Chapter 6: Choking Up

A woman who can be considerate.

Was Bu Yao consulting her opinion? Pleading with her?

Abruptly realizing this point, Xing Yue’s mind went completely blank. This feeling of being treated with respect by the Eldest Miss Bu carried an eerie, chilling coldness that made one’s hair stand on end.

She took half a step back, pulling away from the little hand that was gripping her clothes, and smiled gently: “Alright. Let me first tell my colleagues at the studio.”

These movements weren’t large in amplitude, but the sense of resistance was obvious.

The light in Bu Yao’s eyes dimmed. Her hand lifted briefly in mid-air, then finally dropped to her side, catching nothing.

Since the plan had temporarily changed, Xing Yue and Bu Yao got off the subway early. The exit at this station happened to be right near the City Center Hospital.

She dialed her manager: “Sister Qiao, let’s push back today’s recording session for a bit. I’ll head over later.”

Xing Yue was a faceless internet celebrity Cover Singer, with a side gig as a Voice Actor. She had just shy of ten million fans. Not too many, not too few. Her earnings couldn’t touch even the tip of a pinky nail of a mega-wealthy family like the Bo’s, but compared to ordinary families, her income was at the very top tier.

With the constant turnover in the online world, many internet celebrities fade into obscurity after a period of popularity. The company had always wanted Xing Yue to show her face, to build up her public persona and attract fans. Xing Yue refused.

Because of this very issue, Xing Yue’s relationship with the company was already quite tense, to the point where even asking for leave was met with friction by her manager.

Qiao Rui spoke with biting sarcasm: “Xing Yue, do you really think you’re some big star? Did the company approve your leave? Can you have a little crisis awareness for yourself? A woman at thirty-six who doesn’t want to find ways to reinvent her career, still thinking she’s twenty-six? You’re not young anymore. Don’t be content with the status quo, OK?”

With the internet so developed now, there are always more multi-talented people becoming even more popular. Xing Yue’s positioning was awkward, and she still refused to show her face. She had relied on covering songs to get famous, but if you asked who the singer of many popular short video background music tracks was, sixty percent of internet users wouldn’t be clear.

To put it bluntly, the songs were famous, not the person.

The company didn’t want to let go of Xing Yue, this small tree that could still yield money. They could only exert pressure through various means to force Xing Yue to compromise.

“Sister Qiao,” Xing Yue lowered her head slightly. Her glasses slipped down her nose bridge. Outside, the sun blazed high, but an icy coldness stabbed through her bones. “I have already informed you that I will be late for today’s recording. You are responsible for informing the relevant staff to come back this afternoon. Don’t let them wait for nothing.”

Her attitude was firm. She approved this leave for herself.

After saying her piece, she hung up the phone. She didn’t even really argue with Qiao Rui. They had quarreled countless times over this topic. She didn’t want to quarrel anymore. Moreover, Qiao Rui’s words had struck a nerve in her heart, right when she was struggling with age anxiety.

Her family pressured her to marry so much that she didn’t even dare answer their calls. Her career was stuck in place. She was truly exhausted.

Bu Yao didn’t know what the person on the phone had said, but seeing Xing Yue’s expression, she could roughly guess: “Xing Yue, are you too busy with work to get away?”

Standing to the side, Bu Yao halted her steps and murmured again: “We can wait until you’re off work and go to the hospital then.”

The corners of Xing Yue’s brows and eyes curved slightly, and she spoke with meaningful elegance: “How rare. The Eldest Miss Bu has actually learned to be considerate of others?”

Hearing the teasing words, a faint blush stained Bu Yao’s cheeks, especially the smile that spilled from Xing Yue’s lips, so identical to the one she wore when teasing her tail in bed.

Her face grew even hotter…

Xing Yue’s eye shape was the phoenix eye: slanted, long, with an upward tilt at the outer corner. This kind of eye had a strong presence. Her brow shape, however, was the distant mountain brow. When she smiled while looking at a person, that expression was gentle and graceful, exuding a strong, mature, wife-like beauty.

There had never been anyone who could make Bu Yao wait. Not even Xing Yue ten years ago, as Bu Yao’s wife, could do so. So this one gentle sentence from Bu Yao — Xing Yue knew it represented an earth-shattering change.

“We’re going right now. Your tail is more important,” she said decisively.

She had to take responsibility for Bu Yao’s allergic reaction. Even if she had no intention of rekindling old feelings with Bu Yao, she wouldn’t shirk what she was responsible for.

On the way, Bu Yao followed Xing Yue like this, maintaining a distance that was just close enough to hold hands if one reached out.

They walked one after the other under the tree shade. Bu Yao was always secretly gazing at Xing Yue. She missed Xing Yue too much. So many years without seeing her, no matter how she looked, it never felt like enough. But Xing Yue was so cold, not even turning her head back to look at her.

“Do you like…” she whispered furtively.

Xing Yue didn’t hear clearly and turned her head back to ask: “What?”

Bu Yao wanted Xing Yue to look at her. When Xing Yue truly did look at her, she felt shy and uneasy again, her soft cheeks flushing red: “Do you like women who are considerate?”

Mom said, no one likes to serve a bad-tempered princess. Everyone likes girls who are a bit more well-behaved, gentler, more outstanding. What about Xing Yue? Earlier, Xing Yue praised her for being considerate. So did Xing Yue like it?

Did Xing Yue like women who are considerate…

This sudden question, and Bu Yao’s bashful and shy demeanor, all left Xing Yue a bit dumbfounded. She had just casually made a remark, how could Bu Yao read so much into it?

