After Rebirth, My Archrival Omega Looks at Me Differently - Chapter 41

Brilliant fireworks exploded across the sky, lighting up Yan Youqing’s slightly upturned face completely.

The sharpness of strong liquor felt warm in the winter wind. As she gazed at Chi Yan, who was wrapped in the same blanket with her, the fireworks lit up most of the sky, and one spark seemed to land softly in her heart.

“You’ve been unhappy this whole month… is it because of this?” Chi Yan asked gently.

Yan Youqing blinked slowly, surprised that Chi Yan had noticed her subtle coldness, but also a little helpless. This girl still hadn’t truly seen through her.

To Yan Youqing, this situation hadn’t really stirred any deep emotions. She had already seen a future invisible to others. She knew very well what mattered most to her mother and stepmother. Disappointment, sadness, even hope, were no longer things she allowed herself to feel.

She was calmer than she used to be. The only emotional thread that could still affect her was tied to the girl standing right in front of her.

During that quiet self-study period, Zhong Yi’s voice had echoed so clearly when she jokingly called Chi Yan her “crush.” The moment those words were spoken, something inside Yan Youqing had tensed.

Even though logic told her it was nothing more than Zhong Yi’s usual teasing, and Chi Yan had already explained it, she couldn’t fully shake the feeling.

And lately, watching Chi Yan sneak around like she was plotting something had made her even more cautious. Her face had turned colder without her meaning to.

Tonight’s part-time job had simply been a reflection of that emotional unrest.

The winter night carried the scent of agave, sharp and heady, as Yan Youqing quietly pulled her thoughts back.

She looked at the girl who had just finished her shift, hid her true feelings deep inside, and nodded.

“Something like that.”

Chi Yan nodded in understanding.

She looked into Yan Youqing’s eyes, which remained indifferent and downcast, and felt an unexplained tightness in her chest.

She had completed countless exam papers and could usually pinpoint the answer right after seeing the question.

But this time, she was stuck.

She didn’t know what words could comfort someone who had been forgotten by their own mother.

Chi Yan stared at the fireworks above for a long time before finally speaking.

“You don’t have to be sad, you know. In the end, we all walk alone.”

“You’ve heard that quote, right? Life is just a long goodbye. We’re all lonely travelers moving slowly toward the end.”

Yan Youqing found the words profound, yet oddly blunt. She tilted her head and asked, “Who said that?”

It was clear Chi Yan had been waiting for her to ask. She replied with fake seriousness, “Woz Gisheld.”

She said it solemnly, but the corner of her lips betrayed her. A smile tugged at her mouth, and pride flickered across her face like a child who had played a clever prank.

Yan Youqing didn’t recognize the name at first and found it suspicious. She paused, then two seconds later, realized exactly what kind of name it was. She couldn’t hold back her laughter.

It was as if a glacier, frozen for years, had finally cracked. A ray of sunlight broke through the icy surface, pure and unforgettable.

The fireworks bursting overhead lit up Chi Yan’s face again, and for a moment, her dark eyes seemed dazed.

In both her current and previous lives, Chi Yan had grown used to seeing Yan Youqing’s cold, distant face. She had once believed that even when she smiled, it would be half-hearted, stiff, and unnatural.

But she had been wrong.

Yan Youqing’s smile was beautiful.

Like a white snow lotus descending from a faraway peak, finally made real.

The night wind played with the hair at Chi Yan’s temples, and her dazed eyes blinked slowly.

Then she held onto her smile and said in a friendly tone, “That’s more like it. You should smile more. If you keep wearing that frozen face, your pheromones are going to start forming frost around your neck in winter.”

Yan Youqing realized she had laughed a little too much and quickly pressed her lips together, a little embarrassed.

Around them, the atmosphere suddenly shifted.

“Six.”

“Five.”

The fireworks had entered their third stage, and the countdown to the new year had reached ten seconds.

As the numbers lit up in the sky, Chi Yan looked up, hearing the excited voices of the crowd counting down all around her.

“Three.”

