Pei Xingyan silently lowered her leg to the ground, then, with an awkward smile, suggested he go buy some drinks.
Ye Zaiwei’s small face instantly crumpled. She let out a faint sigh, pondering which of her gestures had lacked sufficient allure to leave Pei Xingyan so utterly unmoved.
She considered herself quite beautiful, yet Pei Xingyan consistently failed to regard her with a worldly gaze. Lacking any innate talent for enticement, and further constrained by her current body, she found herself unable to pose provocatively, leaving her with no option but to crudely unveil herself to him.
Still, he remained utterly impervious; could it be that merely exposing a sliver of her calf was insufficiently revealing?
Profoundly distressed, she knew she couldn’t simply lay hands on him, much less resort to drugging him to achieve her aims; such an act would undoubtedly backfire.
Ye Zaiwei was utterly devoid of inspiration, still unable to discern precisely which physical features captivated Pei Xingyan.
From this perspective, he appeared to be neither a leg nor a foot fetishist.
Yet, it was equally plausible that he was merely suppressing himself; his breathing had manifested as a subtle constraint, and his eyes flickered restlessly.
Perhaps today’s ensemble was too unadorned. Next time, she would try wearing socks, but she contemplated whether cotton socks or silk stockings would be more effective.
As she pondered this, Pei Xingyan returned, carrying two cups of bubble tea.
“Here.” He inserted a straw into one of the cups and offered it to her. “I heard this place is quite unique. What do you think of it?”
Ye Zaiwei smiled sweetly, accepting the bubble tea and taking a generous gulp. The drink was cloyingly sweet, but the chill from the ice cubes effectively tempered that richness.
Sweet things were a potent weapon against humans (TL Note: A gaming term for something super effective), and most people invariably found joy in them.
Moreover, as it was a gift from the person she cherished most, her happiness intensified.
Sipping contentedly through the straw, Ye Zaiwei swayed her head in sheer delight.
Yet, a question abruptly surfaced in her mind.
Pei Xingyan disliked sweet things; how then would he know of such a specific combination?
Moreover, he never idly frequented bubble tea shops, so what prompted him to suggest meeting her in a place like this?
In an instant, Ye Zaiwei swiftly deduced that something was amiss: her Xingyan-gege now had someone else by his side, specifically a girl—a girl with a penchant for bubble tea.
She lifted her head, all traces of her earlier gentleness and sweetness having vanished entirely.
She began to suspect that these very preferences had been instilled in him by some vile hussy.
This was a defilement, tainting the perceptions of her beloved. How could he possibly indulge in sharing preferences with another woman?
Ye Zaiwei gently set the cup on the table, then pushed it away from her.
“What’s wrong? Is it not good?” Pei Xingyan inquired, blinking, having only registered a subtle shift in the atmosphere.
“Xingyan-gege, it’s simply delicious~” she chirped, tilting her head and smiling.
“That’s good, then. I was worried it wouldn’t be to your taste,” Pei Xingyan said. “You really should eat more often; your body needs ample energy to recover.”
“Okay~” Ye Zaiwei replied, imperceptibly shifting her body to sit beside him, effectively barring his path. Her countenance fell as she suddenly inquired, “Then, Xingyan-gege, could you tell Weiwei who taught you this?”
Pei Xingyan instantly felt as though a million barrels were aimed at his head, the peril of the moment causing every hair on his body to bristle.
“D-does this really need someone to teach it?” He knew his smile was incredibly strained, yet he desperately managed to force the expression. “I just heard about it from my roommate a while ago,” he explained. “Why are you so curious about this?”
“Nothing much, it just feels a bit strange,” she replied. “Xingyan-gege, you’ve never liked sweet things, so how could you order something so cloyingly sweet? And to even think of coming to a place like this—it’s quite peculiar, wouldn’t you agree?”
Ye Zaiwei leaned her head forward, her gaze drawing ever closer to his eyes.
“What’s strange about it? It’s perfectly normal, isn’t it?” Pei Xingyan stammered, his heart thrumming like a drum. “I merely grew curious after hearing my friends talk about it.” He truly couldn’t fathom how Ye Zaiwei’s intuition could be so uncannily acute.
Perhaps the recent tranquility of his days had lulled him into complacency, for his guard had indeed considerably slackened.
Yet, even now, he couldn’t help but harbor another perplexing question: this was clearly something Shen Zhishu had taught him, so why had he instinctively denied it?
He and she, after all, seemed to have no real connection whatsoever…
“Really?” Ye Zaiwei asked, advancing with narrowed eyes. She had effectively cornered Pei Xingyan, like a predator driving its prey into a dead end.
“Truly.”
Pei Xingyan nodded emphatically, though a maelstrom of panic churned within him. As long as he denied it, however, Ye Zaiwei would be left with nothing more than a fleeting suspicion.
Ye Zaiwei stared at him ominously, then insinuated herself even closer, scrutinizing him with her nose, her thoroughness surpassing the keenness of a narcotics dog.
“Why is there a woman’s scent?” she suddenly demanded, lifting her head. Her eyes had become vacant and unsettling, as if ebon liquid were oozing forth from them.
Pei Xingyan felt his mind was on the verge of combustion. He desperately cast his mind back, only then remembering the incident earlier in the office, when Shen Zhishu had pressed her hand against him.
‘No, could such a fleeting contact truly leave a scent?’
He didn’t know whether to lament Shen Zhishu’s excessively strong perfume or Ye Zaiwei’s nose, which seemed uncannily sharper than a dog’s.
Ye Zaiwei insinuated herself ever closer, muttering incoherent murmurs under her breath. Though her tone held no discernible fierceness, it nonetheless instilled a profound dread. “Xingyan-gege, Weiwei is so worried about you~” she cooed. “There aren’t just one or two bad women in society these days, are there? Weiwei doesn’t want you to be deceived… Please, stay far away from such bad women, alright?”
“W-what woman?” He could only adamantly continue, firmly adhering to his denial. “I know nothing about any woman. Are you perhaps mistaken about the scent?”
Ye Zaiwei silently shook her head, advancing with a slow, measured, almost mechanical gait, like a walking corpse.
“Which bad woman is it? Will you tell Weiwei?” she pressed, disregarding his evasions, her voice a flat monotone. “If someone is clinging to you, Weiwei will help you get rid of her.”
‘This was practically a declaration of criminal intent, wasn’t it?!’
At that moment, Pei Xingyan dared not utter a single woman’s name, desperately shaking his head instead.
‘Truly, serious trouble would ensue.’
Ye Zaiwei encroached further, completely monopolizing all the space before him.
“It’s true, don’t you believe me?” Pei Xingyan persisted stubbornly, maintaining his unwavering denial.
Ye Zaiwei merely offered an empty smile, and just as Pei Xingyan persisted in his denials, she continued to press inexorably forward.
Suddenly, something jolted against her. Looking down, she was momentarily stunned.
A sinking feeling gripped Pei Xingyan as he silently chided himself for being an absolute idiot.
He had completely forgotten that the small golden bean Su Shanshan had given him was still tied to his wrist.
“What… is this?” Ye Zaiwei asked, her lips curving into a peculiar smile as she gently cupped his hand.
A lustrous, round golden bean was tied to a vibrant red string, the pure gold radiating an exquisite gleam—a thing of beauty and immense value.
Yet, in that moment, it appeared menacingly dreadful, shimmering with a brilliance that portended a deathly peril.