Yan Wan’ying stormed in angrily, grabbed Wan Tong, and went to the café next door.
“You, are you really Yan Wantong?” Yan Wan’ying looked at Wan Tong with suspicion.
Wan Tong took a sip of coffee and retorted, “If I’m not Yan Wantong, who else could I be?”
“Who knows if you’re some wandering ghost occupying my sister’s body.” Yan Wan’ying speculated, even though the system hadn’t detected anything unusual in Wan Tong’s body. Still, she couldn’t shake the feeling that the person before her was no longer her reclusive Fourth Sister.
Wan Tong put down her cup. “Youngest Sister, what’s with your strange talk?”
Yan Wan’ying stared into her eyes. “The idea for the convenience store, where did you get it?”
“Second Brother thought of it. I saw similar small shops when I visited Hong Kong, so I helped improve it a bit. Why, is there a problem?”
Yan Wan’ying was at a loss for words. She didn’t quite believe Wan Tong but couldn’t find any fault in what Wan Tong said.
Not wanting to waste time with Yan Wan’ying, Wan Tong left shortly after.
Yan Wan’ying watched Wan Tong leave, then her mouth pressed into a downward curve, her gaze turning cold and fierce.
She realized she shouldn’t neglect her mission in this world just to make money and prove herself. Yan Wantong had to die.
Before long, a tall, thin boy wearing a tattered gray hat sat down in front of Yan Wan’ying. He kept his head down, the brim of his hat covering half his face, revealing only a sharp chin and thin lips.
He held Wan Tong’s half-drunk coffee cup in both hands and asked in a low voice, “The person you want to kill, is it her?”
Yan Wan’ying hadn’t expected him to speak so openly in public and nervously glanced around. Seeing no one, she replied, “Yes, it’s her. Did you get a good look? Only you can know about this. If her man, Yan Qinglu, finds out, we’re both dead.”
This boy, named Suozi, was a member of Yan Qinglu’s arch-rival, Hei Long, which was why Yan Wanying had sought him out.
Suozi nodded, then said ominously, “I got it. She’ll die without a trace.”
Feeling reassured, Yan Wan’ying was inexplicably relieved.
She trusted that news wouldn’t leak from Hei Long’s people, and the boy in front of her seemed like a mad dog who had killed before, making him the perfect choice.
Yan Wan’ying took a sip of her coffee, not noticing the cold, mocking glance Suozi gave her, like that of a mad dog.
As night fell, Yan Wan’ying left the café and went to a club owned by Yan Qinglu with some friends, but unfortunately, didn’t see him there.
Carrying her bag, she walked drunkenly down the street on her way back.
She had bought two apartments and decided to go to the nearest one tonight, just a street away, so she walked back.
The street was not bustling at night, and Yan Wan’ying grew increasingly uneasy, feeling a cold gaze following her.
Alert to danger, she decided not to go home and turned to a hotel instead.
As autumn arrived, the weather gradually cooled. For the first time, the Yan family spent the Mid-Autumn Festival in the city.
Although Yan Wan’ying stayed for dinner, she didn’t spend the night. Everyone couldn’t do anything about her and just assumed she was spoiled.
Wan Tong stayed at home for a while before going to find Yan Qinglu.
Today, he had brought his mother over, and the entire afternoon, she hadn’t seen him leave the house. From her room, she saw that there were no signs of activity in his room either.
Thinking about Lin Cui’s unpredictable temper, she felt uneasy and went next door.
She had a key, so she directly entered through the entrance.
The house was quiet, and Wan Tong didn’t see anyone. She felt a chill and forgot to change her shoes, running straight to Yan Qinglu’s room.
His door wasn’t fully closed, and Wan Tong peeked in.
Yan Qinglu was bare-chested, and the burn scars on his back were still prominent, now accompanied by a bruise and several bleeding red marks.
It looked like he had been hit by something heavy and was cut.
Yan Qinglu was disinfecting his shoulder in front of a mirror. From Wan Tong’s angle, he appeared indifferent, as if the pain didn’t even make him frown.
Hearing rustling footsteps, he suddenly turned around. Seeing it was Wan Tong, his lips instantly curved up, his dark eyes softened with warmth, and he naturally pulled up his shirt, covering his back.
“Aren’t you supposed to be with your family? Why did you come over?” he asked.
Wan Tong pursed her lips and placed the box she was holding to the side. “I brought you something. My Third Brother made coconut-filled mooncakes just for me.”
Yan Qinglu walked over to her and smiled as he opened the box. “Your Third Brother is petty. If you give the mooncakes he made to me, won’t he cry from anger?”
Though he said this, his voice was clearly tinged with smug amusement.
Wan Tong looked steadily at his smiling, handsome face, suppressing the ache in her eyes, and reached out to remove the shirt draped over him, saying gloomily, “Let me disinfect and treat your wound.”
