The White Moonlight is So Scheming - Chapter 28

Pestered beyond endurance, Liu Yurou finally threw caution to the wind. “Fine, I’ll tell you.”

“I knew you’d—”

“But I have to inform Ji Zhijie about this.”

Tilting her head, Shen Juexia’s outstretched arms froze mid-air as she frowned. “What are you going to tell Ji Zhijie?”

“That you came to me to pry into these matters, and that I broke my promise by revealing her private affairs.”

Pursing her lips into a tight line, Shen Juexia clenched her fists. “If you’re just going to tell her everything, why shouldn’t I ask her directly?”

“Exactly. That’s why I told you to ask her yourself from the beginning.” Liu Yurou shrugged nonchalantly.

“Shen Juexia? Shen Juexia!”

After calling her name several times with no response, Ji Zhijie anxiously grabbed her shoulders, fingers trembling. “What’s wrong with you? Don’t scare me like this!”

The call was still connected, the phone lying on the ground, its screen displaying the ever-increasing duration of the call.

Hearing this, the smile on Shen Juexia’s lips instantly faded, her gaze evasive. “I already apologized earlier…”

“Tomorrow at noon, accompany me back to the old house.”

Fiddling with the diamonds on her bracelet, Shen Juexia reluctantly nodded. “Fine, but—”

Before she could finish, Shen Tinghan cut her off. “After we return tomorrow afternoon, let’s visit your deskmate’s mother in the hospital together.”

Her tail figuratively bristled, every hair on her body standing on end.

Forcing an ingratiating smile, Shen Juexia stammered, “Sis, you’re so busy and finally have a couple of days off. Won’t this be too exhausting for you?”

“It’s fine. I have you with me, don’t I?” Shen Tinghan’s phoenix eyes narrowed slightly as she strode toward the second floor.

Her footsteps paused on the sixth step.

Suddenly turning back, her gaze landed squarely on Shen Juexia’s face. “Besides, I’m curious about what kind of girl could make our Xia so soft-hearted.”

Her mind was already a tangled mess.

Meeting Shen Tinghan’s inscrutable look, Shen Juexia let out a dry laugh. “Haha, I’m not soft-hearted at all.”

Without pressing further, Shen Tinghan lightly withdrew her gaze and calmly walked into her room.

Click.

The door closed softly behind her.

Standing in place, her face aligned with the wall clock, Shen Juexia watched the endlessly swinging hands and felt like a convict awaiting execution.

Hearing the shouts from the other end of the call, Shen Tinghan’s composure shattered instantly as she reflexively stood up. “Xia? What’s wrong?”

“Don’t move.”

“I’m coming to pick you up from the hospital right now.”

Half an hour later, Shen Juexia, now dressed and carrying her bag, descended the stairs slowly, her hand resting on the white wooden railing.

Seated quietly on the sofa, the ends of her dark hair framing her graceful figure, Shen Tinghan wore a light apple-green structured blazer paired with a creamy apricot skirt, her outfit formal yet approachable. Hearing footsteps behind her, she glanced toward the staircase.

Shen Juexia was dressed in an apple-green knit top over a white slip dress.

Their eyes met mid-air, both flashing with surprise.

It was almost…

As if they had coordinated their outfits in advance.

The moment she noticed the color of Shen Tinghan’s suit, the little bunny couldn’t help but curl her lips into a smile. Clutching the chain of her bag, Shen Juexia bounced over to her. “Sister, our outfits match so well!”

A glint quickly flashed through Shen Tinghan’s phoenix eyes as she picked up her silver-buckled tote bag and headed for the door. “We shouldn’t be late for the meeting. Let’s go, the driver is already waiting outside.”

Left behind, Shen Juexia pouted in dissatisfaction.

She secretly stuck her tongue out at the retreating figure.

By the time Shen Juexia dawdled her way to the entrance, Shen Tinghan was already seated in the car. Seeing the open door, she huffed lightly, tossed her bag in first, then climbed in with an angry plop.

“Bang!” The sound alone made it clear—

The little bunny was furious.

