Bella turned away in anger, simply running to the other end of the table, grabbing a magazine, and pretending to be engrossed in it.
During this time, she couldn't help but peek up at him secretly, only to find that this kid's eating speed today was outrageously slow.
He would divide a piece of grouper into ten bites before putting it in his mouth. He was so elegant that anyone who didn't know better would think he was shooting an etiquette documentary.
More than ten minutes later, those two pills finally took effect.
The churning cramps in her lower abdomen gradually subsided, followed by a hunger that almost burned away her sanity.
Bella couldn't stand it anymore.
She slammed the magazine shut and rushed back to the dining table. Before Ye Jinzhi could react, she reached out her small hand and accurately snatched a large piece of pork knuckle right off his plate!
The piece of meat was simply too big. Bella held it and stuffed it into her mouth haphazardly. More than half of her pale, porcelain-like little face was instantly smeared with bright red sauce, making her look like a squirrel that had fallen into a pile of pinecones.
Since she didn't have a big enough mouth to chew the large chunks, she could only puff out her cheeks and grind at it with small bites, eating with absolutely no grace.
"Pfft."
A crisp laugh rang out.
Bella looked up in confusion, only to find Ye Jinzhi resting his chin on his hands, watching her.
Seeing Bella looking over, he quickly took away the plate she had "robbed" and smoothly replaced it with another small white porcelain dish.
"Fairy Sister, eat this."
Bella looked closely and saw that the new dish was full of meat cut into super, super, super tiny pieces, thoughtfully drizzled with a rich sauce.
Immediately after, a small, gleaming silver fork was stuffed into her hand.
Bella held the fork and paused for a moment. This size was simply tailor-made for the hands of a "doll" like her.
[Huh? When did this guy prepare this?]
Hunger left Bella with no time to think deeply. As she forked the small pieces of meat into her mouth, her very soul trembled, healed by the savory and sweet aroma of the meat.
Beaming with joy, she boasted wildly to Ye Jinzhi:
"Mmm... for the sake of the meat, thanks. You're such a good person. When this fairy returns to the immortal realm, I will definitely bless you with a long life of a hundred years and great wealth!"
"Is that so?"
Ye Jinzhi looked at her incredibly vivid little face. A destructive urge surged from the bottom of his heart, and suddenly he wanted nothing more than to see that pretty little face panic.
He leaned in slightly, his fingertip lightly wiping her sauce-covered cheek as he dragged out his tone:
"Then when Fairy Sister blesses me," his voice was soft and sweet, "can you first tell me... what exactly does the immortal realm look like?"
Bella: "..."
Suddenly, the meat wasn't appetizing anymore.
In an instant, Bella felt that the pork knuckle in her mouth was impossible to either swallow or spit out.
Meeting Ye Jinzhi's smiling yet bottomlessly dark eyes, her scalp tingled with numbness.
Ugh, how was she supposed to cover up this monstrous lie?
Bella's brain worked at top speed, but before her mouthful of nonsense could spill out, a deep, cold male voice abruptly rang out from behind her:
"The butler said you've been in here for over forty minutes."
Bella's heart instantly leaped into her throat.
At that moment, she felt like she had truly turned back into a lifeless doll.
Her whole body stiffened, and she was so scared that she didn't dare move the unswallowed piece of meat in her mouth even a fraction of an inch.
Opposite her, Ye Jinzhi's reaction was even more intense. His confident little devil demeanor from just a moment ago instantly collapsed. His face turned pale with terror, and he jerked his head up, his voice carrying a distinct tremble when he spoke:
"Dad... Daddy, I..."
He subconsciously moved closer to Bella, trying to use his body to shield her on the dining table.
Ye Zechuan paced closer, his brows slightly furrowed, his gaze sweeping over them as coldly as ever.
It wasn't until his eyes touched the dancing candle flames and the curling smoke of the incense that his tall figure suddenly paused, a flash of suppressed pain darting through his eyes.
