Chapter 19

Seeing the dried bloodstain on the gauze in Li Jia’s palm, Ye Chengxing grew even more baffled.

The medicine had been changed just yesterday, so why hadn’t the wound shown any signs of improvement? If anything, it looked worse.

Her contemplative gaze shifted from the wound in Li Jia’s palm to the woman’s face.

The Omega kept her eyes demurely lowered, lifting them at the precise moment Ye Chengxing looked her way.

Those amber pupils were like clear water—moist and utterly transparent.

With that, Ye Chengxing tried to push down the nagging thought in her mind: that Li Jia had deliberately worsened the wound.

She reasoned with herself that although the woman before her was the Big Villain from the later stages of the original plot, they were still in the early part of the story. Li Jia shouldn’t be that unhinged yet. And even in the later stages, would she really injure herself so severely for no reason? After all, what good could come of it besides pain?

Most importantly… the way the Omega gazed at her was so obedient, so utterly harmless. Ye Chengxing couldn’t help but make excuses for her in her heart. How could Li Jia have done it on purpose?

Yet no matter how much she tried to convince herself, the extent of the wound’s deterioration stared her in the face, proving otherwise.

This level of damage clearly wasn’t accidental.

If it had been an accident, she would have stopped the moment the pain started—put an end to whatever was causing it. But this? It looked as if she’d felt the pain and kept going anyway, as though tearing the wound open anew.

Ye Chengxing gripped Li Jia’s wrist. Words and questions swirled in her mind, and deep down, she was already convinced it had been deliberate. But she just couldn’t bring herself to voice them. Layer after layer of thoughts piled up on her tongue, only to be filtered away entirely. In the end, all that emerged was a single sentence: “Li Jia, does it hurt?”

The moment the words left her mouth, Ye Chengxing felt she’d asked something pointless. She let out a soft sigh. “It must hurt a lot.”

She didn’t know why Li Jia had done this, but she knew the woman was human—flesh and blood, capable of feeling pain and discomfort.

That question about pain wasn’t really a question at all. It was more an expression of heartache, conveyed both in her tone and in the gentle fingertips brushing the Omega’s pale, cool wrist.

Hearing this, Li Jia’s gaze stilled.

She blinked once, very slowly.

This… seemed to be the second time Ye Chengxing had asked if it hurt.

Li Jia didn’t think Ye Chengxing would fail to notice that she’d deliberately aggravated the injury. She’d even prepared lies and excuses, ready to explain if asked. Ye Chengxing would believe her.

She’d even imagined Ye Chengxing scolding her or—unable to hold back—giving her a couple of swats. After all, the other woman had carefully applied the medicine herself and truly wanted her to heal quickly. This kind of behavior was hard to comprehend. But whether it came to scolding or a spanking, deep down, Li Jia craved it all the same.

The kind of reprimand one might receive from a loved one for being naughty—something she’d never experienced.

But after imagining all that, the one reaction she hadn’t anticipated was this: the one response she was utterly defenseless against.

Li Jia pressed her lips together. All those prefabricated lies suddenly felt impossible to utter.

Especially after seeing the clear heartache and self-blame in Ye Chengxing’s expression.

She lifted her eyes briefly, then lowered them again. In the end, all she said was, “I did it to myself, but it doesn’t hurt.”

“It doesn’t hurt?” Ye Chengxing’s carefully tempered calm shattered at Li Jia’s reply.

She called for Xiao Bai to bring the medical kit. Aside from that instinctive outburst, she said nothing else. But when she disinfected the wound and changed the dressing with a cotton swab, she deliberately pressed a little harder.

It wasn’t much harder, but given the severity of Li Jia’s injury now, even that slight increase felt pronounced.

The Omega let out a low, muffled hum.

“Is this what you call not hurting?” Ye Chengxing spoke again, adding a bit more pressure.

Perhaps it was the frustration bubbling inside her, but Ye Chengxing wasn’t as gentle this time. She pressed down harder, and Li Jia’s gripped wrist began to tremble faintly.

Ye Chengxing felt it. She looked at Li Jia, who bit her lip without a sound. The anger in her heart dissipated by half, overtaken once more by pity. But this self-harming behavior was unacceptable. She wanted Li Jia to realize that.

Ye Chengxing schooled her expression into something cool and detached, her face a touch colder. But her hands had lightened considerably as she applied the medicine. She paused before speaking. “Li Jia, I don’t want to see this happen again. If you really need to feel some pain, come find me instead. I’ll discipline you myself.”

To lend the words some weight, Ye Chengxing made her tone stern. She’d assumed a harsh statement like that would make Li Jia think twice. But instead, the Omega lifted her eyes. They must have hurt badly, because her voice trembled slightly. Yet what she said was the complete opposite of what Ye Chengxing expected: “Then, Sister, hit me now.”

