There's Something Wrong With My Little White Flower - Chapter 40

Chapter 40: Elder Sister of a Brother-Obsessed Family X University Professor

When the doorbell rang, Jiang Peifeng didn’t realize that her own lips had curled up in a smile.

She opened the door and first sized up the little white flower: “It’s getting colder today. Why aren’t you wearing more clothes?”

Ruan Jiyun was still wearing her school uniform. She was stunned for a moment when she heard the question, then said: “Oh, well… I won’t be going out anyway.” After saying this, she seemed to be responding to Jiang Peifeng’s concern by pulling her sleeves down a bit.

Jiang Peifeng let her in, then pushed her wheelchair toward the kitchen: “You young girls love beauty and always like to wear thin clothes. Wait a minute, I’ll make you a cup of hot milk tea.”

She heard footsteps following behind her and turned to see Ruan Jiyun following her closely, her black, doe-like eyes fixed on her: “I… I’ll help you.”

Hot water was already boiled in the health pot. Seeing Ruan Jiyun’s nervous look, as if she was afraid Jiang Peifeng might bump into something, Jiang Peifeng smiled and moved away from the counter: “Then you can do it yourself… I think the black tea is on the shelf above. Just take one packet.”

Then she watched the girl stand on her toes, reaching up to get the box of tea bags. From her angle, the girl’s slender figure was like a small white poplar. The cuffs of her shirt hung loosely, revealing half of her fair forearm.

Jiang Peifeng’s phoenix eyes narrowed.

“What’s wrong with your arm?” Her tone carried a rare seriousness. She wheeled the chair in front of the girl and gripped her wrist.

“It’s nothing!” Ruan Jiyun’s heart leaped. She instinctively tried to pull her hand away, but her wrist was held fast by an unusually persistent yet gentle force.

Jiang Peifeng lowered her eyelashes. Ruan Jiyun couldn’t see the tumultuous, dark storm contained within, only feeling that the fingers gripping her trembled slightly. Jiang Peifeng seemed to want to touch the injury but was afraid of hurting her. Her fair fingers hesitated for a moment, only daring to hover above her forearm.

“It’s all swollen like this. You need some medication,” Jiang Peifeng said in a deep voice. “Come with me.”

She wheeled the chair toward the bedroom. Ruan Jiyun pursed her lips, as if she had done something wrong, and reluctantly followed behind her, walking into the bedroom with her head down.

This was her first time entering this bedroom. The room was filled with a subtle, clean fragrance of unknown origin. The bed was neatly made, with a faint pearly sheen on the light purple silk fitted sheet. The soft down comforter looked very warm. Ruan Jiyun was surprised to see a rabbit plush toy on the bedside table. Thinking that someone with Jiang Peifeng’s commanding temperament would sleep hugging a toy, she blinked curiously.

“You can still smile even with an injury like this,” Jiang Peifeng found the first-aid kit and beckoned to Ruan Jiyun. “Sit there.”

She pointed to the bedside. Ruan Jiyun hesitated for a moment, and Jiang Peifeng had already wheeled her chair beside her: “Your arm.”

Ruan Jiyun sat obediently on the edge of the bed and consciously rolled up her sleeve to make it easier for Jiang Peifeng to operate.

Several crisscrossing red marks were visible on her originally fair, jade-like arm. The edges of the marks showed slight signs of bruising, making it a shocking sight. Jiang Peifeng’s heart ached. If it weren’t for the concern about her identity, she would have immediately gone to confront the little white flower’s parents. But she could only suppress her anger for now. She took out an iodine cotton swab and gently wiped the wound.

The iodine immediately felt cool on the injury. Ruan Jiyun bit her lip but couldn’t help letting out a small “hiss.”

Jiang Peifeng immediately softened her touch: “Don’t be afraid. Your wound is bruised and needs to be disinfected.” As she spoke, she slightly lowered her head and blew on the newly medicated wound.

She was very close to Ruan Jiyun. When she lowered her head, Ruan Jiyun saw Jiang Peifeng’s delicate, beautiful eyelashes and her slightly parted red lips. The airflow was cool, but it felt like it sparked a fiery heat on her skin. Ruan Jiyun stiffened, letting Jiang Peifeng carefully apply the medicine, and then layer her sleeve back down.

“You’re injured, so you don’t need to help me type today,” she put the first-aid kit back in its place. “Just rest well.”

This seemed to be a subtle dismissal.

