Bella turned sideways to look at the clothes on the table. After changing, she stood in front of the full-length mirror, looking at herself in the mirror in a slight daze.
It was a pale green dress, like a lake just thawing in early spring.
The dress fit her figure perfectly, falling naturally from the chest down. The soft tulle was layered but not puffy, instead outlining her slender curves.
Silver embroidery spread along the waist and abdomen, winding like vines and gleaming under the light.
The hem was extremely long, swaying slightly as she walked, like mist dissipating around her ankles.
"His taste is actually this good..." Bella muttered softly.
[Is he treating me like a real-life dress-up doll?]
Just as Bella stepped down to the first floor, she bumped into a somewhat familiar figure at the staircase.
It was Klee.
Four years ago, the girl she had frightened—she didn't expect that after four years, she would still be here.
So this is the Ye family manor?
The moment Klee saw Bella, her eyes noticeably reddened, but she quickly restrained herself, lowering her head and bowing respectfully:
"Miss, please come this way. I will take you to the dining area."
"Oh... okay, thank you." Bella was a bit dazed.
Hearing the noise, Ye Jinzhi, who was sitting behind the dining table, slowly raised his head from the financial report in his hands.
The moment he saw Bella clearly, a flash of pure amazement quickly swept through his dark pupils.
The mint green dress made her look like a newly transformed fairy in the forest, aloof yet alluring.
Immediately after, Bella clearly saw the amazement in his eyes fade away bit by bit, replaced by an undisguised sense of pride.
Bella paused her steps slightly: [Pride? What on earth is he so proud of?]
"As expected, my baby looks good in anything."
Ye Jinzhi stood up and pulled out the chair next to him, his eyes seemingly glued to her.
When his gaze swept over her empty earlobes and neck, his eyes narrowed slightly, and his voice dropped a few octaves:
"Why aren't you wearing the jewelry I picked out?"
Bella thought of the jewelry she had just seen in the walk-in closet, then looked down at the perfectly fitting dress on her body. Her fingertips subconsciously gripped the hem of the skirt, an indescribable feeling welling up in her heart.
She just lowered her eyelashes, shook her head gently, and didn't speak.
"Do you not like it?" Ye Jinzhi leaned in closer, his tone gentle.
Bella neither nodded nor shook her head. A bit afraid to meet his gaze, she uncomfortably shifted her eyes to the steaming bamboo shoot and pork shumai on the table.
Seeing that his "little kitten" was currently bristling all over, Ye Jinzhi didn't push her any further.
He knew very well that this kind of pampered creature needed to be coaxed patiently, little by little. Otherwise, if pushed too hard, she would definitely scratch his face without a second thought.
He slowly picked up the silver chopsticks, grabbed a crystal-clear shumai, and placed it steadily into the porcelain bowl in front of her:
"Eat something first. Taste it and see if it's still the same flavor."
"Thank you."
Bella replied softly. As if to hide her awkwardness, she lowered her head and took a bite.
The crispness of the diced bamboo shoots and the richness of the meat juice exploded on her tongue. The familiar delicious taste finally made her tense shoulders relax a tiny bit.
Wuwuwu, it's so delicious!!! (๑ᵔ⤙ᵔ๑)
[But, how did he know I like to eat this?]
Ye Jinzhi rested his chin on his hand, his eyes never leaving Bella's bulging cheeks.
He originally had a stomach full of questions to ask.
But watching her eat like a contented little squirrel at this moment, those dark, paranoid thoughts were ultimately gently suppressed by an unconscious surge of tenderness.
There was no rush. The person was right here in his sight; he had plenty of time to interrogate her slowly.
Just as Bella swallowed the last bamboo shoot and pork shumai and was about to pull a tissue to wipe her mouth, several shrill screams suddenly erupted in the originally quiet manor.
"Ahhh! Help! Stop chasing me! Don't chase me!"
The voice came from far to near, heart-wrenching, full of panic and despair. Immediately after, a flurry of fast-paced flapping sounds exploded.
"Honk! Honk, honk! Honk—honk, honk, honk!"
The hand Bella used to hold the tissue froze in mid-air, her expression changing from satisfaction to bewilderment.
Following that, the male voice broke down again, echoing in the yard with a crying tone:
"Brother Goose! I was wrong! Please let me go! Ah—don't bite my butt!"
"Ye Jinzhi! Hurry up and control your geese! How are these geese? They must have turned into demons, oh oh oh oh~"
Bella turned her head abruptly, looking towards the yard through the floor-to-ceiling windows.
She saw a man running wildly on the lawn, stumbling and crawling, looking extremely wretched.
And behind him, five huge, majestic brother geese were spreading their large wings and stretching their long necks. With neat and arrogant steps, they maneuvered flexibly while chasing him relentlessly and fiercely.
Their "won't rest until we peck you to death" posture made Bella doubt life for a moment.
[Geese?]
[In this top-tier luxury mansion, Ye Jinzhi's family actually raises a flock of big white geese?]
She slowly turned her head, looking at Ye Jinzhi sitting in the main seat with a complex gaze.
Hearing the commotion outside, Ye Jinzhi rubbed his temples and coldly ordered Klee outside the door: "Go close the curtains. It's disturbing the Miss's meal."
Bella: "..."
[Is the point whether it's noisy or not? The point is why you raise such creatures with off-the-charts combat power!]
After a while, the man who had been chased by the geese outside in a chaotic mess finally entered the house.
The newcomer's clothes were wrinkled, with a few shallow scratch marks left on his cuffs, and some mud rubbed on his legs. He looked disheveled no matter how you looked at it.
Bella took a closer look and was slightly stunned. The man looked extremely endearing, possessing a standard "puppy dog" face.
His skin was very fair, and his round, puppy-like eyes were wet, with a natural sense of innocence at the corners of his eyes.
He had a straight nose bridge, and when he smiled, there were two shallow dimples at the corners of his mouth.
His messy bangs fell casually over his forehead, and his whole body exuded a refreshing, boyish charm that made people want to ruffle his hair.
"Sister?"
As soon as he entered the door, his eyes locked onto the green-skirted girl sitting by the dining table, his voice trembling.
Bella looked confused. Before she could even ask, "Are you calling me?",
In the next second, the "little puppy" in front of her was like a kite with a completely broken string, lunging fiercely towards her.
"Wuwuwu... Sister! I missed you so much!"
The boy moved extremely fast, two pools of hot tears in his eyes. With one step, his arms were already open wide, throwing himself straight at Bella.
That aggrieved and dependent look was exactly like a stray puppy abandoned by its owner, finally finding its way home.
"Bang!"
Before he could even touch Bella, Ye Jinzhi beside her had reached the end of his patience. The white porcelain spoon in his hand was slammed heavily against the edge of the bowl, making a crisp sound.
The white porcelain spoon chipped a tiny piece off the edge of the bowl, showing just how much hostile energy he had put into that single motion.
"Ye Yi."
