“Listen, people outside are looking for you.”
Footsteps outside drew closer, and if one listened carefully, there were low voices asking around. The person they were searching for was, at this very moment, pinned against the door by Shen Qing, her strong arms locked tightly around that slender waist. Lips with a soft touch brushed against her ear, teasing her flushed-red earlobe.
The two of them were clearly doing something incredibly intimate, yet the words Shen Qing spoke were like a demon’s whisper, and Jiang Wangshu’s barely-held mental defenses instantly crumbled.
It shouldn’t be like this. It can’t be…
Tears welling at the corners of her eyes, Jiang Wangshu shook her head helplessly.
The footsteps outside seemed to stop. In the surrounding silence, Shen Qing could clearly feel the drum-like pounding of the heart of the person beneath her, and a playful urge rose within her.
After all, Jiang Wangshu had toyed with her so many times, she hadn’t gotten a single chance to return the favor.
“Why not?” Shen Qing’s voice wasn’t quiet; if the person outside came any closer, they would hear it.
She had no intention of hiding, but Jiang Wangshu, frightened, instinctively clamped a hand over Shen Qing’s mouth, seemingly trying with all her might to keep the sound from leaking out.
Watching her tremble with fear, Shen Qing could no longer hold back her amused smile. “What do you think Mom’s face would look like if she found the two of us alone in a room like this, in such an ambiguous situation?”
Then Shen Qing exhaled a hot breath into her scorching palm, as if marveling: “What are you trembling for?”
“Scared? Or… did it feel good?”
As she spoke, Shen Qing’s hand at Jiang Wangshu’s waist slowly traveled up to her neck. She had always thought Jiang Wangshu’s shoulder and neck line was exceptionally beautiful, especially paired with the way she was looking at her now stubborn yet broken, always stirring one’s tenderness…
Shen Qing laughed at herself bitterly. She was probably the only one who could be fooled by her again and again. Truly, utterly foolish.
In the darkness, Shen Qing gazed at Jiang Wangshu’s face and leaned in to get closer, only to see her turn her head away.
She didn’t want this. She had never wanted this.
Shen Qing’s expression turned dark and unreadable as she stared fixedly at the pale, thin cheek before her.
Right. From the moment she had forced her way into Jiang Wangshu’s room, every intimate act between them had been against Jiang Wangshu’s will. Even when passion ran deep, even when Jiang Wangshu’s body began to tremble and her legs went weak, she would only barely prop herself against the wall, refusing to lean on the person in front of her for support.
So it was still just her own wishful thinking, Shen Qing couldn’t help sighing inwardly. She didn’t say it out loud, she still had some pride to keep. After all, she had already tasted what it was like to be suddenly treated coldly years ago, and yet here she was, acting like a lapdog again Jiang Wangshu crooked a finger at her, and she came running eagerly.
Pathetic.
Shen Qing silently scorned herself, but the desolation in her eyes could not be stopped.
The footsteps outside moved away. The next second, a pair of soft, burning hands covered her eyes without warning. Shen Qing’s heart softened, and just as she was about to say something, Jiang Wangshu’s hoarse voice cut her off: “I’m your sister-in-law. You can’t!”
“Why can’t I! Shen Dai is dead! The Qing dynasty is long gone! No one’s making you mourn her for three years!”
Jiang Wangshu’s heartlessness could always, time and again, ignite her fury. Shen Qing violently tore herself out of her reverie, raised her hand to knock away the hands covering her eyes, and seized her chin, forcing her face back around.
The moment her gaze landed on the black artificial flower in Jiang Wangshu’s hair, hatred surged in Shen Qing’s heart. She yanked it off and threw it to the floor, and as if that weren’t enough to vent her anger, she lifted her foot and ground it down hard several times. But when she looked up at Jiang Wangshu again, she never expected tears to come splashing onto the back of her hand.
Seeing the glistening teardrops on her hand, Shen Qing froze for a moment. The next second, as though she’d been scalded, she frowned and hastily pushed the person in front of her away, quickly picked up the flower she had trampled to pieces, stuffed it back into Jiang Wangshu’s palm, and retreated.
Both of them fell into silence. After a long while, Jiang Wangshu finally got up and turned on the ceiling light. When the light came on, the two raised their hands to shield their eyes in unison, only looking at each other once their eyes had adjusted to the brightness.
Only then did Shen Qing see Jiang Wangshu’s cheeks, still streaked with tears she hadn’t had time to wipe away, and the eyes full of reproach. In Jiang Wangshu’s eyes, it seemed, whatever she did was just a child fooling around, while Jiang Wangshu was the long-suffering parent.
Shen Qing pressed her lips together and, for some reason, felt inexplicably guilty. Not daring to look at her properly, her gaze slid past her and landed on the photo hanging on the wall behind her.
It was her and Shen Dai’s wedding photo.
And today was Shen Dai’s funeral.
One day earlier, Shen Qing was at the company dealing with the scandal Xuan Zhi had suddenly blown up, when the very culprit responsible for her skyrocketing workload called her.
Just as she assumed Xuan Zhi’s call would be the same as always, a grinning apology Xuan Zhi’s grave tone made her stop what she was doing.
“Shen Dai is dead.” Xuan Zhi seemed to still be shooting on location; the background noise was a chaotic mess. Shen Qing frowned and told her to find somewhere quiet to talk.
Xuan Zhi rolled her eyes at that. As it happened, she needed to go back to the dressing room to change into her next outfit anyway, so she didn’t bother mocking her boss.
