The Cannon Fodder Crazy Beauty Has Awakened [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 41.2

She caught sight of an inexplicable glistening wetness on Jiang Mengyu’s fingertips.

Chi Jingyan: !!

“You!”

How could she touch her mouth with that hand?!

As expected, both of them overslept the next morning.

By the time they woke up, it was already 11 a.m. Chi Jingyan was dizzy with hunger, but when she got up, Jiang Mengyu was nowhere to be seen.

The spot beside her was empty, and Chi Jingyan snapped awake instantly.

She bolted upright, only relaxing when she heard the sound of running water from the bathroom. Rubbing her sore waist, she grabbed her phone from the nightstand.

Last night, in the heat of passion, her phone had suddenly dinged twice. Annoyed, Chi Jingyan had silenced it. Now, as she unlocked it, she saw multiple missed calls and messages.

All from her parents.

After reading the messages, her expression darkened immediately.

Jiang Mengyu emerged from the bathroom just then, her long hair loose and dripping, the water trickling down to dampen the love bites on her collarbone.

“What’s wrong?” Jiang Mengyu asked.

Chi Jingyan tightened her grip on the phone, her face grave as she looked at her.

“The old man is dead.”

Jiang Mengyu accompanied Chi Jingyan back to the family estate.

The last time she had come here, she had been nothing more than Chi Jingyan’s bodyguard, relegated to staying on the first floor with the other staff. This time, she arrived as Chi Jingyan’s girlfriend.

Madam Chi’s expression cooled the moment she saw her. Jiang Mengyu didn’t know what Chi Jingyan had said to her mother recently, but Madam Chi had indeed stopped interfering in their relationship.

Now, seeing Chi Jingyan bring Jiang Mengyu along, Madam Chi merely said stiffly, “Go change first. You’ll need to greet the guests who come to pay their respects later.”

As for Jiang Mengyu, she didn’t have to attend.

Madam Chi gave Jiang Mengyu a long, searching look, a headache brewing as she recalled how fiercely her daughter had argued with her.

She saw more clearly than Chi Jingyan did. Though Jiang Mengyu was younger, her cunning and depth of calculation far surpassed Chi Jingyan’s. Madam Chi worried her daughter would end up hurt in this relationship.

But Chi Jingyan refused to listen to her warnings.

In the end, Madam Chi had no choice but to relent.

Jiang Mengyu remained unfazed under her scrutiny. As she followed Chi Jingyan upstairs, a familiar figure caught her eye from the periphery. Turning her head slightly, she saw Chi Jia.

The look Chi Jia gave her was eerie, as if scheming something. Jiang Mengyu was all too familiar with that gaze, it was the same one she had worn in her past life when Tang An had cornered her with no way out.

According to the usual tropes of fiction, just as the protagonist basked in success, the supporting characters were often plotting their final move.

“What’s wrong?” Chi Jingyan’s voice sounded beside her.

Jiang Mengyu withdrew her gaze. “Nothing.”

Chi Jingyan gazed at her thoughtfully, sensing a significant shift in the atmosphere between herself and Jiang Mengyu.

Originally, Chi Jingyan had many questions she wanted to ask Jiang Mengyu.

She wanted to know if they were already in a relationship, and even more, she wanted to understand how Jiang Mengyu saw her now.

Chi Jingyan was desperate for a clear answer from Jiang Mengyu.

But with the sudden passing of Old Master Chi, she had no choice but to suppress her inner restlessness and focus on handling the immediate matters at hand.

Chi Jingyan left in a hurry, while Jiang Mengyu was left behind to rest in the room she had arranged for her.

Standing alone in the bedroom, Jiang Mengyu looked through the floor-to-ceiling window and saw several figures hurrying through the back garden.

Old Master Chi’s death signaled the long-awaited transfer of power within the Chi family. However, in recent years, it had been clear to everyone that in the struggle between Chi Jingyan’s father and Third Uncle Chi, her father had gained the upper hand.

Moreover, Third Uncle Chi was partly responsible for Old Master Chi’s passing. These days must be particularly difficult for Chi Jia, Jiang Mengyu mused.

She toyed with the glass vial in her hand, the one containing the pheromone extract Chi Jingyan had given her.

Peeking from the slightly open collar of her clothes was the faint glimmer of the Cloud and Moon necklace.

