My Favorite Ship Became My Sister-in-Law - Chapter 12

It was a mischievous smile, and Shi Yue immediately felt a chill run through him.

The moment the call connected, Shi Yue launched into a rapid-fire barrage of words. He insisted that Ji Chenchuan must look at the picture of the round moon he had sent whenever he had a spare moment. He also reminded Ji Chenchuan to reply with a “Thank you” since he had already replied with “You’re welcome,” and urged him to drive slowly.

Ji Chenchuan happened to be waiting at a red light at the intersection from earlier. Seeing there were still over forty seconds left, he opened WeChat to check his chat with Shi Yue. He scrolled to the photo of the round moon; the night sky was clean, without a single cloud, leaving only the solitary moon hanging in the sky. An involuntary smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

“Thank you! It’s beautiful,” Ji Chenchuan replied to Shi Yue.

He had not opened WeChat since seeing Shi Yue’s messages the previous night. He had been busy all day yesterday and had spent the rest of his time at the construction site, leaving him with no free moments. After replying to Shi Yue, Ji Chenchuan immediately searched his contacts for someone named “Teacher Du” and dialed the number.

This Teacher Du had been Ji Chenchuan’s homeroom teacher at the Affiliated High School and was now the vice principal there. The phone rang only twice before the other party picked up. Ji Chenchuan greeted him respectfully, “Teacher Du, I hope I am not disturbing you? I remember you have always been an early riser.”

The light turned green. Ji Chenchuan snapped his phone into the holder, turned on the speakerphone, and chatted with Teacher Du while driving into the opposite lane. In high school, Ji Chenchuan had consistently ranked in the top three of his grade. Combined with his steady personality, Teacher Du admired him greatly. Even after he went to university, the teacher and student had maintained regular contact.

The main purpose of Ji Chenchuan’s call was to ask about the fight between Shi Yue and Li Chao, specifically whether Shi Yue would receive a demerit on his record.

“He is your brother?”

Hearing Ji Chenchuan refer to Shi Yue as his brother, Teacher Du was quite surprised. He then laughed heartily and praised Shi Yue, saying he was just as excellent as Ji Chenchuan. He told Ji Chenchuan not to worry; the fight had already reached the school leadership yesterday, but because Shi Yue had a competition coming up in September, the school would suppress the matter. No demerit would be recorded, but it was not to happen again.

Ji Chenchuan finally felt relieved, as he had been worried a demerit might affect Shi Yue’s competition. He thanked Teacher Du several more times before hanging up. Ji Chenchuan did not go to the shop; he went straight to yesterday’s construction site.

His father truly thought highly of him. Ever since he had secured Song Shaorong as a client, Ji Shengqiang had compiled a list of all the difficult clients and handed them over to him. Consequently, Ji Chenchuan spent every day either at construction sites or meeting clients. He was so busy that he barely had a moment to rest, rarely returning home before nine or ten o’clock at night. Ji Shengqiang’s Audi had also become his exclusive vehicle.

As a result, Shi Yue had not seen Ji Chenchuan for an entire week. The messages he sent were usually only answered by Ji Chenchuan around eleven o’clock at night. Knowing that He Lin and Shi Jingsong were away on another business trip, Feng Liuyu would call Shi Yue over for dinner every evening. They usually ate at seven.

Without Ji Chenchuan there, Shi Yue found everything incredibly dull. After finishing his meals, he would head back home to grind through practice problems. More importantly, Ji Zhiruo had been acting very strange lately. She kept doing odd things to him, such as passing him notes in class, cornering him for conversation during breaks, and watching him like a prisoner with a smile that made his skin crawl even when there was nothing to say. After school, she insisted on following him to the bookstore just so they could walk home together.

Stripped of all personal space by Ji Zhiruo, Shi Yue had developed a literal fear of her. Now, whenever he saw her, his first instinct was to hide as far away as possible. Seeing Shi Yue intentionally avoiding her, Ji Zhiruo reflected on whether her pursuit method was wrong. Persistent aggression did not seem to be working; she needed a change of tactics. She decided to cater to his interests.

Today, right after dinner, fearing Shi Yue would run back home to study again, Ji Zhiruo caught him at the counter. She hurriedly pulled out a math book she had prepared, flipped to a random page, pointed at a problem, and claimed she did not understand it, asking Shi Yue to explain it to her.

At that moment, Ji Shengqiang was smoking on the sofa and Feng Liuyu was in the kitchen cleaning up. Ordinarily, they would not have bothered the children, but hearing that Ji Zhiruo was actually asking for help with her homework felt like a thunderclap to the couple. The smoking and dishwashing stopped immediately as they hurried over to watch Shi Yue teach her.

Shi Yue knew Ji Zhiruo did not actually want him to teach her; she was just acting out in a new way. He wanted to refuse and hide back at home, but with Ji Shengqiang and Feng Liuyu watching with such joyful anticipation, he had no choice but to ask which part she did not understand and begin explaining.

