Chapter 68: Absolutely Not, Absolutely Not – Trying to Believe
Song Mingzhi’s three identical sentences represented her changing emotions.
When Dong Ling heard the last sentence, her emotional turmoil reached its peak.
“That’s not true, I…”
Dong Ling instinctively refuted it, she couldn’t bear to see Song Mingzhi like this, clearly disappointed, yet still trying to suppress her emotions and ask, it made her feel even worse than being directly questioned.
Dong Ling wanted to tell her about the system, she no longer cared if Song Mingzhi would think differently of her for approaching her to complete tasks, Song Mingzhi had the right to know the truth, the right to know about her feelings.
But she couldn’t say it, even with 021 dormant, she was still bound by the unspoken restriction.
Her vocal cords were trying to produce sound, but she couldn’t say a word.
Dong Ling felt a moment of despair, but she quickly made a decision.
Dong Ling never intended to hurt Song Mingzhi, and she didn’t want to simply cut ties between them, not just because of her unwillingness, but also because Dong Ling couldn’t determine if the task system was still running, she had to find a balance between the two.
“I like you,” Dong Ling admitted her feelings, looking into Song Mingzhi’s eyes, then she said, “But I can’t like you right now.”
How cruel it was to suppress her love, how absurd it was to explain the truth indirectly, but whether Song Mingzhi believed it or not, Dong Ling still decided to say it this way.
“It’s like… I should have died in that car accident, but I’m still alive, it wasn’t a miracle, it was… Cinderella’s fairy godmother’s magic.”
“In this fairy tale, Cinderella missed the pumpkin carriage because she overslept, but the story needs someone wearing glass slippers to appear at the prince’s ball and become his bride, so the fairy godmother found me and asked me to take Cinderella’s place and complete all of this.”
“But the magic has a time limit, and the real Cinderella could wake up at any time, how can I fall in love with the prince and become his bride? Everything could change at any moment.”
Dong Ling tried her best to explain clearly, but she was also mocking herself, her words sounded like fabricated lies, like a player making excuses, who would believe such a supernatural story?
This was indeed an answer Song Mingzhi hadn’t expected. When Dong Ling confessed her feelings, she was overjoyed, but Dong Ling’s subsequent words made her confused, then her heart sank.
Song Mingzhi’s first reaction was to believe Dong Ling, she could sense that Dong Ling wasn’t deceiving or using her in their interactions, but this was too fantastical, like a story to coax a child.
Song Mingzhi started searching through her memories, recalling her conversation with Wang Buli when she arrived.
Wang Buli said Dong Ling was the most incredible patient she had ever encountered. Dong Ling was sitting in the passenger seat, and when the cars collided, the driver instinctively turned the steering wheel, so she should have been the most seriously injured, she should have been critically injured when she arrived, but Dong Ling’s condition was surprisingly good, her internal organs didn’t even bleed heavily, the person in the driver’s seat was in surgery for seven hours before stabilizing, and further surgeries were needed to ensure their survival, their life hanging by a thread.
Song Mingzhi thought about Dong Ling’s sometimes unusual behavior, searching for more clues in her memories, she didn’t know if this was her trying to convince herself, preferring to believe this fantastical story than believe that Dong Ling was lying to her, unwilling to believe that Dong Ling didn’t like her.
Song Mingzhi’s reason and emotions seemed to be at odds, wavering between doubt and belief, battling each other.
“Is this a story?”
Song Mingzhi’s short-term memory, similar to hyperthymesia, allowed her to clearly remember every word Dong Ling had just said, and her expression when saying them. After replaying them in her mind three times, Song Mingzhi keenly grasped the key point.
Dong Ling froze, looking at Song Mingzhi in disbelief, a tingling sensation running down her spine.
Song Mingzhi actually understood! She actually got it!
Dong Ling carefully chose her words, trying to avoid the restrictions: “Fairy tales are stories, they have a set storyline and a perfect ending, the fairy tale world exists for their stories.”
Song Mingzhi didn’t nod or shake her head, she peeled an orange and offered it to Dong Ling.
“Then when will you be able to like me?”
Dong Ling forced the words out: “I don’t know.”
“I understand.”
Song Mingzhi lowered her eyes and wiped the orange juice from her fingers with a tissue.
Dong Ling looked at her retreating figure, a wave of panic washing over her, she instinctively wanted to grab her sleeve, but couldn’t, she could only watch as her hand grasped at empty air.
“Mingzhi, do you believe me?”
Dong Ling asked anxiously, knowing that her words sounded completely absurd, but she still hoped Song Mingzhi would believe her.
But Song Mingzhi didn’t storm off angrily or mock her after hearing her words, which was already a sign of great restraint and composure.
“I’ll try to believe you. Let’s not contact each other for now, I’ll terminate my contract with the company after this movie is finished, and the agreement we signed will be void.”
Song Mingzhi’s back was turned, her voice calm and indifferent.
If she didn’t believe her, then she would undoubtedly think Dong Ling was playing with her feelings.
If she believed those absurd words, then Dong Ling was loving her on behalf of someone else, trapped in a situation beyond her control.
Neither of these was what Song Mingzhi wanted, Song Mingzhi needed to calm down, she didn’t want to see Dong Ling for a while.
