When Ye Yuhuan woke up, she rubbed her head and saw that the sky had gone completely dark. She grabbed her phone to check the time.
It was almost nine o’clock.
The last image in her memory was the clear liquid in the wine glass.
Ye Yuhuan was utterly baffled. She’d clearly only had a single sip.
She turned her head and found a note Song Zhiqing had left for her. Propping herself up, she read it carefully. It asked her to call when she woke up and reminded her that there was congee in the kitchen for her to eat.
Ye Yuhuan didn’t feel the dizziness of a hangover—that tiny bit of alcohol probably wasn’t enough to cause one. Her limbs just felt weak, which was likely a symptom of sleeping for too long.
Ye Yuhuan sighed. This was so embarrassing.
After stretching a little, Ye Yuhuan went into the kitchen. Shrimp congee was warming in the rice cooker. It tasted good, but she doubted Song Zhiqing had made it.
Remembering the pile of bizarrely shaped ingredients Song Zhiqing had chopped last time, Ye Yuhuan couldn’t help but lower her head and chuckle.
A floor lamp was on in the living room, likely something Song Zhiqing had intentionally left on before she left.
She must have anticipated that it would be dark by the time I woke up. Song Zhiqing must have stayed here for a long time, Ye Yuhuan thought.
This thought prompted Ye Yuhuan to quickly finish her congee. She returned to her room, picked up her phone, and tapped the first number in her contacts, waiting with a quiet, gentle feeling for the voice she longed to hear.
Song Zhiqing was taking a walk with Gao Yiren in the garden. She normally wouldn’t bring her phone on a walk, but she couldn’t shake the hopeful feeling that Ye Yuhuan might call. So, under her mother’s knowing gaze, she slipped her phone into her coat pocket and explained stubbornly, “The art club might need to contact me about something urgent.”
Gao Yiren lovingly stroked her head.
The moment her phone rang, Song Zhiqing moved like a well-oiled machine, whipping it out in an instant. Seeing the name she’d been longing for, she pressed her lips into a smile, though she also felt a little flustered.
Does Ye Yuhuan even remember what happened when she was drunk?
Gao Yiren couldn’t be bothered to watch the teenagers’ sappy back-and-forth. She pulled her trench coat tighter and turned back toward the villa, her teasing voice drifting on the wind. “Don’t chat for too long. It’s pretty cold out.”
After she spoke, she glanced at the night sky, where planes looked like moving stars against a black curtain. Song Chen should be on a flight to Country M by now; he wouldn’t be back for another week. Tsk, I’ll wait until he gets back to tell him our little cabbage has grown up and is about to run off with someone else.
After all, it seemed very likely she’d succeed this time.
Her mother’s words made the tips of Song Zhiqing’s ears turn red. She took another moment to brace herself before quickly tapping the answer button.
Ye Yuhuan’s sober voice came through the receiver. “Mm, I’m awake. The congee was delicious. Thank you.”
Honestly, when Ye Yuhuan was drunk, her words had sounded as if they were coated in syrup. Hearing her crisp, slightly cool tone now that she was sober, Song Zhiqing felt a momentary sense of unfamiliarity.
Song Zhiqing slowly scuffed the edge of the stone path with the tip of her shoe. Perhaps because she had come to terms with her feelings, her voice naturally took on a sweet, charming tone. “Oh, I’m glad you’re awake. But the housekeeper helped make the congee.”
“Ahem, I could tell.”
“Hey, Ye Yuhuan! What’s that supposed to mean?”
Ye Yuhuan leaned her head back against the sofa and said with a faint smile, “Well then, thank you for asking the housekeeper to make me congee.”
The corners of Song Zhiqing’s mouth curled up. Thinking of Ye Yuhuan’s miraculous alcohol tolerance, she added a lecture, “You can never touch alcohol again. Not even liqueur-filled chocolates. It’s a good thing you were at home today. If you were out, you’d be a total sitting duck.”
To be fair, Ye Yuhuan’s drunk persona was truly a bit too startling.
Ye Yuhuan chuckled at her words and upped the ante. “Got it. From now on, I won’t even drink Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui.”
