PSMD – Chapter 63

The first response came from Pingzi’s meow. Qiu Yang and Shen Ningruo both heard it and immediately smiled.

Qiu Yang cleared her throat and said as she turned around, “Pangpang answered for me.”

“Really?” Shen Ningruo’s smile deepened. She stepped inside and saw Pingzi slowly walking towards her.

Shen Ningruo squatted down, placed her hand on Pingzi’s head, rubbed the cat, and asked a similar question, “Haven’t seen you in a few days, did you miss me?”

Pingzi: “Meow.”

Shen Ningruo gently squeezed its face, “You’re so good.”

“Just not as good as your mom.”

Pingzi turned its head and walked away.

Had enough.

Shen Ningruo watched its tail sway, and while changing her shoes, she looked at Qiu Yang again, “Can Pangpang understand human language?”

“I don’t know.”

“I told it it wasn’t as good as you, and it ignored me.”

“Then it probably can understand.”

Qiu Yang wiped her hair with one hand and looked at her phone with the other, “Did you call me?”

“Yes.” Shen Ningruo put on her slippers and slowly walked towards her.

The living room light was very bright. Qiu Yang’s face, fresh from a shower, was illuminated, glowing like a freshly cracked egg, looking very elastic and smooth.

But it wasn’t just the light; Qiu Yang’s skin was naturally good.

“Let me dry your hair.” Shen Ningruo stood in front of Qiu Yang, her gaze deepening.

Qiu Yang looked up at her, her expression momentarily stunned, then lowered her gaze and agreed, “Okay.”

Shen Ningruo had never dried anyone else’s hair. Of course, besides hairdressers, no one else had ever dried hers either.

No, deep in her memory, her mother had dried it. Back then, she had even vowed that when she grew up, she would dry her mother’s hair too.

But her mother wasn’t just anyone.

Shen Ningruo’s mood suddenly dropped. Qiu Yang clearly noticed, but she pursed her lips and didn’t rush to ask. Then she saw Shen Ningruo smile again, “Then I’ll go get the hairdryer.”

While drying her hair, Shen Ningruo was very focused. The sound of the hairdryer was right by their ears, making their silence seem even more pronounced.

After drying Qiu Yang’s hair, Shen Ningruo put the hairdryer aside. Before Qiu Yang could stand up, she bent down and pressed her lips to Qiu Yang’s nape.

Shen Ningruo parted the hair there, revealing a patch of fair skin. She kissed it lightly, then whispered, “I haven’t kissed you here yet.”

Qiu Yang’s throat tightened. Looking at herself in the mirror, she hummed in response.

Shen Ningruo’s fingertips, through Qiu Yang’s pajamas, traced downwards from the nape she had just kissed.

“Here.”

“Here.”

“And here.”

“Can I tonight?”

She hadn’t kissed these places before; she had only gently stroked them. Now, separated by a thin layer of pajamas, it sent a shiver through Qiu Yang’s body.

Qiu Yang’s eyelashes lowered. Her gaze fell on the comb in front of her, and her ears quietly turned red again.

Shen Ningruo was still waiting for her answer.

Many scenes of her time with Shen Ningruo flashed through Qiu Yang’s mind.

There was their first meeting in Xicheng, and their reunion after returning to Yuncheng. They had sparred back and forth many times, both in and out of bed.

But there was no denying that every interaction made Qiu Yang remember this person more deeply.

She was certain that her longing for Shen Ningruo was real, but she couldn’t be entirely sure how much she liked her.

She had previously thought it would take a long time to forget Tao Sixian, and that she wouldn’t have a “new love” anytime soon. Shen Ningruo was just a sensual accident in her life.

She never expected that she had already met her “new love.”

It was just that she still needed a little time to drive Tao Sixian out of her heart, and a little time to figure out exactly what her feelings for Shen Ningruo were.

She didn’t want to say “I like you” to Shen Ningruo while still holding someone else in her heart; that wasn’t her style.

For Qiu Yang, being in a relationship meant being completely devoted, not even a little bit less. She had once thought she and Tao Sixian were like that, but later realized it was only her.

“Okay.” Qiu Yang’s thoughts had twisted and turned, and only then did she reply to Shen Ningruo.

The next morning, Qiu Yang was woken up by her phone ringing. It wasn’t her alarm, but someone calling her.

Drowsily, she grabbed her phone and saw an unfamiliar number from Yuncheng.

Her eyes blurred. She wanted to hang up and go back to sleep, but reason told her it would be a huge loss if it was a client.

Actually, it was already 9:30, not early, but she and Shen Ningruo had been up late the night before, which automatically pushed back her waking time.

She pressed answer, put the phone to her ear, and pressed her face into the pillow, “Hello?”

“Sister.” The other person said one word, instantly waking Qiu Yang up.

Her closed eyes opened again. She threw off the covers, got up, put on a jacket, and walked to the living room, her brows furrowed, “Why are you calling me?”

The caller was her cousin, the son of her uncle and aunt, named Qiu Wenyun.

Qiu Yang had her mother’s surname.

Qiu Wenyun chuckled, “Sister, I’m a senior about to graduate and need an internship, but I don’t have anywhere to live. My mom told me to ask you if I could stay with you?”

