Chapter 4

Bai Shuangshuang heard the sound of things being thrown inside the room. She figured Bai Tongsheng must be throwing another tantrum.

Bai Tongsheng had been spoiled rotten, and tantrums every couple of days were par for the course. But today’s frequent outbursts were something new.

Bai Shuangshuang didn’t care why Bai Tongsheng was upset, and she had no intention of walking into that minefield right now. If her change of clothes weren’t in the room, she wouldn’t have come over at all.

So in the end, she knocked on the door. “Then I won’t take them, sis. Good night.”

She hadn’t even made it down the stairs when the door flew open. It slammed against the wall with such force that it made a dull thud.

Bai Tongsheng glared at her with red-rimmed eyes. “Bai Shuangshuang, I hate you!”

She had such a delicate beauty about her, and at this moment, with that aggrieved expression, she looked utterly pitiable.

But Bai Shuangshuang didn’t go over to comfort her. She stayed right where she was, her face holding its usual gentle smile—though her eyes were utterly cold. “Yeah, I know.”

She should have known from her previous life that Bai Tongsheng hated her.

Catching that utter stillness in her eyes sent an inexplicable wave of panic through Bai Tongsheng, but she jutted out her chin defiantly anyway. “So no matter what you do, I’ll always hate you!”

Bai Shuangshuang’s lips curved faintly. She had always treated people with gentleness, and even now, wearing this air of cool detachment, it somehow didn’t feel out of place.

“Yeah. So from now on, I won’t cling to you anymore.”

Bai Tongsheng opened her mouth to snap back, but her tears came first.

They fell like a string of fine pearls snapped loose, each one landing with a soft patter that instantly shattered the chaotic fog in her mind, brought on by Bai Shuangshuang’s uncharacteristic behavior.

Bai Tongsheng burst into loud sobs. Tears streamed down her cheeks, but she didn’t wipe them away. Instead, she stared stubbornly at the other girl.

A silent battle of wills.

After a long moment, Bai Shuangshuang finally moved.

She walked over and stopped in front of her. Bending down, she reached out and carefully wiped the tears from her face.

Bai Tongsheng’s vision blurred with tears, but she couldn’t suppress the urge to curve her lips upward.

“This is the last time I’ll coax you.”

The hand wiping away her tears was as warm as ever, but the words sliced straight into her heart like a dagger.

Bai Shuangshuang didn’t notice how her body went rigid in that instant. When the tears kept flowing endlessly like an open faucet, she sighed and tugged her back inside the room.

This time, Bai Tongsheng didn’t resist.

She guided her back to the chair and sat her down, then pulled out a tissue to take the place of her hand.

She had said those words to Bai Tongsheng—and to herself.

This was the last time she would let her heart soften. There could be no next time.

Bai Tongsheng’s tears finally stopped. She began to hiccup quietly, her body trembling in little shudders that made her look all the more pitiful.

Those two bright, red-rimmed eyes, shimmering with tears, were enough to tug at anyone’s heartstrings.

Bai Shuangshuang forced down the impulse to comfort her. She straightened up and went to the wardrobe to grab her clothes.

“I’ll sleep with Grandma tonight. Good night.”

She couldn’t ignore the intense stare boring into her back, but her rationality—and the faint ache in her chest—kept her steady. She turned to face the girl, who had finally met her gaze, and firmly shut the door.

It cut off all the emotions that should have been forgotten long ago.

Jiang Bing’s voice rose from downstairs. “Shuangshuang, Grandma’s back. Are you and Shengsheng hungry? If you are, I’ll cook you both some noodles.”

Bai Shuangshuang tugged at the corner of her mouth, relaxed her body, and headed downstairs.

~~~Shuangshuang, you can’t repeat the same mistakes.~~~

…

Bai Binghan arrived early the next morning.

Bai Shuangshuang heard the doorbell and went to answer it. The moment she saw the man standing right there, her eyes reddened.

Bai Binghan smiled and patted her head. “Shuangshuang, Daddy’s here to pick you up.”

Before he had even finished speaking, the little girl threw herself into his arms.

Sobs accompanied her words. “Daddy, I missed you so much.”

The man froze for a moment, his expression turning complicated at her unabashed dependence. In the end, though, he hugged her back gently. “Daddy’s here now.”

…

Whatever lingering distance had remained between them seemed to vanish completely with that embrace. Jiang Bing was delighted to see the change.

“You’re not staying for lunch?”

Bai Binghan ruffled Bai Shuangshuang’s hair and shook his head with a smile. “No, I was thinking of taking Shuangshuang out to play again.”

Jiang Bing didn’t press the issue. “All right, then.”

The man glanced around but didn’t spot Bai Tongsheng. “Where’s Shengsheng? Does she want to come with us?”

“I checked on her earlier—she’s still sleeping. You two go ahead. I’ll ask when she wakes up. If she wants to go, Xichi can pick her up. You can check with Xichi later; you could even meet halfway.”

Bai Binghan responded: “Mm, alright.”

“Shuangshuang, we’re leaving. Say goodbye to Grandma.”

“Goodbye, Grandma.”

“Come play with Grandma again next time.”

“Okay.”

Bai Binghan fastened her seatbelt for her. “Let’s go eat first. What does Shuangshuang want?”

Bai Shuangshuang acted like any normal little girl who would sweetly wheedle her parents. “I want pizza, Daddy. Let’s go get pizza!”

The man smiled indulgently. “Alright, pizza it is.”

