My Paranoid Girlfriend Asks Me to Be Her Kept Woman (Rebirth) - Chapter 25.2

The next morning, as usual, the doctor had to examine Zhao Qi and check whether the wound had worsened.

The servant knocked softly on the door. The two were still immersed in dreams, their hair tangled together.

Without knowing when it had happened, Zhao Qi’s entire body had been gathered into Lin Yi’s arms, her face buried against Lin Yi’s chest. Lin Yi’s arms held Zhao Qi’s head, her whole body stiff and straight, as if even in sleep, she subconsciously did not dare touch the woman’s body, afraid of bumping into her wound.

The servant pushing open the door woke Zhao Qi.

She tilted her head back slightly, and her mind quickly cleared.

After staring in a daze at the beautiful sight before her for a while, she unconsciously pressed her forehead against it and rubbed again.

Lin Yi was woken up by this. The servant lowered her eyes and stood some distance away from the bed, calling, “Miss, Miss Lin, it’s time for the doctor’s morning examination.”

Feeling Zhao Qi’s movement at her chest, Lin Yi nearly tumbled off the bed!

Fortunately, she still remembered that the woman was injured, and the servant was also there!

She held Zhao Qi’s head, not knowing whether to let go or push her away, and froze there.

Luckily, Zhao Qi quickly left Lin Yi’s chest with a blank expression. She opened her mouth hoarsely. “I know. I’ll tidy up first. Have the doctor come over later.”

The servant turned lightly and closed the door.

Lin Yi blushed, stammering, “You, you, you…”

Expressionless, Zhao Qi pulled Lin Yi’s chin down and exchanged breath with her.

Lin Yi did not dare move at all, afraid that any movement might hurt Zhao Qi. This allowed Zhao Qi to advance step by step, pressing forward and conquering territory.

Yesterday’s exchange had not satisfied her at all. There was a beast in her heart, suddenly clamoring, wanting to peel open the skin of the person before her, touch her body, reach her soul, and make her tremble only beneath her hands.

Finally, she sucked hard on Lin Yi’s tongue. Lin Yi’s tongue went numb at the root, and her mind became a mess before Zhao Qi released her.

Zhao Qi had always been full of aggression. She had simply given Lin Yi the little patience she had.

She thought it was time to harvest her fruit. Unfortunately, she had suddenly been injured.

The agitation in her heart made her take advantage of Lin Yi’s confusion to lightly bite Lin Yi’s neck, leaving an ambiguous mark.

Lin Yi held Zhao Qi’s head and stroked the woman’s hair, feeling as if she had been marked by her.

She tilted her head back and opened herself completely without defense, leaving no guard against the woman.

She had been reborn for her. As long as Zhao Qi loved her, she would hold nothing back.

…

After the doctor finished examining her, he smiled and said, “Miss is recovering very well. In another half month, she should be able to get out of bed.”

“However, you still need to be careful normally.”

Only after the doctor finished did Lin Yi step forward and pull up the corner of Zhao Qi’s quilt. “I’ll eat with you, then I have to go to Shanhai. Today, I’ll have the driver come pick me up a little later.”

“After we eat, I’ll push you around the garden. The housekeeper takes good care of it. I saw many flowers blooming the day before yesterday.”

Zhao Qi’s gaze was fixed on Lin Yi’s neck. The mark she had left just now had disappeared.

Lin Yi noticed Zhao Qi’s gaze and shyly touched her neck. “When I put on makeup just now, I covered it with foundation.”

She raised the hospital bed. “Today, I’m going to shoot the MV for my album, and I need to dye my hair. What color do you like?”

Zhao Qi caught a lock of Lin Yi’s hanging hair. The pink had now faded into platinum, and quite a bit of black had grown out at the roots.

Lin Yi’s hair quality was very good. Touching it felt like touching satin. Zhao Qi felt somewhat distressed that the silk in her hand had been damaged.

