The Devious, Seductive Older Woman Has Been Plotting to Get Me for a Long Time - Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Call Her “Older Sister”

A weight settled on her shoulder, the thin warmth of skin-to-skin contact transmitting through their layers.

Chu Yingqiu turned her head to look at her. The person beside her had her eyes closed, seemingly oblivious, and was inching closer unconsciously.

The faint, shallow breaths hitting her neck carried an indescribable heat, and the faint scent of alcohol on the girl’s body suggested she hadn’t actually drunk much.

Chu Yingqiu asked softly, “Do you know who I am?”

Xiang Shuxing opened her eyes, as if trying to identify her for a long moment. “Of course I do. Aren’t you Chu Yingqiu?”

Since she returned from abroad, the person before her had either called her “President Chu” with a distant tone or used her full name. Chu Yingqiu stared at her, her expression unreadable. “Since I came back, you haven’t properly addressed me even once.”

Xiang Shuxing frowned. The aftereffects of the alcohol were only just hitting her now, and her head pounded painfully; she had no energy to decipher what Chu Yingqiu was saying. “I want honey water,” she said, hugging the woman’s arm and shaking it gently. “I feel so sick.”

Chu Yingqiu glanced at her. She goes out and parties, gets drunk, and then expects me to wait on her when she gets home.

“Wait,” she sighed lightly after a moment, then stood up to pour a glass of honey water at the sideboard. By the time she returned, the person who had just been complaining of sickness was lying flat on the sofa, her delicate brows furrowed. Chu Yingqiu leaned over to touch Xiang Shuxing’s forehead, then patted her shoulder. There was no reaction.

“Here’s the honey water you wanted.”

Only then did the girl sluggishly flutter her eyelids, propping herself up to sit. Chu Yingqiu held her shoulder to let her lean against the sofa, then raised the cup to her lips. Xiang Shuxing hadn’t fully lost consciousness; sensing the cup being offered, she parted her lips and drank compliantly.

The warm, sweet honey water slid down her throat, instantly soothing her hoarse voice. Her headache persisted, and just as she reached up to massage her temples, someone else did it for her first. With a firm, measured pressure, Xiang Shuxing squinted comfortably, even handing over the empty cup, signaling the person beside her to take it.

Chu Yingqiu’s expression turned cold. “Hold it yourself.”

As she said this, the pressure on her temples vanished. Xiang Shuxing grumbled, “Why’d you stop?”

Chu Yingqiu crossed her arms, glaring at her. “I haven’t settled the account for you coming home late yet.”

“I told you it wasn’t on purpose! Why are you still harping on it? I think you actually enjoy punishing me, don’t you?”

Chu Yingqiu stared at her. The girl’s cheeks were still flushed with the rising effects of the alcohol, and her eyes lacked their usual clarity—she clearly wasn’t fully sober. A thought suddenly crossed her mind. She curled her lips and gestured for Xiang Shuxing to lean closer. “You shouldn’t address me by my full name, nor should you call me ‘President Chu’.”

Xiang Shuxing felt dizzy. She shook her head, muttering, “This won’t do, that won’t do—how am I supposed to call you then?”

The woman’s voice sounded as if it were pressed right against her ear, gentle yet seductive. “You should call me ‘Sister,’ understand?”

“Oh,” Xiang Shuxing hummed dazedly, but her next sentence was, “Chu Yingqiu, I want more honey water.”

Chu Yingqiu: “…”

“Did you forget what I just said?”

What…? Xiang Shuxing shook her head, and suddenly, cool fingertips pinched her ear. Instinctively thinking the person was about to tug her ear, she tried to dodge, but couldn’t. Chu Yingqiu’s fingertips only gently rubbed her earlobe. The cold sensation wasn’t uncomfortable, it was an indescribable, tingling thrill.

Her throat felt dry and painful, and she desperately wanted another glass of honey water. Xiang Shuxing looked up with glazed eyes and whispered softly, “Sister.”

Perhaps due to the alcohol, her heart hammered. She saw the woman’s lips curve up ever so slightly. The next moment, the other woman stood up and walked away, and with her, the cool sensation on her earlobe vanished. Her head spun, and too exhausted to think, she closed her eyes.

After feeding her the honey water, the girl finally stopped acting up. Chu Yingqiu watched her for a few seconds before gently scooping her up by the shoulders. Someone drunk lost their usual sharp edge and became unnervingly obedient, curling entirely into her embrace without moving a muscle. It saved a lot of effort in getting her back to her room.

Chu Yingqiu carried her, pushed open the bedroom door with her other hand, and placed her gently on the bed. A small nightlight glowed by the bedside, and in the dim, yellow light, the girl’s sleeping face looked delicate and calm. Chu Yingqiu watched her silently for a few seconds and prepared to leave, but hesitated as she passed the nightlight.

When Xiang Shuxing was a child, she was used to sleeping with a light on. In the past, she would have left immediately; now, they hadn’t seen each other for years, and she didn’t know how much the girl’s habits had changed. Is she still afraid of the dark? With Xiang Shuxing’s current resistant attitude, she would never tell her about these small habits again.

