Chapter 17

Chapter 17: The Doll Is Delicate and Incapable of Taking Care of Herself (10)

As the owner, Tu Jin was obviously well acquainted with the signature dishes offered by his hotel.

After skillfully rattling off a long list of dishes, the plates and bowls soon covered the entire table.

It was…

Fragrant.

Very fragrant.

Extremely fragrant.

So fragrant that Ye Jiujiu silently poked her little head out of Tu Jin’s embrace.

“I’m hungry.”

She reached out and grabbed Tu Jin’s collar, feeling that she was truly a pitiful little thing. Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Ever since she’d been tricked into this instance, she’d had to make one careful calculation after another just to survive until now. She desperately needed to replenish her food supply to keep her sophisticated brain functioning.

Tu Jin merely smiled at Ye Jiujiu without saying a word.

Hungry, huh?

If she wanted to eat, shouldn’t she at least show a little sincerity?

Ye Jiujiu understood exactly what Tu Jin was hinting at.

…

Even Scrooge would have to bow twice in your presence.

Did she have to indulge him? Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Absolutely not.

After all…

“Brother Gui Zhu~”

With one part grievance, two parts pitifulness, three parts anticipation, and four parts innocence in her eyes, Ye Jiujiu silently turned toward the opposite side of the table, where Qing Guizhu had already begun cutting his steak.

“I’m hungryyyy~”

Tu Jin, who had only intended to tease Ye Jiujiu a little: …?

Her move had clearly caught both Tu Jin and Qing Guizhu completely off guard.

However… Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Seeing Tu Jin’s expression darken in an instant, Qing Guizhu recalled how this brat had belittled him earlier.

With a cheerful smile, he picked up a piece of beef that he’d already cut, which was just about to enter his own mouth, and extended his hand toward Ye Jiujiu’s lips.

Tu Jin watched in disbelief as the little doll in his arms actually dared to try to escape his embrace. She even opened her mouth, seemingly intending to bite the piece of meat on the fork.

Feeling as though the color of something above his head had somehow changed in a rather peculiar way, Tu Jin immediately pulled the little doll, who clearly couldn’t take a joke, back into his arms.

“Eat, eat, eat! I’ll feed you! Eat whatever you want! Go ahead and eat as much as you like! Let’s see if you end up eating yourself to death by casually accepting food from other people!”

Grumbling and cursing, he watched Qing Guizhu’s smile grow wider and wider. Then, with an exaggerated movement, he cut up the steak on his own plate and brought a piece to Ye Jiujiu’s mouth.

But…

“Are you cursing me?” Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Ye Jiujiu was so shocked that she no longer even wanted to eat the steak.

She looked at Tu Jin as though her heart had been utterly broken.

Seeing that her favorability toward him was about to plummet again, Tu Jin reacted with lightning speed. Just as Ye Jiujiu was about to open her mouth and continue accusing him, he stuffed the piece of steak in his hand straight into her mouth.

“Is it good?”

He pretended nothing had happened as he looked at the little doll in his arms, who had instinctively begun chewing.

“Want another bite?”

W-Well, that was fine too, right?

Ye Jiujiu silently followed the fork Tu Jin offered and took another bite. Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

One fed, one ate. After finishing more than half the steak, Ye Jiujiu was finally full.

She composed herself and was just about to resume their earlier conversation when—

Tu Jin placed a cup of ice cream in her hands.

“Want to try some?”

His expression was completely sincere.

“It’s our hotel’s signature specialty.”

Oh, well…

Ye Jiujiu silently accepted the spoon and scooped up a mouthful. Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Gasp!

This stuff was ridiculously delicious!

Ye Jiujiu suddenly felt that perhaps she could let bygones be bygones after all.

Having successfully learned to read the room in just a few short hours, Tu Jin finally felt reassured when he saw her reaction.

Only then, under Qing Guizhu’s seemingly amused gaze, did he resume eating with an expression of aloof indifference.

That painfully obvious attempt to cover up his embarrassment…

“Pfft! Hahahahahaha!”

