“Shen… Shen Ji, what’s—what’s wrong with you?”
Jiang Jianyue covered her mouth as she looked at Shen Ji, who was leaning against the headboard.
Shen Ji curled the corners of his mouth and joked half-heartedly, “It’s a small thing. I just accidentally got hunted by someone when I went out.”
Jiang Jianyue’s eyes reddened as she walked up to Shen Ji and carefully touched the blood-stained bandage.
*Hiss—*
“Shen Ji, come to the hospital with me!”
Jiang Jianyue’s face, still wet with tears, was filled with a determination that Shen Ji had never seen before.
More importantly, the Little Stutterer actually didn’t stutter?
“I’m fine. It’s already mostly healed.”
“You’re lying!”
Hearing this, Shen Ji gave a bitter smile.
He really wasn’t lying to her.
He could clearly feel the itchy sensation of healing coming from his abdomen, and the source of the pain was actually the replenishment of cool energy within his body.
Perhaps this was the uniqueness of the Blood Race.
Not only did they possess strength far beyond ordinary people, but they also had extraordinary recovery capabilities.
“I’m really okay. Look, if you don’t believe me.”
As he spoke, Shen Ji supported himself on the edge of the bed to get down, but the sharp pulling sensation in his abdomen caused him to suck in a breath of cold air.
“Don’t move!”
Jiang Jianyue’s eyes were still filled with tears, and she bit her lower lip, but she shouted with a fierce expression.
Shen Ji smiled faintly. “Fine, fine. I won’t move.”
Jiang Jianyue used her sleeve to lightly wipe away her tears and sat down next to Shen Ji with a look of grievance.
She said, “Shen Ji, tell me exactly who bullied you. I’ll get revenge for you.”
Shen Ji caught Jiang Jianyue’s small fist as it waved in the air and comforted her.
“No one bullied me. Don’t worry. I really just accidentally grazed myself. And look, the wound is about to heal.”
Shen Ji started to unwrap the bandage as he spoke, but Jiang Jianyue stopped him just in time.
Seeing this, Jiang Jianyue had no choice but to give up on the idea of taking Shen Ji to the hospital.
Shen Ji changed the subject instead.
“Little Stutterer, I didn’t expect you wouldn’t stutter when you speak. Be honest, were you pretending in front of me before?”
A flash of panic appeared in Jiang Jianyue’s eyes.
In truth, she didn’t know what was going on either.
Normally, when facing others, although she didn’t speak much, her speech was fluent.
It was only in front of Shen Ji that she would stutter. But just now…
Had she actually overcome that difficulty?
“I… I didn’t pretend on purpose.”
Shen Ji poked the soft flesh of Jiang Jianyue’s waist with a mischievous grin.
“And you say you weren’t? As soon as I mention it, you change back.”
Jiang Jianyue’s entire body tensed up, and she reflexively stood up.
A flush of red quickly dyed her fair, clean face.
Shen Ji… he was a rogue!
He actually touched her waist!
The moment she stood up, Jiang Jianyue bumped into the lunch box placed by her feet, which reminded her of the purpose of her visit.
“I’m… I’m sorry.”
A look of bewilderment crossed Shen Ji’s face.
He really couldn’t remember anything Jiang Jianyue had done that required an apology. He could only ask, “Sorry for what?”
“For… for last time. The money for Xiao Wan’s illness. I… I shouldn’t have forced it on you.”
“Oh, that—”
Shen Ji deliberately prolonged his tone.
Originally, he felt that the matter was no big deal.
It was just a difference in philosophy.
The original host wanted to save his sister through his own efforts, but Jiang Jianyue couldn’t stand to see him suffer so much.
Shen Ji rubbed his chin thoughtfully and said, “You want me to forgive you?”
“Mm-hmm.”
A spark of light appeared in Jiang Jianyue’s eyes as she looked at Shen Ji expectantly.
“It’s not impossible…”
“But!”
The light in Jiang Jianyue’s eyes instantly dimmed, and she listened obediently to Shen Ji’s next words.
