Bella froze.
"What could he do to me?"
She then came back to her senses. "Sister Jing, do you know Ye Jinzhi?"
"Yeah." Shen Wenjing nodded.
Seeing her nod, Bella suddenly remembered that when they went to the bar before, there was some mention of "Gu Yunzhou's brother" or something like that.
Later, after returning to school, she did hear Gu Yunzhou call Ye Jinzhi "brother" once.
"Sister Jing..." Bella's eyes flickered. "You mentioned Gu Yunzhou's brother at the bar before. Was that 'brother' referring to Ye Jinzhi?"
Shen Wenjing didn't expect Bella to have such a good memory. She scratched her hair a bit awkwardly and simply confessed everything:
"Actually... because of our parents, the Shen family and the Ye family have known each other for years. So, Ye Jinzhi and I have met since we were kids, but we aren't really that close. However, I am very familiar with his younger brother, Gu Yunzhou."
"It was probably last week when Ye Jinzhi sent me a message, telling me not to come back at night for the next few days."
Shen Wenjing sighed and spread her hands helplessly. "Although he didn't explain the reason at the time, I didn't take it seriously at first and didn't even plan to agree."
Bella was dumbfounded. So Shen Wenjing's absence these past few days was entirely someone's doing?
"And then? How did you end up obediently listening to him?" Bella pressed.
"And then?" Shen Wenjing rolled her eyes, wearing an expression that said 'I'm just as desperate'.
"I don't know what method he used, but he actually alarmed my dad. My dad called me personally, gave me a harsh scolding, and insisted I go home to stay for a few days. Tell me, in front of my dad, how could I dare say 'no'?"
Bella fell completely silent.
So ever since last week, Ye Jinzhi had been...
Hearing Shen Wenjing say this, Bella could roughly guess that her family background was extraordinary.
Although she didn't understand why Shen Wenjing moved to the urban village, everyone has their privacy. Bella knew her boundaries and wouldn't pry.
Bella checked the time and decided to distract herself.
Constantly eating takeout was bad for health. She planned to cook for herself today and learn a few more dishes.
She ordered a piece of pork belly on a mobile app and picked out some fresh vegetables.
While waiting for the delivery, she opened her social media app and earnestly searched for a "zero-failure braised pork for beginners" tutorial.
After receiving the groceries, she followed the tutorial: cutting the meat into cubes, blanching it in cold water, caramelizing the sugar, and finally adding the seasonings.
As it simmered over low heat, a rich meaty aroma gradually filled the entire house.
For the vegetables, she chose to make blanched choy sum with minced garlic.
During the process, she couldn't help but open the lid to take a few peeks.
The thick sauce coated every piece of meat, looking red, shiny, and tempting.
Bella picked up a small piece of braised pork and popped it into her mouth. "Delicious, delicious, delicious. It turns out I have quite a talent for cooking," Bella muttered to herself, unable to resist nodding in approval.
Just as she brought the braised pork to the table, she heard the sound of bags being opened in the living room.
Bella originally thought Shen Wenjing would continue ordering takeout as usual, but unexpectedly, Shen Wenjing rolled up her sleeves and walked into the kitchen, looking as if she was about to show off her skills.
"Today, let me show you my special trick too!"
Shen Wenjing said this while pouring cleaned lobster tails out of a fresh produce bag.
Seeing her posture, Bella was genuinely intimidated and stood aside, ready to secretly learn some culinary skills.
As a result, Shen Wenjing reached back, opened the refrigerator door, and took out a block of hot pot base.
With a sizzling sound, the beef tallow cube was tossed into the hot oil, instantly releasing a rich, spicy aroma.
Shen Wenjing pushed the melting red oil with a spatula. "Bella, let me tell you, the ultimate truth of cooking is simplicity. Hot pot base, just adding this is enough!"
"This is called 'hot pot base goes with everything,' right?"
"Exactly, that's what I mean."
"Being delicious is the only absolute truth!" Shen Wenjing chuckled and dumped the lobster tails into the pot with a splash. Along with a sizzling sound, the red oil completely coated the tails.
