The Atmosphere Suddenly Turned Strange

Welcome to Trapped in the Same Day for a Thousand Years, exclusively produced by Feilu Novel Network, written by Sang Ze and performed by Wang Xiaomo and Lao He. Crazy. They had to be crazy. Every last one of them.

Li Ruobing suddenly felt as if the world had become unreal. It was like watching a bizarre movie, with herself removed from it and observing everything from the sidelines.

She watched Su Qingying come out of the bathroom carrying a basin filled with freshly washed and spun-dry clothes and bedsheets.

She watched Su Qingying walk onto the balcony, slip the clothes onto hangers one by one, hang them up, and pat them smooth.

"Honey, there's no room for the bedsheets." "Coming! I'll get the rack."

Even their voices sounded distant and unreal.

Li Ruobing watched Wu Chen emerge from the kitchen. He went into another room, then came back carrying a portable folding drying rack.

Wu Chen set it up in the living room. Su Qingying carried the basin over, and together they spread out a clean bedsheet, each holding one end. They gave it a shake before draping it over the rack.

"Honey, did you check on it?"

Su Qingying suddenly cried out and hurried toward the kitchen.

"It's done. I turned off the heat. Don't worry."

Wu Chen called back to her.

They went into the kitchen one after the other and soon returned carrying plates.

The food went on the table. Still dazed, Li Ruobing vaguely heard an invitation to eat.

She accepted it and answered. "Miss Li, is that enough rice for you?"

Only when Su Qingying placed a bowl of rice in front of her did Li Ruobing snap out of her dreamlike state. She was already seated across from the two of them.

"Uh, yes. Thanks!"

Li Ruobing answered sluggishly, then finally came fully to her senses.

She looked at the two people across from her, then turned to look around.

The balcony window was open, and the hanging clothes swayed gently in the breeze.

In the space between the coffee table and the TV cabinet, a bedsheet lay spread over the folding drying rack. The scent of lavender detergent filled the room.

It was real. All of it was real.

Li Ruobing looked across the table again. Su Qingying sat with perfect posture, every inch a lady. She would never slouch or sit carelessly; it was a lifelong habit, not something she did deliberately.

She had taken off her apron and was wearing only blue men's pajamas. Her hair was down, its waves making her look a little more mature, but her expression held a distinctly girlish softness.

Li Ruobing's pupils contracted. Beneath Su Qingying's pajama top, her nipples were visible. When she changed, she apparently hadn't put on a bra—only Wu Chen's pajamas.

Had things already gone that far?

"Honey, try this. I haven't cooked in ages, so tell me if it's too salty."

Su Qingying placed a piece of lean meat in Wu Chen's bowl. He tasted it and smiled. "It's just right. Miss Li, eat up. Give it a try."

Su Qingying turned to Li Ruobing with a polite smile.

"Mm-hmm."

Li Ruobing made a vague sound, took a deep breath, and forced herself to calm down.

She looked at the dishes on the table.

Four dishes and a soup: moo shu pork, scrambled eggs with yellow chives, poached chicken, shrimp in salted water, and winter melon soup. All simple home cooking.

The poached chicken looked like ready-made food bought at the market rather than something she had cooked herself.

The other dishes were easy to make, too. It was a modest meal.

Li Ruobing didn't mind a modest meal. What stunned her was that Su Qingying had cooked it!

Li Ruobing picked up her chopsticks and tried the eggs with yellow chives. They were surprisingly good. Not restaurant-chef quality, but easily up to a capable home cook's standard.

"Is it good?"

Su Qingying asked Li Ruobing expectantly.

"It's good."

Li Ruobing nodded and managed a smile.

"Not too salty?"

Su Qingying asked again.

"No. Just right."

Li Ruobing answered.

"Then have more."

Su Qingying was genuinely pleased, her face lighting up.

She had done something her family never allowed her to do, and she had done it well. How could she not be happy?

The three of them began eating. Li Ruobing had no appetite, but she hadn't stayed just to keep them company. She wanted to find out what had happened.

"Miss Su, how long have you and Wu Chen been together?"

Li Ruobing struck up a conversation, her tone casual.

"Not long," Su Qingying replied. She turned to look at Wu Chen, her eyes full of affection. "I suppose you could call it love at first sight. Love doesn't follow reason. The moment I saw him, I knew he was the one for me."

It was so saccharine that Li Ruobing didn't believe a word. She could believe a woman like Su Qingying might fall for a man, but love at first sight? Impossible.

With her family background, she had seen too much of the world. There had to be more to it.

"I see," Li Ruobing said.

"Oh, right, Miss Li."

"Hmm?" "My husband told me about you two."

Su Qingying brought it up herself, lowering her voice. "You aren't really a couple, are you?"

Li Ruobing's chopsticks stopped. She whipped her head around and stared straight at Wu Chen. He had told another woman their secret?

