The Crazy Villain Wants Me to Love Her - Chapter 25
Chapter 25: Don’t Be Sad.
The next morning.
The sky was clear, the wind was gentle, and the sun was bright. It looked nothing like the forecast of heavy rain and strong winds.
Jiang Chilou looked out at the clear sky through the living room’s floor-to-ceiling window, then turned back to Gu Wan: “The sky outside is so clear, and the sun is quite strong. It doesn’t look like it will rain.”
Gu Wan followed the sound and glanced over at Jiang Chilou: “Maybe it will only rain tonight.”
Jiang Chilou smiled at her comment: “That’s true.”
In her memory, Ning City’s weather always changed quickly. One moment it could be sunny and pleasant, and the next, a sudden storm.
Jiang Chilou stood by the window. The morning sun fell upon her, seemingly coating her with a faint sheen of light, both bright and soft.
Feeling the warmth on her body, Jiang Chilou unconsciously raised her hand to touch the light streaming in from outside the window.
She looked down at the bright light in her palm, and an idea suddenly formed in her mind.
This spot looks very suitable for wood carving.
Thinking of this, Jiang Chilou’s lips curved slightly.
She looked at the person sitting on the sofa and quickly walked over.
“Gu Wan,” she said with a smile as she sat down next to Gu Wan, her eyes sparkling.
Gu Wan glanced at her: “What is it?”
“I want to put a wood carving workbench there, can I?” Jiang Chilou said, pointing to the spot where she had just been standing.
Gu Wan followed the direction she was pointing. That area was spacious, near the floor-to-ceiling window. Besides having good light, she could also see the courtyard outside from there.
Moreover, their living room was huge, and that spot was just a corner of the secondary living area. Putting a workbench there wouldn’t affect the main living room.
Thinking this, Gu Wan nodded: “You can.”
“When do you want to set it up? I’ll let Butler Lin know.”
Jiang Chilou smiled: “It’s fine as long as you agree.”
“As for the workbench, I’ll talk to Butler Lin myself.” She also wanted to ask Butler Lin something on the side.
Gu Wan looked at Jiang Chilou for a moment, then nodded: “That works too.”
“Then I’ll go find Butler Lin first, and come find you later.” As Jiang Chilou finished speaking, she immediately got up to look for Butler Lin.
Gu Wan looked at her decisive departure, her expression pausing slightly.
On the other side, Jiang Chilou found Butler Lin. After telling him what kind of workbench she needed, she asked: “Butler Lin, do you know where in Ning City sells the best carving knives?”
Butler Lin thought for a moment: “Madam wants to buy a set of carving knives specifically for wood carving?”
Jiang Chilou nodded: “Yes.”
Hearing this, Butler Lin smiled: “I used to know a few wood carving masters when I was at the Gu family’s old residence. The daughter of one of the masters opened a wood carving shop. I remember the shop’s name is called ‘Ebony.’ They sell carving knives and her own wood carvings inside.”
“I heard you can order online. If it’s within the same city, an order placed in the morning can arrive in the afternoon on the same day.”
Hearing this, Jiang Chilou instantly lit up with joy: “How can I order online?”
“That master shared her daughter’s online shop link with me before. Let me find it and share it with you later.” Butler Lin said, pulling out his phone and typing a name into the WeChat search bar.
He quickly found a person.
Butler Lin tapped into the chat, scrolled to the link the person had shared, and quickly forwarded it to Jiang Chilou.
“I’ve sent it to you. Please take a look.”
“Okay, thank you, Butler Lin.” Jiang Chilou thanked him with a smile.
She tapped the link. The familiar page layout made her pause for two seconds when she entered.
This shop… is quite similar to the online shop she used to run.
Jiang Chilou shook her head, composed herself, found what she wanted, and after quickly placing an order, she couldn’t help but click into the customer service page.
“Hello, I just placed an order. Will it arrive this afternoon, or will I have to wait until tomorrow?”
At the same time, Wu Xia heard the notification from the online shop backend and quickly clicked on the message. She looked at the recipient’s address and couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow.
“It will arrive this afternoon.” It’s only about five kilometers away. Besides, it’s only nine o’clock now. Afternoon delivery is actually late.
“Okay, thank you.”
After replying to the message, Jiang Chilou finally had the presence of mind to browse the online shop. Seeing some small carved wooden charms being sold inside, her mind stirred slightly.
