The rain still hadn’t stopped.
Cen Lingqiu parked the car outside the school gate, waiting for Yu Mingjiao to come out.
After a short wait, Yu Mingjiao finally emerged. Because she was holding an umbrella with one hand, her movements seemed slow and halting. A few boys without umbrellas rushed out of the school gate and accidentally bumped into her wheelchair. Due to the inertia, Yu Mingjiao’s hand lost its grip, and the umbrella fell to the ground.
She bent over to pick it up.
Cen Lingqiu got out of the car, picked up the fallen umbrella, and held it over her.
Yu Mingjiao looked up.
Cen Lingqiu held the umbrella, her gaze calm.
“What are you doing here?” Yu Mingjiao averted her gaze, her tone indifferent. “Give me the umbrella.”
Cen Lingqiu said, “Didn’t I say this morning? I’d come pick you up to go home tonight.”
“Meddlesome.”
“So be it.” Cen Lingqiu nonchalantly pushed her wheelchair forward. “The rain’s getting heavier, let’s go.”
Yu Mingjiao was still very unaccustomed to accepting her kindness, saying coldly, “I’ll go back by myself.”
“The rain is heavy. You’ll get soaked if you go back like this.”
“I’ll take a taxi.”
“………”
She’s still so resistant to her.
The umbrella was small, not big enough to cover two people. Since Yu Mingjiao stubbornly refused to accept her goodwill, Cen Lingqiu’s arm was soaked, and Yu Mingjiao was no better off; half of her skirt was wet.
Standing in the rain was cold, and Cen Lingqiu hated the cold.
She decided to be a little more selfish. Since she was already here, she didn’t want to go back having accomplished nothing.
Thus, she pushed the person to the side of the car and opened the door. “Sorry, I’m going to have to disrespect your wishes again.”
Without waiting for Yu Mingjiao’s reaction, she quickly closed the umbrella, lifted her into the passenger seat, and swiftly shut the car door.
She returned to the driver’s seat and locked the doors.
Yu Mingjiao stared ahead with a cold and gloomy expression, not sparing her a single glance.
“Just bear with it,” Cen Lingqiu said, seeing her icy demeanor, offering a word of comfort. “We’ll be home soon.”
The car moved forward smoothly, but due to a traffic jam caused by the heavy rain, what was originally a few-minute drive was stretched to over twenty minutes. Along the way, they even encountered a scene where a pedestrian and a vehicle had collided. That road was the very intersection Yu Mingjiao had to pass to get home.
If Yu Mingjiao had taken this road today, would she have also gotten into an accident?
Cen Lingqiu calmly wondered.
Yu Mingjiao also saw the accident but said nothing.
The car finally reached the underground parking garage of the apartment building. She lifted the person out and placed her in the wheelchair.
The two of them rode the elevator in silence.
Cen Lingqiu had kept the air conditioning low these past few days and had a slight cold. Having been caught in the rain today, she couldn’t help but cover her lips and cough a few times.
She hugged her arms and leaned against the elevator wall. Because she felt cold, she wasn’t in a very good mood, but her expression remained placid, not showing it.
Yu Mingjiao saw Cen Lingqiu’s abnormality in the elevator’s reflection. She was emotionally sensitive and could naturally sense Cen Lingqiu’s mood. She was unhappy.
Was it because of her own ungratefulness that she’d gotten caught in the rain?
Yu Mingjiao was a little curious. Would this woman reveal her true colors?
Constantly showing goodwill, only to be met with sarcasm and rejection—how long could Lin Qiu really endure it?
The elevator was silent. It finally reached the ninth floor.
The moment Yu Mingjiao had been waiting for—for Cen Lingqiu to tear off her hypocritical mask and reveal her true self—never came. She simply spoke with her usual calm demeanor, “I have to go to my friend’s bar for something tonight, so I won’t be bringing you dinner. Make sure you eat properly.”
