Chapter 59
Jiang Siyi had thoroughly committed the act of inviting a wolf into her sheep pen.
And by the time she realized it, it was too late.
The production was progressing smoothly, and today was another early finish. Kong Yin emerged from the recording booth, picked up her water glass, and took a few sips.
Her gaze, however, kept drifting towards Jiang Siyi.
The latter was leaning back in her chair, pen in hand, marking the script, her movements slow and deliberate, her expression serious.
Even with a discerning eye, one wouldn’t be able to tell that she was actually just stalling for time.
Kong Yin also slowed down her drinking.
“Ms. Kong, aren’t you leaving yet?” Lin Yusheng, bag in hand, entered the recording studio and poked her head in.
Kong Yin choked slightly.
The next second, her expression returned to normal. “Later, it’s still early.”
Lin Yusheng nodded, then glanced at Jiang Siyi, who was completely ignoring Kong Yin.
A complex expression flickered in her eyes.
Although she was a non-marriage advocate and had little dating experience, she still felt something was off—could Kong Yin be interested in Jiang Siyi?
Tsk, not afraid of her girlfriend coming after her.
She walked over to Jiang Siyi and, after a long while, urged her, “Great author, do you really plan on submitting the manuscript by the end of the year?”
Jiang Siyi turned another page of the script and replied casually, “What’s the rush?”
“…”
Lin Yusheng grabbed her hat, packed her things, and asked, “Are you leaving?”
“Where to?”
“Back to the hotel.”
Jiang Siyi checked the time on her phone, then shook her head decisively. “You go ahead.”
Lin Yusheng had known her for three or four years now and was used to her unpredictable mood swings and inexplicable behavior.
She didn’t bother asking for a reason and simply left, her high heels clicking against the floor.
Only three people remained in the recording studio.
Besides her and Kong Yin, there was also Gu Ning, who was mopping the floor.
Seeing Kong Yin pull over a chair and sit down, Jiang Siyi frowned slightly. “Aren’t you going home?”
The woman replied calmly, “It’s too boring at home, I might as well stay here for a while.”
Jiang Siyi wanted to say, Don’t you have a cat at home?, but she held back.
After all, this wasn’t her territory, she had no right to chase people away.
Her phone kept vibrating, clearly a certain CEO bombarding her with messages.
Jiang Siyi ignored them, continuing to look at the script—for two reasons. One, to get back at Shen Shiwu for not replying to her messages earlier.
Two,
She was exhausted, her body aching all over.
So she was stalling for time, not wanting to go back to the hotel or reply to Shen Shiwu’s messages.
After a while, the sky outside turned red.
Jiang Siyi yawned, figuring it was about time, and reluctantly reached for her phone.
Kong Yin, who had been silent, suddenly stood up, wanting to hand it to her.
The script in Jiang Siyi’s hand fell to the floor.
She quickly snatched her phone away, her movements smooth and fluid.
She smiled. “Thank you, but I can get it myself.”
Kong Yin smiled back. “Okay.”
Jiang Siyi opened WeChat, and the only pinned contact had sent her a bunch of messages.
Just as she was about to open the chat, her finger paused.
Shen Yun’s profile picture suddenly appeared at the top, a new message notification.
“Xiao Si, you didn’t even tell me you were back in China.”
“How have you been?”
Jiang Siyi couldn’t help but grip her phone tightly.
When she was in England, Shen Yun had often visited her at school, always showing concern. Every time, she would ask, “Xiao Si, is your living allowance enough?”
“How’s school? How are you getting along with your classmates? Any problems?”
Admittedly, her mother’s friend had been very kind to her. But at first, Jiang Siyi had still met with her occasionally, later making excuses to decline.
She couldn’t explain why.
She just felt that, like her daughter, Shen Yun was also a “smiling tiger.”
Later, Jiang Siyi had started working two part-time jobs.
She was either in class or working. She had gradually returned to her life before she was seventeen, a life devoid of light.
And this was the reason why her excuses for refusing Shen Yun’s invitations had become increasingly convincing. As time passed, they had lost contact.
It had been a long time since their last conversation.
Jiang Siyi looked at the two messages and replied formally, “I forgot to tell you about coming back to China. I’ve been well, work is going smoothly.”
