Shi Che walked over somewhat stiffly and thanked them earnestly. "Thank you both very much for inviting us. Sorry for the intrusion."
Ye Lan put on his professional smile. "It's fine. Just another pair of chopsticks. Sit down."
"Don't be so polite. Make yourselves at home and eat as much as you like." Ye Xunzhi brought out the rice cooker and opened the lid so they could scoop out however much they wanted.
"Thank you." Shi Che's manner noticeably softened when he was dealing with a child.
At the same time, he keenly sensed that the gaze behind him seemed to have grown even sharper, making it difficult to ignore.
So what on earth was going on?!
Shi Che racked his brains. Had he offended Best Actor Ye at some point?
When exactly had it happened? Just now, of course.
Ye Xunzhi made an awestruck exclamation in her mind.
[Wow, so this is a genuine "double-door refrigerator." Captain Shi's chest, roughly judging from its frontal width, is about 43 centimeters across. Then, using his head length of approximately 23.04 centimeters and his side-profile proportions, I can calculate the depth. Then, assuming his chest is an ellipse inscribed in a rectangle, its circumference theoretically comes to approximately...]
[An average adult man who's 1.92 meters tall has a chest circumference of around 117.12 centimeters, but Captain Shi's is definitely over 120. Plus, he's tall and handsome.]
Ye Xunzhi's voice was more solemn than ever. [A chest over 120 centimeters: a man's finest dowry.]
Ye Lan: "..."
You studied math all these years to calculate this???
He was so angry he nearly fainted. Wasn't it just a chest over 120 centimeters? What was so great abou...
Ye Lan's gaze landed on Shi Che's exceptionally fine, handsome chest contours, still visible beneath his clothes. With a chest measuring less than 110 centimeters, Ye Lan made a deeply sorrowful discovery.
He had lost.
Why did this big oaf get to have such an outstanding physique? I refuse to accept it. Damn it, having a great body doesn't mean anything, understand?!
Shi Che turned around and caught Ye Lan's jealous gaze before he could withdraw it. Just then, Ye Xunzhi finished serving Shi Yao some rice and gestured for him to come get his own.
Looking at the smiling Ye Xunzhi before him, Shi Che suddenly understood. So that was it: an older brother's jealousy.
He must be feeling hurt after seeing his little sister being so nice to someone else. I understand. I feel hurt too when my own little sister is nice to other people.
The four sat down at the table. Shi Yao was lively and a little carefree, completely ignoring the undercurrents between the two older brothers.
She devoted herself wholeheartedly to pulling the girl she thought of as her princess into a stream of chatter.
A child's affection was always especially pure. If you treated her well, she treated you well, just like a mirror-simple and easy to understand.
Ye Xunzhi did not like children, but she only disliked brats. A good little girl like Shi Yao, who was merely a little too lively, was still acceptable to her.
[So this little one used to be the sort who'd beam at the slightest bit of sunshine? She's nothing like the cold, heartless person she became after her brother died.]
Ye Lan froze and looked at Shi Che, who was diligently eating his rice across from him. This big oaf died in the future?
[The family doesn't know, but Captain Shi is actually Fourth Brother's good friend. When Fourth Brother first joined the military, he was the one in charge of him.]
[With Fourth Brother's lawless personality, it's a good thing he had someone watching him and nagging him from time to time. That's the only reason he never went astray.]
[Captain Shi originally had excellent physical fitness. Unfortunately, someone underhanded plotted against him, and an explosion damaged his body's foundations, leaving him unable to carry out high-intensity missions anymore. He couldn't accept it and submitted his resignation.]
Ye Xunzhi occasionally responded to the little girl to show that she was listening attentively, while continuing to think things over.
[But the higher-ups didn't want to lose someone so talented, so they never approved it. Captain Shi's appearance on this variety show with his sister was specially authorized by the military, too. They wanted him to recuperate physically and mentally, ideally come to terms with things, and return.]
[Fourth Brother is on a mission right now. Once he returns, he'll probably ask Third Brother for help.]
The third one, huh. Ye Lan thought of his younger brother who had eaten a fly. Although he might have become a little too obsessed with studying medicine, overall, his medical skill was undeniably superb.
If it was him, perhaps he really could do it.
[You know, while other doctors were helpless, Third Brother took the traditional Chinese medicine approach and actually developed an acupuncture technique for him a year later.]
[Unfortunately, by then, some of our family were dead, some were disabled, and some were seeking revenge. Something happened to Fourth Brother, too.]
