Chapter 17

Ji Qingyu couldn’t believe she had such an illusion. What surprised her even more was that she didn’t mind this kind of intense gaze. From childhood to adulthood, she had always received various kinds of stares, as blatant as they could be. She never got used to it and never would. In high school, she had secretly liked a boy from another class, thinking he was handsome and cool. However, her two-month-long crush ended when his frivolous gaze lingered on her collarbone and chest.

Even in the dark, Feng Chengze’s gaze seemed tangible, inching across her face. It felt like his large hand was touching and caressing her, making her skin itch wherever it passed.

The atmosphere suddenly became silent. Ji Qingyu didn’t dare to move. She felt stiffer than a corpse. She wanted to explain, but her throat seemed blocked, and she couldn’t open her mouth… But then again, this wasn’t entirely her fault, right?

If they had to determine right and wrong, she would only take a third of the blame. Feng Chengze had a lot to answer for, too. If he were completely asleep and unaware, that would be terrifying; who would pull whoever accidentally touched him into his arms? If she hadn’t made that sound, where would his hand have gone? He couldn’t blame her for taking advantage if he had any awareness!

One of Ji Qingyu’s greatest strengths was her ability to adjust her emotions. After quickly sorting through her thoughts, she let go of her mental burden. She soon relaxed her breathing, and the wine she drank before bed took effect. Her eyelids grew heavy, and she fell back into sleep.

Lying beside her, Feng Chengze waited a long time until her breathing became even before he reluctantly sat up. He turned his head and, in the faint moonlight, looked at the sleeping woman. He was a perfectly normal man. Biologically, this meant he desired more, felt more uncomfortable, and found it harder to calm down than she did. She could continue sleeping, but he couldn’t. He took a deep breath, barely suppressing his inner restlessness, and left bed. Leaving the master bedroom, he went to the kitchen, opened the fridge, took out a bottle of water, unscrewed the cap, and drank half of it. Leaning against the kitchen island, his gaze was heavy.
…

Returning to the master bedroom, Feng Chengze had come to some realizations. If Ji Qingyu were not his wife but his girlfriend, perhaps he would have a reason and a stance to resist his body’s habits. After all, if they were just dating and things got awkward or there were no feelings, they could end it anytime. But they were married. He had no interest in being someone’s nominal husband. Returning to bed, he closed his eyes and thought. Ji Qingyu was not a very still sleeper; she had kicked her thin blanket to the floor. He didn’t pick it up for her but instead shared most of his thin blanket, covering her with it.

Some things become easier with practice. At least when Ji Qingyu woke up again and found herself wrapped in Feng Chengze’s blanket, she was much calmer than the day before. Feng Chengze was, too. They were under the same blanket, lying close enough to touch each other with a simple reach. At their current age and maturity, many things didn’t need to be said out loud; they both understood. For example, neither of them mentioned sleeping in separate beds. And also…

When Ji Qingyu got up to wash, she felt like her brain was vibrating along with the electric toothbrush in her mouth. She and Feng Chengze were going to be a real couple. This was an unspoken but mutually understood agreement; otherwise, they would have slept in separate beds the night before last.

“I need to tell you something.” Feng Chengze suddenly appeared at the bathroom door, interrupting her thoughts.

Ji Qingyu was almost startled. She was always very focused when thinking and hadn’t noticed when he arrived at the door or how long he had been standing there.

“You…” As soon as she spoke, the buzzing sound of the electric toothbrush accompanied her voice.

“Sister Liu is on leave today,” Feng Chengze announced this bad news calmly. “She won’t be back until tomorrow evening, and…” He paused for two seconds, “Your father called me. He wants us to take Yuan Bao to your house for dinner.”

Ji Qingyu turned off the toothbrush and rinsed her mouth. She didn’t know which question to ask first, so she chose the one she was more concerned about, “Wait, you said Sister Liu is on leave? What does that mean?”

She had a bad feeling about this…

Feng Chengze glanced at her and explained, “People who work also have days off.”

It sounded strange coming from him, but he quickly got to the point, efficiently assigning tasks: “Sister Sun is preparing breakfast. Yuan Bao is already awake. I’ll brush her teeth and wash her face, and you can change her clothes and do her hair.”

