Qian Fei stared at the beautiful girl sitting on the sofa, momentarily stunned before finally snapping back to reality.
The matter of someone moving into their home had been mentioned by Li Yifei when he visited her in Hubei, but she'd been so busy lately that she'd almost forgotten about it.
Over a week ago, according to Li Yifei, he had missed her unbearably—both emotionally and physically starved. He claimed that if he didn't get to have a "full meal" with her soon, he would starve to death.
So he flew over to see her. The first thing he said upon arriving at her hotel was, "I've already cleaned myself up before coming. Let's skip straight to dinner, okay, Jinjin?"
Then he pinned her against the wall, the table, the kitchen counter, the bed—any surface where he thought he could hold her down—and proceeded to have his "meal" repeatedly.
By the next morning, she was thoroughly unable to get up. Meanwhile, he rubbed his eyes, licked his lips, and said, "Jinjin, time for breakfast!"
She was so frightened she nearly lost control of both bodily functions, gaining a profound new understanding of the idiom "as fierce as wolves and tigers."
Later, after finishing her "lunch," he finally dressed properly and settled down for a proper conversation.
He said, "There's something I need to discuss with you."
●︶3︶●
Li Yifei asked Qian Fei if it would be okay for one of his childhood friends to stay with them for a while.
Qian Fei asked, "Who? Dajun? Did his mom catch him gaming and disown him, kicking him out?"
Li Yifei replied, "No, that little rascal Dajun has been busy harassing some female netizen lately and hasn't bothered me in ages." He paused, then added, "It's a girl."
Qian Fei thought for a moment and asked, "Not another one of your 'little sisters,' is it?"
Li Yifei frowned. "Stop bringing up that 'little sister' thing to throw in my face!"
Qian Fei suddenly said, "But you know, I've been seeing entertainment news lately—Jin Tian has really blown up. She's absolutely a top-tier celebrity now! Seeing her so successful makes me feel like I might have held you back from fame by being with me instead of a 'celebrity girlfriend' or 'celebrity little sister.'"
Li Yifei poked her forehead hard. "Can we not go off-topic? Can we finish one conversation before starting another? All I want is to be 'Jinjin's boyfriend' and 'Jinjin's big brother,' okay? And can we please get back to talking about my childhood friend?"
Qian Fei said, "Fine." Then she asked, "You said this girl is your childhood friend, so she must be a local Beijinger too. Why wouldn't she have a place to stay?"
Li Yifei explained, "Her family keeps trying to set her up with someone she doesn't like—and of course, that person doesn't like her either. She got so fed up with the pressure that she moved out. She originally had her own apartment, but there are supposedly some bad memories associated with it—she says going back makes her want to die. So she bought a new place, but it's still being renovated and she can't move in yet. She asked if I could take her in temporarily until her new place is ready. I figured since I can't be with you right now and I'm a bit worried about you living alone, if you don't mind, she could stay with you for a while."Qian Fei frowned and said, "Wait a minute, what you just said contained a lot of information. Several lightning bolts flashed through my mind. Let me sort it out first. You said she has an apartment, but living there makes her feel like dying, which implies she must have had a really awful romantic history. Seems she’s a woman with a story. Then you said her family keeps trying to set her up with someone she doesn’t like, and you specifically emphasized that the person she doesn’t like dislikes her even more. Based on that extra, slightly unnecessary remark, can I boldly speculate that this person’s name is Li Yifei?"
Li Yifei smirked at her and said with a chuckle, "Investment Banker Qian, I’ve noticed you’re particularly sharp when it comes to adult relationship issues. Seems you’re quite interested in such topics." He paused before adding, "Anyway, if you feel awkward about this, just pretend I never mentioned it. I’ll ask her to find somewhere else."
Qian Fei smirked back and said, "First, let me test you with a logic question. Answer it, and then I’ll tell you whether I feel awkward or not. The question is: Do you dislike your childhood female friend because she doesn’t like you, or do you dislike her regardless of whether she likes you or not?"
Without a second’s hesitation, Li Yifei blurted out, "Of course it’s the latter! She’s just not my type at all!"
Qian Fei figured that, judging by Li Yifei’s standards for "his type," his childhood female friend probably wasn’t very good-looking.
She felt relieved.
"Whether she stays at our place or not is actually up to you. After all, you’re the landlord now!" She deftly sidestepped the issue.
Li Yifei rolled his peach-blossom eyes at her and said, "But right now, the landlord is your man—he has to listen to you! So you’re the one who gets the final say!"
Qian Fei felt inexplicably pleased by his sweet talk.
She stopped beating around the bush and said, "Fine, give her the keys and let her move in!"
Just before wrapping up the topic, Li Yifei added, "Let her stay in your room."
Qian Fei asked why.
Li Yifei replied, "The only woman allowed in my room is my woman!"
Qian Fei instantly felt so smug she could barely recognize herself.
●︶3︶●
Qian Fei had always assumed that Li Yifei’s childhood female friend—the one he claimed "wasn’t his type at all" and whom he "would never like regardless of whether she liked him"—was rather unattractive. But she never expected that "this dish" would turn out to have an exquisitely cold and beautiful face.
Staring at that stunning face, Qian Fei’s heart skipped a beat. After a brief pause, she bent down to change her shoes and greeted the beauty on the sofa.
"Hi, you must be Liao Shiyu? I’m Qian Fei!"
The beauty studied her, slowly rising from the sofa. Her first words were, "You look different from your photos. You’re much prettier in person."
