Reborn as the Heartless Alpha - Chapter 47.2

Seeing the look on Zhou Zhou’s face, You Xuechu asked, “Did you two fight?”

“No.” Zhou Zhou gave a self-deprecating smile. She was just working for Ms. Song; what right did she have to fight? Even if she did, she…

She sighed silently and went back to her noodles.

You Xuechu analyzed the situation. If Zhou Zhou was happy yesterday but suddenly seemed down today because of Song Yi, what could it be? She realized that whenever she asked about Song Yi, Zhou Zhou instinctively tried to distance herself not because she was hiding something, but because she was afraid of causing Ms. Song trouble.

Zhou Zhou was likely very insecure, especially when facing someone like Song Yi. She remembered Song Yi also denied any romantic involvement. It was only natural for Zhou Zhou to be sad if Song Yi didn’t acknowledge her.

“It’s okay, I’ll help you,” You Xuechu said, comforting her.

Zhou Zhou didn’t quite understand but nodded anyway. After finishing, she asked, “Would you like to play some Gomoku with me?”

You Xuechu laughed. Zhou Zhou was too considerate. “When you truly want to play, you can find me. You don’t have to do things you don’t like just to comfort me.” Last time, she had noticed Zhou Zhou was very calm and didn’t have a passion for games; she was just being company.

Zhou Zhou felt embarrassed at being seen through.

“But thank you, Zhou Zhou.” You Xuechu cherished this pure kindness.

Zhou Zhou pursed her lips shyly. “I really didn’t do much. Are you sure I shouldn’t tell Ms. Song?”

She was still wondering if the relationship between Ms. You and Ms. Song had truly been repaired.

You Xuechu burst into laughter. “Relax, I don’t like Song Yi anymore. And… I don’t hate her either, for your sake.”

Zhou Zhou’s face flushed. Knowing that Ms. You had seen through her feelings for Ms. Song, she stopped trying to offer any useless explanations.

“However,” the mirth in You Xuechu’s eyes faded slightly, “if she treats you poorly, I won’t forgive her.”

Before Zhou Zhou could fully process the implication of that statement, You Xuechu continued, “Zhou Zhou, do you have Ding Chen’s contact information?”

“I do.” Upon hearing this, Zhou Zhou immediately opened her address book and found Dr. Ding’s number. As Ms. Song’s villa butler, she had a contact list on her work phone directly related to Ms. Song’s affairs; just in case, she had saved a copy on her personal phone as well.

“I’ll send it to Ms. Song,” Zhou Zhou said, copying the number and hitting send.

You Xuechu watched her own phone screen light up, displaying a string of digits sent by Zhou Zhou. She pressed the power button, and the screen went dark.

“Can I borrow your phone to make a call?” You Xuechu asked.

Zhou Zhou paused for a moment before handing her phone over.

You Xuechu dialed Ding Chen’s number directly, and it was answered almost instantly.

“Ms. Zhou? Is there another problem with Ms. Song?” Ding Chen asked proactively. Her voice was thick with a nasal quality; she clearly had a cold.

You Xuechu had originally intended to complain that the nutritional supplements were useless, but she suddenly found herself unable to say it.

“Hello?” On the other end, Ding Chen turned away to sneeze before asking, “Is it Ms. Zhou herself who feels unwell?”

“No, Dr. Ding, I’m fine,” Zhou Zhou whispered from the side. She didn’t understand why Ms. You had called Dr. Ding only to remain silent.

“Then who is…?” Ding Chen asked, confused, followed by a few muffled coughs.

“It’s me,” You Xuechu answered softly, her voice as faint as a wisp of smoke as it reached Ding Chen’s ears.

“Ms. You.” Ding Chen recognized the voice. “Are you looking for me?”

“No, wrong number.” You Xuechu hung up and returned the phone to Zhou Zhou.

Taking her phone back, Zhou Zhou asked worriedly, “Aren’t you going to tell Dr. Ding that the supplements aren’t working?”

“No point. They’re useless anyway,” You Xuechu said, leaning back against her chair.

This was a chronic issue of many years. Her parents had hired so many doctors to no avail; Ding Chen had simply shown up once, pulled out a few bottles of supplements she’d cooked up at some point, and claimed they were effective—yet they did nothing for her. She shouldn’t have pinned any hope on Ding Chen.

