Secret Lover Who Stealthily Fell in Love with My Older Sister - Chapter 98

Chapter 98: A Wondrous and Sweet Night, …

The wondrous and sweet night allowed Qiao Xi to uncover yet another unknown side of Shen Ya. Seeing Shen Ya with a face like peach blossoms and eyes like autumn water, Qiao Xi willingly succumbed to her charm.

In just one night, Qiao Xi understood the marvelous use of the cat paw slapper, so much so that the parts that had been tapped were still a bit numb when she woke up the next day. Yesterday, her soul had been completely captivated by Shen Ya, causing her to lose all reason and leave kiss marks on Shen Ya’s neck—and more than just one this time.

Shen Ya leaned one hand against the bathroom vanity, her fingers of the other hand lightly touching the kiss marks on her neck and collarbone. Her expression was calm as she softly spoke: “Qiao Xi.”

Shen Ya’s instruction from last night was still fresh in her mind. Although the slapper hadn’t hurt her, Shen Ya’s image as a teacher was deeply ingrained in her heart. Now, being called by her full name, she instantly felt as if a teacher had called her name in class.

Qiao Xi straightened her legs and stood at attention, her hands pressed against the sides of her pants, answering guiltily: “Wha-what is it?”

Shen Ya turned her head and pointed her finger at her neck. She glared at Qiao Xi and scolded playfully: “Little rascal.”

“I couldn’t help it! Whose fault is it that Teacher Shen is so sweet and delicious…” Qiao Xi immediately covered her mouth and patted it twice before saying: “I was wrong. I’ll go find a scarf for Teacher Shen.”

With that, she turned and ran.

Watching Qiao Xi’s furtive back, Shen Ya shook her head with a smile.

They had agreed last night that Qiao Xi would go home today to face her family and then find a chance to visit Fang Moyao at Blank. They didn’t know yet if Qiao Xi could return tonight.

Before leaving, Qiao Xi tied a beautiful scarf pattern for Shen Ya. Fortunately, the temperature wasn’t high, so no one would be suspicious even if she wore a scarf all day.

Leaving the house, Qiao Xi held Shen Ya’s hand as they went from the elevator to the underground parking lot. After getting into the car and buckling their seatbelts, Qiao Xi said dejectedly: “If I go back today, I might not be able to return tonight.”

“It’s okay. School starts in two days. I’ll go to Fang Moyao’s apartment and wait for you in advance then.”

“But I really miss Teacher Shen.” Their relationship had just advanced, and they were in the midst of passion. The thought of being temporarily separated made Qiao Xi very uncomfortable.

Shen Ya noticed Qiao Xi’s unhappiness. She reached out and patted Qiao Xi’s face: “If you can’t come back tonight, shall we video chat?”

Qiao Xi sighed again: “That’s all we can do.”

Despite her words, Qiao Xi still intended to come over, but she couldn’t decide yet. She needed to go home and handle the family recognition matter first.

Shen Ya originally intended to drive her back to Jiang Yunxi and Qin Shuyuan’s house, but Qiao Xi refused. She didn’t want to face her two sisters alone. Therefore, she would drop Shen Ya off at work first and then take a taxi back to her mothers’ house herself.

They left early today. When passing the commercial area outside the community, Shen Ya stopped the car and let Qiao Xi buy some breakfast from a steamed bun shop.

Shen Ya couldn’t easily eat while driving, so whenever they stopped at a traffic light, Qiao Xi would pop a small steamed bun into Shen Ya’s mouth. They shared the buns, and it didn’t take long for them to finish them all.

The morning rush hour was still a bit congested, but Shen Ya arrived at her workplace with a little time before starting work. With their parting imminent, Qiao Xi’s reluctance peaked. She hugged Shen Ya’s arm, unwilling to let go.

With Qiao Xi rubbing her face and neck against her, the young girl’s hot body temperature made Shen Ya feel like she was holding a clingy Samoyed puppy.

