Chapter 30.2
After eating, Bai Manruo followed behind Ji Yingqing to the study, thinking the boss was definitely a model worth learning from for not forgetting to work even while sick.
“Miss Ji, this is?” Bai Manruo looked at the book handed to her, thinking she could have slacked off and had a nap.
Ji Yingqing then took out a stack of new books and placed them on the table, answering her question: “Didn’t you say you wanted to become a Movie Queen?”
“When did I say that?” The words just at Bai Manruo’s lips were instantly swallowed back; she remembered—when filming the program earlier, she heard Xu Huanxin talking about acting and seemed to have said a sentence about her dream being to become a Movie Queen.
However, that was just a casual remark; after all, those two words “Movie Queen” would probably never have anything to do with her in this lifetime.
If the boss’s expression hadn’t been serious and solemn, anyone else saying this would be thought to be mocking her.
Bai Manruo looked at the pile of books on acting on the table; her head felt like it was going to explode before she even started reading.
She put the books on the table and gave a self-deprecating laugh: “Haha, Miss Ji has misunderstood, I was just talking to satisfy my mouth; with my ‘plastic’ acting skills how could I ever become a Movie Queen, I’m probably not even qualified to be a ‘vase’ (eye candy).”
Hearing her words, Ji Yingqing’s brow furrowed slightly; she picked up the books again, handed them to her, and said seriously: “Why not? I think you can become a Movie Queen.”
Bai Manruo felt the boss was really, really good; since the boss believed in her so much, she might as well give it a try—she didn’t count on being a Movie Queen, but improving her acting skills to earn a living was fine.
But she looked at the dim room and said worriedly: “The light in the room is too weak to see the books clearly, and these two candles should be kept for other uses.”
Hearing her concern, Ji Yingqing put down the book in her hand, walked to a nearby cabinet, and pulled open the door: “Who said there are only two?”
Bai Manruo leaned in to look and found the cabinet was neatly filled with several hundred candles—there were actually so many!
Looking at these candles, Bai Manruo had a sudden idea; she took out some candles and then started placing them on the floor; Ji Yingqing watched her silently from the side.
Ten minutes later, Bai Manruo picked up a lighter and lit every candle.
“Done.” She clapped her hands and stood up happily.
Bai Manruo looked at the burning candles: “I arranged a heart. Doesn’t it look like the heart-shaped candles used for a confession?” As she said the last sentence, she looked up at Ji Yingqing.
Seeing the heart-shaped candles, a trace of surprise flashed across Ji Yingqing’s face; hearing her words, her deep gaze was cast toward the person before her.
Nearly a hundred candles were lit, the candlelight flickering and swaying; Bai Manruo met her gaze under the dim candlelight—it was undeniable that she had a tiny bit of selfish motive in arranging this shape.
Bai Manruo was the first to look away; she pulled out her phone and opened the camera, stepping inside the heart-shaped candles and saying to Ji Yingqing outside: “Miss Ji, let’s take a photo as a souvenir, alright?” The gentleness in her eyes as she spoke was fundamentally impossible to refuse.
Sure enough, Ji Yingqing hesitated for a few seconds before stepping into the heart-shaped candles.
In the photo, both of their faces were breathtakingly beautiful, fine smiles hidden in their deep eyes; they were surrounded by the heart-shaped candles, the lights flickering—the beauty of this moment made one unable to resist sinking into it.
Bai Manruo looked at this group photo, the smile on the corners of her mouth unable to stop rising; she put the photo into her “treasures” folder.
Bai Manruo saw Ji Yingqing was constantly staring at the group photo and promised with a smile: “Once the castle has power, I’ll send the photo to Miss Ji.”
Ji Yingqing nodded without hesitation this time: “Alright.”
The two began reading in the study; Bai Manruo wasn’t taking it in at all; she looked up at Ji Yingqing who was reading seriously on the other side, always feeling that everything now seemed too good to be true.
Bai Manruo’s eyes were fixed on the book but her mind was on other things; she was thinking if she earned enough money to pay the breach-of-contract fee, would she still have a chance to come to the castle in the future? Would she still be qualified to step into the castle?
