Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Since the weather had turned warmer, they would not be needing those bulky down jacket despite still needing to wear a rather thick jacket. Qi Chengzhi was not wearing any gloves, so both of them snuggled closely with their hands and arms interlocked with each other.
Both of them strolled along the food street.
She remembered the first time they walked down a food street like this. It was the night when she discovered Jian Yi’s true colors.
However, her mood for both of these trips was vastly different. Her heart was all over the place when Qi Chengzhi held her in his arms.
At this moment, her entire heart belonged to Qi Chengzhi and it felt very calm.
They walked at a relaxed pace even though it was quite crowded with tourists.
Song Yu lowered her head and looked at the well-structured giant palm that was interlaced with hers. This was the hand that blocked Qi Chengyue’s wine glass and prevented her from being publicly embarrassed.
She never expected him to protect her at the expense of shaming Qi Chengyue in person.
No matter what, Qi Chengyue was still the bride of the day and his sister. Under normal circumstances, men would usually choose to help Qi Chengyue.
Song Yu was so touched by his actions. Any woman would hope for their man to stand by their side unconditionally and give a helping hand whenever they needed it.
Most of the women would also hope for their man to shield them from all harm, like the strong and reliable knight in shining armor they imagined.
Song Yu’s gaze trailed upwards from his fair-skinned hand to his arm and grazed past his black cashmere jacket, where she raised her head to look at the side view of his handsome, charming face.
She could smell his refreshing fragrance in the cool breeze while he was walking beside her. His towering figure made him stand out from the crowd, every part of his body including each strand of hair and pore exuded elegance.
Song Yu felt overwhelmed and held him even tighter as she leaned further on his arm. Her tender cheeks occasionally grazed his jacket due to the movements of their footsteps.
She gradually rested her forehead on his shoulders and wrapped her other hand around his arm.
Suddenly, Qi Chengzhi stopped walking. His action was not abrupt as they were walking at a rather slow pace.
He lowered his head and saw Song Yu’s face with a calm expression. Her drooping eyelashes fluttered gently.
He felt an itch in his heart as if a soft feather was tickling him gently.
He then lowered his head and kissed her forehead tenderly. His scorching lips grazed her forehead gently and spoke with a mellow voice, “What is it?”
Song Yu shook her head. Her cheeks were blushing red—like the red sky that was aglow with sunset. The skin that he kissed felt sleek and hot. She wrapped her hands around his arm strongly as if she wanted to weld him into her own flesh and blood.
“I just feel that… I’m really fond of you. How lucky am to have you reciprocating my feelings.” This was the first time Song Yu confessed to someone. She felt the back of her ears burning, and not daring to lift her head, she continued pressing her forehead against his arms.
She could feel Qi Chengzhi turning around. Before she even realized, he had extracted his sturdy arm from hers. Then, he tightened his arms around her waist, enclosing her into his embrace.
Song Yu still could not look at him after her outright confession just now. With her head lowered and burning ears, she could feel his breath approaching her. When her hairline brushed against soft lips, her whole body was so hot that she shuddered. His soft lips then left a burning trail on her skin and gently grazed the tip of her nose before landing on her lips. Her lips trembled upon his contact.
“You’re not going to fancy anybody else other than me, right?” He took a step back with his burning lips still attached to hers, breathing warm air into her mouth when he spoke.
If it was in the old days, she would be shaking and not saying a word as she was easily embarrassed. To his surprise, she openly answered him with an ‘uhm’.
In exchange for her answer, Qi Chengzhi tightened his embrace around her as if something rattled him. His searing lips grazed past the corner of her mouth to her ear lobes, where he pressed against her ears and spoke with a low, raspy voice, “How I wish I could ravish you right here, right now.”
After hearing what he said, Song Yu felt as if he was as hot as a grill, like the baking hot metal that was brought out from the fire pit.
All of a sudden, Song Yu came right to her senses and shuddered violently when a flurry of chill wind woke her. She realized that they were at a crowded food street. What took over her that made her confess to Qi Chengzhi here? She felt extremely embarrassed when she realized that both of them were kissing in the middle of a busy street!