Ji Qingyu: “…”

Got it!
Today is no longer a pain-free day of being a mom!

On days when she doesn’t have to go to school, Feng Jiayuan doesn’t have the enthusiasm to act as a little alarm clock to wake up her parents. She sits on her own little sofa, sometimes reading picture books, sometimes building with blocks, and sometimes playing with toys, having a great time. It wasn’t until Feng Chengze came over that she reluctantly followed him into the bathroom.

Feng Chengze squeezed a bit of toothpaste onto the toothbrush and signaled his daughter to open her mouth. This was his first time brushing a child’s teeth, and even though he tried to be gentle, his lack of experience almost made poor Yuan Bao gag.

The old father was at a loss. His daughter looked at him angrily, wanting to hit him, but in the end, she could only go to her mother to complain with a pitiful expression. Because she was a bit angry, she didn’t want to call him dad, “Mom, someone is being too much!”

Ji Qingyu sympathetically glanced at Feng Chengze coming out of the bathroom, then looked down at her child’s messy hair after a night’s sleep and sighed softly, “Sweetheart, you’ll find out soon that someone else might be even more too much…”

She boldly spoke up. This house really can’t function without Sister Liu.
From the time she woke up until now, which was only about twenty minutes, she had already started missing the patient and super capable Sister Liu. She believed Feng Chengze felt the same way.

Now, it was Feng Chengze who looked sympathetic. At least his task was done, and the rest was up to Ji Qingyu. He said in a low voice, “I’ll go to the dressing room to change.”

“By the way—”

Ji Qingyu called him back, curiously asking, “You said my dad called you earlier. Did you agree?”

Feng Chengze thought about the call with his father-in-law, feeling complicated. In his life, he had been called many things: President Feng, Chengze, Big Brother, Mr. Feng… but no one had ever called him “Little Feng.”

“Could I refuse?” he asked calmly.

Of course not, Ji Qingyu thought. She did love money, but in this world, there were people she loved more than money—her parents. If Feng Chengze couldn’t respect her parents, their relationship wouldn’t have lasted this long.

Why should it?

When Mrs. Feng and Chairman Feng called them to come back for dinner, she accompanied Feng Chengze, even though she was extremely nervous and worried. She didn’t even think of avoiding it. Now, when her parents wanted them to come home for dinner, he would refuse? If he couldn’t fulfill such a simple request, then anyone who wanted to be Mrs. Feng could take the role; she wouldn’t care anymore. Her father, Master Ji, was seen by many as not a very masculine man. He had no strong opinions or decisiveness, but all the younger ones liked him because he was easygoing and had a good temper. Only those very close to him knew that, in modern terms, Master Ji was a bit socially anxious. Except for his wife and daughter, he needed to mentally prepare himself before making or answering calls with his relatives.

She didn’t know how Master Ji and Feng Chengze, this father-in-law and son-in-law, had gotten along over the past five years, but if Feng Chengze had refused him on the phone, she thought Master Ji would definitely be disappointed. She was also puzzled why Master Ji didn’t call her. After brushing her teeth and washing her face, she checked her phone. It was indeed her fault; her phone was set to Do Not Disturb mode from 10 PM to 9 AM.

“My parents are really good people.”

If she and Feng Chengze were a loving couple, she would put her hands on her hips and remind him, “No way! Don’t even think about it!”

But considering their current situation, where neither “loving couple” nor “real couple” applied, she could only say tactfully, “They are not the kind of elders who would make things difficult for others.”

Feng Chengze naturally understood her implication and nodded, “I know.”

He wasn’t arrogant enough to demand Ji Qingyu’s unconditional cooperation while ignoring her family and their feelings. He wanted her to continue being his wife, so he had to show absolute sincerity in being her husband. Especially when they both understood the unspoken agreement and that their relationship was still ongoing.

Ji Qingyu carefully observed his expression, making sure he genuinely understood and wasn’t just being perfunctory. She didn’t hold back her smile, saying warmly, “My dad doesn’t usually call people first. He must really like you and consider you one of his own.”

“Even family shouldn’t be late,” Feng Chengze calmly glanced at her. “We agreed to be there by eleven. Hurry up, and don’t dawdle.”

“…?” Ji Qingyu was stunned.

