After Her Death, They Begged for Forgiveness - Chapter 3

After finishing the milk tea, Xu Bingqi subconsciously pressed her temples again. Although she hadn’t experienced headaches for a long time, these small habits lingered like shadows, as if a tearing pain might surge through her brain at any moment.

Her current state of health felt almost unsettling to Xu Bingqi, though, of course, it was only a feeling of being healthy.

Since she didn’t have to attend Jiang Ruo’s birthday party, the day was free for Xu Bingqi, making it the perfect opportunity to go to the hospital for a check-up.

Xu Bingqi randomly chose a small hospital.

Early-stage glioblastoma could be detected through magnetic resonance imaging, which didn’t require particularly high expertise from the doctor.

Xu Bingqi smoothly registered for an appointment.

While waiting for her turn, another person seated in the waiting area caught Xu Bingqi’s attention.

The reason was simple: that person’s cat ear accessory was just too amusing.

The cat ear accessory was small and lively, like petals covered in soft fur. The inner side was a tender pale pink, and the thin ear edges appeared almost translucent under the panel lights. Fine fuzz spread along the contours, resembling a wisp of warm cloud. Occasionally, the tips of the ears twitched slightly, as if capturing faint sounds in the air.

Although Xu Bingqi successfully resisted the urge to touch the accessory, her intense gaze still drew the other person’s attention.

The owner of the cat ears looked up and met Xu Bingqi’s eyes. Their dark green pupils resembled lakes, shimmering with a light that seemed to pull one into the depths of the water.

Xu Bingqi had assumed the person wearing the cat ears would be a cute young girl, but the other’s features were exquisitely refined, like a meticulously carved porcelain statue. Their overall aura was as cool and distant as a snowy mountain glacier, and the gaze directed at Xu Bingqi was both proud and aloof.

In stark contrast to this icy demeanor were the cat ears on their head, which twitched gently a couple more times under Xu Bingqi’s stare. Xu Bingqi could even observe tiny strands of fuzz shaking loose from the movement.

“Can I help you?”

After a few seconds of silence, Song Guanjin spoke.

“No, it’s just that your cat ear accessory is really cute.”

After offering this polite compliment, Xu Bingqi noticed the other person’s expression freeze uncertainly. A pale arm reached up to touch the cat ears, and then they lowered their head in apparent regret.

Maybe they only meant to wear the cat ears at home but accidentally wore them outside, Xu Bingqi thought.

“Are you here for a brain check-up too?”

The wait for the examination was long and boring, so Xu Bingqi decided to strike up a conversation with the cat-eared individual. After much deliberation, she ended up uttering a rather pointless remark while seated near the neurology department.

“Mm.”

Song Guanjin looked at Xu Bingqi. The woman before her was stunningly beautiful and had praised her cat ears surely she couldn’t be a bad person, right?

Thus, the cat demon, new to human society, maintained her reserve for only a few seconds before starting to share her story with the first human she’d met who had good taste: “My agent asked me to get my brain checked. If there’s no problem, I can start acting.”

“Huh?”

Xu Bingqi didn’t quite grasp the connection between a brain check-up and acting.

“They suspect I’m intellectually disabled,” Song Guanjin pondered for a few seconds before adding, “You know, mentally challenged.”

Xu Bingqi was momentarily speechless. After a pause, she reminded gently, “Then you should probably go to the psychiatry or psychology department first for a standardized IQ test.”

“I’ve done it, but didn’t pass.” Song Guanjin subconsciously licked the tip of her claw, then put her hand down nonchalantly upon realizing it would be seen as a fingertip in human eyes. “So I need to continue with the C…T and genetic tests.”

Xu Bingqi felt an inexplicable familiarity with the other’s gesture, though she didn’t dwell on it, merely casually agreeing, “I see.”

“If it really is an intellectual disability, then I’m finished.” Song Guanjin sighed. “I went through so much trouble to pick up… find a job.”

Song Guanjin blinked, then widened her dark green eyes to look at Xu Bingqi. “When that happens, they’ll kick me out, and I won’t even have a place to live…”

Xu Bingqi thought it necessary to offer some comfort at this point, but unfortunately, she was never good with words in daily life. In the end, she could only say dryly, “Don’t be sad.”

“Thank you.” Song Guanjin twitched her ears anxiously. She thought this human had good taste but really wasn’t very perceptive and needed further guidance. “Do you think I seem like I have an intellectual disability?”

Xu Bingqi: …

Song Guanjin continued asking, “If I do have an intellectual disability, would you be willing to take care of me?”

