Cen Lingqiu had promised Yu Mingjiao she would attend her graduation ceremony, but she unexpectedly fell ill the day before.
Due to the effects of the past car accident, this body’s constitution was no longer as consistently healthy as before, even though she had used a cheat to heal most of the physical damage. The slightest carelessness would cause her to fall ill.
She had merely washed her hair and gone to sleep for a night in an air-conditioned room without drying it. The next day, she woke up with a throat that felt like it was being cut by knives, feeling so dizzy and unsteady that she couldn’t get out of bed at all.
Zhang Li panicked and hurriedly called the family doctor to see her.
In the height of summer, the school was extraordinarily bustling, with every corner filled with graduates in academic gowns taking commemorative photos with one another.
Yu Mingjiao sat in her wheelchair under a huge plane tree. Unlike the others who were sentimentally taking photos as keepsakes, she showed no signs of attachment to her impending graduation.
She was beautiful and had gotten into x.r, making her quite a famous figure at school. Many people wanted to take a photo with her, but seeing her cold, gloomy, and sullen expression, they stopped in their tracks.
Therefore, aside from An Wu, basically no one came over to take a photo with her.
Yu Mingjiao didn’t care. She just kept looking at her phone.
As if she were waiting for someone.
She was indeed waiting for someone, waiting for Cen Lingqiu.
If this were the past, and someone had told her she would actively look forward to this woman’s arrival, Yu Mingjiao would have surely thought that person was a lunatic.
She must be crazy to be looking forward to Cen Lingqiu’s arrival.
Thinking about it, she really had gone crazy.
Ever since Cen Lingqiu woke up after the car accident, many of Yu Mingjiao’s actions had lost all reason and normalcy; she did whatever she pleased.
She hardly ever suppressed her own thoughts.
Just like today, she was dressed in a proper academic gown, had even put on some light makeup, and was sitting quietly under the plane tree, waiting for Cen Lingqiu to arrive at her graduation ceremony.
The sun was high in the sky, and beads of sweat formed on Yu Mingjiao’s forehead. She hadn’t moved from her spot from beginning to end, waiting stubbornly.
But she waited for a long time, and Cen Lingqiu never came.
She didn’t believe that Cen Lingqiu wouldn’t come.
Seeing that she had been waiting for a long time, An Wu couldn’t help but ask, “Mingjiao, is that big sister really going to come? She was probably just placating you.”
“She will come,” Yu Mingjiao said, calm and persistent.
“How can you be so sure?”
Why?
Because that woman had said she wouldn’t deceive her.
A few boys who had wanted to take a picture with her for a long time had been quietly observing her. Seeing that she was still alone, they approached.
“Classmate, can we take a picture together?” A boy wearing glasses and with a face full of acne smiled at her, his gaze roaming all over Yu Mingjiao, disgusting and vulgar.
Yu Mingjiao said coldly, “I refuse.”
“Aiya, we’re all classmates.” The bespectacled boy put his arm around his buddy and chuckled. “Just take one, it’s not like you’ll lose a piece of flesh, right? Hahahahaha.”
The bespectacled boy and his buddy laughed together.
Annoying, stupid dogs.
Yu Mingjiao was extremely impatient on the inside, and her expression grew even colder. Her entire aura, distant and chilling, was completely at odds with the sweltering heat.
As he spoke, the bespectacled boy tried to get handsy. He opened his camera, grabbed Yu Mingjiao’s shoulder, and prepared to take a photo.
The sight of the hand on her shoulder made Yu Mingjiao want to vomit. She shook it off and was about to sneer coldly at him when, in the next second, her vision went dark as a pair of hands covered her face. A voice as clear and cool as water sounded from above her.
“Sorry, she doesn’t like having her picture taken.”
Cen Lingqiu shielded her face and spoke to the two boys emotionlessly, “Perhaps you two classmates should learn the meaning of the word ‘respect’.”
The bespectacled boy looked at the woman who had suddenly appeared.
In the middle of summer, this woman wore a light, breathable black trench coat. Her figure was tall and slender, and she wore a pair of stiletto heels. She had on a mask, revealing only a pair of calm yet cold, fox-like eyes.
Her aura was unique. Unlike Yu Mingjiao’s sharp coldness, hers was like the coolness of spring water.
The bespectacled boy and his classmate didn’t want to cause trouble. Seeing someone intervene, they laughed awkwardly and said, “We were just joking. If she doesn’t want to, then forget it.”
The bespectacled boy and his friend left.
Yu Mingjiao blinked, her long, thick eyelashes fluttering against Cen Lingqiu’s palm, creating a faint, ticklish sensation.
