I Am Not a Vicious Stepsister! - Chapter 17

The lecture Zhou Yejia mentioned was in the suburbs, located at the opposite end of the city from Nanzhou University, nearly traversing the entire expanse of Nanzhou from north to south.

They traveled together on a school bus. Since it was a long journey, Ni Songan brought along a blanket and a U-shaped neck pillow.

After greeting her professors and classmates, she sat down and immediately tried to conjure up some sleep as soon as the bus started moving. The sun beat down on the glass, making it hot to the touch.

Suddenly, Songan’s ears were filled with a cacophony of screams and cries. Her entire body flipped and tumbled with the motion of the bus, feeling as if she would be flung out the window at any second. In the chaos, she gripped her seatbelt and armrest with all her might.

Her internal organs felt like they were being tossed around until she wanted to vomit, and a searing pain flared where her palms gripped the seatbelt.

The windows shattered under the pressure of the collision. Even though Songan closed her eyes to avoid the flying shards, she couldn’t stop them from slicing small cuts across her face.

It all happened in a matter of seconds. The bus finally skidded off the road and crashed into a roadside ditch.

Songan’s head slammed violently against the side of the vehicle. Blood trickled down from her forehead, blurring her vision until her eyes finally slid shut, losing all strength.

“Look, what’s this?”

A woman dressed simply, with a kind smile, mysteriously pulled something wrapped in a cloth bag from behind her back. She handed it to the little girl sitting obediently in front of her, gesturing for her to open it.

The girl, not knowing what to expect, pulled back the cloth. Her eyes lit up instantly. She hugged the item to her chest and said in a voice full of surprise, “It’s that insect encyclopedia set I wanted so badly!”

“Is it really for me?”

The woman patted her head. “Yes, it is. We received a lot of donations recently. After the other ladies and I finished sorting through them, I saw this set. Didn’t our An-an say she saw other students reading it at school and wanted it too?”

The girl addressed as “An-an” hugged the books even tighter, saying seriously, “Thank you, Auntie Director. I’ll take very good care of them!”

She actually knew that Auntie Director was teasing her. She had seen the shopping receipt in the trash can that morning. She hadn’t known what the surprise was then, but now it was clear—Auntie Director had bought them specifically for her.

An-an threw herself into the woman’s arms, smiling brightly. The sharp corners of the books poked her, but she didn’t mind. She just carefully adjusted her position so the books wouldn’t poke the older woman.

Auntie Director looked down at her, appearing as if she wanted to say something more. However, in an instant, her tall figure began to dissipate. The surroundings followed suit, turning into a fleeting mist.

“Auntie…?”

“Auntie!”

Ni Songan snapped her eyes open. The first thing she saw was the harsh, white glare of a light. Physiological tears leaked from the corners of her eyes, and it took a moment for her to adjust.

The dream left her with a profound sense of loss. She stared up at the ceiling, her eyes unblinking.

Once she regained her bearings, Songan began to observe her surroundings.

She was lying in a bed with an IV needle in her hand and a drip bag hanging beside her. Based on the decor and furnishings, this appeared to be a private ward in a hospital. She wasn’t alone, either. A dignified, elegant woman sat by the bed with her eyes closed in a light doze, while a girl stood by the window, looking down at her phone.

“An-an, you’re awake.”

Her movements were subtle, but they were enough to alert the others. Both people in the room looked over, asking how she felt.

Songan stared at them for a while, her brain still feeling like mush. After a moment of recognition, she managed to match them with the identities in her memory. “Mom… and Modesty. You’re both here.”

Modesty walked over quickly, pulled out a chair, and sat down. She took Songan’s hand, her gaze never wavering, and asked with concern, “How are you feeling?”

“My head hurts a bit…” Songan vaguely remembered being in a car accident on the way to the lecture. “What about the others? How are they?”

Ni Tianjiao lightly patted her back. “Don’t worry, everyone on the bus only sustained minor injuries.”

Songan felt a sense of relief. “As long as everyone is okay. By the way, what caused the accident? I only remember waking up after the bus had already overturned.”

“…” Both Modesty and Ni Tianjiao fell silent.

Songan sensed something was wrong. “Is it something you can’t talk about? Have they not found the cause yet?”

Modesty nodded. “Something like that. It seems the bus you were on just had an accident on its own, but when the authorities inspected it, they found all the systems were normal. They are still investigating exactly where the problem lies.”

“The driver hasn’t woken up yet. She was the most seriously injured. They have to see if it was a case of drowsy driving.”

“It shouldn’t be…” Songan remembered that the staff benefits at Nanzhou University were excellent. Usually, something that violated labor regulations like that wouldn’t happen.

Everyone thought the situation was bizarre, but there was no way to resolve it yet. For now, it could only be classified as an accident.

Songan lowered her eyes in thought, finding no clues herself. Her face was still pale, and her voice sounded weak after speaking just a few sentences. Modesty insisted she rest and stop overthinking. “The doctor said your head injury was the most severe. Although it isn’t life-threatening, you need to recover properly. Try to use your brain a bit less for a while.”

