Chapter 50: The Caged Bird Infected with a Vicious Disease (5) Part 1

Bai Qian didn’t dare move a muscle, held in such a position by the woman’s soft yet unmistakable threat.

They were simply too close.

So close that she could smell the sweet, minty fragrance exhaled in the woman’s breath, lingering gently at the tip of her nose.

—Perhaps if she just turned her head a little, she might accidentally brush against those lips.

Her hand, pressed to Jian Wanqing’s lower back, slid upward along the woman’s slender spine. Even through the thin fabric of her clothing, it felt as though electric currents sparked wherever her fingertips trailed, sending uncontrollable shivers through her body.

Everything unfolded so naturally. The faint undercurrent of intimacy in the air began to ferment, everything poised to crest into a climax—

Bai Qian suddenly seized the back of the other’s collar, gripping it like a lifeline, and yanked her away from her front with effortless strength.

Those nascent sparks of intimacy were shattered without mercy.

Bai Qian’s expression was positively grim as she demanded coldly, “Miss Jian, what happened to not crossing the line?”

Jian Wanqing, thwarted in her bid for a kiss once more, defended herself with unyielding bravado despite her weak position. “I didn’t even touch you! How is that crossing the line?!”

Her expressive face brimmed with pitiful grievance. “Bai Qian, are you… not into it? I’m throwing myself at you, and you’re still not biting?”

Bai Qian exhaled deeply. “Miss Jian, I made it clear from the beginning: any mistakes were confined to that one night. There won’t be a repeat. I suggest you abandon these restless notions sooner rather than later. Right—didn’t you say you wanted to start a new life? If boredom is what’s driving you to obsess over this, then I’ve got just the thing. Miss Jian, starting today, go enroll in driving school.”

“Huh? Driving school?” The sudden pivot left Jian Wanqing momentarily stunned. “Why driving school out of nowhere?”

“Don’t you think it’d make your outings far more convenient if you could drive yourself?”

“But I don’t have any money. How am I supposed to pay for it?”

Bai Qian released her grip on the collar. “I’ll handle the enrollment. You just focus on learning properly.”

Jian Wanqing gazed at her steadily. Those eyes, usually so clear they reflected nothing but adoration, now churned with a tangle of emotions—like clusters of brooding gray clouds—lending them an unfamiliar depth.

She spoke. “Bai Qian, this would leave me owing you so much money. I know you’re only helping because you feel guilty, but honestly, you have no reason to. I was the one who made the first move back then—you didn’t force me into anything. Why carry that guilt? I’m an adult; it wasn’t your responsibility. And yet you keep throwing money at me so generously—how could I possibly accept it?”

Bai Qian was taken aback that she’d voice such sentiments. Then again, Jian Zhaozhang had merely suppressed her outward form, not warped her essential nature; it wasn’t so surprising after all.

She curved her lips into a smile. “Miss Jian, I’m delighted you see it that way. To me, that mindset brings you one step closer to true independence and a fresh start. Tell you what—if it really gnaws at you, think of everything I’m doing as an investment in you.”

Bai Qian had assumed Jian Wanqing would latch onto the idea of “investment” and mull it over with her. Instead, she simply shook her head.

The brooding depth in her eyes dispersed with the motion, like storm clouds scattered by a brisk wind.

What emerged beneath was a fierce, overflowing affection, brimming with raw sincerity.

“I might not have money to repay you, but I can make it up to you with my body, Bai Qian! Let me repay you like that!”

“…”

