In the end, Ye Yuhuan and Song Zhiqing left the school. Song Zhiqing insisted that on any day of commemorative significance, they had to do something that brought happiness. Even if they couldn’t have hot pot, they had to go sing karaoke.
That’s right, the hobbies of the great Miss Song were just as simple and unadorned.
Ye Yuhuan couldn’t refute this. In fact, she didn’t want to. It was like someone giving you a piece of candy; even without eating it, you knew it was sweet. And as for the evening Song Zhiqing had planned, even though Ye Yuhuan hadn’t experienced it yet, she knew it would be a happy one.
Before leaving, at Song Zhiqing’s insistence, the two changed out of their school uniforms. The building with the lockers was more than half the campus away from the dorms, and Song Zhiqing was too lazy to run back to her locker to get her spare clothes. She picked out an outfit she could wear from Ye Yuhuan’s closet, and they quickly headed out.
Looking at Song Zhiqing beside her, Ye Yuhuan still found it incredible. She had watched with her own eyes as the shorts and sweatshirt were taken from her wardrobe, yet when Song Zhiqing put them on, she gave off a completely different vibe. That vibe was… it made her look a bit short.
Song Zhiqing’s height could only be described as barely average, but her body proportions were excellent. Coupled with her usual attention to fashion, she always looked like a graceful and slender young woman. However, after putting on Ye Yuhuan’s clothes, the stylish boost was practically nonexistent—after all, Ye Yuhuan was a natural model who looked good in anything, so she didn’t pay much attention to that aspect. The clothes, a size too big, also hid Song Zhiqing’s proportions, making her look particularly petite. If Song Zhiqing hadn’t spent so much time picking out the clothes earlier, she would have insisted on getting her own, no matter what.
Song Zhiqing turned her head and saw the strange look in Ye Yuhuan’s eyes, immediately knowing what she was thinking. She rushed over and forcefully squished her face. “Hey, it’s not that weird, okay?”
With her mouth being pinched, Ye Yuhuan could only explain with difficulty, “It’s not weird, just… rare to see.”
This sentence did nothing to comfort her. Song Zhiqing said huffily, “It’s all your fault! How can I not fit into a single one of your dresses? It’s so humiliating!”
Ye Yuhuan pulled her hand down and said with a straight face, “It’s not my fault I’m tall.”
“Aaaah! I knew you were laughing at me for being short! You’re the worst.”
The two of them bickered playfully as they walked to a nearby restaurant. After a simple meal, they took a taxi to a KTV.
Ye Yuhuan held a cup of fruit tea, while Song Zhiqing stared resentfully at her own hot drink. Her period just had to come at the most annoying time. Of course, Ye Yuhuan was also annoying. It would have been fine to drink room-temperature milk tea, but she had insisted the staff make it hot. She’d only had cramps this one time, how could she be so fragile!
The last time Ye Yuhuan had been to a KTV was for her middle school graduation party, and it was also the only time. Back then, she was busy preparing to attend Qinglin, and with all the turmoil at home during middle school, she had no time to cultivate friendships with her classmates. Naturally, when graduation came, she didn’t feel much sorrow about parting ways. In fact, she felt a sense of relief. She had made a brief appearance at the graduation party and then left.
But today, she felt different. Ye Yuhuan was… a little excited.
Unsurprisingly, although the young miss’s hobbies were simple and unadorned, the places where she pursued them were quite opulent. This KTV was located in the city center, and its impressive scale, occupying half a building, was a testament to its quality. The interior featured Roman-style decor. The dim yellow light from crystal chandeliers shone on the white marble, creating an atmosphere of decadent indulgence. Watching the manager who was respectfully accompanying them, Ye Yuhuan couldn’t help but consider whether she should follow Shen Wei’s example and use her foreknowledge to make a fortune. Otherwise, her savings didn’t seem like they could support many more visits to a place like this.
This thought came to an abrupt halt when Song Zhiqing stuffed a card into her hand. Song Zhiqing said with a beaming smile, “Nice, right? It’s all mine. It’ll be transferred to my name when I turn eighteen. This card is for you. You can come here and have fun whenever you want. Don’t worry about saving me money, this KTV makes a ton.”
Ye Yuhuan accepted the card, stunned. It seemed she had been thinking too small.
She couldn’t even begin to imagine the happiness of a young miss.
Although Miss Song had arrived with great fanfare, the private room she chose was quite secluded and wasn’t even in the most luxurious tier. Song Zhiqing sank into the soft sofa and explained while selecting songs on the tablet on the table, “I often come here to sing alone when I’m bored. There’s never anyone around this room. I like the atmosphere of a KTV, but I don’t like being disturbed.”
Half of Song Zhiqing’s face was steeped in darkness, a smile playing on her lips. This was different from the usual fiery and flamboyant Song Zhiqing. She looked serene and aloof, like the weariness after a grand banquet, and the poise beneath that weariness.
Ye Yuhuan walked over and sat beside her, picking up where she left off. “I thought you’d prefer more lively forms of entertainment.”
Song Zhiqing blinked and smiled, pressing her lips together. “Surprising, isn’t it? I actually hate noisy places. When I was little, I followed my mom everywhere and saw a lot of very lively scenes. After a while, I became really uncomfortable with the feeling of a group of strangers getting together to party wildly. Mmm, I find it very boring.”
Ye Yuhuan thought for a moment. This was probably one of the reasons she would fall for Shangguan Xianxian.
But she didn’t say it out loud. She had a gut feeling that now was not the right time to bring up Shangguan Xianxian. Shangguan Xianxian existed in a future timeline, and the person sitting next to her now was the Song Zhiqing from before she met Shangguan Xianxian—the Song Zhiqing who would have been fine even without Shangguan Xianxian.