Seeing her reaction, Su Qingying assumed she was worried about the secret getting out. "Don't worry, Miss Li. I won't tell anyone. But please keep our secret too. We can't let the public know we're together yet."

Wu Chen continued eating calmly. When he noticed Li Ruobing looking at him, he smiled. "Eat. What are you looking at me for?"

Li Ruobing kept staring at him. "Miss Li, please don't be angry."

Su Qingying reached over and patted the back of Li Ruobing's hand. "Really, I won't tell anyone. You can keep up the act. I won't even mind if you're affectionate in public."

"You have to understand my husband, too. Your relationship is fake, and he's helping you play along, but he can't stop dating because of that, can he?"

"And if he starts dating someone, of course he needs to tell me so there's no misunderstanding. Don't you agree?"

Su Qingying's logic was perfectly clear, and she was right.

Even so, Li Ruobing felt uncomfortable. She didn't think Su Qingying was trying to show her up, but for some reason, hearing her say "my husband" over and over grated on her.

"I'm not upset. It's fine."

Li Ruobing smiled at Su Qingying, looking perfectly natural.

But the instant Su Qingying turned her attention back to Wu Chen, Li Ruobing's smile vanished.

"Honey, have some of this."

"Honey, try this."

"Miss Li, have you been busy with work lately?"

"Miss Li, your skin is lovely. What products do you usually use?"

Su Qingying steered the conversation throughout the meal. She had never been able to talk this much at the dinner table before, and now she had plenty to say.

She was no naive fool. She was exceptionally articulate and logical, so even Li Ruobing struggled to draw her out. She couldn't get anything useful from her.

Su Qingying ate a little more than usual at that meal.

After finishing one bowl of rice, she served herself another half bowl and ate every grain. Even so, she was the first to finish.

Her upbringing had never allowed her to eat too quickly. Everything she did today was a reaction to years of restraint.

Though she had finished eating, she kept feeding Wu Chen.

"Honey, have more shrimp."

She peeled the shrimp and placed them in Wu Chen's bowl one after another, fussing over him affectionately.

Watching them, Li Ruobing grew increasingly irritated.

She suddenly put down her chopsticks and pressed a hand to her forehead. An impulse had seized her, though she had no idea why.

A few seconds later, she reached for a bright red shrimp from the plate, swiftly pulled off its head, and peeled away the shell.

"Honey, here."

Su Qingying put another peeled shrimp in Wu Chen's bowl. "Have some shrimp."

Then another hand reached over and placed a peeled shrimp in his bowl too.

It was Li Ruobing's.

Su Qingying froze, then turned sharply toward her. The atmosphere in the room suddenly turned strange.

Li Ruobing regretted it. The second after she put the shrimp in Wu Chen's bowl, she knew exactly what it looked like. It hardly felt like something she would do—currying favor with a man and challenging another woman.

She wasn't afraid of Su Qingying, but she knew Wu Chen would read into it. Later, he might ask whether she had fallen for him. He might even tease her about it.

Li Ruobing would never be a woman who fawned over a man or submitted to one.

As Su Qingying turned to her, Li Ruobing's expression faltered for a beat. Then she smiled at Wu Chen. "Go on, eat. Have plenty."

With that, she picked up her chopsticks, took a piece of poached chicken, and placed it in Su Qingying's bowl.

"You too, Miss Su."

Li Ruobing smiled naturally at Su Qingying and gestured toward the table. "There's plenty left. It would be a waste not to finish it, so you two eat up. I'm full."

Li Ruobing knew she had made a mistake and moved quickly to fix it. By serving both Wu Chen and Su Qingying, she took the edge off the strange atmosphere.

Su Qingying paused, then seemed to understand something.

"You're full already, Miss Li? Won't you have a little more?"

Su Qingying asked.

"I'm full. Thank you for the meal. You two carry on."

Li Ruobing met Su Qingying's eyes and smiled after she spoke. "It was only a simple meal. Hardly worth thanking me for."

Su Qingying smiled back. "My husband originally suggested we go to a restaurant when you arrived. But since you were coming to our home anyway, I thought I might as well cook."

"A home-cooked meal is the warmest way to welcome a guest. You are our guest, and this is the first time we've met like this, so I'm glad you enjoyed it."

Li Ruobing flared with anger. Su Qingying was calling her a guest in this home—and Li Ruobing could feel the challenge beneath it.

Su Qingying had placed herself squarely in the role of hostess. Her words sounded natural, and she was quick-thinking, but Li Ruobing still sensed the intent behind them.

She knew Su Qingying had noticed something off about her. She simply hadn't said it outright.

A woman's intuition could be frightening, and no one understood a woman better than another woman.

After speaking, Su Qingying turned to Wu Chen and glanced into his bowl. "Honey, why aren't you eating?"