“Why did you dye it this color back then?” It did not fit Lin Yi’s personality at all.

Although her creative direction was pop songs, she herself was very conservative and did not chase trends at all.

That was why Zhao Qi was surprised Lin Yi could have dyed such a head of hair.

Lin Yi covered her eyes. At the time, she had only thought about getting her hair styled, but the hairdresser had talked her into it in just a few sentences. Besides, there had been a big discount. She had also wanted to change at the time, and once her head went hot, she dyed it.

Fortunately, it looked good after dyeing. Otherwise, she would have regretted it to death.

She glanced at Zhao Qi, not wanting the woman to know she was such an easily persuaded person. She lowered her brows and eyes and blocked the woman’s mouth. It just so happened that she wanted to kiss the woman again.

The two stuck together intimately for a while longer. In the end, they were both adults, restrained and steady.

Lin Yi pushed Zhao Qi around the little garden. Only after entrusting the woman to the servants with peace of mind did she get into the car heading to the company.

Lin Yi’s album this time was called Declaration of Independence, and the song title was Independence. It told of a woman’s lifelong struggle, and her fight for independence and freedom under the restraints of life.

She transformed into the “she” within the song, experiencing ridicule, fear, growth, independence, and finally freedom.

It went through all the unfairness and struggles a woman had to face while growing up.

In the end, she carried responsibility and continued to live with a smile.

The MV shoot was a suggestion Lin Yi had proposed. The entire work would use only black-and-white tones. The original idea was that Lin Yi stood outside the scene, singing the life of the person inside it, so some vivid colors would be used to fill in Lin Yi herself.

After asking Zhao Qi that morning, Zhao Qi said she liked black, and inspiration suddenly came to Lin Yi.

She dyed her hair black and put on the most ordinary clothes, standing beside the MV actress like a poet reciting, and also like every passerby one meets in life.

You would not remember these people. Perhaps you would pass countless people every day, but these people would not become the center of your life, and in your memory, they would have no color at all. They also lived here, but they did not experience your joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness—yet they had the same troubles as you.

“She” was also all of them.

The MV shoot ended smoothly. At the end, Lin Yi stood on the zebra crossing. After she sang the final lyric, the people waiting on both sides of the crossing began walking. She also followed the flow of people and finally disappeared into the crowded tide.

At the director’s call of “Cut,” applause rang out.

Lin Yi stood in the center of the green screen and bowed in thanks.

The studio shoot was over. Next, they still had to film some outdoor scenes.

Fan Texi passed through the extras and squeezed in. “Lin Yi, that singing was pretty good.”

Lin Yi had sung over and over with full explosive power just now, and there was still a lavalier mic hidden at her waist. She turned off the microphone.

She took the water cup from Fan Texi’s hand with a gulp and began drinking.

“Boss is back, right?” Fan Texi asked. “This morning, she even called me and told me to take good care of you, to prepare warm water for you and not let you drink cold water. She said your throat needs protection.”

“Lin Yi, should I go buy you some boat-fruited sterculia?” Fan Texi looked at Lin Yi worriedly. He had seen how explosive Lin Yi was when singing just now. It had to be hard on her throat.

Lin Yi shook her head. When she sang high notes, she had her own vocal techniques. It sounded hard on the throat, but in reality, with a light lift, the high note would rise.

But she had sung too much today, and her throat was indeed tired. She did not really want to talk.

After saying goodbye to the director and actors, Fan Texi and Lin Yi went to the studio to listen to the song demo.

For production aspects such as arrangement and chords, Lin Yi did not insist on doing it herself. She still handed those over to the professionals.

After the noisy sounds of daily life passed, Lin Yi’s voice softly hummed. Then the drums beat several times, officially entering the song.

After listening, Lin Yi gave a thumbs-up, and everyone in the recording studio laughed.

She thought for a moment. “Tomorrow, I’ll record it again. I feel the emotion still hasn’t reached its extreme.”