Song Mingzhi left.
Dong Ling held back her tears, lay on the bed dejectedly, and stared blankly into space.
It seemed to be over between her and Song Mingzhi, she didn’t want to think about any more tasks, lying stiffly on the hospital bed, she thought with resignation, let this world live another day with the current progress.
But she still felt aggrieved, why did she have to bear all of this?
Why was this a story, why did the author make Wen Han and Song Mingzhi a destined couple, why didn’t Wen Han and Song Mingzhi fall in love with each other?
Many things in this world had no cause and effect, but Dong Ling desperately hoped there was, so she could have a reason to keep going.
The door opened again, Dong Ling thought Song Mingzhi had returned and immediately looked towards the door eagerly, but it was her brother, walking in with a bag.
“Ling Ling, I brought your clothes and toiletries, Mom packed them for you, let me know if you need anything else. And this is the soup Mom just made, she said you should have some if you have an appetite before going to sleep.”
Dong Tang took out the thermos first, then placed the bag of toiletries beside Dong Ling.
“Is there anything else you need… hey, why…”
Dong Tang, hearing his sister’s silence, looked up and saw Dong Ling’s red eyes and tears streaming down her face, and panicked.
He hurriedly took out a tissue to wipe her tears, but the more he wiped, the more tears flowed.
Dong Ling tugged at the corners of her lips, forcing a pale smile, her eyes filled with tears, and said: “The anesthetic wore off, it hurts a little.”
“Brother, it hurts.”
She didn’t even dare cry in front of Song Mingzhi, afraid she would think she was trying to gain sympathy.
She truly didn’t intend to deceive her feelings, it would be better if they were both straight, or if Song Mingzhi was straight, then Song Mingzhi wouldn’t be angry and hurt.
Every word of Song Mingzhi’s calm, disappointed expression was like a sharp knife, stabbing her heart, and thinking of the pain she had caused Song Mingzhi, it hurt even more.
The effects of the anesthetic were indeed wearing off. Although 021 had done its best to save her life, there were still injuries, and it still hurt. Dong Ling, using this pain as an excuse, unrestrainedly released her sorrow.
“Does it hurt that much? I’ll go call the doctor.”
Dong Tang was anxious, gently patting Dong Ling’s back, and was about to press the call button.
He knew Dong Ling had been afraid of pain since she was young, her senses more sensitive than others, how much pain she must be in now to be crying like this.
Dong Ling shook her head at him, lying there listlessly.
Her mind was filled with Song Mingzhi’s retreating figure and the light fading from her initially hopeful eyes.
She couldn’t tell anyone about this, the only one who knew the truth, the AI, was in a deep sleep of unknown duration, her words of love sounding like a grand lie to others.
Dong Ling didn’t know when she fell asleep, she didn’t get to drink the soup her mother made, but her mother brought her a new batch the next day.
Birds outside the window perched on branches, preening their feathers, everything in the world continued as usual, no one noticed the end of a silent affection.
Dong Ling realized that Song Mingzhi seemed to have disappeared from her life, no one around her mentioned Song Mingzhi, as if she had never existed.
Dong Ling panicked, she couldn’t help but interrupt Yuki, who was reporting on work, and asked: “Where’s Song Mingzhi?”
Yuki was taken aback and replied: “Filming on set, boss, do you need me to contact her?”
Dong Ling relaxed and shook her head, saying dejectedly: “Don’t disturb her.”
So her connection with Song Mingzhi existed only between them.
If they lost each other, their lives wouldn’t be affected at all.
Dong Ling couldn’t help but wonder, which company would Song Mingzhi go to after terminating her contract? With her current popularity and outstanding abilities, it shouldn’t be difficult for her to find a company… In short, Song Mingzhi didn’t really need her.
Today was five days after the car accident, and she hadn’t contacted Song Mingzhi for so long.
Dong Ling lay listlessly on the hospital bed, her body recovering day by day, but her spirit visibly wilting.
The phone suddenly rang, Dong Ling hurriedly answered it, and seeing it wasn’t Song Mingzhi, she answered with disappointment.
“I know, just tell them this is a criminal suspect and they can’t be discharged, I forbid it.”
The call was from the hospital, someone had come to discharge Xuan Du, and she had instructed them to inform her immediately if this happened.
The mayor was imprisoned, Xuan Du’s mother’s whereabouts were unknown, there was only one person who could do this for Xuan Du, it seemed He Diesheng had made her move.
Dong Ling went to Xuan Du’s ward and told her about it.
Xuan Du’s expression changed drastically, but quickly returned to normal. She sat in her wheelchair, looking out the window, and gave Dong Ling a faint smile.
“Do you remember the story you told me a long time ago? A scientist tried to save himself using the butterfly effect, but even though he could make the sky cloudy, he couldn’t save those caught in the war, the changes he made with all his effort were insignificant to others.”
Dong Ling recalled: “Chaotic Butterfly by Liu Cixin.”
“Sometimes, the thing you’ve been fearing happening is a kind of relief.” (Quote from the movie Arrival)
Xuan Du looked out the window, and Dong Ling was stunned.
The exposure and end of their unspoken, ambiguous relationship, was it a relief for her and Song Mingzhi?
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