For a moment, Shen Du wondered whether Ye Nanqi had been possessed by a yellow weasel. The person lying on his bed looked like a weasel hiding a knife behind its smile.
Ye Nanqi appeared calm and composed on the surface, but inwardly, he was actually feeling a little uneasy.
After all, judging by Shen Du’s expression… it looked as though he might come over at any moment, beat him to death with a club, and throw him out.
The atmosphere was awkward and silent.
Ye Nanqi thought about the TV drama he’d caught up on that afternoon and tried his best to model himself after the domineering CEO’s sweet little wife.
He needed to be innocent yet alluring, alluring yet pure…
Young Master Ye, the big star, pondered this and decided that his acting skills in this particular area were seriously lacking and deserved some reflection.
Shen Du gave him a strange look for a while. Then, without warning, he took a few long strides forward and sat down on the bed.
Ye Nanqi exerted considerable effort to keep himself from jumping up. He merely blinked at Shen Du and smiled innocently.
Didn’t Shen Du find him annoying? Then he’d get as close to him as possible, annoy him to death! Disgust him to no end!
He was secretly plotting this when his vision suddenly darkened. Without warning, someone kissed him on the forehead.
Ye Nanqi stared at Shen Du in astonishment.
The latter calmly counterattacked. “Mm, sorry to keep you waiting, sweetheart.”
Ye Nanqi: “…”
Shen Du stood up and loosened his tie with one hand. A meaningful smile played on his lips.
“Wait here, sweetheart. I’ll go take a shower first.”
…
Why did people have to hurt each other like this?
Remembering his objective, Ye Nanqi paused slightly before putting on an even more virtuous, devoted-wife smile.
“You’ve worked hard all day. Let me help you shower. I once learned a little massage for a role I was playing.”
Shen Du hadn’t expected Ye Nanqi to accept the challenge without backing down. After thinking for a moment, he took one of Ye Nanqi’s hands affectionately and kissed the back of it. His long lashes lowered, and his deep, unfathomable eyes actually held a trace of something that could be described as tenderness.
“Be good. Get some rest. Your husband can’t bear to see you tire yourself out.”
…
…
…
He couldn’t outdo him.
Ye Nanqi conceded defeat.
He drew his legs back, sat cross-legged on Shen Du’s bed, and shuddered at the goosebumps covering his skin.
“President Shen, it’s such a shame you never went into acting. You’d surely bring home a whole collection of little golden statuettes for our country.”
Shen Du looked down at him from above, arms folded, saying nothing.
Ye Nanqi had deliberately come over to disgust him, yet his bathrobe was wrapped so tightly around him that even his neck was completely covered. The heating in the room was on full blast. Even Shen Du thought he looked hot.
He reached out and pressed down on Ye Nanqi’s head.
“Stop causing trouble.”
With that, he went to take his shower.
Unexpectedly, when he returned, Ye Nanqi still hadn’t left. He was lying on Shen Du’s bed, smiling brightly.
“Honey, I’ve already warmed the bed for you.”
Shen Du: “…”
Are you seriously not done yet?
The two exchanged a glance and gave each other equally insincere smiles. Shen Du lay down on the bed, wondering how he should deal with Ye Nanqi.
Although Ye Nanqi claimed he was warming the bed, he was actually hanging off the very edge, keeping as much distance from Shen Du as possible. He silently recited a calming mantra with his eyes closed, but couldn’t fall asleep at all.
Normally, Ye Nanqi wouldn’t put himself through such a ridiculous ordeal. However, he didn’t have many work commitments at the moment, and the movie he was filming wouldn’t begin production until after the New Year. There was no need for him to fly around for work, so he had plenty of free time these days and didn’t need to get up early in the morning.
After lying stiffly for a long time, the person beside him suddenly moved.
Ye Nanqi was just about to turn around to see what Shen Du was doing when an arm slipped around his waist.
With his back to Shen Du, he was pulled into the man’s embrace.
Shen Du’s voice sounded beside his ear, deliberately lowered to a magnetic, seductive whisper that could make someone’s legs go weak.
