Upon hearing Qin Ruoying blurt out such a statement, Chu Ge couldn't help but feel exasperated. My God, this "sister-in-law" really dares to say anything, doesn't she?
What on earth is all this about? Do these two sisters usually joke around so casually?
Stealing a glance at Qin Ruojing, it turned out as expected—her face, usually so stunning, now looked a bit unpleasant.
Of course it looks unpleasant. Who would take such a joke lightly? Especially since Chu Ge is just an actor she hired!
Qin Ruoying obviously realized she went a bit too far with the joke, sheepishly sticking out her tongue and hurriedly changing the subject, "Um, sis, tomorrow's Dragon Boat Festival, it's rare for you to be at home. How about we go for an outing?"
"That depends on whether you can actually get up early or not."
Qin Ruojing replied with a stern face, giving Chu Ge a sharp glance. Even though she knew Chu Ge hadn't done anything, there was an inexplicable anger flaring up inside her.
Sensing that Qin Ruojing was upset, Chu Ge inwardly gave a wry smile. Who did I offend?
However, he did quite enjoy Qin Ruoying's casual comment.
Although Qin Ruoying's remark made the atmosphere somewhat awkward, she truly was a natural at keeping things lively. With her cheerful chatter, at least on the surface, Qin Ruojing's expression had relaxed.
The three of them wandered around the women's section for a while, after which Qin Ruoying suggested they check out the men's section. Her reasoning was that it was too hot for Chu Ge to wear a suit and shirt in the summer, so some casual clothes would be more comfortable and suitable for tomorrow's outing.
Compared to Qin Ruoying, Chu Ge was super quick at picking out clothes. It only took him fifteen minutes to settle on a casual outfit.
Looking at the time, it was about right to head back and prepare dinner. They also bought him a few personal items like underwear, towels, toothbrushes, and facial cleanser before returning to the Qin Family home.
Qin's mother hadn't returned from Mahjong, and Qin's father hadn't finished work. As soon as Qin Ruoying entered the house, she darted into her bedroom, happily trying on the new clothes she bought. Meanwhile, Qin Ruojing sat on the living room sofa, making phone calls and remotely directing company matters.
As for Chu Ge, as the "son-in-law" of the Qin Family, he naturally went into the kitchen to get busy.
Just after slicing two potatoes, Qin Ruojing came in. Judging by her expression and the way she closed the door behind her, she was obviously not in a good mood.
"Chu Ge, I'm warning you, you're just here to help me act. Don't get any ideas about my sister." Worried that her sister might suddenly burst in, Qin Ruojing pretended to peel garlic, lowering her voice.
Chu Ge smiled and nodded, "Don't worry."
Looking directly into Chu Ge's eyes, Qin Ruojing frowned slightly, "Can I really trust you?"
Chu Ge shrugged, "What can you do if you don't trust me?"
Qin Ruojing was at a loss for words. She realized there wasn't much she could do to Chu Ge. Her brows furrowed even tighter, "What do you mean by that?"
Chu Ge was even more speechless. Why was Qin Ruojing getting more and more worked up?
"Okay, stop overthinking. You saw it yourself. I've always behaved properly towards your sister. Besides, once we leave your home, there won't be any interaction between us. What's there to worry about? Just peel the garlic quickly; I need it for cooking."
After thinking about it, Qin Ruojing felt she might indeed be making a fuss over nothing and worrying too much. She smashed the few peeled garlic cloves onto the cutting board and turned to leave.
"Wait a minute." But she had just taken two steps when Chu Ge's voice stopped her.
Qin Ruojing ignored Chu Ge and continued walking. She was slightly displeased that Chu Ge was so casually ordering her around.
"This morning, your mom asked me how far our relationship had progressed." After finishing with the potatoes, Chu Ge picked up the kitchen knife and began slicing them, saying as he went.
Upon hearing this, Qin Ruojing immediately halted and turned around, frowning, "What did you say?"
"I didn't have time to say anything because your sister interrupted, and then your mom went back to the room with her."
"Phew..." Qin Ruojing breathed a sigh of relief. Her mother had asked her the same question, but she had just brushed it off with vague responses. She was really worried that Chu Ge might have said something inappropriate.
However, before she could fully relax, her pupils suddenly contracted, and she exclaimed, "Stop, stop, stop, don't cut anymore! Stop right now!"
Qin Ruojing's sudden reaction startled Chu Ge. He put down the kitchen knife and asked perplexedly, "What's wrong? Why are you so jumpy?"
"Are you crazy? Who cuts like that? Aren't you afraid you'd cut your fingers off?"
Qin Ruojing said with lingering fear, she had really been scared just now; when Chu Ge was cutting the potatoes, he wasn't looking at the cutting board at all, but instead kept his gaze on her, while his hands moved the kitchen knife swiftly.
