I'm Rich - 23
Chapter 23
Of course, she hadn't wanted the crawfish. She'd just wanted to see him.
After that whole mess, she finally understood just how deep her feelings for him ran. The fact that there was no one else in his heart was a good thing, and on top of her joy, all she wanted was to spend more time with him. But still… what was she supposed to do next? She didn't want him to see her as just a little sister.
Guan Zhiyi thought about it for a long while, then pulled out her phone and messaged Hua Hongxi: [I want to tell everyone that we were just pretending before. That it wasn't real.]
Hua Hongxi replied at lightning speed: [Wait! Don't do anything crazy!]
When he sent that message, he'd actually already gone into hiding. His family had been chasing him around and yelling at him over the "breakup," and now he didn't even dare go home. As pathetic as it got.
So under the circumstances, as his comrade-in-arms, she absolutely had to hold off. Once the heat died down a bit, they could bring up this "even more asking-for-a-beating" matter.
Guan Zhiyi found his pitiful state both funny and exasperating.
[Then can I just tell Chengyan-ge? Is that okay?]
[No way! He'll definitely come after me!]
[He won't. I promise. I'll say I forced you into it, and ask him to keep it a secret for us.]
Hua Hongxi went quiet for a long moment. A few minutes later, he suddenly said: [You kept saying before that you wanted to end things between us. Back then I kind of guessed you had someone you liked…]
Guan Zhiyi froze, then immediately replied: [Don't go making things up! I just don't want to lie to him.]
Hua Hongxi: [Did I say anything?]
Guan Zhiyi: […]
Hua Hongxi: [Zhiyi, don't tell me. You like my cousin?]
**
It was late, but for a lot of people, the night was just getting started. KTVs, bars, night markets… crowds coming and going.
It was already ten at night by the time Qi Chengyan finished handling his last matter. After he got in the car, his assistant asked whether to drive to Yuhe Mansion. Qi Chengyan pressed his fingers to his brow and nodded instinctively.
So the assistant started the car and pulled out of the company lot.
"Wait."
The assistant glanced at him through the rearview mirror. Qi Chengyan suddenly said, "Go to Chenguan Road."
"Is there something you need to take care of?"
Qi Chengyan thought of the girl at home waiting to be fed and smiled. "Almost forgot I've got a task."
"Huh?"
"Drive to the crawfish place on Chenguan Road and pick up an order of crawfish."
The assistant's eyes widened slightly. C-Crawfish?
"President Qi, I remember you don't eat such stuff."
"Someone wants to."
The assistant looked at him through the rearview mirror again, and a guess formed in his mind. "Then, after we buy it, not Yuhe Mansion. Xinghe Bay?"
"Mm."
Xinghe Bay was the address of the villa where Miss Guan was currently staying. Sure enough. The only person who could make his boss go out of his way like this was her…
Guan Zhiyi had been going to bed early lately, but she'd lied to Qi Chengyan today, so she'd been forcing herself to stay up waiting for him.
She waited a long time. Long enough that she started to think he really might be too busy and wouldn't have time to come here tonight. Then finally, she heard movement outside. Her spirits lifted and she sat up at once.
A few minutes later, Qi Chengyan finally came through the door.
"Gege, you're back!"
Qi Chengyan walked over carrying the food, teasing her: "Your eyes are practically glowing. If I open this bag, are you going to start drooling?"
The glow was because of him, not the food.
Guan Zhiyi grinned. "I'll control myself."
Qi Chengyan shot her a look and sat down, opening the bag. "Don't eat too much. You won't be able to sleep."
"Mm!"
Once the crawfish container was opened, the aroma filled the air.
"I bought two flavors. Try and see which one's better." Qi Chengyan handed her a pair of disposable gloves.
Guan Zhiyi murmured an acknowledgment and got to work shelling. As she peeled, she thought about where to start with the Hua Hongxi situation.
"You're not eating?" she asked after eating one, noticing Qi Chengyan hadn't moved.
Qi Chengyan: "You eat."
"Then you're just going to watch me eat?"
"What, you can't eat with me watching?"
"It's just, I'd feel embarrassed."
Qi Chengyan chuckled. "Since when did you get so thin-skinned?"
"I've always been thin-skinned…"
Qi Chengyan patted her head and pulled out his phone. "Alright, hurry up and eat. I won't watch."
Guan Zhiyi murmured an "okay" and looked down, going back to the crawfish.
The crawfish were saucy, and she had no experience eating them at all. She just peeled blindly.
