The Sickly Fake Daughter, But a Beloved Darling of All - Chapter 107

Xu Chengjin slept very deeply this time, as if returning to Si Yu’s side was the only thing that could truly set her mind at ease.

At this moment, Xu Chengjin realized that Si Yu gave her a sense of security so intense that no one else could ever provide it.

“Si Yu.”

Xu Chengjin groped her way out of bed. The moment she called out, someone responded, though it wasn’t the voice she was familiar with: “Miss Xu, I am the one here to take care of you. My surname is Chi. CEO Si had matters to attend to at the company and had to leave; she asked me to tell you she will be back this afternoon.”

“Oh.”

Xu Chengjin’s hair was a mess from sleep, making her look a bit dazed. She propped herself up against the edge of the bed and slowly stood up. “Alright. I can manage on my own. You go ahead with your work, Auntie.”

“Alright, I’ll go brew your medicine and cook for you.”

The woman spoke very gently, her tone light—clearly someone Si Yu had hand-picked to ensure Xu Chengjin wouldn’t have a bad experience.

“The clothes…”

Xu Chengjin reached out and felt along the bedside. Sure enough, she found the clothes Si Yu had prepared for her, thoughtfully laid out so she could tell the front from the back.

After dressing, she went to the bathroom alone to wash up. By the time she slowly finished everything and stepped out of the room, the auntie had breakfast ready. “Miss Xu, come and eat.”

“CEO Si told me that if you feel bored, I can take you out for a stroll.” After saying this, the auntie pressed a watch against Xu Chengjin’s hand so she could feel it. “CEO Si will be monitoring our movements through this watch the entire time.”

“And this.”

The auntie handed another watch to Xu Chengjin. “CEO Si told me to give this to you.”

Xu Chengjin took it and felt it carefully. She realized it was the same model Si Yu had given her before. Si Yu must have had it urgently repaired, fearing that something might happen to her again.

A faint smile appeared on her face. Wearing the watch, she sat obediently at the dining table waiting for the meal.

“The porridge is a bit hot. Do you want sugar?”

The auntie wasn’t young anymore, and her gaze toward Xu Chengjin was full of maternal affection, her tone like she was coaxing a child. “The sun is quite nice today.”

“No sugar, thank you.” Xu Chengjin shook her head. She carefully took a sip with a spoon; the taste was good. “Have you eaten, Auntie?”

“I’ve eaten.”

The auntie had already started tidying up the kitchen trash, talking as she worked: “I started looking after CEO Si when she was ten years old. It’s just that she’s always been a bit emotionally detached. I used to worry she’d be alone for the rest of her life, but now it seems I was overthinking it.”

Xu Chengjin was surprised. she had assumed Si Yu had simply hired a maid, but she hadn’t expected their relationship to be so close.

“You’ve been with Si Yu for that long?” Xu Chengjin couldn’t hide her astonishment. “Then… can you tell me more about her story?”

Xu Chengjin felt she still knew too little about Si Yu and wanted to understand her more.

More, and then a little more.

“The CEO as a child…” The auntie sighed at the mention of Si Yu’s youth. She wiped away the last of the water stains before coming over to sit beside Xu Chengjin. “I didn’t arrive that early; she was already ten. But my first impression of her was that she was emotionally cold.”

“It might sound like an exaggeration, but it felt like a child who didn’t like to laugh or cry. She just kept a straight face all day, looking incredibly stern.” The auntie had a faint smile as she recalled these things. “Back then, she was surrounded by adults with ulterior motives. Perhaps because of her parents, there were always nasty rumors being spread about the CEO. But she never cried, and she didn’t seem to care.”

“Even though I looked after her for a long time, truthfully, I wasn’t that close to her either.” The auntie watched with satisfaction as Xu Chengjin ate quietly. “Back then, her grades were exceptional—always first in the school. She was beautiful, too, so some people ignored the rumors and wanted to play with her. I remember her standing there, a tiny person with her arms crossed, saying very coldly: ‘You all are too childish.'”

Xu Chengjin couldn’t help but let out a laugh. “Ah, I didn’t realize she was so ‘edgy’ back then.”

“Yes. Later, as she grew up and gained her own power, no one dared to provoke her anymore. At first, I really thought she was going to grow old alone.”

These weren’t lies. Over the years, too many people had tried to climb the social ladder through Si Yu, but Si Yu never gave them so much as a glance. As it turned out, she had long since fallen for Xu Chengjin.

When Si Yu had spoken of Xu Chengjin this morning, her eyes were bright and tender. She had explained every detail clearly. If that wasn’t love…

The smile never left Xu Chengjin’s face. She lowered her head to take another sip of porridge. Just as she was about to speak, a video call came through. Hearing the sound, she picked up her phone and used the voice assistant to answer.

“Xiaojin.”

Wu Boran had been swamped with classes lately, and there were family matters she needed to handle. She was constantly running between the two, with no free time at all. Usually, she fell asleep the moment she finished her shower at night. Having finally found a moment of peace today, she was able to call Xu Chengjin.

“Are your eyes any better?”

Wu Boran was in her dormitory. She stared at Xu Chengjin’s face, her gaze not wavering for a second.

“A bit better.”