“Why are you so far away from me?”
Feeling how stiff the person in his arms was, practically like a block of wood, Shen Du laughed wickedly.
Before long, he suddenly noticed Ye Nanqi muttering something under his breath. He tilted his head and listened for a moment, then asked curiously, “What are you reciting?”
“Wherever I encounter things, I remain undisturbed by their myriad changes. Free from delusion and anger, without desires or demands. Letting go of attachment, abandoning the self, and embracing non-action.”
“…”
Shen Du humbly sought clarification.
“Are you in some kind of cult?”
Ye Nanqi opened his eyes and smiled.
“It’s a calming mantra.”
“Why are you reciting that?”
Ye Nanqi wore an expression of complete detachment from worldly desires.
“It’s nothing. Honey, you can’t sleep either, can you? Why don’t we watch a legal education program together for a while?”
Shen Du raised an eyebrow in confusion.
Ye Nanqi turned around and spoke seriously.
“To suppress my urge to commit a crime.”
Shen Du said warily, “Marital rape is still rape.”
“…Fuck you.”
Unable to bear it any longer, Ye Nanqi pushed Shen Du’s arm away and returned to his own room.
Shen Du clapped his hands, feeling that Ye Nanqi’s fighting power wasn’t nearly as formidable as he’d imagined. He switched off the bedside lamp and closed his eyes, contentedly going to sleep.
Unexpectedly, a few days later, on another dark and windy night, Ye Nanqi showed up again, carrying his laptop.
Shen Du watched speechlessly as he climbed onto the bed, then shifted backward and folded his arms.
“Ye Nanqi, I really want to crack open your skull right now and see whether there’s a walnut or an actual brain inside.”
Ye Nanqi paid no attention to his sarcasm. He opened his laptop and played the movie he’d spent the entire day searching for.
As soon as the eerie, desolate background music began, Shen Du, who had been sitting nearby thinking about how to kick Ye Nanqi out, felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end.
He shot to his feet, his expression darkening.
“What are you doing?”
Ye Nanqi casually shifted aside.
The sudden appearance of a ghostly face in full-screen mode, accompanied by the chilling laughter of a female ghost, had an extraordinary effect. Shen Du’s face turned ashen.
He wanted to go over and shut Ye Nanqi’s laptop, but his hands and feet had gone cold. He simply couldn’t bring himself to approach it.
Ye Nanqi secretly watched his reaction, feeling thoroughly satisfied.
Over the past few days, he’d used the excuse of wanting to get to know Shen Du better to visit Shen’s mother and fish for information. To his surprise, he’d discovered that Shen Du was actually afraid of ghosts and supernatural things.
Having achieved his objective, Ye Nanqi closed the laptop and got off the bed as though nothing had happened.
When he reached the door, he turned around and smiled maliciously.
“As the saying goes, only those with guilty consciences fear ghosts knocking at their doors. What is President Shen afraid of?”
Shen Du’s face was still pale.
“Afraid? What would I be afraid of? Who’s afraid?”
Ye Nanqi thought for a moment and nodded.
“Right, right. You’re afraid of nothing. I’ll head back, then. President Shen, do take care. You’ve got a whole room full of people keeping you company.”
After returning to his room, Ye Nanqi smiled as he took out his phone and posted a message on his social media feed.
【The great materialist Karl Marx once said, ‘Only idiots believe in ghosts.’】
A few minutes later, someone commented.
Wen Chen: 【After misusing Lu Xun, you’re now dragging Marx into this?】
Jiang Yuanyu: 【Marx: I never said that. Don’t put words in my mouth.】
Assistant A: 【Whether something exists depends on whether you believe in it. Brother Ye, be careful under your bed\~】
Ye Nanqi wasn’t afraid of ghosts. If Ye Mei were a ghost, then he’d practically been dreaming about her almost every night for all these years.
Smiling, he replied to the comments, feeling extremely pleased with himself. Humming a little tune, he climbed into bed.
Just as he was getting drowsy, Ye Nanqi suddenly heard a series of soft footsteps.
