Chapter 166: Deep Alley
This translation was originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com please read it there. and check out other stories too.
Yu An fell silent after hearing Shen Qingbie’s words.
Qingqing said her underwear looked nice, which sounded just like something Qingqing would say. But Yu An couldn’t understand why she added that her body looked nice too.
Yu An’s heart thumped. The burning feeling from when Shen Qingbie had seen her whole body before came back again. She clearly knew Shen Qingbie couldn’t mean anything by it, but she still couldn’t help feeling stirred by her unintentional words.
Shen Qingbie was standing with her back to Yu An. When she heard no response from the bed, she felt strange and quickly turned around to check.
But the moment she turned, she faced Yu An’s body again. Yu An hurriedly covered her front with a towel and said, “Didn’t I tell you to turn away and not look? This... this is my privacy.”
Shen Qingbie quickly turned back around and explained, “I heard you go quiet, I didn’t know what happened, so I just wanted to check.”
“I’m... fine,” Yu An replied in a flat tone, lowering her head to keep wiping.
She couldn’t let herself have too much hope for Shen Qingbie. But that hope was something she couldn’t control. Yu An was used to having everything in her hands. She hated this kind of passive feeling, yet she could do nothing about it.
This time, Shen Qingbie had learned her lesson. Since Yu An didn’t tell her to turn away, she stayed still. But she couldn’t help talking, “A’Yu, there was a small lantern wishing event at the festival today. Everyone hung many little lanterns on the trees, and put their wishes inside. Maybe the wishes will come true.”
Yu An never believed in such things. “It’s fake, useless, just for show.”
“Ah?” Shen Qingbie was stunned, her fantasy broken just like that.
“Only you would believe it.” Yu An was always logical and disliked these things. She wiped the sweat on her body and said, “Wishing on shooting stars, putting wishes in bottles, or forwarding lucky fish wishes, all nonsense. If you want your wish to come true, you must rely on your own effort. Don’t waste thought on such unrealistic dreams.”
“Of course I know you must work hard,” Shen Qingbie said, “but sometimes believing in it is fun too. It doesn’t clash with hard work. More than that, I think it’s romantic.”
“Romantic?” Yu An stopped her hand.
Shen Qingbie said, “A tree full of small lanterns, each with a wish hanging on it, isn’t that romantic? It’s so beautiful. When I was writing mine, you weren’t there, so you didn’t see it. But I also wrote one for you and hung it up.”
“You wrote one for me too?” Yu An’s eyes curved with a smile.
She pictured Shen Qingbie seriously writing a wish for her under a tree full of small lanterns. Suddenly, she felt Shen Qingbie was right.
It was romantic.
Yu An finally understood, the romantic part wasn’t the wish itself, but that Shen Qingbie was there.
“Of course,” Shen Qingbie said proudly. “And I even hung your little lantern on the highest tree. People in town say the higher the lantern, the closer to the gods, the easier the wish comes true. Ruanruan and I didn’t hang ours that high. There were too many lanterns, and when I wanted to move it later, I couldn’t find the one we hung before.”
She spoke as she walked back to the bed, curling her hand toward Yu An. “Give me the towel, I’ll soak it in hot water. The towel’s cold now.”
Yu An looked at Shen Qingbie’s back and smiled, no longer angry. How could she stay mad? Shen Qingbie seemed to have some kind of magic. One second could make her furious, the next could make her feel so happy.
Yu An handed the towel to Shen Qingbie.
Shen Qingbie squatted and changed Yu An’s hot towel again, wringing it out, still handing it over with her back turned. “Your wish must be the most powerful. All that climbing wasn’t for nothing.”
Yu An’s face went cold. “You climbed a tree? Really high?”
She stopped wiping. “How could you do something so dangerous? What if you fell?”
“I didn’t think that far at the time,” Shen Qingbie admitted honestly, knowing she had made a mistake. “I just wanted to hang your wish higher.”
Yu An felt a mix of emotions, worried, yet touched by Shen Qingbie’s stubborn enthusiasm. She really had no way to handle her.