She pushed Yu Mingjiao’s wheelchair to the door and added a casual reminder, “Your hair is wet. Dry it before you sleep, or your head will start hurting again.”
Yu Mingjiao had a habit of getting headaches. Her head would ache slightly on rainy days. That morning, her head had felt a needle-like pain, but she was used to enduring it, only rubbing her head when it became unbearable.
How did she know?
Did she notice this morning?
Cen Lingqiu coughed. “I’m leaving.”
She turned, unlocked her door, and went inside.
Yu Mingjiao stared at the closed door across the hall.
She was clearly unhappy, so why didn’t she throw a tantrum like before?
Yu Mingjiao truly couldn’t understand her.
She had always categorized Cen Lingqiu’s goodwill as a pejorative term for hypocrisy, which was why Yu Mingjiao found it disgusting, rejected it, and felt she was being pretentious. But in certain moments, she found this woman to be a complete stranger.
It was as if she were seeing this woman for the first time.
Cen Lingqiu took a shower and changed her clothes before heading to the bar.
Wen Zhi used to have a band, but they rarely got together after everyone went their separate ways. Today was a rare occasion where everyone was gathered for a performance, so Wen Zhi had insisted that Cen Lingqiu must come.
When Cen Lingqiu arrived, Wen Zhi was already on stage singing. She took a seat in the VIP section.
The atmosphere in the bar was fervent, and as the music reached its climax, the crowd below screamed wildly.
She didn’t really mind this kind of atmosphere, but because she felt cold from the rain and was in a bit of a bad mood, she wasn’t quite able to tolerate the overly noisy environment.
Cen Lingqiu couldn’t just leave, so she sat quietly in the corner, her eyes on Wen Zhi, sipping her drink intermittently.
When the band took a break, Wen Zhi brought the members over to the booth.
“Lin Qiu,” Wen Zhi said, sitting beside her. “When did you get here?”
“Not long ago.”
Wen Zhi was frank and straightforward, saying with a smile, “Let me introduce you to my friends.”
Cen Lingqiu listened politely as she made the introductions, and they all toasted each other.
After a few drinks, Cen Lingqiu went to the restroom.
As she walked, a young girl who was talking to her friend bumped into Cen Lingqiu’s shoulder.
“What are you doing?” The girl clutched her shoulder, turned around, and stared at her with an annoyed expression. “Can’t you watch where you’re going?”
Cen Lingqiu was in a bad mood and had no time to argue with her about who was right or wrong. Seeing that she was just a young girl, she couldn’t be bothered to bicker with her and nodded coolly. “My apologies.”
The girl was stunned for a moment when she saw her face.
Cen Lingqiu paid her no more mind and walked away on her own.
After Cen Lingqiu left, the girl kept staring at her retreating back.
“Yu Sui’an, what are you looking at? Let’s hurry up and go.” Her friend tugged at the girl’s arm. “My brother’s going to come looking for us soon. If he finds out we’re underage and here, my brother will kill me.”
“You guys go first.” The girl named Yu Sui’an suddenly started running forward. “I’ll go back by myself later.”
“What’s gotten into you?”
Because Cen Lingqiu wasn’t feeling well, Wen Zhi let her go home early.
On the way back, Cen Lingqiu couldn’t tell if it was her imagination, but she kept feeling like someone was following her.
It must be my imagination.
Cen Lingqiu wasn’t feeling well and rested at home for two or three days. The original owner’s constitution was quite good, so she was more or less recovered after two days of rest.
She continued to bring Yu Mingjiao some of her homemade food as usual. Yu Mingjiao’s reaction was almost always the same: rejection.
But her rejections were no longer so absolute. Sometimes, under Cen Lingqiu’s strong insistence, she would eat a little with a cold face.
More than once, Cen Lingqiu thought that perhaps Yu Mingjiao was only accepting because she was too pestering and annoying, and she had no choice.
But she didn’t eat much. Cen Lingqiu would stand by the table and help put some dishes on her plate.
