GV – Chapter 68

The conversation in the walk-in closet ended without resolution. This time, it wasn’t Ye Yuhuan being cryptic and leaving her sentences half-finished, but rather Song Zhiqing who didn’t know how to respond.

She vaguely sensed that something about Ye Yuhuan had changed, but she couldn’t pinpoint what part, or whether it was for better or for worse.

All she could do was cautiously wait and see.

The two changed their clothes and went downstairs. Lunch—or perhaps breakfast—was already set on the table.

Over the past several days, Ye Yuhuan had become a frequent visitor at the Song residence, practically becoming half a member of the family. The housekeepers had even figured out her tastes almost perfectly. One housekeeper, upon hearing that Ye Yuhuan lived alone, had felt so sorry for her that she’d made a soup for her to take home and “replenish her body.” Ye Yuhuan had always cherished the kindness of others, so she gratefully accepted the container of soup and diligently finished it all.

Who knew that was only the beginning.

After discovering that the housekeepers, with the tacit approval of Song Zhiqing’s parents, were on the verge of sending her home with a full Manchu-Han Imperial Feast—starting with steamed lamb, steamed bear paw, steamed deer tail, roasted duck, roasted spring chicken, and so on—Ye Yuhuan was both amused and exasperated. To prove she could provide herself with adequate nutrition, she immediately cooked a meal.

It was a brilliant decision. From then on, the housekeepers stopped trying to send her home with food and instead offered to teach her their secret culinary techniques.

The only thing that puzzled Ye Yuhuan was Gao Yiren’s occasional displays of disdain for Song Chen after learning of Ye Yuhuan’s excellent cooking skills.

Subsequently, what was even more baffling was that CEO Song, whose time was worth millions per minute, began learning the housekeepers’ secret culinary techniques alongside Ye Yuhuan.

And now, seeing Uncle Song’s familiar look of excitement, she figured he must have cooked again.

Regarding Song Chen’s progress, Ye Yuhuan had only one realization: being a kitchen disaster might be a genetic trait. Otherwise, how could the Song family produce two generations of them?

However, Song Chen was slightly better than Song Zhiqing in one respect: his dishes at least looked presentable, vibrant with color. But given the agonizing taste of the food itself, this quality actually made them more like a trap.

They could be classified as “poisonous mushroom” cuisine.

Amidst a large table of seemingly mouth-watering dishes, Ye Yuhuan quickly identified the bowl of steamed egg custard as Song Chen’s handiwork.

So salty.

So tough, like eating a day-old steamed bun.

Ye Yuhuan chewed slowly. Her long-trained self-control came into play, her expression betraying nothing.

Meanwhile, the mother-daughter pair of Song Zhiqing and Gao Yiren had learned their lesson after hitting a few landmines. Unless their very first bite happened to be one of Song Chen’s dishes, they would focus exclusively on the ones that had been successfully taste-tested.

The only people at the table who could tolerate that bowl of steamed egg were Ye Yuhuan and Song Chen. Perhaps Song Chen had a problem with his sense of taste, as he actually seemed to be enjoying it quite happily.

Song Zhiqing was currently overflowing with affection. To lighten her beloved’s burden, she would occasionally be kind enough to take a few bites herself. She had no idea where Ye Yuhuan got the theory that the best way to show appreciation for something someone made with effort was to finish it completely.

So annoyingly lovable.

By the end of the meal, Ye Yuhuan had drunk three glasses of water.

After the meal, she and Song Zhiqing discussed their plans and unanimously agreed to visit Shen Wei and the others. There was no need for Song Zhiqing’s parents to go. Although Shen Wei was, in a way, Song Zhiqing’s benefactor, the incident was ultimately an internal matter of the Shangguan family.

The Shangguan family’s internal strife had dragged their daughter into it. Shangguan Chong had yet to give them an explanation. If they rushed to offer condolences to a member of the Shangguan family, it would seem far too magnanimous and would only cause others to look down on them.

Yesterday’s incident had left a considerable shadow on Song Chen and Gao Yiren. They had spent the night arranging for ten of the industry’s top bodyguards for Song Zhiqing. It took a great deal of persuasion from Song Zhiqing to cut that number in half.

