Chapter 21

Chapter 21 Rose x Kiss

For a moment—Ji Mingzhu almost thought she was seeing things.

But after confirming several times, the pattern and color printed on the outer packaging of the medicine were indeed that familiar one.

Thinking of this, she unconsciously looked toward the side of the corridor, at her own bedroom door.

There was nothing unusual. It was tightly concealed, just as it had been when she left, not looking like it had been pried into or peeked at.

But if there were no traces, then when she did “this and that” with that chicken every day, had Jiang Ji actually… seen it?

Even if she didn’t know by what means he had seen it, at the very beginning, that chicken hadn’t even been bought out of liking. In other words, it came through other means.

—She had simply noticed it while moving luggage. For some reason, she felt that chicken was him.

Ji Mingzhu thought left and right for a while and concluded Jiang Ji probably wasn’t that all-powerful.

He was a big man—his thoughts shouldn’t be so winding and delicate, right?

Ji Mingzhu lowered her head and looked at the medicine in her hand.

The one Jiang Ji specially bought for her was compact and miniature. Although the packaging style looked refreshed, perhaps to suit girls’ preferences, it had shrunk a size.

Not to mention the way Jiang Ji handed her that pink bag earlier.

Did he personally go buy it?

Ji Mingzhu hadn’t wanted to apply medicine before for reasons. First, the smell was strong, lingering all night, filling the bedding with a slightly bitter scent. Second, she felt she had no external wounds, no broken skin—applying it seemed pointless.

Perhaps Jiang Ji thought she didn’t want to apply it because she found the medicine ugly?

She wasn’t in pain, but—

Holding that thing, Ji Mingzhu felt unusually troubled.

While she was lost in thought, Jiang Ji had already changed into home clothes and slowly walked over from the corridor.

He went to the counter, took a glass jar of iced water from the double-door refrigerator, poured himself a cup, and drank unhurriedly, his long, distinct fingers holding it.

From the moment Jiang Ji came out of his room, Ji Mingzhu’s gaze had locked onto him like a rope.

This gaze was like radar—very obvious, impossible to ignore.

Jiang Ji leaned lazily against the counter, lowered his eyes at her, and said slowly, “I told you before, apply the medicine three times a day.”

She wasn’t asking about this. Ji Mingzhu was just watching his elegant drinking posture and suddenly realized she hadn’t touched alcohol for a long time.

The last time seemed to be at the Song family’s full-moon banquet.

Once the thought crossed her mind, it gradually took shape.

“…I know that.” Ji Mingzhu hesitated. “But if I apply it now, there’ll definitely be some smell. Wouldn’t you mind when we eat later?”

The medicine smelled strong; eating with it might dampen the mood.

“No.” Jiang Ji answered decisively.

After drinking water, he stood there like a pillar, watching her like a supervisor until she finished applying the medicine. Only then did he roll up his sleeves and tidy up a bit.

Ji Mingzhu imitated Jiang Ji’s technique from that night and handled it herself.

There’s a saying—do it yourself and you’ll have plenty. After a few tries, she found it quite smooth.

After she put away the light-yellow packaged medicine, she looked toward the counter.

Jiang Ji’s figure was lean, back facing her, busy with something.

Ji Mingzhu slowly stood up and, in a somewhat sneaky manner she herself didn’t understand, lifted her leg and walked toward the opposite direction of the counter.

In the small corner next to the kitchen, there was a separately partitioned room.

It was opposite the storage room at the end of the corridor in the overall layout.

Except one was used for storage and miscellaneous items, while the other served as a small wine cellar for various treasured wines.

The wine cellar had racks on three sides. Ji Mingzhu casually picked a brand she liked and took it toward the bar.

No other reason—the wine glasses were over there.

But before Ji Mingzhu could grab the opener, Jiang Ji somehow appeared, directly standing in front of her.

The shadow cast before her couldn’t be ignored. Ji Mingzhu frowned slightly. Though silent, her expression carried a question.

Jiang Ji said nothing. He simply covered the back of her hand lightly with his, stopping her next move.

“You’re drinking after using medicine? Who taught you that?”

The kitchen near the counter was semi-open. Jiang Ji had been standing at the corner; when he looked up, he saw Ji Mingzhu’s back entering the wine cellar.

“Jiang Ji.” Ji Mingzhu called him. “I can walk, move, and even jump. Having a little drink is fine, right?”

His obstruction made her start wondering whether she had suffered some serious internal injury and that drinking might destabilize her blood pressure and send her straight to the hospital.

But she hadn’t.

Thinking of this, Ji Mingzhu got more spirited. “What, should I do a split right now for President Jiang to see? My leg is really fine. I’m innocent. I didn’t exaggerate my injury.”

She felt that spraying the medicine just now already counted as compromise.

All because of that cute packaging.

She didn’t expect Jiang Ji to impose this cold restriction. If this continued, how would she survive at Baiyue?

Hearing this, Jiang Ji withdrew the hand covering hers and tapped lightly on the back of her hand. “In a few days. No rush now.”

Ji Mingzhu stared at him, not realizing her lips were already pouting.

It was an unconscious little gesture.

Seeing her like this, Jiang Ji said, “If you don’t want to listen to me, that’s fine.”

Ji Mingzhu’s eyes suddenly lit up.

