Qiu Yang had always worked hard for a better life.
She knew the importance of money. While others had time to date in college and received living expenses from their families, she had nothing. She dedicated her time to studying and working part-time. She earned scholarships and gradually saved some money. She bought an SLR camera, and when she graduated, she wasn’t lost; she could rent a decent apartment outside and settle down.
People said raising a cat could increase happiness, so she went to a pet store and bought Pingzi. She gave it the best life she could afford, even choosing the best cat food, ensuring Pingzi didn’t suffer at all. She felt she had suffered enough and didn’t want her pet to experience those hardships.
She tried hard to hide her past experiences, making herself confident and no longer as insecure as she once was. This led her to actively socialize. Three years ago, she went to a bar for a friend’s birthday, and that’s where she met Tao Sixian. She had been too busy before, so that was her first time falling for someone, and it was a girl.
Thus, she had a girlfriend and began to feel that life seemed better because of Tao Sixian’s arrival. She rented a better apartment, and she and Tao Sixian lived together. As long as Tao Sixian was by her side, she felt life wasn’t so bad, and she still had passion and hope. But Tao Sixian personally told her that it was all fake.
Actually, Qiu Yang didn’t think it mattered much at the time because she still had Pingzi, her job, and her money. It was just that the sadness of the breakup would more or less leave a big hole in her heart. Shen Ningruo came at this time and told her, “I’ll fill the hole. I can help you fix it.”
Qiu Yang believed her.
Qiu Yang regretted believing her so early.
“Yangyang, that’s not true. You are very good, you are especially worthy.”
“You deserve all the praise and beauty.”
Yue Chu’s words were sincere. Looking at Qiu Yang’s state, her heart sank little by little. She had known Qiu Yang for so long and had never seen her like this before. She was like a fragile painting that could be easily torn into tiny pieces with a little force, and when thrown into the air, the scraps could be carried high and far by the wind.
Qiu Yang’s lips curved slightly at the words. Her gaze fell on Yue Chu’s face, and she softly said, “Thank you.”
“But Senior Yue, you were so good to me, first because my eyes resembled someone, and now out of guilt. How can I believe you?”
Qiu Yang’s form of address had returned to how it was before.
Yue Chu opened her mouth, about to say something, but Qiu Yang spoke first, “No need to explain anything. We both know it, don’t we?”
“No, Qiu Yang.” Yue Chu furrowed her brows. “Don’t think about these things now. You’ll only get more depressed. My kindness to you isn’t because of that, it’s…”
“I’m tired.” Qiu Yang couldn’t hear anything now. It wasn’t that she was stubborn, but the string she had been holding onto finally snapped. She couldn’t be rational. She actually thought Shen Ningruo would come to coax her, but Shen Ningruo didn’t. In this emotional state, she couldn’t think independently. She hadn’t felt this tired even when Tao Sixian confessed to her before.
“Maybe my tolerance isn’t good enough. I just want to be alone now.” Qiu Yang bowed to Yue Chu. “Sorry, I’m going back first.”
Yue Chu watched Qiu Yang’s retreating back, her hands clenched into fists. The phone in her pocket vibrated several more times. The wind from the river blew her hair. Yue Chu took out her phone, opened the messages from Yao Yao, replied to them one by one, and only drove to Yao Yao’s place after seeing Qiu Yang get into a car.
Perhaps it was because she had been in the wind for so long, but Qiu Yang felt unwell after returning. Her head was heavy and dizzy. Before sleeping, she took cold medicine, but when she woke up, her head was burning hot. The first thought that popped into Qiu Yang’s mind was that Shen Ningruo had been sick recently, and now it was her turn to catch a cold. But when Shen Ningruo was sick, she had someone to take care of her. Who would take care of her this time?
No one.
No one had ever taken care of her.
Fortunately, it was already Saturday, not a workday. After waking up in the morning, Qiu Yang replied to Qu Yan’s work message, casually mentioning that she had a cold. Then she ordered takeout. When the delivery person knocked and called out, she propped herself up to get the food at the door, then slowly fed herself a little to line her stomach before daring to take the medicine. The morning passed quickly. She didn’t have much appetite at noon, so she had some more porridge and medicine, then lay down on the bed again to sleep. She slept until dark, missing several calls during that time.
When she woke up, Pingzi was lying on her, sleeping soundly. Qiu Yang raised her hand and stroked its head, receiving a comforting “Meow” in return. The room was dark. Qiu Yang moved slightly before turning on the bedside lamp. Pingzi opened its eyes, slowly walked over, rubbed against Qiu Yang’s head, and lay down by her pillow. Qiu Yang’s throat felt like it could breathe fire, but she still turned her head and praised Pingzi, “I didn’t raise you for nothing.”
