The Spring Festival was approaching, and the world’s largest annual mammalian migration was about to begin. Qian Fei, who prided herself on being a Taobao zero-yuan bidding expert, surprisingly failed when it came to buying train and plane tickets.
It looked like she might not be able to return home.
At this critical moment, it was Li Yifei who came to her rescue again. Qian Fei began to feel that besides being vain, pretentious, and sharp-tongued, Li Yifei had some skills. There had been several things she wanted to do but couldn’t, yet he could accomplish them effortlessly.
When Qian Fei received the plane ticket, she was so happy that she blurted out, “Li Yifei, I’ve decided to view you in a slightly better light from now on!”
Li Yifei asked nonchalantly, “How did you view me before?”
Qian Fei had arranged his “characteristics” in her mind so many times that she didn’t even need to organize her thoughts. She rattled off, “Vain, pretentious, sharp-tongued, picky, delicate, gluttonous, lazy, tsundere, bad-tempered, and so on.”
Li Yifei exploded, “You spout out nine adjectives in one breath, and then add ‘and so on’ as a final blow. Sanitary napkin, give me back the ticket. Since that’s how you see me, forget it. I don’t need you to view me in a better light. I should live up to your ‘and so on’!”
As he spoke, he tried to snatch back the plane ticket.
Qian Fei jumped onto the sofa, holding the ticket high above her head, and shouted, “Don’t be like that! Calm down! Give me a chance to rephrase, okay?”
Li Yifei raised an eyebrow, looking at her, and said, “I’ll give you one more chance!”
Qian Fei jumped down from the sofa, forcing her eyes to look sincere, “Actually, although you’re vain, you’re genuinely good-looking, so it’s understandable. Who can blame you for those looks?
“Though you love to show off, your pretentiousness is always stylish and high-class. It would be a waste not to show off with your refined temperament!
“Being sharp-tongued shows you have good verbal skills. Not everyone can pull off being so sharp!
“Being picky means you’re serious about life, not settling for less. It shows you’re responsible!
“As for being delicate, well… it shows you have quality of life, knowing what you want and what you enjoy, and striving for it. That’s the embodiment of positive energy!
“Regarding your gluttony, I should be happy about that. It’s an affirmation of my cooking skills!
“And laziness, you’re destined for great things, how can you be tied down by trivial household chores? If you were a housework expert, you might not have had the ability to get me this plane ticket today, right?
“As for being tsundere, oh, I just added that for rhyme. Refer to the ‘delicate’ explanation.
“Lastly, about the bad temper, how could I add that? Yes, you often argued with your ex-girlfriend and could be quite stubborn in arguments, but you’ve never argued with me like that. How could I justly point that out from an outsider’s perspective when I haven’t personally experienced it, right?”
Li Yifei listened to the first part, thinking she was doing a decent job of twisting his flaws into “sort of virtues.” But when he heard her last point, he decided he couldn’t tolerate it anymore and resolved to show her a “bad temper” for real.
He swiftly and decisively snatched the plane ticket from her hand while she was rambling off guard.
“Don’t go home, just stay here and spend the New Year with me! If I don’t teach you a lesson, you won’t know what it means to regret to your bones!”
Qian Fei wailed, throwing herself onto his arm, “Young Master, I was wrong, truly wrong! I’ve never seen anyone as handsome as you! Please forgive me, I was blinded by your stunning looks and lost all reason when I spoke nonsense! I already know what it means to regret to my bones! Not just my bones, even my teeth are engraved with regret! Please give me back the ticket quickly, it’s my lifeline!”
Li Yifei was both amused and exasperated by her antics. He tossed the ticket back to her.
Qian Fei didn’t notice that the tips of Li Yifei’s ears were turning red. She thought her pestering had worked and happily sat back on the sofa, hugging the ticket and eating sunflower seeds.
Li Yifei shook his arm.
When that silly girl had thrown herself at him and shaken his arm earlier, his forearm had accidentally bumped between two soft mounds, causing him to feel a bit flustered.
Li Yifei noticed that his body had secretly undergone some changes. He casually went to the bathroom.
In the bathroom, he supported himself with both hands on the wall mirror, waiting for the changes in his body to subside.