Feng Chengze had already calmly walked towards the master bedroom, leaving her with only his back.
…

Today, Feng Jiayuan was very unhappy with her hairstyle. Usually, the skillful Sister Liu would braid her hair into various beautiful styles, rarely repeating the same one. This was a big challenge for Ji Qingyu, who had only been a new mom for a few days. She had watched several braiding videos, but while her mind understood, her hands didn’t cooperate, causing the usually well-behaved Feng Jiayuan to be filled with resentment as she sat on her little sofa.

“Mommy!!” She screamed, covering her scalp, “It hurts so much!!”

What on earth is going on?!
Dad brushing her teeth almost made her throw up, and now Mom is pulling out several strands of her hair while tying it up.

Ji Qingyu was at her wit’s end and didn’t want to bother Sister Sun, who was busy. As for changing clothes, she couldn’t count on Feng Chengze, who was leisurely putting on his watch nearby. Yuan Bao’s head might go bald if she let him do it.

“Just tie it up casually.” Feng Chengze said in a low voice.

Ji Qingyu also wanted to do it casually, but she found that tying a child’s hair “casually” was not that simple.

Feng Jiayuan, with her sharp ears, heard her dad’s words, glared angrily, and stomped her feet, “How can you do it casually? No casual!”

In the end, Ji Qingyu used all her strength to tie two braids for Feng Jiayuan, but one was high, and the other was low, not symmetrical.

Feng Chengze looked like he wanted to say something but stopped, glancing at Ji Qingyu, who was relieved after completing the task and almost collapsed on the sofa, perfectly embodying the phrase “silence is golden.”

Forget it.
Just tie it up casually.
Don’t make it hard for the adults.

Feng Jiayuan almost burst into tears, feeling ugly today. For the first time, she sadly realized that Saturdays weren’t that happy. Brushing teeth wasn’t fun, and neither was tying hair.

After breakfast, the family of three went out. Before leaving, Ji Qingyu sneakily went back to the master bedroom. She couldn’t wait to take out the car key from her bag when she got to the basement. After unlocking it, the front and rear lights of a Porsche she found dreamy and cute yesterday started flashing. The color was her favorite ice-berry pink. She quickly ran to the car, opened the door, and was immediately struck by the car decorations inside.

However… although she now had her own car, she didn’t dare to drive alone.

Feng Jiayuan, carrying a small bag and wearing sunglasses, proudly walked over and tilted her head, asking, “Is Mom driving today? Are we taking Mom’s car to Grandma’s house?”

“…No.” Ji Qingyu shook her head, “Mom is just taking something. Dad is still driving today.”

Feng Jiayuan: “Oh!”

Ji Qingyu closed the car door, reluctantly looked back twice, and entered the black Bentley parked beside it.

When Feng Chengze started the engine, his gaze unintentionally fell on Ji Qingyu in the passenger seat. Seeing her still looking at the car, which he found too flashy, he pondered for a moment and asked, “Do you want to drive your car today?”

Ji Qingyu instinctively looked back at the chubby little girl strapped in the safety seat.

The next second.

The child, as if someone had pressed a switch, cleverly covered her eyes.

Ji Qingyu couldn’t help but laugh and had to mouth to Feng Chengze again, “I can’t drive.”

Feng Chengze didn’t want to play silly lip-reading and directly asked in a deep voice, “No license?”

“I have one.” Ji Qingyu replied, “But I can’t drive.”

Feng Chengze understood, “Want to learn?”

Learning to drive isn’t about going back to driving school and enduring hardships again; it’s about mastering the steering wheel and hitting the road. Clearly, she could drive five years later, but now she suddenly can’t. Who can she ask for help? It’s not impossible to hire someone to sit in the passenger seat and guide her, but with her cautious nature, she’s probably hesitant, afraid of being found out.

Ji Qingyu hesitated and nodded. “Okay.”

Feng Chengze mentally reviewed his recent schedule. He had no time during the day, but maybe he could spare an hour or two at night to help her get familiar with the road. No one would question what the couple did after their child fell asleep. “I’ll take you tonight.”

Ji Qingyu looked at him with surprise and joy, “Really, really?”

“Yes.” Seeing her so happy, Feng Chengze swallowed the words, “I won’t be free every night.” Instead, a faint smile appeared on his face, and he noticed her excited expression.