Chapter 56: Do You Like Wei Qingyu?

The afternoon sun casts a warm glow over the cold winter day. Ji Xiao saw Wei Qingyu’s trembling eyes and realized she had heard Ji Qingyun’s earlier words.

Ji Xiao knew Wei Qingyu wanted to talk. She told Aunt Wu, who was arranging the dishes, “That’s enough. You can leave now. I’ll call if I need anything.”

“Yes, Miss.” Aunt Wu, perceptive and experienced, quickly finished setting up and left.

With Aunt Wu gone, the room fell silent.

Ji Xiao moved closer to Wei Qingyu and said, “Speak if you have something to say.”

Wei Qingyu felt uneasy at Ji Xiao’s calm tone.

She was afraid Ji Xiao might really think she was a scheming person. She first explained, "I didn't mean to overhear you and Uncle Ji. I just happened to be at the door."

Perhaps people were always like this—when faced with things they cared about, they became less calm.

Wei Qingyu knew that the next explanation would concern her future interactions with Ji Xiao. Usually confident, she suddenly felt unsure.

She lightly leaned against a nearby cabinet, her usually indifferent and composed eyes slightly lowered. "I didn't do that, nor did I deliberately lead you to the car after seeing it. I was walking too quickly at the time and didn't even see the car."

Her words came out faster than usual, as if eager to explain. Ji Xiao could even hear a noticeable tremor in her usually calm and cold voice.

"My parents and your parents have been close friends since college. I don't know why Uncle Ji would say that, but my parents really aren't like what Uncle Ji described. Our family has always been sincere with you and Uncle Ji, with no intention of using you at all."

At this point, Wei Qingyu's fingers, which were resting on the cabinet, slightly curled up. 

She had never imagined that one day she would need to clear her parents' names. In Wei Qingyu's view, no matter how cunning and deceitful Ji Qingyun might be, the more than ten years of friendship between her parents and him was at least genuine. 

She could never have anticipated that the incident from six years ago would evolve into the situation today.

The gloom that had been suppressed in the girl's heart since last year swirled restlessly with the anxiety she felt in facing Ji Xiao.

Wei Qingyu did not know if her parents had always been deceived by this scheming person.

She also did not know if Ji Xiao had ever, or still did, firmly believe in the so-called "truth" that Ji Qingyun had spoken of.

The wind pushed the clouds past the world's only light, making the already dim room even dimmer.

The scent of peach brandy floated heavily around the mint, creating an ambiguous atmosphere.

Wei Qingyu looked up at the person who was unusually silent and shrouded in shadows, her heart growing increasingly anxious.

She did not know when Ji Xiao had begun to reside in her heart, which she had thought immune to any harm, like a small sun blazing in her barren heart.

A person who had been saved from darkness could no longer endure the pain of losing the sun again.

Even if she encounters other suns in the future, they will not be this one.

She only wanted this one.

Wei Qingyu slightly clenched her palm and anxiously looked at Ji Xiao. "Ji Xiao... can you trust me this time? I..."

But before Wei Qingyu could finish, Ji Xiao interrupted her. "I believe you." Ji Xiao looked at Wei Qingyu with firm eyes.

As someone who had once observed the stories of this world from a distance, Ji Xiao clearly knew everything Wei Qingyu had experienced in the past and would experience in the future.

The heavy clouds covered the sun outside the window, taking away all the resilient and stubborn light from Wei Qingyu.

All that remained in Ji Xiao's view was a girl who was isolated and helpless, knowing the truth too late.

She was so proud, yet bowed her head in front of her. Even the mint floating in the air seemed to carry a hint of fragility. Ji Xiao felt a pang in her heart. If she couldn't even believe in her, who could she rely on in this perilous story? Was she supposed to rely on Jin Nanfeng? No. Ji Xiao did not know what kind of person she was in Wei Qingyu's heart now, but she was still willing to give Wei Qingyu, who might not trust her, a guarantee: "Wei Qingyu, I am not the old Ji Xiao. Since the day I took you out of the small dark room, I have severed ties with the old Ji Xiao."

"Even if no one else trusts you, I will stand by your side."

With that, Ji Xiao pressed her lips together and quietly watched Wei Qingyu. Yet, she thought to herself, almost unconsciously: Not just because you are the female lead.

Upon hearing this, Wei Qingyu's eyes quivered slightly. Once everything settled, the girl's anxious heartbeat intensified, but this time it was no longer out of fear of losing her sun.