“How many types of quarks are there?”

Hearing this, Shi Yue pressed his hand to his forehead in a headache. “This is physics, not math.”

“Ah? Haha, is it?” Ji Zhiruo glanced at her parents and gave an awkward laugh. “I… I grabbed the wrong book.” She did not even know where she had picked this book up from. “Oh well, I do not understand it anyway, just explain this one to me.”

Ji Shengqiang and Feng Liuyu exchanged complex glances. They truly could not fathom how Ji Zhiruo, sandwiched between two top-tier students, managed to remain so consistently ranked among the bottom eight of her grade. They decided it was best to go back to smoking and washing dishes.

“There are six types of quarks: up, down, strange, charm, top, and bottom. However, the last four are highly unstable, so most matter is composed of the first two,” Shi Yue explained patiently, despite his frustration.

“Then why does it say here there are 36 types?” Ji Zhiruo asked, surprisingly engaged.

“Because quarks carry charge, and each type of quark has its own corresponding anti-quark. Therefore, there are a total of $6 times 3 times 2 = 36$ types of quarks.”

“Oh.”

Ji Zhiruo seemed to be pondering something. After a moment, she thought of a question she had heard of but did not understand at all: Lorentz transformations. These are the fundamental equations of special relativity. Shi Yue was absolutely certain that given Ji Zhiruo’s current level of understanding, he could not explain it to her. He told her to ask something else.

“Then what is the difference between Euclidean geometry, Lobachevskian geometry, and Riemannian geometry? Are they not all just geometry?” Ji Zhiruo looked very serious, appearing full of a desire for knowledge, but in reality, she was just asking whatever popped into her head to stall Shi Yue and keep him talking to her.

So, Shi Yue began explaining seriously that each of these geometries forms a rigorous axiomatic system where the axioms satisfy harmony, completeness, and independence; therefore, all three are correct. Euclidean geometry is suitable for the local range of the macroscopic world in daily life, while in the atomic structures of the microscopic world.

Just then, the sound of a key turning in the lock echoed, and the door opened. Ji Chenchuan was back.

Shi Yue instantly lost all interest in teaching Ji Zhiruo. His dark, bright eyes flashed with even more light as he sprinted to the door to greet Ji Chenchuan, shouting happily, “Brother Chenchuan, you are back!”

“Mhm.”

Ji Chenchuan took his slippers out of the shoe cabinet to change.

“Have you been drinking?” Shi Yue asked in surprise. He smelled the strong scent of alcohol on Ji Chenchuan’s breath, and Ji Chenchuan looked exhausted. His stomach must be feeling terrible right now. Shi Yue felt a sharp pang in his chest, like the prick of a fine needle.

“Yeah, I had a little bit. I was treating a client to dinner; I could not refuse.”

“Honey water can help with the alcohol. We have honey at my house. I will go fix a glass for you. It will not take long, wait for me.”

With that, Shi Yue opened the door and ran back to his house. Ji Chenchuan had only had two glasses and was not drunk, but his stomach was extremely uncomfortable, burning with irritation. This was his first time drinking white spirits, and he truly did need a glass of honey water. He watched Shi Yue’s retreating back from the doorway and let out a soft chuckle.

Ji Zhiruo leaned dejectedly against the counter, pouting as she stared at Ji Chenchuan. She wondered what Shi Yue was thinking; the moment her brother came back, she became as transparent as a plastic bag.

Shi Yue used the tea dispenser to boil half a pot of water to 60°C, the ideal temperature for honey water. He then scooped a spoonful of honey into a glass, added the water, and stirred it with a chopstick. Once the crystalline honey had completely dissolved, he hurried back to give it to Ji Chenchuan.

Entering the house, he did not see Ji Chenchuan. Ji Zhiruo was still leaning against the counter, looking at him with a particularly eerie smile. A chill ran down Shi Yue’s spine. He asked her, “Where is Brother Chenchuan?”

“My brother went to take a shower,” Ji Zhiruo replied with a grin.

Without a word, Shi Yue headed straight for the bathroom.

“No way, Shi Dayue, do you have OCD? My brother is showering. You actually plan to take that glass of water to the bathroom for him?” Ji Zhiruo said, completely shocked.

Shi Yue ignored her. Standing in front of the bathroom door, through the medium-thick glass, he heard the sound of running water. He knocked. “Brother Chenchuan, the honey water is ready. I will pass it in to you. The temperature is just right; your stomach will feel better after drinking it.”

“I am almost done, I will drink it when I come out,” Ji Chenchuan’s voice drifted through the glass door, accompanied by the sound of the water.

“Okay, I will wait for you out here then.”

