Chapter 18
It was during class, so there weren’t many teachers in the office. The heating was on full blast, and Jiang Siyi felt sleepy standing there.
She squinted, like a drowsy cat.
“You can’t slack off during the final exam period.” Fu Jing took a sip of tea, her expression worried, her tone anxious. “Jiang Siyi was doing so well before, why is she falling behind now that it’s crunch time?”
Jiang Siyi, the one “falling behind,” had been having trouble sleeping again recently. She was about to yawn, her mouth half-open, when she saw Shen Shiwu glance at her.
Her movements stiffened, but, still annoyed, she stubbornly finished her yawn.
“Are you moonlighting as a thief? Sleeping in class every day, not even handing in your homework!” Fu Jing was exasperated and took several more sips of tea to calm down.
Shen Shiwu added, “Yes, she hasn’t been very well-behaved lately.”
Jiang Siyi looked up, stunned—
This was the first time Shen Shiwu had criticized her.
Yesterday, she had been saying “Xiao Si is very well-behaved,” and today, she had completely changed her tune. Jiang Siyi sniffed, her throat too dry to speak, so she simply turned her head away.
The two continued talking for a long time. The girl stared at her shoes, her eyelashes covering most of her eyes, feeling a tightness in her chest.
“Okay, let’s leave it at that. I was planning to call you over anyway, so this works out perfectly. You still have to go to the hospital, so hurry up and go.”
Go to the hospital?
What hospital?
Shen Shiwu nodded, said goodbye to the teacher, and led Jiang Siyi out.
A cold wind was blowing outside, ruffling their hair. Jiang Siyi almost turned back to go inside the office, but remembering Shen Shiwu was behind her, she stubbornly continued walking.
After a few steps, a scarf was wrapped around her neck.
The familiar scent enveloped her.
Jiang Siyi saw the woman come around from behind her, not bending down, but simply looking down as she carefully tied the scarf.
She tucked a few strands of hair that had gotten caught under the scarf and finally spoke, “I’m taking you somewhere.”
Jiang Siyi’s eyes widened slightly.
So, the hospital was just a pretense, and Shen Shiwu was actually taking her out?
Even after getting into the car, Jiang Siyi couldn’t understand what was happening.
Hugging her backpack, she wondered if she was being kidnapped.
“Where are you taking me?”
“To the movies.”
“???”
It was a recently released romance film. The first half depicted the mutual, unspoken crushes of the two main characters during their school days. The second half was about their reunion years later and their second chance at love.
Jiang Siyi couldn’t understand why Shen Shiwu had brought her to see this.
Whatever, it’s better than being bored in the classroom. She thought, popping a piece of popcorn into her mouth.
Feeling bad about eating alone, she lowered her voice and asked the person beside her, “Why aren’t you eating?”
The movie had already started. The surroundings were dark, illuminated only by the light from the screen, which flickered across Shen Shiwu’s face.
She turned to look at the girl, her cheeks puffed out with popcorn. “Eat.”
“Are you going to feed me?”
The movie had reached the confession scene, eliciting sighs and “awws” from the audience.
Jiang Siyi almost dropped her popcorn.
In the darkness, her face flushed.
Fine, I’ll feed you.
I’m not afraid of this little game!
So, with a righteous expression, she picked up a piece of popcorn and held it to Shen Shiwu’s lips. “Here, eat.”
Shen Shiwu looked down, then opened her mouth and took the popcorn, her lips brushing against the girl’s fingertips, seemingly intentionally.
Jiang Siyi quickly withdrew her hand.
Her fingertips felt hot, as if burned, so she tucked them into her sleeves to cool down.
“Sorry, I bit you.”
What kind of line is that?
Jiang Siyi’s face remained expressionless, her voice stiff. “It’s okay.”
But her heart was pounding in her chest.
It was indeed a touching movie, and many people were sobbing by the end. Jiang Siyi bit her lip, trying to hold back her tears. To distract herself, she stuffed her mouth with popcorn.
“Are you crying?”
Shen Shiwu handed her a tissue, faintly scented.
Jiang Siyi didn’t look at her, shaking her head. “No.”
In the final scene, the two main characters finally got their happy ending. The screen was filled with falling snow, reminding Jiang Siyi of the snowy night on New Year’s Eve.
This time, she really couldn’t hold back.
Just as a tear rolled down her cheek, it was quickly wiped away by the person beside her. Shen Shiwu seemed to have been waiting for it, her movements swift.
She leaned closer to the girl and gently scratched her nose. “Still saying you’re not crying?”
Jiang Siyi’s eyes glistened with tears. “I wasn’t crying just now. I’m just pretending to cry now.”
“…”
Two hours later, the movie ended. It was already past five, and Shen Shiwu said she would take her to dinner.
Jiang Siyi’s eyes were still red, and she nodded in agreement, like a little red-eyed rabbit.
They went to a Thai restaurant.
Jiang Siyi had never tried Thai food before, firstly because she couldn’t afford to eat out, and secondly… because she couldn’t afford to eat out.
Surprisingly, it was very much to her liking, especially the tom yum soup and mango sticky rice. Her appetite soared, and she tried every dish.
