Chapter 39

Qi Xu hugged her legs, lost in very confused thoughts about life.

Fine, she admitted it—she liked Xia Zhiming, and she liked her a lot. She had been drawn to her unique style of doing things from the first meeting, and when she saw her face, she hopelessly realized she was a lesbian. Later, after being saved by her several times, she directly developed the idea of “I want to develop that kind of relationship with her.”

But thinking was just thinking—thinking wasn’t against the law, right? All of Qi Xu’s principles so far had been built on the foundation of “just thinking,” because she really couldn’t imagine what it would be like for her and Xia Zhiming to date.

To be precise, she couldn’t envision what Xia Zhiming would be like if she were in a relationship.

Xia Zhiming had such a sharp tongue. If she suddenly turned into a clingy little bird depending on her, all gentle and soft after dating, Qi Xu would only feel chills and think Xia Zhiming was acting out of character. The Xia Zhiming from that morning in bed, with red eyes, forced to endure while furiously cursing her and even greeting the male ancestors of eighteen generations—that was the real Xia Zhiming.

Thinking of that morning made Qi Xu a bit embarrassed again, and she buried her head even lower.

No matter how many times she said it, Qi Xu had never thought of actually developing things to the bed with Xia Zhiming. Even if she had that intention, she lacked the courage. But now that it had really happened, Qi Xu couldn’t act like a mature adult, treat it as an accident, and brush it off carefreely.

After all, it was her first time! Whether it was kissing, falling for someone, or rolling in the sheets, it was all her first time. A first time was special for anyone. And Qi Xu felt that Xia Zhiming must have been a first-timer too.

Otherwise, she probably wouldn’t have cursed so fiercely.

But fierce cursing aside, Xia Zhiming had tacitly allowed it. Qi Xu knew this very well—she was a good kid. Though she had been a bit bold in bed, she was obedient at heart. If Xia Zhiming hadn’t been willing, she definitely wouldn’t have forced it.

Moreover, that morning in bed, Qi Xu had asked Xia Zhiming “is it okay?” Xia Zhiming’s response at the time was: “If you’re doing it, then do it—what’s with the dawdling? If not, get the hell off me.”

With her saying that, how could Qi Xu hold back?

Because it was each other’s first time, the problem was even bigger. Qi Xu wasn’t the carefree type; she couldn’t do something like that, nor could she accept Xia Zhiming brushing it off ambiguously. So back in the hospital, Qi Xu had already made up her mind:

Xia Zhiming had to take responsibility for her!

Pah—I had to take responsibility for Xia Zhiming!

Qi Xu clenched her fist and made a “fighting!” gesture to herself. After pondering her major life decision, she finally had the energy to check her own condition.

Her medical report lay beside the hospital bed, stating she had a concussion. Qi Xu pondered for a moment and set it aside. She always felt that one day, from falling too much, she would suffer a cerebral hemorrhage and drop dead.

After reading the report, she got out of bed and told the nurse she wanted to be discharged, but the nurse scolded her and said she had to wait for the doctor and have a family member sign before leaving. Finding family was impossible; she instinctively didn’t want her parents to know.

If her mom found out about this, she would probably wash her face with tears, grabbing Qi Xu’s clothes and crying uncontrollably. So this kind of thing absolutely couldn’t be told to her parents.

Just days after signing her work contract, Qi Xu had told the Vice Bureau Chief everything and begged her not to tell her parents. The Vice Bureau Chief had agreed, which was why no one had notified her parents even after hospitalization.

Since her parents couldn’t come, the family signature had to come from someone else. Back on the bed, the first person Qi Xu thought of was Xia Zhiming. Last time she was hospitalized for a concussion, it was Xia Zhiming who signed for her, so this time, it had to be her too.

Thinking of this made Qi Xu a bit embarrassed. They had just done that in the early morning, and now they had to meet—she would definitely be shy. But then she worried about Xia Zhiming. She had pressed down on her and gone wild; she had been in ghost body then and didn’t feel tired now, but Xia Zhiming must be exhausted.

In the end, Xia Zhiming had fallen into a dazed sleep, not even waking when she got takeout. One could imagine how heavy a burden she had been. In this situation, still asking Xia Zhiming to come sign as her “family”—she really wasn’t a good person.

Qi Xu despised herself in her heart for a while, but just thinking of Xia Zhiming signing as her “family” made her happy. This was family!

However, Qi Xu waited until one in the afternoon. After eating the hospital’s bland lunch with no salt or oil that tasted awful, someone finally signed for her, allowing her to pack up and go home.

At noon, Qi Xu had already changed out of the hospital gown. The moment she heard she could leave, she bounced up ready to run. But once outside, Qi Xu was stunned.

