Cen Lingqiu finally agreed.
For the first few days after moving in, she wasn’t used to it. Whenever she left her room, she would always see a drowsy Yu Mingjiao coming to the living room for water. When their eyes met, both would be slightly taken aback before realizing, oh, they were living together.
Cen Lingqiu sometimes felt that life was unpredictable. Who would have thought that she and Yu Mingjiao would one day live together?
After getting over the initial discomfort, Cen Lingqiu slowly grew accustomed to Yu Mingjiao’s presence.
She would get up in the morning to make some breakfast, then go to Yu Mingjiao’s room to wake her up. Yu Mingjiao was a heavy sleeper; if no one woke her, she could sleep for an entire day, despite setting one alarm after another.
The two would calmly finish their breakfast, and then Cen Lingqiu would drive her to her company before going to work herself.
In the evening, they would go home together again. They often stopped by the supermarket on their way back from work to buy food for dinner.
It looked as if two incredibly close friends were living together, peacefully and serenely.
Cen Lingqiu hadn’t had normal interpersonal relationships for a very long time. She had neither friends nor a lover. Apart from the interactions required by her missions, she was mostly alone, and her life was inevitably dull. But she had grown used to these deathly quiet days. She didn’t want to build a deep relationship with anyone; she was incapable of living a communal life.
As a child, she relied on her parents and was heartbroken when they went away for work. Every day she spent at her grandmother’s house, she hoped her family would take her back. She wanted to go home.
But the depth of her love for her family was matched by the magnitude of her suffering. The parents she adored didn’t care about her, their daughter, at all. In their hearts, there was only their son; she was unimportant.
After realizing this, Cen Lingqiu locked herself in her room and cried her heart out, until her eyes could no longer produce tears, utterly dry.
A child’s first love received only a downpour, and nothing else.
At her grandmother’s house, Cen Lingqiu was like an abandoned puppy, bullied, despised, and casually beaten and scolded.
Back then, her happiest time was the Spring Festival, because once the new year began, everyone in her grandparents’ house would go on a trip, leaving her all alone at home.
She liked the space of being alone.
Because no one would force her to do chores, and no one would grab her by the ear and scold her.
She truly loved this feeling of being the only person in the world.
So much so that after arriving at the Book Transmigration Bureau, she never made any friends and hardly socialized.
Cen Lingqiu was terrified, disgusted, and repulsed by the idea of anyone entering her life.
She was like an iceberg on a deserted island, lifeless beyond its vastness, and no one dared to approach its freezing temperature.
She had thought that for her entire life, she would only have an empty house and empty surroundings.
Until now, when someone had walked into her barren and desolate desert. This person wasn’t swallowed by the sand; instead, she walked straight to her side.
For the first time, Cen Lingqiu caught a glimpse of the joy of normal human cohabitation and found herself enjoying it.
Being with Yu Mingjiao always felt relaxing. As long as she was nearby, Cen Lingqiu felt as if she had sunk into a soft cloud.
She even had the absurd thought that not completing the mission and remaining in this world forever would be a good choice.
After living with Yu Mingjiao for a while, she discovered more sides to her.
She loved to sleep in, basically staying in bed all day on her days off. She was a homebody and didn’t like to go out. Cen Lingqiu, on the other hand, couldn’t stand staying home all day, so she always found excuses to drag Yu Mingjiao out with her.
Yu Mingjiao would look very reluctant to go out, but as long as Cen Lingqiu called her Jiao Jiao, she would put on a cold face and unwillingly accompany her.
Ever since Cen Lingqiu discovered that Yu Mingjiao liked this nickname, whenever she was being disobedient, she would emphasize the two words “Jiao Jiao,” and Yu Mingjiao would magically become docile.
Cen Lingqiu always couldn’t help but laugh to herself.
Cute.
