My Ghostly Darling Cuddles Me Every Day - Chapter 29.1

Chapter 29.1: Jinjiang Literature City

 

It was a night of chaotic and blurry dreams.

 

Waking up in the early morning, Bo Yu sat hugging her blanket, staring blankly.

 

Xiexie was not sleeping inside her clothes; the doll was lying nearby on the sewing machine table.

 

She hadn’t dreamed of that gentle Xie Yinwan who called her “baby,” either.

 

Everything that had happened before seemed like a hallucination.

 

Xie Yinwan had left no trace behind, appearing and disappearing only within her memory.

 

Was it all real, or was there something wrong with her mental state—was it all a delusion?

 

Bo Yu got out of bed and turned off the camera.

 

She washed up, walking back and forth past the camera.

 

Since Xiexie wasn’t in her arms, the camera wouldn’t capture anything unusual, so she ignored it.

 

Today was the Mid-Autumn Festival, the third day of the holiday. The Bo family would gather in the courtyard in the evening for dinner and moon-watching. The courtyard needed to be decorated. Bo Yu put on a crossbody bag, dressed Xiexie in a small vest with a hook, and hung the doll from the front strap of her bag. She walked around the courtyard helping the maids decorate; when she rested, she reached forward with both hands to cradle Xiexie.

 

“You look like you’re carrying a baby on your chest,” Bo Mi teased when she saw her. “A little unwed mother.”

 

Bo Yu smiled and picked up Xiexie’s hand to wave it: “This is Eldest Aunt. Say hello to Eldest Aunt.”

 

Bo Mi was speechless. She turned around and called Hanhan over, deliberately giving the dog a playful nudge. Hanhan barked twice and chased after Bo Mi as she sprinted away.

 

The weather at noon was excellent. The sunlight was warm on the skin, yet it wasn’t hot enough to make one sweat.

 

Bo Mi was racing Hanhan in the yard, Second Uncle was kneeling on the ground grooming Feifei’s fur, and Second Aunt stayed inside to avoid the sun. A maid pushed Nanyan in her wheelchair for a stroll around the courtyard.

 

Auntie Fan, who had been sick, had recovered and returned. She came over to pour two bowls of tea for the Old Lady and Bo Yu.

 

Bo Yu had begun to realize that Auntie Fan’s illness might have been caused by her bowing to the maid while holding Xiexie. If Xie Yinwan really was an official of the Underworld as Jin Xuan said, then she held a very high status indeed; Auntie Fan simply couldn’t withstand the “etiquette” of such a spirit and fell ill.

 

Bo Yu chatted with Auntie Fan for a moment: “Auntie Fan, are you fully recovered?”

 

Auntie Fan smiled: “Yes, I’m all better. I only came back to work after I was completely healed, otherwise it wouldn’t be good to pass it on to you all.”

 

Bo Yu nodded: “That’s good. Auntie Fan, come sit for a while; it’s still early for dinner.”

 

Auntie Fan hurriedly said: “No, Second Miss is too kind. I’ll get back to work.”

 

The Old Lady watched Auntie Fan leave, then looked at Bo Yu’s complexion, which seemed decent today. “And you? Did you sleep well last night? Your face looks alright.”

 

Bo Yu hadn’t slept very soundly last night, but she hadn’t cried before bed. Today her eyes weren’t swollen and she didn’t have a fever, so she was doing okay.

 

Her heart, however, still felt uncomfortable—empty.

 

At a certain moment this morning, she realized this feeling felt very much like a breakup. She couldn’t stop thinking about Xie Yinwan.

 

She thought of the first night she met her.

 

She thought of Xie Yinwan’s beauty.

 

She thought of every detail shared between them.

 

And she thought of the argument they had, of Xie Yinwan’s disappointment and finality; her heart still constricted with pain.

 

She didn’t know what kind of emotion this was.

 

Stockholm Syndrome? It didn’t seem like it.

 

Suddenly, she wanted to learn how to paint. She wanted to capture Xie Yinwan’s likeness.

 

She was afraid Xie Yinwan would never return, afraid that as the years passed, she would slowly forget what she looked like.

 

“I slept well. I even dreamed of eating a large chicken leg,” Bo Yu teased her grandmother, not wanting the elderly woman to worry.