Ye Chengxing’s first reaction was that she’d misheard. But meeting Li Jia’s gaze, she realized the woman was dead serious.

Dead serious about wanting her to hit her.

She felt like Li Jia was challenging her, and a mix of exasperation and heartache welled up. Gritting her teeth, her moon-pale face hardened a fraction. “…Fine. As you wish.”

But even as she said it in a deliberately icy tone, Ye Chengxing looked her over and knew she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Actually hitting her would probably break her own heart.

Still, she’d said it now. Steel yourself, she thought, and forced out the words: “Then bend over my lap.”

Hearing this, Li Jia leaned in and draped herself over Ye Chengxing’s legs.

With that, a firm but not overly heavy slap landed on the Omega’s rear, producing a faint, crisp sound.

It might have been harder than intended, because Li Jia made a noise—quieter than before, but sharper in pitch, drawn out just a touch.

Once the slap landed, Ye Chengxing’s face warmed. Li Jia wasn’t a child, after all; spanking felt childish in itself. But even as those thoughts raced through her mind, she kept her voice cool. “Got it?”

Li Jia was still draped over her legs, so Ye Chengxing couldn’t see the Omega’s expression—just hear her faint panting breaths. “Got it… Thank you for the punishment, Sister.”

Why was she breathing like that? Did it hurt that much?

Noticing Li Jia’s reaction, Ye Chengxing hesitated, then withdrew her hand and gently rubbed the spot a few times to ease the pain.

As she rubbed carefully, she said, “Li Jia, please don’t hurt yourself anymore, okay?”

She couldn’t quite pinpoint her feelings upon learning Li Jia had worsened her own wound. Heartache? Frustration? Guilt? Or all of it?

It suddenly hit her that her earlier joy wasn’t entirely justified. Their progress was still minimal.

Her voice came out low.

But under Ye Chengxing’s gentle ministrations, Li Jia shuddered harder.

Before Ye Chengxing could process it, Li Jia bolted upright, as if she couldn’t bear it any longer.

Her lap suddenly empty, Ye Chengxing stared blankly at Li Jia’s retreating back. Only then did she notice a small damp spot on her clothes.

…She really had overdone it. Made her cry.

Li Jia must feel so embarrassed. After all, she wasn’t a kid anymore, being disciplined like this.

Looking up again, even Li Jia’s silhouette was gone—she must have gone upstairs.

Ye Chengxing felt even more remorseful.

Glancing at the time, she saw it was still early. She decided to head upstairs and apologize to Li Jia first. She’d been too hasty just now, not considering the woman’s feelings enough.

Ye Chengxing wasn’t one to let things fester, especially since she still needed to go out later and try selling some food. With her thoughts sorted, she headed upstairs.

She reached Li Jia’s door and knocked lightly twice, her tone apologetic.

But before she could say what she’d planned, no sound came from inside.

As she pondered what else to say, the door cracked open slightly. Li Jia’s voice drifted out. “I’m fine, Sister. You don’t need to apologize. If anything, I dirtied your clothes…”

Hearing this, Ye Chengxing shook her head—then remembered Li Jia couldn’t see through the door and spoke up. “It’s nothing. I already touched it; it’s almost dry.”

She wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but at a certain word in her sentence, Li Jia let out a choked sob of a gasp. “Don’t touch it. I’m really sorry, but don’t touch it. It’s so dirty…”

Ye Chengxing thought, It’s just tears on my clothes—really, it’s fine. Her tone softened even more in reassurance.

Li Jia hadn’t fully opened the door, and Ye Chengxing didn’t push to go in. She just stood there outside, calling Li Jia’s name through the wood. She comforted her and expressed her regret.

“This was partly my fault too. But I hope that if something’s wrong, you’ll tell me directly. We can figure out a solution together, instead of hurting your own body…”

She stood at the door, her expression tender and earnest as she spoke.

Inside, Li Jia leaned half against the door, listening to Ye Chengxing’s voice. Her gaze grew dazed and unfocused.

Tell her everything?

Right now, she desperately wanted to fling open the door and let her in—to see her like this, with her reddened eyes.

She’d forgotten this wasn’t her previous life, not that body with its glands removed. This was the one drugged and conditioned to hypersensitivity.

That reaction under Ye Chengxing’s hand was harder to accept because of it.

Worst of all, she’d… soiled Ye Chengxing’s clothes with it.

This life’s Ye Chengxing was different from all those others. To her, desire felt like defilement—especially after what she’d just done.

But the thought of Ye Chengxing having touched it sent a thrill through her she couldn’t suppress, her body responding all too eagerly.

