Yu Mingjiao and Cen Lingqiu’s birthdays were very close. Yu Mingjiao’s was on the Winter Solstice, at the end of the year, while Cen Lingqiu’s was on the Spring Festival, at the beginning of the year.
Lately, Yu Mingjiao had been secretly preparing a birthday gift for Cen Lingqiu. It was the first time she had ever celebrated someone’s birthday, and she had pondered for a long time before finally deciding what to give.
She wanted to give it to her on Cen Lingqiu’s birthday.
Meanwhile, Cen Lingqiu was also thinking about what gift to give Yu Mingjiao. She truly had no idea what to get, as Yu Mingjiao didn’t seem to be particularly obsessed with anything.
She asked Yu Mingjiao if there was anything she particularly wanted. Yu Mingjiao was silent for a moment, then said, “I want you not to leave me.” Cen Lingqiu: “…”
She pressed her forehead. “Can we change it, Jiao Jiao? This gift is a bit difficult for me.”
“Then there’s nothing I want.” Yu Mingjiao leaned against her shoulder, very close to her, her voice low. “Sister Lingqiu, if you can’t give me the gift I want most, then I don’t want anything at all.”
Cen Lingqiu turned her head and quietly looked at her pale, delicate face. “You really don’t want anything?”
Yu Mingjiao squeezed her hand, the force so great it was as if she wanted them to merge into one. She tilted her head, pressing her forehead against Cen Lingqiu’s shoulder in a hiding posture that betrayed a deep lack of security.
She was silent, her entire being exuding an ineffable bitterness.
“Sister Lingqiu.”
“What is it?”
“You’ll celebrate my birthday with me this time, right?” Yu Mingjiao’s voice was muffled and hoarse, tinged with a hint of panic. “Stay with me, for the whole day.”
Cen Lingqiu knew Yu Mingjiao was afraid she would suddenly disappear like she had a year ago. She smiled gently. Yu Mingjiao’s fluffy hair tickled her as it brushed against her. Cen Lingqiu lowered her gaze, and her eyes fell upon Yu Mingjiao’s exquisite and beautiful features.
Her expression was quiet and sorrowful.
Like a porcelain doll silently weeping.
For some reason, Cen Lingqiu was suddenly overcome with the desire to kiss her. She felt a tender pity for Yu Mingjiao’s pale complexion, her eyes that always seemed on the verge of tears, her bloodless lips, and her overly thin body.
Her frail appearance stirred a fierce, throbbing emotion in Cen Lingqiu for no reason.
Only when you love someone do you feel such pity.
Yu Mingjiao slumped against her, fragile and weak. Cen Lingqiu freed one hand to hold her. Her lips were very close to Yu Mingjiao’s forehead, only a few centimeters away.
A spring tide surged through her limbs, a mixture of various desires. Cen Lingqiu used her other hand to caress Yu Mingjiao’s sharp chin. Like a quiet cat, Yu Mingjiao gently nuzzled against her.
So obedient, and so beautiful.
Cen Lingqiu lifted her chin. Yu Mingjiao raised her dark, moist eyes and looked straight at her.
She looked so sad. The rims of her eyes were red, and though there were no tears in them, it was as if her face was streaked with them.
Cen Lingqiu caressed her cheek. Under the sway of a wordless emotion, she lost her reason and moved closer to Yu Mingjiao, kissing her eyes.
Yu Mingjiao’s eyelids trembled violently. She closed her eyes, her hand clutching Cen Lingqiu’s collar tightened, and her fingers trembled slightly.
Cen Lingqiu’s kiss moved to her brow. She gently kissed Yu Mingjiao’s forehead.
A comforting kiss, filled with an inexpressible emotion.
As light as foam, as heavy as an entire sea.
It easily stirred a fierce tide in both their hearts.
Cen Lingqiu’s kiss lasted only a few seconds before it ended. She cupped Yu Mingjiao’s face and gazed at her. “Jiao Jiao.”
She softly called Yu Mingjiao’s name.
Yu Mingjiao’s eyelids were still trembling, her eyes even more moist. It seemed a few tears had escaped, dampening her lashes. She lowered her head, her expression a mixture of suppressed shyness and, beyond that, an abrupt shade of pain.
She looked even sadder.
She hummed in response and said no more.
Cen Lingqiu didn’t continue either. There was no need to say anything more; that inexplicable kiss was enough to express what she wanted to say.