“Yes, when I heard you were in an accident, my heart nearly stopped. Please, for your mother’s sake, take better care of yourself.” Ni Tianjiao’s eyes were full of heartache as her gaze swept over every inch of Songan’s face.

Songan felt a bit uncomfortable under that intense gaze, but she still agreed to their requests.

When it was time to eat, Ni Tianjiao left with Althea, who had arrived later, while Modesty stayed behind in the ward.

“Is there anything you want to eat? It has to be something light, though. The doctor said you need to watch your diet for now.”

Modesty announced this rather ruthlessly.

Looking at the plain porridge and side dishes, Songan understood that the circumstances were special and accepted it calmly.

More than what she was eating, something else was bothering her. It was strange—Songan felt a constant sense of irritability. This feeling was especially strong when she looked at Modesty, yet it didn’t happen when she looked at Ni Tianjiao or Althea.

Could the car accident have knocked something loose in her brain?

Songan suppressed the strange feeling in her heart and gave a forced smile to Modesty, who wanted to feed her with a spoon. “Thanks, but I can do it myself.”

Modesty paused slightly, noticing Songan’s sudden coldness, but she didn’t push. “Oh, okay…”

Soon, Songan realized this wasn’t an illusion. Her heart seemed to be outside of her control. Even though her brain told her it was Modesty, her heart would constantly produce emotions that didn’t align with her actual thoughts.

After the accident, the team members were left with some psychological trauma and took leaves of absence to recover at home. Zhou Yejia only required them to report their progress online. Songan did the same, applying for home study, she could earn her participation points just by turning in her assignments.

Likely because she saw that Songan had returned to Quxi Orange County, Modesty also began coming back frequently. The frequency of their meetings increased sharply.

After finishing the tasks assigned by Zhou Yejia, a package Songan had ordered online was delivered to her bedroom by a servant.

She opened it with a small knife. Inside was the set of insect encyclopedias that had appeared in her dream.

Perhaps the novel’s author had been lazy and directly lifted the real world’s setting as the background, because she could find the exact same books here.

Songan stroked the cover. The paper felt dry and coarse, identical to the set Auntie Director had given her in her memories.

Perhaps because she hadn’t thought about her childhood in a long time, she felt a sudden, inexplicable urge to recapture that experience. With the idea in mind, Songan took action immediately. She picked up the book and glanced at the weather outside. The clouds were as thick as marshmallows, and the sky was a brilliant blue.

With a light step, she hesitated momentarily between leaving the house or going to the courtyard, before ultimately heading toward the courtyard.

After all, driving somewhere else just to explore a childhood memory felt a bit too dramatic for her.

The pond from her childhood could be replaced by the outdoor swimming pool in the yard, the cheap, artificially flavored candies were replaced by exquisite pastries, but the season was the same, nearing the start of summer.

Songan changed into cool, comfortable clothes and tentatively dipped her feet into the pool. It had been cleaned recently, so the water was very clear.

She sat by the edge, eventually lying back so the back of her head rested on the cool tiles of the ground. She held the book up to block the sun, reading as she relaxed.

Her legs from the knees down were submerged in the water, creating ripples on the surface.

Unknown insects chirped in the garden, and a soft breeze brushed past Songan’s fingertips as she gripped the pages. The warmth made her feel drowsy, everything was quiet and beautiful.

The sound of approaching footsteps jolted her from her half-sleep, causing the book to fall with a “thwack” right onto her face.

The footsteps quickened and stopped beside her. A hand picked up the book that had hit her before she could reach for it. “Sister? Did you fall asleep?”

“No, just a little tired.”

It was Modesty. With the book removed from her face, sunlight flooded Songan’s vision, making it hard to see Modesty’s face against the light. However, listening to the other girl’s voice, there was clearly a hint of amusement, as if she were laughing at her for being too sleepy to hold a book.

“Don’t laugh” Songan felt a groundless flash of annoyance. She sat up straight, though her nerves were still reacting slowly.

“Alright, I won’t laugh.” Modesty was indeed obedient. She glanced at the plate on the side table, which still held a few pieces of pastry. “Why did you come out here to read? The bandages on your head haven’t been removed yet. What if the wind makes you feel worse?”

Songan didn’t answer. She closed her eyes to rest, her lower legs kicking at the water.

Modesty looked at Songan’s short sleeves and shorts, then at her own school uniform. She sighed and took off her jacket, intending to drape it over Songan.

But before she could even reach out, Songan, for some reason, angrily swatted her hand away. The force was quite strong. Modesty instinctively blocked the blow, but then she saw Songan losing her balance and falling toward the pool behind her!

At the critical moment, Modesty grabbed Songan, but she was pulled down by the momentum. Both of them tumbled into the water together.

System 313, who had returned to the Small World Management Center to report progress to a superior, suddenly received a notification.

[Ding! Congratulations, Task Three is complete!]

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