Ye Jinzhi didn't even bat an eyelid, coldly spitting out two words.
Almost the moment his words fell, a dark figure flashed out from the shadows of the side hall like a ghost.
The bodyguard named Ye Yi was clearly used to this kind of situation. Expressionless, he reached out his long arm, his fingers forming a hook.
In the nick of time, just as the "little puppy" was about to rub against Bella, he accurately locked onto the back of the guy's collar.
"Ouch!"
Tan Yanli only felt a tightness at the back of his neck. He was lifted up, his feet nearly leaving the ground, forcefully pulled three inches away from Bella.
Looking at Ye Yi again, even though he was carrying a grown man, he was so steady that his breathing wasn't even disrupted.
Ye Jinzhi's previously relaxed posture vanished completely. His fingertips absentmindedly fiddled with his cufflinks.
"Tan Yanli, do you no longer want your hands, or your legs?"
Gritting his teeth as he squeezed out those words, Ye Jinzhi locked onto the person in front of him. His eyes not only held a warning but also a jealousy so thick it was almost palpable.
Bella froze in her chair, looking at the boy in front of her who wanted to cry but had no tears, kicking his legs desperately.
She then looked at Demon King Ye beside her, who seemed ready to "murder and dismember" at any moment. Her mind was a tangled mess:
Wait... what is going on here? Who is this guy? His relationship with Demon King Ye seems quite unusual.
Even though Tan Yanli was being held up, his mouth refused to stop.
With red rims around his eyes, he reached out his hand dramatically towards Bella:
"Sister... save me! Ye Jinzhi is going to string me up and beat me! Boo hoo hoo, it's so good that you're back. You have no idea how miserable my life has been while you were gone..."
"Throw him out."
Ye Jinzhi's patience ran out, and he ordered coldly, "Throw him to the geese outside as an extra meal."
"Ah, wait, wait, wait! I was wrong, brother, my own brother! I won't dare do it again! Ye Jinzhi! Brother-in-law!"
"Brother-in-law!"
Driven by an intense desire to survive, Tan Yanli roared the last words, his voice so loud it nearly blew the roof off.
Sure enough, those words acted like a pause button, instantly freezing Ye Jinzhi's darkly clouded face.
Ye Jinzhi lifted his eyelids, tapped his fingertips lightly on the table twice, and waved his hand. Only then did Ye Yi let go.
As soon as Tan Yanli hit the ground, although he didn't dare to lunge over so blatantly again, he acted like a slippery loach, refusing to give up as he slowly inched toward Bella.
He stared at Bella's small face, which was written all over with confusion, muttering non-stop with a tone that was aggrieved to the bone:
"Sister, look at how brother-in-law keeps bullying me... I knew you loved me the most. Sister, I missed you so much, did you miss me? Sister, do you know..."
"Shut up."
Ye Jinzhi cut off his words coldly.
He knew Tan Yanli too well; if he let him keep talking, who knows what he might spill.
He turned his head to look at Bella, the icy aura around him instantly retracting. His tone was so gentle it could almost wring out water:
"Baby, are you full? Do you want to take a walk around the estate? The orchard in the back mountain is very lively lately; the strawberries, mulberries, and cherries are all ripe. Let Klee accompany you to pick some, alright?"
Bella was sitting on pins and needles. Facing Ye Jinzhi's deeply affectionate eyes that made her scalp tingle, and those incredibly shameful fragmented memories from last night, she felt like the air in the dining room was thinning out.
Coupled with the overly familiar little puppy beside her, she felt she desperately needed to breathe some fresh air.
Picking fruits? That was a fantastic idea!
"Yes, yes!"
Bella nodded hastily, afraid that Ye Jinzhi might change his mind.
Compared to this inexplicable three-person battlefield here, she would rather go out and battle wits and courage with those big white geese outside.
Seeing her agree so readily, Ye Jinzhi's eyes flickered, and a hint of doting fondness almost subconsciously overflowed.
He gestured to Klee waiting at the door. Klee immediately stepped forward smartly and handed over a delicate little bamboo basket.
Bella took the basket and practically fled toward the door, her back radiating a joyful sense of finally being free.
Watching Bella's cheerful back disappear at the end of the corridor, the slight warmth in the dining room was instantly siphoned away.
Ye Jinzhi turned around, his previous gentle-as-water demeanor vanishing without a trace. His whole being instantly turned cold, carrying an aloofness that kept people thousands of miles away.
Tan Yanli also lost his previous energy for throwing a tantrum.
His expression turned serious. He walked over to the sofa and sat down on his own accord, crossing his long legs. He picked up a bunch of grapes from the fruit platter, casually peeled one and popped it into his mouth, his tone dropping low:
"When did you find her and bring her back?"
Ye Jinzhi didn't look at him. He walked straight to a single sofa nearby and sat down. His long fingers swiped across the tablet screen, beginning to handle his backlogged official duties. His expression was so indifferent it was as if everything just now was merely an illusion.
"Didn't you already know?"
Tan Yanli's hand, which was peeling a grape, paused slightly. The sweet taste in his mouth instantly turned a bit bitter.
Indeed, he knew.
If word hadn't leaked from the bar last night, he wouldn't have been waiting at the estate gates before dawn, nor would he have been chased all over the yard by those geese.
"Does she... not remember again?" Tan Yanli looked out the window, a trace of imperceptible hope in his tone.
"It's unclear at the moment." Ye Jinzhi's gaze remained pinned to the tablet, his voice completely flat.
"Then this time, how long will sister stay?"
Hearing this question, Ye Jinzhi's fingers suddenly stiffened in mid-air.
After a long time, he lowly spat out a few words, as if speaking to Tan Yanli, and also as if speaking to himself:
"Not sure."
The air fell into complete dead silence at this moment.
In the massive living room, there was only the ticking sound of the wall clock.
This kind of dead silence was so oppressive it made it hard to breathe. Tan Yanli tugged at the corners of his mouth self-deprecatingly, simply turned over, and lay flat on the sofa.
He raised an arm, tightly covering his eyes, letting the light be blocked out.
When he spoke, his voice scattered in the empty room, fragmented and almost impossible to hear clearly.
"Ye Jinzhi, tell me... why does sister only ever remember you? You clearly aren't the only one guarding her."
Ye Jinzhi didn't answer him, not even sparing him an extra glance.
He put away the tablet and stood up elegantly.
"Suit yourself."
Dropping these words, he turned and went upstairs, his footsteps echoing on the staircase.
Leaving Tan Yanli alone curled up on the sofa, like a shadow forgotten by the sunlight.
Walking along the way, the more Bella looked, the more she felt the style of this estate was bizarre.
She originally thought that for someone of Ye Jinzhi's status, the estate should have French fountains, neatly trimmed bushes, and an expensive horse ranch. But the sight before her eyes...
After she passed through a few highly modern villas and her gaze swept past a large greenhouse that looked like a work of art, the scenery began to grow wild and untamed.