Besides that, Yu Mingjiao had many bad habits. She wouldn’t blow-dry her hair after washing it, just going to sleep in an air-conditioned room. She didn’t eat properly; if Cen Lingqiu was busy with work and didn’t make it home to cook, she just wouldn’t eat.
Yu Mingjiao was a girl who was prone to tantrums.
She had a terrible temper when waking up; every time Cen Lingqiu woke her, she would look displeased. Sometimes, if Cen Lingqiu was on the phone with a client and forgot about her, she would also be unhappy, her face calm but her actions cold and icy.
But at the same time, she was also very easy to coax.
As long as Cen Lingqiu stroked her hair and called her Jiao Jiao in a gentle voice, her anger would subside significantly.
Since living with her, every day was like a blind box; she never knew what cute yet awkward things Yu Mingjiao would do.
Every day, Cen Lingqiu would be driven mad by her, then be left speechless, and finally, couldn’t help but chuckle.
The System once couldn’t help but comment that she had become much more lively recently.
Cen Lingqiu was stunned for a second. “Have I?”
The System said: “You just haven’t noticed it yourself. This feeling is like…”
The System was silent for a good while before its simple, rigid electronic core came up with the right words.
“It’s as if you stopped being dead and started to live only after you met her.”
Cen Lingqiu was dazed for a long time and didn’t speak.
Today, Wen Zhi returned from abroad and specifically requested Cen Lingqiu to come out and hang out with her.
Before leaving, Cen Lingqiu told Yu Mingjiao, “I might be back very late tonight. Remember to blow-dry your hair after you wash it.”
Yu Mingjiao quietly watched her figure. “Where are you going?”
“Wen Zhi is back in the country. I’m going to have a meal with her,” Cen Lingqiu said as she put on her shoes.
Yu Mingjiao lowered her eyes. “When will you be back?”
“I don’t know, probably quite late.” Cen Lingqiu grabbed her bag. “I’m leaving.”
Yu Mingjiao went to the balcony and watched Cen Lingqiu’s car slowly move away.
Cen Lingqiu always had many people.
Parents, a younger brother, friends.
She had so much.
In comparison, she was just an ordinary person by Cen Lingqiu’s side. She was well aware of the gulf between them; perhaps they couldn’t even be considered friends.
She wanted Cen Lingqiu to be like her.
Surrounded only by inescapable loneliness.
Perhaps only then would it be possible for Cen Lingqiu to keep her attention on her forever.
This short period of living together made Yu Mingjiao want to push her luck, becoming even more greedy. She enjoyed having Cen Lingqiu by her side; she liked Cen Lingqiu’s constant, worried admonitions and her slightly stern voice.
She wanted a more thorough, a complete and total concern.
She couldn’t explain why she had this strange desire. There was always something invisible sweeping through her mind, ravaging her thoughts that were on the verge of collapse.
Some kind of formless beast was pushing her towards a terrifying mirage. She was addicted, unable to pull herself away, and unable to control it at will.
She sat in her wheelchair, her eyes fixed on the disappearing car, her pupils growing darker and darker.
Cen Lingqiu arrived at the bar Wen Zhi owned. As soon as Wen Zhi saw her, she rushed over and hugged her.
“Wow, you’re really full of surprises!” Wen Zhi exclaimed with a flood of emotions. “I thought you’d never wake up in this lifetime.”
Cen Lingqiu was being hugged so tightly. She found it strange how everyone hugged with so much force.
Especially that kid, Yu Mingjiao. When she hugged her, the force was so great that Cen Lingqiu often felt like she was going to be eaten.
Cen Lingqiu patted her on the back, signaling for her to let go.
Wen Zhi realized and quickly released her.
“Is your body okay now?” Wen Zhi sat down.
“It’s fine.”
Wen Zhi ordered a few bottles of alcohol. “You have no idea how shocked I was when I heard you’d woken up.”
Cen Lingqiu smiled.
“It’s a good thing you woke up.” Thinking back now, Wen Zhi was still scared. “How did you get into a car accident? And of all things, the hit-and-run driver still hasn’t been found.”