“Don’t worry, I’m fine now,” Shen Qingbie said excitedly. “Just a little mishap on the way. I got up, didn’t dare come down, called you, but you didn’t answer, and Ruanruan couldn’t find me either. I waited on the tree for so long.”
Thinking about missing so many messages and calls from Shen Qingbie, not being there when she needed her, Yu An felt guilty. “Qingqing, it’s my fault.”
“You were sick, how could it be your fault you didn’t answer?” Shen Qingbie laughed. “But luckily Miss Luo passed by and rescued me.”
The more Shen Qingbie described, the more animated she became. “That Miss Luo is just too beautiful. Gu Cen saw her before and said she had never seen anyone so pretty. I thought Gu Cen was exaggerating, but when I saw her, she really is. Even straight girls would want to… be with her.”
Yu An: “…”
“What did you say?” Yu An’s heart skipped.
“I said the Miss Luo who saved me is so beautiful that even straight girls would want to be with her.” Shen Qingbie thought Yu An didn’t hear clearly, so she repeated it.
“You, a straight girl, would be okay with being with her?” Yu An knew Shen Qingbie was very open-minded. Shen Qingbie often talked casually about straight girls and lesbians. She wasn’t against the idea of two women being together, but she was so straightforward. She didn’t seem to react to Yu An in any way that went beyond friendship, and that was what hurt Yu An the most.
Compared to being bound by social rules, Shen Qingbie’s complete lack of reaction made Yu An even more helpless. Hearing Shen Qingbie describe another woman’s beauty as “even straight girls would want to be with her” made Yu An’s chest sour. She couldn’t help but wonder if Shen Qingbie didn’t react because she herself wasn’t attractive enough.
“I don’t have that thought at all,” Shen Qingbie waved her hands quickly. “I’m just saying how beautiful she is.”
Yu An listened and let out a small sigh of relief.
“I’m a straight girl,” Shen Qingbie added. “Not into girls.”
Yu An: “…”
Her heart had already been pricked several times by Shen Qingbie unconsciously, making her head ache even more.
“But I’ve never really liked any guys either,” Shen Qingbie mumbled. “But I’m not into girls, so what does that make me?”
Yu An stared blankly, still wiping herself.
“Am I actually asexual?” Shen Qingbie continued, still with her back turned, seriously pondering her own feelings. “Or… am I just narcissistic?”
Yu An: “...”
…Fine, as long as you’re happy.
Yu An finished wiping, handed the towel to Shen Qingbie, put on her pajamas, and lay down in the quilt.
She lay on her side, watching Shen Qingbie busy with things, feeling reluctant, but still said calmly, “You have filming tomorrow morning. Don’t stay here, go back and sleep.”
“I’m not going back,” Shen Qingbie rummaged through Yu An’s suitcase. “I’ll just sleep here tonight.”
Yu An was stunned.
The moment she heard this, she felt undeniably happy, but her rational mind spoke up: “I’m sick. Why are you staying here? What if you catch it? Go back quickly.”
“It’s because you’re sick that I want to stay, otherwise how would I take care of you? What if you get a fever at night and go delirious, and no one takes you to the hospital? You need someone by your side.” Shen Qingbie pulled out another set of Yu An’s pajamas. “Besides, you’re wearing a mask, I’m healthy, it won't be easy for me to catch anything, so don’t worry.”
Afraid Yu An might drive her away, she emphasized again: “Anyway, I’m not leaving.”
Yu An sighed, no longer insisting, though deep down she felt a secret mix of joy and conflict.
“I haven’t showered yet, and I didn’t bring clothes. Can I wear your pajamas?” Shen Qingbie asked.
“Go ahead,” Yu An replied.
Shen Qingbie then picked out a pair of Yu An’s underwear, looking at them carefully. They really were sexy. She said, “A’Yu, also your underwear…”
Before Shen Qingbie could finish, Yu An saw her carefully examining her underwear. Her face flushed suddenly, and she refused, “All the underwear I brought are ones I’ve worn. There’s nothing new. It… it’s not convenient for you to wear them.”