Would she still… be able to see Miss Ji?
Because of the emotions currently overflowing in her heart, her idea of wanting to buy back her freedom at this moment grew more and more urgent, because only in this way would she be independent—it wouldn’t be an employer-employee relationship; only with freedom could she take a step forward bravely.
What was she now? Merely an employee sold to Miss Ji by her agent; in reality, she wasn’t even a regular servant because it was an unequal relationship.
A regular servant was free to leave when they wanted and resign when they wanted, but the agent took the contract money, and she had fundamentally no right to leave right now—and what she wanted was to be able to stand before Miss Ji truly and authentically in her personal capacity.
At this moment, her nose suddenly caught a faint fragrance; she slowly looked up to find Ji Yingqing, who had walked over at some point, watching her.
Ji Yingqing saw her gaze had been lingering on the same page and asked: “What are you thinking about? You’ve been dazing for half an hour.”
“Half an hour? I actually thought for that long? But I definitely can’t tell the boss I’m thinking about resigning.”
Bai Manruo made something up on the spot without even looking at the book, saying with a straight face: “I was considering whether acting should focus on performance or the expression of emotion; which one does Miss Ji think is more important?”
Ji Yingqing looked down at the book in her hand, the corners of her mouth curling up as she looked into her eyes and said: “It should focus on the expression of emotion.”
“Oh, why?”
“Because what you are reading is ‘108 Moves to Pursue an Omega’.”
Bai Manruo’s expression froze, and she immediately flipped over the book cover; sure enough, on the cover were written the words “108 Moves to Pursue an Omega”.
She closed the book in embarrassment, her ears somewhat red; she’d taken the wrong one! It was actually the book on dating techniques she had bought before.
Because she wanted to hide her participation in the program from the boss, she had hidden the extra books in the study; after all, the most dangerous place was the safest place.
As it turned out, her luck was truly non-existent!!!
She’d actually hidden it among the acting books the boss had bought, and a random pick was exactly what she’d pulled out.
Fortunately, Ji Yingqing didn’t pursue this topic further; Bai Manruo took the opportunity to back down and then changed to a copy of “An Actor Prepares” to read seriously.
When it reached noon, thinking that the boss’s body was still very weak, Bai Manruo was just about to speak.
Ji Yingqing put down her book and said: “I’ll cook lunch today, you go rest.” She could sense the dark circles under the eyes of the person before her were a bit heavy; it was clear she hadn’t slept well.
“The boss actually knows how to cook??” Bai Manruo closed the book with an expression of surprise; usually, she saw that the boss was not only a picky eater but also didn’t eat much.
However, being able to personally eat a dish cooked by the boss made being locked up for a few more days worth it!
Ji Yingqing saw her inner activity at a glance; after all, her face was full of shock, making it hard for one not to guess.
First-floor kitchen.
Bai Manruo, who should have gone to bed for a nap, hovered around Ji Yingqing; seeing Ji Yingqing wearing an apron was still somewhat unbelievable.
With the person beside her watching her cook without blinking, Ji Yingqing felt a bit nervous for the first time seeing such expectant eyes.
While Ji Yingqing was cutting vegetables, she said: “But I haven’t done it for a long time, so the taste might…”
Before she could finish her sentence, Bai Manruo immediately spoke up in encouragement: “It’s fine, I’ll like anything as long as Miss Ji makes it.” It was the boss’s first time cooking personally, she must not discourage her initiative; besides, it would definitely be better than what she herself made.
Hearing her affirmative words, that bit of nervousness in her heart instantly vanished; Ji Yingqing continued cutting vegetables, and Bai Manruo beside her helped wash them; the two in the kitchen coordinated with exceptional chemistry, like a couple who had lived together for a long time.
The kitchen was filled with candles for light; Bai Manruo looked at the warm scene, her gaze unconsciously tender as she looked at Ji Yingqing.
