Yi Qingju: "...Aunt Bai told me to come sit with her."
Bai Nianqiu across from her smiled and said, "We women are going to chat, you men shouldn't interfere. Come here, little Yi, come sit with me and chat."
Being an elder, Qi Weiran nodded at her, while also softly reminding Yi Qingju, "Don't drink anything cold."
Yi Qingju: "...Alright, Sir."
[Sheesh, am I a child? You have to manage me like this]
Qi Weiran took a sip of wine, thinking to himself that indeed, even with medicine, she was still a child afraid to drink it.
While his son was staring at him with resentful and jealous eyes, Bai Nianqiu pulled Yi Qingju to sit between her and Yu Mu, then leaned forward to look her over and asked softly, "Aren't you cold?"
When she was young, Bai Nianqiu also preferred style over warmth, but now it's different with Yu Qi around, she can't afford to be cavalier.
Yi Qingju covered her lips with her hand and whispered to her, "Aunt Bai, I'm not cold, I'm wearing thermal pants underneath."
Bai Nianqiu felt deep respect.
This girl is going to accomplish great things.
"Uncle, I'm going to play with Yi Qingju."
Seeing Yi Qingju across grinning at him with her big teeth, Qi Xinian hopped off his chair and tugged at Qi Weiran's clothes.
Patting the soft cheeks of the boy, Qi Weiran nodded, "Go ahead, keep an eye on her, don't let her eat too much."
Qi Xinian saluted him solemnly, "Diga Boy understands."
The father of Diga Boy nodded in satisfaction.
As Yi Qingju listened to Bai Nianqiu tell stories about Qi Weiran's childhood, the fragrant smoked chicken on her fork was yet to be eaten when her hand was grabbed by something soft and warm, shifting the weight on her fork noticeably.
"Why did you come over here...?" Looking down at her now empty fork, she glanced at Qi Xinian whose puffed cheeks showed he was eating something, and flashed a look of helplessness.
Little Milk Bun was sitting on Yu Mu's lap, staring at Yi Qingju unblinkingly with his two black grape-like eyes.
"He said it was too boring over there, so he came here," Yu Mu said with amusement.
Bai Nianqiu adored this child, so she had Yi Qingju take him from Yu Mu's lap into her arms.
"This child is really good-looking."
Complimented by others, Qi Xinian looked at Yi Qingju smugly.
The latter fed him another piece of chicken, and Little Milk Bun, surrounded by beauties and being fed, blinked in bliss. Noticing Bai Nianqiu's hair caught on her earring, he naturally reached out to fix it for her.
"What a helpful and kind boy, thank you," Bai Nianqiu patted his head.
Yi Qingju smiled faintly, taking advantage of Qi Weiran chatting with others, and shamelessly boasted, "I taught him well."
Qi Xinian puffed out his chest, "I love helping others the most."
Bai Nianqiu teased him, "So what good deeds have you done?"
Little Milk Bun proudly declared, "I helped an old lady cross against the red light."
The three: "......"
Bai Nianqiu: "...This child has had the heart of a king of hell since young..."
Yi Qingju drank some juice silently, "Qi Weiran taught him well."
Although he couldn't hear clearly, Qi Weiran, who could read lips: ?
After dinner, Yi Qingju rubbed her unsatisfied stomach and sighed. The turtle-formed Xiao Jiji spoke, [You'd better listen to Qi Weiran and not eat too much, you really might faint.]
She was stunned.
[Wasn't that the excuse you gave me?]
Recalling her appetite growing inexplicably larger recently, Yi Qingju narrowed her eyes, [Could my increased appetite recently have something to do with you?]
Xiao Jiji was silent for a moment, just as Bai Nianqiu came to invite her for some desserts.
Just as Yi Qingju nodded in agreement, that soft, sweet voice echoed in her mind, [Don't worry, Host, I guarantee this will be a surprise.]
However, Yi Qingju didn't have high expectations.
