Dinner had been prepared entirely to Wen Ning and Wen Jing's tastes.
The dining table was lavish and ostentatious. Their mother sat at the head, with their father to her left and Wen Jing beside him. Wen Ning and Bo Yan sat to her right, where she could easily serve them food.
In front of the elders, Bo Yan was quite the actor, putting on a thoroughly innocent and harmless facade. If Wen Ning hadn't known his true colors, she probably would have been fooled by the bastard too.
"Mom, Dad, what happened before was my fault. I came today to ask Ningning to forgive me and take her home." Bo Yan's voice was hoarse from his injuries and illness. With his gaze lowered, he spoke slowly and meekly.
Wen Ning's parents glanced at Bo Yan's still-red ears and slightly reddened lips-
The two looked at each other, unable to hide the shock in their eyes.
They had heard the moment they arrived home that their son-in-law was here, in their daughter's bedroom. Apparently, the two were talking.
Knowing how much their daughter loathed this new son-in-law, they had hurried upstairs, afraid the two would come to blows.
As soon as they reached the third floor, they saw Wen Jing outside his sister's bedroom, his rear sticking out as he eavesdropped at the door.
His father went up and gave him a kick. Wen Jing hurriedly gestured for him to be quiet, then waved the two over excitedly.
His father was utterly disdainful. As if he would eavesdrop on the children!
A few seconds later, all three were stacked together, rears sticking out as they peeked inside.
When they saw Bo Yan teasing Wen Ning, all three gaped!
When they saw Wen Ning pounce on Bo Yan and force a kiss on him, all three reeled back in unison!
When they heard Wen Ning say she lusted after Bo Yan's body, all three nearly collapsed onto their bottoms!
Seeing that things inside were about to become unsuitable for children, all three hurriedly made their presence known!
Even now, Wen Ning's parents still hadn't recovered from the couple's little romantic back-and-forth of teasing and kissing!
At first, they had thought their proud, willful daughter was simply having a spat with that boy from the Bo Family. Seeing that she hadn't gone back to the Bo Family for three days, they had decided that Wen Ning and Bo Xubai must have had a serious falling-out this time. They had already arranged for people to find out what had happened in the Bo Family lately, intending to lend their daughter a hand!
Then Wen Ning had hit them with this bang, no different from a heavy hammer blow!
Wen Ning knew nothing of their thoughts. She glanced at the dishes on the table. The spread was plentiful and delicious.
But when her gaze swept over the food in front of Bo Yan, she frowned slightly and moved the plate of garlic-fried shrimp in front of him over to Wen Jing.
Everyone at the table, Bo Yan included, froze for a moment.
Then Wen Ning turned to Auntie Zhao, who was standing nearby, and said, "Auntie Zhao, when my husband comes over for dinner from now on, please make fewer seafood dishes. He's allergic to seafood."
She said it naturally, then ladled Bo Yan a bowl of loofah and pork rib soup.
There were two soups on the table: a seafood soup and this loofah and pork rib soup.
The loofah and pork rib soup had been made especially for her father. He had been busy with the group's affairs lately and was suffering from excessive internal heat.
Setting the soup beside Bo Yan's hand, Wen Ning smiled at him, her eyes curving, and said softly, "Honey, eat more. You've lost so much weight again lately."
Bo Yan stared at her in a daze for a long time.
A moment later, he pressed his lips together and murmured an assent. He lowered his head and picked up his spoon, stirring the soup as though his mind were elsewhere.
Wen Ning sighed silently.
Her best friend had told her that, in the early-to-middle part of the novel, Bo Xubai's pack of disreputable friends had deliberately tormented Bo Yan to curry favor with Bo Xubai. Right in front of Bo Xubai, they had forcibly stuffed an entire plate of unprepared raw seafood into Bo Yan's mouth. Bo Yan had vomited incessantly and suffered a severe allergic reaction. He had been taken to the hospital and had nearly died.
Meanwhile, Bo Xubai and his crowd had stood by, laughing and chatting as they watched Bo Yan struggle in agony before them, as though they were watching a comedy show.
When Wen Ning had heard that part, a chill of revulsion had swept through her.
She really, really hated bullying!
That part of the plot had left a deep impression on her. Even now, remembering it filled her with an overwhelming sense of oppression.
But the others at the table knew nothing of the reason behind this. Her parents only saw how well their daughter knew Bo Yan, while Wen Jing only saw that his sister, that hopeless love-brain, had eyes for her husband and none for him.