 

The Old Lady smiled and gave her a look: “You don’t even eat chicken legs normally, yet you’re eating them in your dreams? You’re fooling this old woman.”

 

Bo Yu cradled Xiexie with both hands and smiled.

 

Grandmother sat under the sun umbrella drinking tea, then suddenly sighed: “I miss your aunt.”

 

Bo Yu, who had just finished hanging a small lantern under a tent, smiled and asked: “Did you video call her today?”

 

“We did. She isn’t coming back to spend the holiday with me, so she’s feeling guilty. She sent me a video call early this morning.”

 

“Auntie is thinking of you. Did she say when she’s coming back? For Spring Festival?”

 

The Old Lady curled her lip: “Who knows? She’s too busy dating young foreign guys out there. It’s better if she doesn’t come back.”

 

Bo Yu laughed and reached out to pat her grandmother’s head: “So bitter.”

 

“Your aunt… I wonder if she’s lonely out there by herself,” the Old Lady sighed. She looked over at Bo Mi and saw her and the dog getting into a “fight,” causing the Old Lady to burst out laughing.

 

The Bo family was a legend—not just because the Old Lady had once left her husband, taken her child, sold her foreign assets, and returned home to start a business, but also because the Bo family’s youngest daughter, Bo Qian, had once “killed her husband and abandoned her child.”

 

At least the Old Lady had never killed anyone or left her children.

 

Bo Qian, however, had once slashed her husband multiple times and severed ties with her biological son. Since then, she never asked whether the boy lived or died, and she forbade the Bo family from asking or quietly looking out for him.

 

Because of Bo Qian’s ruthlessness, the brothers Bo Qin and Bo Nuo never even thought about fighting her for the succession of the Bo Group.

 

Could such a ruthless person occasionally feel lonely?

 

Bo Yu massaged her grandmother’s shoulders: “If you miss Auntie but don’t want her to know, I’ll sneak away and visit her with you?”

 

The Old Lady laughed and patted the back of Bo Yu’s hand: “Flying is exhausting. It’s tiring even if you’re lying down. Let’s wait for her to return; she’ll be back soon.”

 

“Mhm.”

 

Over there, the maid pushed Nanyan toward them.

 

Nanyan’s waist was strained, and it hurt to walk, so she was using a wheelchair for now.

 

Nanyan chatted with the Old Lady for a bit, then looked at Bo Yu, who was hanging lanterns.

 

Today, Bo Yu wore a pink checkered dress. Her hair was tied in a low side-braid woven with a pale yellow checkered ribbon. She wore a sun-shielding bucket hat and her crossbody bag; Xiexie swayed with her movements as if she were on vacation.

 

Nanyan said softly with a smile, “The weather is lovely today. Does Xiao Yu want to go fishing?”

 

There were some fish in the courtyard lake, but the Old Lady didn’t allow anyone to fish there; if one wanted to fish, one had to go elsewhere.

 

Bo Yu smiled and shook her head: “Not today. I’m staying with this ‘old child’ at home.”

 

She looked toward her grandmother.

 

Grandmother playfully glared at Bo Yu. Who’s an old child?

 

It was an electric wheelchair. Nanyan pressed a button with her left hand to move closer: “I might have to be in this chair for two or three months. If Xiao Yu wants to go fishing, call me, okay?”

 

Bo Yu stood there, looking down at Nanyan.

 

Perhaps because she had never noticed before or never thought in that direction, looking at her now, Bo Yu noticed an extra emotion in Nanyan’s eyes.

 

There seemed to be more expectation, more intimacy.

 

Bo Yu’s heart beat a fraction faster. She looked away toward the distance, intending to say, “I’m not fishing lately; I plan to go to the park to photograph birds,” to reject Nanyan. But then, Hanhan, who was playing with Bo Mi, suddenly charged over like a wolf.

 

Hanhan rushed to Bo Yu’s feet, leaning up against her and panting with his tongue out, smiling as if begging her to play.

 

This interrupted what Bo Yu was about to say to Nanyan.

 

She set down the small lantern and hurriedly told Nanyan, “We’ll see,” before being pulled away by the smiling and barking Hanhan.