~~~

Bai Binghan and Bai Bingyang were fraternal twins who didn’t look much alike.

After graduating from university, Bai Binghan had started his own studio and become an interior designer, while Bai Bingyang built his company from the ground up. Later, his business had brought him together with his wife, Yu Xichi, and they had their only daughter, Bai Tongsheng.

Bai Binghan, on the other hand, had never met the right person. Gentle by nature and not particularly interested in romance, he had only gone on a handful of blind dates to fend off his family’s nagging.

None of them had sparked anything. Jiang Bing fretted in private—her second son’s child was already in elementary school, while her eldest wasn’t even married. Something about that just felt off.

Then, half a year ago, Bai Binghan had suddenly brought Bai Shuangshuang home. Jiang Bing fell for the gentle, obedient little girl at first sight. She wasn’t one to favor sons over daughters, and with her eldest now having a child of his own, no one brought up the subject of a spouse for him anymore.

~~~

It was half a month later that they saw Bai Tongsheng again.

Bai Bingyang and Yu Xichi were firing up the grill in their family courtyard, no guests invited. With Bai Shuangshuang starting school the next day, they figured there was no time like the present and gave Bai Binghan a call.

He couldn’t turn down their warm insistence—and the couple truly adored Shuangshuang—so father and daughter headed over right away.

“Shuangshuang, Daddy knows you love your little sister, and he’s told you it’s good to look after her. But before you take care of her, Daddy wants you to take care of yourself first. Plenty of people will be there for your sister, so you don’t have to shoulder it all alone, got it?”

Bai Binghan spoke those words just before they got out of the car.

Bai Shuangshuang’s throat tightened. She’d heard those exact same words in her previous life—uttered by Bai Binghan himself as he lay dying, calling her to his bedside.

The setting was different, but the depth of meaning and tender care behind them hadn’t changed a bit.

Back then, she hadn’t dared believe them. Not after her adoptive father died unexpectedly, not after Bai Bingyang brought her back into the fold amid a string of upheavals. She hadn’t dared value herself at all.

Only now did she see how deep her self-doubt had run—and how it had driven her to that final breaking point. In the end, she’d brought it on herself.

She couldn’t hold back. She threw her arms around the man gazing at her so gently. “I know, Daddy. Don’t worry—Shuangshuang gets it.”

He stroked her head. “The last thing Daddy wants is for you to feel mistreated. Do whatever you want; Daddy’s got your back.”

She buried her face in his chest, her voice thick. “Mm.”

~~~

“You’re here! Hungry yet? The grill’s not ready—Auntie just whipped up some mini cakes and cookies. Shuangshuang, come have a few.”

Yu Xichi spotted them from across the yard and waved them over with a smile.

She wore no makeup, but her natural beauty was more than enough to turn heads.

The moment Bai Shuangshuang drew near, Yu Xichi popped a cream-topped cookie into her mouth.

Bai Shuangshuang nibbled daintily, smearing a dab of cream on her lip. Yu Xichi laughed softly, wiping it away with her finger before ruffling the girl’s hair. “Good?”

She nodded. “Delicious.”

Yu Xichi handed over the rest. “Your sister’s still napping inside. Want to go wake her, Shuangshuang? She’s slept plenty by now. Auntie was hoping you’d do it—pretty please?”

Bai Shuangshuang couldn’t say no. “Sure.”

The woman gazed at her with open affection, giving her soft cheek a gentle pinch. “What a good girl you are, Shuangshuang.”

~~~

Stepping foot in this place again left Bai Shuangshuang with feelings she couldn’t quite name.

In her previous life, she’d moved out of the Bai Family Home after starting university. Bai Bingyang hadn’t trusted her to live alone in a rental, and since her school was close to Bai Tongsheng’s, he’d bought an apartment right between the two campuses.

Bai Tongsheng had never set foot inside. Then the couple perished in a car crash, so of course she never moved in.

Just the two of them remained from that once-happy family. To better care for Bai Tongsheng, Bai Shuangshuang had come back. She’d taken the girl’s cold stares and sneers in silence.

Bai Bingyang and his wife had given her so much. Taking good care of Bai Tongsheng was the only way she knew to repay them.

The thought of that accident made Bai Shuangshuang clench her fists.

She had no idea if her rebirth could salvage anything, but whether it could or not, she was determined to give it a try.

Suddenly, the tightly shut door burst open. A little girl in a nightgown stepped out, glaring at her with a sullen expression. “Why are you here?”