After the Real Young Miss Became My Canary - Chapter 28

Chapter 28: Sadly

A “bang” sounded.

It was like lightning had struck her head. Song Zhi could no longer pretend.

She couldn’t pretend she didn’t care about Shen Ying’s attitude because she did, and she had taken it to heart.

Song Zhi looked at her as if she had been severely hurt.

Shen Ying’s heart also felt clogged.

She was the one who was hurt, so why did Song Zhi always look hurt? And what was even more outrageous was that her heart, seeing Song Zhi like this, would also feel a silent sadness.

Her heart’s rhythm slowly became sluggish, as if something was blocking it.

Human nature is truly cheap.

She thought.

Song Zhi’s voice became subdued. She just said, “Oh.”

Shen Ying’s heart felt even more clogged. She hurriedly put the medicine down and left the room in a fluster.

She had even forgotten what she had planned to say at the door—she should have told Song Zhi to leave as soon as she saw her.

But as soon as she entered the room, things were completely out of her control. She would unconsciously look at Song Zhi and wonder if she was unhappy or if what she said would make her sad.

Even though she had treated her that way.

She lied to you, Shen Ying!

Wake up!

She told herself again.

Song Zhi always had a certain magic that made people unconsciously give up their principles and break down the barriers that protected them.

But without those barriers, how was she supposed to live?

Song Zhi had her answer. To be honest, she wasn’t surprised.

She had already expected it, but it was still hard to bear. However, she didn’t regret saying what she did. Hiding it in her heart wasn’t her style. She wasn’t afraid of being rejected; she was afraid she wouldn’t even be able to speak.

This was good, too. Even though she was rejected, it seemed to have become her obsession. She just wanted to have Shen Ying; she just wanted Shen Ying to like her. No one had ever been this good to her, and she wanted more.

Song Zhi picked up the medicine and glanced out the door from the corner of her eye.

From this angle, she could only see Shen Ying’s slender body, but not her expression. But that was enough. When she saw that Shen Ying intended to come in, Song Zhi quickly drank the medicine in one gulp.

When Shen Ying came in, Song Zhi had just put the bowl down. She subconsciously glanced into the bowl and then came to her senses.

She realized that taking care of Song Zhi had become a habit. She had to change this habit; it wasn’t good.

When she came in, Song Zhi had finished the medicine and was lowering her head to put the bowl on the bedside table. At this moment, she seemed to realize someone had come in and looked up in a panic. “I’m sorry, I’ll leave now.”

After saying that, she got out of bed with a pale face and walked out. Perhaps the movement was too big, and it affected the wound on her back. She subconsciously hissed.

She seemed to be afraid that her voice would annoy her, so she looked up at her with her almond eyes full of tears and immediately bit her lip.

Song Zhi’s normally rosy lips instantly turned pale from the bite. Shen Ying pursed her lips.

Song Zhi was biting her lips hard. Her face was covered in sweat when she woke up, and she always turned pale when she sweated. She guessed her face probably didn’t look good now. To prevent her lips from giving her away, she deliberately bit a bit of her lip flesh, so the blood would drain from her lips.

She was afraid Shen Ying wouldn’t believe her otherwise. After all, she had a record of being dishonest in Shen Ying’s mind. And for her, this pain was nothing. She had been used to it for so many years. She could even get punished in the morning and go horseback riding in the afternoon as if nothing had happened. She was afraid that her face looking too good would make Shen Ying suspicious.

Song Zhi leaned against the wall and moved out with great difficulty. She was counting in her head. After two rounds of counting to three, she had almost reached the front door, but Shen Ying still hadn’t moved.

She knew this wasn’t good.

If she faked fainting now, Shen Ying would definitely be suspicious, and this trick wouldn’t work as well next time. It would be a loss, not a gain.

She fumbled to the door, awkwardly reached for the doorknob with her shoulder, and pretended her hand was weak, letting it slip from the doorknob a few times. She then gently frowned her beautiful eyebrows, moved her foot like she was half-paralyzed, and reached for the doorknob again, finally managing to keep her hand from slipping off.

The silent gaze behind her never changed. The two of them were always a certain distance apart. Shen Ying didn’t step forward. She would no longer be soft-hearted toward her. No matter how much Song Zhi procrastinated, it was useless. Song Zhi was a little depressed. Just as she was about to wait for the next time she could come back, she heard footsteps behind her.

The footsteps were light and steady, with a pair of slippers. They seemed slow but were quick to get close.

It was Shen Ying’s footsteps.

Because the soundproofing in the tenement building was so poor, if you walked a little heavily, people on other floors could hear you. To avoid disturbing her neighbors, Shen Ying had mastered this way of walking.

But Song Zhi just walked however she wanted. She didn’t have that strong a sense of civic duty. Ever since she saw the attitude of the person across the hall, she had a good grasp of the attitude of the people in this building. It was just that Shen Ying had a good temper. If it were her, and someone talked about her behind her back like that, she would make everyone’s life miserable.

Shen Ying stopped behind her. “Wait.”

Song Zhi wondered what kind of expression to make when she turned around.

Shen Ying was really soft-hearted, like a chocolate-covered nut. The outside was hard and tasteless, but as soon as you bit into it, the hot, soft, and sweet core would immediately flow out.

She remembered the saying that people around her in Hong Kong loved to say, “Thank the heavenly bodhisattvas.” But she didn’t believe in gods or buddhas, so she thought it was better to thank herself than the heavenly bodhisattvas.

Song Zhi lowered her eyelashes, bit her lip until it was white, and frowned in pain as she turned her head.

Perhaps because of the pain, Song Zhi’s voice came out muffled from her nasal cavity. “I’m leaving now. I won’t bother you, really.”