After asking, Song Guanjin noticed Xu Bingqi’s facial expression shift from hesitation to shock.

Xu Bingqi leaned back, putting some distance between them, and repeated the question, afraid she might have misheard. “Take care of you?”

“Yes.” Song Guanjin tentatively explained further. “Let me live in your house, and you can hunt work to earn money to support me. In return, I’ll let you pet me.”

After hearing Song Guanjin’s explanation, Xu Bingqi’s only thought was that the entertainment industry had really become too chaotic.

“I don’t think you have an intellectual disability,” Xu Bingqi said, forcing a sincere smile. “So, it’s better for you to keep working hard at acting and be self-reliant.”

Song Guanjin sighed. This human with good taste was completely missing the point.

But since she hadn’t agreed to “tear down the roof,” she might as well try “opening a window.” So Song Guanjin naturally applied the human “door-in-the-face technique”: “Can we exchange contact information?”

Xu Bingqi hesitated for a moment but eventually nodded.

If the other person were diagnosed with an intellectual disability and ended up homeless, without someone to lend a hand, she might truly go astray.

Song Guanjin added Xu Bingqi’s contact and noted it as “Potential Meal Ticket 01.” Satisfied, she put down her phone and met Xu Bingqi’s slightly puzzled gaze.

“So you can type.” Xu Bingqi guessed from Song Guanjin’s tapping on the screen that she was typing in a note. Though slow, it at least proved Song Guanjin wasn’t completely lacking in life skills.

Though Xu Bingqi’s expression was calm and her tone held no mockery, Song Guanjin still felt somewhat looked down upon. “I’ve known how for a long time.”

Three days should count as a long time, right?

“Patient number 26, please proceed to Neurology Clinic 1.”

Song Guanjin tilted her head and listened for a moment, confirming that she was “Patient 27” in the mechanical voice. She then bid farewell to her Potential Meal Ticket 01: “It’s my turn. Bye.”

Xu Bingqi nodded and watched as Song Guanjin headed toward the clinic. Strangely, the cat ear accessories on Song Guanjin’s head had disappeared.

Mingming had always worn the cat ear accessory while talking to herself, if she had taken it off while walking, she must have removed it incredibly fast.

Xu Bingqi didn’t have time to ponder this further before her thoughts were interrupted by a sudden ringtone.

It was Jiang Ruo.

Xu Bingqi immediately chose to decline the call.

She had firmly decided not to attend Jiang Ruo’s birthday party today, so there was no need to answer the call and complicate things.

Jiang Ruo persisted and called a second time, only to be hung up on again.

The ever-present smile on Jiang Ruo’s lips faded. She turned to Gu Xiaozhou beside her and asked, “Did you go to see my sister today?”

Jiang Ruo’s tone was gentle and soft, but Gu Xiaozhou could tell she was deeply displeased.

After a moment’s thought, Gu Xiaozhuo replied cautiously, “She said she had personal matters to attend to. Honestly, it doesn’t matter if someone like her doesn’t come, she’d only spoil the mood at the party anyway.”

As Jiang Ruo listened quietly, the last trace of a smile vanished from her face. “She is my sister. As her younger sister, she should be at my birthday party.”

Gu Xiaozhou hadn’t expected such a strong reaction. “Ruo Ruo, if Xu Bingqi comes, she’ll just sulk and cause trouble.”

“But she must come.”

Jiang Ruo seemed to ignore Gu Xiaozhou’s reasoning entirely and continued expressionlessly.

If Xu Bingqi didn’t attend the birthday party, there would be a gap in the progression of events, making it difficult to achieve the intended outcome.

An uneasy feeling settled in Jiang Ruo’s heart. Even if she had to go find Xu Bingqi herself, she was determined to bring her to the party.

Gu Xiaozhou watched Jiang Ruo intently. Jiang Ruo had always been as gentle as a spring breeze toward her, she had never seen her so cold and detached before.

Fortunately, Jiang Ruo soon regained her cheerful expression. “I’m not angry. Thank you, Xiaozhou-jie, for helping me with all the preparations. I was just really worried about Bingqi-jie. I’m sorry, Xiaozhou-jie.”

Gu Xiaozhou breathed a quiet sigh of relief and smiled warmly in return. “It’s alright. Happy birthday.”

But inwardly, she added another mark against Xu Bingqi. Ruo Ruo cared so much about her, yet Xu Bingqi clearly hadn’t given Ruo Ruo’s birthday a second thought.

She didn’t deserve Ruo Ruo’s concern at all.

Support After Her Death, They Begged for Forgiveness