Chapter 34: My blood type is the same as hers. Take mine, I’m willing. Part 1

“Yue Huan!” Su Ye took another step, blocking the doorway. Her eyes were red and swollen as she stared at the newcomer, holding her breath. “I won’t let you leave. Please, just listen to me, okay?”

Yue Chengqi looked at her in surprise.

What happened? They hadn’t seen each other for only a day, so why were Su Ye’s eyes red again? If this continued, Yue Chengqi genuinely worried about retinal damage. Even the most frequent criers couldn’t possibly handle crying like this, could they?

But today, she truly had no energy left to argue, nor did she have the strength to coax anyone.

Yue Chengqi took two steps forward, leaning against the table for support. “Su Ye, I’m really tired. Extremely tired. Can we please just not fight tonight?”

“This afternoon, a group came to inspect everyone’s tobacco and alcohol stock. Even if you didn’t have any, they insisted on a meticulous search. I had to follow them, moving goods back and forth, and then they checked the production dates and origins of everything. Our stock was fine, but several boxes of so-called ‘near-expiry’ products were hauled away from the dried fruit shop next door. Zhao Qiang was making a huge scene at the entrance, shouting and screaming. My head felt like it was going to explode.”

“Then, when the students got out of school—I don’t know if they planned it—swarms of children rushed over to every single shop asking for lined notebooks. I had to make a quick call to Sister Wang just to get the stock transferred, otherwise, I don’t know how much money we would have lost. Those students were so loud, just constant chatter. It gave me such a headache.”

“That’s why I came back so early. I really have no strength left today. Can we fight tomorrow instead?”

Su Ye’s gaze softened. She whispered, “I wasn’t planning on fighting with you…”

Yue Chengqi sighed helplessly. “Then let’s talk tomorrow, okay? I’m not going to vanish. Just let me go into the room and rest for a bit, please?”

“…Okay.”

Su Ye watched her heavy, dragging steps as she walked toward the inner room. A bitterness welled up in her heart, and she couldn’t help but follow for a few steps. “Um, do you want something to eat?”

Yue Chengqi paused for a moment and nodded. “Thank you.”

But by the time Su Ye had finished heating the dinner and brought it over, the exhausted woman was already sprawled on the bed, clutching the quilt and fast asleep. She hadn’t even had the strength to adjust her posture; a strand of hair was caught in her mouth, and she didn’t even notice.

Su Ye gently placed the food on the table, pulled over a chair, and sat by the bed. Bit by bit, she carefully pulled the hair away from the sleeping woman’s lips.

Damp hair fell against Yue Chengqi’s cheek, sticking to the faint, unwashed traces of sweat. Su Ye’s slender fingers brushed across her cheeks, finally touching the woman’s earlobe lightly as she tucked a lock of hair away.

Su Ye thought, She’s truly exhausted.

She remembered the first time she had tried to support herself; she had been so excited she covered half the city selling goods. When she returned, both her legs were shaking. If Lin Wanjia hadn’t been awake to help her through the door, she might have crawled from the entrance back to her room. That day, she had also passed out the moment she touched the bed, sleeping like a log.

So she knew what true exhaustion looked like. She also knew… Yue Huan was truly capable.

Their meeting had been an accident in itself, and Yue Huan had already done enough without any complaints. Whether it was for Su Ye’s sake or her own, it was enough.

Su Ye, stop asking her for more.

The young girl tilted her head, hugging one leg as she rested her chin on her knee, quietly watching the sleeping woman.

Do you remember what you originally wanted from her? You wanted her to be your family. Like the wish you made—to have her as your family, your friend, so you wouldn’t be all alone in this world. Why have you become so greedy? Wasn’t the way things were before perfectly fine?

Su Ye remembered that afternoon on Weian Road when they first met. Right after she made her wish, a ball of light had condensed in the sky not far away, looking like a little sun. Gradually, it dimmed, and a silhouette slowly emerged before falling right in front of her.

Like a gift.

She was a gift in her own right.

Su Ye lightly touched Yue Chengqi’s cheek and let out a low sigh.

Fine. Tomorrow, when Yue Huan wakes up, if she wants to leave… let her go.

If she doesn’t want to leave, then I’ll apologize. I’ll give her a proper apology.

The weather the next day was terrible. There was no sign of the sun when they woke up. Dark, heavy clouds hung like an inverted bowl over the sky, feeling as if they were pressing down from all sides.

The wind hadn’t started yet, but sparrows were flying everywhere and small animals were migrating across the ground. These were the precursors to a massive downpour.

Yue Chengqi did some quick tidying and stared at the sky for a long time, trying to recall the timing of that great flood in An City.

Was it today? I remember it being mid-June. It’s only the ninth—is it a bit early?

Regardless, she decided to head to the shop and get things ready in case her memory of the date was wrong.

When she left, she felt something was off—had she forgotten something in her haste? Her heart felt heavy, as if she had left behind something very important.

Or as if something terrible was about to happen.

Yue Chengqi leaned toward the latter. Her memory was unreliable; it would be disastrous if she got the date wrong. There were still holes in the shop roof that weren’t plugged, and she hadn’t yet taped down the rain tarp she bought. There was too much to do today.

Her heart wouldn’t settle.