Shen Shiwu, seeing her enjoying the meal, was also in a good mood and asked, “Do you like it? I’ll bring you here again next time.”
“Okay.” The girl was peeling shrimp.
A few minutes later, Jiang Siyi saw the plate of curry shrimp being taken away and was about to protest inwardly—
My shrimp!
When another plate, filled with peeled shrimp, appeared in its place.
“You’re under a lot of pressure from studying, eat more.”
“…”
Having just been scolded by Sister Bao, she suspected Shen Shiwu was mocking her.
Whatever, I won’t argue with her for the sake of this shrimp.
Jiang Siyi hummed softly and continued eating happily.
The woman ate quietly, without making a sound, her chopsticks never clinking against the bowl. She seemed to be full now and was watching Jiang Siyi, her chin resting on her hand.
“Wha-what?”
“What did you think of the movie?”
Jiang Siyi choked slightly. “It was good.”
“That kind of feeling is true love. Do you understand?”
The girl’s eating slowed down considerably.
She took a bite of sticky rice and mumbled, “Of course I understand.”
“So… you really like Xu Yuan?”
Like her my ass!
Jiang Siyi slammed her chopsticks down, unable to hold back anymore, and blurted out, “I don’t like her.”
“I like someone else.”
Shen Shiwu stared at her. “Who?”
She hadn’t expected the girl to actually answer, or to be honest. But Jiang Siyi, seemingly exasperated, replied directly, “You.”
“I’ve always liked you.”
The atmosphere froze. Her voice wasn’t soft, and the waiter passing by glanced at them curiously.
After saying those words, Jiang Siyi lowered her head. Seeing her school uniform, she suddenly felt a surge of regret.
Why did I… say that?
She didn’t seem to have any redeeming qualities, except for her looks, her writing skills… and maybe her personality wasn’t too bad.
But these were insignificant in Shen Shiwu’s eyes.
How could such an outstanding woman like a troublesome, disobedient high school student?
Jiang Siyi felt ridiculous, her nose stinging. She was about to cry again, so she grabbed her backpack and fled.
She ran aimlessly, attracting many stares.
It was dark outside, almost pitch black. The streetlights weren’t on yet, illuminated only by the car headlights.
Jiang Siyi was tired.
She squatted down in a corner, burying her face in her backpack, feeling lost.
Could she still go home?
Would Shen Shiwu still take care of her?
Tears quickly soaked her backpack. She hated herself for crying; it made her seem weak and pathetic.
But ever since she met Shen Shiwu, she had become much more prone to tears.
Shen Shiwu.
Are you really going to abandon me?
“Jiang Siyi.” A female voice called out from not far away, but the girl didn’t dare to look up.
She’s calling my full name.
Shen Shiwu definitely wouldn’t accept her.
The area was quiet, and she could clearly hear the approaching footsteps. Jiang Siyi’s heart pounded, and she instinctively wanted to run again, but the woman quickly grabbed her wrist.
“Jiang Siyi, why are you running?”
She was slightly breathless, her expression clearly anxious.
The girl was forced to stand up, but she still kept her head down, not daring to look at the woman, clutching her backpack for comfort.
“Running right after eating, aren’t you afraid of getting a stomach ache?”
Jiang Siyi froze for a few seconds, then shook her head slightly. “No.”
Seeing the tear stains on the girl’s face, Shen Shiwu sighed, her heart melting. She lifted Jiang Siyi’s chin. “It’s too cold outside. You’ll catch a cold. Let’s talk about this when we get home.”
Shen Shiwu didn’t abandon her.
The tears in Jiang Siyi’s eyes, chilled by the wind, felt cold, but her heart was slowly warming up.
She nodded. “Okay.”
***
Back home, Jiang Siyi immediately went to her room.
She closed the door and sat on the bed for a few seconds, still unsure how to face Shen Shiwu.
She remained silent for a long time, then, remembering she had school tomorrow, she took her pajamas and went to take a shower.
She had thought a hot shower would help her relax, but her heart still felt heavy and constricted. Jiang Siyi silently sobbed into her pillow, tossing and turning in bed.
Shen Shiwu, next door, wasn’t doing much better.
Ever since Jiang Siyi’s phone call that afternoon, her heart hadn’t been at peace.
But why?
Why did the thought of Jiang Siyi dating someone else make her so anxious?
It was strange.
She had never felt this way in her twenty-something years of life.
That afternoon, she had canceled many meetings, sitting alone in her office for hours. And now, she sat at her desk, staring blankly at the black computer screen.
After a while, Shen Shiwu rubbed her temples and opened the window.
As the cold wind blew on her face, she accepted the truth—
She liked Jiang Siyi.
It wasn’t pity or sympathy for the girl’s situation, but genuine affection.
This meant she had fallen for the daughter of her deceased mother’s friend.
Remembering her mother’s request to take good care of Jiang Siyi, she sighed, her breath forming white puffs of smoke in the cold air.
This is messed up, she thought.
But…
After being so restrained for so long, facing her true feelings didn’t seem so bad.
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