Wooing my Bodyguard Wife

After they secured a promise from Captain Mu that a replacement would be sent over as soon as possible, they briefly debated on where they would leave Wei Yan in the meantime.

“Auntie, what do you think of putting him in front of the house?” Jingwei suggested, trying to be helpful.

“Of course not! He’ll be blocking the way! Do you think he’s as slim as an umbrella stand?” Yue Niang tutted. “Maybe if I tied him up harder…”

Wei Yan gave her a horrified look. He was already trussed up tightly like a prized pork with no wriggle room, any tighter and he would lose all blood circulation and die!

“Can you let me go please?” He pleaded. “I promise I won’t create any more trouble!”

“I’ll be the judge of that,” Tai Cheng said. “Don’t worry, we’ll still let you go to the bathroom if you ask nicely.”

Wei Yan spluttered with more despair.

“Ming Guang, you’ll have to watch over him,” Xue Ning added. She didn’t trust him not to cause trouble, whether by accident or on purpose.

After that cheerful reminder, the family finally decided to leave Wei Yan propped against the door as though he was a human-sized door stopper. If fellow residents decided to bother them for some reason or another, they’d simply open the door and let Wei Yan fall on them, in his bounded glory. That ought to make even the most stubborn person think twice!

Now, they were off to discuss more important things, such as the necessary repairs and renovations for the restaurant.

“Since Jingwei so helpfully gave us one million yuan, we can proceed with renovating the restaurant.” Her father. “Other than replacing all the destroyed furniture, I would like to install air-conditioning, replace the plumbing, increase the kitchen size and restaurant layout, along with repeating the walls.”

“Dad, are you sure we can do it with one million yuan?” Xue Ning asked sceptically.

“I can give more!” Jingwei said eagerly, already prepared to shell out more money, but Xue Ning elbowed him.

“Dad, I can give you the money Jingwei gave me if you need more. But must we do so much? I thought we were just going to repair the furniture and the entrance!”

“This crisis is an opportunity for us, and I’m sure Jingwei would be a willing investor in our business.”

“Of course I am!” Jingwei agreed readily and Tai Cheng smirked internally.

He already knew Sun Jingwei was ready to open up his unlimited funds, so he had nothing to worry about other than the mildly disappointed look on his daughter’s face.

“HOLY SHIT why did you tie up Xue Ning’s fake boyfriend?” Li Tai Xuan exclaimed as he and his wife finally emerged, only to see Wei Yan leaning against the door with ropes all around him like a cat scratching post. “Are we kidnapping him?”

“No, this is his punishment for lying,” Yue Niang said serenely. “Leave him alone. He has to reflect on his actions.”

“Huh, you must have really fucked up this time,” Tai Xuan said, and then he turned to Jingwei. “Why are you still here? Shouldn’t you be gone by now?”

“Be polite,” Tai Cheng chastised. “This man is your sister’s boyfriend after all.”

“Hah!” Jingwei leapt up smugly and gestured proudly to himself. “You heard that right! I might be your future brother-in-law!”

“Like real! Dad, you’re joking right? Don’t tell me you’ve accepted him?!” Tai Xuan complained with no small amount of dismay.

“For now, I see no reason to object.” Tai Cheng said. While Sun Jingwei seemed to have no career plans and a bad reputation with women online, he was at least not a despicable man that would ruthlessly stomp on innocents to reach his goal.

(Of course, he wasn’t going to like it if they were canoodling! Some things should be left after marriage!)

The day passed quickly, with discussions for restaurant renovations keeping everyone entertained. Jingwei was surprisingly useful, offering up his suggestions for decor and contacts for kitchen contractors. He also talked about possibly using this chance to expand the menu to include more finger food and snacks for deliveries, along with using a tracker for deliveries.

“You have a lot of thoughts about restaurants,” Xue Ning commented as they took a quick break. It was nearly time for dinner, and her mother had excused herself to cook something, refusing to let them help.

“Is that a bad thing?” Jingwei asked cautiously.

“No, just surprising. Why do you look so worried?”

