Fang Zhi, half-asleep, heard the man drying his hair as he came out of the bathroom, followed by the sound of him lying down on the bed.

My sleepy eyes had barely opened a crack when the man turned off the lamp, plunging my vision into darkness and sharpening my senses.

Fang Zhi felt a strong, powerful arm around her waist, and then she was gently pulled into his arms.

At the same time, the man's slightly hoarse voice rang out in the drowsy state, sounding even more mellow and sexy, "Let's save the sweet talk for now. I'll wait for Zhizhi to think it over. I hope that Zhizhi's words are sincere."

After speaking, Qi Chen gently stroked her fair cheek in the cool moonlight. "But even if it's fake, it doesn't matter. As long as it comes from your mouth, I'm satisfied."

-

After getting the sports car and starting work for a while, Qi Chen realized something was wrong.

He went to his brother for reimbursement several times.

They were all casually rejected by the men with the excuse, "Put away your playful side and focus on your work."

More importantly, his parents completely cut off his financial support. If he didn't know that his parents hadn't been in contact for years, he would have thought they had planned it together. Their statements were unprecedentedly consistent: "If you're staying with your brother, listen to him. If you need money, ask your brother."

He wanted it, but his brother wouldn't give it to him.

Moreover, the people he works with lately have gotten a shade darker and lost weight. Isn't that considered working properly?

Looking down at the earth at dusk, the setting sun is like a spilled paint bottle, dyeing the entire sky and clouds red.

While Qi Shen was working in the study, Qi Chen took an unopened bottle of water from the refrigerator and sneaked into the dance studio.

As the door opened, the girl's dance was just coming to an end.

Qi Chen called out as he walked, "Sister-in-law, sister-in-law."

Just by hearing the address, she knew who it was. Fang Zhi turned around, sighed softly, and stared at the person with her clear eyes, saying slowly, "You can just call me by my name in private." Every time she saw Qi Chen, with a face that resembled her brother's but was as young as hers, call her sister-in-law, it felt really strange.

Qi Chen smiled and said, "That won't do."

His brother clearly intended for Fang Zhi to be his wife, and even if they weren't married, he couldn't be disrespectful to his future sister-in-law.

Fang Zhi pursed her lips, deciding not to argue about how he addressed her, and asked, "Did you need something from me?"

"Um... lend me some money, I'll pay you back when I get my salary..." Before he could finish speaking, Qi Chen changed his mind as he thought of that tiny bit of salary, "I'll pay you back when my allowance returns to normal."

Fang Zhi was clearly taken aback, and subconsciously said, "You're out of money? Didn't you still have tens of thousands left after ordering the car?"

"What can you do with that little bit of money?" Qi Chen shrugged, staring innocently at Fang Zhi. "I can buy clothes, get a domestic driver's license, fill up the gas tank, and that's it after I register the car. Besides, I still have a lot of things I haven't bought yet."

He lifted his foot, gesturing for the girl to look at his shoes, "Look, these shoes of mine are unwearable."

Fang Zhi followed his gaze to the shoes.

The shoes were brand new, and when he said they were unwearable, he meant they were out of season and he should buy new ones.

"Also, my car was parked at home for a week and I didn't drive it because I didn't have money for gas."

Qi Chen's nagging voice kept pouring into his ears from above, and only then did he realize that his hands were clasped together, and he said dryly:

"You don't have much money, why don't you use it more sparingly?"

"How was I supposed to know that my brother wouldn't reimburse me?" Qi Chen suddenly wilted like a cucumber, feeling utterly powerless. "Not only would he not give it to me, but he also wouldn't let my parents give me any money."

Fang Zhi looked up and met his pitiful eyes. She remained silent at first, but finally couldn't help but kindly remind him:

"Why don't you go and apologize to your brother?"

"Apologize?" Qi Chen was confused by Fang Zhi's words, a hint of doubt appearing on his handsome face. "Why should I apologize to my brother? I didn't do anything wrong."

You didn't do anything wrong, but what you said hurt him, Fang Zhi silently added in her heart, and said in a soft voice, "Didn't you realize that your brother was deliberately making things difficult for you?"

"I can see that now. He only disciplined me because he disliked my spoiled brat behavior. It's for my own good, isn't it?"

Fang Zhi opened and closed his mouth several times, not knowing what to say.

Qi Chen looked at her, hesitant to speak, her expression complex yet seemingly pitying him, and finally, it dawned on him:

"Could there be some other inside story?"

Only then did a faint "hmm" escape from his nose.

"What inside story?" Qi Chen asked, sounding frustrated. "At least let me die knowing why. What did I do to offend you, brother?"

“You told him he was old the day you came back.”

"When did I say that?" Qi Chen paused as soon as he finished speaking, then remembered that he seemed to have said it at the time.

I've forgotten the specifics of what they said.

In his eyes, it was just a trivial matter, something like the clothes not being suitable for his age. He never expected his brother to make such a big deal out of it!

He looked at Fang Zhi with disbelief, his voice rising involuntarily, "It can't be that bad, can it??"

Fang Zhi and he stared at each other silently.

Qi Chen tried to find any trace of a joke in her eyes, but after searching around, he found nothing and finally had to believe it.

Fang Zhi waited until he finished muttering to himself before explaining, "It's not that I don't want to lend you money, it's just that I don't have any money on me. I probably don't have enough money to fill up your tank with gas."

"My brother won't give you money?" Qi Chen was very surprised, as if he had opened the door to a new world and was getting to know his brother all over again.

"Um."

His eyes flickered slightly as he asked, "Sister-in-law, how much do you have on you right now?"

Fang Zhi didn't even need to think; he honestly gave him a precise answer: "One hundred and twenty-six yuan and five mao."

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