pjbooks Chapter 10 My cheeks are burning
Chapter 10 My cheeks are burning
"OK."
Lin Shiyu smiled happily; the smile was faint, but genuine.
That was the first time Chen Mo had ever seen her smile from the bottom of her heart since he had known her.
Back at the apartment, Lin Shiyu tied on an apron and started working in the kitchen.
Her movements were practiced and efficient; she chopped vegetables, prepared ingredients, and stir-fried them all in one smooth motion. Soon, the aroma of food wafted from the kitchen, mingling with the hum of the range hood, instantly giving this cold, fully-furnished apartment the warmth of home.
Chen Mo sat on the sofa in the living room and turned on the TV, but his attention was not on the screen.
He was looking at Lin Shiyu.
Looking at her back as she stood in front of the stove, at the apron tied around her slender waist, at her slightly pouting lips as she lowered her head to taste the soup.
Her profile appeared exceptionally soft under the kitchen light, her long eyelashes casting a fan-shaped shadow. The sleeves of her sweater were rolled up to her elbows, revealing a section of her fair and slender forearm, with the knuckles of her wrist clearly visible.
She is too thin.
Chen Mo frowned.
We need to let her eat more and rest.
"Chen Mo, should we put sugar in the ribs?" Lin Shiyu turned around and asked.
"Add more, I like it sweet."
"Okay," Lin Shiyu replied, turning around to take the sugar jar from the spice rack.
As she tiptoed to reach the soy sauce on the high shelf, the hem of her sweater was pulled up, revealing a small section of her waist. That waist was dazzlingly white, so slender it looked like it could be encircled with a finger, and there was a small dimple on the side of her waist.
Chen Mo looked away.
It wasn't because he was some kind of virtuous gentleman, but because he didn't want to think about those messy things at this time.
What Lin Shiyu needs now is not to be slept with, but to be saved.
Although he is not a saint, he still has basic principles.
---
It was already 7 p.m. when dinner was ready.
Braised pork ribs, steamed sea bass, garlic broccoli, and tomato egg drop soup—four dishes and a soup, filling the table to the brim.
Lin Shiyu took off her apron and sat down opposite Chen Mo, placing her hands neatly on her knees, like a student waiting for a teacher's comments.
Chen Mo picked up a piece of pork rib and put it in his mouth.
The sweetness is just right, the meat is tender and melts in your mouth.
"Delicious," he said sincerely.
Lin Shiyu's eyes lit up instantly, as if someone had lit a lamp for her.
"Really?"
"Really. It tastes even better than what you get at restaurants."
Lin Shiyu lowered her head, her lips curling up in a wide smile, but she tried her best to hold it in, not wanting to appear too smug.
The two ate a meal in silence.
Halfway through the meal, Chen Mo put down his chopsticks and looked at her: "Lin Shiyu, let me make things clear with you about work."
Lin Shiyu also put down her chopsticks and looked at him intently.
"The projects I'm working on are, frankly speaking, investments," Chen Mo carefully chose his words. "I need an assistant to help me with some daily tasks, such as bookkeeping, liaising with partners, and scheduling. Do you have a driver's license?"
"Yes," Lin Shiyu nodded, "I took the exam in my sophomore year."
"That's perfect, I'm planning to buy a car, you can drive it for me."
"But... I've never driven a nice car before, I'm afraid I won't be able to drive it well."
"It's okay, take your time practicing," Chen Mo continued. "Your monthly salary is 20,000, including room and board. I'll pay off your debts, deducting 10,000 from your salary every month until it's all gone. You can use the rest as you see fit."
Lin Shiyu's eyes reddened.
"Chen Mo, you...you really don't need to be so good to me."
"This isn't about doing it for your own good," Chen Mo said calmly. "It's an equal exchange. You work for me, I pay you, it's that simple."
Lin Shiyu remained silent for a long time.
