Chapter 19

The fresh, soft scent of Wen Qingyan kept invading Si Nanyu’s senses, and for a moment, her mind simply stopped working. The whispered words at her ear went completely unheard; all she knew was that the voice sounded soft, almost like coquetry.

Almost like a whimper. Exaggerated as it might be, it felt like it kept replaying on a loop inside her head.

Until… the arms wrapped around her slowly lowered, and the warmth of skin against skin began to fade…

But she was reluctant to let go.

“Let… go of me!”

“Si Nanyu!” Only after Wen Qingyan called out twice did Si Nanyu come back to her senses.

Wen Qingyan had already pushed herself upright, palms pressing against her shoulders, her voice still soft with complaint. “You hurt me, Si Nanyu…”

It sounded like a complaint, yet even more like an affectionate scolding.

And it made Si Nanyu realize, more clearly than ever, just how reckless her actions had been: locked tightly around Wen Qingyan’s waist, hooking her ankle, refusing to let her fully pull away.

Reluctance surged thick and heavy in her chest, but she still had to let go.

She released every hold, because Wen Qingyan had been hurt by her.

First the waist, then the foot…

“Are you going to let go or not?”

Before she had fully released everything, Wen Qingyan’s dissatisfied voice came again. Si Nanyu looked at her with a guilty conscience, only to find the corners of her eyes flushed red, utterly aggrieved.

Assuming it was just an issue of positioning, Si Nanyu instinctively opened her mouth. “I’m sorry…”

At the same moment, a phone rang.

Only then did Si Nanyu regain some clarity. Not wanting to be pinned down like that was one thing, but Wen Qingyan’s distress was another matter entirely.

She was afraid. It wasn’t obvious, but with them so close, Si Nanyu could still sense it.

Besides, her arm was now being clutched by Wen Qingyan, who had already pulled a few inches away from her, her trembling voice issuing an order. “Turn the phone off.”

Something seemed to have gone wrong with Wen Qingyan ever since she’d been startled awake.

“Sorry, I’ll turn it off right now!”

Remembering the reason behind it all, Si Nanyu’s apology, and the way she reached back to hold her hand, both carried far more confidence now.

Still holding Wen Qingyan’s hand, she turned to grab the phone. Call ended. Phone silenced. Put back down.

When the whole sequence was finished, Si Nanyu studied Wen Qingyan in the dimness.

She had stopped trembling, but her head hung low, her expression unreadable.

All Si Nanyu could do was try to comfort her gently. “It’s okay now. I turned everything off.”

Guilt and delight crashed into Si Nanyu’s heart at once. She felt sorry, yet she couldn’t help rejoicing at this rare glimpse of Wen Qingyan’s ‘vulnerability’ and ‘dependence’ on her.

And it was this direct, unmistakable feeling that, even though she remembered nothing, made it clear to her: her relationship with Wen Qingyan was simply different now.

The kind of relationship where they could live under the same roof, share the same bed, the same blanket, and where Wen Qingyan would cling to her hand when she was afraid.

“Sleep. Nothing will disturb you this time.”

Si Nanyu didn’t actually know what had frightened Wen Qingyan, so her comfort was presumptuous.

But it worked anyway, because Wen Qingyan lifted her eyelids and laced her fingers through Si Nanyu’s, her expression dark and impenetrable, unable to say a word.

When she lay back down, she didn’t let go. If anything, she held on even tighter.

That night, Wen Qingyan slept poorly, and so did Si Nanyu.

The former because of her tense emotions, her rest plagued by unease, rising the moment the sky lightened.

The latter… purely because the person she’d loved for years was lying right beside her.

Sleeping hand in hand, after having been skin to skin before sleep.

So even in her dreams, Si Nanyu saw nothing but Wen Qingyan, wrapped in rosy bubbles, gorgeously flushed and dewy.

By the time Si Nanyu woke, Wen Qingyan was no longer in bed. She rolled around alone for a while, face burning, embarrassed and infatuated all at once.

That lasted until Qin Hua came to wake her.

“Si Nanyu, why are you still in bed?”

“Little Wen has already left for work. How long are you planning to laze around?!”

