Where did my wife go?

Perhaps the hunger had already passed, or perhaps it was because he had bitten Lu Shiyi, but Yu Qingchuan finally no longer felt the urge to eat.

He gave a little yawn. He had received several more art commissions that day and should have been drawing the line art, but those two hours at the Yu family home had been exhausting. All Yu Qingchuan wanted to do was sleep.

After he delivered the first batch of character designs, the authors were delighted and paid the remaining balances promptly, without needing a reminder from Yu Qingchuan. Then they showed their commissions to their friends and recommended him, and the new artist Qinglindu's private messages began buzzing.

Yu Qingchuan accepted the commissions and received another batch of deposits. His total earnings had already reached five figures.

Although he still couldn't compare to Lu Shiyi's net worth or earning power, he wasn't doing too badly, was he?

Besides, he would soon be taking charge of the Smart Home project. According to Lu Shiming, Lu Shiyi had been the one to discover it.

His weight was still steadily dropping. He would definitely be a little slimmer again tomorrow!

The next day, Yu Chenyi summoned Yu Qingchuan to the Yu Corporation to join the project team. He even shared an office with Lu Shiming.

Lu Shiming was delighted and bustled around tidying and setting up Yu Qingchuan's desk. The contrast with his previous behavior left their coworkers dumbfounded.

Wasn't this storyline a little off? Hadn't Lu Shiming hated the eldest young master pursuing him? Why was he being so attentive now?

If he had a tail, he would have wagged it so fast it blurred.

Still, the eldest young master had changed so much. His overbearing manner was gone, replaced by humility and gentleness, and even his eyes looked clear. Most importantly, he had lost a lot of weight. His features were actually quite delicate and handsome.

"You don't need to go back to the hospital at noon, sister-in-law. The round trip takes too long," Lu Shiming said quietly. "The hospital has professional caregivers who can look after my brother. Don't worry."

The Yu family's hospital was a top-tier private hospital, after all. Lu Shiming had spent a month at Lu Shiyi's bedside, looking after him. After that, caregivers had tended to Lu Shiyi at noon. Lu Shiming had observed them and found them all very reliable.

Yu Qingchuan still couldn't quite put his mind at ease. "It's fine. The lunch break is long anyway, and I don't usually nap. I'll take the subway there and back. It's pretty quick."

He had stayed by Lu Shiyi's side day and night for several days and had unwittingly grown a little dependent on him. He wouldn't feel reassured unless he went back to check on him at noon.

Lu Shiming was filled with admiration. His sister-in-law really made the world worth living in!

If his brother ever dared abandon his sister-in-law, he would fight him!

Yu Qingchuan didn't have much work on his first day. Yu Chenyi called him into his office for another round of instructions, after which he took a stack of project materials to read.

In short, Yu Qingchuan's job was to sell investors a dream: this project was definitely going to make money, the stake and investment term they wanted were too much, and they could still make a fortune if they lowered their demands.

Yu Qingchuan had expected the Smart Home presentation materials and project details to be dense and difficult to understand. To his surprise, after reading for a while, he found them fascinating. If the project came to fruition, it would certainly make life more convenient.

In particular, the Smart Kitchen would gather data on its owner's eating habits and suggest recipes whenever the owner didn't know what to eat.

In short, this really was a fascinating project that would bring about enormous changes.

Yu Qingchuan read with relish.

Even his opinion of Yu Chenyi improved a little.

Although Yu Chenyi wasn't a responsible husband or father at home, he was undeniably capable.

Yu Qingchuan took notes as he read, considering what approach he could take in negotiations with Starbright International and how he could win them over. Once he finished writing, he could show Yu Chenyi.

Lu Shiming also came over to take a look, discussed it with him, and offered plenty of ideas.

The other members of the project team were shocked to discover that their eldest young master truly had turned over a new leaf. He was actually taking notes, and Lu Shiming was having a lively conversation with him.

Was this the power of love?

After a busy morning, Yu Qingchuan was already a little hungry. But he wanted to go back to see Lu Shiyi as soon as his shift ended, leaving him no time for lunch. He only grabbed two rice balls to eat on the way.

He had woken at six that morning, gone home to take his medicine, made breakfast and lunch, then caught the subway to work. He really had been run off his feet.

When Yu Qingchuan reached the hospital room, the nurse told him the caregiver had already given Lu Shiyi his nutritional formula. Yu Qingchuan held Lu Shiyi's hand and let out a breath. At last, all the exhaustion from his morning had somewhere to go. He complained quietly, "Brother Yi, I'm a little tired. The project is interesting, but I still prefer something quieter. If only I could hire you. Then I could leave all my assets for you to manage and just focus on drawing. But hiring you must be expensive, right? My little bit of money probably wouldn't even cover your salary."

Yu Qingchuan buried his face in Lu Shiyi's palm and nuzzled it gently. "Wake up soon, Brother Yi. I'm really looking forward to seeing you take the business world by storm."

Although, by then, he would probably only be watching as a stranger.

He had no idea that Lu Shiyi had heard every word of his little complaints.

Lu Shiyi answered tenderly in his heart, All right. I'll take care of everything from now on. You'll only have to do what you love.

He felt that if he kept sharing a bed with Yu Qingchuan like this, he would fully wake up in another two weeks at most.

But Yu Qingchuan's constant trips between the hospital, home, and work really were exhausting. Lu Shiyi felt that his condition was very stable now, and he could recuperate at home.

Once he had accumulated a little more strength that night, he would contact his ready-made younger brother tomorrow about getting discharged.

That afternoon, Yu Qingchuan continued taking notes. During a little break from work, though, he used a gel pen to draw a chibi version of himself in his notebook, hands on his hips as he enthusiastically pitched his project to his investor overlord. Across from him, he drew Lu Shiyi listening, his expression icy and apparently utterly uninterested in the project.

When Lu Shiming leaned over to look, he exclaimed over how cute it was. He even took a photo on his phone and sent it to Liang Xingyao: "Brother Yao, Brother Yao, look! Qingchuan drew this. Isn't it adorable? After seeing this drawing, could you really bear to turn down our project?"

Liang Xingyao replied quickly, attaching a photo of himself. "It's pretty good. Have Yu Qingchuan draw a picture of me that I'm happy with, and we'll have an easier time discussing business."

Yu Qingchuan was speechless.

Wait, were all you business big shots like this? Weren't you supposed to engage in verbal sparring, argue your cases, and refuse to concede an inch?

One drawing could settle it?

Liang Xingyao had rakish, flirtatious good looks, and inspiration struck Yu Qingchuan the instant he saw the photo.

He would paint a Nine-Tailed Fox Lord. That was sure to satisfy Liang Xingyao.

He agreed to paint it that evening and wanted to give him an oil painting. But that meant he couldn't sleep at the hospital that night, because his easel, paints, and brush set were all at home.

Yu Qingchuan felt torn. He still really wanted to sleep beside Lu Shiyi. It had almost become a habit.

But on second thought, he couldn't let himself develop that habit. Once Lu Shiyi woke up, he would have to sleep alone again.

And so Lu Shiyi, who had been looking forward to gathering energy that night and had even hoped to engineer an accidental kiss, heard Yu Qingchuan's cold, heartless words: "Brother Yi, I'm not sleeping here tonight. I have to paint something for Mr. Liang, so make sure you get some good rest on your own."

Lu Shiyi was utterly bewildered.

Where did my whole entire wife go?

Liang Xingyao, just you wait.