Many things couldn’t be put into words.
“Don’t cry.” Cen Lingqiu stroked her trembling eyelids.
Yu Mingjiao had received a kiss. She should have been happy, but she couldn’t feel happy at all.
She only felt very sad.
She realized she truly couldn’t leave Cen Lingqiu.
More reluctant than she had ever imagined.
“…Sister Lingqiu.” Her voice was choked with sobs. “I… I really need you.”
“You will come back, won’t you?”
“…”
“If you feel sorry for me, then come back to my side.”
“I…”
Yu Mingjiao tightened her grip on her collar and suddenly leaned forward, biting Cen Lingqiu’s lip.
Cen Lingqiu sucked in a sharp breath. She touched her lip; it seemed to be broken, and there was a speck of blood on her finger.
“Are you a puppy, Jiao Jiao?”
Yu Mingjiao’s expression was gloomy, but the words she spoke were soft.
“No.”
“I belong to you, Sister Lingqiu.”
Cen Lingqiu was stunned for a moment, then she lowered her head and smiled, a little helplessly. “You really are…”
Yu Mingjiao sat obediently on the bed, her gaze direct. “Sister Lingqiu, without you, I’ll be very sad.”
She extended a finger and traced circles on Cen Lingqiu’s neck, intentionally or not, her voice soft. “Don’t you feel sorry for me? If so, don’t be so cruel to me. I can wait for you forever, but you can’t let me suffer forever.”
Cen Lingqiu’s only answer was silence.
After a long while, she finally spoke.
“I understand.”
“I will come back and stay with you.”
She planned to press the System to see if there was any way for her to stay in this world.
In the blink of an eye, Yu Mingjiao’s birthday was approaching, but Cen Lingqiu still didn’t know what to choose. She couldn’t give the same gift twice. Cen Lingqiu was worried; she hadn’t celebrated properly with her last time, so this time she was determined to be with her.
Since she really had no idea what to give, Cen Lingqiu even went to ask Yu Sui’an.
“What does my sister like?” Yu Sui’an chewed on her pen, thinking. “To be honest, I’m not sure either. My sister and I haven’t spent much time together. When we were little… our relationship wasn’t very good. My sister is a very quiet person.”
Cen Lingqiu’s face showed a hint of sorrow.
Yu Sui’an added, “But my sister seems to really like Eustoma flowers.”
Cen Lingqiu raised her eyes. “Eustoma?”
“Yes.” Yu Sui’an nodded. “My sister loves spending time in the back garden. There were a lot of Eustomas planted there. Dad said my sister’s mother planted them.”
Yu Sui’an lowered her gaze. “My sister’s mother often played the piano in the back garden. My sister seemed to always hide behind the flowers to listen to her mother play.”
“Later, after my sister’s mother passed away, my sister still liked to go to that garden, her eyes always gazing in the direction where the piano used to be. Later, Dad pulled up all the flowers and dismantled the back garden, and she never went there again.”
She guessed, “But I think my sister must really miss that back garden full of Eustomas.”
Cen Lingqiu murmured, “Eustomas, playing the piano.”
She quickly knew what she was going to give Yu Mingjiao.
Cen Lingqiu remembered that Zhang Li had once casually given her a manor. The manor wasn’t large, a bit small even, but Cen Lingqiu quite liked it. When she saw it, she had even thought that its size was just right for her and Yu Mingjiao to live in together.
Cen Lingqiu tidied up the manor. She had someone buy countless Eustoma flowers and decorated the back garden with them.
She planned to spend Yu Mingjiao’s birthday with her in this back garden. She even bought a piano and placed it there.
At the same time, she also had a pair of rings custom-made.
Although giving a pair of matching rings was a bit strange, the hidden, ambiguous relationship between her and Yu Mingjiao made this gift the first thing that came to her mind.
She had to leave eventually.
But she truly couldn’t bear to part with Yu Mingjiao.
She wanted something of hers to remain in this world to accompany Yu Mingjiao.
The pair of rings had her and Yu Mingjiao’s names engraved on them.
This was proof that she had come to this world.
It was also a silent expression of her feelings for Yu Mingjiao.
She didn’t know which day she would leave. On this special, beautiful day, Cen Lingqiu wanted to burn her bridges and confess all her feelings.
White Eustomas filled the garden, like a dreamy, hazy world from a dream, pure and flawless.
