Volume One, Chapter 24: Discipline

"Get out!" Sheng Yuru saw her second cousin holding a mask in his hand.

Before she could catch a glimpse of his face, he slipped the mask on. The chilling voice seemed to come straight from the depths of hell, sending a shudder through her and icy fear into her heart.

"I'm sorry, I..."

"Can't understand human language?"

Sheng Yuru didn't dare linger a moment longer; she hurried out and closed the door behind her. She patted her chest, still shaken.

So what if he doesn't want to be seen? It's nothing to fuss about.

If his face is ruined, he must be terribly ugly—otherwise, why would he be so afraid of people seeing him?

Gu Chenxi was frightened as well, her little face pale as a sheet.

Pei Jingmo gently touched her head. "It's all right, all right, I wasn't scolding you. Don't be afraid."

Knowing her brother would never hurt her, Gu Chenxi nodded obediently. She then reached out to touch the mask on Pei Jingmo's face. "This... why do you wear it?"

"For reasons I can't avoid. I told everyone else I've been disfigured. Xiao Xi, you'll help me keep it a secret, won't you?"

Gu Chenxi nodded seriously, her expression grave. "Mm!"

"If someone asks about my face..."

"Brother is a monster."

Pei Jingmo smiled and gave her a thumbs-up. "Our Xiao Xi is so clever."

Seeing Gu Chenxi's thick, long black hair, Pei Jingmo laughed. "Do you want brother to help you comb your hair?"

Gu Chenxi hugged her head like a precious treasure. "No! Brother is bad..."

Pei Jingmo couldn't help but chuckle.

Ever since he saw Song Qingyu with her ponytail in that alley, Pei Jingmo couldn't get her image out of his mind.

Coincidentally, Gu Chenxi also had a beautiful head of black hair.

Pei Jingmo's hands itched to braid it.

At first, Gu Chenxi cooperated, but after being tugged painfully a few times, she firmly refused to let Pei Jingmo touch her hair again.

Later, when Pei Jingmo went to the army camp, with no phone or way to communicate, he would occasionally use foxtail grass to braid twists, eventually mastering the skill.

Aunt Tang came upstairs to call them down for dinner.

Pei Jingmo originally hadn't intended to dine at the old house, but Chenxi tugged at his sleeve, the little girl looking pitiful. Pei Jingmo couldn't bear to refuse her and stayed to eat with her.

At the dinner table.

Sheng Yuru was uncharacteristically quiet, barely daring to breathe.

Her second cousin was nothing like the gentle, easygoing eldest cousin; he was a veritable harbinger of doom, and she'd just offended him.

Gu Fengjiao, on the other hand, kept glancing at Pei Jingmo's face. At last, she couldn't hold back. "Yuandong, is your injury really that serious? I know a doctor who specializes in scar repair. How about—"

"Thank you, Aunt, but that's not necessary."

"You can't always wear a mask, you know. You'll date and marry someday!"

Seeing Pei Jingmo unmoved, ignoring her, Gu Fengjiao turned her gaze to Gu Chengde. "Brother, what do you think?"

Gu Chengde replied coolly, "A man's main asset is his ability; looks are irrelevant."

"You can't say that—Yuandong's such a handsome young man! How can his face be ruined? I was planning to introduce him to a girlfriend."

"After what happened with Mu Bei, the Gu family is relying on Yuandong now. We can't let him be criticized."

Pei Jingmo frowned, his dark eyes coldly fixed on Gu Fengjiao.

He hadn't forgotten how, as a child, her peculiar 'concern' had earned him countless beatings from the old patriarch.

"Aunt, do you especially like salted radish?"

Gu Fengjiao was puzzled. "What?"

"Meddling where you shouldn't, like chewing salty radishes and worrying about things that aren't your business."

Gu Fengjiao's face turned green.

Gu Chengde frowned, displeased, and glanced at Pei Jingmo. "Yuandong, is that any way to speak to your aunt?"

Pei Jingmo stood, gently touched Gu Chenxi's head, and said, "Xiao Xi, I'll come see you another day."