With just over a month left until the mission’s completion, Jiang Mengyu had already written the endings for everyone’s stories in advance.

Including her own.

She hoped no unexpected surprises would arise.

Dressed in black mourning attire, Chi Jingyan stood at the entrance of the memorial hall to receive guests. Her face was expressionless, but her eyes were rimmed with a faint redness, her posture exuding restrained grief.

When Chu Muyao and Li Qing arrived, they saw this scene from afar.

Though Chu Muyao hadn’t been particularly close to Old Master Chi, he had always been kind to her, and she couldn’t help but feel a pang of sorrow.

After a moment’s thought, she reached out and patted Chi Jingyan’s shoulder.

“Jingyan, my condolences.”

Chi Jingyan gave a quiet hum. “Go ahead and offer incense to Grandpa first.”

She paused, then nodded at Li Qing. “Miss Li.”

Li Qing responded with a gentle smile.

Once Chu Muyao and Li Qing had finished paying their respects, the three of them stepped aside to talk.

Chu Muyao asked, “I heard you brought Jiang Mengyu back with you?”

“Yes,” Chi Jingyan admitted without hesitation. “She wasn’t feeling well, so I let her rest first.”

Chu Muyao hesitated, wanting to say more, but before she could, Chi Jingyan had already rushed to explain Jiang Mengyu’s situation.

Back when they were together, Chi Jingyan had never been like this.

Truly, this was the difference between love and indifference.

Not that Chu Muyao minded after all, she hadn’t genuinely liked Chi Jingyan either.

Li Qing smoothly took over the conversation. “That’s not what Xiao Yao meant.”

“She wanted to ask if, since you’ve already introduced her to your family, things are official between you two?”

Chi Jingyan lowered her long lashes slightly, this was probably Li Qing’s own question, wasn’t it?

With practiced restraint, she replied, “I’m still pursuing her. I’ll let you know as soon as there’s any news.”

Li Qing feigned just the right amount of surprise. “Really? A while ago, Xiao Yao and I happened to run into Jiang Mengyu at school.”

“After exchanging greetings, she was in a hurry to leave, saying, ‘Ah Yan is waiting for me.’ The way she said it sounded so intimate, I thought you two were already official.”

Chi Jingyan froze for a moment.

She was about to ask when it happened when she suddenly remembered the day after she had kidnapped Jiang Mengyu and then let her return to class. While waiting for Jiang Mengyu in the art studio, Jiang Mengyu had mentioned running into Chu Muyao and Li Qing on the way. Could it have been that day?

Li Qing smiled. “What’s wrong? Did I say something incorrect?”

Chi Jingyan suppressed the deep thoughts in her eyes and shook her head at Li Qing. “It’s nothing.”

The group didn’t chat for long. When more guests arrived, Chu Muyao and Li Qing left first, leaving Chi Jingyan alone to continue greeting the attendees.

Noticing her pale complexion, Mrs. Chi couldn’t help but ask quietly, “Did you not rest well last night?”

A flicker of discomfort crossed Chi Jingyan’s face. “Mm.”

Mrs. Chi was about to say something when her gaze inadvertently swept past Chi Jingyan’s ear, catching a glimpse of a vivid red mark.

As if realizing something, Mrs. Chi’s expression instantly darkened.

“You!” She gave Chi Jingyan a deep look.

With so many people around, Mrs. Chi swallowed the words that had risen to her lips.

Chi Jingyan was distracted, wondering what Jiang Mengyu was doing at that moment.

And what Li Qing had just said…

Jiang Mengyu had always been distant with her before, yet she had referred to her like that in front of others?

Before long, Mrs. Chi, seeing how unwell she looked, urged her to go rest for a while, as she and Mr. Chi could handle the guests.

When Chi Jingyan returned to her bedroom on the second floor, she was startled to find Jiang Mengyu wasn’t there. Her face immediately darkened as she asked the bodyguard, “Where is she?”

Just then, footsteps sounded behind her. Chi Jingyan turned to see none other than Jiang Mengyu approaching.

Relieved, she hurried forward. “Where did you go?”

Jiang Mengyu’s gaze lingered on Chi Jingyan’s slightly pale lips. “You didn’t eat much this morning, so I went to the kitchen to make some porridge.”

