—we’re famously known as a family of madmen.”
“But madness aside, the Lu family has a generations-old tradition of doting on wives and being fiercely protective of our own.”
“The Lu family’s Book of Male Virtues was personally written by our ancestor. It has been passed down for centuries and is our family heirloom!”
System: [Huh? The Lu family heirloom that tops the black market’s most-wanted list, coveted by countless eyes… is the Book of Male Virtues??]
Shen Zhiyi curled her lips, her obedient eyes concealing excitement.
The Lu family was indeed mad.
And she loved their madness.
In the afternoon, Shen Zhiyi stayed home to play chess with Grandma Lu.
They were evenly matched, trading wins and losses.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve had such an enjoyable game!” Grandma Lu was delighted.
Shen Zhiyi smiled sweetly, “If Grandma enjoys playing chess, I’ll play with you every day from now on.”
Every day…
Grandma Lu was momentarily dazed. The words “every day” felt too distant for her.
“Madam, Young Mistress, dinner is ready.”
Wang Ma came to call them.
Shen Zhiyi helped Grandma Lu downstairs and noticed that Lu Junyue, who was usually extremely busy, was also seated in the dining room.
Grandma Lu raised an eyebrow, “Oh? Has our busy man specially come home to have dinner with his wife?”
Lu Junyue took the rice scoop from Wang Ma and served Grandma Lu a bowl of rice first.
“I’m just tired of eating out.”
Then he served a second bowl. Not satisfied with just filling it, he pressed the rice down firmly with the scoop.
When that heaping, tightly-packed bowl of rice was placed in front of Shen Zhiyi, she frowned deeply.
Had Lu Junyue not given up on his plan to kill her?
Did he want to stuff her to death?
Hearing her thoughts, Lu Junyue’s eyes crinkled with amusement.
She actually thought he wanted to stuff her to death? What an adorable idea.
His sudden laughter at the quiet table drew the attention of both Grandma Lu and Shen Zhiyi.
“Ahem…” Lu Junyue elegantly continued eating, “Why are you looking at me? Is there food on my face?”
Noticing that Shen Zhiyi had put down her chopsticks, he frowned slightly, realizing she hadn’t eaten much.
Lu Junyue added meat to her bowl, “You’re all skin and bones. You should eat more.”
Shen Zhiyi: “I can’t eat anymore…”
Lu Junyue: “Is the food not good? Uncle Li, fire Wang Ma.”
Wang Ma: “?”
Wait, what did Wang Ma do to deserve this!
“Mr. Lu, I’ve worked diligently in the Lu family for over twenty years. I’ve long considered the Lu family my second home!Wang Ma pulled out her portable eye drops and applied them, then turned around pretending to wail.
“Mr. Lu, I have elderly parents to support and children to raise! I can’t lose this job!”
Shen Zhiyi’s head was buzzing as she picked up her chopsticks again.
“Fine, I’ll eat, alright?”
Watching her obediently eat her meal, Lu Junyue brought over a bowl of soup and placed it in front of her.
He said to Wang Ma in a relaxed tone, “Wang Ma, you can stay.”
Wang Ma’s sobbing stopped immediately: “Thank you, Mr. Lu! Thank you, madam!”
Seeing Lu Junyue watching Shen Zhiyi eat like he was supervising a child, Grandma Lu revealed a gratified smile.
Loving someone is like nurturing a flower.
Lu Junyue was determined to nurture little Zhiyi all over again.
She murmured softly, “That rascal finally knows how to care for someone.”
Three days passed quickly.
During these three days, Shen Zhiyi didn’t go to the company, staying home under Grandma Lu’s care to recover from her injuries.
Three professional medical teams were on standby at the Lu residence 24/7.
Under Grandma Lu’s meticulous care, Shen Zhiyi’s injuries had mostly healed.
“What are you looking at?”
A piece of cut fruit on a fork was brought to Shen Zhiyi’s lips.
Shen Zhiyi shifted her attention from the news on her phone to look at Grandma Lu, who was still feeding her.
“I’m reading about Ji Yanli and Shen Yanyan’s wedding news. I heard they’re having an outdoor ceremony, extremely luxurious.”
She curled her lips, her tone sarcastic.
She hadn’t received a wedding invitation.
It went without saying – Shen Yanyan wouldn’t dare to invite her to the wedding.
No invitation? Then she’d crash it!
While Shen Zhiyi was still contemplating how exactly to crash the wedding, she heard Grandma Lu ask with concern:
“Little Zhiyi, do you want to attend the Ji family’s wedding?”
“Grandma, did you receive an invitation?”
“No. The Ji and Lu families are sworn rivals – why would they send us invitations? But…”
Grandma Lu put down the fruit plate and clapped her hands.
Instantly, numerous bodyguards marched into the room in perfect unison, making quite an impression.
Grandma Lu had the demeanor of someone who would stand by Shen Zhiyi even if she wanted to poke a hole in the sky.
“If the Ji family won’t invite us, we’ll crash it!”