Without another word to anyone, he left.

No one enjoyed the meal; Gu Fengjiao wanted to say more, but Gu Chengde had already set down his chopsticks. "It's getting late. You two should head home early!"

Mother and daughter were left awkwardly standing.

Seeing Gu Chenxi put down her chopsticks and head to her room, Sheng Yuru anxiously grabbed her arm. "Xiao Xi, did you see second cousin's face? Is he really that ugly?"

Gu Chenxi nodded.

"How ugly?"

"As ugly as a monster!"

Sheng Yuru: "..."

The two left the old Gu house, feeling defeated. Sheng Yuru complained to Gu Fengjiao, "Mom, have you ever seen second cousin? Was he really handsome?"

"I met him once in high school. He was truly striking—more handsome than television stars. But his temper was odd even then, and now, after his face is ruined, it's even worse!"

"What about the job? Can Uncle help me?"

"As long as your uncle doesn't explicitly refuse, there shouldn't be a problem. Don't worry."

—

When Pei Jingmo returned to Yunqi Garden,

Xie Liuzheng was leisurely sprawled on the sofa playing games, while Song Qingyu served her food and drinks, waiting on her hand and foot.

"Tsk..."

Pei Jingmo was irked.

The one he wanted to cherish above all, he couldn't even bear to let her enter the kitchen, yet here she was being ordered about.

"You're back? Have you eaten?"

Pei Jingmo gathered his emotions and walked toward Song Qingyu. "I ate at the construction site. Have you eaten?"

"I ordered takeout. I was just about to juice some fruit."

Seeing Pei Jingmo return, Xie Liuzheng called out to Song Qingyu, "Xiaoyu, come play games with me. Let your dirty bun juice for you."

Song Qingyu: "..."

They were only in a contractual marriage, a partnership in name. She couldn't be ordered about all the time.

"You play first. I'll come after I finish juicing."

Pei Jingmo took the fruit knife from Song Qingyu's hand. "You rest for a bit. I'll handle it."

"Exactly, exactly..." Xie Liuzheng dragged Song Qingyu to the sofa. "Hey, there are mangosteens in the fridge. Peel some for me."

Song Qingyu slapped Xie Liuzheng's hand. "Can't you stop bossing him around?"

"What? You're feeling sorry for him? You used to feel so sorry for Chu Xingzhi, and look where that got you!"

As soon as the words left her mouth, Xie Liuzheng regretted them. Seeing Song Qingyu's expression change, she quickly added, "All right, all right, I was wrong. I'm just trying to tell you, feeling sorry for a man will ruin your life."

She paused, then continued, "You and Pei Jingmo married without love, so now is the perfect time to train him—make him a good man who loves you and only serves you."

Song Qingyu sighed. There was neither love nor any notion of training between her and Pei Jingmo.

After a year, when everything settled, they'd divorce.

For now, it was just a matter of muddling through.

That night,

Seeing the fatigue in Pei Jingmo's eyes, Song Qingyu insisted on not sleeping in his room.

She placed her pillow on the sofa. "Tonight, you sleep in the bed; I'll sleep here."

The sofa wasn't big, and Pei Jingmo, at one meter eighty-nine, would be too cramped here. He had to work during the day, and Song Qingyu wanted him to rest well.

Pei Jingmo, reluctant to let her sleep on the sofa, picked her up. "Isn't Xie Liuzheng staying for a few more days? Tonight, you still sleep in my room. Tomorrow, you can sleep on the sofa, okay?"

Though he was seeking Song Qingyu's consent, he had already placed her on the bed.

Unable to resist, Song Qingyu agreed.

Once both were sound asleep, Pei Jingmo called Fu Linhan.

"Have your Panhai Entertainment sign Xie Liuzheng. Give her scripts, reality shows, singing, commercials—keep her busy."

"Xie Liuzheng? When did you start keeping a starlet? Trying to follow Chu Xingzhi's old path?"

"...She's my wife's best friend. I don't want her disturbing my time alone with Qingqing."