Today was a bright and sunny day, and it was also Yu Mingjiao’s birthday.
Cen Lingqiu had already asked Yu Sui’an to bring her here, and they should be arriving soon. She was in the garden, arranging the flowers. Today had to be a beautiful and smooth day.
Because this might be the last birthday she would ever celebrate with Yu Mingjiao.
Footsteps sounded from behind. Cen Lingqiu thought it was Yu Mingjiao and was a little surprised. She turned her head. “How are you so fast—Lin Dong?”
Cen Lingqiu frowned, looking at the man before her. “What are you doing here?”
Lin Dong said, “Ning Jia told me to come here. She said she had something to tell me.”
“Ning Jia?” An inexplicable unease grew in Cen Lingqiu’s heart. “What is she up to now?”
“I’m not up to anything.” Ning Jia walked in from outside, casually plucking an Eustoma. “Looking at these decorations, are you preparing for a birthday or a marriage proposal, Lin Qiu?”
Cen Lingqiu looked at her calmly and stated, “Ning Jia, you’ve been following me.”
Ning Jia covered her lips and laughed. “You’re quite clever, Lin Qiu.”
Lin Dong frowned. “Ning Jia, what did you want to tell me by asking me to come here?”
Ning Jia, carrying a bag on her back, strolled around as if on a walk, and said with casual mockery, “Lin Qiu, you two are living so well, aren’t you? Still able to celebrate for people, while some have lost their lives and can never celebrate a birthday again.”
Cen Lingqiu had always felt there was a hidden meaning in her words. She got straight to the point. “You’re blaming me. For what reason?”
Ning Jia bent over laughing. “You really don’t remember? Lin Qiu, how could you not remember?”
She was very confused. “You and your brother, two murderers, how can you live with such peace of mind? Why? I don’t understand, Lin Qiu.”
Both Lin Dong’s and Cen Lingqiu’s faces darkened.
Lin Dong spoke first. “Ning Jia, what are you talking about? How could my sister and I possibly be murderers?”
Hearing his denial, Ning Jia sneered. She ignored him and continued speaking to Cen Lingqiu.
She held out a photo on her phone to Cen Lingqiu. “Do you remember her?”
Cen Lingqiu glanced at it. The girl in the photo looked a little familiar, but she couldn’t recall where she had seen her.
She thought carefully and finally remembered who the girl was: the daughter of the guesthouse owner in the ancient town who had jumped into the river and died.
“Does she have anything to do with me?” Cen Lingqiu asked without emotion.
Cen Lingqiu’s calm reaction disgusted Ning Jia. She laughed menacingly. “You really forgot, Lin Qiu? How she died, do you really not remember?”
Before Cen Lingqiu could speak, Ning Jia let out a cold laugh and gritted her teeth. “She was killed by you, Lin Qiu! It was all you, you bitch, you killed her!”
Cen Lingqiu frowned deeply. This extra plotline wasn’t in the novel.
Ning Jia stepped forward and shoved her hard, roaring, “You killed her, and now you’re celebrating someone else’s birthday with a clear conscience! She could have celebrated her birthday every year too. It’s all because of you that she has nothing left, not even her life!”
She raised her hand to slap Cen Lingqiu, but Lin Dong stepped forward, quickly grabbing Ning Jia’s hand. “Ning Jia, don’t touch my sister,” he said coldly. “She was in a car accident, her health is poor.”
Ning Jia flung his hand off. Consumed by rage, she grabbed a vase from the stone table and smashed it directly over Lin Dong’s head. Caught off guard, Lin Dong was struck, staggered back a few steps, and collapsed to the ground, his eyes losing focus.
Ning Jia’s mind had completely snapped. “The car accident? Don’t you know? I was the one who hit her with my car that night! It’s a pity she’s so lucky, she didn’t even die!”
Cen Lingqiu had always found Ning Jia’s eyes somewhat familiar. Now she finally remembered. On the night of the car accident, she had vaguely seen the other driver’s face. It was just that the night was dark and chaotic, so she hadn’t seen clearly, only feeling that those eyes were extremely dark and cold.
To think it was Ning Jia.
“You hate me that much?” Cen Lingqiu sensed that her mental state was unstable and looked for an opportunity to control and calm Ning Jia down.
