Did the Tsundere Miss Get Slapped in the Face Again Today? - Chapter 4

Chapter 4: “Ouch, Ouch, Ouch, it Hurts so Much!”

 

As soon as they arrived home, the door was barely open, and Jiang Zhi hadn’t even had time to put down her canvas bag when the third Miss Lin, who walked ahead, started giving orders.

 

“Go make me a cup of coffee,” Lin Anran sat down elegantly, leaning back, and looked down at the person at the door: “What are you standing there stunned for? Why are you so slow?”

 

“You could at least let me put down my bag first.”

 

“Your horribly ugly canvas bag should just be thrown away.”

 

Jiang Zhi sighed and resignedly went to the kitchen to make her coffee.

 

Jiang Zhi didn’t have a coffee habit; she usually drank tea. However, she remembered there was a jar of instant coffee in the cupboard, a gift from a previous purchase, which she hadn’t touched. She wondered if it had expired.

 

She found the coffee, checked the expiration date, and finding it fine, immediately brewed a cup.

 

“It’s ready. Drink up.” Jiang Zhi handed over the coffee.

 

“Mm.” Lin Anran was busy playing with her garishly pink, sequined cell phone, not even lifting her eyelids.

 

Jiang Zhi ignored her, placed the coffee aside, and prepared to leave.

 

Just as she turned around, she heard the person behind her say: “What kind of coffee is this?”

 

Jiang Zhi turned back, smiling: “Instant coffee.”

 

As expected, Lin Anran frowned: “What is this messy thing? I want freshly ground coffee.”

 

Jiang Zhi: “I don’t have any.”

 

Lin Anran pouted in dissatisfaction and pushed the cup of instant coffee far away, her disgust palpable, as if touching it would be poisonous.

 

She firmly stated she wouldn’t drink it. One minute later…

 

She tentatively sniffed it, then tentatively took a sip. Her eyes immediately lit up, stars practically twinkling in them.

 

Sip after sip, the cup was empty in no time.

 

Jiang Zhi looked at the empty cup being handed back, along with the request for another cup, and was momentarily speechless.

 

“I thought you only drank freshly ground coffee.”

 

“Mind your own business. You’re so verbose. Hurry up and make me another cup.”

 

Jiang Zhi helplessly took the cup and made her another one, and then… then she drank cup after cup.

 

By the fifth cup, Jiang Zhi was worried by her endless consumption, afraid she would make herself sick, and quickly called a halt.

 

Lin Anran pouted unhappily, but she seemed full. After secretly letting out a little burp, she didn’t insist on drinking any more.

 

She stopped drinking coffee, but that didn’t stop her from continuing to order Jiang Zhi around: “I’m going to take a shower. Go prepare my change of clothes, and then run the bathwater. Make the water temperature high. Oh, I forgot, you pauper’s house doesn’t have a bathtub. Never mind, don’t run the water, just prepare my change of clothes.”

 

She was as entitled and bossy as ever.

 

Jiang Zhi searched through the cabinet and found the cleanest, best quality pajamas for her. Naturally, and as expected, she was unsatisfied.

 

“This rough material will definitely chafe my skin. Never mind, you pauper can’t produce anything good anyway. I’ll make do with wearing it.”

 

“Oh, and change the towel for me. I don’t like that color. I want pink. The toothbrush, too. Change them both.”

 

After a barrage of chattering, rambling, and nitpicking, she finally agreed to go take a shower.

 

Looking at the closed bathroom door, Jiang Zhi rubbed her throbbing temples. She hoped this ancestor was only staying for a short period on a whim. Who could endure this long-term?

 

After showering, Lin Anran came out of the bathroom, wiping her wet hair.

 

“Why are these sleeves so long? They don’t fit at all. Also, I don’t like the smell of the shampoo. It smells cheap. Change it…”

 

Her voice abruptly stopped, and the action of wiping her hair also ceased.

 

Because in the small, unobstructed rental room, only she remained. Jiang Zhi had disappeared sometime without her noticing.

 

Click. The lights went out.

 

Jiang Zhi, who was downstairs buying things, looked up at the entire building that had gone dark.

 

Power outage?