Leaning against the door, Li Jia couldn’t help wondering: Did Ye Chengxing know what she was like in here? If she saw, would she be shocked and stern, saying how could she think such things at a time like this—then lift her hand like downstairs and discipline her?

If Ye Chengxing had spanked her, she would have noticed that each slap brought no pain—instead, it triggered an uncontrollable wave of pleasure. At that point, she would surely have scolded her.

Li Jia braced one hand against the door while the other covered her mouth, her eyelashes quivering faintly.

In her previous life, she had forcibly removed her glands precisely because the sensations during a heat were too unbearable to endure. Yet she never imagined that facing Ye Chengxing would double that torment.

Another gentle “Li Jia” drifted in from Ye Chengxing beyond the door. Inside, the Omega arched her neck in a mix of agony and ecstasy. At the moment of climax, tears streamed down her cheeks in unbroken lines.

A thick wave of self-loathing washed over her heart. Li Jia’s fingertips whitened against the door. She resolved that Ye Chengxing must never see her in this state.

Having communicated with Li Jia through the closed door, Ye Chengxing heard the Omega’s voice restored to calm. Li Jia even apologized sheepishly, saying she’d cried too embarrassingly and wouldn’t let her in.

Ye Chengxing responded with perfect understanding, noting that she needed to head out anyway, so she wouldn’t come inside.

“Remember to eat breakfast later. The tutor will be here soon. Message me if anything comes up.”

With that farewell to Li Jia, Ye Chengxing headed downstairs, tiny sparkles of laughter dancing involuntarily in her eyes.

As expected, no problem couldn’t be solved with communication.

This time, she had learned her lesson. Next time, more communication it was.

Lost in these thoughts, Ye Chengxing made her way to the kitchen. She transferred the food she’d placed in the kitchen’s Smart Storage Compartment into her personal portable one, then had Xiao Bai contact the driver.

The extras she’d prepared that morning were mainly Tea Eggs and Braised Chicken Rice. The Tea Eggs were easy to make in large quantities compared to other dishes—especially with the kitchen tools’ acceleration features—and they came out delicious with minimal effort. The Braised Chicken Rice, meanwhile, was a complete meal with rice and veggies, perfect to sell as a set. Ye Chengxing decided to test the waters with these first, observe the process and environment, and then expand to other items.

With Xiao Bai’s help, the prepared dishes were quickly packed away into the portable compartment.

The original owner did have management rights to a few vacant shops, but those were just management rights. Ownership and final decisions lay with the Ye Family.

Though she hadn’t met those family members yet, Ye Chengxing’s instincts told her the Ye Family wasn’t entirely trustworthy. So she’d used her own money to bid on a separate shop, even routing the funds through a third party when paying for it.

She might be overthinking things, but caution never hurt. If the Ye Family turned out fine, all the better. If not, at least she’d prepared.

Before bidding, Ye Chengxing had carefully surveyed the shops and locations.

The spot was prime, surrounded by stores selling Nutrient Liquid, clothing, and other goods—all with high sales volumes on Star Net.

The AI had already renovated and decorated the shop. Ye Chengxing applied a face-obscuring agent, disguising herself as an utterly ordinary Beta—the kind who blended seamlessly into any crowd, utterly unremarkable.

The original owner was a “celebrity” of sorts—infamous, but still recognizable. Selling food like this in the shop would inevitably draw notice if she didn’t hide.

This world’s culinary scene was barren, and the original owner truly couldn’t cook before. A sudden transformation would not only expose her but raise suspicions—especially from those who knew the original owner well. She could be freer around Li Jia, since Li Jia had never met the original and any oddities could be talked around. But with others, it was different.

With the disguise agent applied, Ye Chengxing snapped photos of the Tea Eggs and meal sets, uploading them via a newly registered shop account on Star Net. At the same time, she instructed the AI to switch the Gourmet Store to open for business.

She didn’t price them too high—just a markup on ingredients and seasonings. Even so, they seemed pricey to Ye Chengxing. Back before transmigrating into this book, she’d never have dreamed a Tea Egg and Braised Chicken Rice set could fetch such rates.

Who knew if anyone would buy.

Star Net users were lively. The moment Ye Chengxing posted the photos and videos, people noticed.

【Huh, a new Gourmet Store?】

【No affiliations or ties to any Gourmet Chef… is this legit?】

【What’s this dish? Never seen it before. That rice looks so tasty.】

【If it’s the same maker, the gap’s huge. Those eggs look meh, soup’s too dark and thick. And that other pic—probably stolen, right? What qualifies as a Gourmet Chef these days? Laughable. Move along.】

【But the prices are cheap. Kinda wanna try. Not expensive anyway.】

【Go ahead if you want. We won’t take responsibility if you get poisoned.】