My Idol Turns Out To Be My Ex-Girlfriend - Chapter 37

Tang Hengzhi’s life was complete: a privileged family background, a fine education, and striking looks. Obtaining what she wanted always seemed effortless, and gaining the affection and admiration of others was as simple as breathing. Her world never lacked devoted followers.

However, earning her genuine love was, in fact, incredibly difficult. In her entire life, she had only granted that privilege to one person. For a life as perfect as hers, romance was not a necessity. She had never been in a relationship, nor had she researched the “correct” way to date someone, especially when that someone was a girl.

And as it happened, Lin Sanyuan seemed to be a person who never needed verbal affirmations of affection from others. Unlike the romantic beauty of her novels, Sanyuan was not a girl who chased after grand gestures.

But this did not mean Tang Hengzhi never felt regret. A relationship that lacked a formal acknowledgment from both parties turned out to be as fragile as loose sand. One gust of wind, one bout of illness, and every trace of it vanished.

In matters of the heart, she had handled things quite messily. Now, her reappearance and her attempts to close the distance, she wasn’t sure if it even counted as “getting back together.” She wondered if it was too late to settle the accounts and start over.

Sanyuan, well-versed in the tropes of her craft, looked up and let out an “ah.” “An unclear beginning and an ambiguous end, in modern terms, that’s just ‘situationship’ territory, right?”

Maybe artists liked to play that way. Although it was hard to swallow, if the ending was “ambiguous,” then it meant they hadn’t officially started a relationship, right? Even if they were technically “seeing each other,” it must have been very platonic.

Sanyuan knew herself well. She was deeply influenced by traditional culture; her mindset was more conservative and old-fashioned than a grandmother’s in the countryside. Under normal circumstances, she had to be home by nine, never drank alcohol given by strangers, refused hand-holding during the “ambiguous” phase, required a clear commitment before even a kiss, and saved sex for marriage.

Yang Jiayan actually had a point: Sanyuan had a bit of “persecution mania.” Part of it was her conservatism, and part of it was that the feng shui of her neighborhood seemed cursed, every few years, a news story would break about a woman being murdered by an older man in a crime of passion. She was extremely cautious in dating, afraid of being scammed for money or sex, or worse, losing her life.

However, Tang Hengzhi had a face that inspired a strange sense of security. She looked quite ascetic, and in the art world, people like her were usually wealthy elites. Sanyuan really had nothing worth scheming for. The idea that someone would maintain a “situationship” with her for three years was baffling, but it didn’t seem like a dangerous situation.

“I admit our starting point was a bit blurry, but I do not admit to it being a ‘situationship.’ I don’t like using that word to define us,” Tang Hengzhi countered with rare firmness. She looked a bit frustrated as she propped herself up and leaned in closer.

Sanyuan was startled by the sudden movement, thinking, Surely she wouldn’t hit me over this?

The next second, a dull pain shot through her fingertip. As Tang Hengzhi snatched the peeled orange segment from her hand, she gave Sanyuan’s finger a firm, deliberate nip, like a mark of dissatisfaction or a tiny punishment.

Sanyuan was left completely unsettled by that bite. A segment of orange was tucked between those moist lips, the juice staining them until they looked as sweet and inviting as if they were glazed in honey. Sanyuan curled her fingers. She felt that the “purity” of her relationship with Tang Hengzhi was rapidly evaporating.

As if reading her mind, Tang Hengzhi smiled around the orange. “Did you never consider why a person as guarded as you could naturally cling to me and touch me so freely when we slept together? Was it really just because you’re a restless sleeper?”

Sanyuan’s brain went boom, her entire face turning scarlet.

The usually even-tempered Tang Hengzhi had no intention of letting her off the hook. The Sanyuan who spoke of “situationships” was a bit irritating. Hengzhi lifted a hand, her fingers lightly trailing up Sanyuan’s own, her soft voice inviting all sorts of imagination.

“Have you never suspected that it stems from a subconscious sexual habit?”

That word, “sexual,” effectively nailed Sanyuan to the sofa. She didn’t doubt the truth of Hengzhi’s words for a second. There was no reason for her to lie.

Sanyuan herself wasn’t particularly interested in the “acts” between men and women. Though she had learned the theory in middle school, she had never put it into practice. The concept was vague to her, let alone the specific mechanics between two girls. She wasn’t the type to look things up out of curiosity, and she wouldn’t even know which websites to use to find adult content.