She withdrew her hand and walked to stand in front of her. She was holding a large bouquet of Eustoma flowers, which she offered to her. Her voice, coming from under the mask, was slightly hoarse but couldn’t conceal its underlying gentleness.
“Mingjiao, happy graduation.”
The white petals were pure and elegant. Perhaps they had been freshly picked, as there were still dewdrops glistening on their ruffled edges.
Cen Lingqiu stood before her, holding a bouquet of white flowers, her eyes curved into a slight smile. Even with the mask, her unique, gentle and clear aura couldn’t be concealed. From a distance, it looked like she was presenting a gift of love to her partner.
A spring of warmth inexplicably flowed into Yu Mingjiao’s cold, closed-off heart. Her fingers trembled, her heart fluttered, and she felt a spreading warmth.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
Her heartbeat quickened slightly. How strange.
Yu Mingjiao took the flowers, pursed her lips, and said, “Thank you.”
Cen Lingqiu covered her lips and turned her head to cough a few times. She turned back only after the tickle in her throat had eased.
“Have you been waiting long?”
Yu Mingjiao was very honest: “Three hours.”
Cen Lingqiu smiled. “You waited for me for so long. Why did you keep waiting?”
Yu Mingjiao was silent for a second. “You said you would come.”
Cen Lingqiu seemed taken aback by this answer. She paused for a moment, then said casually, “You trust me that much? Weren’t you afraid I was lying to you?”
“You wouldn’t.” Yu Mingjiao hugged the flowers, her eyes quietly fixed on the white petals as she said calmly, “I believe you.”
Her tone was level and devoid of emotion, yet very sincere.
Cen Lingqiu genuinely felt that ever since she had returned to this world, Yu Mingjiao had become increasingly straightforward and adorable.
Like a kitten that had retracted its sharp claws, leaving only its soft, fluffy paws.
She had changed so much.
Cen Lingqiu pushed aside her inner feelings, patted Yu Mingjiao’s head comfortingly, and explained.
“I suddenly came down with a fever last night, and it only broke this morning. I’m not fully recovered yet, so I’m wearing a mask. You should keep your distance from me today, okay?”
Yu Mingjiao looked up at her.
There were faint dark circles beneath her exposed eyes, and her gaze held a trace of fatigue from her illness.
No wonder she was so late.
While waiting, Yu Mingjiao had also prepared for the worst-case scenario: that she wouldn’t come.
But she hadn’t expected that the reason she was so late was because she had been sick.
“Are you… better now?” Yu Mingjiao asked softly, her eyes lowered.
“It’s nothing serious anymore.” Cen Lingqiu began to push her wheelchair. “I’ve never really explored your school before. Why don’t you give me a proper tour today?”
Yu Mingjiao: “Mm.”
Yu Mingjiao’s university was one of the best in the country. The campus was vast, and everywhere you looked, there were graduates in academic gowns taking photos.
Cen Lingqiu thought of something and remarked casually, “Speaking of which, we haven’t taken a photo yet. It is your graduation day, after all.”
Yu Mingjiao disliked having her picture taken. Hearing Cen Lingqiu’s words, she frowned slightly, her expression a mask of calm that barely concealed her bashfulness.
“…Do you want to take one?”
“Oh? Can we?”
Cen Lingqiu couldn’t quite define their current relationship. Taking a photo together seemed suited only for those who were intimate or held no grudges against each other. So, what was her relationship with Yu Mingjiao now?
Was the barrier between them gone?
Or did a rift still remain?
Yu Mingjiao was a difficult girl to understand, and Cen Lingqiu couldn’t comprehend her deeply.
Yu Mingjiao nodded.
Receiving her affirmative reply, Cen Lingqiu didn’t object. She took out her phone, crouched down in front of her, and opened the selfie camera.
Yu Mingjiao held the flowers, her expression somewhat stiff and her face looking cold. Cen Lingqiu said to her, “Don’t look so fierce, Mingjiao.”
Yu Mingjiao: “…”
“I’m not trying to look fierce.”
She just rarely took pictures and wasn’t used to facing the camera.
Cen Lingqiu rarely took photos either, but she was much older than Yu Mingjiao, after all, and naturally wouldn’t let her own awkwardness show so easily.
“Alright, alright,” Cen Lingqiu said. “Smile a little, Mingjiao. You look especially beautiful when you smile.”
“…I don’t know how.”
In her entire life, there had been few joyful things worth smiling about. Most of the time, her expression was simply one of indifference.
Over time, she had almost forgotten how to smile naturally.
Cen Lingqiu understood her and didn’t press her. “It’s okay, just look at the camera.”
Cen Lingqiu adjusted the angle and pressed the shutter button.