[To avenge his good friend, Captain Shi didn't even have time to properly treat his injuries. He immediately returned to his post and began investigating. He most likely discovered something and was poisoned.]
Ye Lan wondered expressionlessly whether everyone in the Ye family, from the oldest to the youngest, had been emperors in their previous lives, which was why there were always villains trying to harm them.
As for Shi Che, Ye Lan's gaze softened considerably. The fourth brother had the most inscrutable temperament of all his brothers, and it was rare for him to make a true friend. He would take the initiative to tell the third brother about this later.
Early detection, early treatment.
[But now I'm here! I know that acupuncture technique, and I can treat him too. No need to wait a year!] Ye Xunzhi cheered joyfully in her mind.
[The problem is finding a pretext. How should I persuade Third Brother to cooperate with me?]
Does a younger brother even need persuading?
The second brother, who had been dealing heavy blows to his younger brothers since childhood, could not understand. Put a sack over his head and beat him up, and he would agree to anything.
The meal left hosts and guests alike happy. Shi Che keenly sensed that Best Actor Ye's attitude toward him seemed to be gradually softening again. He even started conversations with him.
When Shi Che offered to send over some food, Ye Lan accepted without standing on ceremony and said he looked forward to eating together again next time.
Shi Che reasonably deduced that this was probably because Ye Lan had noticed his sister's attention was no longer on him, and had seen Ye Xunzhi getting along well with Shi Yao. That was why his attitude had gradually improved.
Best Actor Ye really is a closeted sister fanatic.
Having reached this conclusion, Shi Che successfully convinced himself.
After the meal, Shi Che and Shi Yao volunteered to take charge of clearing up the bowls and chopsticks. Shi Che washed the dishes, Shi Yao collected the plates, and Ye Lan wiped the table.
Ye Xunzhi... Ye Xunzhi leaned back in a nearby lounge chair, sunning herself like an elderly man.
After sunning her front, she sunned her back. As a slacker who took good care of herself, Ye Xunzhi needed to bask in the sunshine from time to time. Wearing sunglasses, she lay peacefully flat on the lounge chair.
Just then, the gate of the combined four-unit residence was pushed open. A fashionably dressed man wheeled a suitcase through it, followed by a boy around ten years old.
The man scanned the courtyard, locked onto a figure, curled his lips, and walked over.
"Well, well, if it isn't our Best Actor Ye. It's only been a few days, and you've sunk so low you're wiping tables now."
Hearing that snide voice, Ye Lan could not be bothered to indulge him. With a flick of his hand, he threw the cloth he was holding.
The man deftly shifted aside and dodged the attack. Ye Lan straightened and raised an eyebrow.
"I was wondering who it was. Turns out it's Nie Chu. Why so aggressive? Are you not going to live to see tomorrow?"
Ye Lan deliberately stressed his name, dialing the mockery up to the maximum.
Nie Chu was so angry he wanted to curse. Choosing that stage name in a moment of madness had been the greatest pain of his life.
Anyone else would never have dared to mock his name so openly.
[Whoa!] At the sound of that name, the "slacker," who had been turning over, immediately did a sit-up.
Ye Xunzhi pushed up her sunglasses and opened her discerning eyes wide.
[Nie Chu, the guy who swings both ways! He debuted in a group with Second Brother through a talent competition back then, and he's always disliked Second Brother. They clash every time they meet!]
[I heard he has seven financial backers in total, both men and women. Good heavens, seven Dragon Balls can summon the dragon, yet he still hasn't been drained dry.]
Ye Xunzhi recalled the explosive gossip she had once heard and seen.
[How did this guy's reputation come crashing down again? Right, he ended up in the hospital after getting too wild with his backers, and a resourceful paparazzo photographed him.]
[The paparazzo even followed that lead and kept digging, paying a hefty sum to bribe a doctor in the colorectal department. According to the doctor's tearful account, this guy basically came in once every two weeks, always using the same excuse: he'd sat on something and it had gone up his butt.]
[Wine bottles, rolling pins, and light bulbs were all child's play. The most shocking thing was that they even stuffed crayfish in there. During the digital examination, the doctor got pinched, leaving him with an enormous psychological scar on the spot.]
Nie Chu was still angrily retorting, "Ye Lan, your mouth is as stubborn as ever. You think your name sounds so great?"
Ye Lan looked at him with a peculiar expression, then suddenly smiled. "I don't know whether my name sounds good, but is your butt doing okay?"
Nie Chu: !!!
Before you continue