Tug—
With one hard pull, the sauce flew in a small arc and landed, with impeccable bad timing, right on Qi Chengyan's cuff.
"…"
"…………"
Guan Zhiyi stared for a few seconds, then immediately leaned over to grab a tissue. "Ah, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Let me wipe it!"
Qi Chengyan looked at the small stain on his cuff, then at the mangled crawfish in Guan Zhiyi's fingers. "Your eating technique doesn't look very good."
Guan Zhiyi's mind was entirely on his cuff. "Just wipe it first."
"No need. It won't come out." Qi Chengyan didn't care at all. He unhurriedly pulled a pair of gloves from the bag and put them on, then said with a helpless sigh, "Stop peeling. I'll do it."
Guan Zhiyi blinked at him. "Do you know how?"
Qi Chengyan lifted his eyes to her. "Definitely better than you."
"…Oh."
Qi Chengyan didn't eat shrimp often, but peeling was simple enough. In just a few moves he'd shelled several and set them in front of her.
At first Guan Zhiyi had thought, if it was this much trouble, she could just eat less. But who'd have guessed she could now eat them ready-made? So she happily watched Qi Chengyan peel while tossing them into her mouth one by one.
She ate for quite a while, almost forgetting all about the Hua Hongxi business.
"Hiss, so spicy…"
"Still eating?"
Guan Zhiyi shook her head. "I'm full."
"Want some water?"
"Yes."
Qi Chengyan indulged her and got up to pour water in the kitchen. Guan Zhiyi took off her gloves and grabbed a tissue to wipe her mouth. "I want it iced."
But when Qi Chengyan came back, he was holding warm water.
Guan Zhiyi grumbled softly, "It's not iced…"
She'd barely finished speaking when someone flicked her forehead. "It's the middle of the night. What iced water?"
"…"
"Alright, eat up and go to bed. Where's the housekeeper?"
"Oh, since I was waiting up for a midnight snack, they all went to rest. Nobody's waiting up for me."
Qi Chengyan: "Then get up. I'll walk you back to your room."
"Wait!"
"What now?"
She'd eaten and drunk her fill. Time to say what needed to be said.
"I have something to tell you!"
"What is it?"
"Ge, um, actually… actually, Hua Hongxi doesn't like me at all."
Qi Chengyan froze. So she still couldn't get past this after all. He'd thought her good mood today meant she'd truly put it behind her.
All he could do was comfort her. "Xiao Wu, you'll meet someone better in the future."
Guan Zhiyi: "I don't like him at all either."
Hearing that only made Qi Chengyan feel worse. What he thought was: when had his little girl ever been treated like this by anyone? She'd cried so hard yesterday, and now she was trying to numb herself with "I don't like him anymore."
"You're right to think that way. If the other person isn't sincere about you, you really shouldn't keep holding on to him," Qi Chengyan said.
"No, no, that's not it. I'm saying, we really don't like each other. There's no feeling between us at all!"
Qi Chengyan paused, clearly not sure what she was getting at.
Guan Zhiyi carefully watched his expression and continued, "I'm sorry. I actually lied to you. Before, Hua Hongxi and I getting together was… fake."
"What did you say?"
Guan Zhiyi pressed her lips together, then gritted her teeth. "I said, him and me being together was fake. We only did it because we didn't want our families pushing us into blind dates, so we put on a show for everyone."
Qi Chengyan was stunned for a few seconds. His expression went from confusion to shock, and from shock to fury. "Guan Zhiyi."
"Don't, don't, don't, don't be mad. We really were forced into it. I didn't want to hide it from you at all, but Hua Hongxi said if you knew, you'd definitely forbid it, so I didn't tell you…" Her voice trailed off toward the end. Guan Zhiyi grabbed his sleeve and tugged. "You, don't be mad, okay?"
Qi Chengyan stared at her, his face going cold. "I never would've imagined you two would lie about something like this. Do you have any idea how worried your brother and I were when we thought you'd been dumped?"
Guan Zhiyi lowered her head and muttered, "I know I was wrong. I really know I was wrong…"
"You—" Qi Chengyan looked at her pitiful expression and found he genuinely couldn't bring himself to scold her. In the end he could only say coldly, "You two really are something, huh."
"No, we're not… don't be mad…" Guan Zhiyi said, clutching his sleeve and not daring to let go, afraid he'd get angry and turn around and walk off.
"Wait. You said it was fake. Then what were you crying about yesterday?" Qi Chengyan suddenly remembered.
Guan Zhiyi froze. "Huh? Huh?"