She discovered that when Yu Mingjiao ate, she really only ate the dishes directly in front of her. She would hardly touch the ones that were slightly further away. Only when Cen Lingqiu placed some in her bowl would she eat a little.
Cen Lingqiu was curious, so she asked her about it.
Yu Mingjiao didn’t answer, asking back, “What about you?”
Cen Lingqiu didn’t understand. “What?”
Yu Mingjiao watched her with a silent gaze. “Why do you never come to the table to eat?”
Ever since this woman started acting abnormally, whether it was at the hospital, the manor, or even here, every time Cen Lingqiu brought her food, she would just stand by the table and watch her eat.
She had never once eaten at the same table with her.
Of course, Yu Mingjiao didn’t want to eat with her either.
The reason she asked was simply to find a random question to block Cen Lingqiu’s counter-question.
Yu Mingjiao didn’t care about her answer either. After saying that, she lowered her head and also didn’t notice Cen Lingqiu’s pale face.
But she recovered quickly, as if that momentary pallor was nothing but an illusory breeze.
Yu Mingjiao only ate a little before she couldn’t eat anymore. Cen Lingqiu knew her appetite was like this, so she didn’t force her.
The following days continued in this strange and peaceful manner. Cen Lingqiu would always bring her food. Perhaps Yu Mingjiao also understood that no matter how she refused this woman, she wouldn’t stop, nor would she get angry; she would just knock on her door day after day.
Yu Mingjiao disliked being bothered by others more than anything, but at the same time, she was very curious to see how long this woman could keep up her act. So, she observed with a cold eye, relaxing her decisive attitude.
Cen Lingqiu still didn’t eat with her, only helping her with the food. She would occasionally chat with her for a few sentences. Yu Mingjiao rarely replied, but Cen Lingqiu didn’t take it to heart.
The two of them fell into a strange sort of harmony.
Cen Lingqiu would always give her a piece of candy after she finished eating. Sometimes she would also bring some fresh and rare fruits for her. “They were just air-freighted from abroad. Have some.”
Occasionally, when she came back from work, she would buy a cup of milk tea for her and say, “Don’t you students love these sweet drinks?”
Yu Mingjiao took a sip and found it was incredibly sweet, and hot too.
Who drinks hot milk tea on a hot day.
During this time, Yu Mingjiao also discovered Cen Lingqiu’s preference: she had a sweet tooth. Whether it was the flavor of her cooking, the candies, or the fruits, they all leaned towards sweet.
Yu Mingjiao was indifferent about food, but she liked sour things.
Cen Lingqiu probably figured this out, because the fruits and milk tea she brought later on leaned towards sour.
Yu Mingjiao could no longer remember the last time she had eaten a proper meal. In the past, her father spent all his days gambling outside, and her stepmother was too lazy to cook for her, often taking her younger sister out to eat. Yu Mingjiao had no money, and there was no food in the house, so she could only go hungry.
Only when her father came home would her stepmother return to cook, and only then could she get something to eat. Even so, she didn’t dare to eat much, as it would displease her stepmother.
Later, after her legs were crippled, her father left home and disappeared, and her stepmother fell ill and passed away. She moved out and lived alone, caring even less about food.
Even if she was disgusted by Cen Lingqiu’s goodwill, she couldn’t deny that she longed for it.
This filled her with dread.
She was actually feeling a faint sense of satisfaction from Cen Lingqiu.
Yu Mingjiao was slowly starting to put on a little weight on her face. It was just that she didn’t eat much, so she was still thin overall.
However, she no longer had that frighteningly emaciated look.
Her cheeks were snow-white, her lips no longer the pale color of weakness but a faint pink. Her hair was dark and smooth, her eyelashes thick and curly.
She no longer had the gloomy appearance of a female ghost; instead, she resembled a lifeless porcelain doll.
Cen Lingqiu noticed her change and felt a strange sense of accomplishment in her heart.
It was as if she had nurtured a tiny green leaf from a flower that had already withered and died.
A strange pleasure bloomed in her heart.