Qing Guizhu genuinely couldn’t hold it in anymore. Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

He laughed so hard that he was practically about to pound the table.

#Breaking News! The Overbearing CEO, Once Arrogant, Wild, and Untouchable, Has Fallen to the Point of Having to Watch Someone Else’s Mood Before Acting! Is This the Moral Decline of NPCs or the Distortion of Their Personalities?

#As an Overbearing CEO, He Has Actually Done Something Unbelievable for the Sake of a Doll!

#Click Here to Watch: A Live Broadcast of a Billionaire CEO Coaxing His Tsundere Little Doll!

…

Wiping away the tears that had nearly spilled from laughing so hard, Qing Guizhu felt that this vacation instance had truly been worth visiting.

This was hilarious. Was that really all it took?

He doubted anyone would believe him if he told them that Tu Jin could actually have a day like this! Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Tu Jin, who would never have imagined himself in such a situation before today: …

He practically had to force himself to recall the item panel belonging to the little doll in his arms before he could barely maintain his composure.

Laugh.

Go ahead and laugh.

Once he successfully obtained the little doll, he would like to see who would be the one laughing last.

“Tell me, Tu Jin. Don’t tell me you’ve actually fallen for the little doll in your arms, and that’s why you’ve lowered yourself so much for love?”

After finally laughing enough, Qing Guizhu still couldn’t resist teasing Tu Jin, who was looking at him with an impassive expression.

“Honestly, I can’t think of any other reason you’d go this far. You’re practically a henpecked husband already.” Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Tu Jin: …?

What the hell—

Wait a minute.

Come to think of it, this pretty-boy’s words actually made a little sense?

There were certainly very few things more precious to him than the little doll in his arms, but it wasn’t as though he had none.

Yet he would never have allowed himself to become like this over those other items.

Just how arrogant had he been before?

And look at him now. Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

In just a few short hours, he’d even somehow mastered the art of coaxing a doll without anyone teaching him!

The more Tu Jin thought about it, the more he felt as though he’d been bewitched. He turned his gaze toward Ye Jiujiu in his arms, and something about his expression immediately changed.

Could it be that this doll had transformed him into her puppet?

But that was impossible, wasn’t it? She was only an A+-rank. How could she possibly turn an S-rank like him into her puppet?

Unless…

Could it really be because he’d fallen in love with this little doll?

As Tu Jin contemplated this conclusion, he felt that something about it wasn’t quite right, yet somehow everything about it made perfect sense. His eyebrows drew together until they nearly formed a knot.

He began carefully examining every feature of Ye Jiujiu’s face. The longer he looked, the more he felt… Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Well, now that he thought about it, this little doll really was rather pretty.

And when her preciousness and rarity were taken into account…

If he made her his wife, perhaps…

That wouldn’t be such a bad idea?

After all, if he wanted to subdue this doll, he would obviously have to treasure her and hold her close to his heart. A wife was someone who also needed to be cherished and protected. Rather than raising a doll and supporting a wife separately, why not combine the two and simply make the little doll his wife? That would actually save him quite a bit of money in the long run…

More importantly, if the little doll became his wife, then even if he couldn’t make her acknowledge him as her master, he wouldn’t have to destroy her. Instead, he could make full use of her in other ways. Wouldn’t that save him from suffering an enormous financial loss caused by having to eliminate the little doll?

As his little schemes clicked into place one after another, Tu Jin’s eyes suddenly lit up.

He looked at Qing Guizhu with an approving expression. For the first time that day, he acknowledged that this pretty-boy was indeed his friend. After all, the man had helped him recognize his true feelings. Original translation by Lhaozi, read at lhaozitranslation.com

Qing Guizhu, who had merely been making a joke: …?

Wait—

Had he actually hit the mark?

Looking at Tu Jin, who didn’t seem to be joking in the slightest, and noticing how his gaze toward the little doll was gradually becoming increasingly affectionate, Qing Guizhu’s mouth twitched.

No way.

Had he really just exposed Tu Jin’s true feelings with a casual remark?

“Are you serious?”