My Idol Turns Out To Be My Ex-Girlfriend - Chapter 12

Overall, apart from the times Sanyuan spent scrolling through live streams on Weibo, the two of them got along quite harmoniously.

As time went on, Qiao Lian learned how to rinse the dish soap off the plates properly. She also learned how to wipe the table and hang the laundry, and occasionally on weekends, she would squat by Sanyuan’s feet to help prep vegetables.

When Lin Sanyuan sliced tomatoes on the counter, she would feed Qiao Lian a slice or two. At those moments, Qiao Lian would tilt her slender neck back to bite the food offered to her, eating quietly and without a word. Afterward, in the evening, Sanyuan would usually cook sweet and sour pork ribs as a reward for her hard work.

Sanyuan did her best to look after Qiao Lian’s feelings, making sure she didn’t feel like she was just a burden living under someone else’s roof. After all, Qiao Lian had the unpleasant past experience of living in her stepfather’s house and being rejected by her younger sister.

Qiao Lian was very good at adapting. As long as she wasn’t going to bars, her routine was actually quite disciplined. Having lived in the house for over half a month, she rarely stayed up late.

Perhaps because staying in the old house felt a bit stifling, Qiao Lian wasn’t very keen on staying indoors after dinner. She would often pull Lin Sanyuan out for a walk.

They lived in a small town within the city. Going out for a stroll at dusk was actually livelier than during the day. Children on scooters dashed through the streets, young couples were out walking their dogs and picking up after them, and the square speakers were already set up. The mysterious organization of “Square Dance Aunties” had already occupied their territory.

Lin Sanyuan adjusted her glasses, looking left and right, trying to see if she could spot a familiar dog among the crowd. In human society, she was socially anxious, but in the world of cats and dogs, she was a social butterfly. She didn’t need to speak, she just had to make a few clicking sounds with her tongue, and they would trot right over.

She loved these creatures that wagged their tails, rubbed against her ankles, and traded their cuteness for ham sausages or cat treats.

Before she could look for long, her sleeve suddenly tightened as Qiao Lian pulled at her. She glanced sideways to see two pale fingers lightly tugging at her hem.

“Lin Sanyuan, let’s go join the square dancing.”

Lin Sanyuan wasn’t happy about it. She didn’t like going out to begin with. Usually, she was either clocking in at work or staying cooped up at home. Walking and playing with dogs was already the limit of her daily exercise. Square dancing was a social activity, and she couldn’t handle being out in the spotlight like that.

She wanted to pet dogs.

But Qiao Lian was insistent. Sanyuan couldn’t understand how someone so young could have such elderly hobbies.

Twenty minutes later.

Starting from “Little Apple” and ending with “Lotus Pond Moonlight.”

Lin Sanyuan was panting as she slumped against the gazebo, her chest feeling as heavy as lead. Sweat dripped from her forehead, and her chest heaved violently. A Golden Retriever passing by with a frisbee tilted its head and looked at her with its tongue out.

The Golden Retriever’s smiling face was too infectious. Sanyuan couldn’t help herself and clicked her tongue to call it over. She finally got to put her hand on its head and give it a good rub. The big Golden was a regular, very friendly, with a tail wagging like a propeller as it panted and licked her hand.

Her palm was covered in dog breath. Lin Sanyuan felt hot and wanted to take off her jacket.

The October autumn was starting to get chilly, so Qiao Lian wouldn’t let her take it off. Instead, she took a freebie fan she’d gotten from some lady handing out flyers and fanned her gently from the other side of the railing.

Sanyuan gave the round little fan an annoyed look. It wasn’t cute at all. It had a blue and white background with a glaring advertisement on it:

Healthy Men, Happy Life! Early detection, early treatment. Don’t let men’s health issues trouble you anymore, make life more exciting!

Sanyuan, who hadn’t caught her breath yet, felt her chest tighten even more. The content on that little fan really didn’t match Qiao Lian’s pleasant face at all.

“Get that trashy fan away from me.” It was an eyesore.

Qiao Lian pursed her lips and smiled, glancing over at the square dancing crowd by the speakers. Not a single auntie had dropped out to rest.

“Your physical condition is too poor, you need more exercise.” That was why she was always catching colds.

Lin Sanyuan had hated exercise since she was a child. She resisted fiercely. “A corporate slave doesn’t deserve exercise.”

Qiao Lian pulled up Sanyuan’s sleeve and pinched the flesh on her arm. “You’re very thin, but your muscles are all soft. That’s a sign of muscle weakness. If you don’t strengthen your exercise routine, especially since you work all day and stay up late writing and drawing, you’re at high risk for sudden death.”

“It’s not that easy to die suddenly. It’s not like I don’t sleep at all. I’ve been like this for years and haven’t had much trouble. Those who die suddenly are internet-addicted teens who stay in net cafes for three or four days without moving, eating nothing but instant noodles.”

Sanyuan grabbed the Golden Retriever’s paw to push Qiao Lian’s hand away. Qiao Lian quickly pulled her hand back.

This trick always worked on Qiao Lian when she got annoying. Qiao Lian loved being clean and thought dogs smelled too strong. Usually, when they went for walks, she would take a detour to avoid any enthusiastic dogs rushing toward them.

After that, Sanyuan refused to go out for post-dinner walks with Qiao Lian no matter what. She thought the girl was just being a worrywart.