He looked at himself in the mirror, feeling a bit confused.
How could he have such a reaction to that tomboy…
While Li Yifei was composing himself in the bathroom, he received a call from Da Jun.
Da Jun’s complaining power was at an all-time high: “Li Yifei, you’re inconsiderate! Why do you just talk, and I have to run around doing all the legwork? Even if we’re close friends, you can’t bully me like this! I was the one who stayed up all night figuring out how to get your tomboy landlady a plane ticket, but why are you the one getting all the credit in front of her? No, I’m not doing this anymore. You must introduce her to me! I admit it, I’ve taken a liking to a tomboy. I’m going all out, even if it means getting married! I want to be friends with her and date her!”
Li Yifei scoffed, “You dare to touch someone on my turf? Are you tired of living? Have you forgotten who rescued you in high school when a group of girls surrounded you and tried to strip off your pants? Never mind, if you’ve forgotten, I have photos archived. They’ll remind you of the great favor I did for you!”
Da Jun screamed, “Damn it, Li Yifei, you’re such a jerk! Is that a great favor? It’s oppression and blackmail! Do you know how much trouble I went through to get that plane ticket? If you’re so capable, why don’t you make up with your old man and let him get it for you?”
Li Yifei laughed coldly and said in an eerie tone, “You dare to mention that old fart to me? I guess you don’t want to do that export business to Japan anymore. I might as well call Lu Ze in Dalian and tell him to return all the goods to you!”
Da Jun immediately kowtowed over the phone, “Brother! I was wrong, brother! Ask your landlady what brand of tea she likes, I’ll go buy some credit right away!”
Li Yifei hung up the phone with a smug, cold laugh.
Then he wondered why he was “smug” about laughing coldly. After thinking for a while, he understood.
He had successfully defended his right to deal with the tomboy without letting that guy Da Jun interfere.
He looked at himself in the mirror, the corner of his mouth curling up, and continued to laugh coldly with “smugness.”
Qian Fei had taken two days off from work in advance. The day she was going home was Thursday, a regular working day for the whole country. When she was about to leave with her luggage in the morning, she was surprised to see Li Yifei still at home.
“Why aren’t you at work?” Qian Fei asked, dragging her suitcase.
“You’re going home today,” Li Yifei replied matter-of-factly.
“I can skip work because I’m going home, but what does that have to do with you?”
Li Yifei walked over and took the suitcase handle, “Don’t be ungrateful! By rights, you should be falling to your knees in gratitude that I, the young master, am voluntarily sending you off and helping with your luggage! Your current reaction is completely wrong. Compose yourself and give me a proper reaction!”
Qian Fei looked dumbfounded, “You… want to see me off at the airport?” She pointed at her nose, asking Li Yifei.
“Young Master, what’s gotten into you? Do you need me to do something for you? If you have something to say, just say it. Don’t act so eager to help, it’s not your style. You suddenly showing such humanitarian concern for me makes me nervous!”
Li Yifei squinted down at her, “Should I use those two words to describe you or not?”
Qian Fei knew he was referring to “asking for trouble.” She rolled her eyes and said, “Keep those words for yourself, they suit you better!” Then she tried to take back the suitcase, “I can guess what you want to tell me. You want to bring your girlfriend home for the New Year, right? Feel free to do so, no need to be so hesitant. If I can tolerate you for so long, what can’t I accommodate? But just one thing, when you do your business, try to keep it clean and tidy. Don’t throw around those gelatinous substances containing countless life forms. Of course, if you can clean up after yourselves, feel free to discard at will, don’t mind me. But if I have to clean up when I come back, I’m telling you, I’ll lose it when I see that!”
Li Yifei took a moment to realize what she meant by “gelatinous substances.” When he did, he frowned and poked her forehead hard with his finger, “Are you even a woman? How dare you say such things to me? Do you think I’m a stallion?”
Qian Fei’s head was knocked sideways. As she straightened her head and rubbed her forehead, she mumbled, “I think you’re the king of stallions!”
Li Yifei raised his hand and poked her again, with such force that Qian Fei kept rubbing her forehead all the way.
“So mean, even when joking around, you use such force!” Qian Fei couldn’t help but grumble in the taxi.
