Jian Xi woke up when the sun was almost setting. She rubbed her eyes and sat up in bed, looking around to confirm that this was her brother's bedroom. The minimalist black, white and gray style, with the large black bed on the right not far from the walk-in closet separated by transparent glass, and the large floor-to-ceiling windows with white gauze curtains on the left, vaguely allowing some of the evening sun's rays through.
*(Dear readers, I have provided two similar options, please feel free to use your imagination!)*
Jian Xi got out of bed, and when her feet touched the floor she realized she wasn't wearing socks, and at some point they had come off her fair little feet.
There was a pair of pink slippers next to the bed and she put them on to go look for where the bedroom door was.
But before she could take more than a few steps, the diagonal door across from her opened, and it was He Qingchen.
"You're awake?"
"Yeah, I'm awake. The sun's nearly down, how come you didn't wake me up, brother?" Jian Xi pointed to the sliding door on the left. "Brother, is this the bathroom over here? I want to take a shower."
He Qingchen chuckled softly. "Don't shower yet. Eat first, then shower later. Let me show you around first - this is your home now too. You shouldn't not even know where all the room doors are!"
Jian Xi was astonished. "Brother, did you install surveillance devices on me? How do you know about all my embarrassing moments?!"
"I watched you grow up." That implied that he understood her all too well.
Jian Xi wasn't convinced. "You're only four years older than me, and you don't have a gentle disposition either. How come you're like a..."
With his arms crossed, leaning against the wall, He Qingchen asked "Go ahead, say what I'm being like."
Jian Xi walked over with a smile on her face and quickly made a funny grimace at He Qingchen. "Boogey boogey boogey! Like an old fussy granny!" Having said that, she dashed out.
"Wrong way. The stairs are on the left."
Two seconds later, Jian Xi slowly 'passed by' the doorway again, walking to the left side of the bedroom.
The corners of He Qingchen's mouth raised as he walked out of the bedroom, leaving the door open.
He walked her through every room on the second and third floors, explaining to her what each room was for.
Jian Xi was so amazed her eyes nearly popped out – simply because it was all so huge!
The gym, recreation room, home theater room, and more.
Jian Xi asked He Qingchen, "Brother, aren't you afraid to live alone in a house this big?"
"I am afraid." He Qingchen said with interest.
Jian Xi looked at him as if he were an idiot. "You're afraid, yet you still live here?"
"But now there's you here!" He Qingchen returned that look from earlier. Then he headed toward the elevator.
After reflecting for a bit, Jian Xi raised her voice, "He Qingchen! You big liar! Even a vicious ghost lingering for five hundred years, you dared to shield me from it. What do you have to fear?!"
......
After heading downstairs, Jian Xi immediately smelled the scent of food. "Brother, you cooked?"
He Qingchen went into the kitchen to dish her up some food. "Yeah, otherwise the little ancestor would wake up hungry."
Jian Xi sat in the chair. The white marble dining table held four dishes and a soup.
She obediently waited for He Qingchen.
He Qingchen placed a full bowl of rice in front of Jian Xi and sat down across from her.
Seeing him sit, Jian Xi couldn't wait to pick up her chopsticks and take a piece of sweet and sour ribs, but she didn't eat it first. Instead she put it in He Qingchen's bowl, flattering him: "Thanks brother, you worked hard!"
He Qingchen also returned a piece of sweet and sour ribs to her bowl. "Knock off the cheekiness and hurry up and eat."
"Yes sir!"
Jian Xi took a bite of the ribs. The taste was just as she remembered – delicious!
Back at the Taoist temple, there were no servants so they had to cook for themselves. It was also mandatory curriculum for each person.
But for some reason, no matter how she tried to make her sweet and sour ribs, they never compared to her brother's. She just so happened to especially like eating this dish too, so He Qingchen would make it for her every several days.
In a flash, it had been four years since she last ate a meal he made, so the aroma made Jian Xi salivate intensely. She ate two whole bowlfuls in succession, each piled very full!
After the meal, Jian Xi was stuffed to the gills. She slumped limply onto the sofa.
He Qingchen got up and started clearing up.
But before he could even get started, Jian Xi called for him to stop. "Hold on, don't move, I'll do it."
Her small bag was sitting on the living room sofa. She dragged it over and fished a talisman out from inside, pinching it between two fingers. Reading out an incantation, the paper talisman ignited on its own without fire.
In the blink of an eye, all the dishes on the table became as clean and polished as new.
Jian Xi begged for praise. "What do you think, brother? Have I gotten more formidable? This is a cleaning talisman I created myself after reading the old Patriarch's secret manuals he left behind. Quite convenient, eh?"
"It is rather convenient. From now on taking care of the household will be your job. I'll tell the housekeeper not to come tomorrow." He Qingchen put the clean dishes away in the kitchen.
Jian Xi readily agreed. "No problem, leave it all to me!"
He Qingchen asked if she wanted fruit. She said she was too full so he didn't wash any for her. He went to the sofa and sat down next to her.
He patted his thigh and Jian Xi understood instantly, lying down with her head pillowed on it.
Once she was settled, He Qingchen placed his large hand on her stomach, gently massaging clockwise to help her digest.
"Brother, for that matter at the restaurant, what do you plan to do about it?" Jian Xi asked with her eyes closed, comfortable.
He Qingchen said flatly: "To repay evil with justice."
When he put it like this, Jian Xi knew the other side definitely wouldn't have any good outcome.
She had just casually asked as she was bored. She still believed in He Qingchen's capabilities. At the very least she was very clear on what kind of temperament he had. It would still be quite difficult for others to make him suffer a loss!
After massaging her for a while, He Qingchen stopped and tapped her stomach. "Time to get up. Go shower and sleep."
"Oh right, I prepared a chauffeur for you. Pick whichever car you like from the garage and have him drive it for you. After you've gotten used to things for a bit, I'll sign you up at driving school to get your license. Then, you can 'borrow' whichever of my cars you want to drive from then on." He Qingchen emphasized the word "borrow".
Jian Xi laughed. "Alright, brother you really are 'generous'."
Having said that, she got up from the sofa and headed upstairs.
But when she had just gotten to the bottom of the stairs, she suddenly recalled something and turned back to ask He Qingchen: "Brother, which room am I staying in?"
"The one next to mine. The rooms are cleaned daily so it's clean. I already put your clothes in my walk-in closet, go ahead and grab some later. Tomorrow I'll have the wall adjoining your room knocked down and make you a walk-in closet so your clothes and stuff will have storage space from now on."
He certainly hadn't let up at all after she fell asleep, personally attending to everything related to her affairs.