Standing by the car door, the driver who was supposed to close it turned ashen at the noise. Oh no!

“Knock knock!”

Passing by the hallway, Shen Tinghan lightly tapped on Shen Juexia’s door twice. “Xia Xia, time to get up. I’m heading downstairs to make breakfast now.”

Buried under the blankets, Shen Juexia mumbled, “Okay, got it.”

With that response, Shen Tinghan’s lips curved slightly as she turned and went downstairs.

In the kitchen, Aunt Liu was prepping ingredients when she heard footsteps behind her. She turned in surprise. “Miss, you’re up so early… Breakfast will still take a while.”

“Still adjusting to the time difference. Couldn’t sleep anyway.” Taking down the rabbit-print apron from the wall, Shen Tinghan lowered her gaze. “You can leave. I’ll handle breakfast today.”

“Huh? But Second Miss said you had a fever yesterday—”

“It’s fine. You can go.”

Glancing at the prepped ingredients on the counter, Aunt Liu nodded, wiping her hands with a towel. “Then I’ll take my leave. Call me anytime if you need anything, Miss.”

With a slight nod, Shen Tinghan stepped up to the cutting board.

She pulled a pair of transparent gloves from the paper box on the shelf and carefully put them on.

Taking the drained kale, endive, red cabbage, and lettuce from the basket, she pressed them flat and gripped the knife handle.

Her well-defined fingers tensed slightly, revealing faint blue veins beneath the skin.

After removing the gloves, she poured the mixed salad into a glass bowl.

Turning to the fridge, she retrieved croissants from the second shelf, sliced them in half, lined them with parchment paper, and placed them in the oven skipping preheating and setting the temperature directly to 180°C for six minutes.

Picking up the olive oil from the rack, she poured a little into the pan.

Threads of heat rose from the skillet as she cracked an egg with one hand. The moment the egg white hit the pan, it sizzled crisply, soon filling the air with a savory aroma.

The first fried egg was flipped, its edges slightly golden while the yolk remained soft. The second egg wasn’t flipped; instead, she sprinkled a bit of pepper on top.

After frying the eggs, she cooked the triangle-cut potatoes and sausages separately. Just as she finished, the oven beeped.

Donning heat-resistant gloves, she took out the baking tray, lifted two plump croissants, and stuffed them generously with tuna flakes. Carefully placing the croissants beside the eggs, she arranged the salad, potatoes, and sausages neatly on the plate.

“Aunt Liu, go check on Xia—”

“Sis~ it smells so good!”

The little glutton had already caught the scent and had been eyeing her for a while.

No…

She absolutely couldn’t let her sister meet Ji Jiezhi!

Snapping back to reality.

Fine beads of sweat dotted her forehead.

A buzzing hum filled her ears.

Shen Juexia bent down to pick up the phone she had dropped, gripping it so tightly it nearly dug into her palm, murmuring repeatedly, “Sis, I’m fine, Sis, you don’t need to come over…”

Shen Juexia was clearly not in a good state.

Frowning deeply, Ji Jiezhi’s eyes brimmed with concern. “Should I call a doctor for you?”

“Leave me alone!” Shen Juexia suddenly stood up, shaking off Ji Jiezhi’s hand.

Staring at her now-empty palm.

A flicker of disbelief flashed in her eyes.

Ji Jiezhi looked up at Shen Juexia, confusion in her gaze, as if trying to confirm her meaning.

Accidentally meeting Ji Jiezhi’s wounded expression.

A sharp pang shot through her chest. Shen Juexia bit her lip, using the pain to steady her racing heart. “Something urgent came up at home. I need to go back.”

“Then do you—”

“No need, I can manage on my own.”

Before Ji Jiezhi could even stand, Shen Juexia cut her off mercilessly. “I’m leaving first. If there’s anything, text me. Don’t call.”

Nighttime in the hospital’s inpatient ward.

The corridor lights were soft and sparse, with only a few night lamps casting long shadows.