Hearing this, Chi Jingyan’s lips curved into a faint smile. “I told you to rest.”

She was easily placated by Jiang Mengyu.

“There are servants at home. You didn’t need to trouble yourself with this.”

Jiang Mengyu wrapped an arm around Chi Jingyan’s waist, letting her lean against her to ease the strain of standing. “But I wanted to.”

Chi Jingyan’s heart felt like a lemon soaked in honey, sour yet sweet.

How had she never noticed before how good Jiang Mengyu was at making her happy?

“Fine, let’s go back to the room.”

The door opened and closed, and the figure observing from the shadows silently retreated.

Chi Jingyan finished every last drop of the warm porridge Jiang Mengyu had brought.

She wasn’t particularly hungry, but since Jiang Mengyu had gone to the effort, she didn’t want to waste it.

She recalled how, in a fit of anger, she had once overturned a bowl of porridge Jiang Mengyu had made for her. At the thought, Chi Jingyan peeked at Jiang Mengyu, only to find Jiang Mengyu already looking at her. Their eyes met.

Chi Jingyan slowly set down the bowl. “I’m full.”

“Mm.” Jiang Mengyu sat diagonally across from her, her gaze resting quietly on Chi Jingyan.

What did this mean?

Chi Jingyan opened her mouth, then closed it again. She lifted a hand to tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear, seemingly pondering how to start a conversation.

Jiang Mengyu remained silent, simply watching Chi Jingyan, taking in every little gesture.

The young miss was quite interesting when she wasn’t throwing a tantrum.

“Go get some rest,” Jiang Mengyu said softly. “You didn’t sleep much last night.”

She hadn’t slept much and whose fault was that?!

Chi Jingyan shot her a glare but quickly deflated, half-testing as she murmured, “My back hurts, and my legs ache too.”

Her voice was light, carrying a hint of coquetry.

Jiang Mengyu flexed her fingers slightly. Truth be told, her wrists were a bit sore too, though not noticeably so and she simply chose to ignore it.

She stood up. “Want me to carry you to bed?”

Chi Jingyan’s heart leapt with joy, though she maintained a reserved expression. “Either way is fine.”

Truthfully, she had only wanted Jiang Mengyu to massage her earlier, this was an unexpected bonus.

Jiang Mengyu bent down and lifted her up. Chi Jingyan wasn’t heavy, her figure quite slender, yet she didn’t feel bony in Jiang Mengyu’s arms. Her legs were soft and pleasantly springy.

Leaning against Jiang Mengyu, Chi Jingyan studied her profile for a moment before whispering, “Are we still in a ‘mutually willing’ relationship now?”

Jiang Mengyu had clearly grown much gentler with her, could she push for something more?

“What do you think?” Jiang Mengyu countered instead of answering.

Chi Jingyan leaned in and kissed the corner of her lips. “Earlier, Mom said my girlfriend should go offer incense to Grandpa too.”

Jiang Mengyu knew instantly it was a lie.

There was no way Madam Chi would say such a thing, she’d probably prefer Jiang Mengyu to vanish forever.

She lowered Chi Jingyan onto the bed and asked, “Can’t a classmate go?”

A wave of disappointment washed over Chi Jingyan. Was Jiang Mengyu still refusing to acknowledge their relationship?

Burning with frustration, she grabbed Jiang Mengyu’s hand. “Just classmates?”

Jiang Mengyu pressed her palm over Chi Jingyan’s. “Didn’t I say it before? It depends on your performance.”

Chi Jingyan hated this vague answer. “Haven’t I been good enough lately?”

Jiang Mengyu considered it. “Passable.”

Before Chi Jingyan could protest, she added, “But I’d rather wait until after the college entrance exams.”

“I promise, once we get our diplomas, I’ll give you a clear answer.”

“Alright?”

Chi Jingyan wanted to say no, but Jiang Mengyu had already compromised. She couldn’t push too hard, or all her efforts might go to waste.

Besides, graduation was only a month away. She could wait.

Squeezing Jiang Mengyu’s hand, she demanded, “Then promise me you won’t distance yourself again or get with anyone else during this time.”

She couldn’t stand Jiang Mengyu paying attention to others even a single extra glance was unbearable.

“Mm.” Jiang Mengyu agreed without hesitation.

“I promise.”

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