Chapter 1324: Chapter 1313: Siblings
Lee Shishi felt extremely uncomfortable during this meal, and Ye Cheng even secretly asked if she was feeling unwell.
But how could she respond? Say she couldn’t stand Cheng Zhizhi’s flattery and Ye Qiu’s good behavior today? From anyone’s perspective, there was no problem. Cheng Zhizhi said she came to make amends and offering a gift was normal. Ye Qiu opened the door to welcome the guests, and it was all because of her that he hosted this dinner. If she spoke up, wouldn’t it make her seem ungrateful?
Yet she felt uneasy. She clearly sensed Cheng Zhizhi’s ambition. She’s deeply regretting why she took past friendship into account and agreed to Cheng Zhizhi’s request. Clearly, Cheng Zhizhi hadn’t considered her feelings! If Cheng Zhizhi cared, she should be maintaining a distance from Ye Cheng now, instead of continuously praising their sibling relationship at the dinner table, making her feel out of place.
And is Ye Qiu angry? Last time she actively helped to expose Cheng Zhizhi, but this time she voluntarily brought her before him. Suddenly she felt she was very inconsiderate and had failed to think things through, especially since Ye Cheng was present today, giving Cheng Zhizhi an opportunity to get close to Ye Cheng.
"I’ll excuse myself for a moment." She suddenly stood up, feeling a tight knot of discomfort inside her.
"What’s wrong, Shishi? Want me to go with you to the restroom?" Cheng Zhizhi asked with concern.
Turning her head, she assumed a stance of being the closest friend to Lee Shishi and spoke to Ye Cheng and Ye Qiu: "I’m sorry, Shishi has been spoiled since childhood, so she can’t bear even a bit of discomfort. Please don’t mind."
Her words instantaneously ignited Lee Shishi’s anger. Wasn’t this blatantly undermining her in front of her boyfriend and future sister-in-law?
"Zhizhi, what do you mean? I’m not as delicate as you say, and I don’t need you to apologize on my behalf." She immediately retorted.
With that said, Cheng Zhizhi’s face instantly showed a look of embarrassment and humiliation, as if she had been greatly wronged, and she tentatively asked: "Shishi, what’s really wrong with you today?"
Ye Qiu remained silent, and Ye Cheng was completely clueless as to why the mood had suddenly changed. He anxiously stood up to support Lee Shishi, concernedly asking: "Are you really feeling unwell? I’ll accompany you to the hospital!"
So Lee Shishi felt even more uncomfortable inside, thinking that no one could understand her grievances, especially hating the opportunity she had created with her own hands.
"Will you love another woman besides me?" She suddenly decided to be brave for once, looking stubbornly at Ye Cheng with wide eyes.
"Of course not." Ye Cheng answered very assuredly, "Has someone said something to you? Rest assured, if I didn’t truly love you, why would I bring you to meet my siblings?"
His words gave Lee Shishi some confidence. She turned to look at Ye Qiu raising a glass and then glanced at the slightly pale Cheng Zhizhi, before calmly sitting down.
After this, Cheng Zhizhi no longer had the opportunity to perform. Lee Shishi completely assumed the posture of the hostess, preventing any chance for her and Ye Cheng to converse alone.
After the meal, Lee Shishi, Ye Cheng, and Ye Qiu accompanied Cheng Zhizhi to the door: "Zhizhi, you should head back, I still have things to attend to."
Cheng Zhizhi thick-skinned asked: "Ye Cheng, won’t you see me off? After all, I’m Shishi’s family friend."
"He doesn’t have time, he’s got tasks to do for me." Before Lee Shishi or Ye Cheng could speak, Ye Qiu made the decision for them, now far from how he was previously just watching from the sidelines.
Ye Cheng gave Ye Qiu a surprised look, then took out his phone and said: "Sorry, I’ll call a car for you."
"No need." Cheng Zhizhi sourly looked at Lee Shishi and hatefully stared at Ye Qiu, eventually striding away.
"Are you two hiding something from me?" Ye Cheng, not being a fool, directly asked.
Lee Shishi didn’t know how to respond, while Ye Qiu smiled and spoke: "Brother’s girlfriend is coveting you. Didn’t you notice? And sister-in-law is claiming her territory. Big brother, sister-in-law is jealous."
"Cheng Zhizhi has feelings for me?" Ye Cheng was astonished and then, looking at Lee Shishi with a mix of amusement and disbelief, said, "You should have told me. I’ll keep my distance from her in the future."
"I’ll clarify this with her when I get back today." Lee Shishi said with firm determination, "Since she has such thoughts, we can’t even be friends."
Then she turned to Ye Qiu and said: "Earlier, I was confused. Thank you for helping me see things clearly."
"We’re family, why be so polite?" Ye Qiu took out the bag Cheng Zhizhi gave, "Sister-in-law, please return this to her and tell her I cooked this meal for you, not for her."
"I will."
"Sister-in-law, don’t feel guilty. I understand your feelings, after all, you’ve been friends since childhood. Luckily, her tactics weren’t brilliant this time, and you noticed timely. More importantly, my brother only has you in his heart."
Hearing this, Lee Shishi realized another layer of meaning. This time Cheng Zhizhi’s tactics weren’t brilliant, so she noticed timely. But what if next time someone with higher skills comes along?
Ye Qiu spoke again: "Defense is only temporary. As long as my brother is always on your side, it will never be a problem."
The reasoning is sound, but Lee Shishi felt she couldn’t relax. Even if Ye Cheng always holds her in his heart, if someone comes along whose tactics are high, he could be inadvertently caught. So she couldn’t stay naïve like before; Ye Cheng’s intelligence and his siblings’ achievements meant his future status wouldn’t be low, changing herself is imperative.
She felt fortunate to have Ye Qiu as a future sister-in-law, not only not shying away but always standing by her side, helping her.
What Ye Qiu said about needing Ye Cheng was just a way to brush Cheng Zhizhi off; he actually had more work to attend to. Then they left together, and midway Ye Cheng received a call from the company, so Lee Shishi went home alone, only to find Cheng Zhizhi sitting in her living room.
"Shishi, Zhizhi has been waiting for you for a while. You two have a chat while I go out to buy something." Mrs. Li smiled at the two of them.
Lee Shishi sat down with a somewhat cold expression: "Why are you here looking for me?"
Cheng Zhizhi didn’t feel embarrassed at all; instead, she was particularly self-righteous: "Shishi, are you really going to completely give up on me as a friend?"
"Ever since you started coveting Ye Cheng again, you should know we can’t go back to the way we were." Lee Shishi coolly replied, "You should go; our friendship ends here."
"You’re really heartless!" Cheng Zhizhi stood up, not showing any sad expression, provocatively smiling, "But I won’t give up."
Lee Shishi defiantly met her gaze: "As long as I’m here, you’ll never have a chance."
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