After Her Death, They Begged for Forgiveness - Chapter 1

A peculiar customer visited the clinic every few days.

“Hello, I’d like two boxes of Tylenol.”

In the sweltering summer heat, the clerk Xiao Zhang gave the perpetually masked customer a curious glance, wondering inwardly if the customer wore the mask to conceal facial scars.

The customer’s complexion was pale, with dark circles under the eyes, clear signs of prolonged sleep deprivation. Only those starry eyes remained bright, always gazing at others with a politely smiling expression.

“Though Tylenol is a painkiller that can relieve headaches, in your condition, you really should seek proper medical attention,” Xiao Zhang hesitantly advised while handing over the medication, unable to resist offering well-intentioned reminder.

“Thank you for your concern, I understand.”

Xu Bingqi took the medicine, standing still for a moment to endure the dizziness brought by her headache before slowly exiting the pharmacy.

Glioblastoma, a malignant brain tumor. In truth, she had been diagnosed long ago.

Xu Bingqi still remembered the day of her diagnosis. Just after receiving the medical report, she received a call from her mother, Xu Qingci.

Warmth flickered in Xu Bingqi’s heart, thinking her mother was concerned about her diagnosis results. But when she answered, all she heard was Xu Qingci’s pained and disgusted voice: “Bingqi, you were born mediocre unable to inherit the family business yet repeatedly provoking Ruoruo. I’ve overlooked all that, but why have you now escalated to plagiarizing someone else’s musical composition?”

Xu Bingqi’s mind went blank upon hearing this. After a pause, she heard her own voice trembling with anger: “I didn’t, I—”

Before she could finish, Xu Qingci sharply interrupted: “Does your voice even carry any conviction? This matter is already trending online, and the group’s stock price has dropped significantly because of it!”

Xu Bingqi clenched the diagnosis form, sweat from her palm dampening the thin corner of the paper, creating a sticky sensation in her hand. Her fingernails unconsciously dug into her palm, puncturing several crescent-shaped holes in the newly acquired document.

Xu Qingci sighed: “Bingqi, this time your mother can no longer turn a blind eye and tolerate your behavior. You’d better take care of yourself.”

Xu Bingqi opened her mouth, about to reveal her diagnosis to Xu Qingci, only to find that her mother had already hung up immediately after speaking.

Distraught, Xu Bingqi opened social media platforms and discovered #TheXuFamilyEldestMissPlagiarizesComposition trending nationwide.

What followed unfolded predictably.

The Xu family swiftly severed ties with Xu Bingqi. The typically timid Xu Bingqi insisted on litigation but ultimately failed. Stumbling out of the courthouse, she became permanently branded as the worthless, universally despised figure, a laughingstock in everyone’s eyes, met with endless ridicule and scorn wherever she went.

After leaving the pharmacy, Xu Bingqi pressed her temples, forcing herself to stop dwelling on those dark memories.

Following the court-ordered compensation, all her assets were frozen and seized. Unable to afford the expensive treatment for glioblastoma, Xu Bingqi could only endure day after day by obtaining painkillers from small clinics.

Just endure a little longer, Xu Bingqi thought.

Just a little more time, and she could be completely free.

The scorching sun hung overhead, the air thick and humid like evaporated steam. Sweat soaked through her clothes, the clingy dampness making it hard to breathe.

Xu Bingqi was walking back to her rented apartment, yet she stubbornly refused to remove her mask, even though sweat had completely soaked through the fabric, droplets falling one by one from her pale chin onto the ground.

She feared being recognized if she took off the mask. Every person who glanced her way and whispered among themselves stirred unease within her, dragging her back into that abyss of despair.

In truth, Xu Bingqi was quite adept at reading people, a skill honed over more than a decade of life experience.

Back when Xu Qingci would gently stroke Jiang Ruo’s forehead as the mother and daughter nestled together, murmuring softly, Xu Bingqi had once tried to join in. But the moment she cautiously voiced her thoughts, she caught the faint impatience and distaste in Xu Qingci’s eyes and abruptly fell silent.

An invisible barrier separated her, and no matter how hard she tried, she could never truly fit in.

Gradually, Xu Bingqi found herself unable to grasp the financial investments and asset management Xu Qingci discussed, nor did she understand the scope of the family business. And Xu Qingci, in turn, would deliberately lower her voice whenever these topics came up, avoiding Xu Bingqi’s presence.

As time went on, Xu Bingqi withdrew into her room, immersing herself in composing music, becoming what everyone called the “good-for-nothing true heiress of the Xu family.”

Whenever Xu Qingci introduced Xu Bingqi to others, she would only say with a tone of regret, “Bingqi has never been interested in the family business since she was little, and she has no talent for commerce. She just shuts herself in her room all day, doing nothing. Ah, this child isn’t as worry-free as Ruoruo.”

Thus cementing her identity as a failure.

Xu Bingqi stared blankly at the sky when suddenly she felt something soft and furry brush against her.

She looked down and saw a little cat rubbing against her pant leg, its tail held high.

Though the cat was rubbing back and forth against Xu Bingqi’s trousers, its expression was rather haughty. With emerald-green eyes, it gave Xu Bingqi a reserved glance before settling down beside her feet, its fluffy tail wrapping around two snow-white front paws.

Though disliked by many, Xu Bingqi had always been well-liked by animals. During university, she often took part in campus rescue activities for stray cats and dogs. She even chose to stay on campus during holidays to walk stray dogs of course, Xu Qingci was more than happy for her not to come home and disturb them.

But ever since being accused of plagiarism, Xu Bingqi hadn’t paid much attention to the cats and dogs on the streets.