Song Yu use the corner of her eyes to sneak a peek as she dare not look directly at the people around them. She noticed that many of them were staring.
Although modern society was more accepting and no one would criticize others for kissing in public, people still threw curious glances towards them.
She stumbled into Qi Chengzhi’s gaze that was full of desire once she lifted her head. His pair of deep-set eyes were devouring her like a whirlpool, leaving her no chance to escape.
“Let me go first, there are so many people watching us,” Song Yu pushed him with flushed cheeks.
Qi Chengzhi could not resist the shy expression on her face and planted another kiss on her cheek before releasing her. His burning palm went around her waist onto her hands and held it in.
Throughout the walk, Song Yu did not let her gaze wander around. Qi Chengzhi’s mellow voice sounded above her head, “Have you decided what to eat yet?”
Coincidentally, a breeze of wind mixed with the scent of stinky tofu blew towards their direction. Song Yu gave a quick scan and saw a stall that was selling stinky tofu.
Suddenly, a devilish thought arose in her mind. She glanced at a nicely-dressed Qi Chengzhi and asked, “Have you tried stinky tofu before?”
“…” Qi Chengzhi gave her a nonchalant glance. How could it be possible for him to try something like that?
Song Yu giggled and dragged him to the stall that was selling fried stinky tofu, “Boss, one serving please.”
Not long after, the stinky tofu was ready. The vendor removed it from the pot and packed it into a paper container before drizzling chili sauce onto it. Song Yu held the container with her hands, the burning temperature out of the pot managed to seep through the box and reach her fingertips.
Song Yu picked up a piece with a bamboo stick and stuffed it in her mouth. It was so hot that she kept puffing air out with an open mouth. Then, she poked a piece and took it to the corner of Qi Chengzhi’s mouth and said, “Try it.”
Qi Chengzhi raised his eyebrows with an expression that seemed like he would rather be a thousand miles away instead of eating it.
Song Yu sent it to his mouth and urged him again, “Just try it!”
He could not resist her prodding and ate one reluctantly, and refused to eat more. When he chewed, he was frowning so tightly that he could pinch a fly in between his eyebrows. He made it seem like eating a piece of stinky tofu was an undignified thing to do.
In the end, it was Song Yu who finished the rest before throwing the bamboo stick and paper container into the rubbish bin. She curled her palm slightly and brought to her mouth to huff into it. She blocked the exhaled air from escaping and took a sniff. It was filled with the smell of stinky tofu.
After that, she looked at both sides and saw there were not many people around. She waved her hand at Qi Chengzhi. When he responded and lowered his head, she tiptoed and kissed his lips at the speed of light and gave a swirl in his mouth.
When she landed her heels back onto the ground, Song Yu licked her lips with a blushed face, her crystal clear eyes were gleaming with mischief when she asked, “Does it smell?”
Qi Chengzhi burst into laughter. This was what she had planned all along. He never thought that she had a prankster inside her. The pair of sparkling eyes in front of him looked so exuberant, like those from a mischievous child.
His athletic hands hooked on the back of her waist and pulled her into his arms, before devouring her entirely.
“I ate it too, remember?” He pecked on her lips gently while he spoke.
Song Yu grinned shyly with her forehead laid against his chest. She felt as though this man had descended from heaven.
It felt weird for him to carry out such mundane tasks such as accompanying her to stroll at the food street and eating stinky tofu.
Qi Chengzhi looked at her while she lowered her head and laid against his chest. Her movements exposed the fair-skinned area on the back of her neck with silky strands of loose hair lying around since she tied her hair up in a bun.
He lowered his head to give a few pecks on the back of her neck before holding her hand. He continued their stroll with a Song Yu who was blushing the whole way, from the top of her head to her chest.
Both of them did not look for any restaurant and just ate some snacks along the street, including lamb tribe, pan-fried dumplings, and grilled squid. They were quite full at the end of the trip.
The image where Qi Chengzhi accompanied her to eat along the food street depicted a sharp contrast to his elegant aura.
Just the thought of him wearing a fine suit while holding a stick of grilled squid, standing together with her by the street. He even had to lean forward to avoid getting sauce on him. He would never be able to uphold his image with him eating this way.