Zhou Zhou didn’t know what to say and remained silent. Her screen lit up again; it was a message from Dr. Ding asking what was wrong with Ms. You. After a moment’s thought, she typed out a reply explaining that the supplements hadn’t worked. Dr. Ding replied with a simple, “Thank you.”

A moment later, Dr. Ding called back. Zhou Zhou hesitated before answering.

“Ms. Zhou, please let Ms. You take the call.”

Zhou Zhou felt something was slightly off, but since she hadn’t known either of them for long, she didn’t understand the complexities between them. The only thing she could do was follow instructions, acting as the intermediary to hand the phone to Ms. You.

The phone once again ended up in You Xuechu’s hand. Ding Chen calling back was truly beyond her expectations. They only knew each other because of Song Yi; they had no real friendship and weren’t even considered well-acquainted.

The most interaction they’d had was during that period yesterday afternoon. A strange sensation welled up in You Xuechu’s heart—much like yesterday, when she saw Ding Chen pull those specific anorexia-regulating supplements out of her white medical kit.

On the line, Ding Chen coughed a few times before speaking. “I apologize, Ms. You. I don’t fully understand your specific situation; the supplements I prepared might not correspond to your symptoms.”

You Xuechu paused before telling her, “It’s not pathological anorexia.”

“Emotional?” Ding Chen coughed again.

“Yes.” You Xuechu really didn’t want to admit it.

“You don’t need to drink the rest of them. Emotional issues require finding the root cause; the treatment is different from pathological cases. Cough, cough…” Ding Chen suddenly broke into a fit of heavy coughing.

You Xuechu frowned. “I understand. Take care of yourself first.” With that, she hung up again.

The phone returned to Zhou Zhou’s hand. Zhou Zhou said in surprise, “Dr. Ding developed those supplements specifically for you to overcome anorexia.”

You Xuechu found it amusing and shook her head. “How is that possible? Ding Chen isn’t my private doctor. If she wanted to treat me, she’d have to tailor the medicine to the person, and she doesn’t even know my specific circumstances.”

“…True.” Zhou Zhou paused, then added, “Could it have been Ms. Song’s idea?”

Zhou Zhou figured that since Ms. You and Ms. Song were together once, it was only natural for Ms. Song to ask her private doctor to find a way to treat Ms. You out of care and concern.

“That explanation is much more convincing.” You Xuechu curled her lips, though the smile didn’t reach her eyes. “In that case, Song Yi’s past affection for me was far too superficial.”

“I’m sorry, Ms. You.” Zhou Zhou apologized immediately, feeling she had poked a sore spot.

However, Ms. You suddenly turned to her and said seriously, “Zhou Zhou, I’ve known Song Yi for twenty years, and even now I can’t say I fully understand her. I can only tell you she used to be truly terrible. I see she’s changing recently, and the way she treats you is different from her past girlfriends. But I still hope you protect yourself as much as possible. You can enjoy the romance, but don’t get hurt.”

Zhou Zhou was stunned for a moment, then smiled. “Ms. You, you’ve really misunderstood. Ms. Song… it’s impossible for Ms. Song to like me.”

Saying this was no different from admitting she liked Ms. Song. After speaking, Zhou Zhou lowered her head in embarrassment.

“You need to have confidence in yourself, Zhou Zhou,” You Xuechu said. “Song Yi definitely has feelings for you.”

Saying it was just “feelings” was a conservative estimate. You Xuechu simply felt it would be easier for Zhou Zhou to accept it that way; confidence had to be built slowly.

Zhou Zhou felt a slight warmth in her heart. She didn’t dare think too much about it, but she felt that Ms. Song probably didn’t dislike her.

Seeing Zhou Zhou lost in thought, You Xuechu didn’t disturb her. She lowered her head and sent a message with ambiguous boundaries to Song Yi.

[Borrowing Zhou Zhou for the day. Smiling cat meme]

After sending it, she tossed the phone face-down on the sofa and asked Zhou Zhou, “Can you teach me how to do handicrafts? I’ve already cleared it with Song Yi for you to have the day off.”

Zhou Zhou blinked and nodded, thinking that Ms. Song probably wanted her here to help look after Ms. You anyway.

