Chapter 41: You bought so much—what are you up to? Hmm, I want

The sky was dark and gloomy; Wen Ling woke from her dream, and no one was beside her.

She furrowed her brow, pushed herself up to sit, and saw Zhou Yinhe sitting in the same spot as before, the light still dim yellow, his head still bowed.

"What? You regret it again?" she said, her tone inevitably a bit sarcastic.

Zhou Yinhe jerked his head up, pressed his lips, and said with a hint of grievance, "Do you regret it?"

Wen Ling pulled the blanket up in front of her and said coldly, "Isn't it you?"

"I don't regret it." Zhou Yinhe shook his head, hesitated a moment, then got up and sat beside the bed, apologizing in a low voice, "I didn't wear it last night."

Wen Ling stared for a moment, lifted her eyes to him, curled her lips in a smile, and said, "It's fine, I'll just take medicine later."

"Sorry, I won't do it again." He lowered his head slightly, buried his face in her neck, inhaled her faint fragrance, his eyes flickering with a morbid obsession, and murmured a sigh, "So fragrant."

Wen Ling raised her arm, her fingers gently massaging the back of his neck, and said softly, "Your scent is all over me."

Zhou Yinhe gave a muffled laugh, just about to hug her when Wen Ling pushed him away; she suddenly turned her face and snorted coldly, "Get out—do you even have any sense of your own status? Can you really do this kind of intimate act?"

"……" Zhou Yinhe froze, incredulously watching Wen Ling turn her face and deny him, his mouth opening dumbly.

"Get out." Wen Ling's face sank, and she pointed a finger at the doorway in a swift motion.

Zhou Yinhe gritted his teeth, stood up, and strode out of the room; his back was clearly filled with anger and frustration.

Wen Ling pulled the blanket over her face, muffled beneath it, unable to hold back her laughter.

Just as Zhou Yinhe stepped out of the room, he ran into Hehe in the hallway; without Wen Ling nearby, Hehe was extremely obedient, rubbing against Zhou Yinhe's legs and occasionally hooking its tail around him. Zhou Yinhe, face cold, squatted down to hug it, roughly stroking it several times, clearly venting his feelings.

Wen Ling had already dressed and come out, seeing Hehe's fur puffed up from his stroking, she bit her lip to suppress laughter and asked, "What are you doing?"

Her sudden voice startled Zhou Yinhe into a jump; he stood up, brushed cat hair off his hand, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"I ordered takeout; it should be here soon, let's eat." Wen Ling bent over to pick up Hehe, her waist sore to the point she could barely straighten, and Zhou Yinhe, being perceptive, helped her up.

Wen Ling bit her lip, rubbed her waist where Zhou Yinhe couldn't see, and cursed him fiercely in her heart.

Along with the takeout came the medicine; Wen Ling sat at the dining table, Zhou Yinhe went to pour her a cup of warm water, and after she swallowed it, she saw Zhou Yinhe sitting opposite her, staring straight at her.

"What?"

"I'll be careful next time."

Wen Ling rested one hand on her cheek and used the other to rub Hehe's head, which lay on her leg, and said softly, "Mm, I know."

During the meal, Zhou Yinhe kept peeling shrimp for Wen Ling and pouring her water; Wen Ling glanced at him several times but didn't refuse.

After Wen Ling finished eating, Zhou Yinhe hastily put down his chopsticks, sitting primly like an elementary school student.

Wen Ling lifted her water cup, took a sip, licked her lips, and asked him, "Why did you dye your hair back?"

Zhou Yinhe blinked, not expecting her to ask that suddenly, turned his head with some irritation and said, "My dad said if I don't dye it back, he'll have my older brother shave my head while I'm asleep."

"Pfft." Wen Ling couldn't hold back, and the water nearly sprayed onto Zhou Yinhe.

Zhou Yinhe's ears turned red; seeing this, Wen Ling's heart inevitably softened, she went around the table to ruffle his hair and cooed softly, "It's fine, it looks good this way."

She always follows a slap with a sweet date; just moments ago she ruthlessly pushed him away, but now she's right in front of him, coaxing him like a child.

But Zhou Yinhe is especially susceptible to her tactics; he extended his arms, hugged her waist and rubbed against her, his tone casual yet somewhat whiny: "I bought many sets; they'll be delivered shortly."

Wen Ling frowned at his words, lowered her gaze to his fluffy head, really wanting to smack him, but thinking she had just lured him back, acting now wouldn't be appropriate.

As he spoke, the doorbell rang; Zhou Yinhe let go of her, stepped out of the villa with light steps, took the two large bags Chen Yu handed over, and casually said, "You can go back now; I'll count today as overtime for you, and come pick me up here tomorrow."

Chen Yu gave him several glances, seeing his face full of radiance and that he'd ordered such a large bag of supplies, he knew his boss must have had a wonderful night.

He tactfully turned and left, suppressing his curiosity.

Zhou Yinhe carried those two large bags inside, and Wen Ling was genuinely taken aback.

"You bought so much—what are you planning to do with it?"

Zhou Yinhe pressed his lips: "Mm."

???

The question marks in Wen Ling's mind felt substantial; she doubted she'd heard correctly and asked, bewildered, "What did you say?"

"I said, I want." Zhou Yinhe lifted his gaze, his cheeks slightly flushed, yet he spoke with unjustified confidence.

Wen Ling felt an itch in her fingers; she gritted her teeth and said, word by word, "Take it away! Don't leave it here."

Zhou Yinhe pretended not to understand her meaning, stepped forward, and pushed his luck: "Then will you come live with me at my place?"

"Fine, you change faces pretty quickly." Wen Ling rolled her eyes dramatically, got up and went upstairs, with Hehe following her step for step.

Zhou Yinhe curled his lips, lowered his eyes to hide his emotions, grabbed the bags, and followed her upstairs.

The master bedroom door wasn't closed; Wen Ling sat in the sofa of the bedroom-living room, playing with the cat and watching TV.

Zhou Yinhe first took the clothes from one bag and hung them in Wen Ling's wardrobe, alongside her own; then he unpacked the newly bought toiletries from the bag and placed them next to her toiletries, finally stashing two boxes of necessities in the bathroom, and immediately filled the rest of the items into every corner of the room where something could be done with Wen Ling.

Wen Ling frowned as she watched him carry several small boxes back and forth, and said coldly, "What are you trying to do?"

She no longer used "what" or "what are you doing," fearing Zhou Yinhe would shamelessly take advantage of the opening.

"I just want to make up for these three years." Zhou Yinhe's tone and expression were somewhat innocent, blinking his eyes at Wen Ling.

Seeing him like that, Wen Ling suppressed her anger, took a deep breath, and directly ignored him.

Zhou Yinhe continued to patrol the room, just like Hehe when it first arrived here, wishing to leave his mark everywhere.

He cast aside the past three years, as if the separation, quarrels, and estrangement had never happened.

After arranging everything, he walked to the side of the sofa, stood there, and stared intently at Wen Ling.

Wen Ling frowned, looking at him doubtfully, while Zhou Yinhe bent over, intending to hug her.

"What do you want to do again?" Wen Ling dodged, widening her eyes at him.

Zhou Yinhe once again looked at her with an innocent expression, using the same excuse: "I want to make up for these three years."

"No, it's enough already; you can go home." Wen Ling shifted back a bit.

Zhou Yinhe's gaze, uncontrollable, drifted to the skin exposed where her sleepwear had shifted from her movement.