Chu Ge broke into a sweat, secretly thinking Qin Ruojing was really making a mountain out of a molehill. However, he was quite happy in his heart; no matter how you look at it, Qin Ruojing was indeed concerned about him, wasn't she?
"Hey, I thought something happened. Don't worry, it's just cutting potato shreds. I know what I'm doing. But never mind that, how should I respond if your mom asks me about our relationship again?"
Picking up the knife again, Chu Ge continued cutting the potatoes, of course, without focusing his eyes on the cutting board, instead keeping them on Qin Ruojing's pretty face.
Despite Chu Ge appearing nonchalant, moving the knife with speed, precision, and steadiness, the sight of the knife constantly landing on the board still made Qin Ruojing's heart skip a beat. She was afraid that if he missed by a little, a splash of blood would fly out before her eyes.
"Stop looking at me! Look at the board! Let me think about what you said."
Chu Ge, a bit helpless, agreed and turned his eyes to the potato on the board; unfortunately, compared to Qin Ruojing, this potato simply couldn't measure up.
Seeing that Chu Ge finally shifted his attention, Qin Ruojing let out a long sigh of relief and seriously pondered over the question Chu Ge raised.
Qin Ruojing was in a dilemma, a significant dilemma. The more she thought about this matter, the more entangled she became.
If she said things were not happening between her and Chu Ge, then she had to share a room with her sister that night. Given her sister's personality, she definitely wouldn't find peace throughout the night.
It was easy to imagine that Qin Ruoying would bombard her with a slew of bizarre questions like a hundred thousand whys, and chances were their situation with Chu Ge would be exposed.
But if she said she and Chu Ge had "that kind of relationship," then she would have to share a room with Chu Ge for the night, which was absolutely unacceptable to her as a pure and decent young lady.
Although Qin Ruojing had always been a decisive person, this time it was really hard to make a choice that would satisfy all parties. After much consideration, she finally made a difficult decision.
"If... if my family asks again, you say, just say... we have already had 'that kind of relationship.'
Only Qin Ruojing herself knew how much courage and determination it took for her to make this decision and say this sentence, especially uttering the phrase "that kind of relationship," which seemed to extract all her energy.
By the time she finished speaking, her face was already blushing.
If someone who knew Qin Ruojing was present at this moment, they would definitely be shocked, unable to believe that this woman showing such a demure posture was the usually graceful, elegant, and decisive Chairman Qin.
Yet, at this very moment, Chu Ge said a word that made Qin Ruojing want to kill him.
"What?"
In all fairness, Chu Ge really wasn't doing it on purpose; he genuinely didn't hear her clearly.
Because considering Qin Ruoying was still at home, the two of them were already speaking in low voices, and when Qin Ruojing uttered this sentence, her voice dropped even lower.
Moreover, Chu Ge wasn't looking at Qin Ruojing's face; he had already started cooking, the extractor fan made a buzzing noise, and the potato shreds sizzling in the pan created a hissing sound, so he completely missed what Qin Ruojing said.
Seeing Chu Ge's concentrated side profile as he cooked, Qin Ruojing bit her lower lip tightly, and in utter helplessness, she repeated herself with a mixture of shyness and frustration.
Unfortunately, as Chu Ge began to stir-fry the potato shreds, the spatula clanging against the wok covered her voice once again.
"Speak a little louder, I really can't hear you. Don't worry, with the fan turned on and your sister in the bedroom, she definitely won't hear us."
While sprinkling some salt into the wok, Chu Ge said, since the potato shreds were cut very finely and could easily get burned, he was focused on stir-frying them and didn't turn to look at Qin Ruojing, still unaware of her changing expressions.
Having already said such an embarrassing thing twice, yet Chu Ge, unbelievably, still hadn't heard her!
Qin Ruojing was about to go crazy, but she also knew that her voice was indeed too low, and in this environment, it was normal for Chu Ge not to hear her.
Even though Qin Ruojing knew very well that Chu Ge wasn't intentionally trying to embarrass her, she was still extremely frustrated.
Amidst the buzzing noise of the extractor fan, Qin Ruojing hesitated for a moment, pinched her brow, and finally sighed helplessly, slowly stepping forward with her delicate feet to come beside Chu Ge with a slightly raised tiptoe, moving closer to his ear.
"If someone asks, just say, say that we have already had a relationship."
After saying this in Chu Ge's ear, Qin Ruojing only felt her mind buzzing, it almost drove her more insane than the noise of the fan. Without caring to see what reaction Chu Ge would have, she immediately turned around and left the kitchen with slightly unsteady legs, almost as if fleeing.