“You have to bring me something as compensation, right?”
Jiang Jianyue smiled sweetly and shook the lunch box in her hand in front of Shen Ji.
Shen Ji crossed his arms over his chest and said in a mock-authoritative tone, “Humph, then hurry up and open it so I can see what kind of delicious food it is.”
Jiang Jianyue obediently opened the lunch box.
The small, square box consisted of two layers.
The top was divided into Double-Cooked Pork and tomato scrambled eggs, while the bottom was fragrant white rice.
Shen Ji’s appetite was instantly piqued.
At the same time, he thought to himself, ‘This is much better than that woman Ye Xi’s Dark Cuisine. It’s lucky the Little Stutterer came to bring food today; otherwise, I’d probably be forced to death by Ye Xi’s poison.’
“I… I added… added sugar to the tomato scrambled eggs. It’s the way you like it.”
“Ah—”
Shen Ji kept his mouth open for a while, but seeing no action from Jiang Jianyue, he asked in confusion, “Are you just showing it to me?”
“That… that girl from before hasn’t… hasn’t come back yet. Let’s wait for her…”
Shen Ji ran his fingers through his hair in annoyance and glanced at the clear noodle soup on the side.
Didn’t that woman Ye Xi just say a second ago that she was going to stay at his house?
The next second, she left without a word.
Could it be because of Jiang Jianyue?
Was she jealous?
“Don’t worry about her. Let’s eat first.”
“N… no.”
“Aren’t you afraid that she’s the reason I got hurt?”
“She… she’s a good girl.”
Shen Ji looked up at the ceiling in exasperation.
When Ye Xi saw Jiang Jianyue, she probably looked quite fierce, didn’t she?
She didn’t look like a good girl at all.
Was this Little Stutterer’s head not working right?
Someone was mean to her, and yet she was speaking up for them.
“Hey, did she give you some kind of benefit?”
“N… no. You were hurt, and she was the first to come… come take care of you.”
“Aren’t you curious if she has other intentions toward me?”
Jiang Jianyue shook her head.
Compared to those things, she was more worried about Shen Ji’s injuries.
Shen Ji let out a long sigh.
His current feelings for Ye Xi were extremely complex.
If he was supposed to be grateful to her for taking care of him, well, the fact that he almost died was also inseparable from her.
But if he was supposed to hate her, Ye Xi had been constantly sacrificing and thinking for him, albeit in a somewhat extreme way—including, but not limited to, a forced kiss.
The only way to break the deadlock was for the two of them to have an honest talk.
It might even be necessary to tell her about his deal with The Official.
After all, she had broken ties with her own father for him.
Ye Xi should be able to understand his difficulties at the time, right?
—
As dusk approached, the dim yellow streetlights began to light up one after another.
A shadow stretched long under a streetlight, appearing exceptionally lonely at this moment.
Ye Xi kicked an empty, flattened soda can, as if doing so could kick away all the troubles in her heart.
But reality didn’t change at all.
Ye Xi began to glance at a bar next to her that had just opened for business.
From childhood to adulthood, she had never drunk alcohol.
They said that drinking could make one forget their sorrows, and she wanted to try it today.
Without much hesitation, Ye Xi pushed the glass door and walked in.
Although the interior of the bar was generally dim, it was decorated with a few spotlights, and the melodious sound of folk songs drifted through the air.
This was completely different from the flashy, neon-lit bar Ye Xi had imagined.
The man wiping the table at the front desk seemed to see the confusion in Ye Xi’s heart.
He spoke up, “Miss, is this your first time here?”
Looking toward the voice, a flash of surprise appeared in Ye Xi’s eyes.
A thought surfaced in her mind. ‘He’s one of us?!’
The man didn’t pay attention to Ye Xi’s surprised gaze.
He simply pulled out a stool at the counter and explained, “My place is a Quiet Bar. People who want a quiet place to drink usually come to me.”
Ye Xi nodded thoughtfully and naturally sat down at the counter.
The man got straight to the point.
“I wonder if you’d like to order a ‘Special Edition’ or the ordinary kind?”