After the Real Young Miss Became My Canary - Chapter 34

Chapter 34

It was a few minutes after Song Zhi quieted down that Shen Ying opened her eyes in the complete darkness.

She turned over gently. That thin, straight back, which was no different from an unyielding bamboo shoot, seemed boneless at this moment, making no sound at all. Even the bed didn’t react quickly enough to let out a slight creak.

Song Zhi was sleeping on her side, facing away. When Shen Ying turned over, they became a scene of two people sleeping face-to-face.

She silently watched Song Zhi lying beside her. Song Zhi’s breathing was shallow, and her sleeping face was peaceful, looking soft and lovely. In this state, she looked even more like a cat usually prickly and aggressive, taking advantage of her owner’s slight affection to misbehave. Only when exhausted would she be quiet for just a moment, allowing people to breathe a sigh of relief for the mischievous creature.

But Shen Ying knew clearly that Song Zhi was not a cat. No matter how much affection she had, it couldn’t be as pure as loving a small animal. She couldn’t feel sympathy when Song Zhi was hurt, like her, take her home to heal, and then release her back to nature once she was better. Song Zhi was a person. She had her own ideas, and she wouldn’t be controlled by Shen Ying.

She had interacted little with people and a lot with cats. For cats, being kind to them was enough; she didn’t need to be upset about the claws that scratched her hand because they weren’t familiar. But people were different. She truly didn’t know what kind of attitude or face to present to Song Zhi, the person.

A Simple Inquiry

When Song Zhi woke up the next afternoon, she found that Shen Ying hadn’t woken up, which was very unusual. When she had stayed here before, Shen Ying’s routine was always rock-solid she went to bed and woke up at fixed times, never off by a minute. It was truly rare for her to sleep until noon with Song Zhi today.

This meant Shen Ying was truly tired. Song Zhi couldn’t bear to disturb her, so she lay quietly and looked at her profile.

Shen Ying’s facial lines were smooth, and her features were exquisite. Separately, they were just beautiful, but together, combined with her indifferent temperament, they formed an irresistible charm.

The rain pattered outside, and the sky was overcast. The room was thus shrouded in a dim, peaceful atmosphere. In this ambiance, Song Zhi lazily yawned. Shen Ying suddenly opened her eyes at that moment.

Song Zhi thought she had woken her up. Her still-sleeping brain gave the first command, and her unrevived body completed the command afterward, urgently closing her slightly open mouth. Because her head was still fuzzy, her perception of the outside world was hazy. The moment she quickly closed her mouth, her upper and lower teeth clattered.

Song Zhi sat up with a slight ache. She had bit her cheek. She was now completely awake. She covered her mouth, which had just performed a rapid clatter, and revealed a pair of round eyes: “Did I wake you up? I’m sorry.”

Shen Ying also sat up. Her gaze went past Song Zhi to the window across the bed. The window was tightly closed, and the fine, dense rain could only hit the glass: “No, I’m just hungry.”

She was quiet for a moment. Stillness flowed slowly between them. After her mind cleared a little, she asked, “Should we get up?”

Song Zhi struggled to get out of bed. When living in her villa back home, she would usually pull the heavy curtains shut, turn on the bedside lamp, lie down, and sleep without knowing day from night. The servants would only quietly tiptoe past her room, leave food at mealtime, and then consciously take the food away an hour later.

Everyone knew her temper was bad and were afraid of waking her.

Although Song Zhi slept very comfortably, she never woke up without being hungry. But there were fixed mealtimes at home, so even if she woke up hungry, there was no food. She wouldn’t want to eat the hotel’s food or takeout until her routine adjusted a little.

When she was in a good mood, she would simply have a five-star hotel chef cook on-site in her kitchen. When she was in a bad mood, she would have food delivered, take two bites, and then pour it all away because she found it disgusting.

She was in a bad mood every day back then, so she wouldn’t eat properly. She was always groggy in bed, having nightmares all day long.

She had never felt the gentle breeze on her body when waking up in the morning.

Nor had she  “What do you want to eat?”

nor had she heard such a simple inquiry.

Song Zhi smiled. She bit the flesh on the side of her mouth. The two dimples on her cheeks looked very prominent because of this. This made her look much cuter: “I’ll eat anything, as long as you make it.”

Shen Ying nodded faintly: “Okay.”

The Kitchen Prank

Song Zhi hopped out of bed and busied herself around Shen Ying although she wasn’t actually doing any work, just hovering around Shen Ying and getting in her way.

The third time Shen Ying nearly bumped into Song Zhi, she quickly tilted her head back. Holding a scallion in one hand and a spatula in the other, she said helplessly, “It’ll be ready soon. Just sit at the table and wait.”

Song Zhi said “oh” and walked back to the dining table to wait, disappointed.

Since the last time she mistook garlic for scallions, Shen Ying mostly kept her out of the kitchen.

