Cen Lingqiu asked the System about Yu Mingjiao’s self-destruction coefficient over the next day. The System told her it was gradually stabilizing, and the completion of her mission was just around the corner.
But Cen Lingqiu couldn’t bring herself to be happy. She was only now beginning to understand that Yu Mingjiao was an extremely unstable explosive factor, capable of breaking down at any time, any place.
The current stability meant nothing. Her emotions were volatile, like a child’s, completely devoid of reason.
This was a tricky problem with no right answer.
Cen Lingqiu couldn’t deny that she liked Yu Mingjiao very much. In her nearly thirty years of life, Yu Mingjiao was the person she liked the most. This affection held many meanings; it was complex and difficult to understand, and Cen Lingqiu herself couldn’t articulate what this feeling in her heart was.
She was a mess right now, a mess in every sense of the word. It was probably because she had belatedly discovered the sharp drawbacks hidden behind the warmth. She wanted to do something, but found there was nothing she could do.
Seeing Yu Mingjiao’s self-destruction coefficient slowly stabilize, she knew that if the System detected the mission was about to be completed, she would definitely have to leave this place.
No employee was allowed to stay in the mission world.
She didn’t really want to leave this world, but more than that, what worried Cen Lingqiu was Yu Mingjiao’s mental state.
The things Yu Mingjiao had said weren’t just empty words. She was serious, and Cen Lingqiu firmly believed Yu Mingjiao would do as she said.
This wasn’t what she wanted.
Yu Mingjiao was too dependent on her.
Almost to an unreasonable degree.
Cen Lingqiu even wondered if she needed to maintain an appropriate distance from her to reduce her dependence, but if she really did that, she couldn’t accurately predict how Yu Mingjiao would react.
Besides, she simply couldn’t refuse Yu Mingjiao’s calm yet aggrieved eyes.
Yu Mingjiao always knew how to seize her weakness.
Cen Lingqiu had been plagued with worries these past few days, her head aching from it. Every time she saw Yu Mingjiao, those tangled thoughts couldn’t help but leap to the forefront of her mind, making it impossible to face Yu Mingjiao properly.
She began to intentionally or unintentionally avoid Yu Mingjiao. Cen Lingqiu herself found this cowardly act of evasion disgusting, but whenever she was with Yu Mingjiao, she would unconsciously start to imagine Yu Mingjiao’s emotional collapse after she left this world.
She didn’t want Yu Mingjiao to live for her.
In the end, she was just someone who had died long ago and was now living on borrowed time.
A distance that was too intimate was just a slowly burning fuse leading to collapse.
Although, it was already a case of locking the stable door after the horse had bolted.
Today, Cen Lingqiu was going to a French restaurant to have dinner with Yu Mingjiao. She had been overthinking for the past few days, and her behavior had become strange. Yu Mingjiao seemed to have sensed the stiffness in their relationship and had been very insistent—part coaxing, part throwing a fit—demanding that Cen Lingqiu accompany her to dinner.
Cen Lingqiu was naturally aware of her own unusual behavior recently. She had always been helpless against Yu Mingjiao. Coupled with the fact that she felt she had been deliberately distant towards her, she was afraid Yu Mingjiao would overthink things and felt a bit apologetic herself, so she agreed.
She had gone home last night. In the morning, after getting ready, she went downstairs. Just as she reached the living room, Zhang Li called out to her, “Xiao Qiu.”
“Come here. This is your Uncle He’s son. You two played together for a while when you were little. Come and get reacquainted.”
Cen Lingqiu wasn’t interested in any uncle’s son. “Mom, I have something to do, I have to go.”
“You child,” Zhang Li chided her. “Come over and say hello.”
Cen Lingqiu: “…”
Afraid that Zhang Li would nag again, she walked to the side of the sofa, and her gaze met the man sitting opposite her.
The man recognized her, a smile playing on his lips as he waved at her. “Hello, we meet again.”
Cen Lingqiu had a good memory and recognized him at a glance as the man from last time with the wrongly buttoned shirt.
What was his name again?
Oh, He Hanzhou.
The name sounded very familiar. Where had she heard it before?
He Hanzhou rested his chin on his hand, staring at Cen Lingqiu with great interest.
The woman’s eyes were cold, her features as if shrouded in mist—chilly and mysterious, making it impossible for anyone to discern her emotions, as if she were hiding many secrets.
It was the first time He Hanzhou had met someone like this, and it piqued his interest, making him want to uncover her secrets.
Ever since he last saw her, He Hanzhou would often find himself inadvertently recalling her clear, cold eyes.
When Cen Lingqiu met He Hanzhou’s playful gaze, she felt no emotion, only finding it dull and disgusting.
She said faintly, “Mom, I really have something to do. I’m running late. I’m leaving.”