Shen Ya lightly patted the back of Qiao Xi’s head, leaned closer to kiss Qiao Xi’s brow, slowly moving her lips to her nose, and finally stopping at her rosy lips.

Qiao Xi deliberately made a “smooch” sound before reluctantly letting go of Shen Ya.

“It’s not like we can’t see each other again. Don’t be sad.” Shen Ya’s thumb rubbed the corner of Qiao Xi’s eye, afraid she might cry at any moment: “If you can’t come back tonight, then tomorrow I’ll call your mother and tell her that I miss you, that I can’t bear for you to be away from me for too long, and ask her to let you come back to me. How does that sound?”

“What are you saying?” Qiao Xi was teased by Shen Ya’s words and felt embarrassed. If Shen Ya really said that, she would lose face terribly in front of her two mothers: “I’m not that childish.”

“Mm, our Xiao Xi is an adult now.”

Shen Ya’s words were spoken earnestly, but they sounded strangely ambiguous, as if she was subtly making fun of her.

Qiao Xi opened the car door first: “Then Teacher Shen should go to work first. I’ll come find you after I handle my own affairs.”

Although she had almost convinced herself, Qiao Xi still accompanied Shen Ya into the office. After greeting Shen Ya’s colleagues and secretly ordering them morning tea, Qiao Xi reluctantly left Shen Ya’s workplace.

Other than Shen Ya, no one knew she was coming home today. So, when Qiao Xi pushed open the door to her mothers’ house and passed the dining room, both mothers who were eating breakfast looked up simultaneously.

“Xiao Xi?!”

“Xiao Xi is back!” Jiang Zhiqing immediately put down her chopsticks and stood up. Her steps were hurried, afraid Qiao Xi would run away if she walked too slowly: “Have you had breakfast?”

Qiao Xi shook her head: “I shared a little bit of the small steamed buns with Teacher Shen when I dropped her off at work this morning.”

“We’re having breakfast right now. There’s plenty of food today. Come and eat some.” Jiang Zhiqing put her arm around Qiao Xi’s shoulder and led her to the dining table. Qin Yunxin had already gone to the kitchen to get her a set of utensils.

As soon as Qiao Xi sat down, she recognized the food on the table was from the restaurant near their house. Eating such rich food so early in the morning, she was genuinely afraid of overindulging and getting a nosebleed. After looking around at the food on the table, she finally picked up the separately plated crab roe soup dumplings and put them in front of her.

Seeing her eat, Jiang Zhiqing finally relaxed and chatted with her: “I thought you’d bring Xiao Shen back with you.”

“Teacher Shen has to work, and besides, I’m not ready yet.” Of course, she would bring her, but she wanted the family to be fully prepared for Shen Ya’s first visit. She knew Shen Ya wasn’t good at dealing with elders, so bringing Shen Ya home to meet the parents was a matter she needed to consider carefully.

Qin Yunxin asked her: “Then, coming back today, have you thought things through, Xiao Xi?”

“Yes, actually, Teacher Shen talked some sense into me.” Qiao Xi spoke with a straight face, making things up. She just wanted to boost Shen Ya’s likeability in front of her family: “She said Mom and Sister are very much in love with me, and my worries are unnecessary. There’s nothing wrong with acknowledging the Fang family; it just means I’ll have more family members to love me.”

Jiang Zhiqing: “Did she really say that?”

“Of course.” Qiao Xi looked earnest: “Teacher Shen even encouraged me to come back today! She said I have to face it sooner or later, and besides, school is about to start. Resolving this matter early will allow everyone to breathe a sigh of relief.”

Jiang Zhiqing nodded after hearing this: “Xiao Shen is right. How could Mom and Mommy not love you? It’s our fault, too. For years, we’ve always worried that if you knew you had other relatives alive, you wouldn’t want to live with us anymore. You’ve grown up and have your own thoughts. You can make decisions for your own future now.”