As soon as she sent the message, Shen Yun’s daughter, as if sensing her neglect, bombarded her with messages.
Jiang Siyi: “…”
Switching to the other chat, she had wanted to type a reply, but remembering that someone was sitting beside her,
She cleared her throat and said, her voice neither too loud nor too soft, “I’m revising the script, are you going back to the hotel?”
Kong Yin, who was reading a book, didn’t react, as if she hadn’t heard anything.
However, her grip on the book betrayed her.
“Going back now? Okay, I’ll go downstairs too,” Jiang Siyi said, picking up her bag, making sure she hadn’t forgotten anything, and stood up to leave.
Kong Yin, unusually, didn’t stop her.
Seeing Jiang Siyi leave, Gu Ning discreetly followed. The door opened and closed, and a few minutes later, the only sound in the recording studio was Kong Yin’s soft grinding of teeth.
She took out her phone and sent a message.
“Ms. Shen, their relationship seems very stable, I’m afraid it will be difficult to break them up.”
Shen Yun replied after a while, “If it were truly stable, they wouldn’t have broken up in the first place.”
Kong Yin felt slightly relieved.
“Then what do you mean?”
“You’re useless, after so many days, you haven’t even created an opportunity for them to be alone.” Shen Yun’s gentle facade crumbled, her words laced with anger.
Kong Yin didn’t dare to argue with her.
She apologized and explained, “I brought Jiang Siyi home that day, we even drank together. But… your daughter appeared too quickly, I couldn’t do what you said, kiss her and take pictures.”
Shen Yun’s anger subsided slightly.
She said impatiently, “Fine, I’ll find some people to help you these next few days, I’ll let you know what to do.”
Kong Yin quickly agreed, repeatedly thanking her.
***
Jiang Siyi said goodbye to Ah Yun and slowly went downstairs.
The weather was still nice, although it was almost dusk, the sun was still shining brightly.
Even the wind was warm.
Jiang Siyi’s steps were slow and heavy, almost dragging her feet.
She shouldn’t have let Shen Shiwu stay for a few more days, she thought.
Although it was indeed very enjoyable… but at this rate, she would be exhausted to death.
Thinking this, she stopped walking. Seeing a fruit store nearby, she went inside to kill some time.
Shen Shiwu had bought her favorite cream puffs and dorayaki and had already returned to the hotel. She had tied her hair up and was leaning against the sofa, waiting for Jiang Siyi’s message.
Half an hour later, Jiang Siyi, squatting by the roadside, had finished a box of cantaloupe. She threw the empty box into the trash can and wiped her mouth with a tissue.
She stood up, wanting to buy some mangosteen.
Remembering that she had a “roommate,” she also asked the store clerk to cut up a pineapple. After paying, she walked out, carrying the bag of fruit.
It was almost six o’clock.
She really had to go back now.
Dusk was fading, and night was approaching. Jiang Siyi hurried back to the hotel before it got completely dark.
Going upstairs and swiping her key card, she slowly pushed open the door, pretending to be in a hurry. “I’m exhausted… Shen Shiwu, come and help me.”
But there was no response.
Jiang Siyi, puzzled, placed the bags of fruit on the dining table, her eyes lingering on the pastries, feeling a little tempted.
But finding Shen Shiwu was more important.
“Shen Shiwu?” she called out again.
The apartment was quiet and empty, and Jiang Siyi’s heart started to race. Only after entering the bedroom and seeing Shen Shiwu sleeping soundly in bed did she relax.
She walked quietly to the bed and looked down at Shen Shiwu.
Seeing her furrowed brows and pale face, Jiang Siyi’s eyes darkened with worry.
Shen Shiwu, a light sleeper, stirred at the slight movement and slowly opened her eyes.
She watched as Jiang Siyi sat on the edge of the bed and placed a hand on her forehead, not moving.
“Shen Shiwu, you have a fever.”
The woman immediately wrapped her arms around Jiang Siyi’s waist, her voice muffled. “It’s okay, it’ll go away on its own.”
“Do you want to burn your brain out?” Jiang Siyi was truly impressed by her and stood up, about to call the front desk for a thermometer.
But Shen Shiwu refused to let go, and Jiang Siyi, exasperated, bit her arm.
Shen Shiwu chuckled and finally released her.
