After Becoming a Spare Tire, I Got Together with My White Moonlight - Chapter 27

Yan Guizhou stopped listening to her sister’s nonsense, pushed the car door open, and got out.

Yan Guiqiu instinctively took a step back, hiding her hands behind her again.

This time, Yan Guizhou didn’t miss the movement. Frowning, she strode forward and forcibly pulled Yan Guiqiu’s hand over.

The sleeve was stained with red, a startling sight at first glance.

Yan Guizhou’s brow twitched, her expression shifting to one of irritation. “Sis!” she exclaimed.

Yan Guiqiu instinctively averted her gaze, turning her face away and wrinkling her nose like a child caught sneaking off to an internet café, guilty and lacking confidence. “It’s just a small accident,” she mumbled, her voice barely audible.

As for the injury, she herself didn’t think much of it.

Yan Guizhou’s frown deepened, her expression so tense it could crush a mosquito. She seemed on the verge of exploding but gritted her teeth and held back, abruptly changing the subject. “Let’s go to the hospital first,” she said stiffly.

She then turned to the driver and instructed him to wait for them in the hospital parking lot.

Without another word, she practically dragged Yan Guiqiu into the emergency room, with Jiang Xuehe following closely behind.

Upon learning they had fallen into a murky river, both had blood drawn for tests.

Jiang Xuehe only had a red mark on the back of her neck, with a bit of broken skin but no bleeding. After a simple disinfection, she was fine.

Yan Guiqiu, however, was in a bit more trouble. The wound wasn’t large, but it seemed small gravel had gotten lodged inside. The nurse pressed her down and carefully cleaned it out.

Earlier, it seemed as if she felt no pain, but as soon as the disinfectant alcohol was poured over the wound, Yan Guiqiu began whimpering and complaining of pain, her face contorting in agony.

Yan Guizhou, who had been politely asked to leave due to her dark expression, snorted coldly from outside.

But after sitting on the bench for a while, she couldn’t help but stand up again.

When Jiang Xuehe returned with the test results from the other side, Yan Guizhou looked up and saw her, pausing mid-step and softening her irritated expression.

“Sorry, I get a bit worked up when I see her like this,” Yan Guizhou said, her expression now remarkably gentle and tinged with genuine apology. “My sister told me about you two. I thought it would be a while before I got to meet you, I’m Yan Guizhou, just call me Guizhou.”

Regardless of what she truly felt, at least on the surface, she showed no objection to her sister having a girlfriend and even seemed welcoming.

Jiang Xuehe shook her head, indicating it was fine, exchanged a few pleasantries, and then sat with her on the bench outside to wait.

“Does she often get into situations like this?” Jiang Xuehe asked.

“Yeah,” Yan Guizhou snorted lightly. “I don’t know why it’s always her running into these things. It was a bit better when she was younger, but as she grew up, she started acting like some kind of superhero. If she weren’t so quick to run off, her room would be filled with commendation banners.”

“Maybe she’s just more observant,” Jiang Xuehe defended Yan Guiqiu.

Life is full of messy accidents, and many things happen right under people’s noses. Most just realize it later, sighing in hindsight without feeling like their lives are particularly disaster-prone.

Yan Guiqiu, on the contrary, seemed to notice even the slightest disturbance around her. Though she could have easily stayed away from the commotion, she instinctively rushed over to investigate as soon as she heard any movement.

“True enough,” Yan Guizhou didn’t deny it, though her concern lay elsewhere. “But having this happen every now and then is still quite unsettling.”

“She probably knows what she’s doing,” Jiang Xuehe remarked.

“I know, but I can’t help feeling she’s just too idle most of the time, which is why she goes looking for trouble.” Yan Guizhou sighed. “I’ve always wanted her to come back and help out. Our parents have worked hard all these years, and they mentioned wanting to retire early just the other day. With my current abilities, how could I possibly take over for them?”

Jiang Xuehe glanced at Yan Guizhou. These words sounded sincere.

