19. Winter Dinner

The brothers were busy preparing dinner for their honorable guest, though they were sullen that their guest is the respectable general of the nation and was going to be betrothed by their youngest brother. Their minds were out in space, especially to Cheung Chao who raised Li Jie from his infancy to his teens. Right now he was chopping the vegetables mercilessly that it turned into a minced veggie. Chang Bao was beside him rinsing the rice grains and was about to shout at him. But he wasn't in a mood to argue so he only spoke to him in a gentle tone.

"Brother, you should slice the vegetables, not mincing it." He said, then he sighed as he himself mercilessly clenched the grains of rice in the pot that it almost wanted to crumble.

Rice: What did I do ah? I'm not the General ah! ಥ_ಥ

"What about you? Looks like you are torturing the rice." Cheung Chao refuted as the kitchen knife violently swayed in the air and swooshes the vegetables, just like how a cultivator wields his deadly sword. Cheung Chao looks like he was murdering a person callously, and the pitiful vegetables wanted to argue from the charming man who was cutting them.

Vegetables: You are going to eat us yet you're going to mercilessly cutting us with your knife? Be gentle cutting us you twerf! You have no sense of morality?! (ง'-̀̀'́)ง

But the man cannot understand them thus the vegetables ended up suffering from the hands of the charming man. The two brothers assigned in the kitchen kept torturing the food.

As for the two who were assigned to chop firewood, Jin Ping and Tu Fai visualized the wood as if it was their mortal enemy, which was the General. They were slashing the wood with their axe with an amazing speed as they kept killing the General inside their minds. Who was he to begin with that he wanted to pluck the lovely chrysanthemum in the garden? Who was he that he humiliated them?

'He was the fvcking General dammit!' The two thought the same.

Jiang Hua, together with Min Zhe were silent as they were cleaning the fishes that their brother brought from the market. They were speechless that neither of them opened their mouths. The fishes' blood tainted their hands and clothes that they looked like they were murdering someone. As for Min Zhe, who was blaming himself to cause such trouble wanted to cry from agony. Luckily, brother Jiang was with him or else he will really cry as he was cleaning the fishes. As if he mourned the fishes' death.

They felt grieved, and were all frustrated because they were helpless.

In Li Jie's room, the General sat on the bed together with Li Jie. However, the two were in the opposite positions. The General was leaning on the headboard while Li Jie sat near the edge of the bed, as if he was not the owner of the room. Li Jie glanced at the General whose expression seems solemn as if he was the master of peace. Somehow, Li Jie felt creepy towards him and cleared his throat.

"Delun, this is my bed you know?" Li Jie raised his brows and looked directly at his soon-to-be husband. Albeit all his words were passed only to Delun's other ear and stared intensely to him.

'Seriously, what's with this dude? I really wanted to blow his face with my lovely Pancake.' (Pancake= his machine gun)

"I know. Come here and sit beside me." Delun said, a hint of solemnization marked on his eyes. He was as if taming a stray little cat. Li Jie pursed his lips and dare not to move. The both looked at each other in the eyes and no one dared to blink even for a second. Li Jie was hesitating if he should go to the General's side unguarded. He wasn't sure what will the General would do to him.

'What if he'll attack me ah? I'm scared ba!'

But before he could go to his side slowly, Delun immediately pulled him onwards without even explaining him. Delun grabbed his hand and pulled him close, resulting Li Jie's body pressed against the handsome man's big and firm body. His other hand circled around Li Jie's waist and Li Jie's head banged against Delun's chest, hearing the other's heartbeat.

'Dug dug... Dug dug... Dug dug...' Li Jie doesn't know why, but hearing the other's heartbeat made him calm. It was like a calm vast sea with violently splashing waves. Hearing his heartbeat felt like he was about to sleep.

Delun lifted his lips upward and stroke Li Jie's ebony hair, Delun find it soft and smooth. He smelled his scent, the scent of freshly picked lavender in the meadow. He looked at the little kitten and his uplifting smile turns into a frown. He always recall a certain person when he is with Li Jie. A person whom he missed since his departure from his heart, and the person he always loved. No matter what he felt with this man who nuzzled in his arms, he cannot compare to the other person he was once cherished. However, he could not help but to recall him every time when this man is on his side. He then realized how cruel he is. He was not supposed to feel this way. He was not him, and always not him. So, how could he feel this way? He was confused. But at the same time, it is good to be this way. He will not going to be in love with this person when the enemy falls down completely. After all, there is only one person in the General's heart. And for him, no one could change it. He was sure to himself that this man will never love him.

As for Li Jie who was calmly listening to the certain person's heartbeat, was confused with his action towards him. Why would the General treats him as if be was a maiden? For goodness sake, he was a straight man with a good sense of morality! Even if he was a killer or an assassin in his previous life, no one in this whole fvcking world would ever do such a thing like how the General did to him. He complained inside his mind for how flirty and shameless this General was.