Zhang Li frowned. “What’s wrong with you, child? Mom was hoping you and Xiao He could have dinner together. It’s that place downtown. Your younger brother is treating someone to dinner there today too. What’s that restaurant called again…”
Without waiting for her to remember, Cen Lingqiu grabbed her bag and left the living room.
Leaving Zhang Li with a helpless expression.
Cen Lingqiu went to the restaurant they hadn’t been able to eat at last time in Paris. That restaurant happened to have a branch in Lan City, so she and Yu Mingjiao had arranged to eat there.
Due to traffic, by the time she arrived at the restaurant, Yu Mingjiao was already there, slowly sipping a fruit tea.
“Sorry, I’m late.” Cen Lingqiu sat down opposite her. “Have you been waiting long?”
Yu Mingjiao shook her head.
Cen Lingqiu saw that she was only wearing a dark red sweatshirt and couldn’t help but frown. “Why are you wearing so little? Aren’t you cold?”
It was already November in Lan City, and the temperature had dropped quite low. A single sweatshirt was nowhere near enough to ward off the cold.
Yu Mingjiao took a light sip of her fruit tea and spoke in a cool, faint voice, “Are you worried about me now?”
The sarcasm in her words was too heavy. Cen Lingqiu wasn’t a fool; how could she not hear it? She gave a bitter smile and said jokingly, “Isn’t it obvious?”
Yu Mingjiao’s words were barbed. “What does it have to do with you if I freeze to death? It’s not like you care about me anyway.”
Cen Lingqiu pressed her forehead.
Here we go again.
This familiar, long-unseen passive-aggressiveness.
She knew Yu Mingjiao was blaming her for her unusual behavior recently.
Cen Lingqiu couldn’t refute it, as it was indeed an act born of her own weakness.
“I don’t think that way.” Cen Lingqiu said patiently. “I would never not care about you, Jiao Jiao. You don’t need to doubt that.”
“Oh, is that so?” Yu Mingjiao propped up her chin, her fingers idly stirring the straw. Her expression was gloomy, and she spoke without a shred of pleasantness, “You just lie to me, play with me, and treat me like a fool.”
Cen Lingqiu: “…”
“You really…” Cen Lingqiu’s temples throbbed. “What kind of things are you saying?”
“Was I wrong?” Yu Mingjiao’s voice grew colder and sharper. “Why are you avoiding me? Did you think I couldn’t tell? What did I do wrong, and why are you doing this?”
She pressed her lips together, her voice very soft. “Jiao Jiao, you didn’t do anything wrong. The one at fault… is me.”
The straw in Yu Mingjiao’s cup was about to be torn apart by her fiddling. Her eyes were pitch-black, staring at her without blinking.
“You can’t avoid me.”
Her tone was forceful, laced with a deep, rich paranoia.
“It will hurt me a lot.” Yu Mingjiao lowered her gaze, her tone becoming mournful and weak again.
Cen Lingqiu’s damn heart started to soften again. Yu Mingjiao must have been sent to be her undoing.
Otherwise, how could she immediately throw down her armor and surrender because of a single short sentence from Yu Mingjiao?
“I…” Cen Lingqiu opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but her throat felt blocked, and she couldn’t get a word out. She could only speak, half against her will and half in self-abandonment, “Mm, I won’t avoid you anymore.”
Only then did the color in Yu Mingjiao’s face soften slightly.
After the food was served, Cen Lingqiu went to the restroom.
Yu Mingjiao waited for her at their table, but before Cen Lingqiu returned, the person she least wanted to see arrived.
Lin Dong sat opposite her, looking straight at her. “Mingjiao.”
Yu Mingjiao’s expression was cold. “If you have nothing to say, get lost.”
“Wow, so fierce.” He Hanzhou appeared out of nowhere, sitting down next to Lin Dong. He said with a grin, “So you’re Yu Mingjiao. Did you know you look a lot like someone?”
Lin Dong shot him a glare. “Surnamed He, shut up.”
He Hanzhou shrugged nonchalantly. “I’m not wrong.” He looked at Yu Mingjiao again. “But you’re much prettier than that person.”
Yu Mingjiao couldn’t be bothered with this flashy-looking man. She continued eating her salad on her own, not even sparing the two of them a glance.
Lin Dong looked at Yu Mingjiao. He hadn’t seen her in a long time.
Ever since Lin Qiu’s car accident, his work had piled up like a mountain. There was his grandfather’s strict prohibition, plus his sister’s previous warning not to go looking for Yu Mingjiao again. Almost everyone was stopping him from seeing Yu Mingjiao.
For various reasons, he really hadn’t gone to find Yu Mingjiao again.
Seeing her again, he himself didn’t know what he felt for her. It seemed like affection, but it also seemed like nothing.
But in truth, he just wanted to see the shadow of another person in Yu Mingjiao.