Song Yu could not help but express her opinion after looking at him eating, “Do you think Yu Keyao will still fancy you if she saw you like this?”
Qi Chengzhi glanced at her and finished off the last piece of squid. Then, he took out a tissue to wipe the sauce off her lips before wiping his own. He scoffed and said, “You think that she’ll get a chance to see me like this?”
She was the only one who could see him like this. Other women would not even stand a chance.
Song Yu realized what Qi Chengzhi meant and felt a gush of warmth and sweetness in her heart. She stood in place and could not help but curl her lips into a silly angle.
While she was still reminiscing, Qi Chengzhi took the bamboo stick from the hands of a dazed Song Yu, wrapped them with the tissue and discarded them in the rubbish bin nearby before returning to hold her hand again.
After filling their stomachs with food, Qi Chengzhi received a phone call about work-related matters. He sent Song Yu back to Viewpark Residence before driving back to the office.
When it was almost time for dinner, Qi Chengzhi called and told her that he was not able to come home for dinner. There was a client that arrived today and they would be having dinner together tonight.
The corner of Song Yu’s mouth could not resist smiling as she listened to the phone call. The feeling of him calling her to notify her felt very domestic. After knowing that he was fine, she reminded him, “Don’t drink or smoke too much and come home earlier. If the client asked you to go to those places of entertainment, humph! Be careful and don’t let me find anything suspicious!”
Usually, the men would not be pleased if their women controlled them like this. They would feel frustrated if they were being restricted too much.
On the contrary, Qi Chengzhi was quite happy. This proved that she cared more about him. He would be upset if she did not say anything.
He smiled gently, with the look of tenderness in his eyes. His expression caught Chang Lai’s attention and he kept looking at his boss through the rearview mirror.
“No worries, I will not go to those places. If the client requests for it, I’ll let Dongge arrange for him. I’ll be back after dinner,” Qi Chengzhi turned around and looked outside of the mirror while he spoke. His car passed by a bridal boutique and he could see the mannequins displayed at the window were dressed in all kinds of delicate wedding gowns.
Qi Chengzhi looked at the name of the boutique. It was a famous bridal boutique in B City, where they collaborated with a well-known designer from Italy. They would provide limited designs of wedding gown every year exclusively to this bridal boutique. Bookings were also available to hire the designer to specially tailor a gown.
“Stop the car,” Qi Chengzhi said after hanging up the phone.
They were not allowed to stop there, but Chang Lai still parked the car and let Qi Chengzhi down. He walked towards the opposite direction for quite some distance and entered the bridal boutique.
…
…
Later that night, Song Yu asked Aunt Yang to cook two simple dishes and they ate dinner together. After dinner, she took her iPad and nestled into the soft couch in the living room and watched “The Good Wife” while she munched on some strawberries.
When she saw the characters in the show were chatting away and drinking red wine, she had the sudden urge to have some too. She stood up to retrieve a bottle from the wine cooler at the bar. Just when she poured it into her glass, she heard Aunt Yang’s voice from the entrance, “Madam! Sir has gone out to entertain clients, he’s not at home.”
“I’ll go in and wait then,” she heard Xia Wenna answered.
Song Yu put down the wine and looked around. There was no place for her to hide. She could already hear Xia Wenna entering the house and decided to face her head-on. While she was about to walk out the living room, she bumped right into Xia Wenna.
Xia Wenna was shocked as she did not expect Song Yu to be here. She looked at Song Yu’s casual attire and sensed that she was not a visiting guest but rather someone who lived here.
“Aunty,” Song Yu rubbed her fingers nervously. She felt tingles on her scalp under the gaze of Xia Wenna.
Xia Wenna wore a black suit. She looked different in the day when she attended the wedding. Her black hair was bundled up into a bun and secured with a hairpin, giving her a rather stern look.
She was wearing more makeup to match her black outfit. Her rosy lips pursed tightly into a thin line.
Xia Wenna took a deep breath and asked with a deep voice, “You’re living here?”
Song Yu lowered her head as she did not know what to answer her. If she said yes, it would make her look like she was an easy woman.