“Well, I eat at restaurants and buy takeout so often, I can’t help forming opinions.” Jingwei shrugged sheepishly. “I hope they are useful! My dad always said that I spoke nonsense.”

Xue Ning’s family hadn’t told him to shut up, the same way his father did when he made business suggestions. Maybe they were that nice to let him talk uninterrupted, or they actually found his words enlightening!

“Your insight is welcome.” Tai Cheng said firmly, irritated at his old friend. What kind of parent kept on putting down his child? “Have more confidence in yourself. I’m sure your father misspoke about you. Does he do that often?” He asked casually, trying to find out more.

“Yeah, he calls me useless all the time. Then again, it’s not as though he’s wrong, so it doesn’t matter.” Jingwei said, shrugging nonchalantly, but Tai Cheng noticed how he didn’t meet his eyes.

“Don’t feel so bad! I’d rather he scold me with his words than the tea cups! Do you know how much tea my father wasted because he was flinging cups at me? Seriously stupid.”

“…Let me get this straight. He flung teacups. With tea. At you.” Tai Cheng said slowly, trying to make sense of things. Good lord. What kind of parent did his old friend become? Wasn’t this child abuse?

“That’s fucked up,” Tai Xuan said, and then he had to shake himself out of it. He was almost sympathising with Jingwei, and that scared him. He didn’t want to care about this man! He wanted him far far away from his family!

Maybe this was just a scheme for him to make people feel sorry for him.

“Are you making things up for sympathy? I’m onto you!” Tai Xuan continued, jabbing a finger at him. Xue Ning snarled and chomped down on her brother’s finger, and he shrieked in response.

“He’s not, I saw it myself! He throws things at Jingwei when he gets angry! He tried to brain me with a teacup too!” Xue Ning explained, as her brother nursed his wound.

“…I see.” Tai Cheng said evenly, but Jingwei felt himself shivering due to the sudden temperature drop in the living room.

“We’re all fine though! Dodged in time and all… hahaha” Jingwei laughed awkwardly to banish the sudden tension in the room. Xue Ning’s father had a really terrifying look on his face! It didn’t even look this scary when the angry mob beat down his door, demanding an explanation.

“Well, just know that I will never do that to you, Jingwei.”

“You flung chopsticks at him two days ago,” Xue Ning muttered, staring mulishly at him. “You nearly killed him. And after he made dinner for you.”

Tai Cheng twitched; his daughter was half-becoming spilled water at this rate! Siding with her boyfriend over him, in full view of everyone? He wanted to beat his chest.

“I apologise for that, and I promise not to throw anything at you in future.” Tai Cheng said with gritted teeth. “I am not like your father after all.”

“…Thanks, I think? No one should be like my father though,” Jingwei said bemusedly. Now that he wasn’t going to be skewered, he decided to ask a highly important question.

“Uncle, can I ask you something?”

“What is it?” Tai Cheng asked warily, eyeing Jingwei’s sheepish manner. Everyone was tense at the table. Was he going to ask for Xue Ning’s hand in marriage right here?

“Can I please shower at your house today? I brought my own toiletries and everything!” Jingwei added quickly.

Huh? Everyone blinked in surprise.

“Why?” Tai Cheng asked. It better not be because he wanted to seduce his daughter!

“The motel’s showers are terrible, Uncle. The water pressure is poor, and the temperature keeps changing. I spend more time waiting for enough water to rinse myself with than actually washing myself. Please let me use the bathroom here!”

“You’re such a whiner,” Tai Xuan said. “Dad, don’t agree to his request. Why is he using up our water and increasing our water bill!”

Xue Ning kicked her brother.

“I’ll pay for utilities,” Jingwei said immediately, bowing his head. “Please Uncle! I won’t make a mess or anything!”

“Dad, come on, let him bathe here.” Xue Ning whined, grabbing Tai Cheng’s arm pleadingly. “We definitely have a better bathroom than the motel.”

“…Fine.” He gave Jingwei and Xue Ning a warning look. “But you’re only showering alone!”