“If you want to see her, then go die.” Yu Mingjiao noticed Lin Dong’s gaze, slowly took a sip of water, and spoke nonchalantly without even lifting her eyes. “Only in death can you be reunited.”
Lin Dong frowned. “You—”
He Hanzhou, listening from the side, burst out laughing. “Lin Dong, she’s much fiercer than Ning Jia.”
He Hanzhou ordered two bottles of good wine and a few famous dishes to be sent to their table.
He found the way Yu Mingjiao spoke very interesting and wanted to chat with her more. He served her food and poured her wine, but Yu Mingjiao didn’t even deign to look at him, treating the two of them as if they didn’t exist.
When Cen Lingqiu came out of the restroom, she saw He Hanzhou pouring wine for Yu Mingjiao and pushing dishes in front of her, a smile on his face, his eyes fixed on Yu Mingjiao, while Lin Dong next to them had a dark expression.
Cen Lingqiu narrowed her eyes, feeling very uncomfortable with He Hanzhou’s actions of approaching Yu Mingjiao.
Only then did she remember who He Hanzhou was.
The second male lead in this book, one of the male lead’s friends. He had fallen in love with the female lead at first sight in the manor, helped her escape, and then silently stayed by her side—a tool-like character.
The plot of this world was already a complete mess. Cen Lingqiu had completely forgotten about the existence of the second male lead.
Very uncomfortable.
The sight of He Hanzhou getting close to Yu Mingjiao made Cen Lingqiu very displeased.
She walked over, sat down next to Yu Mingjiao, caressed her cheek, and called her name, “Jiao Jiao.”
Yu Mingjiao finally lifted her head, her eyes staring intently at Cen Lingqiu’s face.
“This is our second time meeting today,” He Hanzhou said with a smile to Cen Lingqiu.
Yu Mingjiao’s eyes darkened as she shot a glance at He Hanzhou.
Cen Lingqiu didn’t look at him, instead turning to Lin Dong. “Why are you here too? Still haven’t given up, have you?”
“No.” Lin Dong leaned back in his chair. “I’m treating someone to dinner here.”
“Mm.” Cen Lingqiu directly shooed him away. “Then hurry up and leave.”
“No.”
“I’ll give Grandpa a call.”
“I’m going.” Lin Dong was both angry and helpless. He grabbed He Hanzhou by the collar. “You’re leaving too.”
He Hanzhou shook off his hand. “Hey, I don’t have a grandpa. I’ll stay a bit longer.”
Lin Dong couldn’t be bothered with him and left directly.
Yu Mingjiao saw the man in front of her keep his gaze fixed on Cen Lingqiu, direct and undisguised.
Yu Mingjiao’s eyes turned cold, her expression sinister.
How dare he look at her with such a disgusting gaze.
“Why haven’t you left yet?” Cen Lingqiu frowned.
“Your mother told me to talk with you more,” He Hanzhou said in a lazy tone. “Say, do you have a boyfriend?”
Yu Mingjiao’s hands, hidden in her sleeves, were clenched into tight fists. Her eyes were as dark as a venomous snake hidden in the night.
An inexplicable frenzy swept over her, making her want to tear the mouth of the man before her to shreds.
That way, he wouldn’t be able to say anything at all.
Cen Lingqiu thought he was crazy and replied perfunctorily, “None of your business.”
He Hanzhou was thick-skinned. “Let’s just be friends. No need to be so hostile.”
As he spoke, he felt a chill run down his spine. He looked over and met Yu Mingjiao’s cold, calm gaze. She even tilted her head slightly, as if in confusion, a gesture that was both innocent and chilling.
He Hanzhou furrowed his brow. That kind of gaze was very unsettling, like being stared at by the emotionless, vertical pupils of some kind of snake—damp and cold.
Yu Mingjiao tugged on Cen Lingqiu’s clothes. Her cold eyes remained fixed in He Hanzhou’s direction, but her words were fragile.
“Lin Qiu, I want to leave this place. Take me home.”
“Are you feeling tired?”
“Mm.”
“Okay,” Cen Lingqiu said. “Then let’s go back.”
“Hey, leaving already?” He Hanzhou watched the two of them get ready to leave. “Let’s keep chatting.”
The thought that He Hanzhou and Yu Mingjiao also had a romantic entanglement in the novel annoyed Cen Lingqiu. She didn’t want to see this man together with Yu Mingjiao at all.
“There’s no need,” Cen Lingqiu said calmly. “It’s meaningless.”
She pushed Yu Mingjiao’s wheelchair, passing by his side.
In the instant they brushed past each other, Yu Mingjiao turned her head and gave him a faint, cold sneer, as if mocking his failure.
He Hanzhou: “…”
How was this woman so vastly different from the soft and harmless person Lin Dong had described?
They were completely different creatures.
The Yu Mingjiao before him was clearly a snake.
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