Su Qingran always believed that Alpha was a principled Labrador. At least the last time she saw her neighbor teasing it with a hot dog, it had remained unfazed.

But now, as it munched on Pei Jingyan’s beef jerky, it looked completely satisfied. After finishing one piece, it went back to Pei Jingyan, sniffing and rubbing against his pants, acting all cute and cuddly.

Su Qingran wasn’t sure if Pei Jingyan had fed Alpha before or if it was simply its natural inclination to be affectionate when food was involved, but the scene felt inexplicably warm and different from Pei Jingyan’s usual cold demeanor.

“Do you want to feed it?” Pei Jingyan asked.

Su Qingran snapped back to reality, thought for a moment, and nodded. “Sure, thank you.”

With that, she took a piece of jerky from Pei Jingyan’s hand.

Alpha immediately jumped into her arms and snatched the piece of beef jerky.

“It should be thanking you,” Pei Jingyan said.

Su Qingran realized he was responding to her earlier “thank you” and couldn’t help but smile slightly. “Well, I should thank you, too. I forgot to bring it food today, and I was worried about it.”

The girl’s smile was light and different from the previous distant formalities, her eyes catching the scattered sunlight.

Pei Jingyan looked away, giving a faint “mm” in response.

The two fell silent again, with only the sound of Alpha happily chewing the beef jerky.

As the silence stretched on, the unfamiliar pressure emanating from the man beside her became more pronounced, making Su Qingran feel uneasy.

Remembering something, she decided to break the silence. “By the way, Mr. Pei, I’ve started shaping your bracelet. I’ll continue working on it tonight and will deliver it on time.”

Pei Jingyan clearly sensed Su Qingran’s discomfort. He stood up, increasing the distance between them, and said, “Okay, no need to rush.”

He could actually wait, even for a long time if necessary.

The topic seemed to stall again. Noticing that Pei Jingyan didn’t leave, Su Qingran wasn’t sure what else to say and wouldn’t dare to probe into his current relationship with the Jiang family.

So, she could only reach out to Pei Jingyan again for more beef jerky. They stood there, one handing over jerky and the other feeding the Labrador, maintaining an oddly balanced atmosphere.

Meanwhile, Jiang Chenlin emerged from the villa looking for Su Qingran, and what he saw was this scene.

The man, usually aloof and indifferent, held a bag of beef jerky that seemed completely out of character for him, quietly observing the girl feeding the Labrador.

The girl looked small crouching down, with sunlight filtering through the grapevines and casting dappled shadows across her clean face.

Alpha was happily wagging its tail at both the girl and the man.

The scene was serene and heartwarming.

Jiang Chenlin’s pupils constricted, and his breath tightened for a moment. Almost without thinking, he quickly walked over.

He didn’t know what he was being protective against. There was clearly still some distance between Pei Jingyan and Su Qingran, and he had already made plans for the engagement banquet. Yet—

At this moment, everything seemed intolerable.

His heart felt as if it were being torn apart by some force, deliberately trying to ignore the future. No matter that there were only sixteen days left, he wanted to possess every moment of those days completely.

No one else could meddle.

“Xiaoran.” Jiang Chenlin reached Su Qingran’s side, and Alpha immediately leaped at his feet.

However, he ignored Alpha’s enthusiasm and directly took Su Qingran’s hand.

“What’s wrong?” Su Qingran asked, puzzled, as Jiang Chenlin pulled her up.

“Alpha is too fat. How can it still want to eat meat?” Jiang Chenlin quickly said. “Forget about it; let’s head back to the living room. You’re not wearing your jacket; don’t catch a cold.”

“Oh.” Su Qingran still held half a piece of jerky and looked down at Alpha, confused. “Where is it fat? I think it looks fine.”

But Jiang Chenlin didn’t allow her to argue, pulling her toward the villa.

With no choice, Su Qingran tossed the remaining piece of jerky to Alpha.

She then lifted her gaze, looking at the man who stood there motionless.

Pei Jingyan’s face showed little expression; his deep-set eyes resembled a starless night. He stood tall and elegant beneath the towering grape trellis, his features striking yet firm.

For some reason, Su Qingran thought again about every stroke she had carved herself.

There was an indescribable feeling of desolation and struggle.

“Xiaoran, don’t look at others; look at me.” Beside her, Jiang Chenlin seemed quite displeased with her turning to look at Pei Jingyan, his tone taking on a playful, spoiled air. “When you look at others, I feel so jealous.”

Su Qingran couldn’t help but chuckle but still nodded politely to Pei Jingyan. She then said to Jiang Chenlin, “We should greet your brother; it’s rude to just walk in like this.”

“I don’t want to be polite,” Jiang Chenlin replied, deliberately acting spoiled. “I only want you.”

Su Qingran squinted at him playfully. “Jiang Chenlin, you’ve been acting a bit strange these past few days.”

Jiang Chenlin suddenly looked taken aback, his voice slightly hoarse. “What’s strange about me?”

Seeing him flustered made Su Qingran laugh. “You can’t be having pre-wedding jitters, right? We’re just engaged; why are you so nervous?”

Jiang Chenlin managed a smile. “Maybe I’m just too excited.”

After saying that, he felt a metallic taste rising in his throat.

Something was boiling and clamoring in his blood, yet he maintained a gentle and affectionate smile, walking into the villa with Su Qingran.

“Xiaoran just went to see Uncle’s grape trellis, right?” Wen Yue said with a smile. “When you and Chenlin get married, Uncle will help you decorate the garden.”

Jiang Zhuo teased from the side, “You might as well just become a gardener.”

Wen Yue nodded. “Yeah, just make sure to pay me when the time comes.”

With that, he stood up. “I’m going to cook. Xiaoran, make sure to enjoy Uncle’s cooking, and Chenlin, you’d better learn how to take care of your wife in the future!”

“Sure, I’ll help,” Jiang Chenlin said, rolling up his sleeves.

As they spoke, Pei Jingyan walked in from outside.

“Jingyan, stay for dinner today. Uncle is going to cook. Do you have any food restrictions?” Wen Yue asked casually.

Pei Jingyan replied, “I came back to grab my jacket; I won’t be eating today. I have a meeting tonight.”