Is there a problem? Did she just ask me if there was a problem?
His lips pressed together into a straight line. Under her curious gaze, he answered coldly, “Not a big problem.”
I’m just preparing fish. As a man, how can I not even do this much? He chuckled on the inside.
When he did not reply to her, she did not say anything else and turned around to resume washing the vegetables.
Ye Moxuan watched the fish swimming in the water, then at the knife she prepared for him. Suddenly, he felt the tension between his eyebrows. Why in the world did I agree to stay for dinner? No, never mind that. Why did I even come in here and volunteer to help? He figured a donkey must have kicked him in the head for him to have done so many things that even he found ridiculous. Despite feeling reluctant, he still reached in the pail with his hand.
Just as Han Muzi finished washing the cabbages and turned around to check on him, she saw a fish fly straight at her. She evaded a few steps to the side almost by reflex and the fish flopped onto the kitchen counter.
Plop-plop. When the fish landed on the kitchen counter, it started to struggle more because it was out of water. Bewildered, she looked in his direction.
Ye Moxuan looked like a mess—the sleeves of his shirt were wet and his face and hair were also drenched. She did not know how he ended up that way but he looked extremely awkward in that situation. His face was dull and it seemed like a dark cloud was hanging over him. Despite what had happened, he still looked at her with a cold gaze and, without a change in tone, said, “What are you looking at?”
She was dumbfounded. After coughing slightly, she regained her composure and shook her head. “Nothing. It’s just that your shirt got wet.” Then, she strode over to his side and picked up the fishnet that was next to the pail. “Why didn’t you use this? Fishes are slippery. You won’t be able to catch them with your hands.”
When she finished speaking, she returned to the counter where that fish was still jumping around and scooped it up. Then, she walked back to him and leaned down to scoop out a few more fish from the pail. Without a change in expression, she proceeded to slam the fish that were in the net against the sink.
Bang! Bang!
He felt the impact in his heart with each bang. He watched the woman whose arms and waist was thin enough for him to break with one hand slamming the fishnet against the sink with so much force. After a while, the fish that were jumping around livelily just before stopped moving.
He was speechless.
“It’s fine, I can do it. Your coat is wet. You should go and change out of it,” she said as she chucked the fish out of the fishnet.
While he was stunned by her actions, his eyes immediately narrowed when she said that. He replied coldly, “Do you think I’m a pervert like you?”
The knife in her hand hesitated for a moment and she remembered the incident from before. It made her uneasy so she decided not to say anything. When she did not feel any movement behind her, she figured that he was gone. However, she placed her knife down and followed him out. “How about I stop cooking for now and go buy some clothes for you instead?”
He glanced over at her. She was looking at him cautiously as though she was afraid of offending him. Like he was a tyrant.
He closed his eyes. “No need. Just do what you were doing.”
“Well then, remember to take off your wet coat. The remote control is on the cabinet at the front; you can turn the heater on for a bit so you don’t catch a cold.” After she advised him, she headed back into the kitchen once again.
The living room became quiet and he slowly opened his eyes. After pondering for a moment, he stood up and took off his outer coat only to find that the sleeves of his shirt were also wet. But the part that demanded more attention was the extremely unpleasant fishy smell on him. The thought of the fishy smell lingering on him unsettled him, and his expression turned grim. What sins have I committed?
Meanwhile, she prepared and sliced the fish efficiently then put it in the pot to cook. After that, she quickly washed her hands and went out of the kitchen. When she walked out and saw him, he looked helpless as he sat motionless on the couch. He had thrown the suit to one side and was only wearing a shirt while the house was freezing.
She quickly rushed to turn the heater on, then returned to his side.
When he sensed that she was getting close, he finally opened his eyes and looked at her. “Is it done?”
“It will be soon. If you weren’t wearing a coat, then you should have at least turned the heater on.” Stepping forward, she picked up the wet coat from the side and brought it to the bathroom. When she was about to walk back out, she happened to see him standing by the door. “What’s wrong?”
He stared at the shower behind her and felt a desperate need to use it as he was close to suffocating from the smell on his body. However, she looked oblivious as though she had no idea what was wrong.
“Come here.” He pursed his lips and kept his gaze on her.
Even so, she just ignorantly stayed where she was. Before she had the time to react, he reached out with his big hand suddenly and grabbed her delicate wrist, pulling her toward him.
Thud! She stumbled and fell right into his chest. Immediately, she was flustered and her heart pounded faster. What is he doing? Why are things escalating so quickly? Maybe he still has feelings for me, so that’s why—
Just as her thoughts were running wild, she heard his cold voice from above her. “Do you smell that?”
She looked up and met his eyes. “S-Smell what?”
“This fishy smell.”
She was rendered speechless. So he pulled me into his arms, not to hug me, but to make me smell the odor on his body? As she was flustered earlier, she failed to notice anything else. But now… After he mentioned it, she detected the fishy smell on his body. It must have been from the water that splashed onto him earlier.
She pushed him off right away and took a couple of steps back before she said, “You can use the shower to rinse yourself off. I’ll step out now.” With that, she started to leave. But as she walked past him, he grabbed her hand unexpectedly. “It’s fine. I’ll have George send some clothes over.”
She was dumbfounded for a moment and her face turned bright red. Have George, that big mouth, send some clothes over? Will I ever hear the end of it?
Just then, someone knocked on the door from outside. “I-I’ll go get that.”