“Song Yu, let’s sit down and have a talk,” Xia Wenna breathed deeply before she spoke.
Aunt Yang excused herself to prepare tea in the kitchen, but in fact, she secretly called Qi Chengzhi’s phone.
Song Yu sat down anxiously and opened her mouth widely to inhale, before letting it out shakily.
“I didn’t expect you to move in right away. I always thought that you’re a decent girl. I’ve watched you grow from a young child into a lady. You’ve always known how to measure the situation and keep within bounds. You never let the adults worry about you. However, you’re overstepping your limits this time,” Xia Wenna’s expression was stern while she breathed in and out heavily.
“I cleared things up with you the last time we were at the old mansion. I thought that you’ll think through it properly after you went back and make a decision that’s best for all of us. Instead, you moved in here,” Xia Wenna pursed her lips. “If you insist to be with Chengzhi, not only will you face the backlash from others chastising you as a shameless woman, Chengzhi would also be criticized for being together with his younger brother’s fiancée.
I sincerely want to help the Song family, even if the union between Chengzhi and Yu Keyao wasn’t successful. I would still think of something to help the Song family to recover. The company may not be as big and prominent as the original one, but a medium-sized company would also allow your family to live comfortably.”
“I’ve known you since you were a kid, and had always considered you as my daughter. That was also why Qianying and myself decided to arrange an engagement with you and Chengji. One of the reasons is that both of our families had a good relationship, and the other reason was that I really like you as a person. I would treat you as my daughter if you became my daughter-in-law. However, I don’t accept your current status with Chengzhi.
Song Yu, what about this? I know many fine gentlemen. Just tell me what qualities you seek, I promise he’ll treat you well even after you guys are married.”
Song Yu looked at the floating tea leaves when Aunt Yang brought the tea over. She said calmly, “I like someone who’s 188 cm tall, with me barely reaching his chest. There’s always a refreshing scent on him. Even though he likes to smoke, the smell of cigarette smoke on him is rather pleasant. He would remain silent when he’s angry and squint his eyes when something against his principles happens. This is how he made others feel defeated.
He looks studious with glasses on, but his gaze is razor-sharp without them. Occasionally, he acts like a child and throws tantrums, but at other times he’s very understanding. If everything’s explained and made up to him, he’d accept them willingly. Sometimes, he can also be quite shameless and behave immaturely although he’s a fully grown man.
Nevertheless, he treats me wholeheartedly. He would always put me before himself, even at the expense of his well-being. He would look angry on the surface, but he’ll still endure it and allow me to do things my way. There were many occasions like that, but he would never lose his temper at me. He has a high level of self-control. I can be quite thick-skinned when I comfort and tease him so that he has no choice but to not be angry at me anymore.
Aunty, I really like someone like him. I only like a Qi Chengzhi who acts like this and there’s only one Qi Chengzhi. Others always see him as someone who’s mature and rational, but what they don’t know is that there’s a kid living inside of his heart, making him jealous and petty. However, I only like someone like him. I like each and every one of his characteristics. If these qualities are shown in another man, I would hate them.”
Xia Wenna was pretty shaken up inside. She never knew that side of her eldest son. Was Song Yu really referring to Qi Chengzhi?
“I was never upset by the fact that the Song family went through bankruptcy. I also never thought about what it is like if we never went bankrupt, neither did I want to stage a comeback. If the Song family was not bankrupt, I wouldn’t cancel the engagement with Chengji and I would never have the chance to be with Chengzhi. In a way, I’m glad the way things turned out the way it did.
Furthermore, our family is doing well. We’ve realized who are our real friends and those who are unworthy to stay in contact with. We saw the true colors of the Yu family. My parents also got used to their current lifestyle. My dad no longer needs to exert himself for the sake of the company, and my mum doesn’t have to put up a pretense and socialize with those rich men’s wives.
They’re living a stress-free, leisure retirement. They buy groceries and cook daily, have a chat and play chess when there’s time, and travel overseas once or twice a year for a holiday. Other than waiting for a grandchild, they have nothing else to worry about. Isn’t that a good life?”