Xu Chengjin blinked. In fact, she had realized upon waking up that she could see a tiny bit more—everything was still very blurry, but if it continued this way, she should recover completely soon.

Wu Boran nodded, resting her chin in her hand as she looked at her. “When you get better, I’ll take you to play games.”

“Okay.”

Xu Chengjin agreed. She was in a good mood, so she was willing to try or agree to almost anything right now.

How could Wu Boran not see her joy? She pursed her lips, silent for a few seconds before asking: “Are you… very happy staying with Si Yu?”

“Yes.”

Xu Chengjin answered without a moment’s hesitation. She was happy, of course. “I’m very happy. I want to be with her forever.”

Wu Boran didn’t know what had happened yesterday. Hearing this, she fell into a long silence. Finally, she whispered: “Xiaojin, during this time while you haven’t been by my side, I’ve thought about it for a long time—”

“Wu Boran.”

Xu Chengjin interrupted her directly, though her words were gentle. “I understand everything.”

She understood, but she was unwilling.

Wu Boran’s expression instantly turned to one of disappointment. She hesitated for a few seconds, still wanting to try one last time: “My mother called me back to inherit the family business. If I can achieve something great, is there… any possibility for us?”

Xu Chengjin pursed her lips. “Wu Boran, regardless of whether you met me or not, you should build your own career. You are yourself first. Don’t do it for someone else, okay? I don’t want to become your pressure or your burden.”

“Also… it’s impossible.”

After saying those last words, Xu Chengjin let out a soft breath. “I’m going to apply my medicine now. I still need to bandage my eyes. Talk to you later.”

Wu Boran looked like she wanted to say more, but after a few seconds, she just said: “See you later.”

The video call ended. Xu Chengjin placed the phone on the table. The auntie had gone into the kitchen long ago and only came out to clear the dishes when things had quieted down. “Not eating anymore?”

“No more.”

Xu Chengjin shook her head and stood up slowly. “I’m going to apply my medicine.”

She hadn’t applied the medicine to her eyes yet today. Since it was working, she was determined to stick with it.

She groped her way forward. When she reached the doorknob and tried to open it, she found it wouldn’t budge. Xu Chengjin stood there for a few seconds before realizing the room was locked.

She had arrived at this house after losing her sight, so she wasn’t familiar with the layout.

But locking that room… it must be Si Yu’s private space.

Xu Chengjin didn’t think much of it. She went into her own bathroom, found the medicine, and intended to apply it to the medical cotton and wrap it with gauze. But because she was clumsy, the gauze she just picked up fell directly onto the floor.

“Tsk.”

Xu Chengjin didn’t call for help. She crouched down carefully to pick it up. She could clearly sense the light source now. After picking it up, she stood up abruptly, but perhaps because she exerted too much force, she felt a wave of dizziness.

She forced her eyes open, gripping the sink with both hands to ride out the vertigo. Once the feeling passed, she lifted her head.

She wasn’t sure if it was an illusion, but she seemed to be seeing more clearly.

After repeatedly confirming it wasn’t a hallucination, she set the medicine aside. She was excited, and her steps were a bit faster as she walked out.

She found her phone and sent a message to Si Yu asking if she was busy. The next second, Si Yu’s video call came through. Xu Chengjin answered instantly: “Si Yu.”

“Have you eaten?”

Si Yu put down her documents, looking at Xu Chengjin with a smile. “How do you feel today?”

Xu Chengjin smiled, tilting her head. She planned to wait until Si Yu came back in the afternoon to tell her. “I’m much better.”

“That’s good.”

Si Yu was satisfied. She didn’t forget to remind her: “Remember to change the dressing on your wound later. If it’s inconvenient to do it yourself, let Auntie Chi help you.”

“Mhm!”

Xu Chengjin nodded vigorously. She glanced back at the locked room and asked directly: “I just noticed a room is locked. Is your stuff in there?”

Si Yu’s expression suddenly became strange. She hesitated for a moment before saying: “When your eyes are better, I’ll open the door for you. Or you can go in yourself; the key is in the drawer of the master bedroom.”

“So mysterious?” Xu Chengjin’s field of vision was growing larger and clearer. The smile on her face grew more radiant. “I’ll wait for you to come home. I have some news to tell you.”

Si Yu nodded; she happened to have work to finish. “Then wait for me to get home.”

“Bye-bye.”

After hanging up, the joy surging through Xu Chengjin was almost overwhelming. At the same time, curiosity bubbled up. She looked at the locked door again and whispered to herself: “It shouldn’t matter if I just take one look now, right?”

She hesitated, but eventually decided to take a quiet peek. After all, she could technically see now. With that thought, she found the key and tried to open the door. At first, she couldn’t fit the key in because her vision was still blurry—it took several tries to succeed.

“It’s open.”

Xu Chengjin muttered. The moment she pushed the door open slightly, she was met with a photograph. She froze for a second, then pushed the door wide open.

The daylight from the window spilled across her. In that moment, she instinctively closed her eyes. When she opened them again, the world was vivid and sharp—including the secret of this room, and Si Yu’s world.

“It’s all…”

Xu Chengjin stood frozen in place. Reflected in her pupils were the items filling the room. Her lips moved silently:

“Photos of me.”