She Adopted Me After My Biological Mother Passed Away - Chapter 39

“That’s not being a fool, she must really love you.”

The sound of arguments and camera shutters blurred together, and the scene instantly descended into chaos. The staff members were sweating profusely, trying to hold back the surging fans while shouting, “Stop filming! Maintain order!”

Looking at the blockading crowd and the flashing lenses, Qiao Zina didn’t shrink back. Instead, her smile grew more wretched as she pointed at Ci Cheng and screamed, “Ci Cheng! If I can’t live a good life, don’t think you’re going to have one either!”

Ci Cheng’s head was buzzing, and the injury was far worse than expected. Her hand, which she used to touch her head, was covered in her own blood. Her vision went black, and she collapsed.

“Ci Cheng!”

This sudden farce completely ruined the performance they were supposed to start tonight. Citing the emergency, the show was canceled. The organizers stepped in to appease the audience and arranged for refunds and other follow-up matters.

Chi Yeyu drove the group, calmly reassuring them, “I’ll handle tonight’s situation. Don’t worry. Let’s get you to the hospital first.”

Ci Cheng sat in the back row, her head wrapped in makeshift gauze, her face pale from blood loss. Qiao Zina sat beside her, looking at the unconscious Ci Cheng on the verge of a breakdown. Her surging emotions had shifted from anger to fear and regret. she kept muttering to herself, “I didn’t mean it… I didn’t mean to hit her…”

Ci Tang sat in the passenger seat, anxiously checking the time. Unable to wait any longer, she called out, “Ci Cheng? Are you awake?”

Ci Cheng felt lightheaded. She opened her eyelids a fraction and whispered, “I’m fine. Don’t go after Qiao Zina.”

Qiao Zina froze.

Ci Tang was both angry and annoyed, laughing out of sheer frustration. “Not go after her? I knew you’d say that the moment you woke up. Our family will clean up this mess for you.”

“Thanks, Sis…” She saw Chi Yeyu driving and added, “Thanks, Sister Chi.”

Chi Yeyu asked, “Is your head still spinning? Hang in there, we’re almost at the hospital.”

“I’m okay… Where are they?” Ci Cheng asked.

Chi Yeyu knew she was asking about Shi Shuxue. “They’re fine. They probably went to eat a long time ago.”

Ci Cheng knew that was impossible, but her head hurt so much that she couldn’t muster the energy to say more.

After arriving at the hospital, Qiao Zina stayed by her side, apologizing incessantly and saying it was a moment of impulse. She was willing to pay the price, not just the medical bills, but all the losses incurred from the canceled performance. Her family had no money, but she could take out a loan, she had been working and would eventually pay it back.

Ci Cheng’s voice was weary as she leaned against Ci Tang’s shoulder. “It’s over now.”

Qiao Zina’s lips trembled. “Over? How could it be over?” Ci Cheng had generously forgiven her, but in truth, it was another way to cut ties. How could she accept that?

Ci Tang had no good feelings toward the girl who hurt her sister. She gave a cold glance, noticed the dried blood and cuts on Qiao Zina’s hand, and said flatly, “Go get your own hand bandaged.”

Qiao Zina murmured a response and walked away with her head down. Shortly after she left, Chi Yeyu came over.

Ci Tang asked her, “Is there anything else? Give it all to me.”

“At a time like this, you’re still obsessing over Shi Xianyu’s belongings,” Chi Yeyu said, somewhat speechless.

“Who told Shi Xianyu to leave so little behind? At least she gave you a goldfish pendant. For me, she left nothing at all,” Ci Tang replied.

“That’s because she treated me like a kid. She had to coax me and trick me, otherwise, I wouldn’t have been her little sidekick,” Chi Yeyu shrugged. “But I really have nothing left on me. Shi Shuxue might have something, but don’t go asking her for it.”

Ci Tang said, “I’m not that brain-dead.”

Chi Yeyu teased her, “Didn’t you go on a ‘sweet vacation’ with Shi Xianyu? Didn’t you keep any photos or souvenirs then? Now you’re like a sasaeng fan, crazily collecting her relics.”

“Sweet vacation? You sure have a silver tongue.” Ci Tang hugged her younger sister’s shoulder, unconsciously squeezing a bit harder. “Shi Xianyu took her four-year-old daughter and me to Hokkaido. She even wrote a song for her daughter! Me? I got nothing. I was just a babysitter.”

“Professor, loving a straight woman never ends well,” Chi Yeyu said cryptically.

Especially a straight woman who got married, had a kid, and then died.

She had no filter, regardless of how her words might affect Ci Tang’s sister.

Ci Cheng’s head was foggy, and it took her a while to process it. “Sis, you like girls? That… Shi Xianyu?”

“It’s an unrequited crush. At least ten years of it,” Chi Yeyu chimed in before Ci Tang could, her tone carrying a hint of playful mockery.