But just now, when Tang Hengzhi hooked her finger, the doors to a new world exploded open in her mind. It was as if a search engine had been automatically installed in her brain, popping up results instantly.

Memory loss was no longer a valid excuse. The mind might forget, but the body remembers learned skills. Sanyuan, who always prided herself on being a well-behaved, moral citizen, felt her entire worldview being overturned.

Zhang Mianmian used to mock her for living like a celibate monk. While it hurt a little, Sanyuan also felt a bit smug about it, thinking she was unique. Today, Tang Hengzhi had utterly dismantled that delusion.

Having lived for twenty-four years believing she was exceptionally noble and detached, Sanyuan couldn’t even meet Hengzhi’s eyes. She kept her head down, picking at the orange peel until it was full of holes. “Uh, well… if it was just hugging and cuddling…”

She wanted to make a last-ditch effort to argue, but then she realized she didn’t do those things with her best friends. Before she could finish the sentence, she had already condemned herself.

It was a bit hopeless. She looked up, her panicked, guilty eyes shimmering. She took a deep breath and asked directly: “Did we… do it?”

Tang Hengzhi’s eyes flickered, then she crinkled them in a smile. “Everything lovers do, we did. If you don’t believe me, you can check for yourself…”

Sanyuan cut her off instantly. “I believe you! I believe you completely! Please, don’t say another word.”

Good grief! Suddenly, she wasn’t “innocent” anymore, and the worst part was she had no memory of it!

However, once the truth was established, Sanyuan slowly found her footing. She puffed out her chest and looked at Tang Hengzhi with the eyes one might use for a heartbreaker. “So, you dumped me, regretted it, and now you want to get back together?”

Wow, the feeling of being the heroine in a “pursued by the ex” story was actually kind of a rush.

Tang Hengzhi paused, blinked, and corrected her softly: “You were the one who left me.”

Strangely, a fact that had once been so hard to face was spoken today with ease. Sanyuan was instantly petrified. So, she was the one who was supposed to be doing the pursuing? What kind of hidden talent did she have to pull off such a major move in secret?

Sanyuan felt it was impossible and instinctively wanted to argue.

Tang Hengzhi’s lips twitched as she added, “You said you didn’t want to be a lesbian. You said you wanted to go home, go on blind dates, and have kids. Then you dumped me.”

“Ho—holy crap?” The word “blind date” was mentioned. That sounded exactly like something Lin Sanyuan would do. There was no arguing against it.

So, she was the heartbreaker? Sanyuan was dying of guilt.

Tang Hengzhi looked down at her. “The sofa is high quality. There are no holes for you to crawl into.”

Sanyuan’s brain was reaching its limit. “So… so you came back because you saw I didn’t succeed in my blind dates or have kids, and you’re planning to take responsibility for me?”

It was a bit of a silly question. Tang Hengzhi’s gaze was deep. “Why couldn’t it be that I’m here to settle the score?”

What kind of logic was that? If she was the one who got dumped, why did she need to be responsible? Sanyuan’s sluggish brain eventually caught on. She pulled her neck in like an ostrich. “Then… how do you want to settle the score?”

She was the type of person who hated owing anyone anything. Even owing someone ten bucks would keep her tossing and turning. Let alone an emotional debt like this. And compared to Tang Hengzhi, she was poor. If it came down to financial compensation, she couldn’t afford a “breakup fee.”

Hengzhi tilted her chin up, exposing her slender neck. “Then let’s start by counting how many times you’ve bitten me tonight.”

Who could remember that?! Sanyuan’s face burned. “That was… uncontrollable.”

Hengzhi rested her chin on her hand. “Do you think that’s polite?”

“…Not very polite,” Sanyuan murmured, her eyelids drooping. She knew Hengzhi wasn’t a pushy person. So why was she saying this? Obviously, she had an ulterior motive.

And, goddammit, Sanyuan understood exactly what that motive was. Or perhaps, it wasn’t a motive at all.

“So, do you want to bite back?”

“Can I?”

Yeah, it looked like she really wanted to. Sanyuan picked at a loose thread on her sleeve. This was likely the first time she’d ever dumped someone. Although she didn’t remember it, now that the words were out in the open, she felt quite guilty toward Tang Hengzhi.

