My Clingy Fiancée Is Forcing Me to Marry Her Again - Chapter 41.1

“He Ge, I want to travel.”

The next morning, after her run and before breakfast, Li Fangge received a call from Bai Shao.

Being awake at this hour was not characteristic of her cousin-sister.

Li Fangge asked, “Sis, are you an early riser, or have you not slept yet?”

She recalled Bai Shao’s first morning after her recent breakup: she had stayed awake all night.

Later, Bai Shao complained more than once that she couldn’t sleep lately. Even when exhausted, she would constantly dream of Guan Xiaoyan whenever she closed her eyes, and waking up from those confused dreams only left her more tired.

Lately, Bai Shao detested sleeping.

“What do you think?” she countered.

“Do you want to go to the Southern Kingdom?”

“Didn’t you tell me to go and clear my head? The Northern Kingdom is more vast, more suitable for distraction. In the great grasslands, in the desert regions, perhaps I’ll be able to see things more clearly.”

“Sis, do you want me to go with you?”

Li Fangge was unfamiliar with the Northern Kingdom, but she had countless memories related to it in her mind.

The scummy Alpha studied in Lujing. The summer after Li Fangge differentiated, she didn’t return to Ludu. For nearly two months, wanting to see no one, she alone traveled to almost every accessible place in the Northern Kingdom.

Speaking of clearing one’s head, Li Fangge also agreed that the Northern Kingdom was indeed more suitable. It was late August, the perfect season for traveling there.

“Aren’t you supposed to be dating?”

Bai Shao’s voice was low, betraying a sense of weak exhaustion. “I’ve never seen you care about anyone before. Go ahead and have a good relationship. Seeing you happy will likely make me feel better. Otherwise, I’ll question even more whether the endurance and sacrifice of the past decade were truly worth it.”

“Sis, there’s a saying, though it’s been quoted a little too much, that I still think is apt: when you ask if loving her or me loving you is worth it, you should already know that love is not about worthiness.

“When you like someone, there’s truly no ‘worth it’ or ‘not worth it,’ only ‘like’ or ‘dislike,’ only ‘picking up’ or ‘letting go.’”

“He Ge, is that—is that life advice fed to you by Guan Xiaoyu?”

“I read it in a novel called Half a Life’s Love.”

“Who wrote it? Why haven’t I heard of that book?”

“Eileen Chang.”

“Nonsense, there’s absolutely no such author.”

“…Maybe I remembered incorrectly.”

“Darn it! Why do I keep dreaming about her?!”

“Sis, have you contacted Guan Xiaoyan recently?”

“How could I possibly contact her!”

“Perhaps it’s because she’s thinking of you.”

“What good is her thinking of me? I don’t need her to think of me.”

“Really?”

“It’s early in the morning, can’t you say something I like to hear?”

“I thought you would want to hear news about her.”

“He Ge, I told you, I’m tired. Why can’t you understand?!”

“Is it really exhaustion, or is it unfulfilled desire?”

“Stop saying these meaningless things. It’s over now. Even if I’m in a daze every day, it’s better than dragging it on. Continuing something that won’t have a result might just grind me down completely.”

“Sis, your current state is not suitable for traveling alone.”

“How annoying. Are you going to be satisfied only after you’ve made me cry?”

“Go ahead and cry.”

When Li Fangge said this, Bai Shao on the other end, in fact, stopped crying.

“Forget it, it’s pointless. My eyes will be swollen, and it’s not you who will look ugly.”

“Sis, did you block Guan Xiaoyan?”

“Why wouldn’t I block her? Should I save her number for Chinese New Year?”

“If it makes you feel better, then of course that’s fine.”

“What? Are you and that wretched woman already that familiar?”

“No,” Li Fangge paused.

She could overlook Zheng Lier’s gaze at Guan Xiaoyan, but because she was certain of Guan Xiaoyan’s concern for her cousin-sister, she still wanted to tell Bai Shao. “Last night, Guan Xiaoyu called me and asked; she said her sister wanted to know about your current situation—”

“Did she also say that she can’t let go? He Ge, do you know, after every breakup, she always continues to show concern as if nothing happened, completely forgetting what I’ve told her. That’s why I blocked her.”

“Sis, I also saw a saying that hate is not the opposite of love; indifference is. Look, you still get so agitated when Guan Xiaoyan is mentioned. Like her, you actually can’t let go either; she’s just more honest than you are.”

“What else did Guan Xiaoyu say?”

“She said her sister is very sad.”

“What about you? If you told her about my miserable state, you’re dead.”

“I told her everything you told me.”

“What did I tell you?”

“That you’re tired, that you and Guan Xiaoyan have no future, that you’re sick of the underground relationship, and that you want to disappear from Ludu, and so on—”

“Why didn’t you say the important thing!”

“What important thing?”

“That I won’t start over with her!”

“Really?”

I don’t believe it. Li Fangge did not say this out loud.

If Bai Shao truly didn’t want to start over, she would have certainly objected when Li Fangge said she wasn’t honest.

But not only did she not object, she even probed, seemingly casually, wanting to know what else Guan Xiaoyan had said.

People are like that; often, they are not even honest with themselves, let alone with others.

The message had been conveyed. Li Fangge changed the subject. “Sis, want to come over for breakfast?”

“I have no appetite. Isn’t your debt repayment deadline coming up soon? How do you still have the mood for breakfast!”

