Chapter 12: You, I, Where Haven’t I Seen You?

Jian Ruo Ci stood in front of Pei Yan Zhou, a faint smile playing on her lips. “Mr. Pei, you’re generous.”

“But I won’t eat the carp. I’m afraid of bad luck.”

Pei Yan Zhou twitched his lips, then immediately retracted them. Jian Ruo Ci caught it and said with a smile, “You have such good looks. You should smile more. You look scary with a straight face.”

Pei Yan Zhou’s face stiffened for a moment, his deep eyes fixed on her. He asked, “Are you afraid?”

“No.”

Jian Ruo Ci didn’t hesitate for a second. Her answer was lighthearted. “You haven’t hurt me, why should I be afraid of you?”

Even if he was a bad guy, even if he killed and set fires, as long as he didn’t hurt her, she wouldn’t be afraid.

Hearing her words, a complex expression appeared in Pei Yan Zhou’s dark eyes.

Her words brought back memories of his childhood.

Back then, there was a little girl who wasn’t doing very well, but she said with a smile, “You’re so handsome. You should smile more. You look scary with a straight face.”

His younger self asked the little girl with bright eyes and pearly white teeth if she was afraid.

The little girl shook her head earnestly, her voice childish. “No, you haven’t hurt me, why should I be afraid of you?”

Seeing Pei Yan Zhou lost in thought, she didn’t say anything else. Suddenly, she felt a warmth on her wrist. She looked down and saw Pei Yan Zhou grabbing her wrist, leading her towards the house.

She followed beside Pei Yan Zhou. He was very tall, probably over six feet. She reached his shoulder, a head shorter than him.

She could clearly feel the warmth of his palm, her heart racing. She panicked. “Pei Yan Zhou!”

“Wash your hands.”

Pei Yan Zhou: “You just touched the fish.”

It was rare for him to explain. Jian Ruo Ci lowered her head and looked at her hands, which were sticky.

She stammered. “That… men and women should not touch each other. I’ll go by myself.”

The person beside her chuckled, his voice low and magnetic. He stopped and looked at her with a playful smile. “Men and women should not touch each other?”

He looked her up and down with a meaningful gaze, his eyes finally stopping at the spot below her collarbone. “You, I, where haven’t I seen you?”

Jian Ruo Ci: “…”

She abruptly shook off Pei Yan Zhou’s hand, crossed her arms, and said angrily, “Pei Yan Zhou! You’re a pervert!”

Her cheeks instantly flushed. Why was he bringing this up again? What she said and did when she was drunk and unconscious didn’t count.

Pei Yan Zhou’s gaze didn’t shift because of her anger. She was so embarrassed and angry that she was being stared at.

“Pei Yan Zhou!”

“Yes?”

Jian Ruo Ci glared at him. “Can we just forget about this? You know I was drunk.”

“Hmm?” Pei Yan Zhou: “Not really.”

“Men who take advantage of drunk women go to jail. Why won’t Miss Jian take responsibility when the genders are reversed?”

Jian Ruo Ci: “…”

She closed her eyes, pursed her lips, and suppressed her anger. She kept telling herself not to be angry. She was the one who got drunk, she was the one who flirted with him. She was in the wrong, she couldn’t be unreasonable. She had to reason with him.

When she opened her eyes again, the anger on her face had disappeared, replaced by a look of pitiful innocence. Her eyes were moist as she looked at Pei Yan Zhou. “Pei Gege, that night, I was dumped by my boyfriend. It’s a painful memory that I don’t want to recall.”

“I’m sorry for flirting with you.”

“I hope we can forget about this. Let’s forget about the unpleasant memories.”

As she spoke, her eyes turned red. She sniffed, her acting skills were so good that anyone else would have believed her.

“No.” Pei Yan Zhou: “I’m the victim.”

“…”

Good heavens, this man was impervious to reason. So difficult to deal with.

“Pei Yan Zhou, I was the one who lost out that night. I gave you my first kiss, and also…” She found it difficult to say, but she still stammered out the words.

