I'm the demise's white moonlight of the bigshot - Chapter 68-part 1
Chapter 68-Part 1
As dusk settled, Jiangdu’s night scene remained breathtaking. When the car glided slowly down the streets, Ji Ran realized that Jiangdu was still the same Jiangdu—the place where she had grown up and held dear.
Pei Yuan took her to her grandparents’ house for dinner.
Grandpa Pei had retired long ago, leaving the company entirely in Pei Yuan’s hands.
Now, he and Grandma spent their time tending to flowers, occasionally planting a few vegetables in the front yard.
The Peis lived in the suburbs, though their place was quite far from Ji Ran’s other grandparents’ home.
When they arrived, Grandma was the first to take Ji Ran’s hands, looking her up and down, and finally, with heartache, she said, “You’ve gotten thinner. Just look at this child, so skinny.”
Grandpa Pei, upon hearing this, even went to his study to fetch a pair of reading glasses, carefully examining Ji Ran up and down.
After a good look, he too sighed and nodded.
“You really have gotten thin. No matter how hard your studies are, you need to eat regularly and take care of yourself.”
“Thin? Where?” Pei Yuan sipped her hot water, one hand resting on her arm as she looked Ji Ran over.
“A teenage girl in her growth spurt, putting on weight is the real crime. Just gaining weight without brains—is that supposed to be a good thing?”
Pei Yuan was as blunt as ever, showing no restraint even in front of her parents.
Hearing this, Grandpa Pei huffed, “It’s still better than some parents who don’t bother with their children at all.”
“Dad, if you have something to say, just say it. No need for all this roundabout talk,” Pei Yuan replied coolly.
Sensing another impending clash between father and daughter, Grandma Pei quickly intervened as the usual peacemaker, “Ran Ran must be hungry by now. Grandma had all your favorite dishes prepared today. Go wash your hands and come eat.”
Ji Ran nodded obediently.
As soon as she left the room, Grandpa Pei turned to Pei Yuan, “No matter what, this time you need to keep her here in Jiangdu.”
“Dad, I’ll think it over. There’s no need to keep asking,” Pei Yuan said, showing no intention of continuing the discussion, clearly having her own plans in mind.
This made Grandpa Pei flare up; he pointed at her, saying, “If you think taking care of her is too much trouble, then let your mother and I take care of her. Ran Ran is old enough now and doesn’t need much supervision. If it’s inconvenient for school, we’ll move closer to her school.”
Since retirement, Grandpa Pei had enjoyed a carefree life, so him saying this showed just how much he missed Ji Ran.
Grandma Pei joined in supportively, softly saying, “I think your father is right. You divorced Ji Qingli, but that doesn’t mean Ran Ran’s custody should just go to him. She’s still part of the Pei family.”
“Who said I gave him custody of Ran Ran?” Pei Yuan sighed and sank into the sofa, setting her cup down on the coffee table.
These two were always blowing things out of proportion.
Grandpa Pei questioned, “Then why don’t you let Ran Ran stay in Jiangdu?”
“Is it me not letting her? She chose her father herself.”
Pei Yuan’s face remained indifferent.
She was straightforward, as her parents’ questioning started to irk her.
This left the two elders in silence.
After a moment, Grandpa Pei, still frustrated, said, “Ran Ran has always had lots of things she wanted to do. I don’t see you, as her mother, practicing much democracy. Now that she’s chosen her father, suddenly you’re all open-minded.”
Grandpa Pei wasn’t nitpicking here.
Pei Yuan was notoriously strict with Ji Ran, enforcing many rules that pained both sets of grandparents to watch.
But they also knew that when parents disciplined their children, elders should not interfere, lest the child be spoiled.
But Pei Yuan’s discipline over Ji Ran was genuinely unyielding, not tolerating even a single misstep.
If Ji Ran didn’t come first in exams, that was failure—no arguments allowed; arguments were excuses.