Shen Qingbie thought for a moment. Underwear is such a private thing, she couldn’t mix with A’Yu’s. She said, “Then I won’t wear underwear. I’ll change back in my room tomorrow morning.”
Yu An: “…”
“Does what you just said make any sense?” Yu An’s headache got worse.
“No one will see,” Shen Qingbie said carelessly. “Nobody will know, only you know.”
Yu An: “…”
Shen Qingbie picked up the pajamas and went into the bathroom to shower. Soon, the sound of water trickling filled the room.
Yu An lay on the pillow, dizzy, covering her face with her hand, suppressing a few coughs. After Shen Qingbie finished, she would sleep on the same bed with her. For a moment, she felt like she was having a fever dream, and at the same time felt nervous.
After all, she had never slept on the same bed with Shen Qingbie before.
Shen Qingbie finished her shower and sat on the edge of the bed, casually blow-drying her hair. Her body carried a faint mist and the scent of her bath. She lowered her head, fingers playing with the strands of hair blown by the warm air, her neck slightly bent, skin soft like milk.
Yu An glanced over, looking at Shen Qingbie’s long legs.
Thinking that Shen Qingbie wasn’t wearing any underwear, completely exposed below, made her blood rush to her head, and her fever didn’t seem to ease at all.
“I’m turning off the lights,” Shen Qingbie said when she finally finished.
Yu An mumbled a response.
Shen Qingbie switched off the lamp, and the room plunged into darkness. Yu An lay on her side as Shen Qingbie lifted the covers and slid in, naturally wrapping her arms around Yu An from behind.
Yu An shivered with her back to her. “…”
“A’Yu, are you cold?” Shen Qingbie felt Yu An trembling slightly as she got under the covers. She hugged her tighter, comforting her, “It’s okay. I’m holding you, you won’t be that cold.”
Yu An curled up in her arms, trapped by Shen Qingbie from behind, powerless, saying, “I have a fever. I’m hot, how could I be cold?”
Shen Qingbie finally smiled, reaching out to touch Yu An’s body. Feeling that she was indeed burning, she released her, leaving her hand resting on Yu An’s waist. “How about this?”
“…Do as you like.” Yu An’s face sank into the pillow, feeling her heartbeat pounding faster and faster, almost torturing her.
Shen Qingbie, like a little puppy, leaned in from behind and sniffed softly. “A’Yu, you smelled nice even before you washed. Now that you’re clean, you smell even better.”
She liked this scent.
“…Don’t smell me. I didn’t even take a bath.” Yu An had sweated a lot and originally wanted to shower, but she was too weak and could only wipe herself off. She was worried her scent might make Shen Qingbie uncomfortable, so she felt uneasy.
“It smells good,” Shen Qingbie said, hugging her. “I’ve rarely seen you sick before. This time really scared me.”
Yu An could feel the worry in her tone, warmth spreading in her chest. “Everyone gets sick. I just didn’t let you see me like that before.”
“Were you afraid I’d worry?” Shen Qingbie asked. “Just like this time, you didn’t even tell me you caught a cold.”
Yu An didn’t answer, thinking this girl actually wasn’t that dumb sometimes. Then she asked another question: “What wish did you make for me?”
Shen Qingbie instantly got excited. “You’ll definitely like it. I wished that we’ll always be the closest, closest sisters forever.”
Yu An: “…”
Yu An suddenly felt hopeless. She might as well just die now.
Shen Qingbie knew Yu An needed rest, so she didn’t dare say too much. She stopped there, holding back, and said, “Sleep now, A’Yu, good night.”
Sure enough, she kept her promise and didn’t make a sound after that. This was rare for Shen Qingbie.
After some time, Yu An gradually grew drowsy but didn’t truly fall asleep. She knew Shen Qingbie was lying behind her, holding her. Shen Qingbie’s breathing was even, and was already asleep. Yu An turned in Shen Qingbie’s arms, feeling the warm breath brush past her.
