Jiang Ruo’s birthday banquet dragged on until very late before it finally concluded.
When Jiang Ruo and Xu Qingci walked hand in hand through the front door, they found the interior pitch black and frighteningly silent.
Xu Qingci frowned with displeasure. “It is one thing for Bingqi to be good for nothing as usual, but now she is becoming increasingly lazy. She does not even know to turn on the lights to welcome us this late at night, let alone pour a glass of water.”
She was certain that Xu Bingqi was too lazy to wait for them to return and had simply gone straight to bed.
In contrast, Jiang Ruo appeared very calm.
Ever since their encounter at the hospital, she knew very well that Xu Bingqi was no longer the submissive person she used to be.
Furthermore, Xu Bingqi would become the biggest variable in the plot development.
Jiang Ruo had a hunch that Xu Bingqi must have discovered something.
Jiang Ruo unconsciously bit her lip, leaving shallow tooth marks on her rosy lips.
Silently, she turned on all the lights.
The bright illumination poured down like a waterfall, lighting up every single corner.
Xu Bingqi’s bedroom door was not closed, as if the owner had just stepped out temporarily for a moment and would return shortly.
However, both Jiang Ruo and Xu Qingci knew this was impossible.
The room, once meticulously organized by Xu Bingqi, now contained only a single piano. Its lacquered surface reflected a cold light, making the surrounding emptiness and desolation all the more pronounced.
“This is impossible.”
Xu Qingci muttered to herself. The impatient expression on her face instantly froze, and even her breath seemed to halt in that very instant.
“Has the house been burglarized?”
After a pause, Xu Qingci eagerly picked up her phone to search for the security company phone number.
Her first reaction was that this house, equipped with top-tier security systems, had still been broken into.
Very calmly, Jiang Ruo stopped Xu Qingci. “Mom, there is nothing wrong with the house. Older sister moved out.”
Shocked, Xu Qingci looked around the entire villa.
Indeed, all the other rooms remained exactly as they had been left before they went out.
Xu Qingci breathed a sigh of relief, feeling somewhat fortunate that only Xu Bingqi’s room had been completely cleaned out.
“Let me check the safe again.”
Xu Qingci did not even dwell on the meaning of Jiang Ruo’s words about older sister moving out. In fact, that short sentence slipped away quietly without even passing through her cerebral cortex.
Quietly, Jiang Ruo watched Xu Qingci’s hurried actions, as if none of this had anything to do with her.
Standing in place for a moment, Jiang Ruo realized that Xu Qingci would not finish checking anytime soon, so she walked into Xu Bingqi’s room.
The heels of her high heels tapped against the wooden floor, leaving crisp sounds behind like decisive drumbeats.
“Older sister, do you really think you can escape?”
Jiang Ruo reached out and struck a piano key, producing a dull and harsh sound.
After checking the valuables in the house, Xu Qingci let out a long breath of relief and belatedly recalled Jiang Ruo’s initial warning.
She walked into Xu Bingqi’s room and saw the remaining cardboard boxes and moving bags in the corner.
Did she really move out?
Xu Qingci kicked one of the moving bags piled in the corner, revealing a card that had accidentally fallen into the crevice long ago.
Unsure what emotion drove her, Xu Qingci walked over, bent down, and slowly picked up the dusty card.
On the card was a line of refined handwriting, followed by a line of childish, crooked handwriting.
When I left, the willows were dancing in the breeze. Now that I return, the rain and snow are falling thick and fast.
Xu Qingci froze for a moment. The card in front of her felt somewhat familiar.
It was something she had guided a much younger Xu Bingqi to write stroke by stroke.
That was from a very, very long time ago.
Xu Qingci lost herself in thought for a moment before being recalled to reality by the sound of Jiang Ruo’s high heels tapping on the floor.
Her daughter was no longer the well-behaved, smiling little girl of the past; she had been replaced by a good-for-nothing with a tainted record.
After Xu Bingqi moved out, Xu Qingci felt only a trace of slight anger, but mostly a sense of relief.
Relieved that her good-for-nothing, envious biological daughter had finally moved out.
“To move out so quietly without even telling us a word, she is becoming more and more impolite.”
Xu Qingci looked at Jiang Ruo, who was staring blankly at Xu Bingqi’s room. Fearing that her kind and benevolent daughter would be saddened, she stepped forward to comfort her. “Xiao Ruo, do not be too upset. If she moves back in, Mom will not stop her.”
Xu Qingci deep down firmly believed that it would not be long before Xu Bingqi moved back in looking disheveled and miserable.
Jiang Ruo smiled silently, putting back on a well-behaved and sensible expression when facing Xu Qingci. “Mom, I think it is better if we contact older sister. Just in case she regrets this?”
Xu Qingci looked comfortingly at her so-considerate daughter and, after pondering for a moment, searched for Xu Bingqi’s contact information.
“The number you have dialed is temporarily out of service. Please try again later.”
A cold, mechanical voice sounded from the phone earpiece speaker.
In disbelief, Xu Qingci stared at her phone screen. Clearly, Xu Bingqi had never rejected her calls before. Furthermore, this type of automated prompt did not sound like the other party manually hanging up, but rather like the phone being turned off or the number having already been deactivated.
