Cen Lingqiu stayed with Yu Mingjiao for a while before heading back. After her accident, Wen Zhi had given up her apartment and spent the last six months abroad.
Cen Lingqiu hadn’t found a place to live yet. On top of that, because she had just woken up, Zhang Li insisted that she spend more time with her, always pulling her aside to talk for what felt like an entire day, as if trying to pour out all the concern she hadn’t been able to express over the past six months.
So, Cen Lingqiu had been staying at home these past few days. This meant she didn’t see Yu Mingjiao very often. Ever since joining x.r, Yu Mingjiao would go to the company whenever she had free time, sometimes even working overtime on weekends.
Cen Lingqiu still hadn’t figured out the reason for the drop in Yu Mingjiao’s self-destruction coefficient. In the previous mission, she at least knew the source of Yu Mingjiao’s world-weariness. But now, starting over, Yu Mingjiao had already gained her freedom. For the past six months, Lin Dong had been deliberately kept under watch by his family, burdened with a mountain of tasks, leaving him with virtually no opportunity to bother Yu Mingjiao.
She had also achieved success in her career and found her self-worth, her accomplishments already surpassing many of her peers. Her selfish father, while drunk and being pursued by loan sharks, had accidentally fallen into a river and died.
The people and things that had once shackled her and caused her pain had all disappeared. Logically, she should be able to live a good life now.
Therefore, Cen Lingqiu truly couldn’t figure out the reason for the drop in her self-destruction coefficient this time.
Because she couldn’t understand the problem, Cen Lingqiu naturally couldn’t find the right solution.
But this time, she wasn’t as anxious as she was the first time. Perhaps it was because she hadn’t seen Yu Mingjiao for half a year. Upon their reunion, she suddenly realized that Yu Mingjiao was different from her past mission targets; she hadn’t completely and thoroughly forgotten her.
Cen Lingqiu was accustomed to forgetting people who were no longer connected to her life, because she felt it was meaningless.
She had originally thought Yu Mingjiao was just another one of those mission targets, but the moment she saw her, saw her pale and frail face, her first reaction was a pang of heartache.
What kind of feeling was that?
It was like a little stray cat she had fed for a long time. After much effort, she had nurtured it into a beautiful and precious creature. Then one day, she left, and upon her return, her little cat had reverted to a weak and broken stray.
Many strange factors mingled in her heart, lessening her desire to complete the mission. Since she was confused about the mission anyway, she figured she might as well spend more time with Yu Mingjiao and slowly figure out the root of the mission through their future interactions.
After all, she did miss Yu Mingjiao a little.
So, these past few days, whenever she was free, she would go to the university to pick her up. But Yu Mingjiao was nearing graduation and didn’t spend much time on campus; most of her time was spent at x.r.
Thus, as soon as she could escape from Zhang Li’s side, she would go to x.r.
These past few days, Yu Mingjiao had taken on a design for a client, a bride-to-be who had specifically requested that Yu Mingjiao design her wedding jewelry. The client’s demands were very high, and Yu Mingjiao had created several drafts, none of which satisfied her.
So, she had been staying at the company these past few days, working overtime until seven or eight in the evening to revise the drafts. After sending them to the client, the client was finally satisfied and praised her profusely, only then was the job complete.
Just as Yu Mingjiao turned off her drawing tablet, a female colleague came over, patted her on the shoulder, and said with a smile, “Mingjiao, your big sister is here to see you again.”
Cen Lingqiu had been coming to see Yu Mingjiao from time to time these past few days, so the people at the company were no longer surprised.
Yu Mingjiao pressed her lips together. “I know.”
Her tone was calm, but the movements of her hands as she packed up quickened.
The female colleague had worked with Yu Mingjiao for a long time. In her impression, Yu Mingjiao was incredibly beautiful but extremely silent and withdrawn, a misfit among her peers. That doll-like face held an unusually cold gloominess.
Her whole being was strange and deathly still.
But ever since that “big sister” of hers started picking her up from work, she had slowly begun to show a bit of the vibrancy befitting her age. At the very least, a certain expectation would appear in her eyes.
After packing her things, Yu Mingjiao took the elevator to the first floor. She spotted Cen Lingqiu in the crowd at a single glance.