She exited that shop and opened the official website of a certain gold shop that the original owner frequented, buying a ‘Fu’ (Fortune) character gold transfer bead and a cord bracelet.
After finishing all this, Jiang Chilou turned and walked back to the living room.
However, halfway there, she remembered yesterday’s wood carvings and made a detour, taking out the box containing the wood carvings from the storage cabinet before walking toward Gu Wan.
She placed both boxes on the coffee table, opened one of the small boxes, took out the little cat carving, and looked at the person next to her: “Gu Wan, do you want to turn this little cat you carved yesterday into a charm?”
“Once it’s done, you could hang it on your car keys.”
Gu Wan was surprised: “You know how to do that?”
Jiang Chilou nodded her head: “Yes.”
“Do you want it? If you do, I’ll make it. If not, I won’t.”
Gu Wan looked at Jiang Chilou for a while, feeling a bit novel about the idea, and immediately agreed: “Yes.”
“You go ahead and do it.”
“Alright.” Jiang Chilou rotated the little cat in her hand, which looked slightly clumsy due to the carver’s inexperience. She couldn’t help but smile, asking Gu Wan: “Do you want me to paint it?”
Gu Wan looked at the little cat carved from pine wood in Jiang Chilou’s hand and shook her head: “No need. Just leave it as it is.”
She preferred the natural wood color.
Jiang Chilou nodded in understanding: “That’s fine.”
“The grain of this wood is very beautiful. Keeping it like this is also nice.”
“I’ll just brush one or two coats of clear varnish on it later to make it easier to preserve and handle.”
Gu Wan replied: “Okay.”
Butler Lin was always highly efficient, and money talked, so Jiang Chilou’s workbench was officially set up by around 3 PM in the afternoon.
At the same time, Jiang Chilou also received two packages that the maid helped bring in.
She took the packages to the workbench and opened them, neatly arranging the set of carving knives, anti-cut gloves, and the jewelry box containing the transfer bead on the table. Only then did she hurry back to the living room, bringing the box containing the wood carvings from the coffee table.
Gu Wan saw her hurrying back and forth and spoke: “Are you going to work on those wood carvings now?”
Jiang Chilou looked back at her and smiled: “Yes.”
“Do you want to come and see the process of creating the little cat charm later?”
Hearing this, Gu Wan chuckled and stood up: “I’ll go take a look.”
Seeing her intention, Jiang Chilou said: “Maybe come look later. I still need to work on the unfinished wood carving from yesterday first, then your little cat, and finally apply clear varnish to both together.”
“It’s easier and more convenient to finish them all at once.”
Gu Wan didn’t stop walking. She took the box from Jiang Chilou’s hand and said softly: “It’s fine.”
“Let’s go.” With that, Gu Wan held the box in her hands and walked towards Jiang Chilou’s workbench.
Seeing her insistence, Jiang Chilou could only silently follow.
At the edge of the spacious workbench, Jiang Chilou took out the semi-finished wood carving from yesterday. After examining it carefully, she picked up a carving knife specifically used for details and began carving the facial features onto the wood carving.
Gu Wan sat silently beside her, watching Jiang Chilou become more and more engrossed in the carving, and couldn’t help but carefully examine the gradually forming features on the wood carving.
This is… Jiang Chilou?
She raised her eyes, her gaze slowly sweeping over the facial features of the person opposite her.
No, not quite.
Although there were only subtle differences between the two, Gu Wan still keenly noticed the disparity.
She curved her lips, her gaze falling back on the wood carving.
Perhaps, this is the real her.
It is quite good-looking.
Gu Wan lowered her eyes. Remembering that on the day Jiang Chilou had the accident, she found out that the other person’s heart had stopped beating for a few seconds, she slowly rubbed her index finger.
A moment later, she saw the person beside her put down the carving knife and quietly asked: “Is this wood carving of you?”
Jiang Chilou looked up, her eyes slightly curved: “Yes.”
“You figured it out! You have good eyes.”
Gu Wan chuckled, slowly saying while staring at the person opposite: “You carved it quite well.”
“Although there are one or two places that don’t look quite like you, overall, it’s very much like you.”
Jiang Chilou was slightly stunned: “Is there anywhere that doesn’t look like me?”
She lowered her head and observed the features on the wood carving. After a few seconds, her fingers suddenly tightened.
She carved it wrong.
The features on the wood carving were her previous appearance.
She had meant to carve her current look, but the face she had seen for over twenty years was ultimately more deeply ingrained than the face she had seen for only half a month. Coupled with the minor differences between the two, she ended up carving her former appearance.