She helped as an assistant, doing all she could do until only the cooking was left for which she couldn’t help, so she went outside to wait obediently.
After a while, as she lay on the sofa in a daze, she was woken up by the aroma of the food.
Bai Manruo sat up and saw the food already laid out on the table; it had color, aroma, and taste, looking very delicious at a glance.
She couldn’t wait to take a bite of the fish, squinting her eyes in enjoyment: “Fresh, tender, and juicy—even better than what the chef makes.”
Seeing she liked to eat it, a slight ripple welled up in Ji Yingqing’s heart; the corners of her mouth curled up slightly as she picked up a piece with her chopsticks as well.
Bai Manruo very supportively ate all the food clean; however, these dishes truly were very delicious—there wasn’t a single bit of exaggeration.
After tidying up the dining table, Bai Manruo went upstairs with a candle, suddenly remembering that “108 Moves to Pursue an Omega” and the other books; to avoid this kind of embarrassment again, it was better to hide all the books in her own room.
She went to the third-floor study and found all the hidden books, thinking that since there was nothing to do in the afternoon anyway, she might as well review these dating techniques once more.
Hugging the books and just about to return to her room, she suddenly heard an unusual sound from upstairs.
Bai Manruo immediately dropped the books and went upstairs, her brow furrowed with anxiety as she ran up; Miss Ji must have fallen ill again.
When she reached the upstairs room, it wasn’t locked; she walked in and smelled the thick pheromones, the secretions of her glands increasing—it was clearly much more severe than before.
Bai Manruo set aside the candle in her hand and saw the person on the floor had her skin cut by the broken test tubes, blood seeping out and staining her fingers.
Bai Manruo carefully avoided the wound to pick the person up, heartache in her eyes, and then placed her on the bed to go get the medical kit; having had the experience of bandaging her last time, she stopped the bleeding quickly.
After bandaging the wound on her arm, the person on the bed furrowed her brow in pain, cold sweat appearing on her fair forehead; she was in unbearable pain yet didn’t let out a single groan, only biting her lip tightly until blood seeped from her pale lower lip.
Seeing the blood at the corner of her mouth, Bai Manruo’s brow furrowed; she directly reached out to grip her chin with a little force, sticking her own finger into the gap when she released her teeth.
The skin of her finger was bitten open by the sharp teeth; Bai Manruo’s pain was hidden deep in her gaze, her face perfectly calm as her other hand was still helping her wipe away sweat.
It went on like this for a while; the bodily pain of the person on the bed seemed to have subsided a bit, and her mouth slowly released the finger it was biting.
Although Ji Yingqing’s consciousness was blurred, tasting the blood in her mouth, she suddenly wrapped her warm, soft touch around the fingertip, gently licking the wound bitten open on the finger as if to make up for what she had just done.
Bai Manruo stroked her hair: “It’s fine, it doesn’t hurt.” Though she knew the person before her fundamentally couldn’t understand her words and wouldn’t remember after waking up.
Ji Yingqing reached out for a hug; although she couldn’t see who the person before her was, her pheromones were somewhat familiar and also very comfortable; being near her would reduce her pain.
Bai Manruo hugged her without hesitation, her arms circling her waist; the thin body was still a bit bony to hold, but there was still a bit more “meat” than before.
Bai Manruo unconsciously pinched the soft flesh on her waist; every other place was very thin, except there was a little soft flesh on her waist.
The person in her arms let out a low groan in her embrace, her body shaking uncontrollably.
“Miss Ji, you need to get a bit fatter,” Bai Manruo murmured to herself, her chin gently rubbing the top of her head.
Ji Yingqing’s recently relaxed brow suddenly furrowed tightly; the stinging pain that had just subsided surged back again, repeatedly torturing her body and consciousness.
Bai Manruo sensed her change; her arms tightened around the person in her arms as she arched her neck slightly—at this moment the cedar scent and flower tea scent in the air intertwined and permeated.
Bai Manruo’s deep gaze fell on the nape of her neck; she hesitated for a few seconds and then suddenly lowered her head slowly, her soft lips pressing onto it; Ji Yingqing’s eyelashes trembled slightly, and her pained expression eased a bit.
