Chapter 44

e of him, and in a hoarse voice, he asked, "Brother, it was you who didn’t let me find Yan Luoxi""Yes, it was me. Not only did I stop you from looking for her, but when she ran away, I even helped her...Chapter Forty-Four

Ni Xuanyi was very happy sitting next to Li Yi, with the wind blowing across the lake, causing her loose hair to become slightly disheveled.

Li Yi turned his head to look at her and suddenly asked, "Do you have something to tie your hair"

"I do." Ni Xuanyi raised her hand, revealing a black hair band on her wrist. Because she used to be accustomed to having short hair, even now that she had grown out her hair, during meals or when doing things, she still wanted to tie it up.

"Give it to me." Li Yi put down his fishing rod and asked Ni Xuanyi for the hair band. He started to clumsily gather her hair together; Ni Xuanyi's hair was very soft and smooth, fitting comfortably in his palm, warm. It was the first time that Li Yi realized that hair strands also had a temperature.

Li Yi struggled to tie her hair up.

Ni Xuanyi felt Li Yi’s breath near her ear; he used his warm and gentle large hand to run through her hair, causing an inexplicable feeling of wanting to shed tears.

The last time someone had combed her hair was when she was seven years old. At that time, she wore braids, and her mother would comb her hair every morning; the scene was warm and gentle. After her mother died, no one ever combed her hair again, so she cut it short.

"My mom's hair was very good, long and smooth. When I was young, I always wanted to comb my mom’s hair, but dad never allowed it." While Li Yi was combing Ni Xuanyi’s hair, he recalled the past with a tinge of sadness.

Ni Xuanyi really wanted to say that you can keep combing my hair for me from now on, but it was just a fleeting thought.

Lǐ Yì combed Ni Xuanyi's hair and seemed quite pleased with his 'work.' He clapped his hands smugly. "Look at yourself in the water! I think you look great!"

Ni Xuanyi's hair was now neatly arranged, hanging lightly behind her head. Her already youthful face looked even more innocent. Looking at herself in the water, she felt emotionally moved and dared not meet Lǐ Yì's gaze, fearing that she might cry. She turned to look at the surface of the water, only to suddenly notice that the bobber on Lǐ Yì’s fishing rod was moving. She hurriedly called out, "Brother Yì, there's a fish! There's a fish..."

When Lǐ Yì turned around, he saw that his white bobber had already sunk under the water. He believed it must be due to a large fish biting at his hook. Excitedly, he started winding in line at a rapid pace with an expression of joy on his face and shouted instructions to Ni Xuanyi, "Xuān Xuān, go get the net! This has got to be a big one..."

Ni Xuanyi was equally thrilled as she saw the fish getting closer. She quickly ran over to retrieve the large net attached to the long pole while listening to Lǐ Yì's cheerful laughter.

She had known Lǐ Yì for a long time, but rarely heard him laugh so freely and happily. Eagerly turning her head, she saw Lǐ Yì laughing heartily as he alternately reeled in and lifted his rod, engaging in an innocent struggle with the unwilling fish.

Eventually, it was Lǐ Yì who emerged victorious; the large carp had been reeled up. It was indeed a plump and sizable fish that wriggled at the end of the long pole, causing Ni Xuanyi to sweat nervously, fearing it might slip off and escape.

Lǐ Yì's expression also became tense as he called out to Ni Xuanyi, "The fish is here! Xuān Xuān, bring over the net quickly; don't let it get away!"

"I'm ready. Start reeling in!" Ni Xuanyi’s heart was pounding with excitement.

Liyi slowly reeled in, while Ni Xuanyi handled the fishing rod steadily. She flicked the long pole and managed to catch a fish with one swift motion.

Ni Xuanyi and Liyi successfully caught the big fish, both of them were sweating on their foreheads—whether from tension or exhaustion was hard to tell. They were very excited and happy looking at the large fish struggling in the net.

The sense of accomplishment and satisfaction brought by catching the fish made them sit down again comfortably in their chairs, focusing intently on fishing once more.

When the sun began to set, they had caught seven or eight大大小小的魚。之後，他們興高采烈地拿著魚回彆墅，當天晚上就要吃掉這些魚。

Ni Xuanyi called for the servants to clean the fish and wanted to cook them herself.

"Xuanxuan, you can cook" Liyi asked her in surprise.

“Yes.” Ni Xuanyi smiled gently.

Ni Xuanyi lost her parents at a young age and didn’t want her grandfather to be overworked. She learned how to cook when she was very little. Later, to gain more favor from Liyi, she took cooking classes in college. However, whenever they ate, they either went out to fancy hotels or had their meals prepared by top chefs hired at home, so Ni Xuanyi never got a chance to show off her skills.

Ni Xuanyi's cooking style was proficient and orderly—she chopped vegetables while washing them in an efficient manner without any chaos. She bent down to cut the ginger and garlic seriously; a few strands of hair fell over her face, making her look even more gentle and charming.

The glow of the sunset shines in, making Ni Xuanyi look even more beautiful. Li Yi leans against the kitchen door and watches her, feeling somewhat lost.

Since childhood, he seems to have never paid attention to anyone cooking. His mother is his father's beloved; naturally, she stays away from the kitchen and never cooks. His father can cook well, but only to please his mother. Every time, it’s his mother who stands by the kitchen door observing, without him getting a chance to watch. As for the family chefs cooking, he has no interest in watching.

Now, seeing this little girl working diligently and attentively for her own dinner, Li Yi feels as if something heavy has struck his heart. A home isn’t really a home unless there’s fire for cooking meals and the flavors of oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar.

Ni Xuanyi quickly prepares four dishes and one soup to serve on the table. Li Yi then starts moving around, setting out bowls and chopsticks, and even takes out a bottle of red wine that has been stored for years, pouring it personally for Ni Xuanyi: "Xuanxuan, since you've started working now, you should drink less alcohol!"

Ni Xuanyi sips a bit of the wine and chuckles, "Actually, I’ve drunk quite a few times before. During university when classmates had birthday parties, while out playing with Li An, after joining work during colleague gatherings—though I don’t particularly like drinking, everyone else drinks so I have to."

Upon hearing Ni Xuanyi’s words, Li Yi can't help but slightly frown: "Girls should drink as little alcohol as possible outside. If you can avoid it, do so; if not, drink less rather than more. Alcohol isn’t a good thing—do you understand"

"Understood." Ni Xuanyi winks playfully at Li Yi.

Li Yi always shows her the care of an elder brother, with a hint of intimacy in his tone. At first, she used to toss and turn all night thinking about this hint of closeness, but over time she understood that there’s always a certain distance between them despite it.

"Xuanxuan, your dishes are fantastic!" Li Yi eats some fish and gives Ni Xuanyi a thumbs-up.r, softly tickling the side of her neck. Her body tingled as if she had been electrocuted; his lips were about to press upon her ear through her silky hair."What are you going to do" Yan LuoXi, with n...