Chapter 120.2
Editor: Casey
It was the first time that Jiang Bieyu had seen a little master like Shi Qing who was attended to like a little ancestor.
The Jiang family came from a military background, and they didn’t have as many rules and regulations as the Shi family. Even though they had a similar degree in status, they were not the Shi family’s equals when it came to monetary wealth. There was no way they would keep so many servants around.
Those legitimate young masters like Jiang Liye might get a bit more monthly allowance than usual, but concubine-born children like Jiang Bieyu only received a pitiable amount. Even less after some servants took their share.
After all, the Jiang family has many children. What did they care about a mere concubine-born son?
On the other hand, despite being ridiculously rich, the Shi family only has one potential inheritor, Shi Qing.
Everyone in that manor was willing to go to war if even a single hair on their precious little master’s head fell off.
Jiang Bieyu continued to act meek on the surface, but he was calmly a.n.a.lyzing the current situation inside.
Shi Qing believed that Jiang Liye pushed him into the water on purpose, and he convinced his parents of this as well.
Jiang Liye won’t be able to weasel his way out this time.
The thought made Jiang Bieyu feel better about his predicament.
Although he might face hara.s.sment if he stayed with the Shi family, it was already happening in the Jiang family anyway.
He had to gather information first until he found an opportunity to escape. The world was in chaos now. Although it was dangerous, it was also a good chance to make a name for yourself.
As he was thinking this, the little master’s now cleaned hands came to pat his face again.
Perhaps because of the recently applied hand cream to them, the previously faint fragrance became even more fragrant. With Shi Qing’s movements, a light osmanthus scent enveloped Jiang Bieyu’s cheeks.
He raised his head, looking at the little master in front of him with his light-coloured eyes.
Jiang Bieyu’s eyes were very light in colour. That might be why his gaze always seemed so cold and dead when he looked at others.
Just as most people didn’t like the eyes of a snake, they found Jiang Bieyu’s eyes unnerving too. They were not the eyes of a pure-blooded Han Chinese person, making them scary to look at.
His father thought this son of his was a white-eyed wolf since he never smiled during their interactions. He just regarded everyone with cool indifference.
His brothers thought he looked like a wicked, vicious wolf. Since this ‘vicious wolf’ also happened to be of low status, they enjoyed bullying Jiang Bieyu to experience the satisfaction of ‘conquering the big bad wolf’.
But now…
Jiang Bieyu was still that wolf, but this obviously spoiled little master didn’t show any fear on his face. He even curiously touched Jiang Bieyu’s eyes with his own tender hands.
Jiang Bieyu didn’t close his eyes. He kept them open as a pair of incredibly soft hands traced the contours of his eyes.
The maidservants next to Shi Qing were all tense, as if Jiang Bieyu would become a wild brute and injure their little master at any second.
The maidservant who had grown up with Shi Qing advised softly, “Qing-er, he’s really scaryk2026; Are you sure you want to keep him?”
“How is he scary? I think he looks very valiant.”
The little master was very stubborn. The way he looked into Jiang Bieyu’s eyes could almost be described as bewitched. His soft voice was full of fondness.
“Such beautiful eyes, how nice it would be if they were mine instead.”
The maidservants looked at each other in disbelief. Should they remark that Shi Qing’s aesthetics were abnormal? Or should they advise him not to think about such strange things?
They were torn, but Jiang Bieyu’s body stiffened. He gave Shi Qing a sullen look.
This was…the first time someone had complimented him on his eyes.
His whole life, what Jiang Bieyu had heard most was people’s rejection of his features.
In the Jiang family, where the status of the legitimate and concubine-born children were night and day. And Jiang Bieyu, with his lowly status, his too-tall body, and light-coloured eyes, which went against the Han aesthetic, was a white-eyed wolf in his own father’s words. Because of this, he suffered much verbal abuse.
Even if he had never taken those people’s words to heart, Jiang Bieyu had also disdained his own features for being too fierce and unattractive since he was a child.
But now, a little master who had been carefully cared for from head to toe appeared before him. This person who seemed to be carved out of jade said that he was good-looking.
It was difficult to describe what Jiang Bieyu felt right now. He continued to stare, unconsciously refusing to blink, so that Shi Qing could better admire his supposedly ‘good-looking eyes’.
[Ding! Jiang Bieyu’s animosity value: 99/100]
Shi Qing: [Not bad, not bad. It actually went down by one point. My efforts weren’t in vain.]
Although he said what he did to lower Jiang Bieyu’s animosity value, Shi Qing wasn’t lying.
Jiang Bieyu was very good-looking. Just look at the shape of his eyebrows and nose. He was just born in the wrong era, that’s all.
In addition, Jiang Bieyu was not of high status, so he wore shabby and worn clothing most of the time that concealed his striking features.
However, now that he had landed in Shi Qing’s hands, this was an easy matter to deal with.
