NOVEL NEXT
Chapter 73
Zhi Yao pondered for a moment and said, "He supported me for a bit."
Upon hearing this, Pei Chiyao's expression suddenly turned sour. Before he could say anything, Zhi Yao silently took a wet wipe from inside the car and vigorously wiped her arm.
Taking advantage of the opportunity before Pei Chiyao's germaphobia kicked in and threw her into the bathtub, Zhi Yao chose to remedy the situation this way.
As she wiped, she surreptitiously glanced at Pei Chiyao's expression, only to find that his face showed no signs of clearing up. Zhi Yao pondered for two seconds, then grabbed another pack of alcohol sanitizing wipes, but before she could touch her skin with them, Pei Chiyao snatched them away. "That's enough."
Her skin was already delicate, and the vigorous wiping had caused it to become slightly red.
Let alone something as irritating as alcohol wipes, Pei Chiyao could not bear to let her use them.
"You're not mad anymore?" Zhi Yao said softly.
Speaking of this incident, Zhi Yao felt a bit aggrieved as well. She had been so dizzy at the time that if Xie Qinzhou hadn't supported her, she might have fallen and cracked her head open.
It wasn't her intention.
Pei Chiyao had been a bit bothered initially, but seeing Zhi Yao's actions just now, his heart melted.
His little lady was so obedient, how could he stay angry or blame her?
"I'm mad." Although most of his anger had dissipated, he still said those words. As they waited at a red light, Pei Chiyao turned to look at Zhi Yao and said, "You come up with a way to make me not mad."
Zhi Yao was taken aback.
It had always been Pei Chiyao coaxing her, this was the first time the roles were reversed.
The little lady racked her brain, recalling how Pei Chiyao would usually coax her, and an idea formed in her mind.
She cleared her throat and said, "Oh my darling, what have I done to upset you again?"
Pei Chiyao: "?"
Zhi Yao didn't give Pei Chiyao a chance to speak, mimicking his usual manner as she continued, "You're such a delicate flower, he merely touched you, is that worth getting so angry over? You're always on the verge of tears, are you made of water?"
Pei Chiyao nearly choked on his words.
After saying that, Zhi Yao felt she truly had a gift for acting - the way she spoke just now, her expressions and tone were exactly like Pei Chiyao when he would usually coax her!
"Are you still mad?" After finishing, she leaned closer to Pei Chiyao's face to observe his expression.
Pei Chiyao's expression darkened further.
He stared ahead, silent.
Seeing his expression, Zhi Yao knew Pei Chiyao was still angry. "Why are you like this? Normally it takes just three sentences from you for me to be okay, why are you so hard to coax? I'm not playing with you anymore."
The little lady suddenly stamped her foot and turned her head to look out the window.
Pei Chiyao: "..."
This was truly the first time he had seen someone get angry at another person for being unable to coax them out of their anger.
Pei Chiyao was annoyed for a minute, but then his peripheral vision caught sight of something fluffy. Upon closer inspection, he realized Zhi Yao's tail had appeared at some point.
Her pair of ears were also drooping down, looking dejected.
He sighed and said, "Alright, alright." Amidst his busy schedule, Pei Chiyao freed one hand to ruffle Zhi Yao's head.
Zhi Yao immediately covered her ears with her hands, not letting Pei Chiyao touch them.
Watching the scenery rapidly receding outside the window, she said indignantly, "I won't let you touch my ears and tail, aren't you mad? Hmph, since you're mad, you're not allowed to touch them."
One hand covering her ears, the other hugging her fluffy tail, she curled up on the car seat.
For a while, no one spoke inside the car.
Zhi Yao waited a long time, but Pei Chiyao didn't come to coax her. She secretly raised her head, just about to glance at what he was doing. At that very moment, the car stopped.
Before she could even make out the scene in front of her, there was a 'click' sound of the seatbelt being undone. The next second, something warm covered her lips.
And Zhi Yao's eyes were covered by Pei Chiyao's slightly cool palm.
His low voice came through, sending electric currents coursing through Zhi Yao's body, "Yao Yao, this is how you should coax me next time."
"I'm easy to coax."
This silly little fox.
Zhi Yao opened her mouth, wanting to speak, but Pei Chiyao seized this opportunity to advance his invasion. The tips of his fingers lightly caressed her.
Zhi Yao completely surrendered.
"Don't... don't..." The little lady's voice carried a whine.
She really couldn't take it anymore.
The more she said that, the more relentless Pei Chiyao's actions became.
...
By the time it ended, Zhi Yao's clothes were in complete disarray, her little face flushed a deep red, not the usual kind of red. She remained curled up in the car seat.
Pei Chiyao knew he had really gone too far teasing the little lady today, and she was probably angry now.
He was about to speak and coax her when his phone rang again.
Pei Chiyao glanced at the caller ID - it was Xie Qinzhou again.
He scoffed coldly and hung up directly.
Zhi Yao had also seen Pei Chiyao's action and Xie Qinzhou's name, and disregarding her anger, she felt very anxious. "Pei Chiyao, you really aren't going to answer?"
She was truly nervous, afraid that Xie Qinzhou would publicly expose her identity.
Then... she would definitely become the first fox spirit to be exposed to the world!
And moreover... she might even be locked up in a zoo for humans to gawk at... Just thinking about these possibilities made Zhi Yao's whole fox spirit uneasy.
Pei Chiyao glanced coldly at his phone. "Not answering."
Whatever Xie Qinzhou intended to do, he would naturally find out, but not right now!
"You're not mad anymore, are you?" He put his phone away, then extended his long arms to scoop Zhi Yao up from the passenger seat and onto his lap. "Was it uncomfortable just now?"
Upon hearing this, Zhi Yao was too embarrassed to even raise her head, burying her face directly in his embrace.
"Not going to be a little fox today, going to be a little ostrich instead?" Pei Chiyao teased, but Zhi Yao didn't respond.
He knew the little lady was shy, so he didn't pursue the matter further. After parking the car properly, he prepared to carry Zhi Yao home.
The temperature difference between outside and the heated interior of the car created a stark contrast. Zhi Yao couldn't help but shiver slightly.
"What's wrong, baby?" Pei Chiyao's keen senses detected Zhi Yao's light trembling, and he reached out to feel her forehead.
Her body temperature was normal, yet her body was shaking for some reason.
Zhi Yao tightly hugged Pei Chiyao's neck, her voice also trembling, "Pei Chiyao, will I really... really not be captured and taken to a lab? If I'm not taken to a lab, will I be sent to a zoo?"
As the cold wind blew, the previous hint of shyness was completely replaced by the fear that Xie Qinzhou had instilled in Zhi Yao.