Ci Tang glared at her. “I think you really want to die right now.”

“I haven’t wanted to die for a long time. I’m living very comfortably now, rich, beautiful, and a happy family. I don’t want to go looking for trouble.” Chi Yeyu laughed heartlessly, her words sharp.

As they were leaving the hospital, Shi Shuxue arrived by taxi. To ward off the freezing negative three or four degree weather, she wore fleece-lined leggings, black ankle boots with warm brown fur trim, and a long down jacket.

Seeing Shi Shuxue, a brilliant smile instantly bloomed on Chi Yeyu’s face. She waved. “Xiao Xue! Everything’s fine. Let’s go back and have something warm to drink.”

Shi Shuxue ignored her and walked over to check on Ci Cheng. Seeing that the wound on her forehead was bandaged and she could walk steadily, she felt completely relieved. She then said to Chi Yeyu, “All you think about all day is eating and drinking. Try thinking about something else for once.”

“You’re maliciously belittling me! I think about lots of things!”

Chi Yeyu said this while naturally taking the young girl’s hand to warm it up. She turned to Ci Tang and said, “Then I’ll head back first. Goodbye, Professor~”

She called her “Professor” with a light, slightly upward lilt, showing a trace of her youthful playfulness. Shi Shuxue froze for a moment, glanced at that “Professor,” and was pulled away by Chi Yeyu.

Perhaps it was a case of “extreme joy turns to sorrow.” Not long after Chi Yeyu heartlessly flaunted her happiness to Ci Tang, she discovered she had been blocked by Shi Shuxue after finishing work the next day.

Christmas! It was Christmas!!

She had been full of anticipation to find Shi Shuxue after work to spend an unforgettable Christmas, to recharge her exhausted self and heal her soul from the damages of work. But as soon as she picked up her phone to message Shi Shuxue, she saw a red exclamation mark.

Refusing to believe it, she sent two more messages. Without exception, they were rejected by Shi Shuxue.

Did Shi Shuxue’s finger slip? Chi Yeyu frowned, standing by the trash cans opposite the elevator, and dialed Shi Shuxue’s number.

It was actually hung up on!

Fine, Shi Shuxue, your rebellious phase is getting serious.

She recalled the last time they saw each other last night. She had driven Shi Shuxue back to school. On the way, Shi Shuxue had been quiet, staring at her phone and chatting with someone. She thought the kid was just unhappy because the performance was canceled. When asked, the girl just said she was a bit tired.

A bit tired… was being “a bit tired” enough to block her? This was clearly a tantrum!

Chi Yeyu immediately began replaying recent events in her mind like a slideshow, searching for what she might have done wrong to provoke the little brat’s anger.

The company secretary, finishing up files and heading home, walked past her near the elevator. Seeing her boss staring expressionlessly at four colored trash cans with a face of deep resentment, the secretary was startled. Fearing she might be assigned more work, she quickly detoured to the stairwell before being noticed.

Chi Yeyu didn’t notice the employees going out of their way to avoid her. She sighed at the trash cans and walked to the parking lot with a heavy heart. After getting into the car, she caught a glimpse of herself in the rearview mirror, and a spark of realization hit her…

Could it be because she gave the goldfish pendant to Ci Tang?!

She vaguely remembered that the first time Shi Shuxue rode in her car, she had mentioned giving it to her. But Shi Shuxue had a deep-seated hatred for Shi Xianyu and had firmly rejected it, so she never brought it up again.

But then again, giving away the mother’s belongings to someone else was indeed inappropriate.

Damn it, Chi Yeyu thought. How am I supposed to coax her now? She might even misunderstand my relationship with Ci Tang.

It was a cloudy, snowy day. Pine branches were adorned with snow, reflecting warm lights. The Christmas atmosphere wasn’t strong on the university campus, but the commercial street outside had a long row of massive Christmas windows, featuring eight mechanical fairy tale themed displays.

There was only a thirty-minute computer-based exam in the morning. After the exam, Zhou Qing grabbed Shi Shuxue, saying she wanted to take a set of photos in front of those Christmas windows for her social media.

Shi Shuxue had done the “bad deed” of blocking Chi Yeyu before the exam. She felt a bit guilty now and forced herself to be a “cold” person, nodding in agreement to Zhou Qing.

Fine snow, like grains of salt, accumulated in a thin layer on her deep blue down jacket. Over on the commercial street, a giant mechanical Nutcracker doll moved its red velvet military cap rhythmically in the window, golden gears creaking in its chest.

Three young people dressed as Santa Claus were handing out flyers, their plastic bells making a crisp clinking sound in the cold wind. Shi Shuxue took one, glanced at it, and saw it was for a dessert shop selling colorful Christmas cakes and candy canes.

She crumpled it up and stuffed it into her pocket. She looked up and saw a rotating candy castle in the second window and quickly turned her head away.

