Shen Mingjin caught a glimpse of Ye Xi deliberately slowing her steps from the corner of her eye. She slightly turned her body, her gaze fully falling on Ye Xi, who was moving as slowly as a turtle. Meeting others’ stares, Ye Xi instinctively hid her pettiness as she inwardly mulled over Shen Mingjin’s cold attitude.
A bright smile returned to her face, and her steps quickened considerably. “Sister, are you waiting for me to go downstairs together? But I’m heading to the top floor. I feel like the rain there would be even better. Downstairs, I might run into other residents. My grandma told me to avoid contact with people.”
It wasn’t entirely a lie.
Ye Tan had indeed told her to steer clear of the people in Half-Mountain Spirit Garden.
The only lie was that she had no intention of going to the top floor. Knowing she would run into Shen Mingjin downstairs, Ye Xi’s current thought was simply to part ways with her. Her body seemed to reject the top floor; just saying the words made her heart inexplicably shrink.
Shen Mingjin had no idea Ye Xi was lying. A trace of anxiety flickered across her pale face. “Ye Xi, you can’t go to the top floor.”
The words slipped out, stunning both of them. Once they recovered, their gazes briefly met before quickly shifting away.
Ye Xi couldn’t quite read the complex emotions in Shen Mingjin’s eyes, nor did she understand why Shen Mingjin, who had said they couldn’t be friends, was meddling in her affairs.
Did Shen Mingjin really not think it was overstepping to control where she got rained on as a neighbor?
Of course, Ye Xi wouldn’t voice such a question. Her fingers curled slightly as she kept the smile on her face. “Sister, why can’t I go to the top floor?”
“I…” Shen Mingjin gently bit her lip, her gaze unconsciously drifting back to the red mole on Ye Xi’s neck. “What I mean is… there’s no one living in this building. You don’t have to worry about running into people.”
Shen Mingjin had finally come up with a suitable excuse. Without waiting for Ye Xi to ask, she explained the situation at Half-Mountain Spirit Garden truthfully. “There are fourteen buildings in Half-Mountain Spirit Garden. The further back they are, the less sunlight they get. We live in Building Fourteen, surrounded by trees that block most of the sun. Even during the day, the light is dim. Not many people like living here.”
No wonder she had slept soundly for days without any noise disturbing her dreams.
When Ye Xi had arrived at Half-Mountain Spirit Garden, it was already dark. The complex’s landscaping was hidden in the night, so she couldn’t see much. She had only noticed how well-greened the area was and hadn’t realized the trees were so dense that hardly any sunlight filtered through.
“So, besides me, you’re the only one in this building, Sister.”
“Yes.”
“No wonder it’s so quiet.” Ye Xi asked casually, pretending nonchalance, “If it’s not great here, why did you choose to live here, Sister?”
Shen Mingjin’s brows furrowed slightly, but she still answered Ye Xi. “It suits me perfectly.”
Suits her.
Ye Xi couldn’t feel normal temperatures anymore, but she could imagine how damp and chilly a building completely shrouded in tree shade would be.
Ye Xi paused in her thoughts. The bliss of deep sleep over the past few days had made her momentarily forget she was still in this strange place. That unresolved suspicion from the other night resurfaced, and when she looked at Shen Mingjin again, her eyes held a hint of scrutiny.
If ghosts really existed in this world, could someone with such low body temperature like Shen Mingjin still be human?
Ye Xi’s heart skipped a beat. Her gaze instinctively dropped to the shadow cast on the ground, which reassured her.
She had watched horror movies with friends before. Ghosts in those films usually had no shadows, and popular ghost stories often described them that way too. But were movies and ghost stories always accurate?
Shen Mingjin had no idea Ye Xi was wildly speculating about her identity. She only felt that Ye Xi’s gaze on her was too intense, as if it could peer right through to her buried secrets. This stirred a sense of panic in her, and she didn’t dare stay with Ye Xi any longer.
As the elevator doors opened, she dragged Ye Xi inside and then retreated to a corner, putting as much distance as possible between them in the confined space.
Ye Xi naturally noticed Shen Mingjin’s shrinking avoidance. She felt a bit baffled and a faint, hard-to-detect disappointment.
