Qiao Jing was stunned, and before she could even speak, Zhan Qipei had already let go of her.
Only after Zhan Qipei had stepped back a few steps did she notice the man’s somewhat gloomy expression.
She hesitated for a moment, pursed her red lips, and slowly said,
"I didn’t eat very much, I want to eat a bit more, and also, didn’t I say you didn’t have to cook for me?"
Although she had already eaten dinner with Zhan Nanqing earlier in the evening, fortunately, she usually didn’t eat much at night, so it wouldn’t be a problem to eat a little more now.
It was mainly because she saw the expression on the man’s face that she couldn’t help but feel soft-hearted.
Hearing Qiao Jing say this, the dullness in Zhan Qipei’s eyes finally brightened as he held Qiao Jing’s wrist and led her to the kitchen.
"If you want to cook, let’s cook."
Without Qiao Jing joining him for dinner, it was no exaggeration to say that today’s meal felt as tasteless as chewing wax.
Qiao Jing glanced at the insulated lunch boxes Zhan Qipei had taken out and placed on the table, and somewhat helplessly touched her forehead.
"Why so much? Did you just make these?"
She had thought that the meal Zhan Qipei spoke of was specially saved for her, but these dishes, evidently just made not long ago, were still steaming hot, not like the kind that had sat in an insulated box for a while and gotten somewhat cold.
Zhan Qipei nodded, handed a clean pair of chopsticks to Qiao Jing after washing them.
"Yes, just as you arrived, I had just turned off the kitchen lights, preparing to go back to the living room."
In fact, after he had finished his meal, he had immediately turned off the living room lights and sat in the kitchen, searching the internet for pregnancy recipes.
But some recipes he had never tried were complex, so he made errors in a few dishes several times, causing him to stay in the kitchen until now.
Upon hearing this, Qiao Jing then understood why all the lights in the house were off. Looking at the rich dishes in the lunch boxes, she rubbed her temples with some headache.
Given that she had already had dinner, she really couldn’t eat so much by herself.
After hearing Qiao Jing’s words, Zhan Qipei pursed his thin lips, his dark eyes intently staring at the woman, his eyes filled with complex and indiscernible emotions.
"Then where did you think I had gone?"
Qiao Jing sat down at the dining table, a troubled expression emerging on her face as she casually answered Zhan Qipei’s question.
"Working overtime at the office, or somewhere outside."
What she was worried about now was how to finish all these dishes, as it was indeed too much.
Zhan Qipei furrowed his long brows, his expression very serious,
"I wouldn’t just casually go out at night; I want to stay at home with you."
His life had already come to be occupied by a large part by Qiao Jing, and he didn’t want anything other than work and the woman to take up his life.
All he wanted was to work well and earn money for his wife to spend.
After hearing Zhan Qipei’s words, Qiao Jing slowly raised her eyes, her gaze landing on the man’s face, which was filled with resolve.
"Why do you insist on staying at home with me? You could be doing your own things."
She didn’t want, before she and Zhan Qipei officially got together, for her life to occupy such a big part of the man’s life.
She wanted to give Zhan Qipei more freedom, not always revolving around her.
Zhan Qipei tightly pursed his lips, stared at Qiao Jing for a while, then slowly spoke.
"There is no specific reason, I just want to be with you."
Before he met Qiao Jing, his life was filled with work, nothing but work.
Only after he had met Qiao Jing did his life slowly begin to become richer, which is why he treasured the time he spent with her so much.
Qiao Jing’s hand holding the chopsticks paused, and her eyebrows and eyes drooped, making it hard to discern her emotions.
Eventually, she packed up all the food and put it in the refrigerator.
"We’ll eat it tomorrow; it’s too much, I can’t finish it all."
She had previously thought that Zhan Qipei was too clingy, and of course, she still felt the same way now.
But when she heard Zhan Qipei say he just wanted to be with her, her heart actually skipped a beat.
The words sounded almost like a love confession.
Zhan Qipei didn’t say much else, but stood up and followed Qiao Jing to her bedroom door.
Qiao Jing could feel that Zhan Qipei had been following her the whole way and stopped at the door to her room.
"Why are you following me?"
No sooner had she spoken than the man’s familiar scent enveloped her again, wrapping her tightly within it.
Zhan Qipei buried his face in Qiao Jing’s neck, and when he looked up, he saw the small, pink blush on her earlobe.
A hint of restraint flashed through his eyes, but he couldn’t help but lean close to her earlobe and touch it gently with his warm lips, lightly caressing it.
Feeling a warm touch on her earlobe, Qiao Jing’s body stiffened, followed by a tingling sensation that spread throughout her body.
Just as she was about to push Zhan Qipei away, a deep voice came from beside her ear.
"Promise me, don’t come home this late again."
Qiao Jing’s hand, poised to push, paused. She unexpectedly detected a hint of grievance in Zhan Qipei’s words—what was that about?
But she couldn’t see Zhan Qipei’s expression at the moment, only imagine the man looking as sorrowful as an abandoned stray.
This made her heart soften involuntarily, and she slightly parted her lips, agreeing.
What Qiao Jing didn’t know was that upon hearing her response, Zhan Qipei’s lips curved into a smile, his face showing no sign of grievance.
He knew that Qiao Jing responded better to a soft approach than a hard one. If he had been insistent like before, it definitely wouldn’t have worked.
On the contrary, if he softened his attitude, Qiao Jing would agree, as was perfectly demonstrated just now.
His mood barely had a few seconds to brighten before he was pushed away by Qiao Jing in the next moment.
Qiao Jing touched her earlobe and felt relieved that Zhan Qipei hadn’t bitten it and had only lightly kissed it; otherwise, her earlobe would definitely be wet now.
"Zhan Qipei, are you really born in the Year of the Dog? Grabbing people and biting without a word—can you ever change that? Never mind, I won’t come back this late if there’s nothing special, go back to your room."
Zhan Qipei didn’t leave immediately, but rather steadfastly fixed his dark eyes on Qiao Jing.
Qiao Jing met Zhan Qipei’s gaze, reading the suppressed restraint and impulsivity in his eyes, and involuntarily twitched her mouth.
Tired of dealing with this dog of a man, she went back to her room and closed the door.
They were both adults and naturally understood things; if she stayed any longer, given Zhan Qipei’s current state, who knows what else he might do.