The front desk, hearing that a VIP guest had a request, quickly delivered a thermometer. Jiang Siyi took it, went back to the bedroom, sanitized it, and then held it to Shen Shiwu’s lips. “Here.”
Shen Shiwu sat up and obediently opened her mouth.
Jiang Siyi glanced at the time, then stared intently at Shen Shiwu, as if supervising her.
“38.7 degrees Celsius.”
“Get up, we’re going to the hospital.”
Shen Shiwu lay back down and pulled the covers over her head. “I don’t want to go.”
Jiang Siyi wanted to scream. She forced a smile. “Come on.”
“Mm-hmm,” the woman chuckled softly, “then kiss me.”
“…”
Jiang Siyi wanted to say something, then gave up and leaned down, kissing Shen Shiwu’s cheek.
“Okay,” she urged, “get out of bed now.”
Shen Shiwu pointed at her lips. “I meant here.”
Jiang Siyi’s face burned as their lips met, her breathing ragged. After the kiss, she said, her voice slightly breathless, “Can we… go to the hospital now?”
Shen Shiwu, satisfied, her mood improved, although her head still felt heavy. She nodded and started taking off her pajamas. “I need to change.”
Jiang Siyi swallowed nervously, quickly averted her gaze, and rushed out of the room. “I’ll wait for you in the living room!”
The city hospital was close to the hotel, both located in the city center, only a ten-minute drive away.
Jiang Siyi drove steadily, and normally, she would have asked the person beside her, “So, how’s my driving? Pretty impressive, right?”
But she decided against it this time.
At a red light, she glanced at Shen Shiwu, who was resting, and pursed her lips.
“Feeling awful? We’ll be at the hospital soon.”
“Just a fever,” Shen Shiwu smiled, reassuring her, “it’s nothing serious.”
Even at night, the hospital in the big city was still crowded.
Jiang Siyi carefully protected Shen Shiwu, only letting go after they entered the examination room. Shen Shiwu, seeing this, immediately held her hand again.
Jiang Siyi didn’t resist, letting her hold her hand—she wouldn’t be able to break free anyway.
The IV drip room was packed.
Shen Shiwu was quiet as she received the IV, not even flinching. Jiang Siyi took the IV bag from the nurse and was looking for an empty seat when she heard Shen Shiwu say, “That hurts.”
“…”
Jiang Siyi, too busy to listen to her nonsense, didn’t reply, simply gesturing with her eyes, “There’s a seat over there.”
Because of the large number of patients, there were only single seats available, not any for two. Jiang Siyi helped Shen Shiwu sit down and hung the IV bag on the stand.
Just as Shen Shiwu was about to stand up and offer her the seat, Jiang Siyi stopped her. “What are you doing?”
“Giving you the seat.”
“Are you sick or am I sick?”
Shen Shiwu looked at her for a moment. “Me.”
“Then sit down.”
The patient pondered for a moment, then said, “Being sick is so uncomfortable, and the needle hurt so much.”
Jiang Siyi, despite her annoyance, felt a pang of sympathy. “You’ll feel better after the IV drip.”
Shen Shiwu, pretending to be exhausted, leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes like a sleepy puppy.
“Then say something nice to me,” she said, a smile playing on her lips.
Jiang Siyi took a deep breath, reminding herself, She’s sick… don’t get angry.
She forced a smile. “Okay, what do you want me to say?”
The other patients in the room, mostly elderly people, were all asleep, and their voices were low, so no one could hear them.
“How about this,” Shen Shiwu said considerately, “repeat after me.”
No need to think, just repeat, Jiang Siyi agreed.
The woman’s hair, which had been tied up, had come loose, framing her face, making her look even more alluring.
She beckoned Jiang Siyi closer.
Jiang Siyi leaned in, listening intently.
Shen Shiwu’s voice, hoarse from her cold, sounded low and languid. She turned her head and gently blew on Jiang Siyi’s ear.
Then she said slowly, “Repeat after me.”
“I want to be with Shen Shiwu forever.”
The last word was barely a whisper, yet incredibly suggestive.
Jiang Siyi bit her lip.
In the quiet room, where anyone could wake up at any moment, her voice was soft.
“I want to be with Shen Shiwu.”
“Forever.”
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