“Can you teach me how to weave those grasshoppers you made with Song Yi last time?”

Zhou Zhou hesitated. She remembered her promise to Ms. Song not to use grass anymore to avoid getting cut. So she said, “We can use paper and scissors instead.”

“Paper and scissors?”

“Yes,” Zhou Zhou explained. “Paper is safer; grass can cut your hands easily. Besides, the grass outside hasn’t grown enough yet; it’s not long enough.”

You Xuechu wasn’t truly interested in the handicraft itself, so she readily agreed. She went upstairs to find scissors and two sketchbooks. “Are these okay?”

“They’re perfect.” Zhou Zhou took the sketchbooks and scissors, cut some paper, and began teaching You Xuechu in slow motion. She showed her how to fold a grasshopper and a frog that could jump when pressed.

You Xuechu found it magical. The two of them ended up sitting on the clean floor, setting a starting line like children, and racing their paper frogs to see who could reach the finish line first.

Meanwhile, Song Yi was pacing around her house. She had intended to review for her junior year final exams, but ever since receiving You Xuechu’s message, she couldn’t settle down. She opened her books but couldn’t stop wondering what Zhou Zhou and You Xuechu were doing.

She didn’t even know if Zhou Zhou had eaten lunch. It was four o’clock now; she probably had. Zhou Zhou had left in such a hurry—had You Xuechu said something to her? If You Xuechu really liked Zhou Zhou, would Zhou Zhou fall for her too?

Her thoughts were a tangled mess. Distraught, Song Yi closed the textbook she had spread out, tossed it aside, and checked her phone again. She had sent two messages after replying to You, but You Xuechu hadn’t responded to either.

She couldn’t help but wonder what was so engrossing that You Xuechu was keeping Zhou Zhou so busy. The only thing that gave her peace of mind was that You Xuechu was a person of integrity; she wouldn’t have a mind full of “scum” thoughts or act inappropriately toward Zhou Zhou.

But… what if they were just dating normally?

Song Yi could no longer sit still. She left the room, went downstairs, and headed straight for You Xuechu’s villa.

It was only a few hundred meters away. With her long legs, she walked briskly and arrived in minutes. You Xuechu’s villa wasn’t locked against her; she could enter directly. After entering the iron gates and walking through the front yard, she slowed her pace, subconsciously not wanting them to see how rushed and urgent she was.

She climbed the steps and saw from a distance that Zhou Zhou and You Xuechu were sitting on the floor in the living room. They were close together, heads bowed and backs bent, doing something unknown. Her footsteps faltered; Song Yi suddenly hesitated over whether to keep going.

Just then, You Xuechu turned her head, followed by Zhou Zhou. When they saw her, expressions of surprise crossed their faces. You Xuechu rose from the floor and reached out to pull Zhou Zhou up by the arm before letting go.

“What are you doing here?” You Xuechu asked with a smile. She had expected Song Yi to show up; it was just a matter of sooner or later.

Song Yi shifted her gaze from Zhou Zhou to You Xuechu, who was now standing before her. She gave the excuse she’d prepared on the way: “Final exams are coming up. I came to ask for the exam scope, key points, and your notes.”

She felt the excuse was seamless; her voice didn’t waver at all.

You Xuechu, however, couldn’t help but laugh out loud. The Song Yi who couldn’t even be bothered to attend class suddenly wanted to review? If she came to see Zhou Zhou, she should just say so; why find such a terrible excuse?

“It’s not out of the question. For the sake of giving Zhou Zhou the day off, I’ll begrudgingly lend them to you.”

“Follow me to the second floor, I’ll get them for you.”

“Okay, thanks.” Song Yi followed behind You Xuechu. Suddenly, You Xuechu stopped, turned her head, and smiled tenderly at Zhou Zhou. “Wait for me a moment.”

Song Yi couldn’t help but turn back too, only to see Zhou Zhou nodding obediently at You Xuechu. It left a bitter taste in her mouth, yet she turned back around before You Xuechu did.

Upon reaching the second floor, You Xuechu stopped again. She turned around, leaned against the wall, and looked at her with crossed arms. Song Yi felt a bit guilty under the gaze, but she maintained a steady expression.

You Xuechu said with a smile, “Don’t hide it, Song Yi. You’re jealous, aren’t you?”

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