Chapter 72 Side Story 4

Chapter 72 Extra Story 4

"He loves me, he loves me not, he loves me, he loves me not..."

In the corner of the flower shop, Shen Gali clutched the pink roses, mercilessly tearing off the petals with an iron grip.

He tore a few, then got tired.

Why did one flower have to have so many petals?

He simply gathered the bloom into his palm, brought his fingers together, and pulled outward, leaving the rose in tatters, only a pitiful calyx remaining: "He loves me."

Shen Gali, who had been beaming with joy just a second ago because of the phrase "He loves me," looked at the empty alley outside the door and went emo the next second.

How could he possibly like me? If he did, why hasn't he shown up in over a month?

He didn't understand himself either. It was just a fleeting dream—after waking up, he should return to reality—but seeing the person from his dream in real life had sparked an intense obsession.

He wanted to see him again, at least to hear his voice.

Being human was so exhausting.

"Ding-a-ling—" The wind chime at the door suddenly rang crisp and clear.

Shen Gali's heart leaped with joy as he turned to look at the door, then his expression changed in an instant: "Welcome. Just look around."

The visitor appeared to be just an ordinary customer, wearing gold-rimmed glasses. But instead of browsing the flowers, he stood fixedly in front of Shen Gali, staring straight at him.

"Excuse me, are you Mr. Shen Gali?" the man asked, with refined courtesy.

Shen Gali took a slow, deep breath and nodded.

Not here to buy flowers, and deliberately confirming his name—he's definitely here to cause trouble.

"Hello, I'm Lin. I'm the executive assistant to the Executive President of Huanhai Electronics," the man said, handing over a business card. "Forgive my intrusion, but the madam wishes to invite Mr. Shen for a gathering. There's an important matter she'd like to discuss with you."

Shen Gali: ?

Huanhai Electronics?

It seemed like that was the name of Nan Liujing's family company in the dream.

Go, why wouldn't he go?

Even though it was not Nan Liujing but the "madam" who invited him, Shen Gali, being naive and trusting, cheerfully got into the car.

Upon arriving at the destination and meeting the so-called "wife," he realized she was completely different from the slightly sharp-faced Yu Huaisu in his dream. She was a gentle and kind-looking woman, always smiling, speaking in a soft, soothing voice:

"Hello, Mr. Shen. I am the wife of the current Executive Director of Huanhai Group. My surname is Jiang."

Shen Gali quietly studied the woman, noticing a strong resemblance to Nan Liujing in her brows and eyes, wondering if she might be Nan Liujing's biological mother.

Sometimes, reality was luckier than dreams. The mother who had left a lifelong regret for Nan Liujing in the dream was now standing before him safe and sound, and she matched Nan Liujing's description—gentle and amiable.

Mrs. Jiang warmly invited Shen Gali to sit down and asked the servants to prepare fruit tea and snacks, clearly intending to have a long talk.

She started with some pleasantries, asked about Shen Gali's current living situation, expressed concern for his health, and after a long preamble, finally got to the point.

"To be honest, I have a son named Nan Liujing. A month ago, he suddenly fell ill with a strange disease—loss of appetite, growing thinner day by day. Now he can't even walk properly. We've consulted many famous doctors, but none could find the cause. So we had no choice but to take a desperate gamble and invited a renowned master. The master said..."

Shen Gali: ?

That opening sounded familiar, like the beginning of many superstitious marriage for good luck stories.

But Nan Liujing was sick?

So that's why he hadn't seen him for a month? But what illness is so mysterious it baffles modern doctors?

Mrs. Jiang smiled apologetically: "The master said we need to find a man with the surname Shen born during the Zi hour on the sixteenth day of the seventh lunar month to accompany Liu Jing and take care of him, to help dispel misfortune and overcome the calamity. It was a shot in the dark, and coincidentally, among the people Liu Jing had met, there was a friend who perfectly matches those conditions. I know it's presumptuous, but I'm asking you to come anyway. I hope you'll seriously consider it."

She placed a black card on the table: "Don't worry, the compensation will not be insufficient. This card contains eight million, a small token of our esteem. I hope you'll accept it."

Shen Gali: ???

This whole spiel sounded like it was made up on the spot, full of logical holes. He didn't even know his own birth date and time—how did Mrs. Jiang find out?

Eight million was certainly tempting, but Shen Gali still said bluntly: "I've never taken care of anyone before."

"Don't worry about that. The housekeeper will assist you."

Shen Gali: Guess Uncle Li even changed his gender.

He had no idea what conspiracy this might be, but with eight million in hand and the opportunity to see Nan Liujing every day, could there be a better deal in the world?

Later, Shen Gali learned that there's no such thing as a free lunch.