No Xia Zhiming, not even a shadow of her. Instead, at the nurses’ station was someone who looked somewhat familiar. She was about Qi Xu’s age but seemed more steady. Qi Xu had an impression of her because last night… she had tied her up and dragged her to the ground.

Up close, Qi Xu was startled—this person looked haggard, as if she hadn’t slept all night. Her eyes were bloodshot, messy with red veins. But upon seeing Qi Xu, she forced a smile and greeted her.

Qi Xu awkwardly shook her hand. She introduced herself: “Hello, I’m from the Third Bureau too. My name is Zhang Ziyue. Last night… um, I don’t know if you remember, but we met last night.”

Qi Xu played dumb: “I don’t remember last night’s events very clearly.”

As if. Qi Xu remembered it crystal clear. Her situation was nothing like in novels—protagonists who blacked out and unleashed big moves usually remembered nothing, waking up to ask what happened.

Especially someone like her, who had done that to most of Xintan City’s colleagues—she would forget it all, no impression left.

But not her! Not her! She not only remembered but remembered every detail.

At a time like this, she could only pretend she didn’t remember clearly.

Zhang Ziyue didn’t mind and just nodded: “The Vice Bureau Chief arranged for me to pick you up from the hospital. She’s busy now and should talk to you tonight. Shall I take you straight home?”

“Ah, thanks for the trouble.”

Qi Xu walked out of the hospital with Zhang Ziyue. On the way, she couldn’t hold back and asked: “Sorry, I want to ask… how’s Senior Xia Zhiming, the one who brought me? Why didn’t she come pick me up?”

She was a bit clever, specifically mentioning “the one who brought me” to imply Xia Zhiming picking her up was perfectly justified. Zhang Ziyue didn’t think otherwise and answered straightforwardly: “She asked the Vice Bureau Chief for leave this morning, temporary, said she had urgent business. Probably won’t be back for a week.”

“Ah…”

Qi Xu’s first reaction was that she had gone too far, making Xia Zhiming unhappy, so she sneaked off. She had gone a bit overboard. Her second reaction was, Xia Zhiming was gone—what was she going to do?! In her heart, she thought Xia Zhiming should remember she needed yang energy and come feed her every day, right?

But when they reached Zhang Ziyue’s electric scooter, Qi Xu was surprised: “We’re… riding a shared scooter?”

“Sorry, my scooter’s out of battery, so we have to ride a shared one.”

Qi Xu was a bit flustered, not knowing where to start complaining. If they were riding shared bikes anyway, she might as well scan her own way home. But Zhang Ziyue was dutiful, riding the shared scooter behind Qi Xu all the way until she got her home.

Back home, Qi Xu cleaned the room again. That evening, she got a call from the Vice Bureau Chief summoning her to the Third Bureau for a scolding in person. The Vice Bureau Chief cursed for a long time, but compared to Xia Zhiming’s sharp tongue, it was nothing; Qi Xu listened and let it go.

The Vice Bureau Chief also made Qi Xu write a report detailing yesterday’s events and confiscated the Ghost Taxi incident bonus. Qi Xu didn’t dare object and could only agree.

But that night, Xia Zhiming still didn’t return.

The next day… still no sign of Xia Zhiming.

On the third day, Qi Xu was like a plant without water, wilting even in the apartment. She never thought a day would come when, from the spreading longing in her heart, she lost her appetite and found staying home playing on her phone or computer unbearable.

She counted on her fingers at home how many days Xia Zhiming had been gone. After agonizing back and forth a dozen times, she finally decided: call and ask why she hadn’t come back!

But Qi Xu’s call went unanswered; Xia Zhiming only typed back on social software:

【What’s up?】

Qi Xu pondered for a long time—this was their first chat after that night. She thought a while before replying: 【Why haven’t you come back yet?】 After sending it, Qi Xu wanted to slap herself; the resentful wife vibe was palpable through the screen.

Compared to Qi Xu’s long deliberation, Xia Zhiming replied quickly: 【Quit yelling. I fed you so much yang energy the other day, enough for several days. Still calling for my soul like a ghost. Be glad I haven’t come to settle accounts with you. You even have the nerve to complain.】

That’s not what I meant…

Qi Xu wanted to say that, but feared Xia Zhiming asking “then what did you mean?”

She scratched her hair in frustration, staring at that long string of cursing from Xia Zhiming. After thinking forever, she could only reply: 【Oh…】

【Quit calling. I’ll be back in a couple days. Wait for me, wipe your ass clean and wait—I’m definitely gonna kick your ass until flowers bloom!】

Though Xia Zhiming wasn’t polite, Qi Xu felt very happy. Especially since she told her to “wait,” worried she’d get impatient, and said “back in a couple days.” She immediately replied joyfully with “Mm!”