Even though she was now perfectly safe, her parents still stood at the door, watching them leave. Song Zhiqing looked at the two figures waving incessantly in the rearview mirror and realized that her parents had their soft, vulnerable moments too.

Yes, when it comes to me—ah, it’s not very filial, but being my parents’ soft spot like this actually makes me really happy.

Song Zhiqing quietly pressed her lips together, but her eyes couldn’t help but curve into crescents.

Once the car was out of sight, Song Chen and Gao Yiren turned and went back into the villa.

On the way back, Song Chen suddenly let out a heavy snort, as if he’d taken a dislike to a tree on the roadside.

Then, out of nowhere, he said, “Xiao Ye is truly a good kid.”

Gao Yiren shot him a sidelong glance and scoffed, “So your test is finally over?”

Song Chen reluctantly nodded in admission.

“You should focus on learning to cook properly from now on. Forcing yourself to eat that stuff just to test her… you’re not young anymore, why are you still so childish?”

Song Chen fell into a strange silence for a moment before saying, “Actually… I was serious when I made those dishes.”

“…You’re forbidden from cooking ever again.”

On the way, Ye Yuhuan informed Shen Wei that she and Song Zhiqing were coming to the hospital to visit. After getting the room number, they didn’t go straight there after parking. Feeling they should observe some etiquette, they looked around the area and bought some gifts, flowers, and fruit.

But Song Zhiqing and Ye Yuhuan, laden with courtesy, arrived at a very inopportune moment—just in time to catch the yuri novel’s female leads in a moment of unbridled passion, a common occurrence after a crisis.

Although they knocked, the sound was clearly ineffective at a time like this. When they arrived with fruit and flowers to comfort Shen Wei, Shen Wei’s reciprocation was a blush-inducing, passionate, deep kiss.

There were even sounds.

Silence.

Stillness.

Silence was the Cam of this evening.

And the Cam was a bridge Shen Wei would have instantly wanted to jump off of, had she been standing on it right now.

Of course, Shangguan Xianxian would have jumped right after her.

But it’s worth describing their rather unique posture. Shen Wei was lying in bed with a gunshot wound to her leg, while Shangguan Xianxian’s neck was wrapped in so many bandages it looked like she was wearing a scarf. The two of them, disabled but determined, were kissing. Shangguan Xianxian was sitting on the edge of the bed, and Shen Wei had a hand on her waist, her eyes half-closed, clearly lost in the moment, having given no thought to the possibility of being interrupted.

Ye Yuhuan had opened the door, and Ye Yuhuan herself quickly shut it. She and Song Zhiqing stood awkwardly outside, staring at the sky, then the floor, saying nothing. Fortunately, Shen Wei’s voice soon came from inside the room: “Come in.”

They must have composed themselves.

So they went in.

Inside, only Shen Wei was there, half-reclining on the bed. Shangguan Xianxian was nowhere to be seen, as if the previous scene had been a mere illusion, or perhaps Shangguan Xianxian was a seductive spirit who, having received her master’s affection, vanished without a trace at the break of dawn.

But this was the 21st century, and everything had to be explained scientifically.

First, from Shen Wei’s glistening lips, one could tell that the kiss had been an objective reality.

Second, from the slightly ajar bathroom door, one could surmise that Shangguan Xianxian, having just experienced immense embarrassment, was probably hiding inside to calm herself down.

At the same time, Ye Yuhuan suspected that if Shen Wei weren’t unable to walk properly, she would have already jumped out the window to escape.

After all, since they had entered, she hadn’t once looked them straight in the eye.

Ye Yuhuan pulled Song Zhiqing over, using her body to block her girlfriend’s incessant glances toward the bathroom, determined to see their courteous visit through to the end.

“Feeling any better?”

“I’m fine.”

“What did the doctor say? Will there be any lasting effects?”

“No, if I rest well, it should be mostly healed in a few months.”

“When can you be discharged?”

“In about a month, probably.”

“…”

“…”

The three of them looked at each other without a word, like distant relatives who had run out of things to say and were wondering if it was time to leave.