Jiang Chilou gripped the wood carving, slowly forced a smile, and said to Gu Wan: “Carving, you know, there’s always a margin of error.”
“Besides, I think it looks quite similar. You must have seen it incorrectly.”
Gu Wan saw her expression. Her rubbing index finger gradually stopped, and she chuckled: “What you say makes sense.”
“I must have seen it incorrectly.”
Jiang Chilou nodded: “It must be.”
“Let’s not talk about this for now. I’ve finished this wood carving. Now I’ll make your little cat charm.”
She said, opening the adjacent jewelry box and presenting it to Gu Wan: “I bought you a ‘Fu’ character gold transfer bead. I’ll use the cord bracelet to string it together with the little cat later. What do you think?”
Gu Wan lowered her eyes: “That’s nice.”
“Thank you.”
Jiang Chilou smiled: “You’re welcome.”
She took out the carved little cat: “Then I’ll tidy up the edges a bit first, smooth them out, and then sand it later so it won’t scratch your hand.”
“After I finish these, I’ll attach the charm findings.”
Gu Wan: “Okay.”
Hearing this, Jiang Chilou said no more, only lowering her head to pick up her usual detail knife and starting to meticulously trim the edges.
She was very careful and precise. However, the mistakenly carved wood carving and Gu Wan’s words had subtly affected her, leaving her mind not entirely peaceful, which slowed her movements.
Jiang Chilou looked down, slowly rotating the knife and the wood carving. Her mood finally eased slightly as she prepared to finish the trimming.
She tightened her grip on the carving knife, ready to quickly finish the last cut, when suddenly, several claps of dry thunder consecutively roared across the clear sky.
The thunder pierced her ears, startling Jiang Chilou, causing the knife in her hand to lose its aim. The sharp tip pierced through the anti-cut glove, and bl00d gradually seeped from the cut.
Jiang Chilou froze.
She only suddenly released the wood carving when she saw a few drops of bl00d slowly stain the wood carving in her hand.
The next second.
Her hand was grasped, and the glove was quickly pulled off.
The index finger, which was profusely bleeding, was instantly exposed.
Gu Wan’s face slightly darkened.
She quickly turned to get the first aid kit and silently began to treat Jiang Chilou’s wound.
Jiang Chilou stared at the wound being gradually tended to, biting her lip and whispering: “Sorry.”
She looked at the bl00d on the wood carving: “The wood carving… has bl00d on it.”
Gu Wan glanced at the person who was still looking down the entire time, and couldn’t help but reach out and lift the other person’s face.
Jiang Chilou’s eyes were slightly red, looking utterly pitiful.
“Does it hurt?”
Jiang Chilou slowly nodded, her voice somewhat husky: “Yes, it hurts.”
Being suddenly cut by a knife, of course it hurts.
However, what was most upsetting to her right now wasn’t the wound. After all, she occasionally cut herself while doing wood carving before, and getting cut was routine for her.
What truly upset her was that the wood carving she had worked hard on was ruined. Her effort was wasted, and her heart ached terribly.
Thinking of this, Jiang Chilou’s eyes couldn’t help but turn red.
She pursed her lips, glanced at Gu Wan, and said in a low voice: “Sorry, I accidentally ruined your wood carving.”
“Can I carve a new one for you later?”
Gu Wan looked at the bandaged wound on Jiang Chilou’s hand, then at her red-rimmed eyes, and fell into silence.
“You’re sad just because of this?”
Jiang Chilou nodded, her voice muffled: “Mm.”
Gu Wan was speechless for a moment.
After a long while, she spoke: “Don’t be sad.”
“And you don’t need to carve a new one. I quite like this one now.”
Jiang Chilou: “But… it has bl00d on it.” Although it was only a few drops, it still significantly spoiled the look.
Moreover, the bl00d was on the tip of the cat’s ear. If it had been somewhere else, Jiang Chilou could have trimmed it off, but the tip of the cat’s ear was difficult to deal with.
Gu Wan lowered her eyes to the small crimson stain on the cat’s ear tip and slowly said: “We can just paint it.”
“Painting can cover it up.”
Jiang Chilou pursed her lips: “But you didn’t want to paint it originally.”
Gu Wan looked at her, couldn’t help but raise her hand, and slowly ran her cool thumb across Jiang Chilou’s slightly red eyes: “It’s okay.”
“I want it painted now.”