Ji Mingshu's clothes were stained with red wine, so she didn't get out of the car with him when Cen Sen went to buy pork ribs.
Once Cen Sen returned, the Bentley sped all the way to Mingshui Mansion.
By dusk, the snow had stopped. The sky was a dim, cyan-gray that had yet to fully darken. On the island in the middle of the lake, the trees and greenery were draped in silver, and the streetlights wound along the road, their halos gentle. Ji Mingshu suddenly realized that this was the first time she had ever seen Mingshui Mansion in the snow.
Back at the house, Cen Sen carried the grocery bags toward the kitchen's central island counter.
Ji Mingshu glanced at the red wine stain on her clothes, said a quick word to him, and hurried upstairs to shower.
Before her shower, Ji Mingshu stood in front of the wardrobe where her sleepwear was kept, agonizing for a full five minutes.
She would periodically pick out a piece and hold it against herself, but nothing seemed right. The goose-yellow one was too childish, the wine-red one too sexy. The full set that covered her arms and legs was too conservative, while the little lace dress seemed too eager, as if she were serving herself up on a platter—not at all demure.
After some thought, she picked out a few, took pictures, and sent them to the group chat for Jiang Chun and Gu Kaiyang to help her decide.
Gu Kaiyang was still playing dead, but Jiang Chun gave her reply right away.
Jiang Chun: [The green one is nice, but why are you asking? Are you having a pajama party? I want to come sometime!]
Ji Mingshu completely ignored the second half of her message. [What green? There’s no green.]
Jiang Chun: [Isn't the second picture green?]
Ji Mingshu: [...It's clearly haze blue. Are you colorblind?]
Ji Mingshu: [Forget it. I must have been crazy to ask for your opinion.]
Jiang Chun: [Weak, pitiful, and helpless.jpg]
Somehow, the two began their daily sticker battle. In the midst of this battle, Jiang Chun finally sensed that something was amiss—the background in Ji Mingshu's photos was so grand and upscale, it was clearly no longer Gu Kaiyang's little pigeon coop!
She pressed her with several questions, but Ji Mingshu dodged and evaded, refusing to give a straight answer.
Gu Kaiyang, who had been silently lurking, finally couldn't take it anymore and popped up.
Gu Kaiyang: [What does it matter what you wear? It's all going to come off anyway.]
The chat group was abruptly plunged into silence.
Thirty seconds later, Jiang Chun started spamming the chat.
Jiang Chun: [Sob sob sob, I'm just a simple, innocent little goose.]
Jiang Chun: [What did I do to deserve having my pure mind tainted by you people!]
Jiang Chun: [I suspect you're up to something dirty and I have evidence!]
...
No one paid her any mind.
After dropping his bombshell, Gu Kaiyang had put his phone on silent and set the group chat to "Do Not Disturb."
Ji Mingshu, on the other hand, quickly tossed her phone aside and cupped her face, which was burning so hot it felt like it would explode, trying to cool it down.
It was so strange. After what Gu Kaiyang said, the little deer in her heart went blind and started ramming around in a frantic, three-hundred-and-sixty-degree frenzy. She was too embarrassed to continue picking out pajamas, so she hastily grabbed one and scurried into the bathroom.
Actually, what Gu Kaiyang said didn't seem wrong...
No, what was she thinking!
She slapped her cheeks hard.
It was all Gu Kaiyang's fault! Sinful! Lewd!
Ji Mingshu: [Gu Kaiyang, you're dead!]
An hour later, the bathroom was filled with steam. After her shower, Ji Mingshu sat on a soft chair near the bathtub, meticulously applying body lotion. It had a very light camellia scent. She applied a matching scented oil to her hair, and after blow-drying, her long, slightly curly black hair looked fluffy, soft, lazily natural.
Once she was ready, she stood before the full-length mirror, did a little twirl, and then nodded, giving herself an affirmative look. Before finishing, she didn't forget to apply a layer of fruit-flavored lip balm.
When she went downstairs, Cen Sen was in the final stages of cooking.
The braised pork ribs were a glossy, vibrant red; the pearl meatballs were glistening and adorable; the blanched lettuce was a crisp, verdant green. The enticing aromas wafted over, one after another.
With her hands behind her back, she circled the dining table before taking small steps to the central island counter. Peeking over, she asked, "Is there more?"
Wiping the blade of a knife, Cen Sen said, "There's a tomato and egg soup. It's ready. We can bring it to the table."
"Then I'll help you carry it."
Ji Mingshu volunteered.
After spending so much time at Gu Kaiyang's place, she had learned to do a few things. At the very least, she now felt a little embarrassed to just sit and wait for her food.
Cen Sen slid the knife back into its block, his voice gentle and mild. "No need. I'll do it."
"Oh." Ji Mingshu nodded obediently, then obediently trailed behind Cen Sen like a little tail all the way to the dining table.
In truth, Ji Mingshu was not one to sit idle. She liked a lively atmosphere, even during meals. Cen Sen, however, had strict table manners and didn't like to talk while eating. The two could only sit quietly at a right angle to each other, eating with even the faintest of chewing sounds.
But you never know what kind of dirty thoughts are running through a girl's mind when she's quiet on the surface. Take Ji Mingshu, for example. Right now, she was elegantly nibbling on a small pork rib, but her mind couldn't stop fantasizing about some "after-dinner exercise."