“I can sleep in the living room, too. As soon as I find a place to rent, I’ll move out right away.” He said it without any subtlety, as if he had suffered a great injustice.

“No.”

“Go stay with your friends.”

Qiu Yang wanted to hang up after saying that, but Qiu Wenyun was quick-tongued, “Sister, I’m not saying anything, but you lived at my house for so many years, eating and staying for free, and we didn’t ask for much in return. Now your brother just wants to stay with you for a while, and it won’t cause you much trouble, but you won’t even agree to that? Isn’t that a bit heartless?”

“Heartless?” Qiu Yang savored the word, becoming even more awake.

She said nothing more, ended the call, and promptly blocked the number.

Shen Ningruo came out of the bedroom and saw Qiu Yang sitting on the sofa, her back looking a bit lonely.

“What’s wrong?” Shen Ningruo walked up to Qiu Yang and asked.

Qiu Yang pursed her lips and shook her head, “Nothing.”

She held up her phone, “Got a call from my cousin.”

“Your cousin?”

Qiu Yang’s expression stiffened, “Yes, my cousin.”

“About two years younger than me.”

Shen Ningruo picked up Pingzi from the climbing frame. She took Qiu Yang’s hand and placed it on Pingzi’s head. Seeing Qiu Yang like this, her brows furrowed, “He’s not a good person?”

“…Yes.”

Qiu Yang’s eyelashes fluttered. She looked into Shen Ningruo’s eyes, hesitating whether to tell her about this.

Actually, her relationship with Shen Ningruo was very intimate, and she also planned to continue developing it, but…

But Qiu Yang just didn’t know how to start.

Shen Ningruo saw Qiu Yang’s hesitation. She didn’t demand that Qiu Yang tell her anything. She patted Qiu Yang’s shoulder and then rubbed her head, “Get ready in a bit. I’ll take you out today.”

“Where are we going?”

Shen Ningruo smiled slightly, “Haven’t decided yet.”

But Qiu Yang needed to clear her head, and Shen Ningruo knew that.

After washing up, changing, and putting on makeup, the two went out one after the other. Qiu Yang had originally wanted to carry Pingzi, but then worried Pingzi might be recognized by netizens and dismissed the idea.

Shen Ningruo first took Qiu Yang for breakfast, then drove her to their destination—

A private swimming pool.

The moment Qiu Yang saw the name, she forgot to blink.

She hadn’t expected Shen Ningruo to take her swimming.

“Let’s go.”

“Swimming can strengthen your body and help you focus. Some things get soaked away in the water, making them hard to recall.”

Shen Ningruo paused, “When I’m feeling very agitated, I come swimming.”

“You can try it too.”

Qiu Yang was a bit nervous, “I… I’m afraid of water.”

“It’s okay, Xiao Yang.”

“I’ll teach you.”

Shen Ningruo’s voice was soft and gentle, but it gave Qiu Yang a lot of strength, making her gaze a little more determined, “Okay.”

Shen Ningruo often came to this private swimming pool. She had a high-level membership card and could come anytime.

The staff at the front desk were surprised to see Shen Ningruo bringing someone with her for the first time, and quickly made arrangements.

The swimming pool also provided swimming gear. The two each chose a set and were led to the changing room by an attendant.

They both chose swimsuits and short skirts, just in different colors. After changing, Qiu Yang was still a bit dazed.

She was genuinely afraid of water, but now she was about to swim.

The two stood in front of the mirror. Shen Ningruo nodded with satisfaction, “I think it’s very…”

“…good.”

She wanted to say “matching,” but forced herself to stop.

Now wasn’t the time, especially since Qiu Yang’s mood was clearly affected by that cousin.

Qiu Yang nodded and hummed in agreement, then was pulled by Shen Ningruo through a corridor to the swimming area arranged for them.

There was no one else there, just the two of them.

There were two lanes, fifty meters long. The space wasn’t large, but it didn’t feel small either.

The water in the pool was clear and clean, you could see the bottom. There was a faint smell of disinfectant in the air, which went straight into Qiu Yang’s nostrils.

Warm up first, then get in the water.

Qiu Yang followed Shen Ningruo in doing a few exercises, and her body gradually loosened up.

Shen Ningruo then acted like a swimming coach, having Qiu Yang lie on a kickboard to practice the leg movements for breaststroke.

After a while, Shen Ningruo stood by the edge. She put on her swim cap and goggles, then jumped high, entering the pool headfirst. She swam along the bottom to where Qiu Yang was standing before poking her head out.

Qiu Yang squatted down, still a bit nervous.

Shen Ningruo pushed her goggles up. Her hands gripped the edge, and she encouraged Qiu Yang, “Come down, Xiao Yang, I’m here.”

Qiu Yang had a foam float tied to her back by Shen Ningruo. She knew it would keep her from sinking, but…

“I fell into the water once when I was little.” Qiu Yang pursed her lips and said slowly, “I was with my uncle and aunt at the park. It was rare for them to take me out.”

“There were koi fish in the park, and many people bought food to feed them.”

“I was watching the koi with them. They were fed until they were very fat.”

“I…”

“The safety railing was short. That’s when my cousin pushed me into the pond.”

As Qiu Yang spoke, a tear splashed down, “I said he did it on purpose, but no one believed me.”

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