The smile on Yan Qinglu’s lips didn’t fade. He held her hand, lightly kissing it a few times. “It’s just a minor injury, no need to worry.”
“But it pains my heart,” Wan Tong said softly.
Yan Qinglu felt his hardened heart melt at that moment. He hugged her tightly and heard her ask, “Why did she hit you again?”
After a long silence, Yan Qinglu said in a low voice, “I’m a lot like my Dad, always running off and causing trouble, making her worry. When my Dad went out one time when he was young, he came back with his body mutilated. She’s probably afraid I’ll end up like him.”
Wan Tong vaguely remembered the matter. The villagers always spoke of it in hushed tones. Yan Qinglu’s father’s death was gruesome, his body hacked beyond recognition.
Yan Qinglu’s father was a troublemaker in his youth, and Lin Cui was an orphan. When she came to Datang Village with Yan Qinglu’s father, everyone thought she had been forced. But from Wan Tong’s observations, Lin Cui was deeply in love with him and still hadn’t moved on.
“Every time I leave her for too long, her mental state becomes unstable. Beating me helps her vent her anger.” Yan Qinglu said this, but subconsciously clenched his fist.
Wan Tong knew that he wasn’t as indifferent as he claimed. She pushed him back onto the bed and said softly, “I’ll help you treat your wounds.”
Yan Qinglu hesitated for a moment but then nodded.
Wan Tong bit her lip, her hand trembling slightly as she held the cotton swab.
Upon closer inspection, not only his back but also his arms and chest were covered with scars that time could hardly erase.
Most of these were probably from Lin Cui’s beatings.
The room was lit, the windows were closed, and the air was a bit stuffy, especially with the strong smell of antiseptic. Wan Tong was so focused that beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.
After treating Yan Qinglu’s wounds, she felt hot and took off her trench coat, hanging it to the side.
Yan Qinglu looked up at her slender and graceful figure, his gaze becoming more intense.
Today, she was wearing a loose sweater and a pair of strangely tight-fitting jeans, which she had folded at the ankles.
She had a great figure, and when she stood on tiptoe to hang up her coat, her perfectly shaped buttocks came into his view.
Just as Wan Tong finished hanging up her coat, Yan Qinglu wrapped his arms around her from behind. Using his height and broad frame, he enveloped her in his embrace, resting his chin lightly on the top of her head.
“Is that a new design at your store?” he asked softly, his hand brushing over her jeans.
“Mm, and they’re selling quite well.” Wan Tong didn’t notice the change in his tone, assuming he wasn’t in the mood for anything else after just being beaten.
Who would’ve thought that the next moment, Yan Qinglu would pick her up and lay her down on the bed.
Wan Tong stared in surprise at the man pressing down on her. “Yan Qinglu, what are you doing? You’re still injured!”
“The wounds are on my back, not…” he said in a low voice, and then his thin lips descended on hers.
The author was driven mad at this point, so let’s just say that : the lamp is turned off.1
The moonlight shone through the gap in the curtains, casting its light on the two entwined figures on the bed.
Once she came to her senses, Wan Tong tried to push Yan Qinglu away.
Yan Qinglu followed her movement and carried her off the bed, taking her to the bathroom.
When they came out, Wan Tong felt even more exhausted, but she still remembered she needed to go home.
Yan Qinglu had to dress her again, but when he saw those tight jeans, he tossed them aside and found a pair of his sweatpants that barely fit her. He tied the drawstring around her slim waist.
Wan Tong looked at her mismatched outfit and kicked him in displeasure. “I don’t want to wear your clothes. Give me back my jeans.”
“This looks better,” Yan Qinglu said seriously. When she tried to take off the sweatpants, he leaned in and whispered in her ear, “If you dare take them off, I dare do it again. Wanna try?”
Wan Tong stopped immediately and glared at him, pouting, “What do you have against my jeans?”
He had acted strangely earlier too, specifically targeting her jeans, taking them halfway off then stopping, touching her over them. Did he find it more exciting?
Yan Qinglu did not answer her. Instead, he bit her on the corner of her mouth and gave a low warning, “Don’t wear these pants randomly next time. If I see them again, I’ll take them off every time. And don’t wear them outside. Little Fourth Yan, do you hear me?”
These pants that completely show off the shape of her legs and hips should not be worn outside.
In his eyes, these jeans were practically becoming an erotic item.
Wan Tong vaguely guessed something from his words, and in an instant, she blushed and felt helpless. She opened her mouth to bite him, but he happened to raise his head, so she ended up biting his chin.
She left a few small tooth marks for real.
There probably wasn’t anything normal left in his head.
- it’s like this from the raw ↩︎
rokumi’s note : I think, that one really broke the immersion. Should I just delete it?