Song Duanli did not mistreat her in terms of daily necessities and her room. Everything was indeed of the best quality, as instructed by Song Qi before he left.
However...
Weren't her room and Song Duanli's room a bit too far apart?
It was obvious to anyone with eyes that he wanted her out of his sight to avoid annoyance.
Song Duanli's room was on the second floor, in the middle. Hers was the one on the first floor, at the very end. Shen Jianxi suspected that if the first floor could be extended, her room would be even further away.
The only consolation, perhaps, was that Song Duanli's study was on the first floor, albeit the first room.
After tidying up her belongings, Shen Jianxi walked out of her room. As she passed the study, she paused for a moment, then deliberately stumbled as if to 'accidentally' bump the doorknob and open the door a crack. She then leaned against the wall and left, making the study look as if someone had entered and forgotten to close the door.
She then went to the living room. Intentionally, she placed several small items that clearly didn't belong in the house in various places around the living room, such as plush toys, jewelry, and hair ties, turning the once orderly living room into a bit of a mess.
After finishing these tasks, she glanced at the wall clock. It was a little past one in the afternoon, still early before Song Duanli's return. Shen Jianxi took out her phone, took a picture of the living room, and set the visibility to "Friends except" Wen Ze.
This morning, when they left, Shen Jianxi had specifically added Wen Ze as a friend, intending to use him to convey certain things to Song Duanli.
She checked her messages again and noticed that Xie Shu had sent her a text message that morning, but she hadn't seen it because she was busy setting up the scene for disruption.
Xie Shu: [You weren't here this morning, was something up?]
Seeing that she hadn't replied, he sent another message ten minutes later.
Xie Shu: [Why aren't you saying anything? Did something really happen?]
Then, approximately every ten minutes, another message would come in.
Xie Shu: [Are you there? Are you there? Are you there?]
Xie Shu: [I found the place, when will you start teaching me, Teacher Shen?]
Xie Shu: [.]
Xie Shu: [.]
...
Just as Shen Jianxi was looking at the messages above, another one arrived.
She tapped back to see his new message first.
Xie Shu: [No way, no way, can someone really not check their phone all morning? How about this, if you reply to me, I'll call you Dad.]
This message was then deleted.
Shen Jianxi hadn't expected anyone to make such a request. Since he was so eager, how could she refuse?
Shen Jianxi: [I saw it.]
Xie Shu: [......]
Shen Jianxi: [Go ahead and call me.]
Xie Shu: [......Goodbye!]
Shen Jianxi glanced at the time, certain that it was after school hours. She made a call.
The other side picked up quickly, likely because his phone had been in his hand the whole time.
"You're impossible to deal with. If you have a dad, you're really not going to call him."
Xie Shu remained silent on the other end. He had only intended to tease a bit when he saw she hadn't replied, not realizing he was digging a hole for himself.
Xie Shu: The person involved now deeply regrets it, feeling extremely embarrassed. Su Dan Novel Network.
"Did you call just to hear me call you Dad?"
"Of course not. I'm just letting you know that I took the day off today. Since you've found the place, we'll start training tomorrow."
"Okay." When it came to training, Xie Shu became much more serious. He carefully noted down everything Shen Jianxi told him, afraid of missing a single detail.
After talking for a solid ten minutes, Shen Jianxi felt a bit parched. She got up to pour herself a glass of water and said, "Let's leave it at this for now. We'll discuss the specifics tomorrow."
"Alright, we'll talk when you get here tomorrow. I'll hang up now."
"Oh, right, Xie Shu, what does 'father' mean again?"
Just as he was about to hang up, Shen Jianxi suddenly asked.
Xie Shu, caught off guard, blurted out instinctively, "Dad."
"Hang up now, good child."
Listening to the dial tone, Xie Shu's face was a picture of despair. Life was full of roles, and not all roles were the same.
After hanging up the phone, Shen Jianxi couldn't help but laugh out loud. Xie Shu was definitely her source of joy today.
"77, I'm going to rest for a bit. Keep an eye out, and wake me when Song Duanli gets back."
"Understood, host."
Honestly, although 77 often liked to argue with her, sometimes acted playful, and had orchestrated the meeting between Xie Shu and Song Qi last time, she did a very good job with the tasks she was given.
She had known from the beginning that 77 was responsible, but Shen Jianxi didn't know why she wasn't angry. It was as if these things hadn't happened for the first time, and she had a strong intuition that 77 wouldn't falter on important matters.
*
When Song Duanli returned in the evening, Shen Jianxi was still in her room. Seeing the living room in disarray, the veins on his forehead pulsed. For the first time, he regretted agreeing to let her stay.
Song Duanli could still somewhat rationalize the feeling of his private space being invaded, but upon seeing the ajar study door, his face immediately turned cold.
Just then, Shen Jianxi opened her door and walked out, her eyes slightly hazy. Seeing him, she seemed oblivious to his frosty demeanor and ran towards him excitedly.
"Big Brother, you're back!" Even though she had just woken up, her hair was still neat. Her pink bunny slippers made her ankles look even fairer. She was wearing a simple slip dress, and Song Duanli could see through it with a downward glance.
But he merely averted his gaze with disgust, his voice faint yet clearly suppressing a surge of anger: "Did you go into the study today?"
The girl before him visibly tensed, her fingers unconsciously clutching her sleep dress, but she still forced a smile and said, "No, Big Brother, why would I go into your study?"
She hadn't actually entered, only opened the door.
Lying.
Song Duanli looked at her stubborn denial with cold eyes. His assessment of her, besides her pretense of ignorance and ulterior motives, now included being a habitual liar. His disgust intensified.
77: "Beep! Affection point -6, current Song Duanli affection point is -21."
Woe is me, her affection points!
Shen Jianxi wailed inwardly, but maintained a good expression on her face, looking at him with timid eyes.
Song Duanli suddenly curved his lips and bent down to meet her gaze.
An oppressive aura emanated from him.
His eagle-like eyes seemed to peer through Shen Jianxi's eyes into her very soul. His tone finally carried a different emotion, "It seems Miss Shen did not take my warning this morning to heart. You have courage, I admire you."
77: "Beep! Affection point -2, current Song Duanli affection point is -23."
"Someone as outstanding as Miss Shen gracing the Song family is our honor."
77: "Beep! Affection point -1, current Song Duanli affection point is 24."
"I hope Miss Shen's tricks do not disappoint me. We—" Her lips were covered by a small hand, and the rest of his words were muffled.
"Don't say it. I know you don't like me, but you can't wrong me." As she spoke, tears began to fall from the corners of her eyes.
Don't say it, the drop in affection points hurt her.
Thinking of the negative affection points, her sadness became even more real.
"I'm sorry, I'll leave." After saying this, she bowed to him and turned back into her room, her slender back conveying a clear sense of fragility.
Song Duanli took only a glance before looking away and also entered the study.