 

Hanhan wanted to play frisbee, and Bo Yu laughed as she threw it for him.

 

Hanging from Bo Yu’s bag, Xie Yinwan huffed and huffed, glaring intensely at Nanyan, who had asked Bo Yu to go fishing.

 

This Nanyan was desecrating the most beautiful Bo Yu in her heart.

 

She hated it!

 

Feifei sensed Xie Yinwan’s powerful magnetic field and also ran toward Bo Yu, wanting to be near Xie Yinwan yet afraid of getting too close.

 

Second Uncle loved cats more than his life; he chased after Feifei, coaxing the cat to play with him.

 

Bo Yu looked back at her Second Uncle and smiled: “Feifei runs so fast; you can’t outrun him, can you?”

 

Bo Nuo looked very much like his elder brother, Bo Qin, but Bo Qin was more steady and authoritative. Bo Nuo was unassuming—a “good old boy” who was always smiling. Because of this, Fang Zheng often complained that Bo Nuo lacked class and would secretly curse him as weak and useless. When the couple argued, Bo Nuo never argued back.

 

Bo Nuo wiped his sweat with a laugh: “Can’t outrun him, can’t outrun him. How can two legs outrun four? He’s so fat, yet he’s still so agile. He’s worn me out.”

 

Bo Yu laughed softly.

 

Xie Yinwan frowned. She didn’t like men; men smelled bad. She looked at the cat and gave a cold command: “Make your master go away.”

 

Feifei, who had been excitedly wanting to play with Bo Yu, let out an “Aowu” cry and ran away dejectedly.

 

Once Feifei ran, Second Uncle had to follow.

 

Bo Yu’s side became quiet again.

 

Xie Yinwan was peaceful now. Her breathing was smooth, her nostrils filled with Bo Yu’s fragrance. She comfortably squinted her weary eyes and basked in the sun.

 

The Old Lady smiled as she watched these scenes in the courtyard, her heart filled with soft happiness, feeling that everything was worth it.

 

Nanyan also smiled at the scene, while resting her soft, affectionate gaze on Bo Yu’s back.

 

She would protect her marriage to Bo Qin, so she would never let anyone know about her feelings for Bo Yu. She would hide it in her heart forever, watching from afar. Being able to talk to Bo Yu occasionally and go shopping with her was enough.

 

The sun was strong at noon, so lunch was held indoors.

 

Bo Qin and Bo Jingxian had both returned; the whole family was gathered. Bo Mi poured herself some wine and casually asked Bo Yu if she wanted any.

 

Bo Yu didn’t usually drink, but her mood was very poor today, so she held out her glass with both hands.

 

Furthermore, she didn’t need to take the two Chinese medicines anymore, so she didn’t have to watch her diet.

 

Bo Qin was displeased that Bo Mi was drinking at home. It was never good for a girl to drink; they should pretend to be allergic. Otherwise, what would happen if they were pressured to drink or drugged at a dinner table in the future? But Bo Mi wasn’t his daughter, so he couldn’t control her.

 

He looked at his eldest daughter, his lips twitching. Forget it. He’d endure it. It was rare for the family to eat together harmoniously.

 

“Why are you still wearing your bag while eating?” The Old Lady patted the doll’s belly on Bo Yu’s bag. “Xiexie is even sitting in your lap.”

 

Bo Yu didn’t really know why.

 

She had lost the most special Xie Yinwan in the world, so she wanted to be with Xiexie every moment.

 

Perhaps it was a form of compensation.

 

She smiled: “It’s a reunion, so I have to bring my doll.”

 

She also couldn’t bear to leave Xiexie alone in the room.

 

The family raised their glasses—filled with tea, juice, or wine—to toast to the Bo family’s reunion, happiness, and health.

 

After the meal, Bo Yu prepared to take Xiexie back for a nap. Bo Qin called out to her: “Xiao Yu, we leave at exactly two o’clock.”

 

Bo Yu turned back, confused: “What?”

 

Bo Qin: “I mentioned this before. There’s an afternoon tea banquet on Mid-Autumn Day. Originally, you, your sister, and Nanyan were supposed to go with me. Now that Nanyan can’t go, you and your sister will come with me.”