On the road where Cen Lingqiu’s accident occurred, the security camera happened to be broken that day, so the driver was never found.
Half a year had passed, and Cen Lingqiu had almost forgotten about that day. She could only recall the piercing pain. She didn’t want to dwell on it. “Forget it, there’s no point in talking about this now.”
“True.” Wen Zhi nodded. “As long as you’re alive, that’s what matters.”
“But are you living alone now?” Wen Zhi crossed her legs. “I still want to settle down in the country. Do you want to keep living with me?”
Cen Lingqiu’s tone was calm. “That might be a bit difficult.”
“Why?”
“I’m living with Yu Mingjiao.”
“…”
Wen Zhi looked as if she had just heard a terrifying ghost story. “When did your relationship progress to this point? Did you hit your head too hard, or was Yu Mingjiao possessed by someone?”
Cen Lingqiu thought to herself, The one who was possessed is your friend, Lin Qiu.
Wen Zhi’s curiosity was greatly piqued. “How did you and Yu Mingjiao suddenly get so close? Have you both forgotten what it was like between you before?”
Cen Lingqiu also found her relationship with Yu Mingjiao to be baffling, even reaching a point of almost bizarre inexplicability. No one would have ever imagined they could live together, inseparable day in and day out.
But beyond reason, both she and Yu Mingjiao had their rationality invaded by impulse and hidden emotions. They had both tacitly forgotten many things, which was how they maintained their current relationship.
The bartender brought over the drinks, placing two different glasses in front of them.
Cen Lingqiu was a bit thirsty, so she picked up the glass in front of her and took a few sips.
Wen Zhi had just been looking at her phone. When she looked up and saw the drink Cen Lingqiu was having, her face paled in shock. “Hey, that one’s mine! It’s extremely strong, you can’t handle it.”
Unfortunately, she spoke too late. Cen Lingqiu had already drunk half of it.
Not long after drinking it, Cen Lingqiu felt a burning sensation in her throat and chest, and her head felt dizzy.
“What kind of drink is this?” Cen Lingqiu frowned.
Wen Zhi facepalmed. “That’s a new item at the bar, the one with the highest alcohol content. I just wanted to see how strong it was. Why did you take it?”
Wen Zhi could hold her liquor very well and rarely got drunk, while Cen Lingqiu’s tolerance was only average. She couldn’t handle high-proof alcohol.
Cen Lingqiu’s dizziness grew stronger. Her vision swam, and she felt top-heavy and unsteady on her feet.
Seeing that something was wrong, Wen Zhi helped her up to take her home.
As they passed through a hallway, Cen Lingqiu pointed at a girl ahead and slurred, “Jiao Jiao.”
“Who?”
“Mingjiao, Yu Mingjiao.” Cen Lingqiu was already drunk, her words becoming jumbled. “I saw her… But, why isn’t she in a wheelchair?”
Wen Zhi followed her gaze and saw only the back of a woman with long hair up ahead.
“You must be mistaken.” Wen Zhi was speechless. “How could Yu Mingjiao possibly stand up? What’s with you? Even when you’re drunk, you’re thinking about Yu Mingjiao. Anyone who didn’t know better would think she’s your wife.”
Cen Lingqiu lowered her head, hummed in agreement, and mumbled dazedly, “What wife…”
When Cen Lingqiu was drunk, she was much like an ordinary person: her hearing was poor, and she talked nonsense.
Wen Zhi brought her to Yu Mingjiao’s home. The door opened, and when Wen Zhi met Yu Mingjiao’s cold and gloomy gaze, she felt a strange sense of awkwardness, though she didn’t know why.
“She’s drunk,” Wen Zhi explained. “Is it okay if I come in? It’ll be hard for you to get her to her room by yourself.”
Yu Mingjiao hummed in acknowledgment and stepped aside, gesturing for her to enter.
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