Everyone agreed.

These past few days, everyone had seen that Lin Yi had not been in good condition. Today, she had finally adjusted back.

After coming out of the recording studio, Lin Yi looked at the sky. Another busy day had passed.

She pinched the space between her brows, wondering how Zhao Qi was doing at home.

The moment she had free time, she started thinking of the woman.

“If there’s nothing else, I’ll head back first,” she said to Fan Texi.

Fan Texi actually did have something. “Wait a little longer. I made an appointment with the lawyer tonight to discuss the lawsuit against Jianming.”

“Also, we still need to confirm the release date for your album. It’s best not to clash with other people’s schedules.”

“For your debut song, it would be best if we avoided these people and made a big splash.”

“Clash?” Lin Yi suddenly remembered that Liu Chang seemed to be releasing a song soon too. That thief who had stolen her song! And Lin Xiaolu! Hmph, it was time to wrap things up.

She asked, “Who’s releasing songs recently?”

Fan Texi flipped through the materials. “Feiyang’s Li Qiaqia, Apple’s group Six, Lile’s Gu Dong, and lastly, Liu Chang from your former company Jianming.”

Fan Texi had not forgotten the story of how he had been chased several streets by security at the courthouse gate because he had been eavesdropping on gossip about Liu Chang. In the end, Assistant Li had bailed him out from the public security brigade.

After he came back, he had someone investigate Liu Chang. Liu Chang was indeed preparing songs, and it was for his fifth debut anniversary album. It could not be called unimportant.

In recent years, Liu Chang had been constantly rumored to have exhausted his talent, but Fan Texi did not think so.

He felt Liu Chang had simply put his energy into acting and cared less about his identity as a singer.

Last year, on a short-video platform, Liu Chang had posted many fragments of himself playing and singing. Fan Texi had listened to quite a few of them. Each fragment basically spread widely, but unfortunately, none of them had complete composition and lyrics.

Lin Yi took the materials from Fan Texi and drew a heavy line over Liu Chang’s song release date.

“Let’s do it at this time.” Her gaze was very cold, and even the curve of her lips carried a chill.

Fan Texi blinked and advised, “Although Jianming treated you badly, I still advise you not to act impulsively.”

He thought Lin Yi was angry at Jianming and therefore wanted to “fight” Liu Chang.

Lin Yi looked at Fan Texi. “I’m very calm. This is the date.”

Fan Texi frowned in distress and propped his chin in his hand, thinking.

“When the court hearing happens, plus us going head-to-head with Liu Chang, there should be a lot of material to hype in the publicity campaign…”

His mind turned as he thought about how to drag down Jianming and Liu Chang while raising Lin Yi’s value.

After all, she was a newcomer. First, she had no fans. Second, she had no popularity.

Even if her ability was high, without those two things, it would still be useless.

That was why they had chosen this current timing for the publicity and release. They could use Jianming as a stepping stone, letting some people learn about Lin Yi and listen to her song. The bigger the matter became, the more beneficial it would be for Lin Yi.

Fan Texi quickly figured it out and struck his right fist against his left palm. “All right! Let’s settle it like this!”

The curve of Lin Yi’s lips grew a little larger and more sincere.

“Thank you.”

Fan Texi waved his hand, not caring. “Prepare yourself. We’re going to meet the lawyer.”

…

By the time she returned after meeting the lawyer, it was already late at night.

Lin Yi carefully entered the apartment. Hearing movement, a servant came out. “Miss Lin, have you eaten?”

Lin Yi cautiously waved her hand. “I’ve eaten. Is Zhao Qi asleep?”

The servant said, “Miss is not asleep yet. She said she wanted to wait for Miss Lin to come back.”

Lin Yi’s hand paused as she put down her bag. Annoyed with herself, she quickly dropped the bag in her hand.

“I’ll go see her!”

