I Am Not a Vicious Stepsister! - Chapter 28

Following their tour of the suburban factory, Ni Songan and Modesty returned to Qu Xi Orange County the following evening.

The task assigned to Zhu Tingran was still under investigation, with results expected in a few days. For now, Ni Songan focused all her energy on her new projects.

Modesty had also sent her a new invitation, she wanted Ni Songan to watch her drama performance at the senior graduation gala.

This message rescued Ni Songan from her high-speed “workaholic” mode. After reviewing her schedule for the day, she adjusted several low-priority items, managing to squeeze out just enough time to make it to the auditorium at Korydus International School.

And so, she accepted Modesty’s invitation.

Unfortunately, plans rarely keep pace with changes. The schedule was tight with little room for error, and Ni Songan ran straight into a traffic jam.

On the road, vehicles stretched out like a long dragon, motionless.

Even though her heart was racing as if being singed over a fire, she had no way to reach Korydus immediately.

Ni Songan checked her watch repeatedly; if she kept waiting like this, she was bound to be late.

The only things moving forward along the roadside were a few small electric scooters and bicycles. Ni Songan noticed a shared bike rental point just ahead on the curb.

She rarely wore suits to work just to look formal, preferring loose, comfortable clothing most of the time, which happened to be perfect for exercise. Without much a second thought, Ni Songan stepped out of the car and headed straight for the shared bikes.

Assuming she pedaled fast enough and didn’t hit too many red lights, her arrival time at the school should be just right.

Ni Songan pedaled hard, overtaking the cars crawling at a snail’s pace, but unluckily, she hit a fresh red light at every single intersection.

During the intervals waiting for the green light, she couldn’t stop rubbing the handlebars, using the fine, rough texture to soothe the restless anxiety in her heart.

There was no reply to the message she sent Modesty, either. As the club president, the girl was likely frantic backstage. Ni Songan hoped her stepsister wouldn’t notice her elder sister’s empty seat for a while.

The red light flickered and turned green, and the flow of traffic moved once more.

Ni Songan pedaled rapidly toward the next intersection.

“Modesty, have you still not found your phone? Forget about it for now, just buy a new one later! We’re about to go on stage!”

Daphne ran hurriedly to Modesty’s side. The latter had scoured every place she had been that day but still couldn’t find the phone she lost in the afternoon.

Modesty’s expression was one of extreme impatience, looking as if she might explode at any second. Consequently, the other club members didn’t dare to rush her, leaving the well-liked Daphne to save the day.

“Mhm,” Modesty pressed her lips thin, her voice muffled.

She followed Daphne toward the stage, but her eyes couldn’t help but drift toward the side door.

That was the spot where she and Ni Songan had agreed to meet this afternoon.

However, the drama club was about to go on stage, and Ni Songan had yet to arrive.

To make matters worse, Modesty’s phone had vanished. Even if she wanted to contact her sister, she had no way to do so.

Ni Songan’s private number generally didn’t accept calls or messages from strangers; people usually had to go through Zhu Tingran to reach her.

Modesty could more or less guess that Ni Songan had encountered an emergency on the road, causing the delay.

Rather than being worried about Ni Songan missing her performance, she was more concerned that her sister might have gotten caught up in some kind of trouble.

But there wasn’t enough time for Modesty to fret over her sister’s current situation; their prepared play was about to begin.

The King, played by Modesty, was the first character to take the stage.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. As the stage curtains slowly drew back, a piercing white light hit her face, her eyelashes casting faint shadows that masked the complex emotions in her eyes.

In the next instant, she locked eyes with a spectator in the front row who was panting heavily.

Modesty’s eyes widened suddenly.

Suppressing her surprise, she re-immersed herself in the story.

Ni Songan had sprinted all the way, finally managing to take her seat just in time.

Her breathing was rapid and her throat felt parched. Fortunately, there was a bottle of mineral water at every seat to help soothe her throat.

When the curtains opened, a cold white light shone directly on the actors’ faces. The opening was a monologue by the monarch.

The monarch looked down slightly toward the front row of the audience, meeting Ni Songan’s gaze exactly.

The gold tassels on the military uniform shimmered with a cold luster, making Modesty’s already stoic face appear even more solemn and dignified.

Yet, in the moment their eyes met, a flicker of surprise actually escaped her gaze before she quickly regained her composure.

The intense contrast made Ni Songan laugh, feeling as though she was watching a child forced to perform at a family event.

Due to the specific angle, Ni Songan was certain that she was the only one who captured that subtle emotional shift; the rest of the audience still saw a highly majestic protagonist.

After her quiet laugh, she watched the performance prepared by the drama club members with full attention. By the time the curtains fell again, Ni Songan felt a sense of lingering melancholy.

Ni Songan wasn’t interested in the subsequent programs, especially since she had only come to support Modesty.

Therefore, when the actors returned to the stage for their bow, Ni Songan had already slipped away to wait for Modesty in the backstage dressing room.