Zhou Qing laughed, “By the way, you don’t like sweets, do you?”

“They’re okay,” Shi Shuxue said. “Do you want to go to that shop?”

“Oh, I won’t eat. I’m on a diet.”

Zhou Qing walked to the window, struck a pose, and guided Shi Shuxue on which angle to take the photo from. They had come at the right time, there weren’t many students, and there was no queue for photos. Shi Shuxue’s photography skills were unexpectedly good, and in no time, she had provided Zhou Qing with enough material for the next two days of social media posts.

“Don’t just take pictures of me! Aren’t you going to take any?” Zhou Qing asked with a smile.

Shi Shuxue was dressed casually today, her hair loosely tied in a half-up style, with a creamy white scarf around her neck. When the cold wind swept by, she pulled it up, the soft wool brushing against her cheeks. It held in the warmth while also giving off a spirited, youthful vibe that fit the Christmas atmosphere perfectly.

Shi Shuxue said softly, “I won’t take any.”

Zhou Qing blinked, untied the messy knot of her scarf, and re-tied it. She asked, “Are you in a bad mood today?”

“…A little. Is it obvious?” Shi Shuxue asked.

Zhou Qing shook her head with a smile. Shi Shuxue usually kept a “poker face,” and she looked no different now. However, her reactions were much slower than usual, as if something was weighing on her mind.

“It’s not that obvious. I’m just guessing. Are you waiting for a message? Or did you have a fight with family or a friend? You can tell me if you want.”

Zhou Qing led her into an underground commercial area. The two found a nearby Starbucks, ordered two cups of hot lattes, and sat on high stools by the floor to ceiling window. From there, they could see the occasional passerby carrying shopping bags.

“I didn’t even know this place existed,” Shi Shuxue said.

Zhou Qing leaned her arms on the marble counter and tilted her head. “You don’t usually hang out around here, do you? But I see you going out a lot. Do you have a partner?”

“I don’t have a partner.” Shi Shuxue shook her head, taking a small sip of her coffee. She said slowly, “My guardian often comes to find me. She’s in W City.”

“Guardian?” That wasn’t a common term to use for family. Zhou Qing paused, suddenly thinking of a certain blue-haired woman. She hesitated and guessed, “It couldn’t be Chi Yeyu, could it?”

Zhou Qing had always been a fan of the Screaming Goldfish band, so she naturally knew about the relationship between Shi Shuxue and Chi Yeyu. Although they had different surnames and no blood relation, they were essentially family. There were rumors online about them falling out and making up, but Shi Shuxue rarely mentioned home matters in the dorm, so Zhou Qing hadn’t pried.

Could it be that the two of them…

“Yeah, it’s Chi Yeyu. But strictly speaking, she’s my former guardian.” Shi Shuxue admitted it openly, turning to look her in the eye. “Do you want to hear about it?”

Zhou Qing nodded vigorously.

“Then I’ll start from the beginning.”

“In my second year of high school, I met Chi Yeyu after school. She said she was there to make me the happiest… person in the world. But I never believed her because she looked too much like a scammer. I asked her why she wanted to be my guardian. She said we had made a promise many years ago.”

Shi Shuxue’s voice was a bit low, but Zhou Qing heard her clearly. She asked, “The promise was with your mother, right? I’ve seen that mentioned online.”

“I thought so too at first,” Shi Shuxue said. “But not long ago, Yu Xiu told me that the promise was between her and me.”

It turned out she and Chi Yeyu had spent a long time together before. But a child who hasn’t even reached primary school age doesn’t remember much. The jokes, the stories, the fights, and the old promises had all been completely forgotten.

“…Back then, Shi Xianyu rarely looked after me and dumped me, a little mess of a child, directly onto Chi Yeyu, who hadn’t even figured out high school yet. One day, probably by a window just like this, I told Chi Yeyu as she sat on a high stool that I was afraid she would die, because if she died, no one would be there for me.”

Shi Shuxue paused for a moment, so Zhou Qing asked, “What did the ‘Goddess Chi’ say?”

Shi Shuxue lowered her head and smiled. “She said when Shi Xianyu stopped looking after me, she would snatch me away.”

In reality, the time they spent together back then only added up to a few months. Later, she started primary school, and Chi Yeyu went to university and started a business. They both had things to focus on, and with the band that tied them together. Shi Xianyu’s band, on the verge of breaking up, they lost contact.

To the young and ignorant Shi Shuxue, it was just a piece of memory buried deep in her mind, almost forgotten. However, Chi Yeyu remembered it for nearly ten years. Just because of that one promise, she spent a million to take on a burden she carried on her shoulders.

“Tell me, how can there be such a fool like her?” Shi Shuxue murmured. Her hands were warmed by the hot coffee, and her palms were slightly sweaty.

Zhou Qing was silent for a while before saying seriously, “That’s not being a fool, she must really love you.”