The Beloved One Is Always Coveted - Chapter 8

Chapter 8

◎Watermelon and Banana◎

Alright, Yu Li lowered her eyes to the watermelon in her hands, silently raising her impression of Qi Xue.

She knew Qi Xue’s grandmother. The elderly woman had silver hair and insisted on morning exercises every day, making her the most vigorous old lady in the neighborhood.

When they met, Yu Li would call her “Grandma,” but they rarely exchanged gifts; their relationship was one of mere acquaintances, like ordinary neighbors.

Why send a watermelon all of a sudden? She stood at the door, completely baffled, but still carried the watermelon back inside, pondering what she should send in return.

She had nothing at home; if she wanted to send a gift, she’d have to go out and buy it.

Fortunately, there was a fruit store nearby. Yu Li quickly ate a bowl of egg noodles, checked the time—it was only a little past seven—and, grabbing her phone, she dong-dong-donged down the stairs.

At the fruit store, she deliberated. Thinking that elderly people might have trouble with hard foods, she bought a bunch of bananas. Then, she felt Qi Xue probably wouldn’t like anything too sweet. She glanced at the peaches and kiwis several times but decided not to buy them. Choosing fruit specifically for Qi Xue felt utterly abnormal.

Grandma Qi’s house was on the first floor. People in this area generally ate dinner early, usually finishing by five or six. The old ladies would then come out for walks, do square dancing—their nightlife was colorful and followed whatever pleased them.

She pressed the doorbell, rehearsing what she planned to say: first, thank you; then, the bananas; and after that, she’d say she had homework and needed to rush back up.

“Who is it?”

Grandma Qi’s voice came through the closed door, but the one who opened it was Qi Xue.

Yu Li stepped back slightly before she got a clear look at Qi Xue.

She must have just showered. The bangs that usually covered her eyebrows were clipped up with a hair clip, revealing a clean, full forehead. Qi Xue was wearing “Little Emperor” pajamas, completely lacking the cool, aloof air she had when delivering the watermelon. The contrast was huge.

Probably surprised to see her, a look of confusion appeared on Qi Xue’s face, which instantly turned red.

Honestly, it was kind of cute.

Yu Li couldn’t help but let out a little laugh—puchi—and her carefully planned routine fell apart. She shoved the bananas toward Qi Xue and was about to run back upstairs.

She didn’t get far.

Qi Xue was quick, and even the “Little Emperor” pajamas didn’t hinder her performance. She held the plastic bag of bananas in one hand, while the other was already blocking Yu Li, completely barring the staircase.

“I… I didn’t mean to.” Yu Li had no choice but to lower her head and meekly admit her mistake.

She already had a rough understanding of Qi Xue, figuring she wouldn’t suddenly kick her flying; at least, she’d give a warning first.

But those “Little Emperor” pajamas were truly hilarious. Yu Li’s sense of humor wasn’t actually that low, but for some reason, the sight of them just made her want to laugh.

She had to pinch her palm hard, trying to keep the corners of her mouth from turning up.

“I didn’t mean that.”

Qi Xue also lowered her head, her hair half-dry, with water droplets dripping down the hanging strands. Qi Xue’s voice reached Yu Li’s ears, slightly indifferent, but with a clear sense of urgency: “Don’t be afraid of me.”

Yu Li’s heart seized up at her words.

She suppressed her laughter, realizing that she had actually dared to make fun of Qi Xue. A wave of fear washed over her, and her feet instinctively slid backward.

Her long, thick bangs hid her eyes, but she felt relieved that she was looking down, so the other person couldn’t see the smile on her lips.

“The watermelon was very sweet. Thank you, Grandma. The bananas are just a small token of my appreciation. I have to go upstairs and do my homework now.”

The rehearsed speech in her mind was delivered in a single sentence. Yu Li turned her head, trying to get around her, but Qi Xue blocked her path again.

She wouldn’t let her go up. The messy bangs were clipped up, and the young person’s eyes were unconcealed; the affection in them was almost impossible to hide.

But Yu Li wouldn’t look directly into her eyes. She stared at the red hair slipping down the back of Qi Xue’s neck, unsure what else Qi Xue wanted to say.

She thought Qi Xue had a very decisive personality, like when she chose to kick that person away rather than listen to his apology, showing no trace of hesitation.

“Aren’t you going to thank me?”

Time seemed to freeze at that moment. Qi Xue stared at Yu Li’s slightly lowered eyelashes, which still flickered with faint light beneath her heavy bangs, like a distant lighthouse, an eternal glimmer.

Qi Xue didn’t know how to talk to Yu Li. In the past, she always just watched her, hoping she would greet her, and she would fantasize about the moment they would finally acknowledge each other.

After hiding it for many years, she finally mustered the courage to be bold, to take the initiative.

But the reality was—Yu Li didn’t remember her at all.

Well, it was such a small thing. Maybe Yu Li had forgotten about it right after that day.

“…Thank you, too.”

The girl was as obedient as Qi Xue had expected, speaking very earnestly, even bowing slightly.

She didn’t realize Yu Li was still afraid, which was why she made her posture so sincere. This only encouraged Qi Xue to press further, “Can we add each other as friends? Grandma really likes you.”

Qi Xue’s excuse was clumsy and poor, but Yu Li couldn’t tell the difference right now. She didn’t want to add Qi Xue as a friend, nor did she want to know what Qi Xue was up to; she just wanted to go home.

Just then, the phone in her pocket vibrated. A flash of relief crossed Yu Li’s eyes. She pulled out her phone, muttered an apology to Qi Xue, and, ignoring the fact that it was an unfamiliar number, she answered it directly. She said “Hello” while walking upstairs.