'Him and his dirty mind!' He cursed inside his inner thoughts and lifted his head towards the General.

He didn't noticed that the two were so close that their breaths heavily brushed to each other's skin. Li Jie's eyes widened and immediately pushed the General away, but the General looked at him seriously and tightened the grip on his waist, thus he cannot move easily.

He was squirming until the room of his door creaked open by his oldest brother.

Chang bao, who was going to tell the two that the supper was ready, had his blood reached to his skull. The General and his brother's position were so intimate that the ants were going to bite them all over. Li Jie widened his eyes once more and was about to kick the General's ass but the other quickly held him tight and could not move freely. Li Jie nearly coughed blood from the embarrassment and humiliation the General brought to him.

"Supper was ready. Hurry and go to the dinner table." Chang Bao said, the cold breeze went cooler even more after Chang Bao spoke. Li Jie could feel his hair stood up and shivered, he then look up to the General with an 'it's your fault' gaze. The General just shrugged his shoulder and stood up. He then turned towards Li Jie who was in a daze while sitting in the bed and held his hand. Delun then dragged Li Jie and went on their way for dinner.

***********

The dinner table is as quiet as a vast desert, as colder as the Antarctic, and gazes battled like in the middle of a war. Their brothers were chewing peacefully, but for Li Jie it was a bad omen lurking around him. Their gazes didn't fall to him even in a tiny bit and were focused towards the unbothered General. The General, who was just finished his meal then waited peacefully for them to finished their own. But as he put down his chopsticks, his brothers put down their chopsticks too. Li Jie couldn't help but to think...

'Are they in a cult?'

The General then cleared his throat and relaxed his face. He then glanced straight towards his brothers' terrifying eyes and spoke...

"Brothers in-law..." Hearing these words, his brothers' face went stiff and silently cursed inside their minds.

'Fvck your effing sister!'

"I really love your brother when I first met him and I was enchanted by his beauty and untamed personality. When I laid his eyes on him, I simply cannot let him go and my heart beats fast when I thought of him. Will you going to accept me as his loving husband?" Delun said, his eyes full of sparkling fireworks and looked at Li Jie wholeheartedly. While Li Jie, nearly coughed up blood upon hearing Delun's moving speech. He wanted to punch him in the face but he knows he can't do that. Otherwise, he grinned towards the General and locked his arms towards Delun's arm. He then giggled sweetly outside but painfully inside and planted a kiss on the General's cheeks.

General: This wasn't on the script. (C_C)

"Oh I love you too! I will accept you no matter what!" Your sister!

'I love you too... I love you too... I love you too... Ha-ha.' His brothers cried with blood as they heard their brother's lovely voice towards the General as if he was the only man in his life. Min Zhe glared at the General and then he smiled 'innocently'.

"My brother loves you well. Then, what's there to oppose?" He gritted his teeth, he really wanted to disagree. But, Min Zhe owed the General a favor thus he could not do what he wanted. He knows that his brothers wouldn't let their youngest brother to be sad and cry, so they will hesitantly agreed with Li Jie's decision. If only Li Jie could disagree with this, then it shouldn't be a problem. However, Li Jie didn't argue even a single bit and approvingly accepted the General. So Min Zhe purely thinks that his brother was really in love with the General.

If only Li Jie could hear this, he doesn't know whether to laugh or cry. Li Jie even promised to himself that he will not love the General, even if he change his surname.

Cheung Chao smiled, his peaceful face seemed a bit more creepier than the General's solemn face.

"As long as he is happy, then I will have to agree of course." I will just give him a poison if he hurts him. Cheung Chao said and thought, his smile never fades his face. As if he was a smiling emoji statue.

Chang Bao's face was stoic and cold. He originally is an ill-tempered person. But now, he is as cold as the ice desert in Antarctica and would definitely freeze anyone who was beside him.

"Congrats..." He said, merely one word. What's happening with the hot-tempered brother of him? Why did he turned into a popsicle?!

Li Jie, 'Brother ah! You're scaring me ah!'

"Co...co... Congratulations." Jin Ping said, almost like he is a system.

'Brother ah! You're not a robot ba!'

Jiang Hua and Tu Fai still couldn't agree with him marrying the General, but they couldn't bear seeing the latter cry because of them and be the villain towards their brother. They silently nodded and averted their gazes opposite to their brother's gaze. They don't want him to see their anger towards the General, so they sullenly turned towards the side and sighed inwardly.

"Thank you brothers! I love you all!"

The brothers looked at Li Jie. They couldn't believe that their youngest brother whom they treated as a little baby, had grown up into an adult.

They wished that their brother will always be little, but that would be impossible.

They will just make sure that this General, whom they thought was a mushroom General, would not hurt their brother's feelings.

Or else, they will going to declare the first world wide war.