“I’m back.” As soon as Cheng Simian entered the house, she saw Cheng Qin sitting on the sofa. She hummed in response and headed upstairs with her backpack.
“Where are you going? Eat first.”
“I’m not hungry today,” Cheng Simian replied casually without stopping.
But as she reached the stairs, she ran straight into someone. Her head was lowered, and the impact nearly sent her falling backward—until a hand caught her arm, firmly and steadily pulling her back.
She looked up and met a pair of dark eyes—gentle, cool, and deep.
Her heart betrayed her, skipping several beats. Even the hand gripping her arm seemed suddenly warm.
“Watch where you’re going,” Su Xianyan said calmly.
Cheng Simian pressed her lips together and quickly looked away.
He released her and asked, “Why aren’t you eating?”
“I’m not hungry.” She hurried past him and ran to her room.
Bang!
The loud slam startled Cheng Qin downstairs.
“Cheng Simian! Can’t you close the door more gently?!”
Her bedroom door remained shut, of course, and there was no reply. At the foot of the stairs, Su Xianyan glanced at the door in mild confusion before heading back down.
Inside her room, Cheng Simian locked the door. Only then did the heat rush to her face. No matter how many deep breaths she took, she couldn’t calm down. Her mind was full of Su Xianyan—and of what Fu Ziwen had said earlier.
You look like Youyou after a breakup.
A breakup…
You can’t lose something you never had.
Had she… fallen for him?
And the person she’d fallen for was Su Xianyan?
Late into the night, Cheng Simian still couldn’t sleep. Tossing and turning to the brink of collapse, she suddenly jumped out of bed.
“So what if I like someone?! Is it really that serious?!”
Yes, it was the first time in over a decade that her heart had awakened—but so what if it was her first love? If she liked someone, she’d go after him. There was nothing Cheng Simian couldn’t get.
A fiancée—so what? It was just something the elders had verbally agreed on. Su Xianyan didn’t even take it seriously!
Fueled by determination, Cheng Simian stormed out of her room, intending to grab a glass of milk to calm herself.
Su Xianyan—his future is mine.
As she came downstairs, she noticed the kitchen light was on. Walking closer, she saw a tall, refined figure inside.
The very person who had been circling her thoughts was standing there, pouring himself a glass of water.
She stopped in her tracks.
Hearing her footsteps, Su Xianyan turned around, surprised.
“You’re still not asleep?”
“I—I have insomnia.” Her words came out clumsily. All the bold declarations she’d made in her room vanished the moment she saw him. Cheng Simian cursed herself silently—Where did your backbone go?
“Insomnia?” Su Xianyan frowned slightly. “Studying been too stressful lately?”
“Not really. Today was just… special.”
“Mmm.” Su Xianyan opened the fridge. “Have some milk before going back to sleep.”
“Okay.”
As he spoke, Su Xianyan poured out some milk and prepared to heat it. Cheng Simian slowly walked over to his side, glancing at him as if casually.
The night was very quiet. In the kitchen, there were only the sounds of their breathing. Cheng Simian tilted her head and studied him. He was tall—at least over 180 cm—and standing beside him, someone as petite as her looked even smaller. But then again, wasn’t the “cutest height difference” all the rage these days?
With a ding, the milk finished heating. Su Xianyan took it out and handed it to her. “Drink.”
Cheng Simian hurriedly looked away. “Oh!”
She took the cup and gulped the milk down in big mouthfuls.
“Slow down,” Su Xianyan said helplessly as he watched the milk trickle down her chin. Without thinking, he reached out to wipe it away.
A faint warmth touched her chin. Cheng Simian didn’t react in time and turned her head to look at him. At that subtle angle, her lips brushed against the back of his hand.
For that brief instant, time seemed to freeze.
Cheng Simian jumped back as if she’d been electrocuted. The glass cup slipped from her hand and shattered crisply on the floor, milk splashing everywhere.
Su Xianyan reacted quickly and pulled her aside. Fortunately, both of them were wearing long pants and weren’t hurt—only their slippers were splattered with milk.
“S-sorry…” Cheng Simian was stunned, looking up at Su Xianyan apologetically.
He pulled her a little farther away. “Don’t step on the glass.”
“I didn’t mean to…”
Su Xianyan lowered his gaze to her. “Be more careful next time. Always so reckless.”
“Oh…” Cheng Simian muttered. As if it wasn’t your fault.
“Why are you pouting?” A hint of amusement flickered in Su Xianyan’s eyes.
As he spoke, the girl in front of him lifted her gaze. Her dark, bright eyes were moist and shimmering, like the brightest star in the night sky. She stared straight at him—so bright it was hard to look away.
Su Xianyan narrowed his eyes slightly. “What is it?”
“Su Xianyan, why are you so good to me?”
“…”
“Are you this nice to everyone?” Cheng Simian didn’t even realize that she was asking cautiously. Her fair little face, under the light, carried a fragile, pitiful look.
Su Xianyan paused, then bent his fingers and lightly tapped her forehead. “What makes you think I’m nice to everyone?”
Cheng Simian stared at him, shook her head, nodded, and finally shook her head again.
Su Xianyan smiled faintly. “Go back and get some sleep.”
