Chapter 45: Sixth Day After Recovering Memory

It felt just like a beautiful dream.

Bei Huai’s mind went completely blank. She had no idea what to do next.

She stared blankly at the girl in front of her, who was smiling sweetly with bright eyes full of mischief. Unbidden, another memory surfaced in her mind.

That day, she had been in a stall in the bathroom, about to step out, when she overheard two girls outside talking about her and Jiang Wan.

The bathroom was quiet, save for the rush of water from the sinks.

The girls must have thought they were alone, because they spoke without any restraint, their disdain plain as day.

“Did you notice? Lately, Jiang Wan and Bei Huai have been stuck together all the time, all lovey-dovey. You don’t think they’re dating, do you?”

The other girl snorted. “If Jiang Wan dares to date Bei Huai, she’s got a death wish.”

“Why? I heard Class 6 saying she’s turned over a new leaf. She even won the Physics Competition this time. Class 6 is over the moon about it.” The first girl pursed her lips, her tone dripping with scorn.

“Tch, let me tell you the truth, but don’t spread it around.” The second girl’s voice dropped a notch. “I heard Bei Huai’s mom is nuts. It’s hereditary, so she’s a psycho too.”

Bei Huai stood motionless in the stall, listening expressionlessly as they trashed her without a care. A chill settled in her eyes.

Heard?

What a loaded word.

She figured someone from school must have seen them at the hospital—and witnessed Yun Manzhu’s meltdown.

One person tells ten, ten tell a hundred.

But they knew enough to hold back, not stupid enough to provoke Bei Huai to her face.

So the rumors festered in the shadows she never saw, growing uglier until she walked right into them today.

It was almost funny.

She tugged at the corner of her mouth.

Psycho?

Not a bad label.

The conversation outside droned on.

“A psycho? For real?” There was even a hint of eager curiosity in her voice.

“Think about it. Back then, didn’t Bei Huai smash a bottle right into someone’s head? Blood gushed out, and she didn’t even blink. All because they were in her way. Cold-blooded and violent—what else would you call that but a psycho?”

“Even if she’s acting all reformed now, it’s just a front. It’s in her genes, in her bones. She’ll never change. Jiang Wan hanging around with someone like that—she’s asking for bad luck.”

At that, Bei Huai’s face darkened completely.

She could stomach them calling her crazy, but they had no business cursing Jiang Wan.

She was about to shove the door open when the stall next to hers beat her to it.

The two girls outside fell silent, clearly caught off guard that anyone else was in the bathroom.

Then came the sound of a faucet turning on, water rushing out.

Amid the splash, Bei Huai heard a familiar scoff.

It was Jiang Wan.

“What are you laughing at?” the girl who had been badmouthing Bei Huai snapped, clearly annoyed.

Jiang Wan replied in her usual gentle tone—even when she was clapping back, it came out soft and sweet, just laced with a sharper edge. “I’m laughing because that old saying is spot on: rats in the gutter never dare to speak up to your face.”

The jab was obvious.

The two girls bristled instantly.

“Who the hell are you calling a rat?!”

Jiang Wan didn’t miss a beat. “Rats in the gutter. What, are you?”

“Oh, right.” She paused. “Friendly advice to you, classmate: stay away from your little friend there. After all… contagious diseases are a scary thing.”

Bei Huai had been ready to step in and back her up, but now she saw the girl could handle herself just fine—no losses on her end.

Of course. She’d gotten used to seeing Jiang Wan all sweet and patient around her, maybe a bit playful at times. She’d almost forgotten how her Wanwan had once dumped an entire bowl of soup on someone’s head in the cafeteria.

So Bei Huai held back, content to watch and see how it played out.

“You’re talking nonsense! What contagious disease? You’re full of crap!” The girl was fuming.

“Nonsense? So you know what nonsense is.” Jiang Wan’s voice turned cooler.