 

Bo Yu’s expression darkened: “I remember saying I wasn’t going.”

 

Bo Qin frowned: “Everyone at the banquet brings their family. Be sensible. It’s only two hours; we’ll be back soon.”

 

Bo Yu slowed her breathing and said calmly: “Jingxian can accompany you. She’s outgoing and good at creating an atmosphere. I’m introverted; going might actually affect your business. Besides, I don’t know the people there. I’ll feel uncomfortable and get a headache, so I don’t want to go. Please consider my feelings. Thank you.”

 

The family hadn’t fully dispersed yet; everyone heard the exchange between father and daughter and turned to look.

 

Bo Qin had a grudge built up—his daughter never gave him face!

 

She wouldn’t go fishing, she refused to help fix furniture, and now she wouldn’t even give him two hours!

 

“Bo Yu, whether you want to go or not, you are going today! Go change your clothes now; I’ll wait for you right here.” Bo Qin issued a reckless ultimatum, waving his hand gloomily.

 

“I said I’m not going.”

 

Bo Yu refused just as recklessly and turned to leave.

 

Bo Qin took two large strides to get in front of Bo Yu, his face flushed with rage: “Bo Yu, enough is enough! Yes, all these years, I let your mother down—but have I ever let you down? I’ve tried to be a good father. I speak to you humbly, I coax you, I pamper you, I give you the best life. But what about you? Can you show me some respect for once? Respect me just this once!”

 

Bo Qin was beside himself with rage. He pointed at the doll on Bo Yu’s chest and shouted: “You show more goddamn respect to a lifeless doll than you do to me! I’m your father, damn it!”

 

Bo Yu remained silent.

 

She didn’t care what Bo Qin said, but she really disliked the profanity he used.

 

Such foul language.

 

She didn’t want to stay calm anymore.

 

“Alright, big brother,” Bo Nuo was the first to step in, shielding Bo Yu with half his body. He looked at her with concern and said, “Xiao Yu isn’t feeling well today. It might not show on the outside, but her face turned pale as soon as she came in. Let her rest. Just let Jingxian go to the banquet alone.”

 

Bo Jingxian loved seeing this. She walked over to add fuel to the fire: “Sister, since Dad wants us to go with him, it means he needs us. As daughters, we should accompany him when he needs it. Don’t be so unreasonable. I’m not feeling well today either, and I have things to do at school, but I specifically came back for Dad. Sister, show some respect for Dad; it’s not like it’ll kill you.”

 

Bo Mi walked over with a cold face, covered Bo Jingxian’s mouth with one hand, hooked her arm around her neck, and dragged her away without a word.

 

Bo Yu smiled at her Second Uncle and pushed aside his arm. “Second Uncle, it’s fine. You don’t need to block me. I want to say a few words to him.”

 

Bo Nuo tried to stop her again, but Fang Zheng suddenly gave him a look of hatred and forcefully pulled him away.

 

“First,” Bo Yu looked at Bo Qin. “If your idea of a ‘good father’ is someone who ignores me when I’m sick, then you are indeed a good father.”

 

“You—”

 

“Second, the good life I have now wasn’t given by you; it was given by Grandmother and Auntie. Even your current good life wasn’t earned by you alone; it was given by Grandmother and Auntie. From what I know, you’ve made no fewer than five strategic and investment blunders. If Auntie hadn’t stopped you in time, you would have lost everything.”

 

“Bo—”

 

“Third, I don’t like hearing you use profanity involving mothers. I hope that in the future—”

 

“Shut the hell up!”

 

Before Bo Yu could finish, Bo Qin, whose face had turned a bruised purple from being repeatedly interrupted, raised his right hand at Bo Yu with glaring eyes.

 

His hand was raised high; this slap was going to hurt.

 

Bo Yu didn’t dodge. She closed her eyes.

 

“Bo Qin!”

 

“Dad!”

 

“Hanhan!”

 

“Big brother!”

 

“Feifei!”

 

The expected slap didn’t land. What Bo Yu heard instead was a chaotic mess of screams and dog barks.

 

Bo Yu opened her eyes. Bo Qin was lying on the ground in a pathetic heap.

