"Warmth?"
This was the first time Ning Chen had called her by her original name since she came to the Ning family.
Did Brother think he had forced her last night?
Ning Jing froze, unable to process it for a moment, and didn't know what to do.
Ning Chen, however, focused his attention on the hand he had placed on Ning Jing's waist. As long as Ning Jing couldn't escape, Ning Chen could wait.
"Brother, let's just pretend nothing happened," Ning Jing said, her eyes darting away, afraid to reveal the truth that she had been the one to initiate last night.
As long as she didn't say it, perhaps Father Ning, Mother Ning, and Ning Chen wouldn't hate her so much.
But why should Ning Chen pay for her mistake and carry the guilt and responsibility of bullying her?
The boy she liked should live in the light.
After much deliberation, Ning Jing stuck to her original plan.
If she pretended none of this had happened, she wouldn't lose Father Ning and Mother Ning, and Ning Chen would still treat her like his sister.
Ning Chen could also continue to like and pursue Li Li...
Instead of living the rest of his life with regret, eventually growing to resent or even hate her in his profound regret.
"Pretend nothing happened?" Ning Chen's meticulously built hopes were suddenly breached.
Ning Chen reached out with his other hand, cupped Ning Jing's chin, and forced her to meet his gaze as her eyes flickered.
"What happened happened. There's no third option."
Ning Chen's eyes were like an unfathomable ocean, containing many things, all of which had one purpose: Ning Jing.
"Why?" Ning Jing's eyes welled up with tears again, looking very helpless.
Such a look made Ning Chen flustered. He averted his gaze from Ning Jing, but his hand on her waist did not loosen at all.
The entire master bedroom fell silent for a moment.
They remained in this stalemate.
With a bang, the master bedroom door was flung open from the outside.
Ning Jing, who was already emotionally unstable, was startled by the sudden noise and instinctively flinched closer to Ning Chen.
Ning Chen released Ning Jing's chin and instead stroked her head.
"You brat, how dare you..."
Just by Father Ning's tone, Ning Jing could imagine his furious rage.
Father Ning's footsteps grew clearer, and Ning Jing's hands clenched into fists, her body growing stiffer.
Ning Chen calmly continued to stroke Ning Jing's head, not sparing his own father a glance.
"Hey, what are you doing! Come out quickly, can't you see what's going on in here? If you're going to get angry, be mindful of the occasion."
"You brat, get dressed and get out here."
Fortunately, just as Father Ning was about to rush in and hit Ning Chen, Mother Ning stopped him, pulled him out of the room, and even remembered to close the door.
Seeing that Ning Jing was still terribly nervous and panicked, Ning Chen patiently patted her back.
About ten minutes later, Ning Jing finally slowly relaxed. Only then did Ning Chen get up and get dressed.
Ning Chen did not try to hide anything from Ning Jing as he dressed.
Ning Jing stared for a second or two, then buried her face in the quilt.
The quilt still held Ning Chen's unique scent. Whether it was the stuffiness, Ning Jing's face felt burning hot.
After Ning Chen finished dressing, he nonchalantly glanced at his wristwatch. Seeing that the hour hand was approaching nine, Ning Chen inwardly mused that Father Ning seemed to be a bit late.
"Do you want me to help you get dressed?" Ning Chen turned and pulled Ning Jing out from under the quilt.
"No need. Brother, you should go out first." Ning Jing pursed her lips, her tone soft.
Ning Chen lowered his gaze, appearing somewhat displeased.
Still calling him Brother.
Ning Chen scoffed inwardly.
Ning Jing was already very sensitive to Ning Chen's reactions. Seeing him like this now, she felt she had lost something very important.
So he didn't even have his usual doting affection for his sister anymore?
Ning Chen then considered the arrangements he had made for people outside the villa and on the road, and then heard the sound of Father Ning smashing things outside.
Ning Chen did not want to scare Ning Jing, nor did he want to make things difficult for her, so he went out first to face Father Ning's anger.
"You brat, you dare to come out!"
Mother Ning: What kind of talk is that!
Father Ning, in his anger, spoke without thinking and raised his hand to punch Ning Chen's chest.
Ning Chen didn't dodge. The moment he took Father Ning's punch, he even felt it wasn't heavy enough.
What he had done was unforgivable.
But he wanted to be with Wen Xin.
This desire was like a demon, carrying lust.
Mother Ning's heart ached when she saw how hard Father Ning had hit, but thinking of Ning Jing, she felt this brat truly deserved it.
"Dad, stop hitting him."
Father Ning's face was red, and he landed punch after punch on Ning Chen, not holding back at all.
Only when Ning Jing, dressed, came out and saw this scene did she rush to Ning Chen's side without hesitation.
Father Ning, worried about accidentally hurting Ning Jing, immediately stopped.
"Brother, are you okay?"
Ning Chen leaned against Ning Jing. Ning Jing, thinking he couldn't stand, became worried and flustered.
"Heh."
Ning Chen let out a slight laugh, his shallow voice, along with his heavy breaths, brushing against Ning Jing's neck and shoulder.
"Soon, I won't be your brother anymore."
Ning Jing's body instantly turned cold. She thought she understood Ning Chen's deeper meaning, believing he was being sarcastic. Little did she know, Ning Chen was genuinely happy.
Seeing Ning Jing's face turn pale, Father Ning was almost overwhelmed with guilt. But now that the deed was done, he truly didn't know what else to do.
"Jing Jing, since things have come to this, if you don't mind, I'll give you this brat's household registration book right now.
If you do mind, I'll throw this beast into the police station!"
-------------------------------------
Another day passed. Although Mu Qi seemed fine, Yun Shu Nian felt his pulse falter intermittently.
Yun Shu Nian wanted to completely resolve Mu Qi's inner turmoil, so she forcibly took Mu Qi out of Qi Yuan.
"Mu Qi, it's so lively over there."
Yun Shu Nian pointed to a place where a lottery was being drawn, her excitement evident.
Mu Qi followed her gaze, but his heart remained unmoved.
It was only when he saw the figure in the moon-white robe that his heart suddenly tightened.