She took out two chilled cucumbers, turned the back of her knife sideways, and smashed them with a few loud thwacks. Mixed with minced garlic, aged vinegar, and sesame oil, it looked crisp and refreshing.
After all the dishes were brought to the table, the two set up a tablet on the dining table and skillfully found an appetizing variety show, "Back to Field."
As soon as Bella sat down, Shen Wenjing stuffed a bite of lobster tail into her mouth.
It was truly spicy.
"Not gonna lie, this hot pot base really is... the absolute best."
Bella was so spiced up that she gasped for air, her face instantly turning completely red, and even the corners of her eyes glistened with tears.
She quickly took out some iced milk and chugged a few mouthfuls to neutralize the burning sensation on her tongue.
"Of course, just look at who made it."
Shen Wenjing smugly shook her head and tossed another piece of cucumber into her mouth. The sound of her chewing overlapped with the background noise from the TV.
On the screen, Teacher Huang was busy around the stove, while Teacher He was helping out on the side.
As Bella watched, her gaze became somewhat vacant. She suddenly felt that having her own little rural courtyard, growing some flowers and planting some vegetables, would be quite nice.
After school the next day, Ye Jinzhi led Bella out of the school gates.
"Where are we going?"
Seeing that he hadn't spoken the whole way and was just walking quickly with his long legs, Bella couldn't help but jog a couple of steps to keep up.
"To see our new home."
Ye Jinzhi stopped walking and casually took her backpack, slinging it over his own shoulder.
Like a magic trick, he pressed an unmelted ice cream into her hand.
"So fast?" Bella took a bite of the ice cream and mumbled indistinctly, "Don't tell me you've already found everything."
The chocolate-flavored ice cream briefly suppressed the sweltering heat in the air.
Seeing Ye Jinzhi nod, Bella suddenly felt it wasn't surprising at all.
"But what if I don't like it?"
Hearing this, Ye Jinzhi turned his head, a hint of a smile flashing in his fox-like eyes:
"You will like it."
Holding the ice cream, Bella looked up at him. "So certain."
Ye Jinzhi didn't answer immediately. He reached out a hand incredibly naturally and gently wiped a bit of cream off the corner of Bella's mouth with his thumb.
"Even if you don't like it," his pitch-black eyes reflected Bella's astonished little face, "we'll just change it."
He said "we," not "I." Bella couldn't help but feel he had ulterior motives.
Bella originally thought the new home would be a bit far away, but to her surprise, they had only walked for about six or seven minutes from the school gate before stopping in front of a high-end apartment building.
"This is way too close!"
"Let's go in and take a look first." Ye Jinzhi led her inside, his expression as calm as usual.
Entering the residential complex, they were greeted by lush greenery. Before Bella could observe carefully, she was pulled into the elevator by him.
The top floor, with two apartments sharing one elevator.
With a soft beep from the fingerprint lock, the door slowly opened.
Bella thought she would see a cold, modern minimalist model home, but when she clearly saw the furnishings inside, she froze right at the entryway.
"Wow..."
The surprise in Bella's eyes couldn't be hidden at all.
The layout of the house, the texture of the furniture, and even the color of the wallpaper were entirely in the style she secretly saved on her phone every day.
Like a curious kitten, Bella walked briskly into the living room, pointed at the fresh flowers that hadn't yet been put into a vase, and looked back at Ye Jinzhi:
"Did you... prepare all these too?"
Ye Jinzhi closed the door behind him and stood in the entryway, watching her wander excitedly around the apartment.
A smile touched the corners of his lips. He nodded and casually dropped her backpack onto a nearby padded stool.
"Take a look at the bedroom."
He did not answer directly, merely lifting his chin to gesture for her to go further inside.
Full of anticipation, Bella pushed open the bedroom door. The room was spacious, the bed looked incredibly soft, and it even featured her favorite lace canopy.
She went on to explore the kitchen, the bathroom, and the study. Overall, she was extremely satisfied.
"What would you have done if I wasn't happy with it?"
After they finished looking around and closed the front door behind them, Bella turned to ask him.
She was wondering what kind of answer he might give, only to see Ye Jinzhi walk over to the door next door.
With a soft beep, the adjacent door unlocked and opened.
Bella: ???