“Two.”

“One. Happy New Year!”

“Zhang Min, happy new year. Let’s keep going strong together!”

“Wang Lianying, I wish you good health and success in everything!”

“I hope Zhao Bin’s surgery goes well. Wishing him a full recovery!”

It wasn’t clear who started it, but as the fireworks turned night into day, voices all around began to shout their blessings and wishes.

Caught up in the emotion of it all, Chi Yan stood up too. She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted into the chorus of blessings.

“I hope my dad, Old Chi, stays healthy this year! May all his projects go smoothly!”

“And I hope the person next to me, Yan Youqing, will be happy in the new year!”

She turned to Yan Youqing, as if offering a reminder.

“At least happier than today.”

The brilliant white light from behind cast Chi Yan’s shadow across Yan Youqing’s hands.

Her smile was sincere and radiant, like a flower that would never wilt.

Yan Youqing lifted her gaze. Amid the cheers and laughter, she heard the unsteady rhythm of her own heartbeat.

That girl, who had always seemed like the sun, glowing so brightly beside others, had finally let a little of that light fall on her too. The warmth wrapped around her gently. It was still winter, but it felt like spring.

Everyone around them was celebrating the arrival of a new year. Yan Youqing looked at the girl beside her and quietly brought her hands together beneath the blanket.

As the fireworks faded and the sky returned to darkness, a soft moon and scattered stars lit the night.

The moon seemed to understand that someone was about to make a wish to the stars and kindly hid behind a cloud.

Yan Youqing looked up at the brightest star in the sky. Her posture was straight, her gaze reverent and lowered.

She made a wish to the star.

She wished that Chi Yan would stay happy in the new year. She wished that the day her happiness faded would never come.

The madness of New Year’s Eve lingered in people’s hearts. The exhausting first semester of their final year of high school ended in mid-January.

And on the fifth day of winter break, Yan Youqing’s birthday arrived.

Song Yanxing, ever mindful of appearances, threw her stepdaughter a lavish coming-of-age celebration. The venue was the city’s most expensive hotel downtown.

Whether it was because Chi Yan sat next to Yan Youqing in class, or because Zhong Yi was her friend and maybe-soon-to-be girlfriend, the trio—along with Wang Chuning—received invitations to the party.

The day before, snow had fallen, covering the world in a blanket of white. It was stunningly beautiful.

But for Chi Yan, it was trouble. She stood stiffly at the bus stop, cradling an eternal flower arrangement she had made after seven or eight failed attempts. She held it like a sacred offering, afraid to move too much.

Luckily, the bus came quickly. Just as she stepped forward and was about to get on, she saw the packed crowd inside, a rush-hour nightmare.

Her foot, halfway through the door, retreated immediately.

You don’t treat an ancestor like that. You don’t let it get crushed on a bus.

Chi Yan glanced at her phone and saw the pitiful balance in her account. She bit her lip, hesitated, then made a bold decision.

She would splurge on a cab.

Worst case, she’d call Yan Youqing later and ask her to cover the fare. After all, she owed her that much anyway.

With that thought in mind, Chi Yan climbed into the taxi with righteous confidence, clutching her eternal flower like it was priceless treasure.

Outside the window, snowy scenery sped past. Pine trees, weighed down by the snow, lined the road as they receded into the distance.

With ten minutes still remaining before the banquet started, Chi Yan arrived at the hotel. From a distance, she saw Chen Niannian helping Zhong Yi fix her outfit.

Chi Yan stepped out of the car and let out a soft click of her tongue.

“Tsk tsk tsk.”

Chen Niannian, caught red-handed, quickly pulled her hands back in embarrassment when she noticed Chi Yan’s teasing look. Zhong Yi, on the other hand, walked forward confidently and teased her instead.

“What are you tsk-ing at? You’re so late. You’ll have to drink as punishment later.”

“She’s right,” Wang Chuning chimed in from the side, her eyes scanning Chi Yan from head to toe.