Wei Qingyu said, "Thank you."

The winter wind rustled the dry branches outside the window, and the heavy clouds were pushed past the sun.

The light returned to the hospital room, and a delicate smile like a small daisy blossomed on the girl's pale face. The faint mint scent grew calm, lightly touching Ji Xiao's heart, causing her fragile heart to miss a beat. Ji Xiao blinked twice unnaturally, touching her own head, and said, "N-no need to thank me."

"Um... did you not get enough rest last night?" Ji Xiao asked, looking at the dark circles under Wei Qingyu's eyes. Wei Qingyu nodded slightly.

She had been sent home by Ji Qingyun yesterday and, having received no news, had indeed not slept well.

She lay on her soft bed as usual but couldn’t fall asleep despite tossing and turning.

When she finally managed to sleep, she kept dreaming of the moment Ji Xiao was hit by the car.

The once emotionally indifferent girl had not cared so much about anyone in a long time.

Seeing this, Ji Xiao patted the exceptionally soft hospital bed prepared by Aunt Wu and said, "Then come and rest on my bed for a while."

Wei Qingyu looked at Ji Xiao, who was still lying on the bed and felt her cheeks flush slightly. "Then, what about you?"

Ji Xiao did not notice Wei Qingyu's implied meaning at all. She used her left arm to support herself as she stood up from the bed and said, "You want me to stay in bed? This Young Miss can't even get up and walk around? Just lying here will tire me out."

Wei Qingyu looked at Ji Xiao, who had already gotten off the bed, and her face turned even redder. In this hospital room, she was the only one with inappropriate thoughts. 

Then, seeing Ji Xiao still raising her arm weakly, Wei Qingyu proactively said, "Let me help you secure your arm. It will be easier for you to eat."

Ji Xiao, who had just sat down in the chair, nodded and watched Wei Qingyu walk over with the support strap she had organized from the bedside table. The girl had already removed her heavy down jacket, and her long hair fell smoothly over her shoulders, brushing against her woolen clothes without a hint of static.

The umbrella-shaped woolen skirt is tied with an exquisite tight-fitting turtleneck brown sweater, which outlines the waist that is not too tight.

Wei Qingyu leaned forward slightly to block the light in Ji Xiao's sight, as well as the familiar mint aroma that landed on the tip of her nose.

Slender fingers lifted her long, disheveled hair, and her low breath brushed the vague warmth on her neck, which was the uncontrollable acceleration of her heart.

In this room, Wei Qingyu is not the only one who has wild thoughts.

Ji Xiao, who never had a sitting posture, rarely straightened her back when sitting on a chair.

But this time, she was afraid that Wei Qingyu would hear her strange heartbeat.

It was just putting on a strap for her, without words or intentional affection, yet such a small touch caused such a big reaction. 

Moreover, this didn’t seem to be the only time.

What’s going on with her? 

Is this also an uncontrollable impulse of an Alpha towards an Omega?

“Alright,” Wei Qingyu said as she adjusted the straps on Ji Xiao, interrupting her thoughts.

“Thank you,” Ji Xiao said, as if she had done something shameful and couldn’t look at Wei Qingyu directly. 

She pretended to be impatient and said, “You should go to sleep. I still need to get back to bed and lie down.”

The winter afternoon carried a hint of warm drowsiness. Wei Qingyu silently lay down on the bed, obediently.

Perhaps she was truly exhausted, she soon fell asleep, inhaling the delicious aroma of Ji Xiao's lunch.

Aunt Wu's cooking was indeed good. The half-bowl of seafood porridge paired with a delicate nutritious meal perfectly satisfied Ji Xiao’s hungry stomach.

Perhaps because she was well-fed and warm, Ji Xiao, while tidying up the table, couldn’t help but glance at Wei Qingyu’s sleeping figure.

Her round head was sunk into the soft pillow, and her long, dark hair wrapped around her fair face. The vague anxiety that had been evident in her expression earlier had completely vanished, replaced by a calm and tranquil demeanor due to her deep sleep.

The delicate, petite nose drew a pleasing curve in the light, adorned below with a pair of crimson lips.

Plump and glistening like a delicious fruit, they were even more beautiful than when Ji Xiao had seen them in her room last time.

The girl lay there defenseless with her eyes closed.

Her slightly parted lips seemed to be waiting for someone to pick them.

Ji Xiao also gently pressed her own lips together and leaned down for a second attempt at picking them.

Shadows were cast on the wall by the evening light, overlapping each other, and the owner's movements froze in mid-air.