He immediately opened his eyes, alert, and discovered someone standing beside his bed.
Every hair on his body nearly stood on end. His first instinct was that it was a burglar. But then he watched as the person silently lifted his blanket and climbed straight into bed.
Ye Nanqi fell silent for a moment before speaking.
“Afraid? What would I be afraid of? Who’s afraid?”
Shen Du said, “Shut up.”
Ye Nanqi couldn’t help bursting into laughter.
“Baby Shen, how old are you? You’re still afraid of ghosts?”
Shen Du rubbed his temples and said viciously, “Shut up. Say another word and I’ll rape you.”
Ye Nanqi replied, “Marital rape is still rape.”
Shen Du: “…”
Fine. He’d returned every single word, without missing one.
Although the situation felt extremely awkward, Shen Du really didn’t want to sleep alone that night.
Every time he closed his eyes, that ghastly, pale face appeared before him. Ye Nanqi’s parting words had only made things worse.
Even when he’d gotten out of bed and come over, he’d felt as though a cold hand might reach out from underneath and grab his ankle, while a little ghost outside the window watched everything.
It felt absolutely awful.
Noticing that Shen Du’s body was trembling slightly, Ye Nanqi was somewhat surprised.
Was he really that frightened?
He blinked and gently stroked Shen Du’s head as though petting a puppy.
“It’s all fake. Don’t think about it.”
Shen Du kept his eyes closed and said nothing, but quietly moved a little closer to Ye Nanqi.
Ye Nanqi found it genuinely amusing. Shen Du usually acted as though there wasn’t a single thing in the world he feared. Who would have thought he’d be afraid of such supernatural nonsense?
He casually offered a few more words of comfort. As sleepiness washed over him again, he gradually drifted off.
The next morning, when Ye Nanqi opened his eyes, he immediately realized something was wrong.
He and Shen Du were once again embracing each other in an extremely intimate position, each pressed up against the other.
The unpleasant memory of that night came rushing back. Ye Nanqi abruptly lifted his leg and kicked Shen Du right off the bed.
With a tremendous thud, Shen Du sucked in a sharp breath.
He sat on the floor, spent a moment collecting himself, then climbed to his feet and narrowed his eyes.
“Ye Nanqi, have you been particularly free lately?”
Ye Nanqi remained perfectly composed.
“You need to work on your courage.”
Shen Du stared at him for a moment, then turned around and went downstairs without saying another word.
By the time Ye Nanqi leisurely finished washing up and came downstairs, Shen Du was already making breakfast in the kitchen.
Shen Du might not have been a particularly pleasant person, but his cooking was excellent. He was also exceptionally patient. Every morning, he insisted on making porridge, accompanied by several small plates of side dishes. It was both easy on the stomach and pleasing to the eye.
He even made enough for Ye Nanqi.
To his embarrassment, Ye Nanqi, who had grown up in a poor household, was truly terrible at cooking. To this day, he only knew how to make two dishes: egg fried rice and rice fried with eggs. The only person capable of praising his cooking with a straight face was his younger sister, Ye Wan.
Feeling somewhat guilty, Ye Nanqi wondered whether today’s breakfast would include a portion for him.
After waiting expectantly for quite some time, what he received was a pot of fish porridge.
Ye Nanqi: “…”
Shen Du leisurely served himself a bowl of porridge without even glancing at Ye Nanqi.
Ye Nanqi rubbed the tip of his nose and opened the refrigerator. Inside, he found only two pitiful-looking tomatoes.
He sighed and began wondering what he could make with tomatoes.
Seeing him wandering around in front of the refrigerator, Shen Du said, “Stop looking. There’s nothing in there.”
Ye Nanqi reluctantly closed the refrigerator and took out a bottle of milk, intending to fill his stomach a little.
Seeing that he was about to drink it without even heating it up, Shen Du finally lost his patience.
“There’s vegetable porridge left in the pot in the kitchen. Go serve yourself.”
Without waiting for Ye Nanqi to react, he wiped the corner of his mouth and walked away.