 

Lin Anran shouldn’t be afraid of the dark, but having the power suddenly cut out while showering would probably make anyone panic.

 

Jiang Zhi was a little worried, quickened her steps, and walked into the apartment building entrance.

 

As soon as she reached the first floor, she heard a tap-tap-tap sound coming from the stairs above. Someone was coming down from above, and they were coming down very quickly.

 

The footsteps were strange, very heavy, not like the sound made by wearing shoes, but rather…

 

Before Jiang Zhi could ponder for too long, she ran into the person hurrying down from upstairs on the second floor.

 

After seeing who it was, Jiang Zhi was momentarily startled, and asked in surprise: “Why did you come down?”

 

In the pitch-black stairwell, the weak light of her phone, used as a flashlight, shone on the person above. Lin Anran was wearing ill-fitting, overly long pajamas, her hair was soaking wet, dripping water onto her clothes, dampening a large area.

 

Her breathing was heavy, suggesting she was exhausted from running all the way down. This appearance was far removed from her usual fashion and luxury, making her look somewhat disheveled.

 

Lin Anran did not fit in at all with this dilapidated stairwell plastered with small lock-picking advertisements. She did not belong here; this place was only suitable for people struggling at the bottom like Jiang Zhi.

 

Lin Anran appearing here was like… a princess in distress.

 

“Why aren’t you wearing shoes?” Jiang Zhi’s gaze dropped.

 

“Jiang Yi, where did you go? You left me alone there, and you cut the electricity! Were you doing it on purpose?”

 

She scolded angrily, yet she called Jiang Zhi by the wrong name again, always calling Jiang Zhi “Jiang Yi.” In the month they had known each other, Lin Anran had never gotten her name right.

 

“You must have done it on purpose! Leaving me alone! You’re a bad person!!”

 

Lin Anran loved to scold people and mock them. But if you were to call her venom-tongued, she wasn’t quite up to par.

 

Because her vocabulary was extremely limited. Whether it was “pauper” or “bad person” now, her insults were too refined, like child’s play.

 

Lin Anran pointed at the person below, her finger trembling, her voice shaking, and her eyes red. She looked like a fierce cat whose fur was bristling from panic and insecurity.

 

Jiang Zhi lifted the bag in her hand: “You said you didn’t like the towel and toothbrush, so I thought I’d go downstairs and buy you softer ones. And, I didn’t intentionally cut the power. It was…”

 

Before she could finish, Lin Anran turned and walked away.

 

Jiang Zhi quickly followed: “Slow down. Why don’t you wear my shoes? It would be bad if your foot got cut by some debris.”

 

Lin Anran walked on stubbornly, angrily: “Stop pretending to care.”

 

Hiss

 

Just as she finished speaking, she stumbled. Jiang Zhi quickly reached out to support her back.

 

“What’s wrong? Did you step on something?”

 

“It’s all your fault, you jinx! It hurts so much!”

 

Supporting the person back home, the power had now returned. It must have just been a brief circuit breaker trip. This was common in the old apartment complex she lived in, nothing unusual.

 

Jiang Zhi helped the person sit down on the sofa, then knelt down to check the bottom of her foot.

 

Lin Anran pulled her foot back. Her usually arrogant expression was surprisingly tinged with discomfort.

 

“Don’t move. Didn’t stepping on something hurt badly just now? Let me see if you’re injured.”

 

Lin Anran puffed out her cheeks, looking unhappy, but she didn’t pull her foot back again.

 

There was a small horizontal blood mark on the sole of her foot. She had probably stepped on a small, slightly sharp pebble and cut herself.

 

It was a very small wound, but Lin Anran’s skin, like herself, was delicate and sensitive. Such a tiny cut had caused a large area to redden.

 

Jiang Zhi fetched iodine swabs and a bandage, intending to sterilize and treat the wound.

 

Lin Anran looked at her simple bandaging supplies and was displeased: “I want to go to the hospital.”

 

Jiang Zhi chuckled: “For this wound, I’m afraid it might heal if we go to the hospital too late.”

 

Lin Anran pursed her lips and said nothing more.

 

“Are you afraid of the dark?” Jiang Zhi knelt down, took a cotton swab, and applied iodine for disinfection.