Ji Xiao looked at the girl in her sight who was unaware of anything and suddenly realized that she had many such strange reactions when facing Wei Qingyu.

Yet, she had never been this way in her original world. She wouldn't so easily develop an impulse to possess someone, nor would she care so much about another person's feelings.

It was as if all her impulses and perversion in this world stemmed from herself.

Why?

If it could only be summed up with a single desire to survive, wouldn’t it be utterly unconvincing?

Ji Xiao furrowed her brows slightly, suddenly finding herself a bit incomprehensible.

"Knock, knock..."

At that moment, a few knocks sounded from the door.

Before Ji Xiao, with her right arm still in a sling, could sit back down on the chair behind her, she saw the door being pushed open.

"Sister Xiao?" Qi Qi’s half-body peeked into the room from behind the door.

Her gaze was much better than Aunt Wu’s. She immediately spotted Ji Xiao’s shadow, who had sat down on the chair and was leaning beside Wei Qingyu. She teased, "Oh, taking advantage of someone in trouble, huh?"

"Go away!" Ji Xiao pretended to be calm as she chided Qi Qi, watching her come in. She lowered her voice and asked curiously, "What are you doing here?"

"The news of your glorious injury has spread everywhere. I happened to pass by here with something to do, so I asked Uncle and came over," Qi Qi said as she casually took an apple and ate it while speaking.

She looked at Wei Qingyu, who was sleeping on the hospital bed, and teased, “Oh, is my information wrong? Why is this patient sitting on a chair?"

"Get lost." Ji Xiao, feeling guilty, gave Qi Qi an elbow.

She looked at Wei Qingyu, who was still asleep, and reminded, "Keep it down. Don’t bite that apple so loudly."

"Tsk." Qi Qi bit into the apple with dissatisfaction but slowed her actions considerably.

She glanced at Wei Qingyu, whom Ji Xiao was particularly concerned about, and whispered, "Well, let’s not stay here. How about I take you up to the rooftop to play?"

"Rooftop?" Ji Xiao looked puzzled. "Can we get up there?"

"Yes, we can," Qi Qi nodded, looking particularly confident.

Ji Xiao also felt that their conversation might disturb Wei Qingyu, so she reluctantly put on her down jacket and followed Qi Qi out of the ward.

After the evening rush hour, the elevator was less crowded. The two of them took it from the fourth floor all the way to the twenty-third floor.

Qi Qi led Ji Xiao to the most secluded stairwell on the west side of the inpatient department and walked straight to the closed rooftop door.

The rusty iron door looked flimsy under the dim light, but the lock was new.

Ji Xiao looked at the rooftop and thought they wouldn’t be able to go there today. However, she saw Qi Qi take out a straightened piece of wire from her pocket. With nimble fingers, Qi Qi skillfully and effortlessly opened the door in front of them with just a few twists of the thin wire. 

“Damn.” Ji Xiao stared in astonishment.

“I told you, we can,” Qi Qi said with a hint of pride, lifting her chin towards Ji Xiao.

The wind from the rooftop blew through her long hair, her red lips curving into a smile that expressed youthful vigor.

The winter rooftop still held the snow from a few days ago. A line of monotonous footprints added a touch of humanity to the pristine, sacred expanse.

Ji Xiao walked along the path marked by the footprints and remarked, “This place is really nice.”

“Isn’t it?” Qi Qi, looking at Ji Xiao’s back, smiled and took out two cans from a worn wooden box near the door.

The cold aluminum can unexpectedly touched the bare back of Ji Xiao’s hand, making her shiver. “What’s this?”

“Wine,” Qi Qi said as she pressed the bottle into Ji Xiao’s hand. “It’s so cold; you need some alcohol to warm up.”

Ji Xiao, intrigued, opened the bottle and took a swig. The warmth from the alcohol spread through her body, instantly heating her previously cold stomach.

Curiously, she looked at Qi Qi and asked, “Tell me, where did you get these? You opened the door and got wine as if you live here.”

“Someone in my family lives here, so I figured it out after coming here often,” Qi Qi replied, taking a sip of her drink. The silver edge of her can now have a streak of crimson.

She pinched the aluminum can in her hand and said with a smile, “Hospitals are really too boring. Besides the small plaza below and the rockery pond behind, both of which are monitored by nurses, Qiao Ni and I discovered this place. At least here, drinking alcohol won’t get you your ears pulled.”