Most rooms were already dark, with only the occasional drip of an IV or the rhythmic hum of a ventilator echoing faintly in the air.

Having finished her shift for the day.

Zheng Yating changed out of her scrubs and was about to leave.

Footsteps sounded in the quiet hallway.

Passing through the ward corridor, she suddenly paused and turned back. “Jiezhi, why are you still here so late? Shouldn’t you be home?”

Her gaze was dim and lost.

Ji Jiezhi slowly lifted her head. “Ah… I’ll be heading back soon.”

“What about the girl who came with you? Oh, and have you eaten dinner yet?” Looking at the young woman before her, Zheng Yating couldn’t help but think of her own three-year-old daughter.

“She had something to take care of and left.”

Shaking her head, Ji Jiezhi lowered her eyes. “I’m not hungry. Thank you, Dr. Zheng.”

Silently studying her for a moment, Zheng Yating sighed, slung off her shoulder bag, and unzipped it to rummage inside. “Here, I bought this pretzel bread at lunch with my colleagues. They said it was really good. Try it.”

Reaching out, Ji Jiezhi instinctively wanted to refuse her kindness. “Thank you, Dr. Zheng, but I’ll just grab something later when I get back. You’ve already helped us so much. I can’t possibly take your things.”

“Oh, come on, it’s just a piece of bread! What’s with you kids these days?” Shoving the bread into Ji Jiezhi’s hand, Zheng Yating slung her bag back over her shoulder. “You have to take care of yourself first before you can take care of others. And stop saying ‘thank you’ all the time. It’s giving me a headache!”

“Than—”

Seeing her about to thank her again, Zheng Yating frowned. “Hmm?”

Swallowing the words in her throat.

Ji Jiezhi gently squeezed the bread and whispered, “Okay, I’ll take care of myself.”

“That’s more like it!” Nodding, Zheng Yating glanced toward the ward. “Alright, I’m heading out. You should go home soon too.”

“Mm.” Ji Jiezhi gave a faint nod.

The metal bench beneath her was cold to the touch.

Actually, Ji Zhijie didn’t know what she was waiting for here.

Staring at the green glow of the emergency exit light around the corner, she tore open the packaging along the seam and took small bites of the bread. The crust of the pretzel roll was slightly hard, but the inside was soft.

After biting into it,

the bread revealed its creamy cheese filling.

The milky-white cheese exuded a sweet aroma that felt out of place amidst the faint antiseptic scent of the hospital.

This was Ji Zhijie’s first time eating a pretzel roll.

Chewing quietly, she thought to herself—It smells so good… so why does it taste so bitter in my mouth?

Her phone, set to silent mode,

continued to vibrate incessantly.

A complicated shadow flickered in her almond-shaped eyes.

Then, without looking back, Shen Juexia turned and walked away.

Left alone, Ji Zhijie only withdrew her gaze belatedly once the girl’s figure had completely disappeared around the corner, a faint chill settling in her heart…

By noon, after class, everyone had left the classroom.

Only Shen Juexia remained in her seat, lost in a daze.

She had done everything she could. The aftermath of the truth coming to light was beyond her control. And after all this time together, maybe just maybe Ji Zhijie would go easy on her when the time came?

Lifting a hand, Shen Juexia lightly patted her cheeks.

Well, it is what it is. For lunch today, I’m going to order the most expensive dishes on the second-floor restaurant menu—who knows when I’ll get another chance!

Dragging her heavy feet, she trudged out of the classroom in a daze.

As she reached the corridor bridge, Shen Juexia paused, frowning.

Hadn’t Liu Yurou rushed to the cafeteria right after class? Why was she still standing here?

Her sixth sense tingling, Shen Juexia felt something was off. Instead of calling out to Liu Yurou, she quietly circled around behind her.

“Don’t worry, I’ll ask around for you.”

“No need to be polite; we’re classmates, after all.”

Gripping the railing tightly, Liu Yurou hung up the phone and turned around with a sigh. “Oh my god! Shen Juexia, you scared me half to death. Why are you creeping around like a ghost?”