“Even if the sky falls, I still have to eat.”

Li Fangge laughed. Before coming to this world, she hardly ever ate.

Now, eating had become a happy thing. Yin Xiaoyou’s cooking was genuinely good. Even for everyday meals, she could create different varieties, and her standard for selecting ingredients was almost strict: it had to be fresh, not mass-produced, and naturally grown… truly worthy of a senior nutritionist.

“I have no appetite.”

“We’re going swimming this afternoon. Want to come along?”

“Who is ‘we’? With Guan Xiaoyu?”

“Yes.”

“I have absolutely no interest in being a third wheel.”…

Guan Xiaoyu suddenly received a message from Guan Xiaorong: “I’m so lonely, I’m going to mold. Did you forget about me? Am I still your sister? Do you still remember what I look like?”

She was starting to act up again. Guan Xiaoyu immediately found an excuse. “Sis, I’m busy these two days! My schedule is packed! The big star finally has a chance; you should take the opportunity to enjoy your solitude.”

“Tsk tsk, I haven’t even asked you to visit me yet, and I’ve already been rejected! My heart hurts so much.”

“Uncle and Auntie both said that if you didn’t act up yourself, you wouldn’t be in this situation. Sis, when are you going to learn your lesson?”

“Hey, Guan Xiaoyu! I don’t allow you to talk to me in the same tone as my parents.”

“Fine, I’ll go see you tomorrow.”

Guan Xiaoyu knew that two days without visiting was the maximum limit of tolerance for her drama-queen cousin-sister.

“I don’t believe you can’t spare even an hour! You must accompany me for lunch today, or we’re cutting off ties. Completely cutting ties, for three whole days, the kind where you’re not even allowed to think of me.”

“Okay.”

“Waiting for you to arrive.”

“I was saying, ‘cutting off ties for three days,’ okay.”

“I don’t allow it! The phrase ‘cutting off ties’ is exclusive to me.”

In the end, Guan Xiaoyu went anyway.

She was quite surprised to see Zheng Lier at her drama-queen sister’s house.

While their acquaintance was reasonable, she didn’t expect her sister to invite her home.

Her super-busy uncle wasn’t home, and her national treasure artist aunt was also nowhere to be seen.

Guan Xiaorong was used to excitement and loved being surrounded by people, so it was no wonder she felt lonely now.

She had stopped wearing the headgear and was back to being lively and active like before.

When Guan Xiaoyu arrived, she didn’t know what Guan Xiaorong and Zheng Lier were talking about, but the two suddenly burst into a pleasant, clear laughter.

“Ayu, hurry over, hurry!” Guan Xiaorong cheerfully beckoned to her. “This is hilarious; Uncle actually wanted to betroth you to Sister Lier, ha ha ha ha. He still doesn’t understand you at all…”

“Hey, is it polite to rub salt in someone’s wound?”

The thought made Guan Xiaoyu angry, but she couldn’t flare up in front of Zheng Lier.

She genuinely didn’t understand what this sharp-eyed sister meant by looking at her sister with such deep affection.

Since she was a friend her Ice Queen sister was willing to invite home, she didn’t think Zheng Lier would be unaware that her sister had someone she liked.

“Ha ha ha ha, bite me!” Guan Xiaorong raised her chin proudly. “I’d say you’re too delicate! Hurt by such a small thing! But you’re lucky, otherwise, with Sister Lier’s move, wouldn’t you be easily defeated—”

“Guan Xiaorong, do you know the idiom ‘to know when to stop’?”

Zheng Lier, who had been watching the sisters bicker, suddenly spoke, her voice carrying a sense of coercion.

Seeing her sister obediently fall silent, Guan Xiaoyu looked at Zheng Lier, grateful. “Thank you, sister.”

Zheng Lier nodded slightly and asked, “Where is your sister?”

Guan Xiaoyu, who was about to sit down on Guan Xiaorong’s right, visibly stiffened. “She went to the company.”

“She’s—still the same as before, either studying or working.”

“Sister Yan is a workaholic anyway, otherwise, why do you think my uncle trained her to be the successor?” Guan Xiaorong chimed in.

There was black tea on the table. She poured a cup for the newly arrived Guan Xiaoyu.

The warm, sweet scent of tea filled the spacious room.

Guan Xiaoyu suddenly recalled the day she made cupcakes for Li Fangge; they had also drunk this kind of black tea.

“You went to see Chen Beizhe yesterday. Why? I heard he’s a very violent person. You couldn’t possibly not know that, yet you foolishly offered yourself up?”

At Guan Xiaorong’s question, Zheng Lier also looked at Guan Xiaoyu with interest.

Guan Xiaoyu was never the type to hide things. “Because of Sister Li.”

“Aiya, the news about your meeting yesterday has spread all over the internet. I asked you to come for lunch today because I wanted to ask you directly: did Chen Beizhe really have an overflow of pheromones because of your Sister Li?”

“Something like that.”

“Uncle’s judgment of people is really consistently poor. I never thought Chen Beizhe was in an AA relationship. Logically, as an S-class Alpha, he shouldn’t lose control over your Sister Li—”

Guan Xiaoyu ignored her and looked thoughtfully at Zheng Lier. “My dad misjudged Chen Beizhe, but he was right about Sister Li and Sister Lier, wasn’t he?”