Xu Tingyu sat somewhat stiffly, looking down as Qi Ye applied medicine to her wounds.
The lotion felt cold and stung a bit when it touched her skin.
When Qi Ye lowered his head, his profile bore a five - point resemblance to Qi Shifeng.
Both of them had such high - level good looks that once you saw them, you couldn't take your eyes off.
Objectively speaking, Qi Shifeng was more outstanding in appearance.
The first time Xu Tingyu met him...
He wasn't as cold as he was now. There was a carefree and unruly air about this young master.
He was sitting lazily on the fence, basking in the sun.
Hearing footsteps, he lazily raised his eyes and glanced at her nonchalantly.
"Are you the poor little thing the old man arranged for me to marry?"
Just one casual look was enough to make one's heart flutter.
One would fall into those eyes that were even more beautiful than the stars without being able to help it.
...
The more she recalled, the bigger the hole in her heart became.
"Don't let the wound get wet when you get home tonight. After you take a shower, ask Aunt Zhang to tend to it for you."
After applying the medicine, Qi Ye looked up at her, his tone gentle and his eyes full of concern.
She was in a daze for a moment but quickly regained her composure.
"Okay, thank you, big brother."
"We're family. No need to be so polite."
Qi Ye still smiled gently. Then he took the shoes the driver had just bought.
"Put these on first. Don't let your wound get any worse."
He casually took out the flat mules from the shoe box and was about to help her put them on.
His movements were so natural, as if it was just supposed to be this way.
But Xu Tingyu instinctively dodged. Then she immediately bent down to take the shoes. "Big brother, I can do it myself."
Qi Ye didn't insist. He just stood up. After watching her put on the shoes, he reached out his hand to her.
"Let's go. I'll take you."
"If you don't want to go home, you can go anywhere you like."
Xu Tingyu didn't take his hand. She stood up by herself and smiled at him. "I'll go home."
Where else could she go other than home now?
Moreover, she needed to go back and rummage through her things to see what she could dispose of to pay off the debts.
Qi Ye retracted his hand imperceptibly. There was still a gentle smile on his handsome and upright face.
"Okay, then I'll take you back. But before that, could you accompany me for a meal?"
He clearly noticed that she hadn't eaten for a long time and her face was pale and haggard.
But he always took care of her feelings and said it was her accompanying him for a meal.
Xu Tingyu didn't think much about it. Anyway, she wasn't in a hurry, so she agreed.
The two found a restaurant nearby.
During the meal, Qi Ye talked about his life abroad in the past few years. His stories were humorous and fascinating.
It finally gave Xu Tingyu a break from the pain she had been going through.
When he was about to finish, Qi Ye sounded a bit emotional.
"Tingyu, if you hadn't chosen to get married back then but instead chosen to go abroad for further study, now..."
He didn't finish his sentence. Realizing he had said something inappropriate, he quickly changed the topic.
But Xu Tingyu still lowered her head and pursed her lips slightly, looking a bit self - deprecating.
What if?
She didn't want to ask herself this question.
Because at that time, getting married was also her best choice.
After the meal, Qi Ye took her back.
When she got out of the car, he gently instructed her again.
"Tingyu, if there's anything I can help you with, you must tell me."
"We're family. Don't be shy to ask, okay?"
It was completely dark.
Under the street lamp, in Qi Ye's eyes that were as calm and gentle as the spring lake, there was pity and worry for her.
A warm current flowed through her heart. She nodded. "I know. Thank you, big brother."
After saying that, she smiled at him again. "Big brother, drive slowly. See you later."
She watched as Qi Ye's car drove into the darkness. The smile on her lips faded little by little. Then she turned around and walked towards home.
Who would have thought that as soon as she turned around, she bumped into a hard chest.
She looked up. Under the street lamp, the man was tall and slender. His superior eyebrows and eyes were cold and aloof, full of a biting chill.
He had taken off his coat and was only wearing a shirt. He had broad shoulders and a narrow waist. His lean muscles filled out the fabric.
His face was coldly expressionless, but combined with his figure, the aura he exuded was actually a bit seductively禁欲.
She didn't know how long he had been there or how long he had been watching.
"Xu Tingyu, I really underestimated you."
"A bunch of men yesterday, and my big brother today. So, are you going to let everyone know that I've married a socialite?"
In the three years of their marriage, although he had been as cold as ice towards her, such direct verbal sarcasm was rare.
Now, even his thin lips were tightly pursed into a sharp line.
It seemed that she was the one who had done something wrong during this period.
Xu Tingyu didn't want to have a useless verbal argument with him.
She tried to bypass him and walk towards home, but he grabbed her wrist.
Then, he pulled her roughly into his arms, and another hand landed on her waist.
"So, do you think my big brother can back you up, so you can just ignore me?"
A low, hoarse and sarcastic laugh escaped from the man's throat.
It was as sticky as flirting and also carried a touch of out - of - tune banter.
His well - defined hand was on her waist.
He just rubbed it ambiguously twice. Without even using much force, his aura pinned her down so that she couldn't move.
His gaze swept across her fair face and then moved down, finally landing on the shoe box she was holding.
Further down were a pair of new high - end brand shoes.
He remembered that when he left with Xie Yu in the afternoon, she was standing dejectedly by the roadside.
Her face was pale and her expression was humiliated.
Under her skirt, she was wearing a pair of nude - colored stiletto heels. Her smooth and slender calves seemed to be trembling slightly.
She was like a butterfly fluttering in the wind and rain, broken yet incredibly beautiful.
Anyone who saw her would couldn't help but feel pity for her.
He sent a message to his assistant, asking him to drive her home.
But when the assistant arrived, he just saw her getting into Qi Ye's car.
His good wife not only got into another man's car but also didn't come back until now.
"Xu Tingyu, you really impress me. Are you born unable to live without men?"
When something big happened to her family, she didn't say a single word to him. She didn't even invite her husband to the funeral.
Then, she went drinking with other men and went shopping with other men.
His words were so full of anger and aggression that it was unlike his usual style.
Xu Tingyu finally turned her gaze to his face, looking a bit confused.
She hadn't even said a word. Why had she annoyed him again?
Or did he always think of her in the worst way?
There was little expression on his face. His superior features were all shrouded in the night.
She couldn't see clearly. Exhausted both physically and mentally, she had no intention of figuring it out. She just wanted to go back and look for things earlier.
But in the man's eyes, it was ignoring him.
He was already unhappy, and now he was even more enraged. But he remained calm on the surface. Amidst her exclamation, he directly threw her over his shoulder with one hand.
After walking a few steps, he roughly took off her shoes and threw them far away into the distance.
Watching the new shoes worth five digits roll a couple of times and fall into the grass, he finally seemed to calm down a bit.