Chapter 144 -

Chapter 144: Chapter

When Yimei walked into the room, Zhengyu was sitting near the window, reading a book. He didn’t look up when she came in, and Yimei didn’t say anything to him.

She went straight to the wooden box in the corner, grabbed the herbs she needed, and walked out to the kitchen. Neither of them said a word. Zhengyu just kept reading his book.

Twenty minutes later, Yimei came back holding a bowl of hot medicine. The bitter smell filled the whole room. She walked up to the small table next to his wheelchair and put the bowl down with a loud thud.

"Time for your medicine," Yimei said, her voice flat and cold.

Zhengyu finally put his book down. He looked at the steaming brown liquid, then up at Yimei. The smell was so strong and bitter it made his throat feel dry.

"You really don’t care about making this taste good, do you?" Zhengyu said in a dry voice.

"Medicine is meant to cure you, not taste sweet," Yimei replied directly, folding her arms as she stood over him. "Drink it while it’s hot. Talking too much won’t heal your legs."

Zhengyu didn’t say another word. He reached out, took the heavy ceramic bowl, and drank the bitter medicine down in long, quick gulps, his throat moving with every swallow.

While he was busy drinking, Yimei casually reached over and picked up the book sitting on his lap. She flipped through the pages, her dark eyes skimming the text. It was a medical text, but it didn’t belong to any of the book collections he usually kept around his desk.

Zhengyu set the empty bowl down with a faint sigh, wiping his lips with the back of his hand. He looked up and saw her examining the cover. "It’s from Grandmaster Zhang," he said, his voice low and dry. "He sent it over earlier."

Yimei looked at him silently for a brief second. Without a word, she closed the book and dropped it back into his lap. She grabbed the tray and placed the empty medicine bowl on top of it.

"Qinqin will be sleeping in here with us tonight," Yimei said casually, her tone as direct as ever.

Zhengyu’s brow raised instantly, his dark eyes widening in genuine surprise. "What?"

"Don’t worry," Yimei said, completely unbothered by his reaction. "She is a very quiet sleeper. You won’t even notice she’s in the room."

Zhengyu frowned, his sharp mind immediately connecting the dots. "Does this have anything to do with that sleeping stuff you collected from Grandmaster Zhang this morning?"

Yimei looked down at him, letting out a small, tired sigh.

"I don’t like revealing spoilers," Yimei said calmly, looking him straight in the eye. "But don’t worry... whatever I’m doing will surely wake you up tomorrow morning, okay?"

Zhengyu frowned, turning his face away without another word. He grabbed the wheels of his chair and pushed himself toward the bed.

Yimei picked up the tray and left the room. An hour passed, and she still had not returned.

The room was mostly dark now, saved only by the soft glow of a single lantern left burning in the corner. Zhengyu lay on the bed with his eyes closed, pretending to be fast asleep. His ears twitched as the door quietly creaked open. He immediately noticed the sound of two sets of footsteps entering the room.

"Madame... I don’t think the Young Master will be comfortable with me here," Qinqin whispered nervously, holding onto Yimei’s hands. "I could just stay somewhere else or sleep outside."

Yimei frowned and gave Qinqin a light knock on the head. "Do you want me to smack you?"

Qinqin quickly shook her head, holding her forehead.

"Lay the blanket down," Yimei instructed softly.

Qinqin moved as quietly as she could, spreading a blanket onto the hard wooden floor. Meanwhile, Yimei walked over to grab her own blanket from the side. After changing into something comfortable, Yimei bent down and lay right next to Qinqin on the floor.

Qinqin almost fainted right then and there. "Madame, no, no! You can’t sleep down here with me! The Young Master is right there on the bed waiting for you. You should go lay with him! I’m fine on my own!"

Yimei looked over at Zhengyu, whose back was turned toward them. She knew very well that he wasn’t actually asleep, but she just looked back at Qinqin and spoke calmly. "He’s fast asleep. He won’t care that I’m on the floor."

Qinqin felt like her head was going to explode. Looking at the Young Master on the bed and Madame on the floor, she felt like a total home wrecker standing between a husband and wife.

Before Qinqin could protest any further, Yimei pulled her close, wrapping the blanket tightly around both of them until there was barely any space left between them.

"Madame... we are way too close," Qinqin squeaked, barely able to breathe. "I can’t even move."

Yimei smiled softly in the dark. "It’s cold tonight. I’m keeping you warm."

"But Madame..." Qinqin whispered back nervously, "I’m sure the Young Master is also cold. Who is going to keep him warm?"

Yimei smiled softly in the dark room. "Nah, he’s fine. He has extra blankets up there."

On the bed, Zhengyu’s eyes snapped open. He kept his back turned to them, but his hand squeezed his blanket hard. Listening to them talk like he was just a cold piece of wood was almost enough to make him turn around and throw them out.

"Madame, really, this feels so wrong," Qinqin whispered, squirming under Yimei’s tight grip. "What if the Young Master wakes up? He already looks at people like he wants to slice them up!"

"If he tries to slice anyone, I’ll hit him with his own wheelchair," Yimei said casually, closing her eyes. "Stop moving and go to sleep."

Instead of moving away, Qinqin wrapped her arms right back around Yimei, hugging her close. She pressed her face near Yimei’s chest and blinked in surprise.

"Madame... wow," Qinqin whispered, her eyes going wide. "You are really becoming a full woman now! Your chest is so soft and big!"

Zhengyu’s eyes widened in the dark. His whole body froze. What on earth are they talking about down there?!

Yimei actually laughed, the soft sound shaking her chest. "Are you hugging me or checking my body?"

"I’m serious, Madame!" Qinqin squeaked, hugging her even tighter. "It’s so comfortable!"

"Alright, alright, go to sleep before I kick you to the other side of the room," Yimei laughed quietly, wrapping her arm back around Qinqin and closing her eyes.

Up on the bed, Zhengyu lay completely still, his jaw tight and his face burning in the dark. He stared blankly at the wall, his ears practically burning from everything he had just heard. Listening to them whisper, hug, and talk about soft chests while he was left completely ignored on the bed made his stomach churn with a strange, annoyed frustration.

He buried his face deeper into his pillow, pouting in the dark like a sulking child.

"Unbelievable," Zhengyu whispered to himself in a barely audible breath, his voice laced with pure jealousy. "I also want to feel it too..."