I Am Not a Vicious Stepsister! - Chapter 25

Ni Songan was drunk. Her vision had blurred, making the world look like it was viewed through a pane of frosted glass.

She stared blankly at Zhu Tingran’s face, her ears buzzing. She couldn’t understand a single word the person in front of her was babbling, she could only desperately try to read their lips.

“Drunk,” “home,” “find someone”… those were the only words she managed to identify.

Her alcohol-dulled brain churned for a long while before finally stringing them together—oh, she was drunk, and someone needed to take her home.

Zhu Tingran wanted to help Ni Songan make a call or send a message, but Ni Songan guarded her phone warily, unwilling to let an outsider touch her private data. She mumbled softly, “I’ll… I’ll do it myself…”

The drivers at Quxi Orange County worked on a shift rotation and were on standby twenty-four hours a day. She only needed to notify Rosalind and let the housekeeper make the arrangements.

The characters on the screen split into two, swaying incessantly. Growing impatient, Ni Songan clicked into the most recent chat box on her private account by instinct. Ignoring the little red notification dot, she guessed it must be Rosalind.

She typed out a sentence, sent it, and tossed the phone aside without looking again. Instead, she knit her brows in discomfort, her stomach churning.

Ni Songan: Sleepy, can’t walk, come pick up, 72 Wutong Street is the address.

The person on the receiving end wasn’t Rosalind, but Modesty.

Modesty had messaged Ni Songan earlier that evening to share some fun stories from school, but she hadn’t received a reply. When the response finally came, the words were fragmented and incoherent. Modesty couldn’t help but frown, sensing that Ni Songan was not in her right mind.

Under normal circumstances, there was no way Ni Songan would talk to her like that.

Modesty copied the address string—hoping it was correct—and searched it on the map. It turned out to be a famous private club, a place where many business owners chose to discuss deals and entertain guests.

She had peeked at Ni Songan’s schedule a few days ago and remembered she was attending a dinner tonight. It seemed this was the place.

Ni Songan’s situation became clear—she was drunk.

The message likely wasn’t intended for Modesty, but for Rosalind.

Modesty should have contacted Rosalind, but she didn’t. She hurriedly changed her clothes to head out. Calling only the driver on duty, she rushed to the club and found Ni Songan and Zhu Tingran. The former was dead drunk and only staying upright thanks to a waiter, while the latter was still somewhat conscious.

“Sister, why did you drink so much…” Modesty quickened her pace and crouched by the sofa, her expression slightly displeased. Alcohol was hard on the body, and just by the scent clinging to Ni Songan, she could guess how much she had consumed.

“I’m not drunk…” Ni Songan murmured.

Being the closest, Modesty heard the drunkard’s whisper and sighed helplessly. “Such a classic line.”

In this state, she probably wouldn’t even sleep peacefully tonight.

“Let’s go, let’s go home.” She and the driver helped the limp Ni Songan up from the sofa.

Passing Zhu Tingran, who was standing nearby, Modesty kindly asked, “You were drinking with my sister, do you need a ride home too?”

“I’ve already called a ride-share.” Zhu Tingran was in better shape. Not only had she watched over Ni Songan to keep her from crawling around on the floor, but she was also steady enough to call a car for herself once Modesty arrived. She politely declined the offer. She didn’t want to spend any more time with her boss, fearing that even in her drunken state, she’d feel the phantom itch of working overtime. Thus, Modesty didn’t insist on the driver taking her.

Modesty and the driver struggled to haul Ni Songan into the back seat. A person who is dead drunk is much harder to move than someone conscious, leaving Modesty slightly out of breath from the effort.

She adjusted Ni Songan’s legs so they wouldn’t block the aisle between the seats, then sat on the other side to keep an eye on her.

Watching the quietly sleeping Ni Songan, Modesty grumbled softly in her ear, “Sister, when you wake up tomorrow, you better thank me and the driver. It was hard work lugging you up here.”

The driver in the front seat smiled as she glanced at the stepsisters through the rearview mirror. She asked quietly, “Should I turn on the air conditioning?”

The car felt a bit stuffy, but Modesty touched Ni Songan’s skin and found it somewhat cold. “Never mind, I’m afraid she’ll catch a cold if the air blows on her.”

The driver closed the windows, leaving only a tiny crack for ventilation, and raised the privacy partition.

South City was brightly lit at night. Even at midnight, plenty of people and cars were still active outside.

Modesty’s gaze swept over the scenery outside with little interest before shifting back to Ni Songan.

The alcohol had rushed to the older girl’s face, turning her cheeks a deep red. Perhaps her stomach was bothering her, because even in sleep, her brow remained furrowed and her jaw was clenched tight.

Even Modesty could see that the heavy workload had left Ni Songan deeply anxious.

A draft from the window crack blew a lock of hair across Ni Songan’s eyes. Because the ends were poking her eyelid and lashes, Ni Songan shifted uncomfortably, shaking her head slightly, but she couldn’t move the stray hair.