Shen Ying’s expression was flat. “It’s not about that.”

Song Zhi’s eyes widened slightly, revealing a hint of expectation that even she hadn’t noticed. Shen Ying didn’t look her in the eye and thought for a moment. Her gaze fell on the doorknob behind Song Zhi.

Song Zhi’s eyes had a magic to them, so it was better not to look at them, lest she make another decision she would regret.

Song Zhi had already prepared herself for Shen Ying to ask her to stay. She adjusted her expression so she wouldn’t give herself away by being too happy later.

Shen Ying handed something to Song Zhi and said flatly, “Take this with you.”

Song Zhi was just about to say no, with tears in her eyes, a stubborn refusal to Shen Ying’s request for her to stay.

Then a stomach full of words was blocked by Shen Ying.

A small, square object was suddenly put in her hand. It was hard to the touch and warm.

Song Zhi silently stared at the thing in her hand. The person on it, with a pair of beautiful, lively eyes, stared back at her blankly.

It was her phone.

Song Zhi said, “Didn’t you sell it?”

Shen Ying put her hands back in her pockets and said nonchalantly, “I was afraid of owing you, so I bought it back.”

Song Zhi said a small “oh” and then said very firmly, “I don’t want it.” She was afraid that if Shen Ying insisted on giving it to her, the last bit of connection between them would be severed. She said, “If you give it to me, I’ll come to you every day to pay you back and annoy you.”

After saying that, she felt she was very clever. What should she say next?

At this moment, her smooth, worldly demeanor disappeared.

All her previous preparations were useless, which left her feeling somewhat at a loss. Originally, she had many things to do, like what to say if Shen Ying was soft-hearted and asked her to stay, and what kind of expression she should make.

But she had planned for a long time, and at this moment, none of it was useful, which left a big empty space in her heart and mind.

She grabbed the phone in her hand, thinking that she should be decisive at this moment, as it was more like her to be able to pick something up and let it go. There was nothing to be ashamed of. She would just find another opportunity next time.

But she could only pick it up and not let it go. She didn’t want to wait until the next time she saw her. She didn’t know when the next time would be. She didn’t want to talk about the future; she wanted it now.

But no matter how reluctant she was, she didn’t dare to show it. She only dared to act pitifully. “I’m leaving now. Don’t be unhappy.”

Then the two of them just stared at each other foolishly.

Shen Ying didn’t speak, and she didn’t either. Finally, she saw Shen Ying frown in confusion. She took it as Shen Ying trying to get rid of her and left the building in a daze.

The light in the hallway was as dim as ever. Before, it was fine, at least for a while, there was light. Now, she didn’t know if the light was broken or what, but the hallway was so dark you couldn’t see the stairs, even though it was already mid-afternoon.

Her phone was dead, and she hadn’t walked for a long time. Song Zhi stared with her eyes wide open, carefully finding the blurry objects in the darkness and slowly stepping down the stairs. This situation only got better at the corner. There was a window at the corner, and the only remaining light in the short distance between the floors came through.

Although it wasn’t bright, it made Song Zhi feel less helpless.

A group of people was just going upstairs, so Song Zhi simply stopped there and waited for them to pass.

Five middle-aged women, around fifty or sixty, were laughing and talking to each other. They walked up with their heads held high, not even looking down. Song Zhi stood close to the wall and slightly lowered her eyes to her toes, leaning against the wall, waiting for the crowd to pass.

One of them had a particularly loud voice and was talking to her companions in an exaggerated tone about what she had seen two days ago. The voice was too familiar, and Song Zhi looked up.

The loud voice of the woman from across the hall, which the entire building could hear, instantly stopped, as if her trachea had been suddenly pulled out.

The person next to her, who had been listening, suddenly heard the silence and poked the person with her elbow. Seeing her horrified expression, she also looked in the same direction.

She saw a bright, young person, probably seventeen or eighteen, standing in the stairwell. She was wearing clothes that looked expensive. She was very pretty, at least as good as the big stars she saw on TV.

But as good-looking as she was, she didn’t seem very approachable. She had a cold face and looked very expensive, like an exquisite piece of jewelry in a display case that they couldn’t afford.

And this young person was well-behaved. When she saw people looking at her, her eyes curved, and she gave them a smile.

This instantly brought her beautiful face to life. She went from being an expensive piece of jewelry to a person.

She poked the person next to her again. “Do you know this bright young person?”

Song Zhi looked at Shen Ying’s neighbor in the crowd and asked, “Auntie, I have a question for you.”

The neighbor ignored her. The person next to her couldn’t bear it and called out to her a few times. Seeing that she didn’t respond, she said directly, “You ask, you ask. We’re the same.”

“This light,” Song Zhi pointed to the stairwell, “is it broken? It was fine a few days ago.”

“This light? It should be turned off. We all know the way, and it uses too much electricity to keep it on. Turning it off saves money. If you want to turn it on, you have to talk to Xiao Shen. She’s the only one on this floor who paid for it. It’s strange, it wasn’t installed before, but it was installed a few days ago.”

The neighbor, who had been called out for taking advantage, looked a little embarrassed. Seeing Song Zhi looking at her, she mumbled a couple of responses.

Song Zhi smiled and thanked her, then went downstairs after they passed.

Her emotions were a bit complicated.

Based on the time, the light was installed on the eighth day she lived there.

No wonder the stairwell suddenly lit up. And at that time, Shen Ying seemed to really dislike her.

This feeling was good; this feeling was very bad.

She was thinking about things again. When she was almost at the bottom of the stairs, she wasn’t paying attention and missed the last step.

Her foot twisted hard on the ground, and a sharp pain shot through her ankle. Although she was very good at enduring pain, tears still came to her eyes without her control.

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