She rushed to the market. In front of the dried fruit shop, Auntie Zhu was eating melon seeds with a neighbor. Seeing Yue Chengqi, she approached with a face full of apology. “Little Yue, did Zhao Qiang bother the neighbors yesterday? I’ve sent him off to deliver goods. From now on, I’ll only let him do the heavy lifting!”

Yue Chengqi gave an awkward smile.

From her perspective, if that man was so useless and yet the family still wouldn’t let their daughter get a divorce, she could only offer her “respects and best wishes.” After all, Auntie Zhu’s family wasn’t some poor household that would starve without one laborer. Since they clung to him so desperately… she had nothing more to say.

It didn’t matter. She didn’t have time to deal with such things.

There were fewer people in the morning. Yue Chengqi moved two stools and stacked them. Holding the shelf with one hand, she used the other to shove the rain tarp toward the top. Fortunately, she had ordered a modular one rather than a single massive tarp that covered the whole stall; she could never have set that up alone.

Auntie Zhu leaned in and asked, “What made you think of doing this today? Need a hand?”

Yue Chengqi declined her offer.

She didn’t want to owe this family any favors. She didn’t have a temper as good as Su Ye’s.

Auntie Zhu naturally sensed the rejection and the distance in her tone. Clutching her melon seeds, she walked away sullenly.

Turning around, she bumped into the other owner of the shop.

“Hey! Su Ye! Slow down, slow down. Why are you in such a hurry?”

Su Ye nodded. “Good morning, Auntie Zhu.” Then, she plunged straight into the shop.

Yue Chengqi was standing on the two chairs, looking down at her. She had tape in one hand and was holding up the tarp with the other.

Su Ye’s breath hitched. She walked over quickly and held the stool steady. “What are you doing? Why didn’t you tell me!”

“I saw you were still sleeping and didn’t have the heart to wake you. It’s fine, it’s not a big job. It’ll be done soon.”

Su Ye held her breath, keeping the chairs steady and following her as she taped along the line. It took about half an hour, with a few small sales made in between, before the canopy was finally secured.

Yue Chengqi clapped her hands and jumped down from the chair. She looked down and brushed the dust off her clothes, saying casually, “Thanks. Are you going out today? It should be your period today, right? Don’t go out. Stay in for the next few days. The shop happens to be quite busy too…”

“Why didn’t you tell me what was going to happen again?” Su Ye stared at her, swelling with indignation. She repeated, “You didn’t tell me again!”

Yue Chengqi looked at her in shock.

This girl is like a self-combusting firework—she just suddenly explodes.

What went wrong this time?

“I… you’ve been running around so much these past few days, and you’re tired and in a bad mood. I didn’t want to burden you. I can do it myself, Su Ye. You don’t need to look out for me for everything. I can manage. I’m not a child.”

“Who’s looking out for you for everything? It’s clearly you who never considers me for anything! Yue Huan, do you want to leave? Do you want to go off and do things on your own?”

“…What is wrong with you? Su Ye, I don’t want to fight first thing in the morning. Please calm down.”

The girl bit her lip harder, glaring at her. “It would take you the whole morning or even longer to tape this up alone. Is this also something you ‘can do on your own’? What if you fell off the chair? What if someone suddenly came in and you poked yourself with the scissors? Why can’t you just tell me things? You clearly knew! You used to at least say something!”

“…”

“Yue Huan, did you ask Sister Wanjia where there are other available shops?”

Yue Chengqi was stunned by the aggressive tone. She processed the last sentence—she had indeed asked. She realized she couldn’t delay anymore. Starting next year, due to well-known reasons, the economy would experience a slump for a while. That would be a terrible time to transition, so she needed to scout for shops in advance.

As for leaving, she had only considered it, never actually planned to act on it. After calming down, she realized Su Ye was only twenty and she herself was twenty-two—at the height of impulsivity. Saying harsh words was normal; there was no need to take it to heart.

She couldn’t bear to actually sever such a miraculous relationship.

But now, why was Su Ye blowing up at her again? Was she still blaming her for not revealing the future?

Yue Chengqi raised her hand, trying to suppress the outburst, but the girl was too upset and pained. Though she closed her mouth, she couldn’t help but add, “Yue Huan, can’t you trust me a little? Just a little?”

Those words were like an explosive, instantly detonating the dam filled with grievances.

Yue Chengqi took a step forward. “Su Ye, do I not trust you enough? I should be the one asking you that! Su Ye, since you knew the market reorganization was inevitable, why did you argue with me that night? Aren’t you the same? Knowing everything, yet pretending you know nothing?!”

In an era where medical resources were still backward, she didn’t want to experience the agony of being sick a second time.

“I wasn’t sure! Because I wasn’t certain, and I didn’t expect things would later…”

“Well, I wasn’t sure either! I’m not a god, I’m just an ordinary person! I didn’t dare say it! I was afraid! I have even more things to be afraid of—how could I say it? What if you all also…” Yue Chengqi bit her lip and suddenly laughed. “So, you wanted to fight about this last night too, didn’t you?”

“You…” Su Ye’s lips trembled, unable to speak.

The other wasn’t doing any better. She was nearly digging her nails into her palms; only this way could she maintain her indignation and not soften up to give in to Su Ye again.

She wouldn’t back down.

Last night she had actually thought Su Ye was sad—her eyes were so red and swollen, she must have been bullied by someone. It was laughable to realize now that she had merely been preparing to fight.