Clink, a small dish fell to the ground, quivering for a moment before coming to a stop.

Ye Li's thoughts instantly snapped back to reality as she looked at the mess on the floor, letting out a low exclamation before hastily standing up from her chair.

"Brother Chu, I'm sorry, I messed up your floor. I'll clean it up right away."

Hearing Ye Li's words, Chu Ge couldn't help but find it both amusing and helpless. No matter what happens, this girl always considers others first. If it were any other girl, they would definitely be more concerned about the clothes they're wearing getting dirty, right?

Chu Ge chuckled, "The floor being dirty is not a big deal, but your clothes look like this—how are you supposed to go out?"

"Ah?"

Ye Li was momentarily stunned, then looked down to see several oil stains on her clothes, realizing the issue. She didn't have any clothes to change into, and her delicate face quickly turned awkward as she twisted her fingers and pressed her lips together.

After all, she was in front of Chu Ge, and letting him see her in such a disheveled state was incredibly embarrassing.

Ever since she met Chu Ge, she had deeply appreciated this man, a man unrelated to her, who reached out to help her time and again, providing immense support and encouragement. She always wanted to show her best side to Chu Ge, yet the reality was that she had never really managed to do so.

Seeing Ye Li looking so flustered, Chu Ge also felt quite speechless. He originally intended to send her back to school but didn't expect such an accident to happen suddenly.

After thinking for a moment, Chu Ge had an idea, smiling gently at Ye Li, "Ye Li, don't worry. How about this: wait for a moment. I'll go find my neighbor—she's about your size. I'll see if I can borrow some clothes for you that you can wear."

Having said that, Chu Ge left the room and went to knock on Chu Shiyao's door.

Watching Chu Ge leave the room, Ye Li felt both relieved and somewhat uneasy.

How well does Brother Chu get along with his female neighbor that he can even borrow a girl's clothes? If only I could become Brother Chu's neighbor or... live with him.

Thinking along those lines, Ye Li quickly shook her head, not knowing herself why she was shaking her head—was it to deny some thought or to affirm some other thought?

Chu Ge knocked on Chu Shiyao's door and stood waiting at the entrance.

While waiting for the door to open, Chu Ge imagined how Ye Li would look in a nurse's uniform. Undoubtedly, it would be an image of an angel in white bathed in a holy glow.

With these thoughts in mind, Chu Ge waited a while longer but still didn't see Chu Shiyao coming to open the door.

"This girl, could she really be sleeping this early? Or maybe she's not home?"

Muttering to himself, Chu Ge recalled a somewhat awkward situation from before. Perhaps... Chu Shiyao really was asleep and sleeping soundly?

"Thump thump thump"

Chu Ge knocked again, this time with a bit more force. Unfortunately, after waiting a while longer, there was still no sign of Chu Shiyao from inside.

Out of options, Chu Ge returned home. The spilled dish had already been cleaned up by Ye Li, who was now squatting on the floor, holding a cloth and wiping the floor. Seeing him return, she looked over at him.

Chu Ge smiled at Ye Li and said, "Wait a moment," before dialing Chu Shiyao's phone number.

The phone rang a few times before it was quickly answered. Hearing the ringing tone stop, Chu Ge went straight to the point and asked, "Yaoyao, where are you?"

Chu Shiyao replied, "I'm at the hospital. I've been working the night shift these days. What's up, Brother Chu?"

Hearing this, Chu Ge couldn't help but feel a bit helpless, "Oh, it's nothing really. I was just thinking of asking you over for dinner. Since you're not home, I guess it can't be helped."

Chu Shiyao giggled and said, "Brother Chu, if you ask me for dinner, how could I resist coming? Should I catch a cab to your place now to grab a bite and then head back to work after eating?"

Chu Ge was about to hang up the phone when he heard Chu Shiyao say this, and immediately felt a bit speechless. "You're talking like it's real. You are at work; can you just leave casually? Wouldn't your boss dock your pay?"

As he said this, Chu Ge suddenly thought of himself. It seemed like anyone could say this to Chu Shiyao, but he never had the right to talk to her like that.

Since he met Qin Ruojing and joined the Tianjiao Group, it felt like he had always been quite free—too free, to be precise. Saying he wouldn't go to work at the drop of a hat, with all sorts of strange excuses. Good thing Chu Shiyao didn't know about these matters, or else what he said earlier would have been utterly unconvincing.

Chu Shiyao laughed, "If my boss deducts my salary, I can ask you, Brother Chu, to reimburse me, right? You're so nice; I'm sure you'd do it for me, wouldn't you?"

Chu Ge rolled his eyes, but of course, he knew Chu Shiyao was just joking with him.