Yu An wore a mask, so she could only vaguely feel the warmth.
But it was enough to make her heart race wildly.
Yu An’s breath grew fast. Because of her fever, she couldn’t stay calm as usual. Her fingers groped in the dark and found Shen Qingbie’s lips, feeling their wet softness. Her mind suddenly went blank with a buzzing.
Her fingers trembled slightly, and she leaned her face closer. Through the mask, she kissed Shen Qingbie’s lips.
The mask felt different from skin, and she couldn’t feel much of the lips. Shen Qingbie, half asleep, thought the blanket brushed her.
Yu An immediately turned away and closed her eyes tightly.
She must be delirious from the fever, she thought.
That’s why she did something so ridiculous.
….
This translation was originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com please read it there. and check out other stories too.
Ruan Yesheng waited in the room until it was time to go out. She had already changed her clothes and paced in the room alone. When she thought it was about time, she sent a message to Xi Mo and quietly slipped out of the house.
She had the same experience last night, so this time Ruan Yesheng was familiar with it and soon reached the tree she had agreed with Xi Mo.
From afar, Xi Mo’s tall figure stood under the tree, with Baolai crouching beside her. A faint light came from afar, casting a backlight on Xi Mo’s figure. The winter night added a chill to her.
“Xi Mo,” Ruan Yesheng ran quickly toward her.
Xi Mo saw Ruan Yesheng running toward her and unconsciously stepped forward a few steps. Ruan Yesheng soon reached her, smiled, and exhaled white breath as she spoke: “Thank you for waiting, let’s go back.”
“…It’s okay,” Xi Mo said softly. “It’s not too tiring.”
Baolai tilted his head, looking at Ruan Yesheng.
Ruan Yesheng crouched down, smiling as she ruffled Bao Lai’s head: “Baolai, you worked hard too.”
The two of them, and a dog, walked along the gradually quieting road. To avoid the few wandering people in town, they chose a relatively quiet path. With Baolai there, Ruan Yesheng was also a bit less tense.
“It’s cold, isn’t it?” Ruan Yesheng walked for a while, then reached out and held Xi Mo, trying to block the cold wind for her.
Xi Mo’s body tensed slightly but still let Ruan Yesheng hold her, saying, “It's not cold now.”
Ruan Yesheng smiled with her eyes down.
They passed a small alley, but Baolai stopped, showing his teeth in alert, growling lowly in his throat.
“Baolai?” Ruan Yesheng looked in the direction Baolai had turned his head.
Xi Mo also cast her eyes there.
The alley entrance was pitch black, with no light inside. The darkness even swallowed shadows, and they couldn’t see what was inside.
But Baolai’s bared teeth grew even fiercer, as if he saw some ill-intentioned spy. He barked a few times, then suddenly rushed into the alley.
“Baolai!” Ruan Yesheng was startled and quickly followed, with Xi Mo running after her.
They ran to the alley entrance. Ruan Yesheng turned on her phone flashlight and shone it inside. It was a narrow alley, with a mess of wires overhead, high walls on both sides, and old stone slabs showing the marks of age.
The alley was empty, and Baolai was nowhere to be seen. The alley turned ahead, and they had no idea where Baolai had gone. All they could see was a lone trash can standing there.
Ruan Yesheng looked at the deep alley and instinctively felt fear. Xi Mo’s expression was also heavy.
Now that Baolai had gone in, they couldn’t just leave him. Even if Baolai was smart, they couldn’t be at ease. But if the two of them rushed in, they didn’t know what they would face. Unlike Cui Jiayu and Lin Tingyu, they had no skills; going in might just make things worse.
Ruan Yesheng’s breathing tightened. She quickly called Yan Tinghuan.
Fortunately, Yan Tinghuan was awake and answered quickly: “Ruanruan, what’s wrong?”
“Are you sleeping? Xi Mo and I ran into some trouble here. Can you come over?” Ruan Yesheng trusted Yan Tinghuan and knew her abilities well.
