Chapter 102: A Humble but Precious Gift
Chapter 102: A Humble but Precious Gift
Yu Meilin pulled Li Zian all the way to the open-air terrace before stopping. Then she let go of Li Zian’s hand and stared at the Huangbu River without saying a word.
Li Zian could feel the anger and sadness in her heart.
The person who hurt her was not a business rival, but her own family.
But she was a strong woman deep down. She would not speak of it; she was used to bearing things alone.
Li Zian said gently, “Meilin, don’t think about it. Just treat it as if you encountered a mad dog. It’s not worth getting angry over someone like that. Look, he said those things about me, and I didn’t get angry. But I won’t let it slide. He can belittle me, but he hurt you—I will definitely settle the score with him.”
Back in Crescent Moon Village, it was the same. People could say whatever they wanted about him, but they couldn’t badmouth his woman. Whoever said it, he would confront them.
Yu Meilin looked at Li Zian, a faint mist appearing in her eyes. It was hard to tell whether it was from anger at Yu Jiahao or from being moved by his comforting words.
“Meilin, you—”
Yu Meilin interrupted him, “Can I lean on your shoulder?”
Li Zian was slightly taken aback. He never expected Yu Meilin to want to lean on his shoulder. But he nodded immediately.
She was his wife. If a wife wanted to lean on her husband’s shoulder, what was wrong with that?
He had the right to drive Yu Meilin’s car, even though he never had. But he had a license and his own exclusive key. Similarly, if Yu Meilin wanted to lean on his shoulder, she had that exclusive right too.
Before his head had even finished nodding, Yu Meilin came closer. She threw herself into his arms, wrapped her arms around his waist, and buried her face in the crook of his neck.
Li Zian thought she might cry.
But how could she be the type of woman who cried easily?
Instead, in this intimate embrace, with her breath brushing against his neck, he actually felt a bit of an instinctive reaction.
In fact, a part of his body had only behaved for one night last night—now it was acting up again.
After all, he was a master with the Great Sluggish Cauldron within him. His body was the furnace—not only could his blood be used as medicine, even the dirt on his skin was a medicinal ingredient. How could his body be compared to that of an ordinary man? None of the so-called standards applied to him.
What was even stranger was that he felt a pang of guilt again. But this time, it wasn’t guilt toward Yu Meilin or Xiaomei—it was toward Mu Chuntao.
Yu Meilin was holding him, but his mind was on Mu Chuntao.
How did things come to this?
“Zian.” Yu Meilin spoke against Li Zian’s neck.
Li Zian’s ears turned red. “Hmm?”
“What are you thinking about?” Yu Meilin’s voice was soft.
“Nothing, I’m not thinking about anything.” Li Zian felt a little guilty.
“Don’t think I can’t tell.” Yu Meilin said.
Li Zian: “?”
Yu Meilin’s arms around his waist suddenly tightened, as if she wanted to remind him of something by holding him closer, or maybe it was just a natural impulse to embrace him tighter.
Li Zian’s heart grew even more unsettled.
We agreed to be a plastic couple. I don’t even mind that you’re still hung up on your first love—why are you holding me so tightly now?
“Master.” A familiar voice called out.
Li Zian turned his head to look. It was Zhong Fu calling him.
Yu Meilin quickly let go of Li Zian and instinctively smoothed out the wrinkles on her clothes.
Zhong Fu hurried over, his face beaming. “Ah, Master, I’ve been looking all over for you! My master has been asking about you for quite a while, wondering why you haven’t come. I finally found you. Please, come with me.”
Li Zian smiled. “Mr. Zhong, this is my wife, Yu Meilin.”
Zhong Fu gave a slight bow and said politely, “Nice to meet you, Mrs. Li.”
Yu Meilin returned the courtesy. “You’re too kind, Mr. Zhong.”
Zhong Fu said, “Mrs. Li, please come along too. My master will be very happy to see you.”
Yu Meilin nodded.
Li Zian took Yu Meilin’s hand and followed Zhong Fu. They did not go through the banquet hall but entered through a door on the side of the terrace, leading into a corridor, and eventually arrived at a room.
It wasn’t exactly a guest room—the furniture was all antique pieces. Yet it wasn’t not a guest room either; there was a bed and a bathroom. By the floor-to-ceiling window stood a desk, and through the window, you could see the view of the Huangbu River.
Du Zhishan stood behind the desk, writing with a brush. Du Linlin stood beside him, grinding ink.
The young man who had looked fierce earlier was also in the room, but this time he wore a suit. His thick neck, broad shoulders, and sturdy chest muscles strained against the fabric of the suit. Combined with his serious, indifferent expression, he gave off the vibe of a Suit-clad Thug.
Zhong Fu said respectfully, “Master, Miss, the Master is here.”
Du Zhishan and Du Linlin both looked over.
Du Linlin smiled at Li Zian.
Du Zhishan put down his brush and wobbled toward Li Zian. Before he could take two steps, the “Suit-clad Thug” hurried forward to support him.
Du Linlin said, “Chu Ba, let my father walk on his own. It will help him recover.”