Song Zhiqing quickly chose a song. She very naturally handed the microphone over, and Ye Yuhuan took it stiffly. Her only experience was singing in a large choir; singing with just one friend like this was an experience far too unfamiliar for her.
Urged on by Song Zhiqing’s gaze, Ye Yuhuan finally began to sing.
Fortunately, it wasn’t bad. Ye Yuhuan breathed a secret sigh of relief.
Song Zhiqing’s singing wasn’t bad either; in fact, it was exceptionally good. Her voice was light and ethereal, with a subtle quality that seemed to tug at one’s heartstrings.
Hearing Ye Yuhuan’s praise, Song Zhiqing burst out laughing. Ye Yuhuan noticed a dimple on her right cheek, very faint, appearing only when she smiled with genuine happiness.
“Ye Yuhuan, have I ever told you that I want to be a singer in the future?”
Ye Yuhuan shook her head. They had never talked about anything other than Shangguan Xianxian before. As for Song Zhiqing’s plans for the future, the plot had never described them. In fact, the description of her life stopped at the age of eighteen, followed only by fragmented and broken snippets.
“But I know now.”
Song Zhiqing turned her head to look at her. The dazzling lights in the room were off; only a few small lamps glowed faintly in the corners. In the dim light, she could see Song Zhiqing’s flushed cheeks after finishing a song, and her sparkling almond-shaped eyes. She asked in the same beautiful voice she had just used to sing, “Do you think I can be a great singer?”
Ye Yuhuan smiled. It seemed even the great Miss Song couldn’t help but feel apprehensive about her dreams. She cleared her throat and said with a clarity and certainty like clear water striking stone, “Song Zhiqing, you’re the best singer I’ve ever heard.”
Song Zhiqing’s smile widened, and the dimple reappeared.
That night, they played until it was almost time for the dorms to close before heading back. Ye Yuhuan eventually came to enjoy the fun of singing, and under Song Zhiqing’s guidance, she even managed to display some decent skill. Song Zhiqing declared that if she ever held a concert in the future, she would definitely have Ye Yuhuan on stage with her.
In front of the dormitory building, just as Ye Yuhuan was about to get out of the car, Song Zhiqing grabbed her sleeve and said cheerfully, “Next time, it’s your turn to take me to do something you like!”
Ye Yuhuan’s features softened, and a happy smile graced her lips. She nodded. “Okay.”
After Ye Yuhuan left and the car started moving again, Song Zhiqing sat inside and blinked hard.
Ah, Ye Yuhuan’s smile… it’s too beautiful!
While Song Zhiqing was on her way home, Shen Wei and Shangguan Xianxian had already arrived. The day’s events had been quite a shock for both of them. Shen Wei had later ransacked her memories but couldn’t find any trace of Ye Yuhuan. This meant that in her past life, not only was Ye Yuhuan not by Song Zhiqing’s side, she wasn’t even at Qinglin!
If Ye Yuhuan had been at Qinglin in her past life, with her grades and looks, it would have been impossible for her to be so obscure that Shen Wei didn’t even have an impression of her name.
This realization filled Shen Wei with panic. She couldn’t help but ask herself, just as she had when she was first reborn: Was her past life real, or was it just a fantasy?
But everything aligned with the knowledge she had accumulated in her past life. Ye Yuhuan was the only exception. What did this exception mean?
Shen Wei tried to convince herself: If I can be reborn, then it’s completely understandable for someone who transmigrated into a book, or has a system, or something like that to show up, right?
But did that mean this world was as full of holes as a sieve?
Could the beautiful future she envisioned still be realized?
Shen Wei secretly resolved to uncover Ye Yuhuan’s background.
As for Shangguan Xianxian, she had always known her younger sister was mysterious. When she went to the town to pick up Shen Wei, although Shen Wei had tried her best to feign an expression of disbelief, it seemed like just one step in the process of being reunited with her family. Shen Wei performed it well, and she did an equally good job in the subsequent steps, always managing to reduce the probability of any unexpected incidents with perfect timing. Especially when she “accidentally” revealed that her adoptive family had been abusing her right before they left. The timing was perfect. Any earlier, and the family might have resorted to desperate measures. Any later, and Shangguan Chong—their father—wouldn’t have handled the matter personally, and the family’s fate wouldn’t have been as miserable as it was now.
Shangguan Xianxian didn’t know what Shen Wei’s considerations were, but even though she had her own plans for everything, she always maintained a frail and delicate appearance, deliberately hiding her edge, as if even the vast Shangguan family couldn’t give her enough of a sense of security.
It was only today, when she met Song Zhiqing, that Shen Wei broke out of her carefully constructed persona. It was clear that she really disliked Song Zhiqing. But why? It was the first time they had met.
Shangguan Xianxian gave a deep look at her sister, who was curled up on the sofa hugging a carton of plain milk. She looked so docile, like an innocent little kitten, unaware of the world’s ways. But Shangguan Xianxian knew she had claws, and they were sharp.
Noticing Shangguan Xianxian’s gaze, Shen Wei looked up and gave her a sweet smile.
Shangguan Xianxian’s lips curved into a helpless smile. No matter what this sister of hers planned to do, she would stay by her side. The Shangguan family was a great tree riddled with termites. Growing up in it hadn’t been easy, but that didn’t erase the fact that the family had given her a top-tier education and resources. But if she were to repay that debt, she would rather protect this little kitten as she slowly grew into a fierce tiger than slave away for those relatives whose eyes were full of calculation.
After all, Shen Wei was also a part of the Shangguan family—and the best part, at that.