“I’m not sleeping, I’m outside,” Yan Tinghuan’s voice suddenly became alert. “Tell me your exact location.”
The town’s GPS wasn’t accurate, and following it could easily get them lost. Ruan Yesheng described the nearby landmark buildings instead. When Yan Tinghuan arrived, she spent some time walking around the town and got familiar with the road layout and landmarks. She said, “I know it. I’m nearby. Wait for me, I’ll be there soon.”
Yan Tinghuan usually wasn’t reliable when speaking, but at times like this she was faster than anyone. Soon, she found the alley entrance and met up with Ruan Yesheng and Xi Mo.
“It’s so late, why are you still outside?” Yan Tinghuan frowned.
At this point, there was no hiding anything. Ruan Yesheng lowered her head and honestly explained everything: “Xi Mo came to take me to her place. For safety, we brought the homeowner Uncle A’cuo’s dog Baolai. Just now, Baolai passed this alley entrance and suddenly acted strange, like he saw something, then rushed in. Xi Mo and I didn’t dare go in alone, so we called you to come, so we can look for Baolai together.”
Yan Tinghuan gave them a meaningful look.
Xi Mo: “…”
Ruan Yesheng: “…”
Ruan Yesheng didn’t even need to guess. They both knew what Yan Tinghuan was imagining right now.
"Go in." Yan Tinghuan held her phone with one hand and cupped her mouth with the other, releasing the cicada she had been keeping in her body. She led the way: "Let's follow the cicada. Don't worry, I'm here."
Ruan Yesheng felt less nervous and followed Yan Tinghuan with Xi Mo.
The phone light was cold. Their three lonely steps echoed in the deep alley. Their shadows stretched long.
"Call me right away if anything happens. I came to protect you." Yan Tinghuan joked softly: "Good thing you two didn't go in first, or you would be like in the movies, poking faces into the bushes. You can't fight, you would just give away blood, straightly killed by the killer."
"Have some virtue," Ruan Yesheng said.
Xi Mo was very cautious and spoke very low: "Don't talk. If there's someone nearby, they will hear."
Yan Tinghuan was confident: "There's no one and no dog inside the cicada's range. If I saw anyone, I would know."
She suddenly asked: "Ruanruan, Xi Mo took you to her place to sleep? I remember you need to film before you sleep. It's the middle of the night, and she brings you over?"
Ruan Yesheng: "…"
…She knew she couldn't escape this hurdle.
Xi Mo: "…"
…Is this really the time to talk about this?
Ruan Yesheng quietly said, "Xi Mo came to discuss… something very important with me."
"Oh." Yan Tinghuan glanced at them, smiling, and didn’t say more.
With Yan Tinghuan talking to them, the cold, eerie unknown that filled the alley faded a lot. At least Ruan Yesheng didn’t feel so suffocating.
After walking a few more minutes, Yan Tinghuan’s expression stiffened. She stopped talking, made a gesture for them to stay silent, and turned off the flashlight.
Ahead appeared a fork. The three of them pressed against the wall, and they could hear fast footsteps not far away, like someone running in the alley. The steps sounded messy, more than one person. But the alley branched in many directions and was separated by walls, so Ruan Yesheng couldn’t be sure which alley the sound came from.
Xi Mo didn’t hear Baolai barking.
A’Cuo said Baolai was very clever. When hunting, he wouldn’t make a sound, like a leopard in the forest. Before catching prey, it hides itself and doesn’t expose itself.
The noises grew clearer, seeming like someone had jumped over a wall and landed on the ground.
Then another thump, like a person also jumped over a wall right after.
Author's Note:
A’Yu still couldn’t resist and kissed Qingqing through the mask. Qingqing, you better be more careful.
Ruanruan and Xi Mo are just ordinary people, with no skills. Actually, if they enter an alley like this, it’s very dangerous. Writing this made me nervous too.
Please leave more comments to help me increase my points. Thank you~
