A Rich Family’s Matrilocal Alpha Married to a Vegetative Omega - Chapter 6

Qin Shujian hadn’t expected to trick her so easily. Her voice held a hint of suppressed laughter as she spoke with feigned seriousness, “Hmm… it’s blurry, but I have a sensation.”

In reality, how could she? Her consciousness was merely trapped in her body; she didn’t have an out-of-body experience. There was no way she could see Ye Fan.

Hearing the smile in her voice, the hoodwinked Ye Fan finally realized something was off. However, she didn’t mind; instead, she continued to pester Qin Shujian with questions until Qin Shujian finally sighed helplessly. “It’s time to rest. Aren’t you sleepy?”

“Ah…” Ye Fan rubbed her head and shook her head. “I’m not sleepy. Actually, I’m quite excited. Just thinking about the fact that you can talk to me makes me too excited to sleep.”

“Even so, you have to sleep. Go lie down beside me.”

Qin Shujian’s words brooked no argument. Ye Fan nodded obediently but still couldn’t resist asking, “Does it feel… very uncomfortable, being trapped in your body?”

This question made Qin Shujian fall silent for a long while before Ye Fan finally heard her answer. “It feels like being inside a small, square box. I am placed within it, clearly smelling the scents and hearing the sounds, and yet…”

And yet she could do nothing. It wasn’t the first time she’d mentioned this feeling of helplessness, but the cruelest part was having to watch others make choices for her.

Ye Fan climbed into bed as Qin Shujian spoke, lying beside her and watching her.

Hearing the last sentence, Ye Fan finally couldn’t help herself. She gripped Qin Shujian’s hand firmly and vowed, “It won’t be like that. Trust me. With me here, even if we don’t tell Mother Qin about this, we will definitely find a way to change her mind.”

Hearing this, Qin Shujian seemed to let out a very soft laugh. Her voice sounded extremely calm as she said, “She isn’t that easy to persuade. But hearing you say that makes me very happy.”

Ye Fan’s heart practically broke.

Waaaah, she’s so pitiful but so cute, she even said thank you… How did such a stubborn person like Mother Qin raise such a gentle and polite daughter?

It was precisely because Qin Shujian was so gentle that the fact she had suffered such a massive misfortune felt even worse. Ye Fan was naturally an empathetic person; thinking about it this way, she was nearly moved to tears.

In the end, it was actually Qin Shujian who comforted her. The two chatted about idle things for a while longer before Ye Fan finally fell asleep.

Qin Shujian was left alone with her thoughts.

In truth, Qin Shujian had almost given up on herself before. She knew that if her mother said she would do something, she would do it. She couldn’t change it.

But things were different now. Ye Fan was simple and easy to sway; reaching an agreement with her was easier than imagined. Perhaps this was why Qin Wan had chosen Ye Fan. It was undeniable that a new hope had ignited in Qin Shujian’s heart.

Relying on Ye Fan alone certainly wouldn’t change her mother’s mind; the rest would have to be up to her.

As long as Ye Fan was obedient, Qin Shujian was quite confident in this matter.

It was simply a matter of each getting what they needed. Listening to the faint sound of breathing beside her, Qin Shujian also breathed a sigh of relief and let herself sink into the darkness.

This was the first time she had chosen to rest so easily, rather than being on edge, afraid that the next time she woke up, an uncontrollable factor would be beside her. Fortunately, Ye Fan wasn’t like that.

In fact, thinking about it this way, Qin Shujian might hope for Ye Fan to stay even more than Qin Wan did, because no one could guarantee she would ever wake up.

If she couldn’t, then Ye Fan would be Qin Shujian’s only lifeline.

In her sleep, Ye Fan was oblivious to Qin Shujian’s calculations, but she did sense the two of them growing closer.

For instance, she never imagined she would wake up to hear Qin Shujian greeting her: “Morning. Aren’t you hungry?”

She had just scrambled up and was nearly startled out of her wits by the voice. It took a moment for her to recover. “Ah, it’s Miss Qin?”

Qin Shujian’s voice immediately carried a hint of a smile and a touch of helplessness. “Who else could be talking to you right now besides me?”

“Fair point.” Ye Fan nodded, then asked with great interest, “It feels weird to keep calling you ‘Miss Qin.’ We’re grasshoppers on the same string now. Can I call you Shujian?”

Actually, even if Ye Fan hadn’t brought it up, Qin Shujian would have suggested changing the address. However, Qin Shujian hadn’t expected Ye Fan to be so “familiar” so quickly.

She accepted the change with a mixture of amusement and exasperation, then reminded her, “Actually, you can head downstairs early to eat. Our family’s chef is very skilled.”

Ye Fan was silent for a moment, not answering. Qin Shujian followed up with an understanding remark: “You probably haven’t had much of an appetite the last couple of days. From today on, enjoy the chef’s cooking properly.”

Ye Fan was a bit moved and nodded in agreement. She went downstairs for breakfast and returned to praise the food to Qin Shujian, saying she had never tasted such delicious porridge.

Qin Shujian could tell she was trying to be comforting, but at this moment, she could only respond wistfully: “Is that so? That’s nice. It’s been a long time since I’ve tasted anything.”

…I think I poked a sore spot, Ye Fan thought, guiltily fidgeting with her fingers.