As she thought about it, her foot, which was under the table, unconsciously swayed a couple of times, happening to brush against the inside of Cen Sen's calf.
She froze, biting the tip of her chopsticks as she looked at Cen Sen.
Cen Sen met her gaze, his expression calm. After a long moment, he suddenly said, "Eat first."
...?
Ji Mingshu had been holding it together just fine, but his words sent a wave of heat rushing to her cheeks and neck. What did he mean by that? What did he mean, "eat first"? Did she look that unsatisfied?
Ji Mingshu opened her mouth to explain, but she didn't know where to start. Besides, when you've done something that makes you feel guilty, you can't exactly act righteous. A little ashamed and indignant, she could only bury her face in her bowl and quickly finish her rice.
When it came down to it, it was Cen Sen's fault.
He had been so suggestive in the car, giving her so much room for imagination, only to do a complete 180 when they got home, turning into some abstinent, unshakable paragon of virtue. And after dinner, he actually had the mind to clear the dishes, and after clearing the dishes, he actually had the mind to hold a video conference!
Ji Mingshu squatted on the sofa in the media room, waiting for what felt like an eternity. She felt like her heart had grown old from the wait, and any romantic thoughts had dissipated with the passing time and Cen Sen's lack of action. In their place, her anger slowly grew.
The more she thought, the angrier she got. She suddenly stood up from the sofa and ran barefoot straight into the study.
In the study, Cen Sen was wearing a Bluetooth headset and giving his final summary for the meeting. The door was suddenly pushed open. He glanced up slightly and heard Ji Mingshu say angrily, "I'm going to bed!"
—Then she turned and stomped away.
A faint smile touched Cen Sen's lips. He lowered his gaze and continued his summary to the computer screen, though his pace quickened slightly. "The return on investment for this business segment is too low. It's only a matter of time before the space is compressed..."
The meeting attendees all had the same thought... Huh? Did I just hear things? That can't be right, why would I suddenly hear a woman's voice on the president's end? That's so strange—a collective confusion.
Before this confusion could be resolved, Cen Sen's speech was already concluding. "That's all for today. Thank you for your hard work."
Immediately after, the screen went black.
Cen Sen took off his headset, stood up, and stretched his neck from side to side.
When he reached the bedroom door, he found that Ji Mingshu, holding a grudge, had locked it. A thought came to him, and his lips curved into a smile again.
After returning to the bedroom, Ji Mingshu hugged a pillow and sat cross-legged on the bed, waiting for any sound at the door. After three minutes, a faint noise finally came from the doorway. It wasn't too late.
She pricked up her ears to listen, but ten seconds passed, then twenty, then thirty... She began to suspect she had imagined it.
This didn't make sense.
How could the sound just stop?
She held back for a while but couldn't resist. She moved the chair blocking the door and stealthily opened a crack.
The crack grew wider and wider until her whole head was poking out, but the hallway was empty, not a soul in sight.
Ahhh, Cen Sen, that dog of a man, is just a dead pig's trotter! Either I was hearing things, or that dead pig's trotter found the door locked and just gave up! Either way, Cen's Sensen must die!!!
Ji Mingshu was furious. They had both eaten the pork ribs, so why was she the only one thinking about it! She slammed the door shut with a "bang," her mind screaming threats: Since you care so little about the pork ribs! Then you'll never get to eat them!!!
But in the instant she slammed the door and turned around, she suddenly crashed into a cool embrace.
Her mind went blank, her heart nearly stopping from the shock.
After recovering, she was still a bit dazed, unable to speak clearly. "You... how did you get in? You scared me to death, you..."
She inadvertently glanced at the wide-open door of the walk-in closet behind her and had a sudden epiphany. Had he anticipated this day and expanded her closet to the floor above for this very reason?
Cen Sen was never one for many words in these matters. He just chuckled softly. While Ji Mingshu was still babbling nonstop, he had already pressed her against the wall, one hand braced by her ear, the other around her waist, and silenced her.
The lights in the room had been on and bright. Ji Mingshu tried several times to reach out and turn them off, but not only did she fail, she ended up turning on lights that were previously off. Eventually, Cen Sen no longer gave her the chance to turn them off, easily shifting them to a new position.
Ji Mingshu's time away from home had been rather long this time, and Cen Sen had been abstinent for a corresponding length of time. Although it couldn't compare to the two years he was in Australia, for some reason, his endurance seemed to be gradually decreasing with age.
Late at night, snow began to fall over Mingshui Lake. The rustling sound of the falling snow mingled with the sound of water from the bathroom, making it momentarily difficult to distinguish one from the other.
Ji Mingshu sat sullenly in the bathtub with her back to Cen Sen, incessantly urging him to go rinse his mouth. After nagging him, she fanned the air with her hand, then covered her face, deeply regretting that she hadn't learned to hold her breath underwater when she was a child.
Cen Sen leaned against the vanity, the white shirt he had casually thrown on disheveled at the collar, its buttons mismatched.
He lowered his gaze toward Ji Mingshu, a silent, light laugh escaping him. His eyes darkened with an ambiguous meaning as he slowly wiped his thumb across his lower lip, as if savoring a lingering taste. Then, his index finger traced back from the other side.
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