Song Zhiqing lifted her chin haughtily and huffed, “Good, as long as you’re aware. And you have the nerve to tell me not to drink. Honestly, you have no idea how much Shen Wei was laughing at you.”
Ye Yuhuan had no intention of letting Song Zhiqing change the subject. “My alcohol tolerance has nothing to do with whether I can advise you not to drink. Besides, now that you know how terrible my tolerance is, if you got drunk, wouldn’t that put me in even more danger?”
After spending so much time with Song Zhiqing, Ye Yuhuan had naturally picked up a thing or two about guilt-tripping.
Song Zhiqing felt a rush of heat flood her face. Wow, is she… assuming we’ll always go out together from now on?
Song Zhiqing squatted down to cool off, her fingers toying with a rose. She finally asked the question that had been nagging at her. “Do you remember what happened after you got drunk?”
The smile on Ye Yuhuan’s lips froze. For some reason, she was reminded of the photo incident from last time. They wouldn’t do something like that again, would they?
“I don’t remember. But did something happen?”
Song Zhiqing immediately let out a sigh of relief and replied hastily, “Nothing happened at all!”
Song Zhiqing’s overly eager reply obviously made Ye Yuhuan suspicious. She pressed, “Really?”
Song Zhiqing was adamant. “Really!”
“Alright.” Ye Yuhuan decided she would ask Shen Wei later. But first, she asked Song Zhiqing a little awkwardly, “I wasn’t too weird when I was drunk, was I?”
The sound of the girl’s laughter came through the phone, seemingly mixed with the rustle of wind in the treetops. Her voice was clear and sweet. “Weird? Of course not. You were the cutest person in the entire world!”
Ye Yuhuan covered her face. So I was extremely weird, then!
The two of them chatted about this and that for a while longer. By the time Song Zhiqing hung up, she glanced at the time and realized an hour had passed.
But what was she to do? It still didn’t feel like enough.
Being in love with Ye Yuhuan… it was just so wonderful.
Song Zhiqing broke into a silly grin, the very picture of someone head over heels in love. She plucked a rose from a flowerbed and sniffed it gently. Hmm, not as fragrant as Ye Yuhuan.
Having slept so much that afternoon, Ye Yuhuan was now wide awake. She sent a few messages to Shen Wei asking what exactly had happened, then picked up a book to read while she waited for a reply.
Either Shen Wei wasn’t busy, or she had been waiting for this very moment, because a reply came not long after Ye Yuhuan sent her messages.
Auntie Shen: 【Oh, you didn’t do much.】
Auntie Shen: 【You just almost revealed that I’m the protagonist of this world.】
Auntie Shen: 【And asked Song Zhiqing why she kissed you, that’s all.】
Auntie Shen: 【Here are some flowers for you.jpg】
Ye Yuhuan glanced at the messages and nearly choked. Shen Wei’s identity was one thing—she had been drunk, so even if she’d really said it, she could pass it off as drunken nonsense.
But—asking, Song, Zhi, qing, why, she, kissed, me?
Ye Yuhuan covered her face with her book. She needed a moment.
Meanwhile, Shen Wei was still gossiping eagerly.
Auntie Shen: 【So, are you two dating?】
Auntie Shen: 【If you’re not dating and you’re already kissing… tsk, I didn’t realize Song Zhiqing was that kind of person.】
Auntie Shen: 【But my sister and I both think you’re dating.】
…
Ye Yuhuan was too agitated by Shen Wei’s messages to focus. She tossed her book aside, grabbed her phone, and began typing furiously.
YYH: 【You are forbidden from ever mentioning this again.】
YYH: 【I can help you deal with the Shangguan family, on the condition that you never mention this again.】
【The other party has retracted a message】
【The other party has retracted a message】
…
【The other party has retracted a message】
Auntie Shen: 【Oh, you didn’t do much.】
Auntie Shen: 【Mm, you really didn’t do anything.】
Shen Wei was sprawled on her bed, laughing uncontrollably. She’d always thought that brat Ye Yuhuan never acted her age. This was much more satisfying.