The housekeeper assigned to train him was the spitting image of Yu Huaisu, with the same sharp and mean personality. Unlike the Yu Huaisu in his dream, this Housekeeper Yu seemed to wear her heart on her sleeve. The moment they met, her nose was already in the air:

"When working in the Nan family, you must know the rules, behave properly, and know when to yield and when to act. I hope you understand that you're not here to be a good luck charm. If you want to take good care of the young master, you must attend to every detail meticulously. If you slack off, the young master aside, I won't let you stay here any longer, understand?"

Shen Gali looked at her and inexplicably thought of eunuchs in power.

"I'll take you to see the young master first," Housekeeper Yu said coldly.

Shen Gali followed her to the first-floor bedroom. She knocked respectfully, and a slightly hoarse voice said "Come in".

Hearing that sickly voice, Shen Gali's fragile heart clenched involuntarily.

Judging by his voice, Nan Liujing seemed to be in bad shape. He was sick—what kind of illness could reduce a muscular man to being bedridden?

Shen Gali began to picture Nan Liujing lying weakly in bed, swaying like a withered leaf in the breeze.

Oh, how my heart aches.

Bullshit!

And you call this a sick man?!

Shen Gali looked at Nan Liujing on the bed, leaning against the headboard, a book in hand, his robe loosely revealing a large expanse of chest muscles. Even the fingers turning the pages were long and strong. No exaggeration—with those muscles, he could punch the earth to bits.

Except for a slight pallor on his face, there was no other sign of illness.

Nan Liujing glanced up, his dark, glossy eyes briefly sizing up Shen Gali, then looked down: "So you're the one my mother found to bring me good luck and ward off misfortune."

His voice was flat, betraying no emotion, making it hard for Shen Gali to tell whether he was pleased or indifferent.

"I heard you're sick. Can't they find out what's wrong?" Shen Gali was truly worried about Nan Liujing, afraid that his illness was deep in his bones, not on the surface, and that he might be suffering from a terminal disease invisible to the naked eye.

"Mm-hm, I'm sick." Nan Liujing continued flipping through his book, his voice calm and slightly careless. "Heart sickness."

Shen Gali: Heart disease? Heart disease can be treated. That's okay, I've dealt with this before.

Before he could reply, Nan Liujing continued, "Heart sickness—I suppose it's lovesickness."

Shen Gali felt a sting in his nose, his voice slightly altered: "Pining for who, to the point of getting sick?"

His mind flashed back to the handsome guy he had seen at the hotel.

Nan Liujing, however, remained nonchalant, his eyes scanning the words in the book, his voice calm as still water:

"You."

A single "you" sent an electric current through Shen Gali's body, leaving his fingertips tingling and slightly numb.

"Are you joking?" Maybe he didn't even realize how much agitation was in his voice when he asked.

Nan Liujing didn't look at him: "Yeah, a joke. Not funny? Why aren't you laughing."

The joy on Shen Gali's face slowly faded.

He shouldn't have asked; he was just asking for trouble. Why would someone he had only met twice pine for him to the point of illness? But when Nan Liujing admitted it was a joke, he still felt a pang of disappointment.

Housekeeper Yu cleared her throat beside them, her tone sharp: "The young master needs rest. Don't disturb him any further. Come with me; I have tasks for you."

As he left the room, Shen Gali stole a glance back at Nan Liujing.

He was still in the same position, eyes lowered toward the book, as if lost in a story inside it.

Downstairs, Housekeeper Yu muttered: "Your main job is to handle the young master's three meals a day. Besides that, since he's been bedridden for a long time, you need to give him muscle massages. And since he can't sleep at night, you're also responsible for coaxing him to sleep."

Shen Gali: ...

I'm not here to be a nanny, am I?

"It's almost time. You need to prepare dinner for the young master now. The menu is three dishes and a soup: steamed sea bass, stir-fried shrimp with asparagus lettuce, fruit and vegetable salad, and fish lung soup." Housekeeper Yu closed her notebook, her eyes full of arrogance as she looked at Shen Gali. "I have other things to do and can't watch you every second. Once dinner's ready, send it directly to the young master's room. You must feed him yourself, understand?"

Hearing that long list of dishes, Shen Gali wilted.

But he couldn't give up yet. In his dream, he had been all about cutting corners, but now Nan Liujing needed him. Whether he could cook or not was one thing, but he had to do it well.

But after spending over half an hour deveining shrimp, looking at the mangled results, he realized:

I'm not cutting corners—I'm genuinely useless.

Forget it, as long as it's edible, it'll do.

Two hours later, when Shen Gali carried the unidentifiable dinner to Nan Liujing's bedroom, he looked visibly thinner.

He set the tray on the table and urged, "Hurry up and eat."

After this, I'll have a proper talk with you.