Modesty couldn’t help but laugh. She slowly reached out, intending to fix it for her. Unexpectedly, as if sensing an outsider’s approach, Ni Songan suddenly slapped Modesty’s hand away with a sharp smack.

Ni Songan’s reactions were surprisingly quick. She followed up by brushing the hair away herself, leaving Modesty stunned, staring at her own hand.

Looking at the red mark appearing on the back of her hand, Modesty didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

To settle the score with Ni Songan later, Modesty took out her phone and snapped a photo of the evidence, just in case Ni Songan tried to deny it once she sobered up.

Ni Songan woke up early the next morning with a splitting hangover headache. Her face crumpled in pain, and she could only press her hands against her head until the discomfort passed.

Once the pain subsided, she opened her eyes and stared blankly, recalling the previous night. She had gone to dinner with several other company owners. Caught up in the moment and wanting to strike while the iron was hot to close a deal, she had started drinking with them.

Actually, they had only been drinking non-alcoholic juice and tea at first. Then, one client got excited and insisted on trying her hand at mixing drinks. After her chaotic concoctions, hardly anyone at the table escaped unscathed, and everyone was laid low by those mixed drinks.

Thinking of this, Ni Songan’s eyes were still glazed. She shook her head, trying to clear the messy memories, when she spotted someone else on the bed.

“Modesty?”

Ni Songan lifted the blanket, and sure enough, there was that familiar face. Her eyes were clear, she had obviously been awake much longer than Ni Songan.

Without dwelling on why Modesty was there, Ni Songan wanted to ask something else. “If you’ve been awake, why aren’t you up yet?”

“Sister” Modesty curled up under the covers, her blue eyes blinking steadily. The cream-colored fabric made her look like a little angel, but the words she spoke made Ni Songan’s spine go stiff. “Do you remember? You hit me last night.”

“I hit you?!” Ni Songan was shocked. She wasn’t doubting the truth of it, but rather worried she had been too rough. “Does it hurt? Should we see a doctor?”

She was so frantic she nearly hauled Modesty out of bed then and there to rush her to the hospital for an emergency appointment.

Ni Songan knew she wasn’t a “good drunk,” which is why she rarely touched the stuff. Not to mention, she didn’t even like it. She never expected she’d actually hit Modesty while intoxicated. Ni Songan was filled with instant regret, nearly moved to tears.

She looked at Modesty cautiously, wanting to touch her but not daring to reach out. Her arms hovered protectively at Modesty’s side, keeping a careful watch.

Modesty was so amused by this reaction that she let out a sudden laugh. “It’s not as scary as you think. Here, I took a picture.”

The phone she held out showed the back of a hand with a visible red mark, but it wasn’t serious at all.

 Ni Songan pouted, grabbed a nearby pillow, and tossed it at Modesty. “I bet that mark disappeared five minutes after you took the photo! You scared me!”

“Alright, alright, it was just a prank. Truce, truce!”

Modesty caught the pillow, looking quite proud of herself. “I actually have a big secret to tell you today.”

“What secret?”

“Let’s get up and wash up first. You’ll find out in a bit.”

“Why is everything so formal today?”

Right after work, Ni Songan was ushered to a long dining table. The lights were off, leaving only the soft glow of candlelight. The table was decorated with romantic candelabras and fresh flowers, and Modesty had even lit scented candles.

Modesty didn’t answer. She simply put a finger to her lips. “Shh, it’s a surprise. It’s a secret.”

She didn’t sit across from Ni Songan. Instead, she pulled her chair over to sit right next to her, then clapped her hands.

The tightly closed doors were pushed open, and something Ni Songan never expected walked in.

Ni Songan recognized the mascot costume Modesty had borrowed from the drama club. It appeared before her in a most peculiar fashion.

A brown bear pushed a cute cake to the edge of the table. It wore a little top hat and a bow tie around its neck.

The little bear bowed to Ni Songan, then pulled a small speaker from its front pouch. It began playing a popular birthday song and started dancing along to the music.

“What’s inside? Did you hire someone to wear the costume?”

Ni Songan tilted her head, grinning at the dancing bear. To move with such range, the performer inside must have a lot of strength and coordination.

But what professional dancer would come out to dance in a mascot suit?

“No, there’s a robot I built inside.”

Modesty shook her head, dismissing Ni Songan’s guess. Under Ni Songan’s watchful eye, she pulled out a remote control panel and tapped a few buttons, causing the mascot to start a different dance.

She then picked up the birthday hat from the cart and gently placed it on Ni Songan’s head, her fingertips brushing the older girl’s cheek like a feather.

“Happy birthday, Sister.”

“Make a wish,” Modesty urged, looking at the stunned Ni Songan.

Ni Songan’s actual birthday wasn’t today, this was the birthday of the original host of this body. Their differing birthdays were perhaps one of the few distinctions between them.

She lowered her eyes, showing no outward sign of anything unusual. She clasped her hands into fists and solemnly made a wish toward the glowing colored candles on the cake.

A moment later, she blew them out.

“Happy twenty-second birthday!” Modesty suddenly pulled Ni Songan into a hug, whispering her loud congratulations right in her ear.

Support