Ji Xiao felt nervous hearing Qi Qi's seemingly casual words, "Is someone in your family sick? Is it Qiao Ni?"

Qi Qi shook her head, "Of course not her, it has nothing to do with her."

Then, she took a sip of wine and looked at Ji Xiao with interest, teasing, "But, I’ve noticed that you seem to pay a lot of attention to Omegas, don’t you?"

Ji Xiao was stunned for a moment, "What do you mean?"

"Qiao Ni, Wei Qingyu, aren’t they?" Qi Qi said, raising two fingers.

Ji Xiao pursed her lips and refuted, "I just mentioned Qiao Ni once, how am I paying a lot of attention?"

"Does that mean you're indirectly admitting you pay a lot of attention to Wei Qingyu?" Qi Qi spoke half-jokingly, half-seriously.

As she spoke, she rested her face on her hand that was placed on the railing and said, "Honestly, I really think you’re getting more and more concerned about Wei Qingyu."

"Sister Xiao, do you like Wei Qingyu?"

Her long black hair fell over her cheeks, exuding a natural allure without needing any embellishment.

Ji Xiao glanced at her upon hearing her words. She wasn’t sure if it was Qi Qi’s appearance, which could stir any Alpha’s heart, or if she had struck at the deepest secret in Ji Xiao’s heart, but Ji Xiao couldn’t swallow her drink and it went straight down her windpipe, choking her.

Ji Xiao: "Cough, cough... What, what did you say?"

Qi Qi looked at Ji Xiao's flushed face from choking and continued, "Isn’t it? Can you really say your feelings for Wei Qingyu are pure, without a single improper thought?"

This question was even more specific than the earlier mention of "liking."

If Ji Xiao had been utterly confused by the previous question, at this moment, she felt exposed, as if all the evidence lined up perfectly, making her guilty conscience surface.

That opportunistic yet swiftly halted kiss still vividly lingered in her mind.

The last thin veil hiding her elusive feelings was now pierced by Qi Qi.

Ji Xiao blinked unnaturally and deliberately denied, "Can’t this simply be the physiological attraction between an Omega and an Alpha?"

"You got an A in biology, and you’re asking me?" Qi Qi retorted, tapping the half-empty bottle in her hand. "Sister Xiao, you should know that biology doesn’t mention Alphas being able to suppress their instincts and not release pheromones when they’re purely physiologically attracted to an Omega."

Just like the ambiguous scene Qi Qi saw at the door of the hospital room earlier.

In that room, there wasn't the slightest trace of Alpha pheromones amid the lingering scent of disinfectant.

The crisp sound of the aluminum can tapping echoed in Ji Xiao's ears, like the tolling of a temple bell reverberating in her heart.

Her golden-orange eyes lowered, her heart thudding in her chest.

Ji Xiao's grip on the empty bottle tightened. She was well aware that she was deliberately avoiding the possibility Qi Qi had laid bare.

But liking Wei Qingyu was just as elusive and intangible a thought.

She had come to this world, where even her own future safety wasn’t guaranteed. How could she have the mind to fall in love with someone?

Moreover, that person was the heroine who would one day personally cut her own gland in the original text.

Perhaps the weight of life and death outweighed everything, or perhaps the alcohol had temporarily dulled Ji Xiao's mind.

She actually wanted to deceive herself and hastily cover it up: "Could it be that I am simply not sensitive to her pheromones?"

"No way, Sister Xiao." Qi Qi said with her eyes slightly widened, joking while trotting: "You wouldn't admit that you are not good enough just to avoid admitting that you like Wei Qingyu, right?"

"If you admit you're not capable, then I'll believe it!"

"Qi Qi!" Ji Xiao, furious at her words, chased after her.

The once pristine, flawless snow on the rooftop was instantly covered with the girls' footprints.

Ji Xiao seemed determined to leave everything behind, chasing after Qi Qi without stopping.

But it didn’t take long before Qi Qi couldn’t keep up.

She leaned against the clean railing on the other side, panting heavily and waving her hand in surrender, "Sister Xiao, I get it, you're capable, you're very capable. It's me who's not, I can't..."

"That's more like it." Ji Xiao rolled up her sleeves and leaned against the railing beside Qi Qi.

However, while Ji Xiao intended to drop the subject, the other person wouldn’t let it go.

After catching her breath, Qi Qi turned her head to look at Ji Xiao again and said, "Sister Xiao, honestly, if you like her, go for it. Don’t wait until she falls for someone else and then regret it."