 

Hanhan seemed to have transformed into a wolf, ferociously biting Bo Qin’s leg. Bo Mi was shouting at Hanhan to let go.

 

Feifei had also charged forward, first scratching the back of Bo Qin’s right hand before sinking his teeth into Bo Qin’s ankle, holding on tight. Second Uncle tried to grab Feifei by the scruff of the neck to pull him off, but Feifei turned around and hissed violently at him, startling him into letting go.

 

“Dad, Dad!” Bo Jingxian cried out in a panic.

 

The butler and maids blocked the Old Lady to keep her from getting close, fearing the animals might accidentally hurt her.

 

Second Aunt hid behind the Old Lady.

 

Nanyan rushed from her wheelchair to protect Bo Qin, using her cast-covered arm to push the dog’s snout away.

 

Bo Yu: “??”

 

This scene is so familiar!!

 

Bo Yu looked down at Xiexie.

 

Xiexie’s expression hadn’t changed—she still had those cute, large eyes and was smiling adorably with her mouth open.

 

Innocent and pure, looking as if none of this had anything to do with her.

 

Is it you, Xie Yinwan? Are you protecting me, Xie Yinwan?

 

Xie Yinwan had admitted she wasn’t a goddess, but if it really was her, then Xie Yinwan was Bo Yu’s goddess.

 

Xie Yinwan raised an eyebrow smugly, a flash of satisfaction in her beautiful, bright eyes.

 

She loved protecting Bo Yu. Every time she did, it put her in a particularly good mood and made her feel that this filthy human world was actually quite beautiful.

 

Xie Yinwan opened her mouth slightly: “Good dog, good cat. That’s enough.”

 

Only then did Hanhan and Feifei let go. As if knowing they would be scolded by Bo Mi and Bo Nuo, they vanished in a flash.

 

Bo Qin was helped up and sat on the sofa. His leg and ankle were bitten, and his hand was wounded. The maids scrambled to bring the first-aid kit to disinfect his injuries.

 

“Get away, all of you!” Bo Qin was in a wretched state; having lost face made him even angrier.

 

He looked up again at Bo Yu, who was standing there holding a “rag doll” without showing any concern for him. He pointed an angry finger at her: “From now on, I don’t have a daughter like you!”

 

Bo Yu’s expression was indifferent: “Oh. I heard you.”

 

Bo Qin’s fury was so intense he could barely breathe.

 

What kind of attitude is this?!

 

“That shirt.” Bo Yu looked at the blood on Bo Qin’s shirt.

 

Bo Qin felt a slight sense of validation. Bo Yu is still willing to care about me; I’ll just give her an out.

 

“What about it?” Bo Qin winced from the pain in his limbs.

 

Bo Yu: “Is it the one I made for you?”

 

She remembered the fatherly love Bo Qin had given her before she was seven, so she had repaid it in her own way. She wasn’t truly cold or unfeeling.

 

Bo Qin’s brow twitched.

 

Bo Yu: “It’s been bitten through. What a pity; the fabric was quite expensive.”

 

Bo Qin roared: “Get out! Get the hell out!”

 

Bo Yu let out a light chuckle.

 

Old Lady Bo sighed deeply, rubbing the tightness in her chest.

 

The chaos ended. Bo Qin’s left leg was bitten by Hanhan, and his right ankle by Feifei. He was taken to the hospital, accompanied by Second Uncle and Bo Mi.

 

Bo Jingxian was crying and making a scene, demanding the pets be thrown out: “How can there be such cats and dogs? We’ve raised them for so many years and they’re still ungrateful! They are ungrateful beasts! Second Aunt, you must throw them out!”

 

She had been knocked down by Hanhan at the reservoir before; she had wanted to throw him out even then!

 

Blood was all over the living room floor; the maids were cleaning it with floor scrubbers.

 

Second Aunt had already locked the pets in a room. She said hesitantly to the Old Lady, “Mom, today was Hanhan and Feifei’s fault, but it’s strange—they were never like this before. Maybe wait until your second son and eldest granddaughter get back before we decide?”

 

Old Lady Bo looked at Bo Yu, who was quietly holding her doll, then at Nanyan, who sat silently in her wheelchair while a maid replaced her arm sling.