But now that her relationship with Shen Ying had finally shown a new glimmer, she couldn’t bear not to stick by her side. However, Shen Ying had spoken, and she didn’t dare to disobey.

She sat obediently at the dining table, resting her head on her hands, her clear eyes brightly fixed on the kitchen doorway, giving a look of expectation every moment Shen Ying might emerge.

Being waited on felt good after all. Shen Ying didn’t stop getting that focused gaze until she placed the last dish on the table. She raised an eyebrow, a mischievous thought bubbling up.

A fair finger suddenly appeared in front of Song Zhi’s eyes. The hand swayed back and forth in front of her. Since Song Zhi was completely focused, she instinctively tracked the finger the moment it appeared, until a soft chuckle rang out.

Song Zhi realized she had been tricked. She grumbled: “Are you laughing at me?”

Shen Ying met her gaze innocently: “No, I’m not.”

After two seconds of this staring contest, Song Zhi, as if she had caught her red-handed, said with great certainty: “You don’t usually talk like this. Don’t say you didn’t.”

Shen Ying was still smiling. She didn’t smile like Song Zhi, whose eyes would curve into a beautiful arc and lips would lift. She just looked at Song Zhi calmly, her face showing the same expression as usual, but the faint smile in her eyes and the slight upturn of her eye corners made it clear that she was different from normal.

This was happiness brought on by Song Zhi. Song Zhi smiled even more brightly.

A Long-Awaited Visit

After the meal, Shen Ying sighed, looking out the window. Her nerves, which had been taut since morning, relaxed considerably after the little exchange with Song Zhi, but she was still nervous.

Song Zhi suddenly asked, “Do you want me to come? I respect your decision.”

The way she had acted like a pest yesterday wasn’t because she genuinely wanted to follow Shen Ying, but because she was afraid Shen Ying was treating her like a pet taking her home was enough. She wanted to tell Shen Ying that she had her own thoughts, and that she would also make a fuss and have needs.

But she had already expressed her need yesterday, and Shen Ying knew it. Shen Ying had also agreed out of helplessness. If she went along without discretion, Shen Ying would definitely see her as a whiny, spoiled person who was more trouble than she was worth. So, now was the time to appropriately demonstrate her good qualities.

She considered the term “understanding” to be 9 out of 10 points applicable to herself.

Shen Ying was very straightforward: “Come along.”

It no longer mattered why Song Zhi had approached her. Anyway, this was the last time, her last moment of softness toward Song Zhi.

Besides, she wanted to be honest. She didn’t want to hide anymore. She really wanted to know: if Song Zhi knew about the past, would she also draw a sharp line, like those other people, and avoid her completely?

Shen Ying had prepared the items to take to the prison a few days ago, so there was no need for last-minute preparation today. They bought quite a bit of things. By the time they organized everything and were ready to leave, it was already three o’clock. After Song Zhi helped her check the list, she suddenly felt nervous right before heading out.

Song Zhi: “Should I bring a gift for Auntie?”

Shen Ying closed the door: “No need.”

Song Zhi helped pick up the items placed by the door and followed behind Shen Ying: “Are you sure no need?”

Shen Ying looked back at her meaningfully: “You might not even get to see her.”

Song Zhi: “?”

This confusion stayed with Song Zhi all the way to the prison. It was only then that she understood what was going on.

The guard said, “Chen Min is in solitary confinement today and cannot receive calls.”

Shen Ying nodded slightly, as if she had expected this answer: “What did she do wrong this time?”

The guard: “She got into a fight with someone three days ago, insisting that the other person stole her son’s belongings. We checked the other inmate and our system. According to our records, she only has a daughter.”

Shen Ying: “You don’t need to pay attention to her. She’s often like this.”

The female guard looked at the calm Shen Ying and then at the pile of things she had brought, guessing she must have been looking forward to this visit: “Where do you live?”

Shen Ying lowered her long eyelashes: “On Nongdong Road.”

Nongdong Road was a village within the city, neither close to the quiet suburbs where the wealthy lived nor to the city center favored by the spoiled second-generation who liked to drive loud cars. It was a considerable distance from the prison located between the two.

Moreover, living there meant the living conditions couldn’t be very good. The female guard didn’t want her to have come all this way only to miss seeing her mother: “I just checked. Her solitary confinement ends at 6 PM this evening. You have a little over an hour. You can wait.”

Shen Ying nodded neatly: “Okay, thank you.”

The prison’s visitation area had two rows of iron chairs. Shen Ying sat on a chair and placed the items on the floor. She watched the two people sitting opposite each other in the visible visitation room and said nothing.

This gave her a distinct quality: her expression was cold, yet her snow-white neck looked soft and quite fragile.

Coupled with the reason for her visit today, Song Zhi felt that this person must be sad.

She sat down on the iron chair nearest to Shen Ying: “Don’t be sad. That big sister just said Auntie will be able to see you soon.”

Shen Ying said faintly: “I’m not sad. I’m just thinking, she actually wasn’t lying.”

Song Zhi: “Huh?”

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