Hearing her mother say this, Qiao Xi belatedly realized her mothers’ worries. It turned out her mothers were also afraid of her leaving. Emotions are mutual. She finally understood this after calming down.

Qin Yunxin served her a bowl of fish maw congee: “Then, while school hasn’t started yet, how about we arrange to have dinner with the Fang family tomorrow?”

“Maybe in two more days. Give us some time to prepare, Mom.” In reality, she planned to visit Fang Moyao in the next day or two to discuss future arrangements with her first, so that when the two families met, there wouldn’t be any awkwardness.

“That’s fine too.” Jiang Zhiqing didn’t dare to pressure Qiao Xi anymore, afraid the daughter who had finally returned home would leave again: “Let’s go out for dinner tonight. I’ll tell your two sisters later.”

Qiao Xi nodded.

“Eat first, then go upstairs and sleep for a bit.” Qin Yunxin’s eyes hadn’t left Qiao Xi.

Qiao Xi didn’t go upstairs immediately after breakfast. She stayed downstairs and chatted with her two mothers for a while. Later, she learned that her mothers had an appointment to go out today. Jiang Zhiqing intended to ask her to come along, but Qiao Xi didn’t want to deal with elders and declined.

After her mothers left the house, she returned to her room to rest. Everyone was busy; it seemed she was the only one with free time. With nothing to do, she decided to take a nap, especially since she still had to deal with her two sisters tonight.

Shen Ya received a message from Qiao Xi in the morning, briefly mentioning what happened after she returned home. She ended the message with: [Teacher Shen, I’m going to catch up on some sleep. I have to go out for dinner tonight. We’ll talk later.]

She waited until she got off work, but Qiao Xi never messaged her again.

It seemed she would spend the night alone. After work, Shen Ya didn’t plan to go home. She went to Blank alone. These days, Fang Moyao would occasionally chat with her to gauge Qiao Xi’s mood. Today, she intended to go and give Fang Moyao some insight and also pick up the gift Fang Moyao said she was sending her last time.

She had notified Fang Moyao before leaving. When she arrived at Blank, Fang Moyao and Zhou Ziqian were already sitting in their usual spots, waiting for her.

“Boss Shen finally shows up.” Zhou Ziqian propped up her chin, trying to find something interesting on Shen Ya the moment she appeared.

Shen Ya sat down across from them. It was surprisingly different today; there was no wine on the table, only an unopened bottle of coconut juice. The dishes were already served, all seafood. Zhou Ziqian took the clean glass in front of her and poured her more than half a glass of coconut juice.

“You’re here alone today. Did Xiao Xi go home?” Before Shen Ya could speak, Fang Moyao had already guessed.

“Mm.”

“Eh?” Zhou Ziqian took Fang Moyao’s glass and poured her coconut juice: “So what does Little Sister Xi mean? When does she plan to acknowledge her biological great-aunt and biological sister?”

Fang Moyao silently picked up the glass and took a sip of the coconut juice.

Shen Ya said: “Xiao Xi will probably come to see you first. You can ask her when she arrives.”

“Come to see me?” Fang Moyao scoffed without a genuine smile. She slammed the glass back onto the table: “When is she coming? You don’t mind if I give her a couple of smacks, do you?”

Even today, Fang Moyao still couldn’t swallow her anger. She had never suffered such a significant loss at anyone’s hands. If Qiao Xi, that little rascal, were raised in her house, she would have severely punished the brat who stole things long ago.

The smile on Shen Ya’s face was not obvious. She first picked up her chopsticks, grabbed a mantis shrimp, and calmly peeled the shell before saying: “If Boss Fang isn’t afraid of Blank being torn apart, she can try.”

“She wouldn’t dare!”

“She dared to steal your prized possession. Why wouldn’t she dare to wreck your establishment? Xiao Xi is very observant of people’s expressions. She knows you wouldn’t genuinely do anything to her, which is why she dares to occasionally do something lawless, relying on the love of her family.”