Qi Chengyan narrowed his eyes. "You cried so hard yesterday. How is that fake?"
Guan Zhiyi looked at his questioning gaze and her chest tightened. Even if she could tell him now that she and Hua Hongxi had been fake-dating, she couldn't openly say that she'd cried yesterday because of him…
At least, now was not the time to tell him she liked him.
"I, I was acting."
Qi Chengyan looked baffled. "What?"
"I was acting! After Hua Hongxi told me, I felt like I should show some reaction to the breakup, so, so I cried a bit…"
Acting? How could that be? Yesterday he'd felt her genuine pain…
No, wait. Of course he'd felt it.
Because this little brat wasn't just anyone. She was an actress. How convincing were her crying scenes? Hadn't he seen them for himself?
Qi Chengyan thought about it and almost laughed out of sheer anger. "If you were going to put on a whole crying performance to fool me, why tell me the truth now?"
"I thought about it over and over, and I still felt it was better not to lie to you…" Guan Zhiyi looked up at him, pleading. "Gege, I'm only telling you. You, you absolutely can't tell the elders, or I might get dragged into blind dates again. You can understand, right? You know how uncomfortable it is to be set up."
Qi Chengyan thought of that Miss Yang his family had tried to set him up with and snorted coldly. "…I really don't know what to say to you."
"Then don't say anything! I swear! I'll never lie to you again!"
Qi Chengyan was still furious inside, but then it occurred to him that she hadn't actually had her heart broken by anyone, and he felt a bit of relief.
At the end of the day, her acting was better than her actually getting dumped.
"There's a next time?"
"No, absolutely not!"
"Remember what you said."
"Mm hm hm! I'll definitely remember!"
Qi Chengyan shook his head helplessly. "If your brother knew, he'd probably die of anger."
"…So don't tell him yet."
"I know." Qi Chengyan pressed his fingers to his brow. "It's very late. Go rest."
"Mm!"
Qi Chengyan helped Guan Zhiyi up. "Where's your crutch?"
"I'm not very good with it. Usually the housekeeper carries me upstairs." Guan Zhiyi looked at him, and her brain short-circuited. She just said it straight out: "Gege, carry me on your back tonight."
Qi Chengyan glared at her. "You just lied to me, and now you want me to be your pack mule?"
"It's not hard. I'm not heavy at all." Guan Zhiyi clutched his arm. "Come on, come on, I'm going to lose my balance—"
Seeing her actually sway, Qi Chengyan immediately reached out to steady her.
Guan Zhiyi seized the moment and quickly looped her arm over his shoulder.
Qi Chengyan paused. "Guan Xiao Wu, your brother's right. You really are bold."
Even as he said it, he turned around and bent down.
Guan Zhiyi climbed onto his back with a grin. "What do you mean… you used to carry me too, didn't you?"
Qi Chengyan hoisted her up and carefully headed for the stairs. "That was then. Are you still a little kid now?"
"I'm not."
"Good that you know."
…
That was what he said, but the weight on his back really was no different from a little kid's to Qi Chengyan.
The trip upstairs wasn't long. Guan Zhiyi lay against his shoulder, thinking only that she wanted him to walk slower. A little slower. That way, she could stay with him a little longer.
"Gege, I think you're really great…"
The corner of Qi Chengyan's mouth lifted slightly. "You think a little flattery makes up for anything?"
"No, it's just a plain compliment. I just think you're really great." Guan Zhiyi tightened her arms around him, her voice muffled. "So, are you this good to everyone?"
She was practically pressed against him. When she spoke, her breath brushed his neck, carrying a tingling warmth.
Qi Chengyan's step faltered slightly. He unconsciously tilted his head. "Why do you ask?"
Guan Zhiyi said softly, "I just think a lot of people must've noticed how good you are. But… I don't really want that many people to notice."
Qi Chengyan was taken aback. "…What kind of nonsense is that?"
"It's not nonsense…"
She truly meant it. She wanted to make him hers. She wanted his eyes to hold only her, forever.
A few minutes later, Qi Chengyan brought her to her room. He set her on the bed, then tucked the blanket around her. "Go to sleep early."
"Okay."
He left and pulled the door shut behind him. Guan Zhiyi looked at the closed door and suddenly smiled.
Then she swung one leg off the bed, grabbed the pair of crutches beside her, and humming a little tune under her breath, headed for the bathroom.
She wasn't an idiot. After all these days, how could she not know how to use crutches?
---
Author's Note:
Your Student Guan has launched an attack!
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