The Counterattack of a Wealthy Family's Substitute

Seeing that Xi Yuanchen didn't speak, Yao Yingxi continued, "Tomorrow we're going to Wangshui Lake. I heard the scenery there is beautiful."

Xi Yuanchen looked ahead and remained silent, which was a form of agreement. Yao Yingxi looked out the window at the scenery along the way.

The two of them spent only two hours going up and down the mountain, but Yao Yingxi had no interest in thinking about where to go next.

She silently gazed out the window.

When they reached the traffic light, Xi Yuanchen glanced at her briefly, his expression slightly grim.

For some reason, seeing Yao Yingxi unhappy made him feel inexplicably choked up.

The car started, and there was still about an hour's journey ahead. The areas of Wangshui Lake and the temple were located to the south and north, respectively.

Yao Yingxi turned her gaze back from the window, picked up the bag of food beside her, opened it, and took out a small box of longan.

She peeled the first one and placed it near Xi Yuanchen's mouth. Xi Yuanchen glanced down at it, opened his mouth, and ate it.

Yao Yingxi's hand was still in front of Xi Yuanchen's mouth, waiting for him to spit out the seed.

Whether intentionally or out of habit, Xi Yuanchen chewed the seeds for a while before spitting them into Yao Yingxi's hand.

Yao Yingxi put the trash in her hand into the bag, peeled one for herself, and put it in her mouth.

She was responsible for feeding Xi Yuanchen the whole way, showing no embarrassment or surprise at sharing a banana with him for the first time.

The car drove to the foot of Wangshui Lake in Jiangcheng, and Yao Yingxi opened the car door and got out. Xi Yuanchen also unbuckled his seatbelt and pressed the button to open the trunk.

He opened the car door and got out. Yao Yingxi had already taken out toiletries and other items from the trunk. This time, they were staying in a hotel, not a guesthouse.

At the foot of Wangshui Lake Mountain, there is a five-star hotel. Upon entering the lobby, one is greeted by a magnificent and opulent atmosphere, which reflects the hotel owner's extravagance. Of course, this hotel was booked by Xi Yuanchen.

"Mr. Xi."

The man in the suit was followed by several security guards and hotel staff, who called out to Xi Yuanchen from afar.

Yao Yingxi paused, carrying a bag of food in her hand, while Xi Yuanchen pulled a suitcase. She glanced at Xi Yuanchen.

Xi Yuanchen's expression was cold as he stared ahead. Although he was dressed casually, it did not diminish his innate aura in the slightest.

The security guard walked over and saw Xi Yuanchen and Yao Yingxi standing together. He paused for a few seconds, then quickly had the guard take the items from Xi Yuanchen and Yao Yingxi.

"Mr. Xi, your room has been prepared."

The lobby manager was extremely nervous, reporting as he walked.

All the hotels under the Xi family's name have a top floor reserved for Xi Yuanchen, so that he can stay there when he is on business trips.

The group entered the elevator.

The hotel staff following behind the lobby manager were all beautiful young women.

The girls looked at Xi Yuanchen, their faces flushed, and smiled shyly with their eyes lowered.

Yao Yingxi noticed the hostile gazes directed at her, her brows furrowed slightly, but the frown quickly disappeared.

When the elevator reached the top floor, Xi Yuanchen remained as cold as ever, seemingly oblivious to the intense gazes directed at him as he stepped out of the elevator.

He stood at the doorway, took their belongings from the security guard with a cold expression, and went inside.

I don't really like those people surrounding me like that.

It took the lobby manager a long time to come to his senses after the door closed. He hurriedly instructed the waiter: "This is the boss. Take good care of him. If you anger him, you'll be fired. And keep any thoughts you shouldn't have hidden away."

The girl in the elevator looked a little pale.

Yao Yingxi entered the room, utterly astonished.

Although it was a hotel room, the decor was that of a duplex, and all the furniture was in a minimalist black and white style, which suited Xi Yuanchen's personality very well.

Seeing that she was standing still, Xi Yuanchen assumed that she thought every room was like that, so he began to explain.

“All the hotels under the Xi family’s name have a room like this on the top floor. It’s like an apartment, which is convenient for me to use when I’m on business trips.”

Upon hearing this, Yao Yingxi snapped out of her daze, regained her composure, and cursed inwardly.

It's nice to have money.

To use such prime real estate for private rooms, and to decorate them in such a unique way.

She walked over, opened the door, and saw a large private swimming pool and a garden.

Of course, it was winter at the time, so there weren't many flowers to see.

Xi Yuanchen put his luggage aside and said to Yao Yingxi, who was standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, "I'm going to take a shower. Everything is here. If you need anything, just give them a call and they'll send it over."

Yao Yingxi responded, gazing into the distance, while touching the relic she was carrying with her other hand.

The monk's words echoed in my mind.

The person you love sees you as someone else, and if they can change that in the future, it will also bring you danger.

She didn't understand the first sentence, only the second.

The sound of dripping water came from the bathroom, and Yao Yingxi snapped out of her reverie, turned around, and headed back to the kitchen.

Xi Yuanchen said that everything is available here, so I suppose they can cook here.

Upon opening the refrigerator, it was found to be full of food, whether at Xi Yuanchen's behest or on the people's own initiative. Fresh shrimp, chives, pork bones, large fish, corn, and green vegetables were taken out.

Soak the fish, shrimp, and pork bones in a basin to remove the frost.

She tidied up her things, washed the pot, and took out the dumplings she had made in her apartment from the bag. Because there was a refrigerator in the car, the dumplings were mostly kept there, so they didn't have any odor.

Today is the second day of the Lunar New Year, which is also very important. Traditionally, people visit relatives in every household.

But Yao Yingxi had no family. In previous years, she and Yueyue would spend the New Year together. Liang Yu would also come to pay his respects on the second day of the Lunar New Year. This had been the case for three years in a row.

My thoughts returned to me. I put the dumplings aside, then picked up the fish, gutted it, removed the innards, cleaned it, and made a few cuts on it.

When Xi Yuanchen came out, Yao Yingxi had just put the fish on a plate.

Seeing her busy, he inexplicably went into the kitchen.

Yao Yingxi wasn't too surprised when he came in, after all, Xi Yuanchen wasn't there to help.

She put the large fish house aside, went over to chop some greens, and at the same time opened the pot of pork bone and corn soup, stirred it, and then closed it again.

Xi Yuanchen saw a needle on the board, and the shrimp in the plate had already had their veins removed.

He walked over with a frown, and after much mental preparation, he took a shrimp out of the clear water and picked at it.

Yao Yingxi, who was holding the knife, paused and looked at him in disbelief.

Do you remember how Xi Yuanchen disliked it last time?

Now that she's taken action, she wouldn't have believed it if she hadn't seen it with her own eyes.

She quickly chopped the vegetables and set them aside, then said to Xi Yuanchen, "Mr. Xi, let me do it."

Although she really didn't want to take it on, she was worried that Xi Yuanchen would look disgusted later, so she had to ask.

Sure enough, Xi Yuanchen seemed to be eager for her to say that, and put down the needle in his hand, saying, "Okay, you do it, I'm not very good at it."

Yao Yingxi said, "No, Mr. Xi made a very good choice."

Xi Yuanchen wasn't particularly pleased with the praise. Looking at Yao Yingxi's expression, he silently walked to the other side and stood there.

Yao Yingxi was busy cooking and making dumplings all by herself.

Half an hour later, all the food was finally ready. Xi Yuanchen, still acting like a spoiled young master, didn't even offer to help carry it out. It was as if someone else had been the one who had just helped Yao Yingxi remove the shrimp veins.