mijobooks Chapter 553: That one lick of the corner of his mouth is the key point.
Chapter 553: That one lick of the corner of his mouth is the key point.
By the end of October, late autumn had arrived, and a chilly air was creeping into the city.
The temperature in Nanjing plummeted overnight, and the biting cold swept through the streets and alleys without mercy, announcing the approach of winter.
Hidden deep within the campus, the scenery in front of the bamboo grove courtyard changes with the seasons.
The once lush and vibrant green bamboo forest has now been quietly tinged with large patches of mottled yellow on the bamboo tips, like a splash of classical ink painting.
A chilly breeze swept through the forest, and the rustling sound of the bamboo swaying in the breeze was clearer and more desolate than in summer. This added a touch of aloofness and tranquility to this secluded place, making it seem like a place of "great seclusion in the city, aloof and self-possessed."
inside the house.
Xian Zuling sat at the spacious dining table, her body slightly curled up, her head bowed, eating the seafood fried rice on the plate in front of her in small, very serious bites, as if she wanted to savor every grain of rice.
Lately, Ye Fan has been like a precisely wound-up machine, only making brief appearances at school for necessary professional courses.
The remaining time and energy were almost entirely devoted to the frenzied expansion of Minglu Culture and the trivial matters of wrapping up the stock market battle.
And occasionally, he needed to "appease" his mistress—Chen Wanyu—whose life was completely filled, leaving no room for error.
Even though Ye Fan returned to this small courtyard only a handful of times, his visits were as brief as a shooting star streaking across the night sky...
The offering of sacrifices to the ancestral spirits continues unabated, rain or shine.
Every evening, she would appear here on time, and with her hands, which had gradually regained some strength, she would quietly and meticulously prepare a dinner for him that, while not luxurious, was absolutely hot and hearty.
After finishing, she would send Ye Fan a short message on WeChat, as if performing some kind of sacred ritual, usually just a few words: 【Dinner is ready.】
On the other end of the screen, Ye Fan's reply was largely the same, concise and distant: "Busy, you eat first, I won't be back today."
Xian Zuling was extremely obedient, or rather, she had long been used to it.
Whenever she received a message that he wasn't coming back, she would silently put away her phone, sit alone at the empty long dining table that could seat six people, and pick up her pair of chopsticks.
Because of the deep-rooted reverence and appreciation for food in their hearts, and even more so because they couldn't bear to waste the ingredients that Ye Fan had specially ordered to be delivered regularly.
During this period, she has been stubbornly and diligently consuming the amount of food originally prepared for two people every night.
That's why, compared to her pitiful appearance when Ye Fan first met her—"skin and bones"—as if a gust of wind could blow her over, she has recently been nourished little by little by these nutritious foods, showing some changes.
Her body, which was originally as thin as a sheet of paper and almost devoid of curves, has subtly and laboriously gained a trace of the extremely faint roundness and fullness that a young girl should have, although she is still so thin that it is heartbreaking.
However, the severe malnutrition and physical depletion that have lasted for more than a decade cannot be made up for overnight or with a few good meals.
To achieve true health and well-being, she still needs a long period of careful and gradual conditioning.
Even in its current state of slow recovery, the breathtaking beauty that had been buried for so long by the dust of suffering within Xianzuling was beginning to radiate a captivating brilliance, like a rough gem being carved.
If it weren't for her deliberately keeping those thick, overly long bangs that almost covered half her face, completely obscuring her small, pretty face that was gradually regaining some color, and her beautiful eyes that were clean and untouched by dust, yet always carried a hint of timidity.
In addition, she always wore those baggy, old, and ill-fitting clothes, covering herself up completely...
Her figure, which was quietly developing with the help of nutrition and gradually revealing its graceful curves, had probably already alarmed the entire campus, attracting countless prying eyes and disturbances.
It's fine as it is now.
This breathtaking, pure, and fragile beauty seems to belong only in this small world isolated by the bamboo forest.
Only at this moment.
Only Ye Fan, who rarely returns home early and sits directly opposite her, can appreciate this quietly blossoming scenery under the warm yellow light, taking a moment to carefully observe it.
Today, Ye Fan efficiently handled a bunch of trivial matters related to the company's investment progress, declined all unnecessary social engagements in the evening, and unusually returned to this "haven" deep in the bamboo forest just before dusk.
When the key turned and the door was pushed open, Ye Fan appeared in the doorway—Xian Zuling, who was carrying a bowl of soup out of the kitchen, was completely stunned.
A look of disbelief and surprise flashed in her clear, large eyes!
Immediately, the surprise transformed into an almost overflowing, pure and bright joy, like a star suddenly lit up in the night sky.
She clearly hadn't expected that Ye Fan would not only return today, but that she would even skip her usual WeChat message urging him to eat.
Ye Fan was indeed quite hungry after a long day of work.
He took off his coat, washed his hands, sat down, and devoured the sumptuous dinner in front of him with lightning speed yet with undiminished elegance.
Then, he picked up the dendrobium and abalone soup that had been simmering for a long time in the small clay pot beside him, took a few sips, tasted the flavor, and then naturally pushed the remaining half pot of rich and fragrant soup in front of the ancestral spirit.
"Drink all of this. Don't leave any for me." He pulled a tissue to wipe his mouth, his tone indifferent.
"Yes!" Xian Zuling nodded obediently without the slightest hesitation, her voice soft and gentle.
Unlike Ye Fan's decisive and efficient "guzzling".
She picked up her small soup bowl and, like a cat carefully savoring a delicacy, sipped it patiently for a long time.
Only when fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead did he finally scoop up the last bit of golden, rich broth from the casserole and swallow it.
After finishing her drink, she unconsciously stuck out her delicate pink tongue and quickly and gently licked the last trace of freshness from the corner of her lips, revealing a satisfied and relaxed expression as if she had completed a major task.
Having followed Ye Fan for a long time, this girl, whose mind was as pure as a blank sheet of paper, was gradually "cultivated" to develop some adorable "imagination" and "reading comprehension" skills.
This saved Ye Fan a lot of unnecessary talking and explanations.
In the past...
If Ye Fan wanted her to eat something nutritious, he often had to use a combination of persuasion and coercion for a long time.
Finally, she even had to say, "If you don't eat it, I'll just throw it in the trash," before she would finish eating it with tears in her eyes, as if she were being punished, because she cherished it to the core.
And now.
As soon as Ye Fan uttered the words, "Drink the soup, don't save any for me," her mind would automatically and quickly translate and complete the unspoken subtext: "If you don't drink it, I'll immediately pour out this expensive soup and never waste it a second time."