She was wearing a simple apricot-colored shirt and black high-waisted, straight-leg trousers, sitting casually on a sofa in the first-floor waiting area, reading a book about x.r’s development.
Her hair was no longer the chestnut color of the past but a pure black. Her chin was a little sharper, and she was wearing a pair of silver-framed glasses again, giving her a slightly colder aura than before.
Cen Lingqiu looked up from her book. When she saw her, a different kind of emotion flickered in her placid eyes. She waved at Yu Mingjiao, then stood up and walked towards her.
“Busy day today?” Cen Lingqiu asked as she pushed her wheelchair.
“A little,” Yu Mingjiao replied in a low voice, then asked in return, “How long have you been waiting?”
Cen Lingqiu was unconcerned. “Not long.”
She didn’t say, but Yu Mingjiao knew how long she had waited. Her colleague had just told her that Cen Lingqiu had arrived at the company before closing time, but because she was working overtime, she had waited an extra three hours. Cen Lingqiu had even asked the colleague not to tell her she was there, afraid of disturbing her work.
“You haven’t eaten dinner, have you?” Cen Lingqiu took Yu Mingjiao to the garage. After lifting her into the car, she retrieved a thermal container from the back seat and gave it to her.
“I made some food at home. It’s still warm, go ahead and eat,” Cen Lingqiu said as she sat in the driver’s seat.
At home, Zhang Li was always forbidding her from doing this or that, as if afraid she might shatter, not allowing her to do any chores at all.
Cen Lingqiu was so bored that she would cook at home. Today, she had thought that the girl, Yu Mingjiao, would surely not eat properly again. She was always like that; when no one was around, she would either not eat or eat whatever, just not a proper meal. So, she had packed some food in a thermal container.
Cen Lingqiu told Yu Mingjiao to eat first, and she sat in the driver’s seat, quietly watching her.
Under her gaze, Yu Mingjiao opened the container and obediently finished the food.
Her table manners were elegant and quiet.
After she finished eating, Yu Mingjiao seemed to be waiting for something, but Cen Lingqiu, seeing that she was done, simply started the car, not noticing her hidden anticipation.
Yu Mingjiao didn’t get what she wanted. She pressed her lips together, her attention drawn to something else. As Cen Lingqiu drove out of the garage, Yu Mingjiao’s fingers couldn’t help but curl up, her eyes furtively glancing at Cen Lingqiu from time to time.
The movements were subtle and suppressed, difficult to notice.
Cen Lingqiu, being perceptive, noticed Yu Mingjiao’s puppy-like, wet and uneasy eyes in the rearview mirror and couldn’t help but speak.
“What’s wrong?” she said. “Did something happen?”
Yu Mingjiao lowered her eyelids, as if avoiding some emotion, and turned her head to face the window.
“…Are you okay to drive?”
As if she had been struggling for a long time, she finally spoke softly after a while.
Cen Lingqiu received an unexpected answer and didn’t quite grasp its meaning at first, letting out a questioning “Hm?”
But Yu Mingjiao said no more. Her gaze remained fixed outside the window, not looking at her, her pale, slender neck slightly stiff.
Seeing her fall silent again, Cen Lingqiu knew she would have to guess.
She considered many possibilities until she glimpsed her increasingly stiff neck in the rearview mirror. A flash of inspiration struck, and she guessed a possibility.
She asked tentatively, “Are you worried I’ll get into another car accident?”
Yu Mingjiao’s face still didn’t turn back. After hearing her question, her stiff neck became even more rigid. She didn’t reply, merely nodding silently, like a hiding cat tentatively extending a soft paw.
Cen Lingqiu couldn’t hold it in. Keeping her eyes on the road ahead, the corners of her lips curved into a faint arc.
“I won’t,” Cen Lingqiu said as if coaxing a child. “I’ll be very careful. Thank you for your concern.”
Yu Mingjiao maintained her original posture. She wasn’t skilled at showing concern for others; it was unfamiliar to her.
She was silent for another long moment, then spoke again.
“You just got out of the hospital… you don’t have to always pick me up from work.”
Her tone was flat. Though she was clearly looking forward to it, she sounded cold, just like a petulant child.