Shi Yue held the glass and stood outside waiting for Ji Chenchuan. A moment later, the water stopped, followed by the sound of the door opening. Ji Chenchuan emerged with wet hair, which he had carelessly brushed back with his fingers. This was the first time his handsome face was fully revealed without any obstruction. His smooth forehead, elegant eyes, high nose bridge, thin lips, and defined jawline were each so perfect it made one marvel at the creator’s craftsmanship.

Because his mother and sister were around, Ji Chenchuan always dressed inside the bathroom. He was currently wearing a set of navy blue silk V-neck pajamas. A single drop of water happened to slide down from his temple. Shi Yue stared unblinkingly at the drop, his gaze following it from Ji Chenchuan’s face all the way down his neck, collarbone, and chest, until the crystal-clear droplet slipped into his pajamas and vanished.

Shi Yue stood on his tiptoes and leaned his head toward Ji Chenchuan’s chest, his hand reaching out to pull at the collar. His eyes were fixed; he wanted to see where that drop of water would eventually slide to.

“Shi Yue, what… what are you doing?” Ji Chenchuan asked, looking at him.

“Huh?”

Interrupted, Shi Yue snapped back to reality. Looking down, he nearly scared himself to death. When had his free hand tightly gripped Ji Chenchuan’s collar? And he looked like he was about to do something.

“Oh, oh, the… the honey water is for you.”

Shi Yue hurriedly let go, laughing awkwardly and nervously handing the honey water to Ji Chenchuan. Ji Chenchuan took it and had a sip. The water temperature was perfect, and his stomach felt warm and less irritated.

“Chenchuan, it is good that you are home early today. Shi Yue is here too. Come over, I have something to tell you both,” Ji Shengqiang’s serious voice called out from the living room.

Shi Yue and Ji Chenchuan exchanged a look. His father’s voice sounded like something important was happening, so they both hurried over to the sofa. Once they arrived, Ji Shengqiang opened the coffee table drawer and pulled out two bulging red envelopes, handing one to each of them.

Shi Yue did not dare take it. He looked at Ji Chenchuan; the envelope was so thick there had to be at least eight or ten thousand inside. Seeing Shi Yue hesitate, Ji Shengqiang laughed and said, “Take it, Yueyue. This is what you deserve. Uncle Ji said before that if that deal went through, I would give you and Chenchuan a commission. Song Shaorong came to pick up the goods today.”

“The total commission plus bonus is 30,000. Zhang Ping gets half, and you two share the other half. However, Chenchuan,” Ji Shengqiang looked at his son and continued, “you are the older brother, you should look after the younger one. You get 7,000 and Shi Yue gets 8,000. No objections, right?”

Ji Chenchuan smiled and nodded. Actually, he did not care how his father divided it. Even if he gave him nothing and gave it all to Shi Yue, he would not mind. Since the deal was closed, his father had already earned what he needed to earn.

“No, Uncle Ji. Brother Chenchuan might not have an objection, but I do.”

Shi Yue tried to return the red envelope to Ji Shengqiang, saying the deal succeeded because of Ji Chenchuan’s talent and that he had only tagged along. He argued all the commission should go to Ji Chenchuan, and that his reward was the aquarium ticket.

Ji Chenchuan watched silently, thinking Shi Yue was too cute as he struggled to find excuses to reject the red envelope. After watching for a while, he took the envelope from his father’s hand and stuffed it directly into the pocket of Shi Yue’s school uniform, saying in a way that left no room for argument: “Don’t make it difficult for your Uncle Ji. Once words are spoken, they are like spilled water. Take it.”

Just as he thought he was about to succeed in refusing, he had not expected Ji Chenchuan to pull such a move. Shi Yue looked at him helplessly. Ji Chenchuan gave a slight smile and said, “Be good!”

That tone, like he was coaxing a child, made Shi Yue’s heart throb inexplicably. He could not say another word of refusal and obediently kept the red envelope.

“That’s more like it.”

Ji Shengqiang was delighted. He was not just putting on a show; he truly wanted to give Shi Yue the commission. The client was right there; whoever had the ability to secure the order was the one he was happy to reward. Ji Shengqiang then mentioned he had bought tickets for the aquarium for Saturday, tomorrow, and told Ji Chenchuan to take them all out to have fun and relax, since exams were next week.

“Them?” Shi Yue thought. Aside from him and Ji Chenchuan, who else? He only wanted to go with Ji Chenchuan and did not want anyone else tagging along.

“Dad, I want to go too! I have only been to the aquarium once, I want to go again.”

Ji Zhiruo suddenly ran over from the counter and grabbed Ji Shengqiang’s arm, acting cute. She had not come over while her father was handling business, but hearing about the aquarium, she could not miss out on such a fun place.

“No need to beg, I bought a ticket for you too. Your brother will take you and Shi Yue tomorrow,” Ji Shengqiang said with a laugh.

Ji Zhiruo looked at Shi Yue, smiling slyly. It was a mischievous smile, and Shi Yue immediately felt a chill run through him.