Just looking at the chat screen felt like being whipped by her own embarrassing past. Ye Yuhuan called Shen Wei directly.
Shen Wei quickly stifled her laughter, cleared her throat, and switched into business mode. “You said you’d deal with the Shangguan family. What’s the plan? How will they retaliate?”
Ye Yuhuan opened her mouth to speak, then hesitated, feeling awkward. Wasn’t this a little childish of her?
She hastily hung up, not realizing that this action was just as childish.
Shen Wei stared in confusion at the stream of messages now appearing on her phone, her initial lighthearted mood slowly turning grave.
Brat: 【I think texting is better.】
Brat: 【You need to be careful of Shangguan Chong. He and Guo Yu are permanent allies.】
Brat: 【Your mother’s death wasn’t a suicide. The two of them forced her to do it. Your mother had evidence of Shangguan Chong’s illegal business dealings from his early years, which you’re set to receive after you turn eighteen. It’s in a Swiss bank right now. In your past life, Shangguan Chong secretly intercepted that evidence, so you have to be extremely careful this time.】
Brat: 【So for now, continue to lay low. Don’t draw their attention.】
Brat: 【Don’t let Shangguan Xianxian draw their attention either. In the plot, the two of you were forced to separate for three years because you underestimated Shangguan Chong.】
Shen Wei pressed her lips together tightly and deleted all of the messages.
She had thought that being reborn meant she could anticipate every move and make up for all the regrets of her past life. But nothing in the world was that easy. This life would have its own regrets; life could never be perfect.
With a heavy heart, Shen Wei typed out a few words.
Auntie Shen: 【Okay, I understand. Thank you.】
Then she set her phone aside. Tonight, she really wanted to sleep with Shangguan Xianxian. Even if they still couldn’t kiss, just holding each other would be wonderful.
Meanwhile, Ye Yuhuan, who had no one to kiss and cuddle, got off the sofa and went to take a shower.
Enveloped by the hot water, her subtle thoughts became exceptionally clear.
Helping Shen Wei take down the Shangguan family hadn’t been part of her original plan. She had intended to just watch from the sidelines; it would have been best if Shangguan Xianxian had gone abroad, just like in the plot.
That way, Song Zhiqing would have had at least three years of peace.
So why had she made this choice now?
Ye Yuhuan reached out, cupping a handful of water.
Perhaps spending time with Shen Wei these past few days had made her feel she could be trusted.
Perhaps she couldn’t stand having a ‘plot’ dictating her destiny and felt an irresistible urge to destroy it.
Perhaps she wanted to speed up the plot’s grand finale, to more quickly welcome a Song Zhiqing who wasn’t bound to Shangguan Xianxian.
Even after all this, Song Zhiqing still showed no signs of giving up on Shangguan Xianxian. Whenever the four of them were together, she couldn’t help but gravitate toward Shangguan Xianxian, yet she was always so unnatural about it. To this day, she still couldn’t bring herself to meet Shangguan Xianxian’s gaze directly. It made Ye Yuhuan wonder if loving Shangguan Xianxian was simply an intrinsic part of Song Zhiqing’s character within the plot.
In that case, all she had to do was get rid of the plot, right?
Ye Yuhuan watched the water slip through her fingers, remembering how Song Zhiqing had sworn earlier that nothing had happened.
But something had happened. They had kissed.
Even if it was only on the forehead.
Was she denying the truth just because Shangguan Xianxian was there?
Ye Yuhuan turned off the water. Silence fell in the small bathroom. She took a towel and slowly dried herself.
This was, without a doubt, a beautiful body. But could even it not sway Song Zhiqing’s heart in the slightest?
What was wrong with her? Ye Yuhuan asked herself.
Was it indignation toward some so-called higher destiny, or was it a strange sense of possessiveness?
Perhaps it was both.
But perhaps, more than anything, it was a deep-seated disapproval of this kind of one-sided, hopeless love.
Her mother had loved her father so much, but it hadn’t ended well.
And Song Zhiqing’s story had to have a happy ending.
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