The faint smile she had maintained on the surface gradually faded, leaving Ning Ruohuan isolated like a lonely statue forgotten in a corner.
The wind rustled through the treetops. The “shala-shala” sound drew Ning Ruohuan’s gaze upward. She curved her knuckles and reached out; a fluttering petal landed on her finger bone before being swept away by the breeze, swaying as it fell to the ground.
Her sense of smell, seemingly working with a delay, finally began to function. Bursts of elegant, light fragrance swirled around her, carrying threads of lingering sweetness.
It was the scent of osmanthus.
Lingerly, she raised her phone to capture the scene of the blossoms dancing in the wind. Out of habit, she instinctively moved to share it with Luo Yanzhi. But the moment she opened WeChat and looked at the pinned chat box, that desire to share vanished instantly.
She curled her lips in self-derision; Luo Yanzhi likely wouldn’t care for it. Whenever she sent photography of things she liked, the other woman rarely commented or even replied. The solitary photos sat in the interface, looking as pitiful as she felt.
Forget it, why force the things I love onto someone else?
Ning Ruohuan habitually looked for the fault within herself.
She didn’t linger long. Her heavy heart made it impossible to truly appreciate the blooming osmanthus. With one last look, she allowed her figure to disappear into the passing crowd.
Finally, she stopped at a spot to hail a taxi home.
It was almost funny—when she had come out, there was a private car to drop her off. Going back, she was alone.
What was even funnier was that her fiancée had gone to drop off someone else.
Once in the car, she gave the last digits of her phone number. The driver glanced at the rearview mirror and teased, “This is the first time I’ve picked up a fare at a place like this. I guess I’m seeing the world today.”
Ning Ruohuan offered a distant but polite smile.
The car fell silent, the air feeling heavy. Ning Ruohuan rolled down the window halfway; the whistling wind slapped against her face, occasionally accompanied by a drop or two of moisture.
She raised her hand to touch her cheek. It wasn’t a tear.
“It’s raining,” the driver remarked. “Roll up the window a bit so you don’t get wet.”
Ning Ruohuan murmured an acknowledgement and closed the window completely.
Seeing that she had misunderstood, the driver said, “You don’t have to close it all the way. If you get motion sickness, keeping it open a crack helps. I just didn’t want the rain to hit you; it’s so easy to catch a cold in this weather. My daughter got caught in the rain a few days ago and she’s still coughing.”
The window was lowered slightly, allowing the wind to seep through the gap.
The driver was talkative. Mentioning her daughter brought a look of happiness to her face. “After I drop you off, I’m done for the day.”
Ning Ruohuan politely engaged. “Are you on the night shift?”
The middle-aged woman waved her hand and laughed heartily. “No, today is my daughter’s birthday. I have to go order a cake and buy some groceries to cook her a nice meal tonight.”
She paused, realizing the passenger might be carsick and only talking to be polite. Embarrassed, she said, “I talk too much. You should rest; I’ll call you when we arrive.”
Ning Ruohuan gave a soft “Mm.” “Thank you for the trouble.”
The driver’s personality was boisterous. “It’s what I should do, what I should do.”
Arriving at the villa gates, Ning Ruohuan exited the car. Before closing the door, she leaned in and said, “Happy birthday to your daughter.”
The driver froze for a second, then beamed widely. “Thank you!”
Ning Ruohuan looked up at the place she had lived in for five years for a long moment before stepping inside.
The housekeeper was waiting for her at the entrance.
Ning Ruohuan paused. “Is Yan-yan back?”
The housekeeper said respectfully, “President Luo returned ten minutes ago. She should be in the bedroom now.”
Ning Ruohuan couldn’t help but feel surprised. Had she finished dropping off Ning Yu so quickly? On second thought, perhaps the place where Ning Yu lived wasn’t far from the restaurant.
She had no desire to dwell on it.
Following the spiral staircase up, Ning Ruohuan stopped at the bedroom door and knocked.
“Come in,” a familiar tone drifted from inside.
Ning Ruohuan’s breathing slowed. A dense, stinging ache surged in her chest as she pushed the door open.
Luo Yanzhi was, as always, sitting with her legs crossed, her frame sunk into the cream-colored sofa.
Their eyes met. Undercurrents surged in the air.
Ning Ruohuan wanted to speak as if nothing had happened, but her throat felt blocked by an invisible obstruction, trapping all words.
She licked her teeth.
Luo Yanzhi didn’t speak either. She quietly observed Ning Ruohuan for a while before finally opening her mouth to call out, “Sister.”
Ning Ruohuan nodded slightly.
Luo Yanzhi was dissatisfied with this attitude. She patted the spot beside her. “Sister, come here. Sit down.”
It wasn’t a request; it was a command.
Just like countless times before, she used the title and delivered a command with a soft voice.
Ning Ruohuan cleared her throat. She remained standing. “Did you get Ning Yu home?”
Luo Yanzhi hadn’t expected that to be her first sentence. She fell silent for a moment, rested her elbow on the sofa armrest, and leaned her upper body back. “Mm.”
She was perfunctory, unwilling to say more.
Only then did Ning Ruohuan realize that in the past, Luo Yanzhi had always been this dismissive when answering her questions. In contrast, Ning Ruohuan was always expected to answer every detail of the questions Luo Yanzhi posed.
True to form, Luo Yanzhi asked her, “Why is Sister back so late? How did you get back?”
Ning Ruohuan: “A taxi.”
Luo Yanzhi tilted her head. “There should have been plenty of cars there, so it should have been easy to get one. The road back isn’t congested; why is Sister back even later than me? You said you had other things to do—what was it? Was it important?”
Ning Ruohuan closed her eyes. Her long, curled eyelashes trembled imperceptibly. “Do you want to see?”