Chu Yingqiu pursed her lips and didn’t linger. However, just as she turned to leave, the person beside her grabbed her wrist tightly. “Wait…Sister, don’t go.”

Chu Yingqiu paused and looked back at her. “What’s wrong?”

The girl in front of her stammered, “I…I haven’t taken a shower. I want to shower.”

At the first light of dawn, the curtains were only half-drawn, allowing some piercing rays of light to filter in. Xiang Shuxing frowned and slowly woke up. Her temples were still throbbing. She sat up, the soft quilt sliding off to reveal the cotton pajamas she was wearing. She sat quietly for a long moment, her mind slowly clearing, until her eyes fixed on the gray pajamas she was wearing.

She clearly remembered not changing her clothes last night, and according to her habits, she wouldn’t have chosen this set of gray pajamas. Xiang Shuxing clenched her fingers, frantically recalling everything that happened last night.

It seemed Chu Yingqiu had mentioned punishment, she couldn’t remember if she’d actually been punished, and her last memory was grabbing the other woman’s hand, insisting on a shower.

Xiang Shuxing sat in silence for a few seconds. She really should have stayed in her room alone after drinking, just like before. Why do I always embarrass myself in front of Chu Yingqiu?

Suddenly, the door was knocked. Chu Yingqiu pushed it open and, seeing she was awake, asked, “Is your head still hurting?”

Xiang Shuxing looked at her pajamas, then at the woman. “What’s with these clothes I’m wearing?”

“You said you wanted to shower yesterday.”

“You knew I was drunk, that was just drunken rambling!” Xiang Shuxing’s tone faltered, and she asked weakly, “So…did I really go to the bathroom and shower last night?”

Compared to her increasingly reddening complexion, Chu Yingqiu appeared remarkably calm. “You don’t remember anything from last night?”

“Just tell me, Chu Yingqiu!”

Hearing her use her full name, Chu Yingqiu said coolly, “It seems you really have forgotten. Last night you kept shouting that you wanted to shower. I spent ages persuading you until you finally conceded and just put on some clean clothes to sleep.”

Hearing this, her heart finally settled. Xiang Shuxing asked again, “Did you change my clothes for me?”

“Otherwise? Is there anyone else in the house?”

The way she said it so righteously infuriated Xiang Shuxing. “You did it on purpose! You could have just left me in the room alone, and none of this would have happened.”

Chu Yingqiu chuckled softly. “How could I do that? Sui Sui, Aunt Xiang entrusted me to take good care of you.” She added, “Besides, you changed how you addressed me last night, you have no memory of that at all?”

Xiang Shuxing froze. Memories of last night flooded back: the woman whispering in her ear, coaxing her to call her “Sister”, it hadn’t just been once.

Xiang Shuxing lowered her head, and when she looked up again, her expression was one of feigned innocence. “What are you talking about? I’ve always called you ‘President Chu’.”

Last night was just Chu Yingqiu tricking me while I was drunk. No matter what, I will never admit it.

Her eyes were clear and simple; someone who didn’t know better would think she had really forgotten everything. Chu Yingqiu calmly took out her phone to show her. The screen played a video: in it, the girl’s expression was soft, as if veiled in mist, as she called her “Sister” in a sweet, obedient voice.

“Still going to pretend you don’t know?”

“So what? It was all drunken nonsense!” Xiang Shuxing jumped out of bed and rushed over to grab the phone, furious.

Chu Yingqiu moved it away first, watching her bristle like an angry cat, and curled her lips. “Sui Sui, that is an undeniable fact.” She added, “You not only came home late yesterday, but you also drank while you were out. Let this be the last time.”

Xiang Shuxing pouted, only to hear the woman say, “Oh, by the way, get changed and come down for breakfast.”

As soon as that annoying figure left, she slammed the door and locked it. Leaning her back against the cold wood, she felt her chest heave with indignation at the thought of the video. It was bad enough that she had been tricked into using that address while drunk, but she had recorded it too?

Too much. Xiang Shuxing finally realized, so this was what she meant by “punishment.” She would have preferred a physical scolding.

After calming down, she changed and went downstairs. On the table were two simple breakfasts: egg sandwiches and milk. Chu Yingqiu sat at the table replying to work messages, apparently waiting for her. Xiang Shuxing gave a cold snort and pretended not to see her.

This breakfast was suffocating. Every time she thought about the video on Chu Yingqiu’s phone, she felt miserable. She couldn’t imagine how many times the other woman would use that video to mock her in the future.

“I’m going back to school in a bit,” Xiang Shuxing said with a cold face.

Chu Yingqiu glanced at her. “Are you carrying a lot of things? I’ll drop you off.”

“No need,” she refused sharply. “And I hope that whenever I come back, there won’t be anyone else here to disturb me.”

The message was clear: she didn’t want a second person in the house. Chu Yingqiu understood and was silent for a moment. “Why are you so resistant to me now?”

Xiang Shuxing frowned, as if the woman was suggesting she had liked Chu Yingqiu when she was a child. If she had, how could she have zero memory of it? She didn’t dwell on it and said coldly, “Nobody likes being constantly bossed around.”

With that, she went upstairs to pack her bags. She was determined to stay away from Chu Yingqiu, as far away as possible.