She picked up her chopsticks and lifted a peeled shrimp from his bowl.

It was the one Li Ruobing had put there. Su Qingying moved it toward Wu Chen's mouth, but her hand suddenly slipped. Plop. The shrimp landed on the table, then bounced onto the floor.

"Oh, how clumsy of me! It's dirty now. Never mind, I'll throw it away."

After chiding herself, Su Qingying picked up another peeled shrimp from Wu Chen's bowl.

This one, of course, was the shrimp she had peeled herself.

"Here, honey. Have this one."

"I'll feed you."

Wu Chen ate the shrimp she offered, and Su Qingying beamed. She drew back her chopsticks, set them down, then smiled at Li Ruobing. "Miss Li, are you sure you don't want any more?"

She was provoking her!

It was a smiling, utterly composed declaration of ownership.

A challenge?

"I really am full. Thank you."

Li Ruobing's breathing grew a touch heavier, but she smiled too.

The two women held each other's gaze and fell silent, each sensing the other's hostility.

Li Ruobing still wore a smile, but she gave off the impression that she might flip the table at any moment.

"I'm full too. I can't eat another bite."

Wu Chen chose that moment to speak.

He stood up to clear the table.

Su Qingying immediately rose and stopped him, taking over the cleanup. "Honey, leave it to me. I'll clear the table and wash the dishes. Go sit with Miss Li over there. We shouldn't neglect our guest."

After saying that, Su Qingying cast Li Ruobing a seemingly casual glance.

Wu Chen didn't argue. He knew Su Qingying genuinely wanted to do it.

He looked up at Li Ruobing and gave her a signal with his eyes.

Li Ruobing stood abruptly and walked over to the sofa.

Su Qingying carried the dishes into the kitchen. Soon the sound of running water could be heard. The heiress to a fortune worth tens of billions really was washing dishes.

Wu Chen shifted the drying rack away from the coffee table, picked up the remote, and turned on the television to provide some background noise.

Only then did he sit beside Li Ruobing. "So much for that story you were spreading about what I was up to."

Li Ruobing stared at the television and asked through clenched teeth, her voice low, "What the hell are you doing?"

"Mr. Matchmaker had a thing for someone else's sweetheart. You told me to go ahead and try, so why so many questions now?"

Wu Chen smiled and glanced sideways at Li Ruobing.

His voice was quiet too. With the television on, Su Qingying couldn't possibly hear them from the kitchen.

"You did this just to beat me? You're willing to offend the Su Family? You've got some nerve."

Li Ruobing kept her voice low.

By now, she had worked out why the Su Family was investigating Wu Chen: he had lured Su Qingying away. What she couldn't understand was how, even after getting past her family, he had won Su Qingying over.

She seemed not only to have fallen in love with Wu Chen, but to be afraid someone might steal him away.

"No, no. You've got it wrong."

Wu Chen denied it. "Ask her when I first contacted her if you don't believe me. It was before we made our bet."

"Then how did you do it?"

"Guess."

Li Ruobing fell silent. She knew that if Wu Chen didn't want to tell her something, she would never pry it out of him.

"Huh?"

Wu Chen suddenly clapped a hand over the back of his neck and rolled it, looking distinctly uncomfortable. He worked his shoulders a couple of times, then muttered, "I'm exhausted. After running around all day, I ache all over."

He stopped, turned to Li Ruobing, and said, "Give me a massage."

It wasn't a suggestion or a request. It was a demand. Li Ruobing had lost another bet to him, so he had every right to ask.

They had wagered on terms. If Li Ruobing won, Wu Chen would kneel and apologize. Wu Chen's condition was that, since he had been working out lately, he needed more massages.

He had won, so Li Ruobing owed him a hundred massages. One wouldn't settle the debt. As long as they weren't in public, Wu Chen could ask her for one.

Li Ruobing took a deep breath and said through gritted teeth, "You really know how to pick your moments." "If you don't want to, forget it. I won't force you."

Wu Chen sounded indifferent.

Li Ruobing smiled wryly, but still glanced toward the kitchen doorway.

She thought for a moment, then stood and began undoing the buttons of her jacket. "Me? Right here?"

"Or should we go to your bedroom?"

Li Ruobing intended to strike back. Su Qingying might see them; she had no idea when Su Qingying would finish the dishes. But she wasn't afraid of being seen. She even hoped Su Qingying would see.

She hadn't pushed back against Su Qingying earlier because she was afraid Wu Chen would misunderstand. But she owed Wu Chen this massage after losing the bet, and she ought to honor her word. It had nothing to do with romance. If Su Qingying saw them, though, she was sure to get the wrong idea.

"The bedroom." Wu Chen stood. More than twenty minutes later, Su Qingying finished cleaning the kitchen. As she came out, she called, "Honey, are you two still talking?"