 

“I’m not afraid,” Lin Anran puffed out her cheeks.

 

Jiang Zhi smiled softly. If she wasn’t afraid of the dark, how could she have run out without even putting on shoes the moment the power went out? Not admitting it was simply a matter of saving face.

 

“Ouch, ouch, ouch, it hurts so much!”

 

“I haven’t even touched you with the swab yet.”

 

After some fuss, the bandage was finally applied to the delicate cat.

 

“All done.” Jiang Zhi helped her put her shoes back on.

 

“You’re so slow.” Lin Anran pulled her foot back.

 

Jiang Zhi shook her head helplessly, stood up, and intended to put the iodine back into the drawer by the door. As soon as she moved, her clothes were pulled.

 

She looked down and saw a slender hand—one clearly untouched by manual labor—holding her clothes.

 

Following the hand up, she met a pair of exquisite but fierce eyes: “Where are you going!”

 

Her tone was aggressive, but for some reason, it carried a hint of panic and fear.

 

What was she afraid of?

 

Before Jiang Zhi could figure it out, she heard Lin Anran continue fiercely: “Why did you leave me alone here just now, and cut the electricity? Were you doing it on purpose? You must have done it on purpose!”

 

“You definitely knew I don’t like being alone, so you deliberately left me by myself! You look like a good person, but you’re not a good person at all! Your heart is black!”

 

A long stream of words poured out. Jiang Zhi was stunned for a moment, then realized that she had run downstairs so anxiously she forgot her shoes. Was she not afraid of the dark, but afraid of being alone?

 

Jiang Zhi’s gaze settled on her face.

 

Afraid of being alone?

 

She was quite timid indeed.

 

Lin Anran’s proud eyes showed annoyance: “What are you staring at?”

 

Jiang Zhi: “I heard you say before that your live-in housekeeper took a long vacation. Did your family not arrange someone new for you?”

 

“What’s that got to do with you?” She was still angry, her words sharp and hostile.

 

Of course, even when she wasn’t angry, her tone was basically this way.

 

Jiang Zhi raised an eyebrow, vaguely realizing the situation.

 

She had always been unable to find a reason for Lin Anran suddenly moving in, finding it completely random. She could only conclude that the third Miss Lin acted on impulse and didn’t need a reason for anything she did.

 

But often, many things are not without reason.

 

Just now, Jiang Zhi had found the reason—the reason for her uninvited stay at her home.

 

Lin Anran was afraid of living alone.

 

Having been spoiled, she wouldn’t show weakness, nor would she ever ask for help. Her annoying personality also guaranteed she had no friends. Incredibly, yet inevitably, Jiang Zhi had become her only option?

 

She didn’t know if her guess was right, but she would assume it was.

 

Jiang Zhi held up the iodine: “I just want to put this back in the drawer. I’m not leaving.”

 

Lin Anran’s expression paused: “Who cares whether you leave or not.”

 

The hand gripping Jiang Zhi’s clothes slowly relaxed, and after letting go, she didn’t forget to lift her chin to indicate her indifference.

 

Jiang Zhi subtly raised her eyebrow. This little Lin kitten, sometimes, her strong self-esteem was quite adorable.

 

Jiang Zhi shook her head. Was she crazy? To actually think this ancestor had an adorable side.

 

She put the iodine away and turned back. Lin Anran was currently sitting cross-legged on the sofa, flexing her foot to examine the bandage, looking rather dissatisfied.

 

Jiang Zhi silently counted to three, and sure enough…

 

“This bandage is ugly. It doesn’t look good. I don’t like it. Change it. I want a pink bandage.”

 

How much did she love pink things?

 

“Fine, I’ll change it for you.”

 

Lin Anran was doubtful: “You pauper, when did you become so generous? You’re actually willing to change it.”

 

Jiang Zhi: “To change it, I have to peel off the old one, and you’ll have to feel pain again. A bandage doesn’t cost much money; I wouldn’t spare the expense for you.”

 

Lin Anran’s eyes widened: “I knew you had ill intentions! Your heart is black after all! You actually want to make me hurt again!”

 

She exploded into fury with just a little tease.

 

Jiang Zhi couldn’t help but laugh out loud.