After a moment of silence, Xu Qingci tapped into Xu Bingqi’s Moments, only to find that all posts had been cleared, leaving behind only a single pinned post.
Not due to laws or regulations, but done by my own operation. This WeChat account and phone number are currently undergoing cancellation. During the cancellation process, I will no longer log in.
Song Guanjin read through Xu Bingqi’s pinned Moments post once more, then logged into her alternative account to post a question to the vast, helpful netizen community.
My IQ is Normal: [Image]
My friend’s pinned Moments says the WeChat account is being canceled and will no longer be logged into. How can I contact the other person in a situation like this?
Because Song Guanjin’s previous debate records were so dazzling, quite a few people were already familiar with her peculiar ID.
Does not look much like someone playing abstract games.
Song Guanjin was already familiar with most internet memes, so she could read smoothly without searching. She continued refreshing the comment section.
If it is being canceled, she definitely will not log in these days unless she regrets it herself.
If you know each other in real life, just ask. If you do not know each other, there is probably no way.
Do you have her accounts on other platforms? If you do, leaving a comment might work…
……
Among the many comments offering banter and shared experiences, Song Guanjin found a few useful suggestions.
Xu Bingqi was not someone who made rash decisions, so the possibility of her suddenly logging in during the cancellation process was very small.
Therefore, the first suggestion was ruled out.
Did they know each other in real life? But they were merely passing acquaintances; who knew how long it would be before they crossed paths again.
The second suggestion remained pending.
The good news: she has accounts on other platforms! The bad news: those also have pinned notices stating the accounts are deactivated…
The third suggestion was voided.
Song Guanjin sighed silently.
A good friend was not like a good stray cat, where you could encounter love at the corner of some garbage bin every few days. Human activity ranges were much broader, and people’s minds were much harder to fathom. Besides, Xu Bingqi’s attitude toward her could hardly be called enthusiastic; they were not even really friends.
It seemed posting online would not yield any useful information.
Reluctantly, Song Guanjin glanced at the comment section one last time before turning off her phone.
For a cat demon who had just cultivated into human form, today’s schedule had been far too exhausting.
Since she had the massive house all to herself anyway, Song Guanjin chose a comfortable posture and lay down on the bed.
The moment she lay down, Song Guanjin felt as though she were sinking into a warm, tranquil cloud, and she comfortably revealed her original form.
Her slightly erect cat ears faintly appeared among Song Guanjin’s black hair, covered on the outside by a layer of soft, glossy fur.
Her fluffy tail looked like a gorgeous ribbon, its dense fur coated with a sheen of starlight.
Her entire body was covered beneath her huge tail, with her head buried in the fluffy tip of the tail as she slowly emitted a steady purr.
Meanwhile, Xu Bingqi was suffering from insomnia once again.
She turned on her desk lamp and reviewed the events of the day, still finding it hard to believe that everything had gone smoothly to a frightening degree.
She had moved out of her original home and canceled all her old accounts, and she just needed to wait for the cancellation to take effect by next month.
It was equivalent to severing all ties with the past.
From now on, she was no longer the universally despised eldest daughter of the Xu family; she was simply herself. From this day forward, she could recklessly pursue her dreams without ever being trapped by the gazes of others again.
Xu Bingqi tapped open her newly registered account.
The account was completely clean: 0 following, 0 followers, 0 works.
Illuminated by the dim light, Xu Bingqi suddenly thought of the girl wearing the cat-ear headband during the day.
Clearly possessing a stunning and aloof appearance, she was unusually childlike when chatting.
She wondered how she would get along with Jiang Ruo once she joined the production crew.
Most likely, it would be very pleasant.
Inappropriately, Xu Bingqi felt a sensation as if her own precious treasure had been stolen away by someone else.
Yet, in reality, that was not the case at all.
As a Mary Sue, it was only natural for people to prefer Jiang Ruo.
As for someone like herself, who was predestined by the plot to be universally disliked, it was best not to harbor enthusiasm for making friends with others anymore.
After all, in the end, she would only ever be the one who got abandoned.
Xu Bingqi thought of Gu Xiaozhou from the past, reinforcing her belief that maintaining a stranger’s distance from Song Guanjin was the right choice.
As long as she held no hopes for anyone, she would never again experience that feeling from disappointment to utter despair.
Affection and emotions were illusory and unpredictable; only the things held firmly in one’s own hands were real.
Reborn into this life, free from the interference of the novel’s plot, she was determined to become an outstanding composer.
She no longer wanted to be questioned by others as a good-for-nothing, nor did she want to endure contemptuous glances while pretending to be breezy and indifferent.
In this lifetime, she would make everyone look up to her.
Xu Bingqi looked back at her empty account homepage, feeling for the very first time a fierce determination to win.
Just as Xu Bingqi planned to turn off her phone and try to fall asleep once more, a message suddenly popped up onto her screen.
Your computer has been under remote surveillance for 1 year, 7 months, and 21 days.
Following it were the specific details of the remote access controlling the computer where Xu Bingqi previously stored her music compositions.