Ling Jiao’s expression was resolute and earnest, showing no hint of jest. Seeing Shen Yuwei’s bewildered gaze, she even looked around for a small knife to seal their pact with bloodas if determined to wipe the slate clean of all past misdeeds.
“I’m completely sincere,” Ling Jiao declared emphatically.
The words of refusal on Shen Yuwei’s lips were swallowed back. An outright rejection wasn’t the best solution, even if she wanted to sever all ties with Ling Jiao as soon as possible. By her usual standards for friendship, she would never have associated with someone like Ling Jiao.
But times had changed.
She was no longer the Shen Yuwei of the past.
The old Shen Yuwei couldn’t tolerate the slightest flaw one glance at Ling Jiao would have felt like biological contamination, something to avoid or ignore at all costs. Yet just moments ago, watching Ling Jiao shield her, she thought perhaps this person wasn’t as irredeemable as she’d assumed.
How could she judge someone as thoroughly rotten based on hearsay without ever truly knowing them?
Now, finally realizing they could never be together romantically, settling for friendship seemed like progress. A cold rejection might provoke backlash, and Shen Yuwei didn’t dare imagine what madness Ling Jiao might resort to.
She had to consider it.
After being exposed as not the true Shen heiress, nearly everyone had turned against her. Close friends stopped reaching out, classmates no longer invited her out, and even her fiancée, Guan Qing, ceased their daily phone calls.
If she could have a good friend by her side during this time, perhaps these past sixteen years wouldn’t feel like such a failure.
Shen Yuwei refused to dwell on the worst-case scenario.
She couldn’t believe the father who’d doted on her for sixteen years would abandon her completely, nor that her devoted fiancée would cast her aside.
As long as she treated Shen Xiaoxiao like a sister, kept up with her studies, and maintained her value as an omega, this darkest phase would pass. Friends, her fiancée, family they’d all accept her again. Life would return to normal.
Her gloom lifted slightly.
The corners of her lips curved, her eyes brightening with the first genuine smile she’d worn in days.
“Alright.”
“I’ll be your friend.”
Later, Shen Yuwei would look back on this moment countless times, filled with regret for agreeing so readily to Ling Jiao’s unreasonable demand.
But Ling Jiao didn’t care whether Shen Yuwei’s acceptance was sincere or not. The blade hanging over her head had retreated by millimeters total liberation was within reach. Start as friends, then best friends, inseparable confidantes sharing everything. By then, even if Shen Yuwei turned dark, she’d have no reason to send Ling Jiao to hell.
Ling Jiao beamed, radiant with delight. “See? Was that so hard?”
Was befriending her really such a cause for joy?
Shen Yuwei murmured, “Have you truly let go?”