She's Crazy, I Love Her - Chapter 28

Chi Yue curled up in the navy-blue Bibendum armchair in the study, rolled her notebook into a tube and rested it on her lower abdomen, her eyes fixed on her phone on the oddly shaped desk.

It was past three in the afternoon.

Qi You hadn’t texted or called.

The taxi ride back would take five hours, and even if she left late at night, she barely had a few hours left.

What could she do?

Chi Yue tapped her chin against her knee a few times before reaching for her phone.

Tap, tap, tap… Delete, delete, delete.

She had never forgotten the nature of their relationship.

She had never eaten pork before, but she had at least seen pigs run. As a mistress, she knew she was supposed to be gentle and attentive, obedient and docile. Even when throwing a tantrum or being coquettish, she needed to be skillful.

But Chi Yue had never been a clever child, and she was particularly clumsy in this regard.

After two minutes, she still hadn’t sent a single word.

Chi Yue put her phone back on the desk, stood up, and stretched. The lingering discomfort from the excessive stretching in her inner thighs sent a dull ache through her with each movement. She casually pressed at the area, paying it no mind—this was one of her few strengths: a higher pain tolerance than most.

Facing the reflective rock slab wall of the study, Chi Yue peeled off the ice patches from her neck.

One patch had been on her neck, another on her collarbone, for nearly twenty minutes. The skin beneath was now delicately red, but the mechanical bruises in the center remained starkly visible.

They were too conspicuous, making them difficult to conceal even under the loose-fitting costumes of historical dramas.

She touched them with her fingertips, the skin numb from prolonged exposure to the ice.

Actually, there were more elsewhere on her body, and those were even darker.

Chi Yue tugged down her collar and glanced at them before turning to toss the ice packs into the trash. She reached for her phone.

Her message vanished into the void. After waiting a while, Chi Yue grew restless. She stood up and began pacing the room.

She tapped the obsidian on the desk, inhaled the fragrance of the snow mountain roses in the vase, counted the water-flow lamps overhead, and slowly strolled down the nearly ten-meter-long hallway to the kitchen. She retrieved a can of fruit yogurt from the refrigerator, spooning it into her mouth as she stood by the living room’s floor-to-ceiling windows, gazing at the view outside.

Seventy-fourth floor.

The weather was gloomy today, the sky a dull gray. The city was shrouded in a thick haze, obscuring any trace of green. All that remained was a concrete jungle, hard and dazzling, cold and mysterious.

Just like Qi You.

Her lower back, abdomen, and legs still ached. After standing for a while, she sank into the nearby cigar lounge chair. Even seated, the view remained vast and majestic. As she gazed out, a sense of imperial grandeur swelled in her heart, as if she could survey the entire world from this lofty perch.

Chi Yue sipped her creamy yogurt, her mind wandering. If I get used to looking down on the world from this vantage point, what if I forget how to walk when I fall back to earth one day?

Her phone suddenly buzzed, snapping her out of her reverie. She quickly checked the notification.

President Qi: I’ll take you home tonight.

Tonight? What time? How? Who’s taking me?

Chi Yue set aside her yogurt, tapped the reply box, and hovered her thumb over the screen for a long moment before finally pressing down.

Okay.

She stared at her phone for a few more seconds, waiting for the screen to dim naturally before placing it back on her lap.

With Qi You’s confirmation, Chi Yue abandoned the idea of calling a taxi. After finishing her yogurt, she reviewed her lines for the upcoming scenes. Mid-study, Sun Zhiping called. Following Zhang Mu’s instructions, she hung up without answering and sent a screenshot to Zhang Mu.

Zhang Mu replied swiftly: Block him.

Even through the screen, Chi Yue could practically visualize her new manager’s decisive demeanor. As she added Sun Zhiping’s number to her blacklist, she couldn’t help but sigh softly, “I’m being so obedient…”

Around six o’clock, Qi You finally called. “Are you in your room?”