The Pei family and Ji family elders were old friends; otherwise, their parents would never have arranged Pei Yuan and Ji Qingli’s marriage.
Although Ji Ran’s grandmother from the Ji side felt uncomfortable bringing up this topic, it was actually Grandpa Pei who spoke out first, complaining.
The four elders found common ground over this.
Pei Yuan was unbothered.
Meanwhile, Ji Ran had just finished washing her hands. Grandma quickly stood up, took her by the arm, and said, “Come, Grandma will take you to eat.”
Ji Ran ate until she was thoroughly satisfied.
Grandma kept urging her to eat more, and even when she couldn’t eat another bite, she made her drink a bowl of soup.
That evening, mother and daughter stayed over without returning home.
Ji Ran’s room was already prepared, with fresh linens and sheets, and a soft fragrance filled the air.
It carried a faint, sweet scent, a girl’s delicate fragrance.
After her bath, Ji Ran walked to the door to lock it carefully.
Only then did she sit by her bed, taking something out of her hand.
Since coming home, she hadn’t contacted Shen Zhi.
Not for any reason, but because Pei Yuan was too overbearing.
Pei Yuan’s strictness meant she would outright inspect Ji Ran’s phone rather than sneakily looking, like others who pretended to be liberal and upright.
Ji Ran didn’t want to delete her chat history with Shen Zhi—it was her most cherished memory.
She wanted to keep every message on her phone.
Even when she got old, she’d still be able to show it to her grandkids.
She dialed his number, and it took a while before he picked up.
His lazy tone transmitted through the line, making her ear tingle, “Finally thought of calling your boyfriend?”
“I just got home,” Ji Ran found an excuse, her voice soft, making Shen Zhi reluctant to scold her.
She noticed some noise on Shen Zhi’s end.
He seemed to be outside. Glancing at the time on her phone, she asked, “Why are you still out so late?”
Shen Zhi chuckled lightly, as if amused by her obliviousness.
Ji Ran, who had been lying down, suddenly sat up straight, pursing her lips as she whispered, “Are you out having fun?”
She tried to discern the background noise, but it was too chaotic to pinpoint anything specific.
Her heart itched, like a kitten pawing at it, growing increasingly restless.
So, she cleared her throat and said earnestly, “Shen Zhi, don’t say I didn’t warn you. Just because your girlfriend isn’t with you doesn’t mean you can misbehave. One misstep and you’ll regret it for life.”
One misstep? Regret it for life?
Shen Zhi was amused.
Glancing around, he noticed he was still at the airport tarmac, having just disembarked, surrounded by passengers from his flight.
He teased back, “Girlfriend, let me remind you of something.”
Ji Ran waited, but when he didn’t speak immediately, she heard his low chuckle.
His voice, husky and seemingly moist, finally came through, “Too much imagination gets you a spanking.”
Such an embarrassing remark left Ji Ran speechless, unable to even retort.
Her fingers gripped the eyes of her stuffed toy tightly, almost yanking the black bead off.
She pouted, feeling she couldn’t just stay silent.
Before she could muster up the courage to respond, Shen Zhi softly said, “Go to bed early. I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”
Of course… okay.
After hanging up, Ji Ran still felt a bit unhappy.
The next day, right after lunch, her grandparents called, knowing she was at the Pei family’s home today.
They’d waited until after lunch to call, obviously missing her.
Grandpa and Grandma Pei, although reluctant to see her go, understood Ji Ran’s grandparents missed her too.
They had the driver bring her to the Ji family home with some prepared gifts.
As she arrived, she happened to see Ji Qingli’s car pull up ahead.
As they stepped out, Jiang Yi supported Jiang Liqi’s arm with careful attention.
Ji Qingli stood beside them, seemingly reminding them of something.
The three really looked like a family.
This scene wasn’t new to Ji Ran; she had seen it many times before and was no longer bothered by it.
As she stepped out of the car, the driver helped her carry the gifts inside.