Shen Wei was also dreaming of their swift departure.

Their very presence made the air feel suffocating.

Ye Yuhuan looked at Song Zhiqing, signaling with her eyes for her to say a few polite words so they could take their leave. But Song Zhiqing might have misinterpreted the signal.

Or more likely, she did it on purpose.

She asked nonchalantly, “Where’s Shangguan Xianxian? She was just here.”

Shen Wei immediately broke into a fit of coughing so violent it seemed the bullet had pierced her lungs, not her thigh. At the same time, the sound of something falling came from the bathroom.

Then, a person walked out.

Even wrapped in a thick layer of bandages, this person exuded an icy, snow-like aura.

Of course, it would have been better if her face weren’t so red.

This person said, “Thank you for visiting today. Weiwei and I have some things to attend to, so we won’t keep you.”

The visit lasted less than five minutes. The two of them were once again standing outside the door, staring at each other. Ye Yuhuan mouthed, “Did you do that on purpose?”

Forcing Shangguan Xianxian out like that.

Song Zhiqing widened her eyes, feigning innocence.

Ye Yuhuan sighed, and Song Zhiqing giggled.

Since they had seen the person in question, and that person clearly didn’t want to see them anymore, there was no reason to linger. The two turned to leave, but came face to face with a hurried Guo Yu.

Guo Yu offered Song Zhiqing a perfunctory apology for Guo Siwan’s actions before pushing open the door behind them.

So Guo Yu couldn’t sit still any longer?

Ye Yuhuan recalled hearing from Song Chen that Shangguan Chong hadn’t even visited Guo Siwan once, so it was unlikely he would help her. In this situation, Guo Yu had no other choice but to seek help from Shen Wei.

After all, Shen Wei was no longer the country girl from the past whom anyone could step on. As the de facto controlling shareholder of Sheng Jing, a company with a bright future and government support, no one in their right mind would want to cross her at this juncture—oh, except for Song Zhiqing just now. Even if someone had ulterior motives, the timing was terrible. Guo Siwan had been caught red-handed, with both witnesses and physical evidence. Stirring up trouble in a case like this would be an easy way to get dragged in oneself, and the losses would far outweigh any potential gains.

But that was a game for the women of the Shangguan family, and it had nothing to do with Ye Yuhuan and Song Zhiqing. After the door closed, to avoid looking like they were eavesdropping, the two of them walked away from the hospital.

Standing at the hospital entrance, Ye Yuhuan suddenly realized this was the third time they had accidentally witnessed Shen Wei and Shangguan Xianxian kissing. If it was a coincidence, it was far too much of one.

And she herself had seen it four times. If it wasn’t that Shen Wei and her girlfriend had a strong penchant for kissing in public spaces, allowing her to encounter it several times despite the low probability, then the only other explanation was that she was fated to have a “voyeur” setting.

Just like Shen Wei’s “protagonist” setting and Song Zhiqing’s “villainess supporting female character” setting.

Tsk, this novel world really defies science, Ye Yuhuan frowned slightly, thoroughly disgusted.

Song Zhiqing was about to share with Ye Yuhuan how amusing Shen Wei’s “wanting to curse but being too embarrassed” expression had been. She felt that the humiliation she had previously suffered at Shen Wei’s hands had been completely healed.

But when she turned her head, she saw Ye Yuhuan looking as if something was troubling her. Song Zhiqing immediately thought of Guo Yu, who had just brushed past them. She knew Ye Yuhuan had been helping Shen Wei win the fierce power struggle within the Shangguan family, but was it necessary to be so serious about it?

It was Shen Wei’s own business, after all.

Song Zhiqing had to repeatedly recall Shen Wei’s embarrassed expression to suppress the dissatisfaction welling up inside her.

I really wish Ye Yuhuan would only think about things concerning the two of us.

Song Zhiqing puffed out her cheeks, turned her head to look at Ye Yuhuan, and made an ill-timed invitation: “Want to go do pottery today?”

“Hm?” Ye Yuhuan tilted her head, then quickly understood and replied with a smile, “Yes, I want to go.”

This time, it was Song Zhiqing who was healed by Ye Yuhuan’s smile.

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