The touch of skin meeting skin was fleeting as the comfortable pheromones were about to leave.
“Don’t,” Ji Yingqing immediately hugged her neck to stop her from leaving.
Hearing her word “Don’t,” Bai Manruo’s heart gave a jolt; she’d thought this “don’t” was because she disliked being near, but she hadn’t expected she wanted more.
She admitted she hadn’t restrained herself just now; the person in her arms was unconscious, but she herself wasn’t.
Bai Manruo moved her lips away; her action just now had crossed the line, she shouldn’t have done that.
Just as she was struggling with self-reproach, a moment of clarity suddenly flashed in the eyes of the person in her arms who should have been delirious; however, the emotion shifted too fast—so fast one would think they’d seen an illusion.
Bai Manruo saw the person in her arms let out a pained low groan because of her refusal and coaxed her gently to negotiate: “Shall we just hug, alright? It can also alleviate the pain.”
She pulled Ji Yingqing a bit closer into her arms, embracing the thin person in her embrace with her entire body, stroking her hair: “Miss Ji must eat well; even if I’m not in the castle in the future you must eat on time, you know?” Although she couldn’t hear an answer, she still couldn’t help but feel heart-stricken.
At this moment, buried against her chest, the pained expression on Ji Yingqing’s face flashed with a moment of calmness when she heard her speak of leaving the castle; but the bodily torture truly existed—the veins on her hands bulged as she gripped her clothes, sweating from the pain.
“I’m here, I’ll stay with you always,” Bai Manruo’s brow furrowed in pain as if she were as uncomfortable as she was.
Bai Manruo reached out to pat her back gently and put her hand near Ji Yingqing’s mouth: “Don’t endure it, you can bite my finger.”
Bai Manruo’s eyelashes lowered, her gaze falling on Ji Yingqing.
On her mouth were the wounds from being bitten by herself, on her arms were the needle holes she’d given herself, on her wrists were the scars from being cut by the test tubes.
She’d been enduring the torture alone like this before; perhaps the previous wounds were even more severe but not a single person knew, so the tiny wound on her own finger was fundamentally nothing compared to the wounds she had suffered.
She didn’t know how much time passed, but finally, the person in her arms gradually calmed down; Bai Manruo hugged her to sleep just like that, whether it was day or night.
This night she slept exceptionally steadily; the illness didn’t recur repeatedly, and she had a long-awaited good night’s sleep.
The next morning, the person on the bed moved her body and then reached out to cover her eyes to block the stinging light.
Suddenly Bai Manruo sat up; though her eyes were still a bit blurry, seeing the sun shining in from outside the window, she ran out of bed in surprise—too good! Finally there was power!
Bai Manruo instinctively turned her head to look for the boss, but there was no second person on the bed besides the messy sheets.
The boss’s illness must be better, or else power wouldn’t have suddenly been restored; Bai Manruo hurriedly put on her slippers and went out.
Just as she reached the stairwell, she saw Butler Li standing in the living room; Ji Yingqing was sitting on the sofa seemingly talking to Butler Li.
Bai Manruo instinctively checked her clothes upon seeing Butler Li, only to find she was still wearing pajamas; just as she wanted to sneak back to change her clothes, she heard a voice from the living room: “How is it that you see the Young Mistress and don’t know to come down and greet her?”
Butler Li didn’t seem surprised by her appearance on the fourth floor; she only reminded her to follow the castle rules.
Bai Manruo’s neck froze as she turned her head; since she’d been seen she had to go down.
Seeing the boss drinking coffee with a perfectly calm face, she knew the boss again didn’t remember what happened last night; although she had known this outcome long ago, she still couldn’t help but feel a bit sad.
Bai Manruo sat down and spoke slowly: “Has Miss Ji had breakfast?”
Butler Li on the side furrowed her brow as she looked at her, saying with dissatisfaction: “Are you not yet awake, what dream-talk are you saying, it’s already noon.”