Yet, this cat in front of her stirred a long-dormant urge in Xu Bingqi to pet it. After hesitating for a moment, she reached out her hand.

The cat stared at Xu Bingqi’s fair, slender fingers for a while, neither approaching nor retreating. Only when her fingertips touched the fur on its head did the cat let out a somewhat flustered meow.

Embarrassed, Xu Bingqi withdrew her hand and locked eyes with the cat. The cat shook its head and then sat down again beside her.

Xu Bingqi felt as though she’d been judged by a cat. She muttered under her breath, “You were fine with being petted earlier.”

The cat guiltily paced back and forth a few times before looking at Xu Bingqi again, then down at its own sunken belly, licking the fur around its mouth.

After a few such exchanges, Xu Bingqi finally understood, this was a transaction. She sighed, went into a nearby convenience store, and bought a bag of cat food and some cat treats.

The cat circled around Xu Bingqi, meowing incessantly, its front paws tugging at her slightly faded trousers, leaving behind tufts of black-and-white fur.

“You little ingrate.”

Xu Bingqi muttered a complaint under her breath, patiently waiting for the little cat to finish eating before continuing on her way to the rental apartment.

The corners of the cat’s mouth were still stained with bits of uneaten cat paste, but when it saw Xu Bingqi stand up to leave, it let out a soft, gentle “meow” and, with graceful feline steps, followed closely behind her.

It wasn’t until Xu Bingqi reached the door of her rental apartment that she finally realized the cat had been trailing her the whole way. Standing there with her keys in hand, she stared at the cat, and the cat stared back.

The cat paced back and forth in front of the door, its soft, fluffy tail brushing repeatedly against Xu Bingqi’s calves. With its light green eyes wide open, it seemed to be urging her to open the door.

Xu Bingqi hesitated for a moment, eyeing the cat’s grimy head, then tentatively unlocked the door and in a flash, the cat slipped deftly through the crack.

Xu Bingqi sighed. As it was, she could only manage to take on part-time work to support herself during the brief moments when her headaches weren’t acting up. Now, she had a cat to care for as well.

Before she could even begin to figure things out, the headaches returned with a vengeance.

Xu Bingqi collapsed to the floor, gasping for air, her entire body drenched as if she had just been pulled out of water. The delicate beauty of her features slowly faded, her eyes losing their spark.

When she opened her eyes again, Xu Bingqi felt as though her memories had grown hazy. Many events from the past were now only vague impressions. She knew all too well that this was a symptom of her glioblastoma, the gradual loss of memory.

Maybe it’s for the best, Xu Bingqi thought. This way, she would forget all the unhappy things, and she would be able to welcome death more swiftly.

When she came to, she found the cat gently licking her fingertips. Seeing that Xu Bingqi was awake, it nuzzled its nose softly against her palm.

The warm touch stirred something deep within her, and in a daze, she recalled a time many years ago when she had fallen ill the worried look in Xu Qingci’s eyes and the comforting warmth of his hand clasping hers.

But everything had changed after Jiang Ruo arrived.

Xu Bingqi closed her eyes, fighting back the tears.

It’s alright, she told herself. At least now she had a little cat to keep her company. She reached out and gently scratched the cat under its chin.

From then on, the two of them formed a warm little family in that cramped rental apartment.

Every few days, Xu Bingqi would go to the pharmacy to pick up Tylenol to ease her headaches. On her way back, she would stop by the convenience store to buy vegetables and, without fail, a small pack of chicken breast to cook for her little cat.

Lately, however, her steps had grown increasingly sluggish, and the headaches were becoming more frequent and intense.

Xu Bingqi never gave the cat a name. She felt that naming it would create a bond she couldn’t afford. Her own life was nearing its end, while the cat’s was just beginning, it would surely meet many people in the future who could care for it better.

As the headaches grew longer and more unbearable, even entire boxes of painkillers failed to bring relief. Her brain felt like a mass of searing magma, burning so fiercely that her scalp tightened.

“What will become of our little cat?”

During her lucid moments, Xu Bingqi rarely dwelled on the past, the days when she was despised, labeled a failure, and accused of plagiarism. Those memories felt like distant, unreachable history.

Her only worry now was the cat.

“How about finding a new owner for the kitty?” Xu Bingqi whispered soothingly to the well-fed kitten in her arms. “The kitty would live in a very big house, with many people who love it dearly, and become the happiest little cat in the whole world.”

The kitten turned around in Xu Bingqi’s embrace, then lightly leaped to the ground and scampered away.

Xu Bingqi began frequently posting adoption notices for the cat on social media platforms and neighborhood group chats, yet responses were scarce. Among the few replies were comments criticizing her for irresponsible abandonment.

As expected, in the end, she remained the universally disliked person everyone found detestable, Xu Bingqi thought.

Unfortunately, no suitable adopter was found. Pressing her temples to suppress the overwhelming headache, she looked at the cat and said, “You should be capable of charming a new servant, right? I’ve always felt you’re quite experienced in this matter.”

The cat remained silent, only persistently licking Xu Bingqi’s palm.

Using her last ounce of strength, Xu Bingqi opened the door, then leaned against the doorframe gasping for breath in rapid, heavy pants.

Her consciousness grew increasingly hazy, yet she could still feel a warm sensation returning to her palm reminiscent of her mother holding her hand during childhood.

As her awareness faded, Xu Bingqi suddenly recalled the meaning behind her name, the aspiration Xu Qingci had for her before she was born to leave a glorious mark in history and remain calm and decisive in any situation.

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