Of course, she didn’t have the habit of making a woman feel awkward, especially when this woman was her ex-wife who had been with her at eighteen.

“I like it,” Xing Yue nodded, pulling Bu Yao to walk faster. Smiling, she added, “You’re actually quite cute like this.”

At least much cuter than her hot-tempered and irritable self. Maybe she was still on guard, thinking on one hand that Bu Yao was scheming something sinister and terrifying, while on the other hand unable to resist Bu Yao’s gestures of goodwill.

She was right in the middle of this conflict, completely unaware that the woman behind her was blushing down to her neck because of her praise.

Bu Yao thought to herself, Mom was indeed right…

When they arrived at the hospital, Xing Yue hit a snag at registration. Should she register for the Gynecology Department or the Dermatology Department?

Luckily, the hospital had patient guides who proactively approached and asked: “What’s the discomfort?”

In recent years, in front of outsiders, Bu Yao had always been noble and aloof. She couldn’t act like that when Xing Yue was around though. She would constantly monitor her own words, tone, expression, fearing she might make Xing Yue dislike her as before.

And this awareness made Bu Yao speak less and less. Only by speaking less could she prevent others from seeing her bad temper.

When the guide came up to ask, Bu Yao shuffled to stand behind Xing Yue.

“Uh… it’s…” Xing Yue’s palms sweated slightly as she tried to keep her expression as natural as possible. “It seems to be a little allergic reaction on the tail. We applied ointment but it didn’t work. Not sure if the cause is definitely an allergy.”

A snake’s private area is right at the tip of its tail. Xing Yue felt awkward specifying the tail tip, so she described it euphemistically.

The guide had seen it all and didn’t show much reaction. She understood instantly: “Third floor, turn left. Register for Gynecology. Let the doctor check first to know if you need an ultrasound or blood test.”

Xing Yue quietly sighed in relief. Even she found it embarrassing, let alone Bu Yao.

After overcoming the first hurdle, there was an even bigger problem… and this problem gave Xing Yue a huge headache.

The doctor was a little old lady with considerable experience, her hair already graying. No matter how brilliant her medical skills, she was at her wit’s end with Bu Yao.

Pulling the curtain open, she spoke sternly to Xing Yue standing nearby: “How old exactly is your girlfriend? The ID info says twenty-eight. She can’t control her snake tail at all — she hasn’t even reached adulthood!”

The doctor clearly suspected Xing Yue of deceiving an underage girl.

She took Bu Yao for just a girl whose dressing style was a bit mature, who loved to dress up and wear makeup.

Xing Yue got a thorough scolding from the doctor, who gave her no good face. She had bitter grievances but couldn’t voice them. Looking at the culprit, Bu Yao lay innocently on the hospital bed, her clear, bright ruby eyes staring blankly at her, hands clutching the blanket tightly, looking utterly pitiful.

“Doctor,” Xing Yue didn’t know why, even though she hadn’t committed any crime, she couldn’t help but feel guilty, instinctively lowering her voice volume. “She really is twenty-eight. The inability to control her tail is an old problem. Her tail’s been like this for ten years already.”

Adult snakes can completely control whether to reveal their tail or manifest legs. Only some elderly, gravely ill snakes who’ve lost their self-care ability, or younglings, are unable to control their tails.

Bu Yao was clearly a healthy adult. For some unknown reason, she could perfectly control her tail and legs in front of others, but couldn’t when Xing Yue was beside her.

It used to always be like this: displaying courtship behavior in front of Xing Yue. Even when they were fiercely quarreling just a moment ago, this tail would still disgracefully crawl onto Xing Yue’s skin.

Now the doctor needed to examine Bu Yao, but knowing Xing Yue was just a curtain away, her legs once again wouldn’t obey her. They wouldn’t transform into a tail. She couldn’t control it.

The doctor’s gaze at Xing Yue carried a hint of interrogation: “Save these words for the police.”

Xing Yue hastily stopped her: “Wai— Wait a moment! Give me a little time.”

She swiftly walked up to the hospital bed, drew the curtain closed. Sweat beaded urgently on her forehead. Lifting the blanket, she pinched Bu Yao’s soft, small calf. “Eldest Miss, are you messing with me?”

Her tender lotus-root-like toes curled on top of her other foot. Bu Yao lowered her head, the tip of her nose red. Choking with emotion, she said: “I’m not doing it on purpose.”

She didn’t want to be like this either, but whenever she encountered Xing Yue, her tail became strange. Clearly it was her own snake tail, yet she couldn’t control it. It was heavily influenced by Xing Yue.

Xing Yue’s identity was a bit special. Although she was a faceless internet celebrity singer, getting involved with the police station was still too risky.

“What do we do now?” she asked with a headache, a bit anxious.

Bu Yao’s face was all innocence as she bit her lip: “Maybe… if you kiss it, it might get better.”

Xing Yue was stunned: “Kiss what?”

She looked down at Bu Yao’s feet, curling restlessly, and was suddenly angered to the point of laughter. “You really dare to ask that, Eldest Miss?”

Bu Yao could tell that Xing Yue’s tone wasn’t right. She was no stranger to this tone. In their brief marriage, when facing various unreasonable demands she made, Xing Yue would speak to her just like this: sarcastic, helpless, self-mocking, and also furious.

Sitting propped up on the bed, holding her knees, her dazzling, bright pupils holding only Xing Yue, she defended herself: “This isn’t an order. It’s not coercion. It’s a shameful request born from my feelings for you being beyond my control. Can I please, please ask you… to soothe my tail? Can you?”