It was then that Grandma Qi emerged from her home, leaning on her cane. She saw her granddaughter standing listlessly by the stairs, holding a bag of bananas, not coming home, and stubbornly looking up the stairs.

The utter dejection in her whole demeanor couldn’t even be covered by the “Little Emperor” pajamas.

Grandma Qi looked up, too. To save electricity, the hallway lights were sound-activated, and the staircase was currently pitch black. She couldn’t see anything up there.

“What’s wrong? Who knocked just now? Who gave you the bananas?”

The Grandma called her granddaughter, but got no response, so she gave her a light tap on the head.

The granddaughter finally reacted, looking over with a pained expression. Instead of the usual cry of pain, she hugged her grandmother, repeatedly whining, “She doesn’t like me, she hates me…” as if she were the most wronged person in the world.

This behavior was an exact replica of her mother after her first heartbreak years ago.

Grandma Qi had experience. She took the bananas from Qi Xue’s hand, hugged and comforted her, saying this was only temporary. “You just need to be more proactive, say more, do more. My granddaughter isn’t ugly and she’s smart; she’ll definitely grow to like you.”

Before she was done comforting her, she secretly broke off a banana from the bag, ate half herself, and gave the remaining half to her heartbroken granddaughter.

Qi Xue took the banana peel and immediately had a thought. She felt that Yu Li giving her the bananas meant she definitely didn’t hate her.

Not hating her was the beginning of liking her.

Her grandmother then added that feelings don’t develop overnight; you can’t rush a good thing.

Qi Xue was silent for a moment, processing the advice. That brief moment of grief and dejection vanished instantly. She was the arrogant and unrestrained “Little Emperor” again. She told her grandmother she’d be back later and dong-dong-donged back up the stairs.

Young people come and go like the wind. Grandma Qi had been young once, too. She chuckled, watched her granddaughter go up, broke off another banana, and slowly went back inside.

Yu Li held onto the iron railing and climbed the stairs step by step. Her movements were as light as a cat’s, not even startling the sound-activated lights.

The woman’s voice on the other end of the phone was careless, but in just a few sentences, it triggered Yu Li’s fear.

It was an unfamiliar number, yet the person was no stranger. Yu Li had only rushed up one floor when she heard that contemptuous, familiar word: “Jie-jie (Sister).”

“Jie-jie, why aren’t you home yet?”

Her steps stopped instantly. She forgot about Qi Xue downstairs. A wave of physiological terror rose up, and she nearly fell.

A hidden spot on her chest began to throb with a sharp pain. Tang Xi was clearly at her own home, yet it was as if she had appeared right in front of Yu Li, pressing her down onto the railing without a word, continuing the humiliation from the equipment room.

But she couldn’t resist. Miss Xi’s methods were harsh; she had said she would kill her and meant it.

This was a society under the rule of law. Yu Li had completed her nine years of compulsory education and shouldn’t have believed Tang Xi. Such threats would seem juvenile even to a sixth grader.

But Tang Xi had genuinely not held back when she choked her. That made Yu Li involuntarily terrified. Tang Xi had been deadly serious; she wanted her dead.

“I’m sorry, I told the Family Head I needed to stay home for a few days.”

Her lips were practically stuck together, and her words were barely intelligible. Yu Li mechanically climbed upward, one step after another, as if walking a road with no end in sight.

She followed her mother in calling her the Family Head, calling her Miss Xi, and then what? What would she have to call her next?

The voice on the other end laughed wildly, calling her Jie-jie repeatedly. “The difference between the two places is quite big, Jie-jie. You need to get used to it quickly, or the experience will be greatly diminished. That wouldn’t be any fun.”

“Jie-jie, I’m waiting for you.”

It was like a devil’s whisper, laid bare without reservation.

The other person was saying, You can’t escape. Who told you to barge in? You brought this upon yourself. If you accept the Tang family’s kindness, you have to pay the price. You got what you ‘deserved.’

The temperature was not low on the summer night, and a window at the stairwell corner was half-open. The night wind blew in, and Yu Li suddenly shivered, the hand holding her phone trembling unconsciously.

The wish she had made yesterday, the beautiful tomorrows in her dreams, turned to ash in an instant.

“I won’t tell anyone. Could you please not do this? I’ll be obedient… Please let me go, okay?”

She took a deep breath, trying to negotiate with Tang Xi.

But she forgot that not only did she have no leverage, she didn’t even qualify to sit at the negotiating table.

Tang Xi didn’t answer her question. Instead, she brought up Yu Rong, saying that when she got home, she ran into Aunt Rong, who was all smiles, asking why her daughter hadn’t returned with her.

She wore a mask. Although she was cold to outsiders, she managed her temper well and never lost it. Compared to her older sister, Tang Fei, people liked her more.

This was why Yu Rong had sought her out. She believed Tang Xi was kind-hearted and would take good care of her daughter.

She had been fooled by the facade of harmony in the Tang family. She didn’t know what was truly separating them. How could a haughty young lady possibly pity the maid’s daughter? This wasn’t a fairy tale.

Yu Li knew what Tang Xi had told her mother. After Tang Nianyi hung up, she had called Yu Rong. Her mother complained on the phone about her not calling her first, and Miss Xi said she hadn’t seen her, so her mother had worried for a long time.

She knew her mother’s painstaking efforts and was willing to accept her mother’s support to rise, but there were always obstacles, like Tang Xi’s undisguised mockery coming through her phone right now.

She just stood there, holding the phone, saying nothing, almost forgetting to breathe, as if she had merged with the darkness, transforming into a weightless feather.

Since she didn’t respond, Tang Xi lost interest.

The call was disconnected. Her straying soul instantly returned to her body. The moment she snapped back to reality, Yu Li suddenly heard another person’s breathing in the empty, profound silence.

It was as light and slow as her own, yet impossible to ignore.

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