“I more than hate you, I hate you disgusting siblings!” Ning Jia’s tone was vicious. “Lin Qiu, you’re a disgusting bitch. You claimed I was your good friend, but you never respected my wishes. Because your brother liked me, you tried every way to set us up, even though you knew perfectly well that I like women, that I had a girlfriend.”
She took a deep breath. “You knew my girlfriend was a game character designer. To force her to break up with me, you deliberately framed her, slandering her for plagiarism. You thought she would break up with me because of that, but she loved me so much, she wouldn’t leave me.”
“So she quit her job and went back to her hometown. She started avoiding me. She already had mental health issues, and unable to bear being slandered, she ended up jumping into the river to commit suicide, on her birthday!”
“You knew I liked women, yet you still tricked me onto that ship and made me face your brother’s disgusting marriage proposal! You didn’t hesitate to cause the death of the person I loved most!”
Ning Jia screamed the last sentence with all her might.
Cen Lingqiu was stunned.
This was a memory belonging to Lin Qiu. Although Cen Lingqiu had transmigrated into her body, she hadn’t inherited many of the original owner’s past memories.
For a moment, Cen Lingqiu didn’t know what to say. This was a conflict between Ning Jia and Lin Qiu. But she was Lin Qiu now, yet she wasn’t Lin Qiu. How was this mistake to be accounted for?
Lin Dong clutched his bleeding forehead. He was shocked, weakly uttering, “Ning Jia, you like…”
“Yes, I like women!” Ning Jia no longer hid it. “I will never like a heartless, disgusting man like you. You’re just like your sister, both of you are murderers—”
She pulled a few photos from her bag and threw them in Lin Dong’s face. “Does this child look familiar?”
Lin Dong’s head was hurting so much he couldn’t see clearly.
Ning Jia muttered to herself, “You probably don’t remember either. A few years ago, you hit and killed a little boy with your car. Your family covered it up. Don’t you have any recollection?”
Lin Dong’s eyes widened, his face instantly turning deathly pale.
His terrified expression made Ning Jia sneer. “You remember now.”
Lin Dong remembered. On the day he turned eighteen, he had hit and killed a child while driving. He had been drinking a little and hadn’t seen the person in front of him clearly.
Afterwards, he was naturally panicked, but his family suppressed the matter. Seeing that nothing came of it, Lin Dong felt relieved, and over time, it was forgotten.
He forgot, but Ning Jia remembered it very clearly. Her parents were both dead, and she and her younger brother depended on each other. That night, she had told her brother to wait for her by the side of the road while she went to buy something.
The balloon she bought for her brother flew away. Her brother’s brain had been damaged by a fever, so his intelligence wasn’t very high. Without thinking, he ran onto the crosswalk to get the balloon and was hit by a speeding car.
When Ning Jia returned from her shopping, she saw the scene of her brother being sent flying by the car. The driver only stopped for a few seconds before leaving again.
When Ning Jia ran to her brother’s side, he was already dead.
She had lost her last family member.
She later found out the driver was Lin Dong. Because of his family’s power and connections, the matter was suppressed. Ning Jia had nothing and no power.
It wasn’t until university that she unexpectedly met Lin Qiu. Lin Qiu seemed to still consider her a friend, and even more ironically, Lin Dong fell in love with her at first sight.
Ning Jia thought she could get close to them and find a chance to avenge her brother. But she underestimated the extent of Lin Qiu’s selfishness. She doted on Lin Dong to an extreme degree, giving him whatever he wanted.
She wanted Ning Jia to be with Lin Dong. After finding out she was dating a woman, she used dishonorable means to force her girlfriend to break up with her. But her girlfriend refused. In the end, unable to bear the pressure, she quit her job and returned home. Because of her unstable mental state, on her birthday, she told Ning Jia all this and then jumped into the river to commit suicide.
From then on, Ning Jia had no one left to love.
“It’s all because of you!” Ning Jia covered her mouth and coughed up a mouthful of blood. Her stomach was in excruciating pain. She was at the end of her rope, her face deathly pale.
She wiped the blood from her lips carelessly, her eyes vacant. “You siblings killed the two most important people in my life. I wish you were dead.”
“But it doesn’t matter.” Ning Jia smiled eerily. “Lin Qiu, you have someone you like very much now, don’t you?”
Cen Lingqiu’s eyes darkened. “What are you planning to do to Jiao Jiao?”
As she spoke, Yu Sui’an was already pushing Yu Mingjiao over.