After exchanging a few more words with Chu Shiyao, Chu Ge hung up the phone, feeling a bit speechless.

He Qing wasn't here, and neither was Chu Shiyao. At this time, all the stores were closed. Where could he get clothes for Ye Li?

Chu Ge scratched his head and looked apologetically at Ye Li, saying, "My neighbor isn't home, you see..."

Ye Li blushed and said softly, "Brother Chu, it's... it's okay. Just wash them, they'll be dry by tomorrow night."

Chu Ge was stunned, "So you're not going back to the dorm tonight?"

"Uh-huh... yeah, Brother Chu, didn't you say... say I could stay here tonight?"

Chu Ge broke into a sweat, suddenly remembering he had indeed said not to leave tonight. However, what he meant was just to have Ye Li stay for dinner; he didn't expect her to misunderstand. He could only explain dumbfoundedly.

However, after he finished explaining, Ye Li still shook her head, twisted her fingers, and walked over to him, "Brother Chu, today... after what happened earlier, I don't even know how to face Lin Ling when I go back. Just let me stay, alright?"

Looking at Ye Li's pleading face, Chu Ge hesitated a bit.

"This..."

"Brother Chu, I know what you're worried about, but with what happened at the small restaurant today, so many people saw it, whether I go back or not, people who want to gossip will gossip. I've figured it out now; a clear conscience remains untroubled. As long as Brother Chu knows what kind of girl I am, that's enough. I really don't need to care too much about what others say."

What Ye Li said made some sense, and besides, her clothes were dirty now. As a girl, it would be hard to go out like that.

"Alright then, I'll take you back in the morning."

Seeing Chu Ge nod and agree, Ye Li blushed and said "Thank you." Seeing that Chu Ge had no intention of continuing his meal, she started to collect the bowls and chopsticks into the kitchen.

Although Chu Ge usually hated doing dishes, looking at Ye Li made him have an uncontrollable urge to care for her. He intended to help her with the dishes, but Ye Li said, "This is what women should do," and pushed him out instead.

After finishing her work, Ye Li walked out of the kitchen and stood by the door to Chu Ge's bedroom, asking softly, "Brother Chu, I... I smell like food, could I take a bath?"

Chu Ge was lying on the bed watching TV at that moment. Upon hearing Ye Li's voice, he sat up, "Go ahead, I'll grab you some of my clothes, you can wear them for now after you're done."

Since Ye Li couldn't wear Chu Ge's pants, he found a shirt big enough to serve as a dress for her and handed it to her before closing the room door.

Soon, the sound of water started to flow from the bathroom.

Although the sound reached Chu Ge's ears, he basically viewed Ye Li as a younger sister, so he had no particular thoughts. She was bathing, and he continued with whatever he was doing.

After more than an hour, Ye Li finished bathing and her clothes, using Chu Ge's towel to wipe off the water droplets. She first opened the bathroom door a crack, seeing Chu Ge wasn't outside, then she picked up the shirt left on the stool by the door.

Staring at the white shirt of Chu Ge's, Ye Li's gaze was sweet and gentle, as if it was a treasured gem in her hands. She gazed at it for a few seconds before putting it on.

A minute later, the door to Chu Ge's bedroom was gently pushed open and Ye Li walked in.

"Brother Chu? Brother Chu?"

Ye Li called softly a few times, seeing that Chu Ge seemed to be deep in sleep without any response. She tiptoed to the bed, carefully climbed onto it, and lay down beside Chu Ge.

Actually, not to mention that Chu Ge's intuition was extremely sharp, as a normal man, it would be impossible to sleep through this. He was no exception.

However, when he heard the water stop outside, he adjusted his posture, turned away from the door, and pretended to be asleep.

After all, he knew Ye Li would be embarrassed if she pushed the door open and met his gaze.

After a few minutes, Ye Li called softly a few more times. Seeing that Chu Ge still didn't move, she cautiously inched closer to him.

"This girl..."

Chu Ge was pretending to sleep, and even though his back was to Ye Li, he could tell what she was doing, making him smile wryly.

As Chu Ge thought about this, Ye Li lifted her slightly trembling hand and gently touched Chu Ge's hand.

Then, as if afraid to wake Chu Ge, she didn't move for a long time. After a minute, she shifted closer to him.

This time, Chu Ge's wry smile deepened.

Taking a breath quietly, Chu Ge moved his lips, swallowed a bit, and pretended to turn over in his sleep, changing from facing away from Ye Li to lying flat.

His intention was to "scare" Ye Li a bit, to make her behave and sleep quietly.

However, to his surprise, Ye Li only paused for less than a minute before gently placing her hand back on his.

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