Then she raised her head, looked at Chen Mo with her red eyes, and said, word by word, "Okay. I'll do it."
She paused, then added, "I'll do my best. I won't let you down."
Chen Mo smiled and said, "Let's eat, the food is getting cold."
Lin Shiyu nodded, picked up her chopsticks again, and put a piece of fish into her mouth.
The fish was very fresh, but what she tasted was not the flavor of fish, but a long-lost taste of being respected as a "person".
During the days she was scammed in Shanghai, she felt like a commodity, being valued, selected, used, and then discarded.
After returning to Jiangcheng, she worked as a hostess in a bar, feeling like a tool, being poured drinks, groped, and ordered around.
But now, sitting across from Chen Mo, eating the meal she had prepared herself, she suddenly felt like a person again.
A person who is dignified, valuable, and needed.
She lowered her head, desperately trying to hold back her tears, not wanting Chen Mo to see them.
But Chen Mo still saw it.
He didn't say anything, but silently put a piece of pork rib into her bowl.
---
After dinner, Lin Shiyu insisted on washing the dishes.
Chen Mo didn't argue with her and sat on the sofa watching TV.
After washing the dishes, Lin Shiyu came out of the kitchen, wiped her hands on her apron, hesitated for a moment, and walked to the sofa.
"Chen Mo, can I ask you a question?"
"ask."
"You...you must have had some kind of extraordinary encounter?"
Chen Mo turned his head and looked at her.
Lin Shiyu felt a little nervous under his gaze and quickly explained, "I'm not trying to pry into your privacy, I just think... you've changed so much. You were excellent before, but not like this... like this..."
She couldn't find a suitable word.
"What is this?" Chen Mo asked.
"This feeling... of having everything under control." After saying that, Lin Shiyu felt embarrassed and said, "Never mind, forget I asked."
Chen Mo was silent for a few seconds, then said, "You guessed right."
Lin Shiyu was stunned.
"I did have a miraculous encounter." Chen Mo's tone was very serious, so serious that Lin Shiyu couldn't tell if he was joking or serious. "But I can't tell you the specifics right now. You'll know when the time is right."
Lin Shiyu nodded and didn't ask any further questions.
She wasn't the type of person with a lot of curiosity, and she knew very well that Chen Mo's willingness to help her was already a huge favor. She had no right to pry into other people's secrets.
"Well... I'll go tidy up the room first." She pointed towards the second bedroom.
"Go."
Lin Shiyu turned and walked towards the second bedroom, but when she reached the door, she suddenly turned back.
"Chen Mo."
"Um?"
"Good night."
Her voice was soft, with a hint of a smile, as if some long-lost tenderness was rising from the depths of her heart.
"Good night," Chen Mo said.
Lin Shiyu pushed open the door and entered the second bedroom, then gently closed the door.
She leaned against the door, her hands covering her chest, and could feel her heart pounding rapidly inside her chest.
Her cheeks were burning, and the tips of her ears turned red.
She cursed herself inwardly: Lin Shiyu, can't you be a little more dignified? All they did was offer you a place to live and a job, and you're this moved? Can't you stop being so cheap?
But no matter how much she cursed, her heart just wouldn't listen and kept racing.
She took a deep breath, walked to the window, and drew back the curtains.
The river view outside the window unfolds in the night, with the lights of thousands of homes reflected on the river surface, like a flowing Milky Way.
She used to live on the sixth floor of an urban village. When she opened the window, all she could see was the wall of the building opposite and underwear hanging outside the window.
Now, as she opens the window, she sees the most beautiful night view in the entire city.
Lin Shiyu leaned on the windowsill, her chin resting on her arm, staring blankly at the distant river.
Chen Mo's face appeared in my mind.
His eyes, his nose, his lips, the way his little finger curls up slightly when he picks up ribs, and his deep, gentle voice when he says "goodnight."
She closed her eyes, and the corners of her mouth unconsciously turned up.