A smile appeared on the little master’s fair and tender face.
Coincidentally, servants came in soon after with plates upon plates of food. Shi Qing happily turned around and picked up a piece of meat with his chopsticks, presenting it to Jiang Bieyu’s mouth.
“You’re hungry, aren’t you? Here, eat a piece of meat.”
Although he was feeding him, anyone could tell by Shi Qing’s casual att.i.tude that he didn’t really think much of Jiang Bieyu despite this intimate gesture.
Instead of saying he was feeding Jiang Bieyu, it might be more accurate to describe it as him taking care of his latest object of fascination.
Jiang Bieyu had grown up being bombarded with all sorts of negative words and emotions. Naturally, he could see this too.
He didn’t get angry or feel insulted. Instead, he obediently parted his lips and ate the piece of meat.
“Is it good?”
As he watched the man chew, the little master’s eyes curled up as he smiled. He even took the handkerchief handed over by the maid and personally dabbed at the corners of Jiang Bieyu’s mouth.
Jiang Bieyu nodded in silence.
Shi Qing showed a bit of dissatisfaction. “I asked you if it was good. You have to answer me.”
The man obediently replied, “It’s delicious.”
“Good. If it’s tasty, you should have more.”
The little master’s mood became genial again. He casually turned around and picked up the entire platter of beef. Squatting by Jiang Bieyu’s side, he fed the man piece after piece.
Fortunately, Jiang Bieyu has always had a big appet.i.te since he was a child so he didn’t get too stuffed from the platter.
Shi Qing was quite satisfied to watch him eat.
He lovingly caressed the man’s face again, tracing down that cold, defined jawline all the way to the tiny bits of stubble on Jiang Bieyu’s chin.
“Hiss!”
The stubble may be tiny, but it was also rugged and p.r.i.c.kly. Due to his inattention, the little master got his fingers p.r.i.c.ked. He immediately withdrew his hand.
“Qing-er!”
“How is it? Are you bleeding?”
“Hurry up and bring the ointment, ah! What are you all still standing around for?! Come here Qing-er, I’ll blow on it for you.”
The maidservants in the room immediately became nervous and rushed to work, as if a terrifying gash had appeared on Shi Qing’s finger rather than a slight p.r.i.c.k from the stubble.
The little master, who had grown up in such an environment, was naturally very delicate as well. He scowled petulantly at Jiang Bieyu and ordered:
“Take him away and clean him up. Bring him to my room after shaving him and giving him a new set of clothes.”
The maidservants all paused and stuttered. They were afraid of Jiang Bieyu because of his appearance. They didn’t think such a scary- looking man could be a good person.
But they couldn’t disobey the little master’s orders either. They could only do what Shi Qing had told them to do.
Jiang Bieyu’s body was covered in wounds and he could not walk. Since he was so tall, these delicate maidservants who had been raised in the Shi family since childhood definitely couldn’t carry him.
So they went outside and called for some male servants, who managed to move him out and bathe him. One of them shaved Jiang Bieyu and found him a new set of clothes too.
Jiang Bieyu had open wounds on his back, so technically speaking, he shouldn’t have bathed. But the water helped to dislodge the dust and debris that he acc.u.mulated after being dragged all over the place.
When it was time to get dressed, another maidservant came over, announcing that the little master had sent her over with teta.n.u.s medicine. Not knowing the details, the male servant thought that Shi Qing held Jiang Bieyu in high regard. He hurried to help apply the medicine.
Jiang Bieyu remained silent throughout. He was feeling a little wary due to Shi Qing’s erratic behaviour.
The idea that people were only nice to you when they needed something was ingrained into him as a child. Shi Qing had looked down on him before, even whipping him a hundred times after being pushed into the water.
But now he was showing Jiang Bieyu great favour. How could he not be suspicious?
When he was done, the maidservant came again to urge him, “Hurry up. Qing-er wants you to get a move on.”
Jiang Bieyu’s back ached and his face was pallid. Still, he followed the servant back to Shi Qing’s room without complaint.
Inside, the little master was nestled in his bed with a maidservant feeding him pieces of fruit. He looked quite haughty with a longhaired Persian cat in his arms.
Shi Qing seemed to like this kind of cat, looking down at it with fondness as he teased it with his hands. He even occasionally fed it dried fish. Affection was very apparent in his pretty and clear eyes.
For some reason, this scene made Jiang Bieyu feel a sense of déjà vu.
After doing who knows what, Shi Qing suddenly shouted in alarm and threw the cat on the bed. His att.i.tude did a complete 180 as he called for a servant:
“This cat scratched me! Quickly take it away and clip its nails. Bring it back to me after.”
The maidservants were thrown into a bustle of commotion again. Some treated his wounds, others held the cat, and the rest consoled him carefully.
This scene, compared to when Jiang Bieyu’s stubble had stabbed Shi Qing’s hand before while the little master was feeding him…
They were almost exactly the same.