Zhao Qi leaned against the hospital bed and flipped through the book in her hands. It had been a long time since she had been this leisurely. Being injured had instead given her time to enjoy life and become a useless “idle rich person.”

The Zhao family’s family rule was “do not raise idle people,” so their branch, from old to young, was quite hardworking. Especially because their father had belonged to a collateral branch and basically had no support, he had started from nothing and built such a vast family business in Huaicheng.

And she was called Xiao Qi because the Zhao family had three branches. Among the Zhao family, she ranked seventh. Seven sounded the same as Qi, so her parents had given her this name.

As Zhao Qi thought about this, her mind returned to work. In the years since her parents passed away, small movements within the group had never ceased. Fortunately, Eldest Brother had entered the group early, and Second Brother’s position also exerted pressure. The unrest had remained hidden in the dark and had not appeared openly.

Her expression darkened. It seemed some people did not want them to live peaceful lives.

Soon, it would be the birthday celebration of the head of the Zhao clan. Zhao Qi tugged at the book. It seemed things would not remain calm for long. The black hand hidden in the shadows would definitely stir up trouble again.

…

“Zhao Qi?” Lin Yi knocked twice, then opened the door.

Zhao Qi put away the expression on her face and turned soft. Even her sharp eyes softened as she looked toward the door. “Why did you only come back now?”

Lin Yi smiled and said, “The talk with the lawyer took a long time.”

“The matter of terminating your contract with Jianming?” Zhao Qi guessed at once.

Lin Yi leaned close and pecked the corner of the woman’s lips. “Yes. Fan Texi said the timing has arrived.”

Zhao Qi nodded thoughtfully and smelled the faint scent of alcohol on her.

“You drank?”

Lin Yi thought of the night when the woman had brought her back to Sangzhu. It had also been a night with the round moon hanging high, and she and Zhao Qi had leaned against the railing and finished a bottle of lychee wine.

“I had a little red wine.”

Zhao Qi’s gaze moved slightly, and her sharp eyes both landed on Lin Yi’s lips.

This time after returning, she seemed to have developed skin hunger, always wanting to get close to Lin Yi. Lin Yi was like her Aphrodite, igniting all her love and desire.

Toward Lin Yi, Zhao Qi had previously had doubts and resistance, yet she was always unconsciously attracted. With Lin Yi, she was more indulgent.

“Come here.” Her voice carried a hint of magnetism and sexiness.

Lin Yi obediently did as told and was kissed deeply by the woman.

Zhao Qi held the back of her head, her lips and tongue tangling gently with hers.

Lin Yi carefully placed her hands on the woman’s shoulders, not daring to hold tightly, yet she was kissed until she curled inward, her body trembling and her soul leaving her body.

It was as if countless brilliant little sparks were exploding in a small area before her eyes.

She grew dizzy and disoriented under the woman’s gentle licking, unable to tell direction.

Zhao Qi held Lin Yi’s lower lip between hers and let out a low laugh from her throat. “Breathe, silly.”

Lin Yi let out a soft whimper and exhaled, only to be kissed by Zhao Qi again.

After a long time passed, Lin Yi could not help gripping Zhao Qi’s clothes. Her toes curled, and she became utterly soft.

Zhao Qi licked the corner of her lips and wrapped an arm around Lin Yi’s slender waist. “Go wash up, then come up and sleep.”

Lin Yi opened her dazed eyes and felt that the woman before her looked like the big bad wolf coaxing Little Red Riding Hood.

She seemed to see a fluffy tail stretching out behind the woman, wagging happily.

She blinked, and the illusion disappeared.

With a red face, she softly agreed.

Without realizing it, she seemed to have already entered the woman’s bedroom. But she did not know whether she had also planted her figure in the woman’s heart.

The night grew deeper. The moon shone on human shadows. Inside the room, the sound of water gradually flowed. The moon, too, grew shy and pulled over a dark cloud, covering the shadows…