More importantly, the timing of Tang Hengzhi’s return was too coincidental. In some ways, Sanyuan was exceptionally sharp. She followed Qiu Feng’s account; she knew she posted and live-streamed almost every day. The night before Sanyuan was hospitalized, she was still updating normally. But the next day, she stopped, practically teleporting back from abroad.

And she just happened to return to Huacheng, to He Wenyu’s house. Wenyu said she had a car accident due to fatigued driving, resulting in a dislocated arm and abrasions. What “important exhibition” would require her to drive for ten-plus hours on a highway immediately after landing?

Sanyuan’s ego didn’t dare act up now. Tang Hengzhi could have mentioned the reason for her accident, but she didn’t say a word. Sanyuan was a person who felt guilt easily. She couldn’t say no to her.

Because even though Tang Hengzhi said nothing, and even though Sanyuan was confused and afraid, she could feel it. She was being cherished. She felt… loved.

That feeling was too rare. Sanyuan shifted, her tear mole appearing clearly in the dim light, perhaps due to the alcohol. Her face was very red, sinking softly into the sofa. She looked very pliable as she murmured, “Then you can bite.”

The soft trailing note of her voice made her sound incredibly sweet-tempered. Tang Hengzhi felt a tug at her heart. Her long lashes fluttered; she was not as calm as she appeared.

Seeing no movement, Sanyuan tucked her chin. “If you don’t want to, then never mind.”

Tang Hengzhi leaned down, hooking her arm around Sanyuan’s neck to bring that soft body closer. The next moment, Sanyuan felt her lip being caught. A cool, pleasant breath hit her face as body heat and moisture enveloped her. There was a faint scent of mint mixed with the sweet orange, completely taking over the lingering taste of the milk candy on her tongue.

The small oranges she bought today were truly sweet. The gum in Tang Hengzhi’s mouth was gone. Sanyuan had no idea when she had spit it out. This was premeditated…

The moment she was bitten, Sanyuan instinctively closed her eyes, not daring to look at anything. Her lashes trembled, and her body went soft instantly.

It wasn’t until her body began to shake slightly that Tang Hengzhi let go. She gently pinched Sanyuan’s cold nose and frowned slightly. “Breathe.”

Only then did Sanyuan inhale sharply, taking in large gulps of air. Tang Hengzhi found her reaction adorable. It seemed she would have to teach her how to kiss all over again.

Sanyuan’s dazed eyes were misty. She bit the inside of her cheek and looked at Tang Hengzhi with a hesitant frown. “You bit the wrong place, and I didn’t even use my tongue.”

“The wrong place? Then I’ll have to look again.” Hengzhi’s calm eyes held a hint of innocence. She pinched Sanyuan’s chin again, making her tilt her head to expose her neck, and leaned down to give her side-neck a firm nip, leaving a small red mark.

“This is the place, right?”

Sanyuan’s eyes went wide. She clutched her neck, looking at her in disbelief. “You… you… are you flirting with me?”

Tang Hengzhi lowered her eyelids. “You caught me?”

Sanyuan scrambled off the sofa like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, looking for her shoes to make an escape. This woman was a bit terrifying.

Tang Hengzhi caught her arm and said softly, “You’ve been drinking. I don’t feel comfortable letting you go back alone.”

“I’m… not drunk.”

“Sleep here tonight.”

Sanyuan shuddered, looking at her with a complex expression. Tang Hengzhi’s gaze was peaceful. “I’ll sleep on the sofa. I won’t bite you anymore.” Her eyes landed on Sanyuan’s swollen lips, and she chuckled. “The ‘wrong place’ I bit will settle the score for tonight.”

Sanyuan failed to escape and obediently crawled into bed to sleep. Once Tang Hengzhi went to the bathroom to shower, Sanyuan whipped out her phone and started typing furiously for backup.

“You scoundrel, you there?”

He Ye: “??”

Lin Sanyuan: “I’m in a huge mess!”

This kind of thing, she could only share with her “gay bro.”

He Ye: “What? Your mom pressuring you to marry again?”

Lin Sanyuan: “Oh, I’m a bit excited, typed it wrong. I meant my friend is in a huge mess!”

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