"You'll be heartbroken if that happens, truly." As she spoke, Qi Qi gazed earnestly at Ji Xiao, her deep eyes filled with sincerity.

The cold winter wind swept across the empty rooftop, chilling Ji Xiao’s body which had just been warmed by alcohol.

It also calmed the emotions she had been avoiding.

Listening to Qi Qi’s words, Ji Xiao couldn’t help but think of the "male lead" she had just met yesterday.

The resistance she felt toward someone about to take Wei Qingyu away from her was undeniably real, and the anger she had redirected at the original male lead, Jin Nanfeng, had indeed occupied most of her thoughts yesterday.

Does all possessiveness count as "liking"?

Does every ulterior motive also count as "liking"?

Ji Xiao hesitated to put a check mark on these two statements but was equally unwilling to dismiss "liking Wei Qingyu."

She placed her hand on the cold railing and looked up at the sky.

The wind gently stirred her loose hair, and her eyes reflected only Wei Qingyu’s image.

From taking her out of the small dark room to meeting Liu Meina, saving her from Ji Qingyun, and instinctively protecting her from flying playing cards...

Half a year was neither long nor short, and Ji Xiao had never imagined she could remember every small detail between them so clearly.

With an uncertain heart, the girl softly responded with a "Mm."

Give her a bit more time.

She will figure it out.

….

As the coldest days of winter passed, the morning's faint sunlight brought a touch of warmth to the world.

The Ji family villa, situated in the best spot of the villa district, enjoyed this sunlight, and the white house exuded tranquility.

Through the bright glass of the study on the first floor, a slender, delicate figure was cast on the white wall.

They say it takes a hundred days to recover from a broken bone, and Ji Xiao had injured her right hand. To avoid affecting her studies next semester, Ji Xiao decided to use the remaining time of her holiday to practice writing with her left hand.

But saying it was easy, doing it was hard.

Accustomed to the stroke order of her right hand, using her left felt awkward.

Crumbled sheets of discarded paper piled up in the trash can, filling a whole basket by just the morning.

The crooked characters on the crumpled paper were so distorted they were hard to look at.

As Wei Qingyu came downstairs, she glanced into the study casually and heard a sigh of frustration from the girl.

Ji Xiao sat at the writing desk, her once-proud face slightly furrowed.

"Miss is a bit anxious; it’s only the first day," Aunt Wu said, appearing behind Wei Qingyu.

Wei Qingyu looked at her and saw that Aunt Wu was holding a large, exceptionally vibrant, and beautiful bouquet.

She immediately noticed another card on the bouquet and looked up with a hint of suspicion, "What is this?"

Aunt Wu was oblivious to her reaction and cheerfully replied, "These are flowers from the Jin family, congratulating our young lady on her successful discharge. I heard that the eldest son of the Jin family personally selected these flowers."

A surge of underlying hostility rose in Wei Qingyu’s heart, and her gaze at the flowers instantly turned more unfriendly.

She unconsciously touched her pocket, her soft fingers brushing against the cool metal of the pen clip.

"Thud."

Another piece of practice paper was crumpled and thrown onto the floor by Ji Xiao.

The crumpled paper ball rolled across the polished floor and, after a few spins, collided with a pair of light pink house slippers.

A cool and elegant figure had appeared in the room at some point. The misty blue skirt flowed like waves in Ji Xiao’s line of sight.

Wei Qingyu silently pushed open the study’s sliding door and somehow appeared at the entrance with her hands behind her back.

Her long hair was half loose, with a simple white clip holding part of it up, revealing her clean, unadorned face—casual yet tidy.

Seeing her, Ji Xiao quickly hid the paper with a few characters under her arm and asked nervously, “Why are you here?”

“Can’t I come?” Wei Qingyu replied, her arms still behind her back.

She walked lightly into Ji Xiao’s view, step by step.

Finally, she stopped in front of Ji Xiao, across the antique redwood writing desk.

The soft morning light fell on her, draping her in a hazy veil.

The girl’s lips parted slightly, her tone indifferent, “Which do you want, the pen or the flowers?”

As she spoke, a black-gold fountain pen and a bouquet still holding morning dew were placed in front of Ji Xiao.

Author's Note:

Pigeon: Congratulations to Ms. Qi Qi for being honored as a Top Inspirational Figure in City A.

Qi Qi (bowing): Thank you, godmother. I want to thank my family, my friends, and especially Sister Xiao and Qingyu. Without you two, I wouldn't be where I am today!