Zhou Ziqian nudged Fang Moyao with her elbow. She looked at Fang Moyao mockingly: “Truly your biological little sister. Her personality is exactly like yours when you were little.”

Fang Moyao’s expression was still somewhat unpleasant, but she took Shen Ya’s words to heart. Besides, they wanted to acknowledge Qiao Xi. She was merely venting with words; how could she actually beat up Qiao Xi?

Ever since her mother learned that Qiao Xi was her little aunt’s child, she had been eagerly awaiting Qiao Xi’s return. Now, Qiao Xi’s status in her mother’s and grandmother’s hearts was even higher than hers and Zhou Ziqian’s.

Forget it. She couldn’t physically strike her, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t get back at her in other ways.

Fang Moyao’s brows relaxed, and her usual fake smile reappeared on her face: “Perfectly timed. I have a gift for you.”

She took out a black box from behind her. The box had the Fangzui logo on it. The box was small, and it was impossible to tell what was inside.

Fang Moyao handed the box to Shen Ya. Shen Ya wiped her hands with a napkin before accepting it. She held the box up to her ear and shook it. Hearing no sound, she asked: “What’s inside?”

“Open it when you go back tonight and have a look.”

Shen Ya nodded, not asking further: “Thank you.” She put the box into her bag.

Fang Moyao asked again: “When is Xiao Xi coming over? I’ll book a restaurant and take her out to eat.”

“In the next couple of days. I’ll ask her again tonight.”

Compared to Shen Ya’s relaxed state, Qiao Xi felt like she had stepped into hot water the moment she saw her two sisters. Both scrutinized her with looks of resentment and curiosity, wishing they could see through the secrets in her mind.

Qiao Xi could only offer an awkward smile and greet them. When Jiang Yunxi tried to ask her who she had been with all this time, she immediately darted to Qin Yunxin’s side.

Unfortunately, she could only hide for a moment, not forever. In the private dining room, she was sandwiched between her two sisters, one on each side. Qiao Xi was stressed, cold sweat breaking out on her back, wishing the dinner would end quickly so she could escape.

Sadly, her two mothers completely ignored the conflict between their three daughters, allowing the two sisters to interrogate her in low voices.

Jiang Yunxi’s eyebrow arched, her eyes sharp, and a cold smirk played on her lips. Her finger tapped her thigh intermittently: “Who were you with the day you ran away from home?”

Qiao Xi’s mind instantly began to brainstorm. Jiang Yunxi’s certain inquiry meant she had either seen something or heard something. Since she hadn’t mentioned Shen Ya, she definitely didn’t know who Qiao Xi was with.

If that was the case, she could spin a lie.

She was still anxious inside, but to conceal her relationship with Shen Ya, she had to bite the bullet and tell some falsehoods.

“An upperclassman from my university.”

“An upperclassman?” Qin Shuyuan immediately questioned her: “What is your relationship with this upperclassman, Xiao Xi?”

“Just a normal upperclassman-underclassman relationship, of course. I ran out that day and happened to bump into my upperclassman and her friends having a gathering, so they invited me to join them. I shared that bottle of wine with them too.”

As Qiao Xi spoke, Qin Shuyuan and Jiang Yunxi stared at her without blinking, determined not to miss any slip-ups. However, Qiao Xi’s lying skills were already masterful. When she lied, her face didn’t blush and her heart didn’t pound; she showed no flaws whatsoever.

Qin Shuyuan: “Really?”

“Of course, it’s true.” Qiao Xi countered: “Sister doesn’t believe me?”

“No, I believe you.” Qin Shuyuan returned to her usual gentleness. She stroked Qiao Xi’s head and said: “So, all this time, Xiao Xi has been staying alone in the apartment opposite the all-girls high school?”

“Not entirely. I also stayed at a friend’s house for a few days. We played games together.”

Jiang Yunxi was half-skeptical, but she couldn’t find any evidence. Although she still had doubts, she knew they probably wouldn’t get anything more out of her.