“You spread lies about other people like it’s nothing, and now that it’s aimed at you, suddenly it hurts? Like a knife twisting in your own gut?”

“That has nothing to do with me! I just heard it from someone else!” The girl’s face flushed red.

“You believe whatever anyone tells you? Don’t make excuses for your own viciousness. It just makes you look ignorant.” Jiang Wan let out a light laugh, but her words cut deep, no mercy spared.

The two girls were just ordinary students, really—gossipy, loose-lipped, full of fear and envy toward the reformed bad girl who had everyone stunned.

So they only dared to whisper their poison behind her back.

She never imagined she’d be caught red-handed by Jiang Wan, who then mocked and lectured them thoroughly. The two girls felt both deeply regretful and profoundly aggrieved.

“We didn’t say anything bad about you, so what right do you have to butt in!”

“I like Bei Huai. Is that reason enough?”

That single, straightforward sentence left the two girls utterly speechless. It also made Bei Huai, who was hiding in the stall, blush from her ears to her neck.

Back then, she figured it was just a casual remark from Jiang Wan, nothing to take seriously.

So she tucked it carefully away in her heart, never breathing a word of it to anyone.

But things were different now.

Jiang Wan was standing right in front of her.

A genuine embrace, warm with life.

Jiang Wan had said she liked her.

Those words were real—truly, utterly real. Not a hallucination. Not a dream.

This was fact. This was reality.

“Hey, say something, will you? Or are you wracking your brain for the perfect rejection line?” Seeing Bei Huai lost in thought for so long, Jiang Wan couldn’t resist teasing her.

Her lovely almond-shaped eyes glimmered with sly amusement, though a flicker of nervousness danced in their depths before vanishing.

She knew Little Bei liked her. It shone through in countless little details from their time together.

The innocent sixteen-year-old Jiang Wan might have been clueless about romance, pure and untainted. But this Jiang Wan, with a lifetime’s experience behind her, saw it all too clearly.

A teenager’s affection burned the hottest and brightest, unmarred by schemes or ulterior motives.

Truth be told, she wasn’t afraid of rejection from Little Bei.

After all, her previous life had handed her plenty of those. One or two more wouldn’t faze her.

What she truly feared was Little Bei getting trapped in her own head, overthinking everything.

“You… you’re serious?” It took ages, but Bei Huai finally pried open her “golden lips” with great reluctance.

Jiang Wan huffed a laugh, half-exasperated. “What else would it be? You think I’m joking?”

After another long pause, Bei Huai stammered, “You… this would count as puppy love.”

“Only if you say yes. So, is that a yes?” Jiang Wan arched a brow, her smile turning wickedly playful.

Bei Huai balled her fists, steeling herself with some inner resolve.

An unprecedented fire blazed to life in her deep, soulful eyes, bright enough to stun.

She locked gazes with Jiang Wan, her voice grave with utmost sincerity.

“No.”

Her expression turned deadly serious. “Not yet. I’m not good enough.”

She wasn’t outstanding enough. Not worthy of standing at Jiang Wan’s side.

She dreamed of the day she’d reach her peak, when she could stage a grand confession and lay everything she was at Jiang Wan’s feet.

“So, just wait a little longer.”

Honestly, though, she was buzzing with excitement, on the verge of losing her mind, floating on air.

She ached to throw her arms around Jiang Wan and never let go.

But she knew she couldn’t.

This was about being responsible to Jiang Wan—and imposing iron discipline on herself.

Bei Huai’s words came out cryptic, but Jiang Wan understood perfectly.

She curved her lips into a smile, her shallow dimples peeking out.

“Alright. I’ll wait for you.”

She knew Little Bei’s pride. She knew her unyielding stubbornness.

In her last life, Jiang Wan had stumbled and scrapped her way toward Little Bei, refusing to give up.

This time, she’d stand patiently at the finish line, waiting for Little Bei to come to her.

Waiting for her goddess to sweep her into an embrace.