“Answer me,” Cheng Simian said stubbornly.
Su Xianyan raised an eyebrow and seemed to think it over seriously. “Hmm… you’re family of a veteran employee of the company. Of course you get the best treatment.”
Cheng Simian slowly frowned. So in the end, it was still because of her uncle?
That made sense. If not for her uncle, she wouldn’t even know him. He wouldn’t have spoken to her at all.
She took a step back and said dejectedly, “I’m a bit tired. I’ll go to sleep first. Can the mess on the floor wait until tomorrow?”
“It’s fine. Go sleep. I’ll clean it up.”
Cheng Simian said nothing. She only glanced at him once before leaving the kitchen.
Su Xianyan watched her figure disappear at the stairway, then slowly looked down at the back of his right hand. There still seemed to be a soft, tender sensation lingering there.
Why was he good to her?
He thought about it carefully. Probably because he could see a bit of himself reflected in her.
Before heading out on Thursday morning, Cheng Qin said while eating breakfast, “Remember to eat out before coming back tonight. None of us will be home.”
Cheng Simian had a sandwich in her mouth. “You’re working overtime?”
“No. It’s your Uncle Xianyan’s birthday. We’re throwing him a party tonight.”
Cheng Simian froze. “His birthday?”
“Yeah. So remember to eat—”
Before he could finish, Cheng Simian hurried out the door.
“Hey, why are you leaving so fast!”
His birthday… It was actually his birthday, and she hadn’t known at all. This was bad—she hadn’t even prepared a gift.
“Simian, what are you doing? You’re going to rub a hole through that book,” Fu Ziwen said speechlessly.
“Wenzi, do you have money?”
“Huh?”
“Lend me some.”
“What do you need it for?”
“Of course I need it for something important. Hurry, hurry!”
“I don’t have much cash on me, but I have money in my card—”
“That works. Come withdraw it with me.”
“Hey—hey—!”
Before Fu Ziwen could figure out what was going on, she was dragged straight to the ATM by Cheng Simian.
After withdrawing the money, Fu Ziwen handed a thick stack of bills to her. “Why do you need so much money?”
“Wenzi, help me ask for leave later. I have something important and need to skip class. Just say I have a stomachache and went to the infirmary.”
“That’s not allowed, is it…”
“It’s fine. Say whatever you want—I’ll take responsibility.”
As she spoke, Cheng Simian stuffed the money into her backpack and ran toward the small grove nearby.
“Simian! The school gate isn’t that way!”
Cheng Simian glanced back at her. Good kid, she thought. How could you leave through the gate at this time of day? Of course you had to climb out.
Honestly, it had been a long time since she’d done something like this. But if she didn’t leave early, she might not make it back in time to buy Su Xianyan a gift.
“Ow!”
Jumping down from the tree, Cheng Simian almost fell flat on her face. Sure enough—she was rusty after not doing bad things for so long.
She stood up, brushed off her palms, and turned to look for the backpack she’d tossed down earlier. “Where’s my bag?”
It had been right here just now. How could it be gone?
“Right here.”
As she searched the ground, a male voice came from ahead. Cheng Simian looked up and saw Lin Luan holding her backpack, leaning lazily against the wall with a roguish air.
“What are you doing here?”
Lin Luan lifted his foot and walked toward her. “Cheng Simian, looks like you’re still the same. Still pretty slick at climbing walls.”
She rolled her eyes at him. “Give me my bag.”
“Hey, where are you going? I’ll come with you.” Lin Luan said cheerfully.
“I was just about to climb in to look for you. Didn’t expect us to be so fated—you climbed right out instead.”
“What are you looking for me for?” Cheng Simian snatched her backpack back. “I’ve told you already, I’m not in the mood to mess around with you people anymore. Your big sister here is a good student now.”
“Oh? A good student who climbs walls and skips class during lesson time?”
“Get lost.” Cheng Simian couldn’t be bothered with him. She ran to the main road and started flagging down cars.
“Where are you going? I’ll give you a ride,” Lin Luan called out.
Cheng Simian ignored him, but after waiting for a long time, not a single car stopped. Her phone couldn’t be used to call a ride either.
With time pressing, she glanced at Lin Luan and abruptly tossed her backpack into his arms. “XX Plaza.”
Lin Luan jumped in surprise. When he reacted, he immediately made a call, grinning from ear to ear, and told the driver to bring the car over.
XX Plaza.
“Hey, you coming here to eat or shop?” he asked.
“Buy something.” Cheng Simian took her bag back. “Thanks for the ride. I’ll go by myself from here. You can leave.”
But Young Master Lin didn’t hear a word of it. “Buying stuff? Skipping class just to shop—now that’s something new. What are you buying? Let me give you some advice.”
“No—” Cheng Simian paused and suddenly turned to look at Lin Luan. He was already in his third year of high school, over 180 cm tall, and his build was somewhat similar to Su Xianyan’s.
“Fine. You can come with me.”
Lin Luan froze for a moment, not expecting her to actually agree. “Alright, alright! You shop, I’ll pay. Your bro’s treating today.”
“Yeah, I know you, Young Master Lin—too much money and nowhere to spend it.” Cheng Simian shot him a sideways glance, then said calmly, “But this thing, I’m buying it myself.”