Qian Fei was taken aback again and smiled modestly. "Not at all—I’m famously unphotogenic!"
Liao Shiyu gave her a faint smile and said, "Li Yifei must have told you about my situation. I’m really sorry for intruding on you for a while!"
Qian Fei returned a friendly smile. "No problem! I was actually feeling a bit lonely living alone. Now that you’re here, we can keep each other company!"Qian Fei moved her luggage into the room that Li Yifei had previously occupied. Most of her personal belongings had already been transferred from her original room, but after taking stock, she realized there were still a few essential items she needed to bring over.
She got up and went to the living room to discuss with Liao Shiyu: "Can I go to your room for a bit? I still need to grab a few things!"
Liao Shiyu, sitting on the sofa, smiled at her. "Of course, this is your home. I'm just a guest here. Take whatever you need."
Qian Fei smiled back.
She always felt something slightly off when talking to Liao Shiyu, though she couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was. Maybe their energies hadn’t yet harmonized in the same space.
She went to her old room to gather her things. As she packed, she suddenly remembered that on the 13th of the 14th, Li Yifei had tucked a few unused condoms under the mattress near her pillow. Her face flushed at the thought. She really hoped his childhood friend hadn’t stumbled upon them.
Quickly, she reached under the mattress, felt around for the small packets, and swiftly stuffed them into her pants pocket.
Just as she was about to leave, she froze mid-turn.
Something had caught the corner of her eye.
She turned back, her gaze settling on the pillow.
A corner of a booklet peeked out from beneath it—one that looked strangely familiar.
She lifted the pillow and saw it was the photo album she hadn’t gotten around to discarding, filled with pictures of her and Wang Ruohai from the past.
No wonder Liao Shiyu had earlier remarked that she looked much better now than in the photos. So this was what she meant.
Qian Fei picked up the album and placed the pillow back where it had been.
"I found it in the corner when I moved in. Thought it looked interesting, so I flipped through it and left it by the pillow," Liao Shiyu said, appearing at the doorway without warning.
Qian Fei turned and smiled at her. "Didn’t you notice the man in these photos isn’t Li Yifei?"
Liao Shiyu shrugged. "I assumed it was your ex-boyfriend."
Unsure what mindset had made the album seem "interesting" to her, Qian Fei decided to be direct. "Li Yifei has already seen this album."
Liao Shiyu stared at her for a moment before replying, "Oh." She added, "I think you might have misunderstood. It wasn’t the fact that you kept photos with another man that I found interesting, but the scenes from your university days with your ex. I went abroad right after high school and never got to see what college life in China was like. I was just curious!"
Qian Fei thought for a moment. "Well, when you have time, I can take you around our campus." She lifted the album slightly. "But this thing really should be thrown away."
As she walked past Liao Shiyu with her packed belongings, heading back to Li Yifei’s room, she heard the other woman ask in a magnetic voice, "But these are your memories. Are you sure you want to discard them?"
Qian Fei stopped and turned to face her, smiling. "Getting rid of certain unpleasant memories might be better—for myself and for others."
Liao Shiyu looked at her, and her usually practiced smile suddenly seemed a little more genuine. She extended a hand and said, "I like your attitude. Qian Fei, I hope we can become friends."Qian Fei tossed the photo album into the wastebasket nearby before freeing her hand to shake Liao Shiyu's. "I make friends easily!"
●︶3︶●
No sooner had Qian Fei moved her things back into Li Yifei's room than she heard his voice in the living room before she could even start unpacking.
Seconds later, he slipped into the room, kicked the door shut behind him, pulled her over, and pinned her against the wall, immediately planting his lips on hers.
Qian Fei struggled and pushed him away.
Li Yifei puckered his lips and leaned in again. "Don't dodge! I'm starving here—let me get a few more bites in!"
Qian Fei slapped a hand over his face and shoved him back. "Stop messing around! There's someone else in the house!"
Li Yifei pulled her hand away, shamelessly pursing his lips as he leaned in again. "Just pretend she doesn't exist! Come on, let your big bro get a couple more bites. You know what they say—when love runs deep, desire runs hot, and hot desire makes a man hungry! Have some sympathy for my ravenous state!"
Qian Fei absolutely refused to give in.
She knew this shameless bastard too well—once he started, he wouldn't stop. He'd pin her down everywhere and have his way all over the place. If they were alone, fine, but right now Liao Shiyu was sitting on the living room couch. If he got her moaning loud enough for the girl outside to hear, she'd never be able to show her face again.
Her fierce resistance, her saintly determination to defend her chastity with every last ounce of strength, finally pissed Li Yifei off.
"Damn it," Li Yifei swore, retracting his puckered, nearly numb lips. Furious, he dragged Qian Fei out of the room by the hand.
As they passed through the living room, Qian Fei saw Liao Shiyu—who had been watching TV—stare at her in shock before glancing meaningfully at the photo album in the wastebasket.
Qian Fei understood the unspoken question: Are you okay? Did he find the album and is he giving you trouble for it?
Just before being yanked out the door, Qian Fei managed to shoot her a Don't worry look.
Then Li Yifei hauled her into the elevator.
As the elevator descended, Qian Fei finally caught her breath. She eyed Li Yifei's disgruntled, unsatisfied expression and asked, "Where are you dragging me off to with that look on your face?"
Li Yifei narrowed his eyes, arched a brow, and said in a low voice, "Food is the first necessity of the people. I'm taking you out to find a place to eat ."
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