In fact, Xu You had started suspecting Song Zhi very early on, as early as the very first moment she saw Song Zhi in the hospital.
Everything she did today was merely to confirm her suspicions.
Song Zhi had no idea what was going on in her mind. She only realized in hindsight that Xu You seemed to have been coaxing her just now; knowing she was in a bad mood, Xu You had even given her fruit to eat.
And here she was, beaming with simpleminded happiness.
She really is a bit silly, Xu You thought.
As the sky gradually darkened, Song Zhi went out again to buy dinner. Although she still didn’t know how to cure Xu You’s illness, she could start with the little things for now, like supervising her to make sure she ate more.
When she returned, she noticed someone standing sneakily outside the ward.
Frowning, she called out, “Hey, who are you?”
Upon hearing her voice, the person quickly turned and bolted.
Song Zhi lifted her leg to give chase, but worrying that the food in her hands would spill, she could only let it go. She figured she would explain the situation to the front desk later and ask the hospital to check the surveillance footage.
When she opened the door, Xu You had already gotten out of bed. She was standing quietly by the window all by herself, looking down at the view outside.
“Come over and have some dinner.”
Song Zhi placed the food on the table, thoughtfully arranging Xu You’s chopsticks and spoon.
Ever since Xu You was hospitalized, Song Zhi wished she could do absolutely everything herself. In her heart, Xu You was a fragile piece of art that needed to be carefully protected in her arms.
Sister is so delicate, so of course I have to take good care of her!
What’s more, this is such a golden opportunity to showcase myself in front of Xu You and ease the tension in our relationship.
Absolutely cannot let it go to waste!!
“I didn’t know what you like to eat, so I just bought a bit of everything.”
Song Zhi looked at Xu You expectantly.
The way Xu You ate was incredibly elegant; her entire presence looked like a beautiful painting.
Song Zhi stole glances at her while eating, agonizing internally for quite a while before she finally decided to speak up.
“Just now, I saw a very strange person outside.”
Xu You didn’t seem surprised at all. She gave a soft murmur of assent. “I know.”
Now it was Song Zhi’s turn to be dumbfounded. “You know?”
Xu You said, “He was specifically sent by Xu Jie to spy on me.” After a pause, she added, “I’m used to it.”
Back then, after her mother passed away and she got into a car accident, she had spent over six months bedridden in the ICU unable to move, and she had gotten through it being monitored exactly like this.
Xu Jie appeared to pay her no mind, but in reality, he was always monitoring her from the shadows. After all, Xu You knew very well that a villainous hypocrite like Xu Jie would never let go of a chess piece as useful as her.
Hearing this made Song Zhi furious. A string of choice curses was right on the tip of her tongue, but mindful of her image in front of Xu You, she swallowed her anger.
She said gloomily, “Xu You, since they treat you like that, why don’t you leave that house?”
Xu You smiled at her. “For a useless person like me, how long could I even survive after leaving?”
“You’re not a useless person, don’t say that.”
Song Zhi hated hearing her self-deprecate the most. She said, “If you leave the Xu family, I… I’ll support you.”
Only after the words left her mouth did she suddenly realize how ambiguous that sounded.
Xu You didn’t seem to catch that layer of romantic ambiguity, answering in a joking tone, “Alright then, Boss Song.”
Song Zhi was left dizzy from those three words, feeling as if she were about to drown in pink bubbles.
She became more and more determined in her conviction to work hard.
In the evening, Xu You said she wanted to take a shower. Sitting in the living area, Song Zhi listened to the pitter-patter of the running water, her mind uncontrollably filling in some vivid scenarios.
Ahhh, Song Zhi, you absolute pervert! Stop thinking about these things!
Song Zhi curled herself into a ball and lay back on the sofa, utterly giving up on herself in despair.
Click.
The bathroom door opened, and Xu You’s cool, crisp voice carried out. “Could you hand me my pajamas? I forgot to bring them in.”
Song Zhi shot up like a spring, grabbed the pajamas, and handed them over to Xu You.
As Xu You took them, her cold, soft fingers inadvertently brushed against Song Zhi’s. The sweet fragrance of the body wash drifted out from the bathroom right on cue, straight into her nose. Song Zhi’s head grew hot, and she felt like she was about to explode.
Even after the door closed again, Song Zhi remained standing frozen on the spot. Finally, clutching her head, she rolled back onto the sofa, squirming back and forth.
Song Zhi, calm down, calm down, calm down.
She tried her best to reason with herself.
The bathroom door opened again very soon. Song Zhi instinctively looked over, but immediately turned her head back, not daring to look as a blush crept all the way up to her neck.
Xu You’s neck was snow-white. At this moment, she was using a towel to dry her slightly damp hair. Her habitually cold, phoenix like eyes now seemed covered in a layer of misty water vapor.
Xu You looked down at the bathrobe she was wrapped in, it was completely proper and modest. Yet the person across from her was acting just like Tang Sanzang coming face to face with the Queen of the Women’s Kingdom.
She picked up the air conditioner remote and lowered the temperature by a few degrees. Turning to Song Zhi, she said with a look of concern, “Go take a shower. You’re so hot your face is completely red.”
“I-I’m alright. I’m going to shower now!”
At that moment, Song Zhi wished she could just die on the spot.
If you gave her a lever right then, she could have launched herself right off the Earth.
After taking her sweet time in the shower and coming back out, Song Zhi saw Xu You sitting on the bed under the covers, clacking away rapidly on a laptop. Song Zhi lay down on the accompanying escort bed beside her and asked with some curiosity, “What are you doing?”
The gap between the two beds was quite wide, so she couldn’t see Xu You’s screen at all.
She only asked because she wanted to know a little more about Xu You.
Looking at the dense corporate data displayed on her laptop screen, Xu You lied without batting an eye: “Writing in my diary.”
This actually fit her persona perfectly.
The unfavored female lead raised in a wealthy family could only use a diary in the dead of night to express her sadness and melancholy.
Song Zhi let out a sigh, filling her mind with all sorts of tragic plights for Xu You, which only solidified her determination to earn money and support her.
By the time Xu You finished handling her business affairs, Song Zhi was already fast asleep, slumped on the bed.
Xu You watched her for a moment. Just as she was about to turn off the lights, she caught Song Zhi muttering softly in her sleep. “You… leave the Xu family, I’ll… I’ll earn money to support you…”
The ripples of a different emotion finally stirred in Xu You’s originally deadpan, stagnant eyes.
She leaned closer to Song Zhi and asked, “Earn money to support who?”
Song Zhi replied in a daze, “Xu… Xu You.”
Xu You continued to probe, “Why do you want to support her?”
“Like…” Song Zhi said slowly. Hearing this, Xu You blinked. Then, the deeply sleeping Song Zhi mumbled once more, “Like Sister…”
The ward fell completely pitch black and quiet, so quiet that Xu You could only hear the sound of her own heartbeat.