Luo Yanzhi: “Hmm?” She didn’t fully understand. “See what?”
Ning Ruohuan took out her phone and sent her that photo of the dancing osmanthus.
Ding-dong.
Luo Yanzhi’s phone notification sounded.
She glanced at the screen that had instantly lit up, then looked at Ning Ruohuan. She leaned forward, stretching her arm to slide the phone from the edge of the coffee table into her hand.
She opened it. What met her eyes was a photograph.
She gave it a cursory glance. It was no different from the scenery photos Ning Ruohuan usually sent her. She lost interest immediately, tossed the phone back onto the sofa, and said with an ambiguous tone, “Sister is still as ‘artsy’ as ever.”
Ning Ruohuan asked her, “And you? What is going on between you and Ning Yu? And what was that ‘half a month’ she mentioned?”
Luo Yanzhi arched an eyebrow and said succinctly, “It’s fake.”
Ning Ruohuan swallowed.
Luo Yanzhi found it funny. “Sister, you couldn’t have actually believed it, right?”
Ning Ruohuan’s expression was stiff. Maintaining her basic composure, she gazed deeply at the indolent person before her. She tried to curl her lips into a smile of pain, but found she couldn’t even force a fake one.
Something deep inside her was suffocating her. She said, “Yan-yan, I’m having trouble distinguishing which of your words are true and which are false.”
Her head slumped, and her straight back bent for a moment. “You say you love me, yet you can blatantly place me in such an embarrassing situation like today. You can remain silent when they hint at changing the marriage partner, and you can even abandon me in public to drive back another person they deem ‘suitable’ for the marriage.”
Her heart ached so much she could hardly breathe. Her eyes burned with a painful sting. Ning Ruohuan bit her tongue, forcing back the erupting emotions, and asked in a forced, calm tone, “What exactly are you thinking? Can you tell me, Yan-yan?”
She truly could not see through Luo Yanzhi’s thoughts. She could accept the other’s willfulness and small tantrums; she could cherish them all.
Simply because of Luo Yanzhi’s one “I love you,” she was willing to give everything without regret.
But now, she wasn’t sure anymore.
Without realizing it, Luo Yanzhi sat up straight. Her expression turned serious, and her pale pupils reflected tiny glints of light.
She stared straight at Ning Ruohuan and suddenly chuckled. “What is Sister saying? Of course I love you.”
She stood up and walked to Ning Ruohuan. She cupped Ning Ruohuan’s cheeks in her hands, gently tilting them upward. “Regarding today—my mother didn’t say they were coming. Sending Ning Yu back was forced by the situation. My mother spoke, and Auntie Ning was right there. Out of reason and etiquette, I couldn’t lose my manners.”
She perfectly avoided the question regarding the choice of the marriage partner.
Not giving the other a chance to follow up, Luo Yanzhi kissed Ning Ruohuan’s lips, her tongue tip sucking along the soft contours.
Feeling unsatisfied, her arm moved down, reaching into Ning Ruohuan’s pocket for a disinfectant wipe, but found nothing.
She opened her eyes in surprise. Her breathing was unsteady as she moved to kiss Ning Ruohuan’s cheek. “Sister… go wash your hands.”
Ning Ruohuan allowed her to bite and kiss proactively. She shielded the top of Luo Yanzhi’s head, but her feet felt as if they were branded into the floor; she couldn’t move a step.
Seeing that she still wasn’t reacting, Luo Yanzhi narrowed her blurred eyes. She took Ning Ruohuan’s earlobe into her mouth and murmured unclearly, “Does Sister want me to wash them for you personally?” She bit the woman’s lustrous earlobe punitively and said suggestively, “I want Sister to… use your mouth for me.”
In these matters, Ning Ruohuan always fulfilled Luo Yanzhi’s various requests.
But this time, she didn’t lean down. She didn’t make any further moves.
Slowly and deliberately, she pushed Luo Yanzhi away.
The other’s lips were stained with a glistening moisture. She seemed not to understand the action, looking as bewildered and beautiful as when they first met.
Luo Yanzhi was confused. “Sister?”
Ning Ruohuan avoided her touch. “You still haven’t answered one of my questions. What are your thoughts regarding the choice of the marriage partner?”
Luo Yanzhi couldn’t avoid it. After half a second of contemplation, she hooked her arms around Ning Ruohuan’s neck, forcing the distance between them to close. “Sister, this matter won’t be known until the meeting between the Ning and Luo families is over.” She said with feigned distress, “I can’t give Sister an accurate answer right now.”
Ning Ruohuan didn’t fall for it. She said bluntly, “The decision is in your hands.” She gripped Luo Yanzhi’s neck and pushed her away again. “Yan-yan, do not be vague with me.”
Her amber pupils dropped squarely into Luo Yanzhi’s eyes, directly capturing the tiny emotional shifts in the other’s gaze.
No matter how calm she looked on the surface, Ning Ruohuan was terrified inside.
She feared the answer was one she wouldn’t be able to bear.
Luo Yanzhi had nowhere to hide. This was the first time she had seen the person before her be so assertive. Five years of living together day and night, being treated with constant gentleness, had caused her to overlook Ning Ruohuan’s other side.
She was dazed for a moment.
Luo Yanzhi regained her senses and answered the question indirectly. “Sister, my choice will always be you.”
A massive burst of joy bloomed in Ning Ruohuan’s heart. She took a couple of sharp breaths and pinched Luo Yanzhi’s chin. “Yan-yan, it had better be so.”
If her choice is always me, isn’t that a tactful way of telling me the marriage partner will always be me?
But she had overlooked one thing: Luo Yanzhi had never faced the question directly or given a definitive confirmation.