Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Pei Yufeng's hand paused mid-peel, his face going still for a second.

Ji Yunshu saw his surprised, even somewhat flustered look, and couldn't help the slight smile tugging at her lips: "Let me put it this way, Brother Pei—have you ever thought about who you might want to marry someday?"

Pei Yufeng felt this question was much easier to answer than the last one. He looked up at Ji Yunshu, his usually stern face softened by the sunlight streaming through the window: "I've never really thought about it."

"Really not at all." Ji Yunshu muttered softly. Just like in her dream, Pei Yufeng had given everything to his country.

"Hmm? What did you say?" Pei Yufeng didn't catch her muttering. He leaned in a little closer, the distance between them less than an arm's length, his dark eyes fixed on hers.

Ji Yunshu felt a little uneasy under his gaze and quickly said, "I'm just curious—did Brother Pei never meet anyone you really liked on the island?"

Even as she said this, her heart was already starting to race. She tried to act casual, picking up a slice of peach with her fork and taking a bite—it was crisp and very sweet.

"No." Pei Yufeng answered this time very directly, his voice dropping a few notches. "I never paid attention to the women on the island."

Grandma, sitting nearby, waved her palm-leaf fan and chuckled, coming to Pei Yufeng's rescue: "Him? He's a block of wood. Ask him what kind of girl he likes, and he'll be thinking about it till next year. Forget about a girlfriend—he'd be lucky if any girl even took a liking to him."

"A guy as great as Brother Pei must have plenty of women who like him." Ji Yunshu was amused by Grandma's remark and let it go.

Pei Yufeng kept his head down, carefully arranging the remaining peach slices on the plate one by one, his movements slow, as if he had all the time in the world.

Grandma chitchatted with Ji Yunshu for a while longer. Finally, she set down her fan, glanced at Ji Yunshu, and asked casually: "Xiaoshu, tell Grandma the truth—do you have any feelings for that boy from the He family, or not?"

Ji Yunshu answered without missing a beat: "No. Grandma, I really don't like him."

As she said this, Pei Yufeng happened to place the last slice of peach onto the plate. His fingers paused for a moment, then he continued as if it were nothing, gently pushing the plate toward Ji Yunshu.

Grandma let out an "Oh," gave Pei Yufeng a knowing smile, and didn't ask any more questions.

But what Ji Yunshu didn't notice was that the moment Pei Yufeng lowered his head, his lashes fluttered slightly. He looked down at his fingers, stained with peach juice, and the corner of his mouth twitched—so subtly it was almost invisible.

When he raised his head again, his face still had that same indifferent look, but his eyes were brighter than before.

The three of them sat in the living room for a while longer. Grandma chatted with Ji Yunshu for a long time, and Pei Yufeng listened the whole time, barely saying a word.

The sun was starting to sink toward the west, and the heat had eased up. Ji Yunshu stood up and said she should be heading back.

Pei Yufeng stood up too: "I'll walk you home."

Grandma waved her hand: "Go on, then."

The two of them left the Pei house and headed toward the Ji family home. The sun was already low in the west, their shadows stretched long on the ground, one trailing behind the other. Pei Yufeng walked on Ji Yunshu's left side, his pace neither fast nor slow, matching hers. The street was mostly empty, with only the occasional neighbor passing by who would greet them warmly, their eyes darting between the two of them before hurrying on their way.

As they neared the entrance to the Ji family courtyard, Ji Yunshu spotted someone standing at the gate up ahead, holding a canvas bag.

As she drew closer, she recognized him—it was He Jianjun.

He was dressed in his military uniform, hair neatly combed, standing tall and straight like a poplar tree. Seeing Ji Yunshu and Pei Yufeng approaching together, his gaze lingered on Pei Yufeng for a brief moment before shifting to Ji Yunshu's face and offering a warm smile.

"Sister Yunshu." He called out, his voice loud enough for the neighbors to hear. "I've been waiting a while for you."

Ji Yunshu stopped in her tracks.

He Jianjun took a step closer, set the canvas bag on the ground, and said earnestly: "Sister Yunshu, now that the country is all for free love, arranged marriage is a relic of the old society. You were right to call off the engagement."

He paused, then looked up at Ji Yunshu with a deep, affectionate gaze: "But I want to tell you—my feelings for you all these years have been genuine. Calling off the engagement was your choice, and I respect that. But pursuing you is my right, and you can't stop me. I'm willing to wait—for the day you're ready to accept me."

He said it with such feeling, and his voice wasn't quiet either. From doorways and windows of the neighboring houses, people had already started peeking out to watch.

Ji Yunshu stood there, her brows furrowing.