In the photo, Yu Mingjiao’s expression remained cold, but her eyes, unconsciously looking toward Cen Lingqiu, revealed a hint of softness.
Cen Lingqiu’s expression wasn’t much better; her look was impassive, but the corners of her mouth seemed to hold the faintest hint of a smile, neutralizing the coldness of her otherwise cool and aloof face.
Cen Lingqiu was very satisfied with the photo. It was the first time she had ever taken a picture with someone else. She had always disliked having any form of intimate connection on her phone, let alone something like a photograph, which could bring two people even closer.
But when she saw Yu Mingjiao in her academic gown, waiting quietly for her under the plane tree, looking so beautiful, young, and well-behaved—like a fresh cherry blossom, magnificent yet coolly detached—
—and to think that such a beautiful, vibrant girl was waiting for her, she had felt an inexplicable urge to take a photo together. Cen Lingqiu wanted to preserve this seemingly warm and beautiful moment between them.
She sent the photo to Yu Mingjiao.
“Alright, let’s walk some more.” Cen Lingqiu put her phone away and continued pushing the wheelchair forward. Ahead, a lively scene unfolded: a group of students in white lab coats were gathered for a photo.
Cen Lingqiu’s gaze followed them, and upon seeing something, her eyes narrowed.
What caught Cen Lingqiu’s eye was not the group of students, but a woman standing not far from them.
The woman wore a hat and a high-couture, black, waist-cinching long dress. Her figure was slender, her features striking and cold. Her phoenix eyes quietly watched the group of students. Perhaps it was because Cen Lingqiu couldn’t see clearly, but she felt the woman’s gaze was filled with sorrow.
Her aura was indifferent, yet seemed incomparably sad, a stark contrast to the cheerful students.
This woman looked a little familiar.
Yu Mingjiao followed her line of sight and explained.
“That woman in the black dress is the CEO of CG Entertainment. She’s probably here to commemorate someone who has passed away.”
“Someone who has passed away?”
“Half a year ago, when you took me to the seaside park, the short-haired girl who bumped into me.”
Yu Mingjiao spoke slowly, “She committed suicide by jumping off a building. She was in the same year as me, a student from the chemistry department. She was supposed to graduate today, too.”
Yu Mingjiao only knew about this because the woman had once commissioned a custom pair of butterfly earrings from her company. A colleague later chatted with her and mentioned some of the woman’s story.
Cen Lingqiu understood. “So she’s looking at that girl through that group of students?”
“I don’t know.”
“So it really ended up this way?” Cen Lingqiu couldn’t help but sigh. “In the end, she still chose to end it all.”
Back then, she had felt that the girl’s eyes were just like Yu Mingjiao’s—like the eyes of a migratory bird on the verge of death, filled with a bone-deep despair and apathy.
And now, that seemingly sweet and simple girl had truly become like a dead migratory bird, with no possibility of life anymore.
She couldn’t help but look at Yu Mingjiao.
Would Yu Mingjiao be like that too?
She was never optimistic either, and was even world-weary to the bone.
She surely had no desire to live a good life right now, so would she also end up like that girl?
Equally desperate, then driven to madness, and finally, dead.
The thought of such an ending made Cen Lingqiu feel somewhat oppressed.
Perhaps sensing Cen Lingqiu’s inexplicably pitying gaze, she looked up, tilting her head slightly, her eyes filled with faint confusion.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
Yu Mingjiao thought for a moment, her brow furrowing slightly.
“Are you pitying me?”
“What are you pitying me for?”
Cen Lingqiu shook her head.
“I’m not pitying you.”
“Mingjiao, I’m scared.”
Yu Mingjiao was slightly taken aback.
“What are you scared of?” She was confused for a moment, then realization dawned. “Are you scared I’ll end up like that girl?”
Cen Lingqiu asked her in return, “Will you?”
Yu Mingjiao didn’t answer directly. She turned her head to look at the swaying shadows of the trees on the ground and said calmly, “Isn’t living the same as being dead? Even if a person is to live, what is there to live for?”
“That girl died. It’s not necessarily a bad thing. She must have been in pain. She just wanted to end the pain.”
Cen Lingqiu fell silent and didn’t speak.
The woman in the black dress had already left.
Yu Mingjiao spoke again.
“Or is it that you don’t want me to die?”
Cen Lingqiu gave a bitter smile. “Haven’t I made it obvious enough?”
Yu Mingjiao pressed her lips together tightly, stubbornly asking as if she needed to hear a specific answer.
“What should I live for.”
The tree shadows swayed, and the leaves rustled.
Cen Lingqiu suddenly didn’t know how to answer.
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