Everyone had exceeded expectations today, performing much better than the rehearsals Ni Songan had seen previously.

Recalling the typical way to nurture a teenager, Ni Songan felt it necessary to give Modesty some encouragement and praise.

—First, she would start by taking her out to eat!

In Ni Songan’s memory, Modesty especially loved eating out and insisted on dragging her along. The two of them had visited almost every famous restaurant in Nanzhou.

If Ni Songan was busy and couldn’t go, Modesty would insist on waiting until she was free rather than going with other friends.

In short, Modesty was always dragging Ni Songan out to enjoy various delicacies.

Ni Songan had thus reached a blunt conclusion: anyone who couldn’t see that Modesty loved eating most of all was a fool.

The dressing room door opened. Ni Songan looked toward the sound, but her interest faded slightly once she saw who it was. It wasn’t the person she expected, but a somewhat familiar girl with short hair.

Ni Songan searched her memory and managed to retrieve the name, Flora Adams.

They had met once in front of Modesty’s dormitory. Ni Songan’s impression of her was extremely vague, relying on the original plot; so far, she had only labeled Flora with tags like “lurking villain” and “meticulous thinker.”

Truth be told, Ni Songan felt she understood Daphne—who wasn’t even mentioned in the original book—better than she understood Flora.

Out of politeness, she still nodded a greeting. The latter was stunned for a moment before hesitatingly raising a hand to wave.

The two sat on separate armchairs several meters apart, not bothering one another.

A few minutes later, the drama club members returned. Ni Songan looked around; Daphne was at the front, but Modesty didn’t seem to be in the crowd.

“Oh! Modesty’s sister, your name is… ah, Sister Songan! Are you looking for Modesty?”

Daphne was the first to recognize Ni Songan, warmly asking about her visit.

“Yes, I came to see your performance.” Seeing everyone enter without Modesty, Ni Songan asked Daphne, “Why didn’t Modesty come back with you? Did she go somewhere else?”

“She said she wanted to find you in the audience. I guess she’ll head back to the dressing room once she realizes she missed you, especially since she lost her phone.” Daphne curled her lip, spreading her hands helplessly.

“There, Modesty is here.”

Just as Ni Songan was about to ask more, a girl near the door saw someone outside and called out a reminder.

Modesty walked back in, looking a bit dejected. She didn’t look at anyone in the dressing room, walking inside with her head hanging low.

Suddenly, the scent of gardenias wafted over. Modesty looked up sharply and saw the person she had been searching for standing right in front of her. “Sister, you didn’t leave! I thought you left!”

Ni Songan understood instantly that she had been upset because she thought her sister had left right after the show.

“Why would I leave? You all performed so well, I have to stay and give you some praise.” Ni Songan reached out and tapped the center of Modesty’s forehead with her finger.

She turned and raised her voice: “Girls, is there anything you’d like to eat? Everyone did such an excellent job today, I’d like to treat you to dinner. Thank you for your hard work.”

“Yay! A feast”

“I want meat, meat, meat, meat”

“Add a cake, add a cake!”

The atmosphere turned lively in an instant. Ni Songan was infected by their smiles and couldn’t help but laugh along, generously announcing, “We can have it all, order whatever you like, it’s on me!”

For a moment, all sorts of cheers and praises were showered upon Ni Songan.

Only after they had their fill of excitement did they go to tidy up their costumes, preparing to head out for the meal.

Ni Songan belatedly realized that Modesty was gripping her hand very tightly, as if she wanted to lace their fingers together completely.

“Modesty? What’s wrong?”

Ni Songan tilted her head with concern to observe her. Modesty’s lips were pressed into a nearly straight line, and she looked very unhappy.

“It’s nothing…” Modesty turned her face away. “I’m going to change.”

Ni Songan glanced at their still firmly joined hands and teased, “Are you going to take me into the changing room too?”

“Wh—!” Modesty suddenly realized she hadn’t let go of Ni Songan and let go in a panic.

Seeing her face flush red as if all her blood was rushing to her head, Ni Songan kindly gave her a way out: “It’s fine, go change quickly. And think about what we’re going to eat later.”

Hearing this, Modesty fled into the changing room like a bolt of lightning, leaving Ni Songan standing there stifling a laugh.

Although Flora wasn’t a member of the drama club, Ni Songan couldn’t leave her out, so naturally, everyone came along.

She, Modesty, Flora, Daphne, and two other classmates sat at the same table.

To liven up the atmosphere, someone suggested playing a game.

“Let’s play… Who is the Spy!”

Everyone at the table agreed. They formed a group on a mobile board game app. The word Ni Songan received was “Sleeping.”

According to the drawing order, she would be the fifth to give a description.

The first was Flora, who spoke in a calm tone: “It is a state of being.”

The second was Song Zhi, who was in charge of writing scripts for the drama club. She adjusted her glasses: “Something animals do.”

Ni Songan noted that these two descriptions fit her word quite well, but.

What other words were similar to “Sleep”?

She silently looked toward the next person to speak, Modesty.