"Sis, just because my brother-in-law's allergic to it doesn't mean you can dump the dish he's allergic to in front of me!" Wen Jing complained mournfully.
Wen Ning smiled. "I remember you love this dish."
Wen Jing pouted. "I do, but-"
Before he could finish, his sister shot him a dagger-eyed look. "Then why all the nonsense? Even food can't shut your mouth."
Wen Jing let out an indignant cry, his hackles rising. "Mom, look at her! She's siding with an outsider! She's bullying me for her husband!"
Having weathered all kinds of storms, their mother was gradually digesting the possibility that her daughter really had changed and fallen for Bo Yan.
She shot her foolish son a dagger-eyed look too. "What do you mean, siding with an outsider? He's your brother-in-law. How is he an outsider?"
Seeing that his wife had taken a stance, their father immediately chimed in. "Exactly! He's your brother-in-law! What's wrong with your sister looking out for her husband? Tell me, what's wrong with that?"
Under a combined three-way assault from his sister and parents, Wen Jing threw his head back and howled. Finally, like an aggrieved little punching bag, he shut up and ate his shrimp!
But throughout, he kept staring resentfully at Bo Yan, as though what he was eating wasn't shrimp but the brains of Bo Yan, who had stolen his place in the family!
As though sensing it, Bo Yan looked up. Meeting Wen Jing's resentful gaze, he curled his lips slightly into a gentle, harmless smile.
Wen Jing's hackles rose again. The asshole! Just because he had accepted him as his brother-in-law didn't mean he didn't hate him!
He was his mother's and sister's one and only servant. This asshole could forget about stealing his position!
"What are you staring at? Eat!" His mother glared at her foolish son, then used the serving chopsticks to place a piece of sweet-and-sour pork rib in Bo Yan's bowl. "Eat more, Xiao Yan. Ningning's right. You do look much thinner than before."
Bo Yan froze for a moment. He stared at the rib in his bowl, then looked up and smiled at her. "Thank you, Mom."
Wen Ning served him some food too. "Exactly, exactly. Eat more and put on some weight. You're too skinny now. Your bones dig into my hands when I hug you."
Bo Yan's hand trembled, and a faint flush spread uncontrollably over his ears again. He turned and gave her a cold look.
Wen Ning pretended not to see and lowered her head to shovel rice into her mouth.
Her parents and Wen Jing: "..."
"Ahem." Her father cleared his throat and asked Bo Yan, "Xiao Yan, I heard you were transferred to headquarters recently. How is it? Is the work going all right?"
"I'm still getting the hang of things," Bo Yan replied modestly.
Her father nodded. "If you run into any difficulties, just tell me."
Bo Yan was silent for a few seconds. "Thank you, Dad."
With that, he lowered his head and continued eating without another word.
Wen Ning noticed that Bo Yan seemed a little uncomfortable and kept getting distracted during dinner. She guessed he might not be used to this sort of occasion.
At the Bo Family home, whenever Bo Yan's father was present, no one ever spoke at the table.
When his father was absent, the table was filled with Bo Xubai's and the original owner's barbed remarks aimed at Bo Yan.
Bo Yan was used to being treated coldly. Care like this made him seem somewhat out of place.
He was clearly sitting right there, yet Wen Ning felt as though a barrier surrounded him. She couldn't break it from the outside, and Bo Yan couldn't get out from within.
Dinner was lively. Only Bo Yan remained isolated from the world, lonely and cold.
Occasionally, Bo Yan would glance sideways at the person beside him.
Wen Ning wasn't a reserved person to begin with. She talked quite a lot and was quite the snarker, always leaving Wen Jing speechless with her retorts.
Wen Jing was at the very bottom of this family's food chain, with no choice but to be bullied by his sister. In the end, whether his brain had short-circuited or what, he actually started grasping at straws and sought help from Bo Yan, his enemy of a brother-in-law, vainly hoping he could rein in his sister's venomous tongue!
"Brother-in-law, say something!" Wen Jing openly tried to form an alliance!
Bo Yan stared at Wen Ning's radiant smile, lost in thought again.
As though sensing something, Wen Ning turned to look at him.
Bo Yan paused, then hurriedly withdrew his gaze, schooling his expression in the blink of an eye.
His peach-blossom eyes curved as he smiled pleasantly. "I wouldn't dare. Your sister calls the shots in this family."
Wen Ning: "..."
Ha. Like hell I believe you!