Nan Liujing finally lifted his proud head from his book. One look, and his sharp brows furrowed deeply.

Pointing at a lump of unidentifiable yellow-and-white matter, he demanded, as if questioning the meaning of life: "What's that?"

Shen Gali: "Fruit and vegetable salad."

Nan Liujing: ?

Nan Liujing lifted a whole apple by its stem out of the salad dressing, holding it aloft, hints of unpeeled skin visible, patchy like patches on an old man's pants.

Shen Gali knew what he was about to ask and beat him to it: "Eating whole apples trains your jaw strength."

Nan Liujing: ...

He then pointed at a complete fish, not even gutted: "And this?"

"Steamed sea bass. Oh, eating a whole fish lets you practice your observation skills while picking out the innards."

Nan Liujing: ...

Nonsense, but somehow it made a weird kind of sense.

Just then, Housekeeper Yu burst in, standing by the tray, her sharp gaze scanning back and forth.

Then, her voice suddenly rose: "I warned you to be careful and conscientious. Look at what you made—can this even be eaten? If you don't want to do it, just say so. No one here is going to put up with you."

She was resentful. She had worked hard and carefully at the Nan household for over a decade, yet this greenhorn who had just appeared was getting paid more. Unfair! She had to put him in his place today, drive him away quickly, and let the Nans know that no one else was worthy of that eight million.

Shen Gali's brows drooped. With his naturally world-weary face, his face clearly read: "She's yelling at me. Life's not worth living."

"Well said, indeed. If you don't want to do it, get lost. No one's tolerating you." Nan Liujing's voice was flippant, almost joking, but his eyes were icy and resolute.

Shen Gali's heart tightened. It hurt.

This woman scolding him was one thing, but Nan Liujing saying that? Even in his dream world, when he wanted to divorce him, he had never said a single swear word to him.

The word "get lost" was the most hurtful in the world.

Before, he would have welcomed someone telling him to leave, peace and quiet. But hearing it from Nan Liujing felt like the sky had collapsed.

The pile of grotesque failed dishes he had struggled with blurred before his eyes. He wanted to leave, but his feet felt as if nailed to the floor.

Housekeeper Yu looked smug, shooting him a sidelong glance: "Didn't you hear the young master? He said get lost. Why are you still standing here?"

Shen Gali wiped his eyes.

Damn it. Fine, I'm gone.

He lifted his foot—

"I said get lost, didn't you hear?" Nan Liujing's voice came again.

Shen Gali was furious. Wasn't he already about to leave? Couldn't he see that?

But then Nan Liujing continued: "Who do you think you are? And who is he? He was invited as a mascot, and you—what's your job? You shrug off all your work onto him and think we hired you to be a lord?"

Silence—a deathly silence.

"Young master, young master, I'm sorry, I overstepped my bounds." Housekeeper Yu's flustered apology sounded behind him.

Shen Gali: Hehe, so he wasn't talking about me.

Nan Liujing took a heavy breath, snapped his book shut, threw it onto the table, and said to the housekeeper:

"Still standing around? You want me to repeat that word to you?"

Housekeeper Yu's face turned ashen. She bowed repeatedly, her tone ingratiating and cautious: "I'll go back to work now. Please take care of yourself, young master."

The door closed, and the world fell silent again.

Nan Liujing watched Shen Gali’s back, catching a glimpse of the redness at the corner of his eye from this angle.

He realized he had misunderstood; that "get lost" could never have been meant for him.

For some reason, even though they had only met twice, he had already made Shen Gali cry twice, and he was completely helpless in the face of those tears.

After a long pause, Nan Liujing silently picked up his chopsticks, picked up a piece of fish, and put it into his mouth.

It tasted fishy and still had scales that hadn't been scraped off.

"Shen Gali," he said softly.

Hearing his voice, Shen Gali pursed his lips to hold back his tears, then turned and looked at him with red-rimmed eyes.

"Actually, I like this game where we gut fish to sharpen our observation skills," Nan Liujing said calmly, lightly poking the fish belly with his chopsticks and pulling out a piece of liver. "See? It's the liver. I found it!"

The corners of Shen Gali's pressed lips slowly lifted.

"No praise for me?" Nan Liujing put down his chopsticks, his sharp brows gradually relaxing. "Even just one sentence."

Shen Gali wrinkled his nose, struggling to keep his delight from showing too plainly on his face.

"I'll praise you. Tonight, I'll tuck you in."

"Thanks, I'd love that." Nan Liujing's eyes curved into a beautiful arc.

"Never mind, don't eat that. I'll try again. Just hang in there a bit longer." Shen Gali reached out to take the tray.

A large hand reached over and gently grasped his wrist. "No need. You shouldn't have to do that."