After the work-related conversation ended, the atmosphere lapsed into a brief silence. Cang Xuehe pretended to drink water to mask her awkwardness, her peripheral vision catching a glimpse of a pale pink tattoo on the inside of Xiao Youyi’s wrist.
Acting on a sudden impulse, she reached out to grab her wrist.
Cang Xuehe’s original intention was simply to catch her arm, but her hand collided with Xiao Youyi’s as the latter reached for the teapot. It turned directly into a hand-holding moment.
Both were stunned. Cang Xuehe’s thumb unconsciously rubbed against the other’s fingers.
This sudden touch gave Xiao Youyi a sensation like an electric shock. Her pupils dilated slightly as she looked up at Cang Xuehe. “What are you doing?”
Despite the question, she made no move to withdraw her hand. The two remained in a quiet stalemate for a moment before Cang Xuehe looked down at Xiao Youyi’s wrist.
With a flip of her palm, she turned the other woman’s wrist upward.
A pale pink lotus tattoo on the wrist came into view.
The corners of Cang Xuehe’s mouth curled up for a fleeting second. Her tone was light as she asked, “A lotus?”
Xiao Youyi looked at the tattoo as well, answering vaguely, “I guess so.”
“My name is Cang Xuehe,” Cang Xuehe said suddenly. (Note: He means lotus in Chinese.)
“I know.” Xiao Youyi blinked, her face showing confusion; she didn’t catch the subtext.
“Your tattoo is a lotus,” Cang Xuehe repeated.
Only then did Xiao Youyi understand her meaning. Finding it amusing, she let out a laugh. “You don’t actually think it has some deep meaning, do you?”
This was the first time Cang Xuehe had seen Xiao Youyi truly smile, though the way she furrowed her brows while laughing seemed to be mocking herself.
“Not at all.” Cang Xuehe tilted her head. “I just think it’s a coincidence. Don’t you think we’re fated?”
Cang Xuehe’s tilted head had a hint of “cute” posturing. Si Yao withdrew her hand and took a sip of tea before replying, “Miss Cang, you’re a bit narcissistic.”
“Hahaha…” Cang Xuehe wasn’t angry; instead, she laughed quite happily, teasingly saying, “Maybe we were fated in a past life and are destined to be tied together in this one, with the tattoo as our mark~”
“…” Si Yao wore an expression of disgust. Thinking about how her main mission had failed for no good reason, she felt that she and Cang Xuehe must have been enemies in a past life instead.
Cang Xuehe laughed even harder. She looked completely different from how she appeared in front of Ding Hongyuan; her sharp edges were entirely retracted. She wasn’t a high-and-mighty heiress, but just an ordinary girl.
Under normal circumstances, Si Yao might have joked around with Cang Xuehe, but she was currently on a mission and hadn’t forgotten her goal of returning to the real world.
“Your meals are served. Please enjoy.”
In front of them were steaming, fragrant steaks—beautifully presented and enough to make anyone’s mouth water.
Si Yao stole a glance at Cang Xuehe, a plan forming in her mind.
They say women who don’t have the life of a princess but have the “princess disease” (acting entitled/spoiled) are the most annoying. If she acted out in front of the real heiress, there was a high probability she would earn the other’s loathing.
Si Yao sat still and didn’t move.
Cang Xuehe began cutting her steak into bite-sized pieces. Looking up, she saw the steak opposite her was completely untouched; Xiao Youyi hadn’t even picked up her knife and fork.
She paused her own meal and asked, “Why aren’t you eating?”
Si Yao had been waiting for this. She pushed the steak forward, crossed her arms, leaned back against the chair, and said with a face full of disdain, “I’m not eating it. This steak isn’t cut into pieces.”
The “straight-shooter” Cang Xuehe replied, “Can’t you just cut it yourself?”
“I have never cut this kind of thing myself.” Si Yao’s expression of contempt was perfectly executed.
If Si Yao herself met such a pretentious woman, she’d want to roll her eyes and walk away, but Cang Xuehe only went silent for a moment before saying, “Oh.”
Immediately after, she pushed her own already-cut steak in front of Si Yao and swapped it for Si Yao’s plate. “Mine is cut, and I haven’t touched it yet. You eat this one.”
“…???” Si Yao was bewildered.
Cang Xuehe urged her, “Eat, or it’ll get cold.”
Unable to understand, Si Yao finally asked, “Don’t you think there’s something wrong with this situation?”
“Huh?” Cang Xuehe took a bite of steak, her eyes vacant for a moment before she realized. “Oh, you mean me cutting it for you.”
“What’s the problem? Aren’t girls meant to be pampered?” Cang Xuehe said it as if it were common sense.
“…”
Si Yao checked her progress bar. Naturally, the “disgust value” hadn’t risen at all—it hadn’t even been activated. It remained dull and gray, much like her heart at that moment.
But she had to admit, hearing those words come out of Cang Xuehe’s mouth, Si Yao felt a tiny bit flattered.
After dinner, Si Yao thought they would go straight to Cang Xuehe’s home, but Miss Cang spoke up again.
“Do you want to buy some daily necessities?” Cang Xuehe said. “Everything at my place is for one person; I don’t have spares.”
So, the two of them went to the mall.
Si Yao expected the wealthy heiress to sweep through the mall and buy everything in sight.
In fact, whenever she picked up a certain type of absorbent towel, Cang Xuehe would tell her it wasn’t very good. She would also meticulously check the expiration dates of products and carefully compare different brands to pick the one with the best value for money.
She looked exactly like someone who took life seriously.
This behavior would be perfectly normal for an average person, but coming from Miss Cang—who had countless domestic helpers at home and lived a life “above the mundane”—it felt extremely surreal.
“That should be it for the daily necessities. Let’s go to the checkout,” Cang Xuehe said, pushing the cart toward the registers.
Si Yao followed behind her, staring at Cang Xuehe’s back in deep thought, so distracted that she didn’t even notice the distance between them growing wider.
Cang Xuehe stopped suddenly and turned to look at her.
“What are you dazing off for? Come on!”
Si Yao quickened her pace to catch up.
As they passed the fresh produce section, Cang Xuehe muttered to herself, “I don’t think there are any groceries left in the fridge. Should we get some?” She turned and asked Xiao Youyi, “What are we having for breakfast tomorrow?”
What are we having for breakfast tomorrow?
The question made Si Yao daze for a moment. It felt like it had been many years since anyone had asked her that.
She looked at Cang Xuehe. Her long hair was casually tied up, revealing a beautiful swan-like neck. Those clear eyes were looking at her steadily, her brownish-hazel irises resembling beautiful pieces of amber.
Si Yao knew how to appreciate feminine beauty, and in her eyes, Cang Xuehe was undeniably beautiful; it was just a pity that they were currently on opposite sides.
“What do you want to eat?” Si Yao asked back.
Cang Xuehe thought about it seriously. “How about we make some noodles?”
Si Yao suddenly said, “I’ll cook tomorrow.”
Cang Xuehe was a bit surprised but quickly agreed. “Alright then, you pick the ingredients.”
Si Yao carefully selected various ingredients—seafood, meat, and poultry. For a moment, Cang Xuehe suspected that Xiao Youyi wanted to make her some sort of “surf and turf” luxury feast, and she worried her stomach might not be able to handle such a rich meal so early in the morning.
“Let’s keep breakfast a bit light,” Cang Xuehe advised, feeling a bit uneasy.
“Okay,” Si Yao replied briskly.
However, when the next morning arrived and Cang Xuehe got out of bed to see what was on the dining table—
Her jaw nearly hit the floor in shock.
“This… this is the breakfast you made?!”