Jiang Ji looked at her and said unhurriedly, “I’ll wake tomi later.”

A fatal move—Ji Mingzhu fell silent.

Aside from the fear of being controlled by tomi, her senses were filled more by him.

When Jiang Ji said that last sentence, there seemed to be a hint of a smile in his eyes.

…

Thinking of the little robot, Ji Mingzhu didn’t care about the red wine anymore. She set it aside and walked straight into the kitchen.

“Jiang Ji, that little robot seems to only listen to you. Do you have an ‘absolute obedience’ mode? I also want to play with it.”

And… incidentally play with Jiang Ji as well.

“Absolute obedience?” Jiang Ji seemed to hear such a fresh term for the first time. He thought for a moment, then shook his head.

“I mean a mode where it only obeys me.” Ji Mingzhu crossed her arms and leaned lazily against the counter, legs casually placed, eyelids slightly raised, staring at his profile.

Jiang Ji gave her a meaningful glance, then lowered his eyes halfway.

“What do you want to eat tonight?”

Jiang Ji didn’t answer her. He suddenly changed the topic and began efficiently preparing ingredients.

Seeing this, Ji Mingzhu immediately abandoned her grand plan about tomi and became interested in food. “I want… tomato braised beef brisket. I like it sweeter, add more sugar. Can you do that?”

She asked this because she felt Jiang Ji’s taste was similar to hers.

When they were children, Jiang Ji came to her house to play. He had a cold handsome face, frowning, not liking to talk.

Ji Mingzhu casually gave him a few pieces of candy, and Jiang Ji accepted them properly.

While the adults chatted loudly about business in the reception room, the two children sat on the sofa in the front hall, silently eating candy.

—The memory ended there.

Jiang Ji heard Ji Mingzhu’s words and only paused slightly, quickly returning to his expressionless state, then nodded and responded faintly.

…

While Jiang Ji was busy in the kitchen, Ji Mingzhu was in the living room fiddling with equipment connecting the TV and camera.

She didn’t deliberately hide her video recording from anyone; others only understood the surface and didn’t know the inside details, nor what she was filming for.

The only one who likely knew the specifics was Ji Shaoyan.

Jiang Ji finished quickly.

Ji Mingzhu hadn’t known before that such a noble young master could cook, but on Jiang Ji, it didn’t seem hard to understand.

His cold, distant profile and the warm glow of the kitchen lights formed a strange harmony.

Jiang Ji made five dishes in total, plus one soup.

Each dish was related to sugar—sweet-and-sour, caramelized, braised with sugar, mixed with sugar.

When Ji Mingzhu came over from the living room and saw them, the corners of her mouth almost rose wildly in delight.

The mighty head of Jiang Corporation not only became free labor for her, but the dishes he made were all excellent in color, aroma, and taste.

As if giving an extra reward, Ji Mingzhu patted his shoulder. “You’ve got quite a variety, Young Master Jiang.”

For some reason, she felt that Jiang Ji looked especially pleasing today.

During dinner, Jiang Ji didn’t seem very hungry. After a few quick bites, he set down his chopsticks and spoke first.

“This weekend, Uncle Ji arranged a trip for the two of us.”

“…Huh?” Ji Mingzhu looked up. “Why didn’t I know about this?”

Who could tell her why the first-hand news, bypassing her dear father, came from Jiang Ji instead?!

“Jiang Corporation invested there. He asked me to drive over, and mentioned it in passing.”

Hearing this, Ji Mingzhu understood somewhat. “Just the two of us?”

“Mm.” Jiang Ji leaned back against the chair. “I looked roughly. The scenery there is nice—a private hot spring winery, and you can ski.”

Ji Mingzhu felt tempted. She had been stuck at home for a long time and was itching to go out.

Today she had gone to the north of the city, but because of certain irresistible factors, it ended abruptly.

Speaking of that interruption, the culprit might still be Jiang Ji.

She suddenly looked at him.

Jiang Ji noticed her gaze, glanced over casually, and added, “There’s a base for small helicopters. VIP access lets you choose models with a panoramic view.”

It had to be said, Ji Shaoyan’s arrangement really hit Ji Mingzhu’s soft spot.

Hot springs, skiing, and overlooking the bay by helicopter—these were all her favorite activities during leisure time in Australia.

And from Jiang Ji’s description, if she could choose a panoramic type, she could also record videos.

Thinking of this, Ji Mingzhu murmured, “I wonder if I can have fun to my heart’s content this time.”

After muttering, suppressing her desire to go, she looked at him and finally asked her question. “But you seem very busy lately. Do you have the time?”

Jiang Ji raised his head. “Didn’t you say you wanted to have fun?”

“Of course I do.”

Author’s Note:

[Mini Theater]:

Discussing someone having many tricks—

Chicken: I have the right to speak.

Piggy: Curling in the quilt, humming [hoarse voice]

There’s another update, no need to wait—read it when you wake up early~ Seeing how hard Baldy is working, leave more comments. Twenty-five words gets a red packet!

Thanks to the little angels who irrigated nutrient solution: Wang Shu 10 bottles; Wu Yueyue, Chengcheng’s Sauce w 5 bottles; Luo Xi Ah- 4 bottles; Wutong Qiao Tree 3 bottles; 38715805, Zui, Jingjingjingjing, Magical Girl biubiubiu 1 bottle.