A few days later, Qiao Lian came home a bit late. She had actually bought a late-night snack today, some donuts.

But Sanyuan’s attention wasn’t on the snack, it was on Qiao Lian’s head.

Without a sound, Qiao Lian had suddenly dyed her hair a light linen blonde and styled it into French Barbie curls. The lazy, loose style made her face look even more delicate and small. It took away some of her coldness and added a sweet, youthful charm. She looked almost unrealistically beautiful.

Lin Sanyuan was shocked. “Does your school allow such an exaggerated hairstyle?”

Qiao Lian looked up. “Others can’t, but I can, because I’m a delinquent.”

The more important point she didn’t mention was that her father had donated a building to the school, which was currently the school library.

“Wow, you sound so proud of it.”

Tonight, Sanyuan didn’t watch the Weibo live stream. It seemed Qiu Feng had stopped updating recently. According to industry insiders, she had been invited to participate in an art exhibition back home.

Lin Sanyuan clattered away on her keyboard, working on her novel’s progress. “Why did you dye your hair?”

Qiao Lian walked in, opened the dessert bag, and took a donut in her mouth. She curled up and squatted by Sanyuan’s side, resting her hands lightly on Sanyuan’s knees. She looked up with a small, obedient face and a smile. “Don’t you think this hairstyle makes me look cute?”

Sanyuan thought her habit of resting her “paws” and carrying things in her mouth was very dog-like. She glanced down and frowned. “You only bought one donut?”

Eating all by herself.

Qiao Lian lowered her eyelids and sighed softly. She took the donut out of her mouth and tore half of it off for Sanyuan. Then, she lost the desire to speak and shuffled back to her room in her slippers.

Sanyuan had thought this ordinary and harmonious life together would last until Qiao Lian finished her college entrance exams. But things didn’t go as planned. That very night, Lin Sanyuan put on quite a show.

Lately, her editor had been pushing hard for drafts, so she was staying up late every night to catch up. For a part-timer like her, this was pretty much the norm.

By 2:00 AM, Sanyuan didn’t feel it was that late. She just felt her mouth was dry, exceptionally dry.

She rolled out of bed to get a bottle of mineral water from the fridge. After drinking half of it, she sat back down, but perhaps she sat down too hard, because a sudden ringing started in her ears.

Sanyuan tapped her head, but that only made her dizzy. The room began to spin. Her heart started beating faster and faster, and her chest felt tight and painful. The pounding in her ears grew louder, like a drum. A wave of nausea hit her, and she felt like she was going to throw up.

When she tried to stand up again, she found she couldn’t walk straight. Panic set in. She felt like Qiao Lian’s prophecy was coming true, she really was about to drop dead.

She was terrified.

Qiao Lian was already asleep, and since she had school the next morning, Sanyuan didn’t want to trouble her. More than that, Sanyuan had just been boasting earlier that evening about how her nutrition was balanced and her sleep was sufficient, insisting she wouldn’t die like those gamers. She’d even found Qiao Lian’s worrying annoying.

Only a few hours had passed, and she was already about to meet her ancestors.

Luckily, although the pain in her chest was getting worse, she hadn’t lost consciousness yet. She managed to quietly call for help, planning to get on the ambulance and head to the emergency room herself.

She didn’t have the strength to change clothes, but to avoid a “social death,” she struggled to put on a bra. By the time she got her pajamas back on, she was drenched in cold sweat. Her head felt like it was splitting, and even breathing deeply felt difficult.

This was serious.

There was no traffic in the early hours, so the ambulance arrived quickly.

Qiao Lian was woken up by the sound of Sanyuan’s phone ringing. She threw on a coat and put on her shoes. Pushing open the master bedroom door, she saw Sanyuan with a deathly pale face, holding her phone in one hand and leaning against the wall with the other, trying to get to the door.

She was acting all sneaky, like a thief in the night.

Qiao Lian was surprised. “You’re going out this late?”

Sanyuan felt both miserable and guilty. She gave a vague hum of agreement and then spoke to the doctor on the phone. “Yes… I live on the second floor.”

Qiao Lian was suspicious. “Why do I hear an ambulance downstairs? Is there an elderly person in the neighborhood who fell ill and needs your help?”

It wasn’t an elderly person, it was her! It was her!

Qiao Lian had been right. What could happen to those square-dancing seniors? They were much sturdier than her.

Dammit! My chest is so tight, it hurts, I want to puke!

Oh god, her vision was starting to go dark.

Perhaps because she was trying too hard to act normal, Qiao Lian didn’t realize that Sanyuan, who looked “steady as an old dog,” was actually about to keel over.

It wasn’t until Sanyuan’s hand shook so much she failed to open the door three times that Qiao Lian finally realized something was wrong. She rushed over to help.

“Lin Sanyuan?”

She got a good look at Sanyuan’s face. It was ghostly white without a drop of color, and her forehead was covered in cold sweat. Terrified, Qiao Lian grabbed her and found her body was cold as ice.

Sanyuan’s strength finally evaporated, and she slumped against Qiao Lian’s shoulder. Her lips trembled, and her eyes began to lose focus.

Qiao Lian was filled with horror. At that moment, nurses and doctors in white coats had already made it upstairs with a stretcher. A young nurse rushed over with an oxygen bag, swiftly snapped a transparent mask over Sanyuan’s face, loaded her onto the stretcher, and hurried back down.

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