She must have lost her mind to imagine this woman capable of even a fleeting moment of normalcy.

~~~

Jian Wanqing’s new life had more or less fallen into a steady rhythm.

When she’d pleaded with Bai Qian to take her in, she’d vowed tearfully to become a devoted live-in housekeeper, shouldering every household chore.

In truth, Bai Qian handled most of the housework these days.

The reason was straightforward.

The very afternoon Bai Qian had proposed enrolling her in driving school, she’d whisked her off to pay the fees and sign up.

Ever since, Jian Wanqing’s days revolved around trudging on foot from home to the driving school just outside the neighborhood for her lessons.

Bai Qian had originally wanted to keep her close at hand to avert any chance encounters with the male lead that might reignite the original story’s disastrous plotline.

Now, she no longer had cause for concern.

This woman had only one thing on her mind day in and day out—making good on that “debt of the flesh”!

Naturally, Bai Qian had never given her an inch.

Jian Wanqing, who didn’t have to punch a nine-to-five clock, had turned learning to drive into her full-time gig.

Seeing how she spent hours every day at the driving school, Bai Qian had held off on asking her to help with chores for the time being.

Jian Wanqing’s sharp wits shone through in her driving lessons, too.

She aced Subject One with a perfect score.

She passed Subject Two on the first go, full marks again.

But when it came time for Subject Three, Jian Wanqing hit a snag.

She failed three times in a row.

Her fourth exam was scheduled for next week, and by then, her condition had taken a noticeable turn for the worse.

Last week, she could polish off a full bowl of rice. This week, she could barely manage half.

This funk had set in on Monday and dragged on for days, showing no signs of lifting even by Friday.

That evening, Bai Qian had specially braised some beef—the kind Jian Wanqing usually adored. But at the dinner table, the woman only picked at two slices before listlessly setting down her chopsticks. “I’m full,” she murmured, then retreated to her room.

Yu Niannian had been on summer break for two weeks now and shared countless meals with Jian Wanqing. She’d long since picked up on the woman’s odd behavior.

With her condition unchanged after so many days, the girl finally couldn’t hold back. She turned to Bai Qian, seated across from her, and asked, “Godmother, is Auntie Jian okay? If I remember right, she hasn’t been normal all week.”

A faint ripple disturbed the calm in Bai Qian’s eyes. “She hasn’t gone to practice driving in three days.”

The girl frowned. “Godmother, didn’t you ask her if something was wrong?”

Bai Qian paused mid-reach for her chopsticks, then lied coolly, “I did. She wouldn’t say.”

Yu Niannian wasn’t satisfied. “If she won’t talk, then you should coax her, Godmother. Auntie Jian’s been living with us for over a month now. I don’t know what goes on between you two in private, but from what I’ve seen, she’s always the one taking the initiative. You’re in a relationship—you can’t have just one person doing all the chasing.”

At first, she’d thought Jian Wanqing didn’t care enough about Bai Qian to even know her tastes and habits. But after spending time around them, she realized she’d misjudged.

If this wasn’t what liking someone looked like, then Yu Niannian had no idea what was.

Like some worldly adult who’d been through a string of romances, Yu Niannian took it upon herself to school her godmother in the art of coaxing. “I haven’t tried it myself, but I don’t think it’d be that hard with Auntie Jian. Just kiss her, hug her, pull her close, and whisper some sweet nothings. If she’s not mad at you, that’ll do the trick. And if she is… well, figure out why, then fix it. Take whatever cursing or punishment she dishes out, no matter what. Once she tires herself out, kiss her and hug her some more. She’ll come around for sure.”

Bai Qian let out a helpless chuckle. “What makes you sound like you know more than your godmother? Little Nian, you haven’t gone and started dating, have you?”

Yu Niannian shot her a playful glare. “As if! I’m not even that old yet. Everyone at school—even us elementary kids—knows this stuff. How come you’re more clueless than we are, Godmother?”

“…”

Kids these days sure matured fast.

“Godmother, you done eating? Auntie Jian’s waiting for you in there. Go on and coax her once you’re finished. The house feels so empty without her—everything’s off. Pretty please, make her feel better quick.”

With no parental authority left to muster, Bai Qian found herself shooed back to the bedroom by her own daughter.

She pushed the door open softly. The neatly folded covers on the bed had been undone, a small lump rising in the middle—Jian Wanqing, clearly tucked inside.

As Bai Qian’s footsteps drew near, Jian Wanqing, who had been lying on her side scrolling on her phone, turned her head. She met the woman’s steady, emotionless gaze with a flicker of surprise.

In the past, she would have bolted upright and greeted her with bubbly enthusiasm.

But now, she merely gave Bai Qian a calm look, her expression unchanging as she said, “You’re done eating? What about Little Nian? If she’s finished, I’ll go wash the dishes.”

Bai Qian’s face darkened ever so slightly, a faint prick like an invisible needle jabbing at her heart—not painful, exactly, but impossible to ignore.

She stepped closer, stopping at the bedside, and gazed down at Jian Wanqing. “You don’t need to worry about any of that until after your exam. Just focus on getting ready for next week.”

Jian Wanqing’s eyes flickered at the mention of the “exam.” Bai Qian caught the shift clearly, but before she could discern what had flashed in those eyes, the woman had already turned her attention back to her phone.

“Do you have anything else? If not, I’d like to take a nap.”

This was the first time Jian Wanqing had ever tried to shoo her away.

Bai Qian was accustomed to the woman clinging to her side in one way or another. Though she was loath to admit it, a sour, bitter feeling suddenly welled up in her chest.

Before she could even process it, her hand had already snatched the phone from Jian Wanqing’s grasp.

Deprived of her phone, Jian Wanqing looked up at her in confusion. “What’s wrong?”

Bai Qian hesitated for a moment, then decided to speak from the heart. “Is something the matter with you? You’re barely eating, hardly talking—is it because you’re worried about Monday’s exam?”

Her tone unconsciously softened into one of reassurance. “It’s fine. If you don’t pass this time, there’s still one more chance. And if you really can’t manage it but still want to keep trying, just sign up again and retake it. If you don’t want to bother, then don’t. There are plenty of ways to get around—you don’t have to drive.”

Jian Wanqing stared straight at her, every word landing with unmistakable clarity. “Bai Qian, are you worried about me?”

The other woman’s gaze flickered unnaturally. “Little Nian is very worried about you. She thinks we’re dating, so she asked me to come check on you.”

“I see.” Jian Wanqing tugged her lips into a strained smile. “Then tell her I’m fine. No need to worry about me.”

Bai Qian set the phone aside, and Jian Wanqing made no move to retrieve it.

She didn’t wait for a response before continuing, slowly turning her body away right in front of her. Her back now faced Bai Qian, who stood by the bed’s edge, slightly bent at the waist. “If there’s nothing else, I’ll nap now. When you leave, could you close the door for me? Thanks.”

The “thanks” was the first Jian Wanqing had ever uttered to her, and it grated like nothing else.