Chapter 2033 — Does It Count?

"The silver needles were contaminated last time. They're no good now," Wei Zhao said.

"Then buy new ones!" Shen Yushu said.

"All right, Xiaoshu, if you want Wei Zhao to touch you, just say so — you don't have to hunt up so many excuses!" Gu Mengyao cut in.

"Ah! Sister Yaoyao, you're the Empress of Truth!" Shen Yushu exclaimed. "Sharper even than Truth-Shu herself!"

"After living with you this long, do you think I don't know what goes on in that little head of yours?" Gu Mengyao curled her lip. "But it's all talk with you. If you've got the guts, go and push him down yourself!"

"Uh... Brother Shield doesn't like a ferocious Shu..." Shen Yushu said.

Wei Zhao had not expected the young lady to come out with such a thing, and he broke into a sweat. It seemed that Yaoyao, Xiaoshu, and he really had grown close; the young lady treated him more and more as one of the household, and no longer held anything back in front of him.

"You two talk first, I'll carry the dishes over..." Wei Zhao shook his head, privately rather admiring Gu Mengyao — she had seen through Xiaoshu's true nature at a single glance.

Even Wei Zhao always had the feeling that he could not see through Shen Yushu. She said over and over that she liked him, and yet he always felt that beneath her blunt manner something was hidden — not like Feng Xiaoxiao, who was straight through and through.

Perhaps if he and Feng Xiaoxiao were together long enough, something beyond friendship would come about of itself. But between him and Xiaoshu, Wei Zhao did not think it ever would.

He could not even say why. Perhaps because the two of them had lived together so long and truly nothing had happened.

Or perhaps because, between Shen Yushu and him, there was a constant small flirtation, but never once anything truly serious.

One thing, though, was certain: Shen Yushu really did seem to have feelings for him. But those feelings were strange — near enough to touch, and yet as far away as the horizon.

And Xiaoshu's thoughts were even harder for Wei Zhao to fathom. The girl was sometimes clever and sometimes silly, and yet to call her silly was not quite right either.

In short, some things were simply bizarre.

Carrying the food, he came to Han Jingyi's villa. What he held was enough for three people. When he had left earlier he had not locked the door, only pulled it shut, so this time he had no need to ring the bell.

He set the dishes on the dining table and quietly waited for Han Jingyi to finish her bath and come down.

Han Jingyi had probably only taken a shower, which had not cost her much time — plainly she had deliberately not washed long, so as not to keep Wei Zhao waiting. Otherwise Wei Zhao knew well enough how long a girl could take over a bath; the young lady and Xiaoshu could spend an age over a single wash...

"Brother Wei Zhao, sorry to keep you waiting!" Han Jingyi had changed into a nightgown, and within the loose robe her fine figure showed faintly, so that Wei Zhao did not dare look any longer... Han Jingyi's figure seemed rather nice?

If Wei Zhao had not known Han Jingyi's character, he might even have thought she was deliberately enticing him — beginning with all that water earlier, she had been enticing him from the very start!

But Wei Zhao knew that Han Jingyi was the foolish, simple sort, and probably had no such thoughts at all, so he could only take it that she had grown used to him and no longer guarded herself against him.

"No, I just got back myself," Wei Zhao said. "Call Han Xiaochao down and we'll eat together?"

"Wow, so much good food? Brother Wei Zhao, you're amazing — you go back once and conjure up all this!" Han Jingyi was overjoyed at the sight of the table. "Yesterday's meal was so good that Xiaochao and I didn't get enough, and now there's more today! It's far better than the takeout from those restaurants!"

"Heh..." Wei Zhao did not bother explaining that today's food was not his own doing — though Granny Sun's cooking was quite good as well.

Han Jingyi picked up the phone beside the stairs and dialed the extension in Han Xiaochao's room to call him down to eat, then ran over and sat down beside Wei Zhao, bringing with her a waft of shower-gel fragrance that set Wei Zhao's heart pleasantly adrift.

Han Xiaochao was clearly the bookworm type, even more of a bookworm than Han Jingyi; he came downstairs still holding a textbook, and only set it down when he reached the table. One look at the dishes and he was surprised: "Sis, so lavish? I haven't had such a feast in ages!"

"Brother Wei Zhao brought it!" Han Jingyi said.

"Thank you, Brother Wei Zhao!" Han Xiaochao said shyly.

"All right, eat up while it's hot," Wei Zhao said.

Han Jingyi and Han Xiaochao bent to their food, but after two bites Han Jingyi said doubtfully, "This doesn't seem to be Brother Wei Zhao's cooking today, does it? The taste is a little different from yesterday's, but it's still very good!"

"Mm," Han Jingyi nodded. "The heat feels a bit different."

"Today's food was made by Granny Sun, our housekeeper. But Granny Sun's cooking is excellent too!" Wei Zhao said.

Han Jingyi said nothing more, and bent her head to eat.

Han Jingyi had a small appetite and was soon full, while Han Xiaochao ate heartily — three bowls of rice.

Once the meal was over, though, Han Xiaochao took his textbook and went upstairs, paying no mind to Wei Zhao or Han Jingyi.

Han Jingyi was about to clear the dishes when Wei Zhao stopped her: "Han Jingyi, wait — leave the dishes for now. Let me finish telling you what I have to say first."

"All right, Brother Wei Zhao!" Han Jingyi nodded and stopped where she stood.

Wei Zhao sat down on the sofa, and Han Jingyi followed and came over as well.

"Han Jingyi, haven't you always wanted to learn pill refinement? I have some material here, but after I give it to you, I hope you won't speak of it — especially not to You Panhu," Wei Zhao instructed. Bai Lingtou had called the thing a street-stall commodity, but Wei Zhao still did not want others to see it.

"Mm-hm!" Han Jingyi nodded hurriedly, her face alight. "Don't worry, Brother Wei Zhao, Jingjing will never show it to anyone — not even if you beat her to death! I'll guard it the way I guard my own body from other men's eyes!"

"Uh... that's a bit much..." Wei Zhao was taken aback. Guard her body from other men's eyes? Then did he count as "other"? Wei Zhao shook his head. What was the matter with this Han Jingyi? Enticing him again and again?

Call her silly, and she did not seem so silly after all — only her logic ran differently from other people's. But call her not silly, and her behavior was about that of a child.

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