..."Cough, cough... Sorry, I couldn't help it!"
Chen Ningshuang, mouth wide open ready to devour the meat, froze in place, staring blankly as the stewed pork belly disappeared right before her mouth.
That's right... it was Su Mianmian who couldn't resist.
With her stomach growling from hunger, Chen Ningshuang had been prepared to abandon her pride and, after much hesitation, finally opened her mouth. But Su Mianmian swooped in, making a big leap from the ground and chomping down on the stewed pork belly in one go.
【Hmph~ So slow, the stewed pork belly is already cold...】
【Sob, sob, sob~~~ This stewed pork belly is delicious. I don't want to eat cat food anymore. What a bad man, his cooking is too good, isn't it?】
They say the easiest way to conquer a woman's heart is to first conquer her stomach, and well... the same goes for this eager little kitty.
Chen Ningshuang was left awkwardly stuck in place, caught between advancing and retreating.
This once proud young lady was feeling utterly awkward, her small mouth still wide open.
"You were so eager to eat it?"
Jiang Che teased with a playful smirk, his eyes full of amusement.
"I... I never said I wanted to eat it!"
Chen Ningshuang turned her head away.
But then, the next second, "Gurgle——"
The sound of hunger rang out, loud and clear... everyone in the room heard it.
This was almost like turning Chen Ningshuang into a roast on the fire.
Chen Ningshuang had been feeling hungry while serving Jiang Che earlier... now, it had almost reached a critical point.
"Heh... And you say you didn't want to eat?"
Jiang Che chuckled lightly, then gave in, adding a few more pieces of meat and some other dishes to her bowl.
Chen Ningshuang looked at the bowl and chopsticks Jiang Che handed over, swallowed hard, but still stubbornly turned her head away.
"I'm only giving you one chance."
Jiang Che's voice carried a hint of coolness.
Chen Ningshuang: "......"
Though she was reluctant to lower herself in front of this bad man, she was truly starving, her stomach groaning loudly...
With a small hand, she took the bowl and chopsticks, her eyes darting around unsteadily, "Thank you~"
Chen Ningshuang's thanks came out very softly, almost inaudible, but how could Jiang Che miss it? Being a martial artist at the later stages of Hua Jin, his senses were sharp.
"You're welcome."
Jiang Che's words left Chen Ningshuang feeling utterly embarrassed, so embarrassed that she wanted to find a crack to crawl into.
Chen Ningshuang sniffed gently, the intense aroma in the bowl almost setting off her food cravings.
She picked up a piece of meat and gently placed it in her mouth, then her eyes widened as the melt-in-your-mouth sensation instantly transported her to cloud nine.
It was delicious, really delicious. Chen Ningshuang's defenses crumbled, and she had another small piece of stewed pork belly.
She savored the taste, her face glowing with delight, even her eyes narrowing into slits.
Yu Wan'er, curled up in Jiang Che's arms, pouted.
【Oh no, there's another girl about to fall for him】
Yu Wan'er was the first girl Jiang Che had "conquered," so she knew just how skilled this man was at charming women.
They say when you're in the thick of it, you're blind, but as an outsider, she had watched this usually cold and unyielding beauty gradually lower her defenses, just like she had done herself.
At first, she had been resistant to even holding hands or kissing, but now?
All her boundaries were broken, and this man had even squeezed into her narrow, little... heart.
Though she claimed to hate Jiang Che, she had indeed fallen for this bad guy.
【Hmph~ He's at it again, seducing girls!】
Having had her fill, Yu Wan'er struggled out of Jiang Che's arms, giving him a glare before leaving, grabbing the small doll on the ground.
【Hey, hey, I haven't finished eating yet! You can't take me away, there's still half a piece of meat I haven't eaten!】
Su Mianmian didn't dare use her claws to scratch this little girl. She could tell how much Jiang Che doted on Yu Wan'er, and if she accidentally scratched her, she might end up attending the funeral instead.
"Xiaojie, Qiangwei, I'll take you girls out shopping this afternoon. Qiangwei... you can't keep staying at home like a caged songbird, can you?"
Jiang Che reached out, gently stroking the girl's head.
Since Qiangwei had come under his wing, she had almost entirely cut off all social interactions... though, this girl's naturally cold personality probably didn't have many social engagements to begin with.
But Jiang Che didn't want his woman to become just a caged songbird for display, like those sophisticated robot girlfriends of Monkey.
Sure enough, upon hearing Jiang Che's words, Qiangwei's eyes flashed with a hint of anticipation.
......
In the Bai Family's residence, Capital City.
"Head of the Family! We've found news about the eldest young lady!"
Bai Tianlong, engrossed in reading the newspaper, waved his hand indifferently, "Bai Jie isn't she at the Jiang Family's place? And I heard that Bai Jie is getting along quite well with that Jiang Family son..."
"If that Jiang son could marry Bai Jie, that would truly be a wonderful match."
Bai Tianlong's words left the servant reporting to him somewhat speechless.
"Head of the Family, it's not Miss Bai Jie... it's the eldest young lady! News about the eldest young lady and eldest young master, who have been missing for decades... we've found their traces!"
At this, Bai Tianlong's face instantly changed, and he stood up from the armchair.
"What did you say? The eldest young lady... and eldest young master? Tianhuai... have they been found?"
How could Bai Tianlong not be excited?
Though he was now the head of the Bai Family, he had no male offspring, only a daughter in Bai Jie. If he could find back his eldest son and eldest daughter... that would be enough!
By then, his younger daughter would marry into the Jiang Family, high-ranking the Bai Family beside the Jiang Family's mighty tree, and his son would inherit the family business. It would be perfection!
Seeing Bai Tianlong's excited state, the servant's expression turned somewhat hesitant.
The astute Bai Tianlong seemed to sense something, and his excitement gradually calmed down.
"How did your investigation go? How has Tianhuai and Xiao Wei been doing all these years?"
Excited, Bai Tianlong didn't even know what questions to ask.
"Reporting to the head of the family, we found traces of the eldest young master in the Middle East. There is a mercenary group called the 'Wolf Fang Mercenary Group' in the Middle East, and the founder of the Wolf Fang Mercenary Group seems to be named Bai Tianhuai. The time the Wolf Fang Mercenary Group was founded almost coincides with when the eldest young master went missing."
"The most crucial point is... it's said that the founder of the Wolf Fang Mercenary Group also has a sister, supposedly named something like Qiangwei, and our eldest young lady is named Bai Wei..."
Bai Tianlong, hearing this, had almost fully believed it, "Photos? Do we have pictures of Tianhuai and Wei'er?"
"No... we don't, but our people are currently investigating them. Just as we got the news, I came to report to you, but I think it's undoubtedly the eldest young master and eldest young lady."