Chi Yan was dressed differently than usual tonight. She wore a long black velvet dress with a slit that revealed her long legs. Her knee-high boots added to her strong Alpha presence, making her aura feel impossible to ignore.

Wang Chuning could not help but comment.

“Yan-jie, are you dressed like this to crash the party or what?”

Chen Niannian immediately became nervous.

“No way, Chi Yan. This is Youqing’s birthday party. You can’t do anything reckless. Since you came, just set aside whatever issues you two have.”

Chi Yan looked at her friends, clearly annoyed by their overthinking.

“Why are you all so tense? Do I seem like someone who would cause trouble?”

As she spoke, she lifted the gift box in her hand and gave it a light shake.

“I’m here sincerely to wish my dear deskmate, Miss Yan Youqing, a happy eighteenth birthday.”

Her tone was serious and genuine. The elegant wrapping on the gift box also showed that she had put effort into preparing it.

Zhong Yi narrowed her eyes in suspicion. The high-quality wrapping seemed to remind her of something.

“Chi Yan, why does everything you’re saying feel like you’re trying too hard to sound innocent? That gift box… is it…”

Just as she was about to guess correctly, Wang Chuning interrupted her.

“Wait, don’t tell me it’s a box of study materials.”

Chi Yan quickly denied it.

“Of course not.”

“Then what is it?”

Wang Chuning was extremely curious and tried to take the gift box from her hands.

But Chi Yan reacted quickly and dodged her easily.

“It’s not for you. Why do you need to see it?”

“I won’t open it. Let me just feel how heavy it is, Yan-jie.”

“No.”

Wang Chuning remained curious, but Chi Yan was firm. She was not letting go of the gift.

The two began to bicker and chase each other around Zhong Yi, turning the hallway into a scene of playful chaos.

In the end, it was Chen Niannian who had just finished a phone call and brought them back to reality.

“Youqing just called. The banquet is starting. We need to head inside.”

With that, their silly argument came to an end, without a winner.

Chi Yan, feeling a little guilty about the gift she was hiding, stayed alert and followed them into the hotel.

As soon as she stepped into the lobby, Chi Yan suddenly felt like a character in a story, overwhelmed by luxury.

She glanced at Zhong Yi and Wang Chuning, and was relieved to see that she was not the only one with her mouth hanging open.

Above them hung an enormous crystal chandelier. The floor was covered in patterned tiles that reflected the lights like a mosaic. Each step they took sparkled beneath them.

The birthday party was being held in the top-floor banquet hall. A server led the four girls to the elevator.

The elevator looked ordinary, its silver-white doors polished to a mirror shine. But something about it felt unusually refined.

The ride was fast. In just a few seconds, they reached the top floor.

Two uniformed attendants pushed open a set of heavy doors carved in nineteenth-century style. What appeared before Chi Yan’s eyes was an even more extravagant space than the hotel lobby.

The banquet hall was not huge, but it was impossible to take in the entire space at once.

Chi Yan was not sure if it was just her imagination, but she felt as if all the light here had a faint golden hue.

Soft, cheerful music filled the air. Following the sound, Chi Yan spotted a live ensemble in one corner. A piano and a violin played under the guidance of a conductor.

But it was not just the performers who were unfamiliar.

Even though this was supposed to be Yan Youqing’s birthday party, Chi Yan realized that many of the guests were people she had never seen before. They clearly did not belong to her everyday school life. These people were dressed in suits and designer gowns, chatting over glasses of wine about things Chi Yan could not understand.

Was this the world Yan Youqing came from?

Chi Yan stood frozen at the entrance, suddenly feeling an enormous distance between herself and the people inside.

The light in her eyes flickered. That subtle sense of disconnect made her instinctively want to retreat.

At that moment, a cool hand gently touched her arm.

A faint scent of sea salt drifted through the warm air of the hall, brushing softly through her loose hair. It grounded her, calmed her unease.

Yan Youqing stood beside her, calm and composed as always.

“You took your time getting here.”

Support After Rebirth, My Archrival Omega Looks at Me Differently