The Older Brother Hero at Twenty-Eight Who Never Cared Much for Eating

Si Jiu was genuinely famished, so for once, she ate her meal in a proper, orderly fashion, without trying to stir up any trouble for Xie Yu.

Xie Yu, however, ate very little. The bowl of rice in front of him remained almost untouched.

"You're even picky about the food you cooked yourself? Are you always this difficult?"

Faced with having her pickiness called out, Xie Yu showed not a hint of embarrassment. "I ate fruit this afternoon. I'm not hungry."

He ate less than a rabbit, yet his strength was anything but small. Hmm... he was certainly full of vigor, too.

He was practically inhuman.

But... what if he really wasn't human?

Humans didn't have eyes that could transform into vertical slits. What was going on with Xie Yu?

"Why do you keep staring at me?"

"I'm using you to help me eat. You did the same thing to me last time, didn't you?"

Xie Yu paused, then smiled faintly. "Caught me."

"Mmhmm." Si Jiu rested her chin on her hand. "So, can Mr. Xie tell me now? What exactly were you thinking when you broke into my house in the middle of the night and climbed into my bed?"

At the mention of this, a shadow of gloom passed through Xie Yu's eyes.

"Last night... I was wrong. I'm sorry."

She had been hoping for the truth, but all she got was an apology.

Si Jiu tilted her head and smiled. "Even if you are very handsome, your actions could technically be described as rape..."

Xie Yu’s hand shot across the table, pinching her lips shut. He looked flustered. "Can you not use that word?"

"Besides, you were the one who provoked me first."

Si Jiu swatted his hand away. "I only provoked you, and you ended up raping..."

"Hey, if you pinch me again, I’m going to get angry."

"If you say that word again, I'm going to kiss you," he said, his voice laced with agitation and embarrassment.

"How are you going to take responsibility... let go of me..."

"I'll let go, but you are not allowed to use that word again."

As soon as Xie Yu released her, Si Jiu immediately added, "Rapist."

Xie Yu was speechless.

Not content with that, she reached out and kicked him under the table. Her soft, fair foot landed right against the top of his thigh. One kick wasn't enough; she pressed down and nudged him several times.

Xie Yu’s gaze turned increasingly dangerous. Suddenly, he grabbed her ankle, his voice dropping to a low, gravelly tone.

"Don't tempt me."

His eyes were dark and restrained, as if a wild beast were hiding deep within him, ready to break out at the slightest provocation.

Feeling the heat and the iron grip of his hand on her ankle, Si Jiu became uncharacteristically well-behaved.

Xie Yu let out a soft breath and released her.

Seeing her immediately pull her feet back into her slippers and sit up straight with an obedient expression, he curled his lips. "Are you full?"

Si Jiu nodded. "Are you still going to tell me a story tonight?"

It was already past eight o'clock.

"Do you want me to?"

"Of course. If you don't tell me a story, I can't fall asleep."

It was hard to tell how much of that was actually true.

But at this point, Xie Yu no longer cared about the truth. On the contrary, he found this "dependence" from Si Jiu to be quite gratifying.

"Fine."

"Great. Go wash the dishes, then," Si Jiu said with a wave of her hand. "I’m going to feed Mantou."

When Xie Yu returned from the kitchen after cleaning up, he saw Mantou, already full, resting its head on Si Jiu's lap, letting her stroke it. The silly dog looked completely content, and Si Jiu wore a look of pure joy.

Suddenly, he felt a sting of irritation.

He strode over, grabbed the dog by the scruff of its neck, and nudged it aside. "With a head that big, doesn't it feel heavy?"

Though he said this, he immediately lay down on the sofa where Si Jiu was sitting and rested his own head on her lap.

Si Jiu: "...Are you really jealous of a dog?"

The strangest thing was Mantou.

Even though it had been incredibly affectionate toward Xie Yu when they first met, now, after being treated like that, it didn't even let out a whimper. It scurried off to a corner as if terrified.

This fear seemed to stem from some kind of natural, hierarchical suppression.

Si Jiu lowered her gaze to meet his deep, inscrutable eyes, lost in thought.