He slowly closed his eyes, forcing down the surging bitterness and suffocating feeling in his chest.
When he opened them again, his gaze finally landed on Ye Jinzhi's face.
Looking at his son's slightly trembling eyelashes from nervousness, those eyes were clear and stubborn, looking exactly like how she used to awkwardly apologize to him after every time she caused a scene.
His originally cold and hard facial features softened bit by bit under the gaze of those eyes.
The reprimand that had reached his lips was forcibly swallowed back, leaving only a sigh so light it could barely be heard.
"Your teacher will be here soon."
He turned his head away, no longer looking at him, and left with somewhat stumbling steps.
"...Yes, Daddy."
Ye Jinzhi lowered his head, his voice very small. Hearing that the other party wasn't going to pursue the matter further, he quietly loosened the hand that had been tightly gripping Bella's skirt.
It wasn't until those heavy footsteps completely disappeared that Bella sharply let out a long breath.
For a moment just then, she thought she was about to be met with an imperial sword that would slay her, this "evil spirit," right on the spot.
Ye Jinzhi carried Bella and walked quickly toward the piano room.
He placed Bella steadily on top of the glossy black grand piano. His little face was still tense, clearly not yet recovered from the nervousness of facing his father just now.
"Fairy Sister, do you want to hear me play the piano?"
He asked softly, but didn't wait for an answer.
He didn't even open the old sheet music with its curled edges before smashing his hands heavily onto the black and white keys.
"Bang—!"
A highly discordant strike crashed through the air. In the next second, twisted and messy notes burst madly from beneath the keys, shattered and fragmented, like a sudden rainstorm instantly crashing into the once-silent piano room.
Every syllable landed on accents where they shouldn't be. The fingering was chaotic and furious, the piano sound rough, revealing a creepy, viscous feeling.
Bella sat on the piano lid. Along with the violent vibration of the piano body, her own body trembled slightly.
She looked down and saw Ye Jinzhi's delicate little face looking exceptionally gloomy in the shadows.
His fingertips were a bit white from excessive force, and his eyes were fixed on the sheet music, yet it seemed as if he was looking right through the paper, tearing at something invisible.
He was venting.
Bella didn't speak, just quietly kept him company.
Before the song ended, Ye Jinzhi suddenly stopped his movements. He pressed his hands tightly against the keys, letting the harsh lingering sound echo in the air, scraping across everyone's nerves.
He lowered his head, panting heavily.
Bella held her breath, a wave of sour sorrow rising in her heart.
Ye Jinzhi suddenly waved his hand, his fingers striking heavily on the keys again. Until the final sound, the piano abruptly stopped. He finally slumped on the piano bench, his shoulders heaving violently, fine sweat seeping from his forehead.
Right at that moment, the small figure that had been curled up on top of the piano for a long time swayed.
Bella pursed her lips, moving somewhat clumsily, and slid down along the edge of the piano lid using both her hands and feet.
When she landed, her toes stepped squarely on the bass section at the far left end.
"Dong—"
The muffled sound made Ye Jinzhi's long eyelashes flutter. Bella tentatively stepped on those few keys. Seeing that he didn't move, her playfulness surged, and she simply let go of her restraints, "running" back and forth along that long path of black and white.
The muffled sounds gradually found their rhythm. Finally, like a reckless little fawn coming to a halt in the crisp high-pitch register, she stumbled right into the palm of Ye Jinzhi's hand resting at the edge of the piano keys.
Ye Jinzhi's fingertips stiffened as he felt the small, warm, and slightly damp touch of her skin.
Bella panted softly, fine beads of sweat dotting the tip of her nose from the exertion.
She did not say a word. Keeping her head down, she reached out her small, fair, and delicate hand, slowly but firmly wrapping her fingers around his index finger.
There is a crack in everything; the place where the piano notes slip through is also the path that leads me to you.