“Your sweetheart is here.” Ning Jia looked in Yu Mingjiao’s direction.
Cen Lingqiu’s heart pounded wildly. She didn’t know what Ning Jia would do to Yu Mingjiao. She only saw Ning Jia pull a gleaming object from her bag. “I was going to kill you that night, but your little girlfriend interrupted me. What a pity.”
“But it’s fine. Now is just as good.”
Cen Lingqiu had no mind to listen to her. She just wanted to get to Yu Mingjiao’s side. The moment she lifted her foot, she suddenly felt a cold sensation on her neck.
“Sis—” Lin Dong shouted.
At that moment, Yu Mingjiao had drawn near Cen Lingqiu, and then she saw a large amount of blood suddenly spurt from Cen Lingqiu’s throat.
Her eyes stared wide, her body instantly turning ice-cold.
“Big Sis Lin Qiu…” Yu Sui’an cried out in alarm.
Cen Lingqiu was almost dazed. She stiffly touched her neck, feeling a massive amount of warm, wet liquid.
Ning Jia’s voice echoed vaguely in her ear.
“Lin Qiu, I couldn’t celebrate my loved one’s birthday with her, so don’t you think you can either. I want you to be like me, to be separated from the one you love most. I want Lin Dong to also taste the pain of losing a family member.”
“This is what you owe me.”
Cen Lingqiu’s strength was drained in an instant. She sank weakly to her knees, pressing her palm to her neck, feeling the warmth gush out in spurts.
Her vision began to blur.
She weakly lifted her eyelids, her gaze fixed on Yu Mingjiao.
She saw Yu Mingjiao coming toward her like a madwoman. In her haste, she fell out of her wheelchair and began to drag herself forward, step by step.
In that instant, Cen Lingqiu had only one thought.
The ground was covered in pebbles. How much it must have hurt when she fell.
Yu Mingjiao reached her side in a wretched, difficult posture. She pressed her trembling hands to Cen Lingqiu’s neck, trying to stop the incessant flow of blood.
Yu Mingjiao’s tears could no longer be held back. She frantically tried to stop the bleeding, but it was useless.
She began to sob, her whole body shaking violently, endlessly calling out, “Sister Lingqiu…”
Cen Lingqiu only felt her body growing colder and colder. She wanted to say something, but her throat was cut, and she couldn’t speak.
Her consciousness was fading. She wasn’t thinking about anything. She just saw that Yu Mingjiao was crying too hard, her eyes as red as blood, her face covered in tears, her hands trembling like leaves in a violent wind.
She had never cried so sorrowfully before.
Cen Lingqiu’s heart ached.
She struggled to raise her hand and, just like in the past, stiffly stroked her head.
This was a tacit habit between them. Whenever Yu Mingjiao was upset or afraid, Cen Lingqiu would stroke her head like this.
This gesture made Yu Mingjiao break down even more. She cried her heart out.
“Sister Lingqiu…”
“Don’t leave me…”
“I’m begging you, I’m begging you, Sister Lingqiu, don’t leave me like this…”
Yu Mingjiao’s voice was frighteningly hoarse from crying, every word a sob of bloody despair.
“Sister Lingqiu, it hurts so much…”
“It hurts so much… It hurts so much, it really hurts so much, Sister Lingqiu…”
“Save me…”
Yu Mingjiao’s body and hands were covered in blood. The pure white Eustomas around her had turned a sea of red.
Cen Lingqiu’s eyelids were heavy, her body growing colder. She wanted to hug Yu Mingjiao again, but she had no strength left.
This is terrible.
Why couldn’t she celebrate Yu Mingjiao’s birthday again?
Once again, they had no farewell.
A silent tear streamed from Cen Lingqiu’s eye. With her last ounce of strength, she cupped the back of Yu Mingjiao’s head and guided it forward. Then she leaned in slightly and very, very lightly touched her lips.
After doing this, Cen Lingqiu had no strength left. Her hands fell to her sides. She took one last, deep look at her, then closed her eyes, her head sinking down, never to rise again.
Yu Mingjiao felt as if her body was riddled with a thousand wounds, her flesh filled with icy frost. She was so cold she felt like she was dying, her face completely drained of color.
She held the blood-soaked Cen Lingqiu amidst a vast field of Eustomas, crying loudly, her face wet with tears, as desperate as a child.
Yu Mingjiao thought.
She would never celebrate another birthday in her life.