Xuan Zhi was currently the most in-demand model at Shen Qing’s company, as well as a partner in it. Shen Qing, who had plunged headfirst into the money bag, naturally wouldn’t pass up the chance to use Xuan Zhi to make money, and had secured quite a lot of work for her. She never expected that even with such a packed schedule, Xuan Zhi would still have time to dig up news from circles back home.
“Her health was already failing this year. Last month the flu hit hard, the nanny taking care of her didn’t add enough layers, and then Jiang Wangshu took her out for a stroll in the garden. She probably caught a chill. She developed a fever that very night, and after just a few days of treatment it triggered complications. She lay in the ICU for a while, but she still passed away this morning, in fact.”
On the other end of the line, Shen Qing said nothing, though the faint sound of an assistant opening the door and speaking could be heard presumably still dealing with the fallout from Xuan Zhi’s sudden revelation about her daughter. Thinking of this, Xuan Zhi felt a tiny twinge of guilt.
“How about we just let my scandal keep fermenting, you go back home for the funeral first.” Xuan Zhi’s family was fairly close with the Shen family, and she knew Shen Qing had all but severed ties with them, but she wasn’t quite sure whether Shen Qing needed to attend an occasion like this.
Shen Qing still made no sound, continuing to listen as her assistant summarized the plan for handling public opinion, never once mentioning returning home for the funeral as if Shen Dai’s death had nothing to do with her. It wasn’t until Xuan Zhi muttered to herself, “Jiang Wangshu’s position in the Shen family is looking pretty precarious right now…”
Before she could finish speaking, the call was cut off. Within half an hour, Xuan Zhi learned from Shen Qing’s assistant that Shen Qing had abandoned her work and rushed to the airport to return home for the funeral.
In truth, Shen Qing had already known that Shen Dai was gravely ill.
The night before, Shen Qing had received a call from Shen Dai. On the other end of the line, Shen Dai hadn’t said much only apologized to her and begged her to protect Jiang Wangshu as much as she could, until she found a partner whose ability and influence were no less than Shen Qing’s own.
Listening to Shen Dai’s hoarse voice, like the wheeze of an old accordion, Shen Qing felt an inexplicable pang of dread. Then the call cut off. She never imagined that that request would become her final words.
Shen Qing exhaled irritably, put on her sunglasses, and rose to follow the crowd off the plane.
From birth, Shen Dai had been doted upon by Mrs. Shen Xiaqing and her funeral was so grand that all of Haicheng knew of it. Before Shen Qing had even landed, someone had already sent the address to her phone.
No one came to pick her up. Fortunately, though she had spent seven years abroad without returning, she hadn’t forgotten the layout of Haicheng Airport. Shen Qing found the taxi stand and took a cab to the address on her phone.
The funeral had already begun, so she didn’t stop at the entrance. Afraid of drawing too much attention, Shen Qing had the driver let her out under a tree nearby.
She hadn’t planned to stay long on this trip back, she hadn’t even brought a change of clothes. Carrying her bag, Shen Qing smoothed the wrinkles in her black trench coat from the long journey, leaned against the tree trunk with her arms crossed, and quietly watched the scene inside the hall.
Seven years without seeing her, and that figure was both familiar and strange. She had grown much thinner, her slender neck swallowed by a black turtleneck sweater, making her face look even smaller.
She was still as gentle and beautiful as ever, softly greeting the guests coming and going like the moon at the edge of the sky, now distant and untouchable. Yet her reddened eyes and the way she stood trembling before Shen Dai’s portrait made her look pitiable no matter how you saw her.
Weren’t you supposed to live happily once you left me?
Shen Qing stared hard at the figure not far away, her grip on her bag unconsciously tightening.
As the funeral drew to a close and the guests prepared to drive off, Shen Qing’s legs ached from standing, yet she didn’t take a single step away from the tree. She hadn’t intended to appear at all until a piece of gossip drifted out from the crowd, and she changed her mind.
“Why isn’t Shen Qing here? She’s Shen Dai’s own sister, after all. How could she not come to see her off? So improper, truly cold-hearted and cold-blooded.”
The speaker was her third aunt, Yang Yeming, the one most eager to curry favor with Shen Xiaqing. That she would show such contempt toward Shen Qing in public meant this was likely Shen Xiaqing’s true attitude toward her.
Shen Qing gave a cold snort at those words and strode into the hall. “Third Aunt, you’re so warm-hearted and enthusiastic yet where’s a single tear? Could it be that my sister’s death doesn’t sadden you at all?”
Everyone in the hall, led by Shen Xiaqing, turned their eyes to Yang Yeming. Especially Shen Xiaqing, if her gaze could have turned into a sharp blade, Yang Yeming would already have been riddled with holes.
Yang Yeming dared neither admit nor explain anything, terrified that Shen Qing would say something else she couldn’t withstand. After all, Shen Qing bore the Shen name, no matter how diminished, she was still the sole heir of the Shen family.
Shen Xiaqing wasn’t surprised by her arrival, merely turning her head to glance at Jiang Wangshu. A lit cigarette appeared in front of her, and as she took it, Shen Qing’s slender fingers brushed against Jiang Wangshu’s ice-cold hand. She had meant to say something, but when Jiang Wangshu gave her a hesitant, stammering look, she swallowed the words “long time no see” back down.
So even that phrase was off-limits now, upon meeting again.