“Yes,” Chi Yue replied.

“Have you eaten?” Qi You asked.

Chi Yue had been waiting for her. “No.”

“The hotel restaurant,” Qi You said. “Want to eat there?”

Without much hesitation, Chi Yue said, “Yes.”

“Come down now,” Qi You said. “I’ll wait for you in the restaurant.”

Chi Yue finally stood up. “You’re back already?”

“Mm-hmm,” Qi You confirmed.

Chi Yue quickly made a sound of acknowledgment, tore off the ice pack she’d been applying to her neck every hour, and said, “I’ll be right down.”

She applied a bandage to the most visible mark on her neck in front of the mirror, then brushed all her hair forward over her chest. Fortunately, her hair was thick and voluminous. She fluffed it out with her fingers, making sure the marks were sufficiently obscured before leaving her room.

The room key automatically activated the VIP elevator, which whisked her directly from the 74th floor to the 11th-floor restaurant.

The elevator descended quickly, but the continuous weightlessness still caused a slight dizziness.

The moment the doors opened, another elevator directly across the hall also slowly opened. A man stood in the center, his gaze naturally meeting Chi Yue’s as she stepped out.

“Miss Chi.”

Chi Yue walked out of the elevator and turned right following the directional signs before she heard the greeting.

Chi Yue froze, turning her head to recognize him. After a full two seconds, a smile suddenly bloomed on her face. “Young Master Pei, long time no see.”

“President Pei, do you know someone here?” one of his entourage asked with a smile.

“Mm,” Pei Yi replied, his gaze fixed on Chi Yue. “What brings you here?”

Chi Yue gestured toward the restaurant entrance. “I came for dinner.”

Pei Yi nodded, then asked, “With friends?”

His casual tone felt almost too relaxed.

Chi Yue glanced at him. She wasn’t particularly close to Pei Yi; their last encounter had been at the Pei Family patriarch’s birthday celebration, where he had mistaken her for someone else and subsequently been injured.

“Yes,” Chi Yue replied, maintaining her smile. As she turned her gaze, she spotted Qi You.

Qi You was watching her from across the room, her expression like that of someone observing an object—emotionless, yet sending an inexplicable chill down Chi Yue’s spine.

Pei Yi followed her gaze. “Ah, it’s Miss Qi.”

Unaware of the odd tone in his voice, Chi Yue casually hummed in acknowledgment and walked toward Qi You.

As she approached, Qi You didn’t look at her, her gaze fixed on the space behind Chi Yue until she was close, then slowly shifting back to meet her eyes.

“Let’s go,” Qi You said directly to Chi Yue, leaving the man who had been about to greet her and the rest of the group behind.

A waiter led them to a private booth. After they were seated, Qi You gestured for the waiter to hand the menu to Chi Yue.

“Shall I order?” Chi Yue asked.

Qi You remained silent.

Chi Yue had left that morning wearing a relatively formal light-colored blouse. Her face showed no trace of makeup, only a clean, fresh look, with lips a pale, almost nude pink.

Yet there was nothing inappropriate about her appearance. A woman like her didn’t need flawless makeup to project her noble status.

Chi Yue lowered her head to look at the menu, but her gaze kept drifting up.

“Pei…” Chi Yue paused after uttering only his surname, then continued, “I only ran into him after getting off the elevator downstairs.”

Chi Yue’s eyes were fixed on Qi You. She couldn’t quite decipher Qi You’s mood—it wasn’t anger, but certainly not happiness, not even her usual composure.

She wasn’t sure why she felt compelled to explain, but perhaps it was instinct. Chi Yue continued, “Actually, when he first called out to me, I didn’t even recognize him.”

The waiter was serving them water.

Qi You nodded.

Chi Yue couldn’t tell if the nod was directed at her or the waiter, so she maintained a neutral expression.

After a pause, she lowered her head to the menu again. Knowing Qi You wouldn’t eat much, Chi Yue quickly ordered a few dishes and dismissed the waiter.

