Of the two rooms next to theirs, one was for Xiao You to move into when she got older, and the other she wanted to take over as well. Xiao You was already eight; it was ti to consider having her sleep in a separate room from them.
The family hadn’t formally split, it was just Jing Si and his wife living separately with Jing Qi. As Jie Jingwei was about to get up, sothing suddenly occurred to him. His gaze swept past Xu Chunyan and landed on Aunt Zhang. Full of suspicion, he asked, "Aunt Zhang, are you sure there was nothing wrong with that chicken soup you made just for the Fourth Wife of Jing?"
Because of the commotion Jie Jingchen caused about splitting the family, they had all forgotten about the chicken soup. Now, with Jie Jingwei’s reminder, a wave of nausea hit them. Their stomachs churned, and the two won could no longer hold it back. Clapping their hands over their mouths, they ran to the sink in the courtyard and began to vomit violently.
Hu Wan’er and Jie Jingwei stood at the entrance to the main hall, watching the two won hunched over the sink, retching their guts out. Jie Jingwei felt a pang of guilt. He shouldn’t have reminded them.
Qin i crossed her arms and leaned lazily against the doorfra, watching the two in the courtyard who were vomiting up a storm.
"Jie Jingchen, what do you think they put in that chicken soup to make them vomit like this?" Qin i called teasingly to Jie Jingchen inside the room.
"You want to know?" Jie Jingchen retorted. Seeing Qin i nod, he added, "Go ask them yourself."
"Fine, I will." Before the words were even out of her mouth, Qin i was already moving.
Seeing her actually walk toward the two in the courtyard, a glint flashed in Jie Jingchen’s eyes. He asked, "They’re vomiting. Aren’t you disgusted?"
Qin i stopped and turned back. ’Sure, I’d get to gloat if they told , but I’d also be genuinely disgusted.’
Qin i returned to the room, closed the door, and even drew the curtains. Anyone in the know would realize Qin i just didn’t want to see the two people vomiting in the courtyard. Anyone who didn’t know might misunderstand and think they were about to do sothing illicit in the room.
"Jie Jingchen, were you serious about splitting the family?" Qin i asked, sitting in a chair and swinging her bare feet.
"We’ve already split. Don’t you think it’s a little late to be asking that now?" Jie Jingchen shot her a sidelong glance as he took off his jacket and hung it up neatly.
Qin i rolled her eyes and accused him, "You didn’t discuss it with before you brought up splitting the family."
"I didn’t discuss it with you?" Jie Jingchen asked, feigning surprise.
Qin i paused, actually racking her brain to see if she had overlooked or forgotten sothing. Gritting her teeth, she shot back, "Did you discuss it with ?"
"I didn’t?" Jie Jingchen asked back. Just as Qin i was about to explode, he tapped his forehead as if in a mont of sudden realization. "I forgot."
"Forgot what?" Qin i seethed, the words squeezed out from between her clenched teeth.
"I forgot to discuss it with you," Jie Jingchen said with a smile.
Qin i fell silent. ’He could forget sothing like this? He must have done it on purpose.’
Jie Jingchen gazed at her. "Qin i, the family is already split. Is there any point in dwelling on this now?"
"No point," Qin i said, stretching her arms. There really wasn’t.
Ever since she and Jie Jingchen had co to the Jie Family, not once had everyone gathered to eat together like today. They were all used to eating their own als separately. Now, the three of them were completely split off from the main household.
Mooching off "Second Great-Aunt" for als wasn’t a long-term solution. They needed to cook for themselves. But the house only had one kitchen, which they’d have to share with Aunt Zhang, aning they’d have to be careful. And for such a large family, there was only one bathroom. It was fine if you weren’t in a hurry, but if you were desperate and soone was hogging it, you’d be lucky not to crap your pants.
"Jie Jingchen, let’s build our own kitchen and bathroom," Qin i suggested.
"Okay," Jie Jingchen nodded.
"Let’s start building tomorrow," Qin i said, striking while the iron was hot.
"Okay," Jie Jingchen nodded again.
"I’ll pay for it. You figure out how much it’ll cost to build a kitchen and bathroom." Jie Jingchen had agreed so readily that Qin i worried he was just placating her. Whether he was truly broke or just pretending, she couldn’t be bothered to argue about it right now. For the peace of mind of being able to cook, and the comfort of being able to bathe and use the toilet without hassle, Qin i was willing to spend the money.
"I’ll have soone start work tomorrow," Jie Jingchen said. Qin i was satisfied.
Having reached an agreent, Qin i started brainstorming in her head. She leaned over the desk and began to draw a blueprint, even adding an interior design sketch. Qin i wasn’t a professional; she just drew whatever ca to mind. In the end, she was probably the only one who could understand what she had drawn.
She worked on it for half the night until she was finally done. Putting down her pen, she stretched, then picked up the two drawings, extrely pleased with herself.
"Jie Jingchen." Qin i turned her head. There was no sign of Jie Jingchen in the room. The bedding on the bed was neatly folded, with no sign that it had been slept in.
Qin i got up and opened the door. Seeing the kitchen light was on, she took her drawings and headed toward it.
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