If they weren’t, then this young woman’s acting skills were truly unfathomable.

The intimacy between sisters wasn’t something easily feigned.

Jiang Xuehe was inclined to believe Yan Guizhou genuinely wished for her sister to return.

But Yan Guiqiu’s resolve was far stronger than her sister’s.

The problem didn’t lie with the younger sister at least, not entirely but rather with Yan Guiqiu herself.

Suddenly, Jiang Xuehe understood.

The vague thoughts that had been lingering in her mind began to clear.

“Why doesn’t she want to come back?” Jiang Xuehe asked.

“If only we knew,” Yan Guizhou replied, though Jiang Xuehe suspected she had some idea, given the helplessness and resignation in her expression.

“If Sister Xuehe knows where the issue lies,” Yan Guizhou addressed her the same way her sister did, “please do let us know, if it’s convenient.”

Jiang Xuehe didn’t commit to an answer, as Yan Guiqiu’s wound was just then being treated. The nurse informed the family outside about some precautions, and Yan Guizhou immediately fell silent, rising to go inside.

The topic was dropped, and after returning with Yan Guiqiu, Yan Guizhou never brought it up again.

Naturally, Jiang Xuehe didn’t mention it either.

Before heading back to the Yan residence, Yan Guizhou asked the driver to take them to a shopping mall, where they each bought new clothes and phones. Fortunately, their SIM cards hadn’t been soaked for too long and were still functional, so they didn’t need replacements.

Neither had any particular preferences, so they settled on the most highly-rated brand, purchasing a pair of matching phones in black and white.

Yan Guizhou, who paid for them, sat in the passenger seat and couldn’t help complaining, “I just bought you one less than three months ago, and now it’s gone. You’re really something.”

“Yes, yes, it’s my fault, my fault. I promise to take good care of this new phone,” Yan Guiqiu nodded earnestly, then turned to whisper to Jiang Xuehe, “That phone was a New Year’s gift from her. She gets really upset about things like this.”

When Yan Guizhou glanced back from the front seat, Yan Guiqiu instinctively put on a smile and straightened her posture.

Jiang Xuehe found the sisters’ dynamic quite amusing.

Compared to their parents, Yan Guiqiu seemed more afraid of her younger sister’s lectures. When her sister wasn’t looking, she would pull a long face, as if wishing she could block her ears.

When her sister turned around to glare at her, she lost the calm and mature demeanor she had initially projected, instead launching into complaints, some of which were quite childish.

Judging solely by their interactions, the relationship between these sisters was quite harmonious.

Even compared to ordinary, normal families not just the Jiang family, the Yan sisters could be considered one of those pairs with an exceptionally good relationship.

It certainly didn’t seem like the kind of relationship that would escalate into a life-or-death struggle over inheritance.

Jiang Xuehe remained quiet on the side, showing no intention of interrupting, but the sisters didn’t leave her out either. Especially Yan Guizhou, who intentionally or unintentionally drew her into conversations about Yan Guiqiu’s childhood.

With only a two-year age gap between them, there was no significant generation gap, and they remembered each other’s embarrassing childhood moments vividly.

As the conversation continued, Jiang Xuehe gradually found opportunities to join in. They chatted all the way, and before they knew it, they had arrived at the Yan residence.

The Yan family’s home was relatively modest, a three-story villa with a small garden outside. The neighborhood was well-landscaped, with trees in the front and a stream behind. The houses were spaced far apart, making it a very quiet environment.

Just outside the neighborhood was a main road, and a short walk away were subway and bus stops, making transportation convenient.

The main ancestral home was the truly grand mansion, but only the elderly patriarch occasionally stayed there. Once the younger generations grew up, they all moved into their own places.

Yan Guiqiu’s family of four had lived here ever since her father and Madam Meng got married, and the sisters were born and raised in this house.

When the three of them entered, Yan’s father and Madam Meng hadn’t returned yet. Yan Guizhou said she would call their parents, while Yan Guiqiu took Jiang Xuehe upstairs to her bedroom to freshen up.