After excusing herself to Qi Weiran, she followed Yu Mu and Bai Nianqiu to another room.
"Sit beside me," Yu Mu smiled at her.
The desserts on the round table looked delicious, and the cups of milk tea were steaming. Outside the huge floor-to-ceiling windows was a large rose garden, though unfortunately the blooming season had passed and the fiery red could not be appreciated.
"Little Yi, I don't mean anything by this, I'm just curious." Bai Nianqiu winked at her.
Yi Qingju thought, here it comes.
"How did you and Yu Mu... get to know each other? He doesn't seem like it's the first time he's met you."
Yu Mu put down her red tea, her large eyes blinking curiously at Yi Qingju without restraint.
Rather than mentioning that she was the top student, Yi Qingju instead casually talked about running into Yu Mu at the company once before.
Listening to her nonchalant retelling, Yu Mu also recalled that Yi Qingju had indeed come to the Yu family before, and her brother seemed to have been talking to her.
Hah, she had thought Yu Mu was interested in Zhou Yi before, never expecting she had gotten the wrong person entirely.
Bai Nianqiu couldn't help but shake her head, "What a pity." This idol drama-like development.
"So the rumors online are true, you two married before love?" Yu Mu gossiped.
Yi Qingju: "......" There was never any love.
To be honest, she had also read many of the fanfictions written about her and Qi Weiran online, like 'Married Before Love: Yi Qingju Becomes Qi Weiran's Bitter Concubine' or 'Reborn as Yi Qingju, I Saved Qi Weiran's Life'. Each one more outrageous than the last.
Although she had a bellyful of rebuttals, Yi Qingju still shyly nodded, "I'm not sure either, but I do feel Sir's attitude towards me has indeed changed recently compared to before."
The beauty's blushing modest expression was a delight to behold. Yu Mu sighed.
What a lovely flower stuck in the pile of shit that is Qi Weiran.
"Has he been caring about you more, concerned for you?" Bai Nianqiu asked.
Recalling how during dinner, Qi Weiran seemed to be chatting but was actually constantly glancing this way, she wanted to laugh.
She had watched this girl grow up, her face thin-skinned since young, surely also reserved about such matters.
Tsk, if he doesn't change that temperament, no matter how much Yi Qingju likes him, she'll still get hurt eventually.
Yi Qingju nodded, "Yes."
Come to think of it, Qi Weiran did seem to care about her more recently.
Yu Mu clapped her hands, her tone sour, "That's love."
Yi Qingju nearly spat out her milk tea.
Qi Weiran likes her?
Not that Yi Qingju was overconfident, but she had truly done too many stupid things under the OOC system's coercion - she was absolutely convinced Qi Weiran would never have those feelings for her.
Like a peeping tom, she followed him to the company and pestered him every day. Even knowing he was discussing important business, she still forced him to have meals with her. Just because his previous assistant was a great beauty, she even pressured Qi Weiran into firing the assistant he had used for years.
Although afterwards, without Qi Weiran's knowledge, Yi Qingju knelt and apologized to the assistant, gave her all her money as compensation, and secretly helped her find a new satisfactory job, to the point where the assistant thought Yi Qingju had split personalities.
But a lunatic is a lunatic. No matter if Yi Qingju was a split-personality lunatic, Qi Weiran would never like her.
"I'll go to the washroom." Yi Qingju stood up, her smile natural on the surface.
But her heart felt oddly heavy for some reason, even though she used to feel nothing recalling these incidents.
I'll wire the assistant another sum when I get home tonight. Alas.
"Mrs. Qi, would you like me to lead the way?" the maid at the door politely asked.
Yi Qingju shook her head, "Thank you, but no need."
And then she got gloriously lost.
"...Damn it, where is this?"
When Yi Qingju came to her senses, she found herself in an entirely unfamiliar place.
Just as she was about to take another step forward, a familiar male voice came from behind her: "Where are you going?"