Everything proceeded as normal after that. Ye Fan went downstairs to eat alone.

As Qin Shujian said, the Qin family’s food was indeed good, but it was just too wasteful. Breakfast was fine—Ye Fan managed to finish most of it—but for lunch, she was faced with a whole table of dishes for just one person.

Ye Fan was stunned when she saw it. She instinctively looked at Su Yu, who was nearby, and asked doubtfully, “Is Madam Qin going to eat with me?”

To this, Su Yu gave her a “what kind of nonsense are you saying” look, though her words remained calm. “Madam is very busy with work.”

So she wasn’t coming?

Ye Fan blinked, recalling what Qin Shujian had told her. She couldn’t help but steal a few glances at Su Yu. Just as Su Yu began to feel something was off, Ye Fan finally spoke.

“Since Madam Qin isn’t coming and I can’t finish all this food, Housekeeper Su, why don’t you sit down and eat with me?”

As soon as she spoke, Su Yu took two steps back and flatly refused, “My apologies. The Qin family has no such rule. Please eat, Miss Ye.”

Ye Fan wouldn’t give up. “What rule? It’s just you and me here.”

“The others don’t look like the type to snitch, and I won’t tell Madam Qin. So what’s the harm in sitting down to eat with me? How can I feel okay with you just watching me eat?”

Ye Fan argued her point, but unfortunately, Su Yu wasn’t moved at all. Instead, she said, “Silence while eating, silence while sleeping. Please eat, Miss Ye.”

With that, she turned and walked away, ignoring Ye Fan completely.

Watching Su Yu’s back, Ye Fan pouted. Eating such a huge table of food alone was both wasteful and boring.

Qin Shujian was right—Su Yu wasn’t as mean as Ye Fan had imagined, but the woman was incredibly stiff and stubborn, treating herself entirely like a “tool” of a housekeeper. Or was this just how noble families were?

Ye Fan found it hard to understand. She tried to persuade the other servants to sit and eat, but they all kept a respectful distance.

With no other choice, Ye Fan sat down herself. As she looked closer, she suddenly noticed something wrong— “Wait a minute, where’s the meat?”

Although Ye Fan didn’t have much of an appetite yesterday, she remembered there had been plenty of chicken, duck, and fish. Why was it all vegetarian today? The Qin family couldn’t be trying to skim on her food! That was too much—she finally felt like having a good meal!

Ye Fan sat staring at the dishes, not taking a single bite, intending to stage a silent protest. However, instead of Su Yu, the doctor arrived for her injection.

Ye Fan’s face went pale instantly. She miserably endured the shot. The doctor glanced at the food on the table, looking thoughtful.

He suddenly asked, “Why aren’t you eating? Is it not to your taste?”

Ye Fan didn’t notice the second part of the question; she thought he was just asking why she wasn’t eating, so she said listlessly, “I want to eat meat.”

The doctor laughed again. After putting away the needle, he patted Ye Fan on the shoulder. “Keep dreaming. Who told you not to eat yesterday? Don’t you know you need a balanced diet during the preparation for pregnancy?”

Huh? HUH?? Ye Fan was incredulous. How was she supposed to know? She’d never prepared for pregnancy before!

So, this meant… no meat from now on?!

Ye Fan couldn’t accept it. She even ignored the physical pain of the injection and turned to look at Su Yu. Her confidence wavered, but she still asked, “…Will there really be no meat from now on?”

Su Yu looked away and lowered her head. Ye Fan had reason to suspect she was hiding an eye-roll, but since she didn’t see it, she generously didn’t press it and continued in one breath, “A balance of nutrition is the prerequisite for a healthy diet!”

“I can accept having less meat, but it can’t be all vegetables. Even the porridge this morning had a bit of lean meat in it…”

Only then did Su Yu finally speak, her voice stiff.

“Miss Ye Fan, please believe that everything we do is to better fulfill the contract. You are, after all, the biological mother of the child. Please be assured that we are not intentionally mistreating you; these meals are scientifically balanced by a nutritionist.”

“That’s not what I meant, I just wanted to say…” Before Ye Fan could finish, Su Yu spoke with a tone that was gentle yet firm.

“Miss Ye, the doctor said that after the injection, it’s recommended you go back and rest. I have other matters to attend to. Please cooperate, Miss Ye.”

That’s basically kicking me out!

Ye Fan pouted and suddenly said out of spite, “Then can I have milk tea?”

Su Yu’s expression instantly became stern. “No! You must strictly follow the diet allocated by the nutritionist. Even if you don’t eat these meals, you absolutely cannot eat junk food!”

Negotiation failed. Ye Fan returned to her room in a huff. As soon as she got upstairs, she saw several people attending to Qin Shujian, seemingly injecting her with nutritional supplements.

Perhaps this was a case of “there’s no harm without comparison.” Ye Fan fell silent.

But after they left, Qin Shujian’s voice suddenly rang out. “What’s wrong? You seem unhappy. Was the food not to your taste?”

When no one cared, Ye Fan could endure it. But now that Qin Shujian had asked, she couldn’t hold it back anymore.

She was already teary-eyed from that injection. After holding it in for so long, her voice now carried a sob. “It’s fine if there’s no meat, but they won’t even let me have milk tea!”