The second floor housed the sisters’ bedrooms. Yan Guiqiu’s room was the sun-facing one on the left side at the top of the stairs. Diagonally across was a small study, and further inside was a storage room.

Yan Guiqiu rarely came back, so the curtains in these rooms were usually drawn year-round. However, upon opening the door, one could see that there was hardly any dust inside.

The room was clean and tidy. Though somewhat sparse, it wasn’t as cold and desolate as one might imagine.

Jiang Xuehe gazed at the certificates of merit pasted on the wall, all from elementary school. The owner hadn’t taken much care of them, casually sticking them up, and they had already yellowed with age.

The opposite wall was newer and more refined, with a row of photo frames arranged in an artful, staggered pattern.

Inside the bookcase next to the desk were two more photo frames and an old camera.

Jiang Xuehe recalled Yan Guiqiu mentioning her interest in photography, but during their time together recently, she hadn’t brought it up much.

Yan Guiqiu had just finished testing the water temperature in the bathroom and came out to call Jiang Xuehe for a shower.

“The towels inside are newly unpacked and unused,” Yan Guiqiu said. “There are new bathrobes in the cabinet, but we’ll be having a meal soon. The suitcase is in the small living room in the middle. I’ll bring it over for you in a bit.”

Jiang Xuehe withdrew her gaze and glanced at Yan Guiqiu’s bandaged arm. “Do you want to shower together?”

Yan Guiqiu froze for a moment. “Huh?”

A moment later, her face slowly flushed red.

Jiang Xuehe also froze, realizing that the suggestion might not be appropriate at the moment. She averted her eyes awkwardly and said, “Your wound shouldn’t get wet, right?”

Before Yan Guiqiu could finish wrestling with her thoughts, Jiang Xuehe quickly added, “Never mind. I’ll help you wash your hair later, and then you can just rinse off quickly by yourself.”

This way, they could temporarily avoid the awkwardness of being completely exposed to each other.

Yan Guiqiu could only nod in agreement. She pulled out the chair in front of the desk and sat down, slowly coming back to her senses.

Given their current relationship status.

It’s not that it’s impossible, but it seems it could easily take on a different meaning.

Yan Guiqiu recalled the interrupted kiss in the park earlier.

This is only the beginning.

Though it was her first love, Yan Guiqiu wasn’t entirely clueless about what couples should do.

Occasionally, when watching movies or TV dramas and seeing the camera linger endlessly on a single shared glance between the protagonists, she couldn’t help but complain about how tedious it was.

If you like someone, just confess.

And if the feelings are mutual, that’s even better.

Holding hands, kissing, embracing, and even going to bed together shouldn’t all of these follow naturally?

But knowing something is one thing; putting it into practice is another.

What does “follow naturally” even mean?

The confession had gone so smoothly, yet perhaps precisely because it was too smooth, Yan Guiqiu stood at the crossroads, unsure of what to do next.

Getting too close might risk being disliked, but staying too far felt unsatisfying.

Asking someone with no experience to act like an expert was truly asking too much.

Yan Guiqiu covered her face and let her thoughts drift aimlessly for a while, until the “ding-dong, ding-dong” of her phone notifications pulled her back from her reverie.

She instinctively glanced over and realized it was the newly bought phone.

As she reached for it, she remembered, the white one belonged to Jiang Xuehe.

Jiang Xuehe had casually placed the phone down earlier, screen facing up. Now it suddenly lit up, the background still the system’s default light blue effect. Messages from some app popped up one after another, and she could even catch a glimpse of half a message.

Yan Guiqiu hadn’t intended to look, but her peripheral vision happened to catch her own name.

She froze for a moment, her gaze lingering a little longer.

“You still haven’t told Yan Guiqiu?”

“Seriously? Such a great resource right beside you, and you’re not using it? That doesn’t sound like you.”

“I heard Miss Yan is completely infatuated with you lately. You could just ask directly.”

“Call me back when you have time.”

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