On the surface, He Jianjun's words sounded like a confession, but on closer examination, they were loaded with traps. The first half of his statement put all the blame on her—whether she called off the engagement or not was her choice, so why did it need his "respect"? And after letting the whole neighborhood gossip about her for so long, with rumors spreading everywhere, he now comes back saying he wants to continue pursuing her, as if it would be her fault for not accepting him. But weren't those rumors started by his own mother?

And he deliberately chose this time of day, when everyone in the compound was just getting off work, standing at the Ji family's doorstep, saying all this in front of the neighbors—wasn't this just making it so she couldn't refuse him in front of everyone?

Wasn't this just throwing her to the wolves?

Ji Yunshu was about to reject him outright when Aunt Li, who had just gotten off work nearby, heard the commotion and called out to Grandma Wan, who was strolling by: "Jian Jun is such a good kid. Even after being rejected, he's still so devoted—that's rare these days."

Grandma Wan leaned on her cane and nodded with a smile: "These days, young men with that kind of loyalty and decency are hard to come by."

"Exactly." Someone chimed in from behind. "Officer He is so outstanding and so devoted—Sister Yunshu better know what's good for her."

"Officer He has such a bright future ahead of him. Plenty of girls would love to marry him."

"That's right, that's right. Sister Yunshu, don't be so picky."

One after another, the comments all made it clear that Ji Yunshu didn't know what was good for her.

Ji Yunshu stood at the courtyard gate, her face expressionless, but her fingers tightened on the hem of her clothes.

Just as she was about to speak, Pei Yufeng suddenly stepped forward half a step from behind her.

He didn't say anything, didn't even look at He Jianjun—he just moved to stand slightly in front of Ji Yunshu, closer to her. The distance was neither too near nor too far—just enough to block He Jianjun's line of sight without giving anyone a reason to complain.

He was nearly a head taller than He Jianjun, and could completely block Ji Yunshu behind him. Although Pei Yufeng had changed out of his military uniform and was only wearing a simple white short-sleeved shirt, the intimidating presence he'd earned through gunfire and battle was felt by everyone present.

Pei Yufeng's face still had that same indifferent look, but the corners of his mouth turned down slightly. His gaze darkened, like the sea when a wind begins to stir—nothing visible on the surface, but beneath it, currents churning beneath.

He Jianjun felt it, of course. The smile on his face froze for a split second, but he quickly put that gentle look back on.

"Yu Feng, you're here too." He smiled, his tone casual. "Walking Sister Yunshu home?"

Pei Yufeng looked at him. "Grandma wanted to see Xiaoshu. I walked her home."

The two of them stood there, two or three steps apart. One was smiling, the other had no expression. The sun shone down on them, their shadows overlapping on the ground for a moment before separating again.

The air was thick with tension.

Ji Yunshu stood behind Pei Yufeng, looking at He Jianjun, then at Pei Yufeng's back, and suddenly felt like laughing.

She wasn't used to letting Pei Yufeng stand up for her. She'd say what needed to be said herself: "Second Brother He, I've already told you—I don't have any feelings for you beyond brother-sister stuff. If you still think of me as a sister, please don't say these things anymore."

He Jianjun hadn't expected Ji Yunshu to embarrass him in front of so many people. His expression darkened for a moment, turning ugly, but he quickly suppressed it: "Sister Yunshu, I know I'm not good enough yet, but my feelings for you are sincere. Maybe you've misunderstood me recently, but that's alright—I'll prove my sincerity to you by my actions. I just came to see you today. Since I can see you're doing well, I won't bother you anymore. I'll be heading back now."

With that, before Ji Yunshu could say another word, he immediately picked up his canvas bag, his gaze darting between Pei Yufeng and Ji Yunshu, looking uncomfortable. His pace was quick, as if afraid Ji Yunshu might say something else to reject him.

A wave of anger welled up in Ji Yunshu's chest.

What did he mean by saying she had "misunderstood" him? Wasn't that clearly telling everyone present that she, Ji Yunshu, was biased against him? How had she never noticed before that He Jianjun was so good at twisting words?

Ji Yunshu was fuming.

She was just about to turn around and call He Jianjun back to make him clarify himself when she saw that he had already vanished like he'd greased his shoes and bolted!

What a piece of work!

After He Jianjun left, the windows and doors of the neighboring houses closed one after another, and the family members who had been passing by gradually drifted away. But those words had already been spoken, carried everywhere by the wind.

Ji Yunshu stood at the courtyard entrance, not moving for a long while.

No, she absolutely could not have anything more to do with He Jianjun.

Just then, Pei Yufeng, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up: "Xiaoshu, if you need help, you can come to me anytime. I won't let anyone else affect your life."

Author's note:

Thank you for reading. The next chapter will be posted on Thursday. I need to trim the word count to make the rankings, and once I'm on the rankings, I'll resume daily updates. Sorry about that.