Rebirth: Pampered by My Children and Husband-Chapter 318 - Painful Past (25)

Chapter 318: Chapter 318 Painful Past (25)

Chapter 318: Chapter 318 Painful Past (25)

After that bout of fever, Ji Zeqiu got to know Wen Li. They exchanged contact information and occasionally would even arrange to meet up.

“This is a gift for you, see if you like it?” Ji Zeqiu handed her the large gift box he was holding.

Wen Li opened it and found a light blue, floor-length dress inside. The design of the dress was uniquely beautiful and the fabric was soft; one could tell at a glance that it was expensive.

“This must have been costly, right?” Wen Li hesitated.

Ji Zeqiu knew what was concerning her and said with a slight smile, “Actually, this dress is a high-quality imitation of a designer brand, not expensive at all.”

“That’s good.” Wen Li said, relieved, “I didn’t expect a knockoff to be of such good quality.”

She held up the dress against herself and, with a smiling face tinged with bashfulness, asked, “Does this dress look good on me?”

In a moment of reverie, Ji Zeqiu thought he saw Lin Xu holding up the hem of her dress and spinning a few times in front of him, her expression full of conflict, “I’m not sure if this dress looks good on me. Zeqiu, can you take a look for Mommy?”

Just those past few days, Lin Xu had told Ji Zeqiu the story of Snow White, where the mirror said the most beautiful person in the world was Snow White, but Ji Zeqiu didn’t agree.

So when Lin Xu asked him, his answer was firm and matter of fact, “It looks good, even better than Snow White.”

Lin Xu had laughed.

“Comparing with Snow White, isn’t that a bit too much?” Wen Li’s cheeks were tinged with red as she let out a soft laugh.

Ji Zeqiu’s distant thoughts were pulled back to the present, and the person in front of him shifted from Lin Xu back to Wen Li.

He paused for a moment, but quickly regained his composure and smiled at her.

They stayed outside for a while and because Wen Li had other things to attend to afterward, Ji Zeqiu took her home before returning to the villa himself.

Right after he stepped through the door, he saw Ji Tingyang sitting on the couch, looking gloomy.

“Big brother, why are you sitting here? Don’t you have work today?” Ji Zeqiu asked casually.

Ji Tingyang pursed his lips and didn’t respond to his question. Instead, he asked, “Where have you been just now?”

“Just went out for a casual stroll,” Ji Zeqiu said.

“With Wen Li?”

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“Yes.”

“Don’t meet with her anymore in the future.”

Ji Zeqiu abruptly stopped and looked at him with a complicated expression, “Why?”

“She is my…” Ji Tingyang’s voice paused for a few seconds, “friend. I don’t want you disturbing her.”

Disturb?

What constitutes as disturbing?

The reason seemed too ridiculous.

It was like hearing a joke to Ji Zeqiu, and he let out a derisive snort, “Even if she’s your friend, she still has the right to make new friends, right?”

Ji Tingyang clenched his fists tightly; a fleeting shadow passed through his eyes as he said coldly, “In any case, it’s better if you two don’t meet again in the future.”

Ji Zeqiu gritted his teeth and glared at him reluctantly, “On what grounds?”

The two of them faced each other, and the room suddenly fell into a silence as dead as the grave, with only the ticking of the seconds hand on the wall clock audible.

They both knew all too well the possessive desire they had for the familiar warmth that Wen Li exuded.

The air was tense for a long while, as if neither was willing to make concessions, and neither took the initiative to speak.

The butler, witnessing the subtle atmosphere between the two brothers, was so anxious that he was beside himself.

Just then, Ji Yuqiao’s breathless voice came from outside, breaking the stifling atmosphere.

“Big brother, second brother, come out and help me with my stuff.”

Ji Tingyang and Ji Zeqiu withdrew their gazes and silently walked outside.

“Why did you buy so much stuff?” Ji Zeqiu took several bags from her hand.

“They’re clothes for you and big brother, and some shoes too. The clothes you had before were so old, it was time for new ones,” Ji Yuqiao said.

Even though their family was wealthy now and they didn’t have to wear mended clothes that were three years old or hand-me-downs from others, years of frugality had taken hold, and they barely had a few pieces of clothing in their wardrobe.

Ji Yuqiao simply purchased some while out shopping, spending over a hundred thousand. The moment she swiped her card, her heart ached terribly.

The corners of Ji Tingyang’s lips lifted slightly as he too helped carry the items. “Why didn’t you buy some for yourself?”

“I spent too much money today, I couldn’t bear it,” Ji Yuqiao muttered.

“You don’t have to hold back, that money is there for you to spend,” Ji Tingyang ruffled her hair, “And in the future, if you buy too many things to carry, you can give the store your home address, and they will deliver them for you.”

“Really? Is that so?” Ji Yuqiao looked surprised, “Second brother, did you hear what big brother said? Next time, we can have them deliver the shopping to our house.”

Ji Zeqiu didn’t turn his head and simply responded briefly.

Ji Yuqiao blinked, “Big brother, second brother, are you guys fighting?”

Her intuition was too sharp; she could sense the subtle shifts in the atmosphere between them.

Ji Tingyang’s eyes flickered, “Don’t guess wildly, let’s get these things sorted out quickly.”

“Oh,” Ji Yuqiao pouted and began to sort out the clothes in the bags.

…

In the time that followed,

Ji Zeqiu and Wen Li grew increasingly closer, and every time Ji Tingyang saw them, his unease deepened.

It was as if a knife hung over his heart, ready to fall at any moment.

He suppressed the pain in his heart, telling himself that Wen Li just saw Ji Zeqiu as a friend.

She wouldn’t leave him.

That is, until Wen Li went to college. Her cheeks flushed with shy redness, she told him happily that she’s met a boy she liked.

“I’m dating that guy,” Wen Li said with a smile sweetened by the new relationship, “I’ve heard people say that once you have a boyfriend, you should reduce contact with other male friends, maintain a distance, so I might not come over to the villa to play anymore.”

“But if you need anything, you can still tell me, I will…”

Ji Tingyang’s ears buzzed, and he heard nothing else.

The knife finally dropped, deeply plunging into his heart, causing him to turn deathly pale with pain, almost unable to catch his breath.

Wen Li had a boyfriend now.

She wouldn’t come over anymore.

He would never get to see her again.

Uncontrollable pain swept over Ji Tingyang’s every thought, and obsession, long suppressed in his heart, broke free at those words, overwhelming him like a torrential tide.

Before he realized it, he had grasped Wen Li’s hand, dragging her to a room upstairs and locking her in.

“Ji Tingyang! Ji Tingyang!” Wen Li pounded on the bedroom door, her voice filled with terror, “What are you doing? Open the door and let me out right now!”

“I won’t unlock the door,” Ji Tingyang’s eyes were bloodshot, his handsome, cold features took on a sickly pallor, “From now on, you’ll live here and never think about leaving me again.”