In the enclosed space, scents were amplified. The sweet fragrance from Shen Mingjin grew even stronger.
That enticing aroma mixed with a damp chill—the perfect coolness her body craved most. But Shen Mingjin was the one rejecting her approach.
Ye Xi still smiled, but dark waters churned in her heart.
She had never met anyone like Shen Mingjin before—someone who said they couldn’t be friends, yet worried about her; who kept her distance, yet tried to control her.
Ye Xi questioned Shen Mingjin’s behavior. Following her retreat, she moved to the opposite corner and spoke lightly to Shen Mingjin. “Sister, are you going to get rained on too? Aren’t you dressed a bit too thinly? I can’t feel normal temperatures anymore, but it’s winter now. It should be cold outside.”
Because she hated worrying Ye Tan, Ye Xi had learned from a young age to swallow all her negative emotions alone. She even developed a habit of proving to everyone that she was fine. She was skilled at flashing a bright, radiant smile even when unhappy.
This made all her friends from childhood think she was easy to get along with—like a warm, sunny presence.
But Shen Mingjin seemed to have eyes that pierced the soul. She stared at Ye Xi’s bright smile, her scrutinizing gaze nearly breaking Ye Xi’s facade.
Fortunately, Shen Mingjin didn’t keep staring. She quickly looked away and denied Ye Xi’s assumption. “I’m not getting rained on. I’m going to pick up a friend.”
Ye Xi pinched her palm, her forced smile stiffening. “Sister, didn’t you say that night that you had no friends?”
Shen Mingjin blanked for a moment, her memory pulling her back to their first rainy night encounter and her casual response.
She bit her lip lightly and quickly corrected herself. “Colleague. It’s a colleague.”
Hearing “colleague,” Ye Xi followed up. “Sister, what do you do for work?”
“A mediator.”
“Mediating what?”
“Neighbor disputes, and…” Shen Mingjin’s gaze fell again on the red mole at Ye Xi’s neck, watching that vivid red that constantly emanated heat. Her lips moved. “Medical disputes.”
“…”
The term “medical disputes” made Ye Xi instinctively think of Shen Mingjin’s insistence that night that she was a doctor. She shook her head, not dwelling on it. “Sounds like you could get hurt by mistake easily.”
Shen Mingjin shook her head gently. “My colleagues might a little, but I’m fine.”
Shen Mingjin’s responses to every question stirred something in Ye Xi. She couldn’t hold back the question she hadn’t asked that night. “Sister, you said that day you were afraid of heat, that you couldn’t stand the heat in winter so we couldn’t be friends. Does that mean we can be friends in summer?”
“Summer…” Shen Mingjin murmured, hesitating before shaking her head. “Not even in summer.”
Then why had she approached today? Why chat so patiently?
Did Shen Mingjin really not see the contradiction in her actions and words?
Irritation bubbled in Ye Xi’s heart, but her smile grew even brighter.
Shen Mingjin’s gaze slid over Ye Xi’s face before she suddenly asked, “Ye Xi, are you angry?”
Her true emotions pierced, Ye Xi’s first instinct was to deny it. “No.”
Her curled fingers pressed into her palm as she made her smile even brighter. “Sister, I hardly ever get angry.”
Truthfully, Ye Xi looked stunning when she smiled—bright and fervent, accentuating her features, like a cozy little sun.
Unfortunately, it was only an appearance.
Shen Mingjin could naturally sense deliberately hidden negative emotions. She didn’t believe Ye Xi, but in the end, she only called softly, “Ye Xi.”
Shen Mingjin had taken the initiative to say Ye Xi’s name, giving her ample reason to draw closer.
Ye Xi took two steps toward Shen Mingjin. “Sister, what do you want to say?”
The words she wanted to say got stuck in her throat. Shen Mingjin shook her head. “Nothing.”
The conversation should have ended there, but after a brief silence, Shen Mingjin suddenly told Ye Xi, “Ye Xi, you don’t have to force a smile when you don’t feel like it.”
The advice fell lightly like a feather, tickling her ear.
Ye Xi touched her ear, her gaze toward Shen Mingjin now laced with curiosity.