Chi Yue took a sip of water.

“What’s Young Master Pei’s full name?” Qi You suddenly asked.

Chi Yue was slightly taken aback, her tone hesitant. “Pei… Pei Yi?”

Qi You stared at her.

“I don’t know which ‘Yi’ it is,” Chi Yue said. “It’s probably not the ‘Yi’ from ‘one, two, three, four.’ The last time I saw him was at that birthday banquet you mentioned, where he mistook me for his deceased first love or something.”

Qi You asked, “You haven’t seen him since then?”

Chi Yue found the question odd but replied, “No, I haven’t.”

Qi You nodded.

The atmosphere seemed to ease.

Chi Yue glanced at her, took a sip of water, and then looked at her again before asking, “Do you have some kind of conflict with him?”

She immediately regretted the question. What right did she have to pry into Qi You’s personal affairs?

Fortunately, Qi You’s tone remained neutral. “Why do you ask?”

Chi Yue avoided mentioning the incident with the flowerpot. “I was just guessing. You know, the kind of power struggles and business wars that happen between wealthy families. Is that it?”

Qi You replied, “No.”

“Oh,” Chi Yue said. “So, do you actually have a grudge against him?”

“Yes,” Qi You said.

Chi Yue gasped. Though she had mentally prepared herself, she still couldn’t help but stare at Qi You in surprise, unsure whether it was her candidness or the answer itself that shocked her.

Chi Yue lowered her head to drink some water, then asked softly, “What kind of grudge?”

Qi You glanced at Chi Yue’s bright, curious eyes.

A waiter knocked and entered to serve the dishes.

Chi Yue snapped back to reality, quickly suppressing her inappropriate curiosity and straightening her posture.

Today, Chi Yue ordered only the main course, soup, and dessert. Among the desserts was the salmon wasabi tart that Qi You had taken a few bites of the previous night.

Unfortunately, Qi You didn’t touch a single bite of the meal, only drinking water.

Chi Yue’s appetite for the meat waned. “You don’t want to eat anything at all?” she asked.

Qi You hummed in response.

Chi Yue’s fork froze mid-air.

Qi You glanced at her. “Hurry up and eat. Stop dawdling.”

Chi Yue reluctantly lowered her head and continued eating.

As they were finishing their meal, Chi Yue said, “I’ll be leaving soon.”

Qi You hummed again.

Chi Yue secretly breathed a sigh of relief. She had been worried Qi You might ask her to stay or take another day off, but thankfully, she didn’t.

After the meal, they stepped out.

As if by fate, they ran into Pei Yi at the elevator entrance again.

Unlike their quick lunch, Pei Yi had clearly come out midway through something, still holding the phone he had just put down.

What a coincidence, Qi You thought slowly. First I met Pei Yi at the conference, then I called Chi Yue over, and now we’re running into each other in the elevator. How perfectly natural.

They would have many more such encounters in the future. After all, fate loves a good coincidence, and no matter how she tried to prevent it, destiny would inevitably weave their paths together.

Just as fate would find countless plausible reasons for her to die.

Unless… unless she drove a tanker truck and smashed that car to pieces.

The world wouldn’t end. She would merely be imprisoned, given a sedative, and then, one day, suddenly stop breathing due to an adverse drug reaction.

The elevator doors opened, and the three women stepped inside. The doors closed.

No one spoke. In the eerie silence, Chi Yue subtly hooked her fingers around Qi You’s.

Qi You turned to look at her.

Chi Yue met her gaze but remained silent, simply trying to divert her attention.

That exceptionally beautiful face did indeed capture Qi You’s attention. She stopped looking at Pei Yi, and when she turned back, her gaze drifted naturally to some point in the air.

The man was on the seventy-second floor.

Only after the elevator doors closed did Chi Yue lightly bite her lip and ask tentatively, “What were you thinking about just now?”

Qi You glanced at her, her mind racing with thoughts of how she would kill him first.