Endless Fall

He Was Able to Affect Her Emotions

Dark clouds slowly thickened, covering the setting sun.

A hot wind brushed the trees on both sides of the road, making the green leaves rustle.

The street lamps started to emit faint light.

Lin Jiao stepped on her shadow and chased after Xue Jing who ran into the building with Pei Zhi.

In order to avoid the hot wind, the first thing she did when she got home was to close all the windows and turn on the air conditioner.

“Sister, I want to watch cartoons.”

“Let Brother Pei help you find one.”

Pei Zhi took the remote control. “What do you want to see?”

“Boonie Bears.”

“Which season?”

“Adventure diary.” Xue Jing sat on the sofa and tore open the snack bag. “Episode two.”

Pei Zhi pressed the remote controller to find it.

He pressed the play button and turned up the volume. Then, he picked up the ingredients on the coffee table and walked into the kitchen.

The sound of water mixed with the sound of prawns and crabs struggling attracted Lin Jiao, who had come out after changing her clothes.

She stood at the kitchen door and looked at the man’s silhouette. He was wearing a light blue apron that did not match him. His sleeves were rolled up, revealing his tanned arms.

He pressed down on the shrimps in the sink, and the water droplets that splashed on his wrist brushed past the veins on the back of his hand.

Lin Jiao stared at him intently. Other than ‘sexy’, she couldn’t find a better word to describe him.

Her overly focused gaze made Pei Zhi stop what he was doing.

He turned around and flicked a few drops of water in her direction. “Stop looking,” he said with a smile. “Help me get two plates.”

“Okay.” Lin Jiao pinched her red.

She handed him the plates and turned on the rice cooker while he cleaned the shrimps. “Uncle, have you ever cooked before?”

Pei Zhi replied, “I cooked a lot when I first started my business, but not much after that.”

“When did you start your business?”

“Twenty-one.”

“So early?” Lin Jiao was a little surprised.

She never asked about it, and Pei Zhi did not like to talk about himself either, so her understanding of him was still very shallow.

“Not really” Pei Zhi picked up the prawn shell that was stuck to the back of his hand. “One of my classmates started his business at the age of 19.”

“What about him now?”

“I’m not sure. We’re not in touch.”

Lin Jiao cooked the rice. Compared to his unimportant classmate, she was more concerned about him. “It must be very difficult at that time, right?”

“Yes, and I was very poor.” Pei Zhi turned on the tap and washed his hands.

His expression was as calm as ever. “For a period of time, I only ate one bowl of plain noodles a day. I couldn’t even afford anything else.”

Hearing that, Lin Jiao felt a little bad for him.

“Didn’t you have any start-up funds?”

“Yes, my father gave me two hundred thousand.”

“You lost it all?”

“I was swindled.” Pei Zhi put down the chopping board by the wall. “Ever since then, I haven’t asked them for money.”

His calm expression made Lin Jiao feel even worse for him.

She frowned. “How were you swindled?”

“I bought a batch of chips from a friend. I tested the batch and there was no problem with it, but they replaced the chips that night.”

Pei Zhi summarized it briefly.

Only he knew how hopeless he felt back then.

“How shameless!” Lin Jiao was so angry that she gritted her teeth.

She asked anxiously, “Did you call the police?”

“I did, but they couldn’t find the swindlers.”

“They left the country?”

“Yes.” Pei Zhi suppressed fierceness in his eyes and did not mention how miserable he made them overseas.

He took a step forward, wrapped his arms around her waist, and helped her tie the apron. “It’s fine now. Let the past be past.”

Lin Jiao, who had yet to come back to her senses, did not notice how strange their posture was.

She swallowed the profanities that were on the tip of her tongue to prevent him from recalling bad memories and did not ask further.

“Are you still angry?” Pei Zhi took a step back and glanced at her clenched fists.

He was strangely excited about being able to affect her emotions, but at the same time, he did not want her to be worried about him.

“No.” Lin Jiao took a deep breath.

She picked up the kitchen knife and quickly cut the vegetables on the chopping board. She changed the topic and said, “Did you bring the wine in?”

“I did.”

“Then go and replace it with water. Leave the rest to me.”

“Don’t you need my help?” Pei Zhi unscrewed the lid of the white wine and poured it into a bowl.

In the end, he stuffed some ginger into the bottle and shook it gently with hot water, causing the strong alcohol smell to gradually disappear.

“No need.” Lin Jiao cut the vegetables and pushed him out with her elbow.

She smiled and said, “I’ll call you later.”

“Alright.” Pei Zhi did not insist on staying.

He walked to Xue Jing’s side to watch the cartoon with him.

However, the scene was different from what he remembered.

He remembered that every time Qu Shao held his phone, watching Boonie Bears, he could hear the screams of Logger Vick.

Pei Zhi thought he had found the wrong cartoon for him, so he asked Xue Jing, “Has their relationship improved?”

“Yes, but only for now.”

“Why?”

Xue Jing swallowed the potato chips in his mouth. “Because Logger Vick is a tour guide now and doesn’t cut down trees anymore.”

“No wonder.”

“Brother Pei, do you like to watch this too?”

“Qu Shao likes it.” Pei Zhi picked up the scraps that fell on the sofa and wiped Xue Jing’s mouth. “He still has many figurines at home.”

“What’s a figurine?” 𝐟𝘳𝑒𝗲𝘸e𝒃𝘯𝒐𝐯e𝚕.c𝒐𝒎

“It’s a kind of collection.”

“I don’t have any…” Xue Jing lowered his head, wondering if his pocket money was enough.

Pei Zhi said with a smile, “I’ll buy it for you.”

“Really?”

“Of course.”

“Brother Pei, you’re the best!” Xue Jing jumped up from the sofa and pounced on Pei Zhi.

As if having thought about something, he grabbed his sleeve and asked quietly, “Do you want to be my brother-in-law?”

Pei Zhi was caught unprepared by this question and was clearly stunned.

He glanced in the direction of the kitchen and couldn’t help but lower his voice. “You sold your sister to me for figurines?”

“I’m not selling her!”

Xue Jing retorted quickly.

He tightened his grip on his sleeve. “You’re better than that guy. You’re more compatible with my sister.”

Pei Zhi knew who that guy was.

He was silent for a long time before patting Xue Jing on the back. “Let’s talk about this later.”

“Do you want to, then?”

“It’s not up to me.”

Before Xue Jing could react, his attention was attracted by the jelly in front of him.

He bit it. “Brother Pei, aren’t you going to eat?”