Li Yifei didn’t sit in the front passenger seat. He sat next to Qian Fei in the back, glancing at her sideways while shaking his hand and complaining, “What did you pack in that suitcase? It’s so heavy! This young master’s wrist is about to break!”
Qian Fei couldn’t help but mock him, “Oh, with your delicate princess physique, what can you do? You’re whining about carrying such a small load. If you were transported back to the 1960s, you’d starve to death several times over!”
Li Yifei snorted coldly, “Let me tell you, don’t be ungrateful. This young master has never carried luggage for anyone before!”
Qian Fei exaggeratedly praised him, her words not matching her thoughts, “Young Master, you’re amazing! Young Master, you’re so virtuous! Young Master, look, my eyes are almost blinded by tears of gratitude! Young Master, feel free to wreck the house with your girlfriend, if the landlady dares to complain, I’ll give her a beating!”
As they bantered in the back seat, the driver looked at them through the rearview mirror, completely confused.
What kind of relationship did these two have? He was completely baffled…
Li Yifei glanced sideways at Qian Fei for a while, then said, “On New Year’s Eve, all my buddies and friends will be spending it with their families, so I’ll be alone. So if she doesn’t go back to her hometown, I might indeed invite her over, but it’ll just be to eat, watch TV, and spend the New Year together. We won’t do anything improper.” He looked at Qian Fei’s stunned expression, thought for a moment, and added, “This young master is a person of self-respect and self-discipline!”
Qian Fei felt that if she had a bottle of mineral water in her hand at that moment, she would definitely take a sip and then spray it on Li Yifei’s face in shock for dramatic effect.
“Hehe, no, don’t make it sound like I’m interfering with your private affairs! Hehe, whatever you do or don’t do, that’s your freedom. No need to report to the landlady for approval, ha!” Qian Fei said while scratching her face.
Li Yifei glanced at her, “Look at your idiotic expression!” He shook his wrist and said, “I’ve heard you mention on the phone with your dad before that he likes to drink a bit. My friend gave me two bottles of Wuliangye that I don’t like. Take them back for your dad.” He kicked the bag at his feet.
Qian Fei recalled that he had been carrying this bag since they left home. She had thought it contained documents, not realizing the contents were for her.
She leaned over to peek into the bag, grinning mischievously, “This is so embarrassing! Look at you, I just asked you to pretend on the phone with my dad, and you’re acting like it’s for real! How old is this liquor?”
Li Yifei said calmly, “Just 50-year-old vintage. It’s a bit rushed this time, tell the old man to make do with these for now.”
Qian Fei’s movements froze as she was looking into the bag. Working in investment banking, she often had dinners with company executives and gained some liquor knowledge. A 50-year-old Wuliangye couldn’t be less than ten or twenty thousand yuan per bottle.
She slowly straightened up, looking at Li Yifei with a dazed expression, and said, “Young Master Li, please tell me these are high-quality fakes! Otherwise, I don’t dare to take them!”
Li Yifei glanced at her coldly and snorted, “Fake, my foot! If this liquor is fake, I’ll change my surname to Qian!”
Qian Fei felt her heart pounding wildly, “Big brother, this gift is too grand, I don’t dare to accept it!”
Li Yifei looked at her with disdain and curled his lip, “You call this little thing a grand gift? You haven’t seen much of the world.”
At the airport, when it was time to check in the luggage, Qian Fei held the bag with the two bottles of liquor, trembling and hesitating.
“I still feel it’s not appropriate for me to accept these two bottles! You should take them back!” She shoved the bag into Li Yifei’s arms.
Li Yifei grew impatient, “What’s the fuss about? Stop dithering, don’t you see how many people are queuing behind you?” He directly handed the bag to the check-in staff.
Qian Fei watched nervously as the staff tagged the liquor, grumbling, “After accepting these two bottles from you, you won’t blackmail me into doing anything unethical for you, will you?”
Li Yifei sneered, “Stop being so full of yourself. I never said the liquor was for you, did I? I clearly said it was for your dad!”
Qian Fei looked wary, “Then you won’t blackmail my dad into doing anything unethical for you, right?”
Li Yifei didn’t say anything, but using all his strength, he poked Qian Fei’s forehead hard once again.