Pingzi: “Meow.”
After sleeping all day and obediently taking her medicine, Qiu Yang felt much better than in the morning. She slowly propped herself up and opened her phone. There were several missed calls, all from Shen Ningruo. Qiu Yang put them aside for now and opened WeChat. Gu Lan, Peng Kaimiao, and a few other colleagues knew she was sick and sent messages of concern. She replied to them one by one. Besides that, there were some messages from Yue Chu expressing her thoughts. They filled an entire screen, but Qiu Yang couldn’t read them now; she was feeling a bit stuck in a rut. Finally, there was a message from Shen Ningruo, only one.
Shen Ningruo: 【I miss you very much.】
It was sent ten minutes ago. Qiu Yang’s eyelashes fluttered. After hesitating for a long time, she still sent a message back: 【I miss you too.】 It wasn’t fake; she really did miss her, but it also contained many other thoughts.
After sending the message, Qiu Yang put her phone aside and got up to cook meat for Pingzi and porridge for herself. She needed to take medicine. After Pingzi finished dinner, there was a knock at the door. Qiu Yang licked her dry lips. She didn’t know who it was but thought it was likely Shen Ningruo. But she walked to the door and looked through the peephole, only to find it wasn’t Shen Ningruo. It was Tao Sixian, who had left in such a hurry last time.
Qiu Yang frowned, wondering why Tao Sixian was here at this hour. She had no intention of opening the door when she heard Tao Sixian outside raising her voice, “Qiu Yang, I left something here. Open the door.” Qiu Yang ignored her. She had personally packed Tao Sixian’s things; there was no way anything was left behind. After hearing that, she turned and went into the kitchen. Her phone, placed nearby, lit up with a message from Miao Yi. Miao Yi said she heard the commotion outside, peeked, and saw it was that idiot Tao Sixian, asking Qiu Yang why Tao Sixian would come back.
Qiu Yang couldn’t help but smile when she saw the word “idiot” she used, then immediately covered her mouth and coughed twice before replying to Miao Yi’s message. Tao Sixian didn’t stay at the door for long before leaving. Qiu Yang quietly breathed a sigh of relief. Her porridge was also ready. She scooped a bowl and set it aside, then went to sit on the sofa to rest. It wasn’t a workday today, but Shen Ningruo was still “working overtime.” Qiu Yang chuckled silently, closing her eyes to ease her still aching head. A long time passed, and the porridge had cooled. Only then did she get up and go to the table to drink it.
Shen Ningruo stayed in her room today. It was rare for her to feel as lost as she did now. How could she talk to Qiu Yang so that this matter wouldn’t become a barrier between them? She knew the important thing wasn’t that someone sent flowers using Qiu Yang’s name, but she heard clearly what the delivery person said when delivering the flowers, so Qiu Yang must have also heard it clearly, otherwise she wouldn’t have been as distraught as Ke Yezi described. The crucial point was—Qiu Yang knew she wasn’t working overtime, that her claim of working overtime was false.
Shen Ningruo desperately wanted to appear before Qiu Yang right away and coax her, but she still felt she couldn’t explain herself clearly. Shen Ningruo, who was always skilled at debating others in the business world, felt as if her mouth was sealed with tape at this moment. But by eight o’clock in the evening, Shen Ningruo finally couldn’t sit still. She put on her coat, grabbed her car keys, and went to the underground parking lot. This time, it took her ten minutes less to reach Qiu Yang’s complex than before. After getting out of the car, Shen Ningruo ran all the way to the elevator. Slightly out of breath, she pressed the floor where Qiu Yang lived.
When the elevator door opened, the face that greeted her was Tao Sixian’s.
Shen Ningruo’s eyes narrowed slightly. She wasn’t in the mood to argue with this person right now, but Tao Sixian clearly didn’t think so. Tao Sixian reached out and stopped Shen Ningruo, tilting her head. “In such a hurry to reincarnate?” She paused, her deceptively innocent face showing a mocking expression. “My husband’s… ex-girlfriend?”
Tao Sixian felt Shen Ningruo looked familiar last time but couldn’t remember who she was. It wasn’t until she thought about it for a long time after returning home that she remembered this was the woman Guo Ming’an had pursued for so long but never managed to sleep with.
“Oh, right.”
“I wonder if my poor Yangyang knows about this identity of yours?”
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