“No, I was waiting for you,” Ji Yingqing set down her tea cup and looked at her.
Butler Li silently withdrew her gaze upon hearing Ji Yingqing’s words, closing her mouth and standing to the side.
However, seeing the Young Mistress’s appetite had improved, Butler Li thought she wouldn’t hold it against her for oversleeping this time, but she must wake up early in the future; then she immediately went out to order the chef to make breakfast.
In the afternoon, Bai Manruo specifically went to the villa area to find Butler Li; she wanted to ask exactly what illness Miss Ji had.
Butler Li was busy handling documents; hearing her words she set down the contract in her hand and spoke coldly: “You only need to do your job well; don’t ask about other things you shouldn’t ask.”
Bai Manruo sat on the steps outside, her mind repeatedly recalling the conversation just now.
Butler Li was clearly hiding some things; however, this truly was the boss’s personal business, a little nanny like herself asking too much would seem like she was being meddlesome.
Since the boss didn’t want to tell her right now, it meant she had her own plans; she would wait for the day the boss spoke out on her own initiative.
Because of the sudden events of the past two days, the plan for livestreaming had been repeatedly interrupted; she still had that debt of 800,000 yuan on her, so Bai Manruo returned to her room and took out her phone to prepare for a livestream.
She hadn’t logged into her account these past two days; under the most recent Weibo post fans were all urging for updates, wanting to see her continue streaming.
Furthermore, the heat of the livestream kept climbing, and the account had gained several tens of thousands of new followers; “face fans” online were recommending the “god-tier beauty” of the stream everywhere—these new followers were all attracted by that.
As soon as she turned on her phone, the page showed a red dot for dozens of missed calls—all from Xu Huanxin.
Bai Manruo clicked on over ten unread messages and smacked her forehead; she’d actually forgotten about this.
A few days ago Xu Huanxin had invited her for a meal; she’d originally intended to politely decline once she was done with work, but she’d forgotten to tell her while busy with the livestream.
Upon hearing the voice message she sent, Xu Huanxin’s dangling heart finally landed steadily; having suddenly disappeared for two days, she thought Bai Manruo had met with an accident; she’d called the police but still couldn’t find any trace of her—her specific address couldn’t be found even through various means.
On her computer, a replay of Bai Manruo’s livestream was playing; Xu Huanxin clicked on a private folder containing over a thousand photos of Bai Manruo; she’d never believed in love at first sight until meeting Bai Manruo—incidentally browsing a photo online, her heart had unconsciously been moved.
Although she’d heard Bai Manruo say she was safe, Xu Huanxin was still worried; she could only be truly at ease after seeing her once.
She hadn’t expected she could also make such a sincere friend; Bai Manruo felt a bit emotional in her heart and then replied to her to put her at ease: 【Alright, then ‘be there or be square’ at 9:00 PM tonight.】
Previously she’d declined because she was too poor with only a few dozen yuan left; now that she’d earned a bit of money, taking a good friend out for a meal was no problem.
She’d intended to stream now, but since she’d agreed to go out for a meal tonight, she opened Weibo and posted a beautiful photo—mainly as pre-promotion, telling fans she’d be streaming punctually tomorrow at 3:00 PM.
As soon as Ji Yingqing went downstairs she saw Bai Manruo, who had changed into a set of casual clothes, and asked: “Are you going out?”
Bai Manruo replied while changing her shoes: “Mm, it’s just about off-work time and a friend has invited me for a meal.” After speaking, she looked up at Ji Yingqing: “Sorry Miss Ji, I can’t keep you company for dinner tonight.”
Ji Yingqing’s brow furrowed slightly as she asked as if nonchalantly: “Is it that Omega Xu Huanxin from the program before?”
Bai Manruo’s hand tidying her cuffs paused, and she said with some surprise: “Miss Ji actually still remembers her?” She remembered she’d only mentioned her once; the boss’s memory was truly impressive.
Ji Yingqing lifted her gaze to her and spoke slowly: “I also need to go out; I’ll drive you along the way.”
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