Hearing that Wen Qingyan had already gone, Si Nanyu shook off her daze and shot up, blurting out, “Went to work? Isn’t today Saturday?”

“You think Little Wen is as free as you? The Teaching and Research Group has a meeting today.” Qin Hua said it none too kindly, and only after hurrying Si Nanyu along a few more times did she leave the doorway.

Si Nanyu didn’t dawdle. Since Wen Qingyan had to suffer through work today, she would go pick her up.

Breakfast didn’t take Qin Hua much effort: vegetable congee and xiaolongbao.

She’d prepared it mainly because Wen Qingyan loved these; she and Si Nanyu weren’t picky eaters.

Sure enough, the moment Si Nanyu sat down, she lowered her head and started on the congee without a word.

Qin Hua, on the other hand, kept opening her mouth as if to speak, then stopping. After a couple of spoonfuls, Si Nanyu noticed. She set down her spoon and asked, “What is it, Mom?”

Qin Hua didn’t say it directly, just waved a hand. “Finish eating first.”

Her expression was rather grave. Anxious, Si Nanyu put down her chopsticks and urged her to speak.

Qin Hua didn’t hesitate after that, asking outright, “I saw Little Wen looking unwell this morning. Did you upset her again?”

“No! Last night…”

“Last night, right before bed, my dad called, and Teacher Wen got startled, so… she probably just didn’t sleep well.”

Si Nanyu had only meant to explain, but the more she said, the more ashamed she felt. Wen Qingyan had been frightened, hadn’t slept well, and still had to go to work, while she herself had actually let the close contact fill her head with wild fantasies…

“Who did you say called?”

“My dad…”

Si Nanyu answered on instinct, never expecting Qin Hua to shoot to her feet, leaning across the dining table, her face dark and urgent as she demanded, “Who?”

Frowning in confusion, Si Nanyu repeated herself anyway. “My dad’s call. Last night, after I talked with you, I tried to reach out to him, but I thought the call didn’t go through and hung up.”

“It turns out it did connect. In the middle of the night, my dad called me back.”

Qin Hua confirmed she’d heard correctly, and her face drained from dark to pale. She sank into her chair, murmuring to herself, “Your dad… called you back?”

“What’s wrong? Is something off?”

“Or… did you get angry because I called my dad, Mom?”

Si Nanyu couldn’t make sense of it, but instinct told her to guess that reaching out to Si Xueyi had displeased Qin Hua. Her hand unconsciously tightened around the phone in her pocket.

“Give it to me.”

Qin Hua, silent for a long while, suddenly spoke. Si Nanyu looked up. “What…?”

“Give me your phone.”

“Oh, okay.”

Si Nanyu obediently handed it over. Qin Hua took it, drew a deep breath, and looked at the screen.

When she finished, the chill along her spine eased considerably, and her heart settled.

Truthfully, she had already guessed. The number Si Nanyu dialed must have been Si Xueyi’s old phone number, so the call coming back was only natural. Someone else was using it now.

Still, having a man dead for years spoken of so casually from Si Nanyu’s mouth was enough to leave anyone reeling.

As for Wen Qingyan, learning all this in the dead of night, it went without saying.

“What’s the matter, Mom?”

“Did… did I do something wrong?”

At Si Nanyu’s bewildered question, with those curious, guilt-tinged eyes turned toward her, Qin Hua felt a flash of bitterness.

No, more than a flash. Deep, bitter sorrow.

A perfectly healthy person had suddenly forgotten everything, and because of her own affairs, she had wanted to keep it hidden. To keep it hidden forever, even.

It would be best if Si Nanyu never found out.

But clearly, this wasn’t hers alone to decide. Si Nanyu had the right to know.

And Wen Qingyan… shouldn’t be dragged into this either.

Besides, Si Nanyu had a point.

Better not to keep these things from her. Qin Hua didn’t like it.

It wasn’t right, either.

“Nanyu, what I’m about to tell you next, you’d best brace yourself for.”

“Your father, he… died in a car accident a few years ago.”

“The Company is run by me and your Auntie Mu now.”