“You also saw everything…”

“You took me to a hotel when I was drunk. I can assume you had ulterior motives.”

“So, if you bring this up again, I’ll make you responsible.” She analyzed the pros and cons for Pei Yan Zhou.

“My family is not good, and I’m unemployed. My ex-boyfriend isn’t even worthy of carrying your shoes. He didn’t even like me, which proves that I’m not good in any way. I know my limitations. I’m not worthy of you.”

“Besides, I have a younger brother. I’m a brother-obsessed person. If I make you responsible for me, you’ll have to support me and my brother. It’s not worth it. I don’t want to be a burden on you. Let’s just forget about this.”

“If you bring this up again, I’ll make you responsible. You have power, influence, and good looks. I won’t be at a loss anyway.”

Since he was impervious to reason, she would resort to threats. People like her, with complicated family backgrounds, were avoided by others.

She raised an eyebrow and looked at him. “Does that make sense?”

“As a capitalist, you’re best at weighing the pros and cons. So, I believe you can make the right choice. A man as outstanding as you should find a girl from a similar background.”

Jian Ruo Ci threatened him while flattering him. She just wanted to forget about this matter as soon as possible. She didn’t want to bring up this black history again.

“Your analysis makes sense.” Pei Yan Zhou said.

“It makes sense, right? So, let’s just forget about this.” It was worth all the effort she put into it.

Pei Yan Zhou said calmly, “So, I’ve decided to take responsibility for you.”

“…” Jian Ruo Ci: “You…”

He was crazy. And seriously crazy. He must have been kicked by a donkey, caught in a door, or hit by a durian to say something like that.

She was so angry at Pei Yan Zhou that she almost vomited blood. This was the most difficult man she had ever encountered.

Pei Yan Zhou smiled. “Then you take responsibility for me.”

“…”

Who could save her? She desperately needed a bottle of heart medicine.

She lowered her head and looked at her dirty hands, then at Pei Yan Zhou’s clothes. A mischievous smile curved her lips.

If that’s the case, then don’t blame her for being impolite.

She looked at the open black openwork gate. After doing something bad, she ran towards the gate. The plan was perfect.

The little devil in her heart was stirring. She reached out towards Pei Yan Zhou’s clothes.

“Two hundred thousand.” Pei Yan Zhou’s gaze fell on her outstretched hand. “This suit is two hundred thousand.”

Just as she was about to touch his clothes, Jian Ruo Ci quickly stopped her hand and retracted it.

Fine, she lost. She didn’t lose to him, she lost to Chairman Mao. It’s not shameful for people to bow to money.

The negotiation ultimately failed. Pei Yan Zhou didn’t bring up the matter again.

After she washed her hands, Pei Yan Zhou took her on a tour. As long as she didn’t mention that night, she could still talk to him calmly.

She didn’t expect the villa to be even bigger than she had seen. Apart from the front yard, there was a garden in front of the back yard, with green lawns, wooden fences, a pebble path, and a wall covered with red roses in one corner of the garden. Next to the garden was a fountain.

There were all kinds of expensive flowers in the garden. It was April, and most of the flowers were already in bloom.

On the left was an indoor swimming pool, with three transparent sides. There were green plants, lounge chairs, tables, and sofas between several red pillars. The indoor swimming pool was decorated in red tones, simple and fresh.

On the right was a greenhouse, with a piano inside.

Walking to the greenhouse, she stared at the piano inside for a long time.

Pei Yan Zhou’s voice came from behind her. “Can you play?”

“A little.”

“Then go try it?”

Jian Ruo Ci: “No, I haven’t touched it in a long time.”

After she cheated for Jian Ying in the piano competition, she never touched the piano again.

By now, the sun had already set. She had been here for a long time. It was time to go home. She said, “Pei Yan Zhou, I’m going home. Thank you for taking me to the hospital that day, and thank you for asking Qingyun to help me with my medicine.”

It warmed her cold heart a little.

She was about to leave when Pei Yan Zhou grabbed her wrist. “Stay for dinner.”

He paused and then said, “If you want to thank me.”