Shen Mingjin was truly strange. She spoke words of rejection and distance, always keeping space between them, yet answered Ye Xi’s questions patiently, even mindful of her feelings and showing concern.
There was no coldness in her eyes. Her gaze held gentleness, faintly tinged with pity and heartache.
It was as if Shen Mingjin wanted to stay away… yet couldn’t help pitying her.
Pity.
Ye Xi didn’t like those words.
Her feet involuntarily took half a step toward her, smile still bright, but voice a bit lower. “Sister, I’m not forcing it. I really do love to smile.”
Lies told too often could even convince oneself.
But Shen Mingjin didn’t quite believe it, though she lacked the energy to dwell on it now.
Ye Xi had asked face-to-face earlier and hadn’t stepped back after. Their distance was already close; now it was even nearer, close enough to hear each other’s quickening breaths.
It was hot.
Shen Mingjin shrank back, her back pressing against the elevator wall, her voice tinged with faint fear. “Ye Xi, you’re too close to me.”
Shen Mingjin’s voice remained soft and gentle, floating lightly and stirring slowly.
Ye Xi didn’t know about others, but for her, a gentle voice was a plus.
The soft, dense murmur wrapped around her ears, making her overlook the rejection in the words and stirring a desire to confide. Suddenly, she wanted to tell Shen Mingjin something. “Sister, you don’t have to be so afraid of me. Even though you’re very pretty, I won’t act on impulse. I can swear.”
She attributed Shen Mingjin’s avoidance to their overly intimate first meeting. Shen Mingjin looked at Ye Xi, her gaze brushing the red mole, lingering on her slender, fragile neck, before settling gently on her face. “You’re very pretty too.”
Shen Mingjin seemed to think of something, her gaze pausing slightly. She suddenly said, “Like a hibiscus flower—delicate and fragile, yet with tenacious vitality.”
Ye Xi keenly sensed Shen Mingjin was seeing someone else through her. Harboring questions, she pressed closer. “Sister, are you really complimenting me?”
Shen Mingjin was cornered in the elevator, faint pink flushes like begonia petals climbing her fair skin. “You… you’re really too close.”
The elevator doors opened just then. Shen Mingjin gently pushed Ye Xi away, creating some distance before darting out of the corner and hurrying through the doors.
Ye Xi lingered a moment before exiting. She thought Shen Mingjin had rushed off to pick up her friend, but Shen Mingjin hadn’t gone far.
She stood at the building entrance waiting for Ye Xi. Seeing her emerge, she took Ye Xi’s wrist and led her to the widest open spot downstairs—the only place not too blocked by tree leaves from the rain. She instructed, “Ye Xi, you need to get plenty of rain. The rainwater really can cure your condition.”
When emphasizing this, genuine concern laced Shen Mingjin’s voice. Fearing Ye Xi wouldn’t believe her, she stressed it heavily.
Ye Xi eyed Shen Mingjin suspiciously. Her attitude was too odd—maintaining distance yet being intimate, insisting they couldn’t be friends while showing endless care.
“Sister.”
Before Ye Xi could decide what else to say, Shen Mingjin had already stepped into the rain with an umbrella. Under the faint streetlamp light, Ye Xi saw the path Shen Mingjin took—under rows of tall trees.
Thick trunks, dense branches and leaves.
The tightly packed trees seemed to completely enclose Building Fourteen. For a moment, Ye Xi felt like she was back in the Deep Mountains.
The gaps between the trees were narrow, hardly wide enough for a car. Ye Xi suddenly couldn’t recall how Ye Tan had driven her to the building that night.
…
She should have asked Shen Mingjin if there were other paths here.
It dawned on Ye Xi belatedly that she should have taken advantage of Shen Mingjin’s willingness to talk and asked more about Half-Mountain Spirit Garden.
The annoyed emotion only lasted a moment before Ye Xi’s thoughts drifted elsewhere. She couldn’t help but wonder what kind of person that colleague—whom Shen Mingjin had just admitted was a friend—might be. Would they be as strange as Shen Mingjin?
The fine raindrops drummed against her skin, soothing the dryness clinging to it, yet they failed to quiet the thoughts swirling endlessly around Shen Mingjin. This bizarre place and Shen Mingjin’s contradictory attitude continued to unsettle Ye Xi…