Cen Lingqiu felt that Yu Mingjiao had become a little softer than she was six months ago. Was it an illusion?
“I’m free lately,” Cen Lingqiu said nonchalantly. “Picking someone up is no big deal. You don’t have to worry about it.”
Worrying that something might happen to Yu Mingjiao and cause the mission to fail was one thing; wanting to pick her up from work and go home with her was another.
Cen Lingqiu felt the two were not mutually exclusive.
The car window was slightly open, letting the summer wind blow in. In the quiet night, there was only the sound of the wind.
“…I don’t,” Yu Mingjiao murmured very softly. Because the volume was so low, Cen Lingqiu didn’t hear clearly. “What did you say?”
Yu Mingjiao once again became a silent little cat, as if that sentence had just been her muttering to herself.
It was almost ten o’clock when they arrived at the apartment. Cen Lingqiu still hadn’t found a suitable place and was still living at home. After safely dropping Yu Mingjiao off, she was about to leave.
Before she could turn, Yu Mingjiao grabbed her wrist again.
Cen Lingqiu turned around and sighed, “What is it now?”
Yu Mingjiao’s expression was strange and stiff, various emotions warring on her face. Her exquisite cheeks were tinged with red.
She gripped Cen Lingqiu’s wrist, her lips pressed together, refusing to speak.
Cen Lingqiu thought she had turned into a petulant little puppy again.
After just half a year apart, she was already finding it hard to understand Yu Mingjiao’s emotions.
Cen Lingqiu said again, “Speak, Mingjiao. It’s late, I have to go back.”
Yu Mingjiao’s face was gloomy, but she finally deigned to speak.
“After I finished eating just now, why… didn’t you give me candy?”
In the past, whenever she obediently finished her meal, Cen Lingqiu would always give her a piece of candy.
“…”
Cen Lingqiu first took several seconds to…
Cen Lingqiu realized that not only could she not understand Yu Mingjiao’s emotions, but she also couldn’t figure out her personality anymore.
Ever since they met again, Yu Mingjiao had gradually shed her past sharpness. Much of the time, although she was still gloomy and quiet, the subtle expressions on her face were a far cry from indifference.
She was starting to become awkward and strange.
Like a little hedgehog covered in spines, contemplating slowly pulling them out.
After half a year apart, how had Yu Mingjiao become more and more like a child?
Cen Lingqiu couldn’t help but laugh for several minutes. Her laughter made Yu Mingjiao’s face grow darker and darker, and she angrily let go of her hand, staring at her coldly.
When she had laughed her fill, she slowly explained, “I forgot to buy some on the way here. I’ll buy them for you next time.”
Yu Mingjiao’s tone was icy. “Not necessary.”
Cen Lingqiu smiled, raising an eyebrow as she watched her with amusement.
Her gaze made Yu Mingjiao increasingly regret her momentary confusion that led her to say such a foolish thing.
Seeing her expression grow colder, as if it would freeze over in the next second, Cen Lingqiu stopped teasing her.
“I won’t forget from now on.” She remembered something and handed her phone over. “But, can you add me on WeChat first? And while you’re at it, remove my number from your blacklist.”
It was rather funny; they had known each other for so long but had no way to contact each other.
Yu Mingjiao was silent for a few seconds, then took out her phone, scanned her WeChat QR code, and then removed her number from the blacklist right in front of her.
Satisfied, Cen Lingqiu put her phone away.
“Then I’ll head back first. Rest well tonight.”
As she spoke, she turned to leave. Just as she was about to open the door, Yu Mingjiao called out to her.
“Wait.”
Cen Lingqiu, hand on the doorknob, turned to look at her.
Yu Mingjiao met her gaze. Her lips moved a few times, no longer silent.
“I’m sorry.”
She said again.
“Thank you.”
Her words were abrupt and inexplicable, but Cen Lingqiu understood.
I’m sorry for arguing with you that day, for speaking so harshly to you, which led to you getting into a car accident and being laid up for half a year.
I’m sorry for not visiting you while you were in the hospital.
And—
Thank you for the birthday present. Thank you for always taking me home.
Cen Lingqiu broke into a smile, gentle and casual.
“I’ll accept the thanks.”
“As for the apology, I won’t accept it.”
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