Chu Ba—truly a strange name.
“Hmm.” Chu Ba replied but did not let go until Du Zhishan picked up the cane leaning against the desk. Only then did he cautiously release his hold.
Du Zhishan leaned on his cane as he walked toward Li Zian and Yu Meilin, his eyes shining with excitement. “If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it—Master, you’re so young.”
Li Zian stepped forward with a smile. “Hello, President Du. Allow me to introduce you—this is my wife, Yu Meilin.”
Yu Meilin came forward and said politely, “I’ve long admired you, President Du, but never had the chance to meet you. Today, I came with my husband specifically to pay my respects.”
Du Zhishan laughed. “Oh, you’re too polite. This old life of mine was saved by the Master. Being able to befriend Master and his wife is an honor for me.”
Knowing someone and befriending them were two different things.
Before, Yu Meilin knew of Du Zhishan, and Du Zhishan might have known of her, but there was no relationship. Now it was different—with Li Zian between them, the connection had become a solid triangle.
Du Linlin walked over and said with a smile, “Master, your wife is truly beautiful. No wonder she captured your heart.”
Li Zian smiled, but he kept his thoughts to himself.
Capture my foot.
We’re a plastic couple—would I tell you that?
Yu Meilin replied naturally and gracefully, “Let’s not stand on ceremony. President Du is older, so my husband and I will call you Uncle Du. I’m a bit older than Miss Du—if you don’t mind, I’ll call you little sister, alright?”
“Of course, Sister Yu.” Du Linlin came over and took Yu Meilin’s hand, acting very affectionate.
For some reason, Li Zian suddenly thought of Yu Meilin and Mu Chuntao. They were also like sisters, but yesterday he had spent the afternoon eating Taozi with Mu Chuntao.
Stop it.
Master, you can’t get lost in these messy matters.
Yu Meilin glanced at Li Zian.
Li Zian snapped out of it. He took a box out of his pocket and handed it to Du Zhishan. “President Du, a small gift, it’s nothing much. Please accept it.”
When Yu Meilin saw the box Li Zian handed to Du Zhishan, she instantly felt like strangling him.
It was a chocolate box.
She regretted it deeply. She really should have asked Li Zian to show her that so-called medicinal plaster before they came. If she had, she definitely would have gone to a gift shop to pick out a nicer box.
But now, there was nothing she could do to fix it—her husband had already given the gift away.
She decided that when they got back, she needed to search Li Zian’s room and confiscate all the chocolate he had prepared for Li Xiaomei!
Du Zhishan, however, did not dare to take it lightly. He quickly reached out with both hands to receive the chocolate box, then deliberately said, “Haha, I just love chocolate. Master, you really are amazing—you even know what I like to eat.”
Li Zian said, “This isn’t chocolate. It’s a medicinal plaster I made.”
“Oh? This is… medicine made by the Master?” Du Zhishan’s eyes immediately lit up. He couldn’t wait to open the box, but his fingers were still a bit stiff, and he couldn’t manage it.
“Dad, let me open it.” Du Linlin took the chocolate box from Du Zhishan’s hands, opened it, and took out a white medicinal plaster the size of a bar of soap.
The plaster was wrapped in kitchen cling film—not very refined.
Du Linlin asked curiously, “Master, what kind of medicinal plaster is this? What does it treat, and how do you take it?”
Li Zian said, “This is Detox Ointment. It’s not for eating—it’s for bathing.”
“Bathing?” Du Zhishan couldn’t keep up with Li Zian’s train of thought. After hearing that, he even thought it might just be a bar of soap.
Li Zian said calmly, “This ointment is one of a kind. It cleans toxins from the body, restores vitality, boosts physical functions, and prolongs life.”
Du Zhishan’s heart leaped. “This is a tremendous gift. I must cherish it.”
Li Zian said, “Since there’s still a bit of time before the banquet starts, why don’t you try it, Uncle Du? I’ll apply it myself, and then I’ll give you a bone-pressing massage. After that, you probably won’t need a cane to walk.”
Du Zhishan stepped forward and grasped Li Zian’s hand. “Since you call me Uncle Du, I’ll take the liberty from now on to call you Zian. I’ll treat you as my nephew, and our families will be one.”
Li Zian nodded in agreement.
Yu Meilin smiled. This was a connection she had never been able to make before, yet Li Zian helped her achieve it so effortlessly.
“Zian, how do I use this medicine?” Du Zhishan was already impatient.
Li Zian said, “Fill a bathtub with water, around 50 degrees Celsius. I’ll prepare the medicine for you to soak in. After you finish soaking, lie down on the bed, and I’ll give you the bone-pressing massage.”
“Chu Ba, go draw the bathwater.” Du Zhishan said, unable to wait any longer.
Chu Ba acknowledged and went to the bathroom to run the water.
Li Zian glanced around, then picked up a fruit knife from the coffee table. Before he could even ask, Du Linlin placed the bar of soap-sized Detox Ointment on the desk for him to cut.
When Li Zian went over to the desk with the fruit knife, he saw the characters Du Zhishan had written and froze for a moment.