Ruan Jiyun immediately felt a little discouraged. Her wound had ached for most of the night, keeping her tossing and turning, but the thought that the next day was the weekend and she could come to Jiang Peifeng’s place was like a piece of candy. She clung to that tiny sweetness, eagerly waiting until dawn.

But it seemed she had messed things up.

Thinking this, she lowered her head and whispered: “I’m sorry.”

Jiang Peifeng had her back to her just then, missing the process of the little white flower’s expression change. Hearing her words, she smiled: “Why are you apologizing to me?” She wheeled her chair out, then finally noticed Ruan Jiyun’s demeanor.

The little white flower was sitting blankly on the edge of the bed, her large eyes misty with tears. As her eyelashes fluttered, a clear teardrop fell, landing on her blue skirt and spreading into a wet ring.

She looked like a kitten abandoned by its owner, silent and only daring to grieve alone.

“Why are you crying…” Jiang Peifeng suddenly felt flustered. She quickly wheeled herself to Ruan Jiyun’s side. She wanted to hug her but was afraid of overstepping, so she could only repeatedly console her, “Don’t cry… it’s my fault. My tone was bad just now. Be good, Xiao Yun, let’s not cry…”

Her voice was clearly anxious. Ruan Jiyun wanted very much to stop the tears and tell her it wasn’t like that, but the gentler Jiang Peifeng’s voice became, the more she couldn’t control the feeling of grievance.

No one had ever paid such attention to her feelings, soothing her with such a pleasant voice, telling her not to hurt.

Jiang Peifeng went from being initially flustered to completely regretting why she had to come up with the excuse of breaking her leg. Now, sitting in the wheelchair, even the simple act of wanting to hug her girl seemed so powerless.

“It’s okay,” she could only wipe away the falling tears with her hand, over and over again. “I’m here. Everything will be fine.”

Ruan Jiyun was immersed in sadness and didn’t hear the deeper meaning in her words. She finally managed to control her tears and sniffled: “It’s my fault for making you worry.”

Jiang Peifeng handed her a clean towel and shook her head: “It’s alright. You don’t have to worry about anything with me. If you want to cry, it’s… alright.”

I will just try my best not to let you cry again. She didn’t say this out loud. Only when Ruan Jiyun had composed herself did Jiang Peifeng brew the milk tea again, feeling better in her heart as she watched her sip it slowly.

“Let’s eat something good today,” seeing that Ruan Jiyun’s mood had calmed, she wanted to cheer her up. “How about I order some sushi?”

Ruan Jiyun had never eaten sushi, but she knew it must be expensive. She immediately said: “No, no! I already eat and drink here for free every time. I feel guilty enough.”

Looking at Jiang Peifeng’s leg, an idea suddenly sparked: “If Sister Jiang doesn’t mind, should I cook you a meal?”

Jiang Peifeng hadn’t realized the little white flower had cooking skills. Thinking about it, in their previous time together, she truly hadn’t eaten any food made by Ruan Jiyun.

“What can you cook?” The suggestion was too tempting. She asked with great interest.

Ruan Jiyun smiled: “When I was little, my parents were very busy with work, so sometimes I had to cook for my brother. I can make most common home-style dishes… Do you want to try some?”

How could Jiang Peifeng not want to? But thinking of Ruan Jiyun’s injury, she hesitated: “Your hand is injured…”

“This little injury is nothing!” Seeing Jiang Peifeng’s interest, Ruan Jiyun almost wished she could immediately cook a whole table of food to prove she was fine. She said enthusiastically, “I’m already used to it.”

Jiang Peifeng pondered for a moment, then finally looked up: “Alright, but I don’t have any groceries at home. How about we go grocery shopping at the supermarket?”

The supermarket Jiang Peifeng wanted to go to was in a shopping mall a short distance from the residential area. The early autumn weather was lovely. Ruan Jiyun smoothly wheeled her to the mall. Jiang Peifeng casually picked up a shopping basket.

“You choose the ingredients, and I’ll be responsible for holding them,” she smiled, patting the shopping basket and placing it on her lap.

This slightly childlike action made Ruan Jiyun smile as well. She rarely came to the supermarket to buy groceries. The neatly packaged rows of vegetables on the shelves made one’s mood feel brighter.

While pushing the wheelchair, she occasionally lowered her head to discuss the menu with Jiang Peifeng. The girl’s sweet, soft voice speaking next to her ear made Jiang Peifeng feel exceptionally happy.

“You decide everything,” she said with a beaming smile, then pointed to the shelf ahead: “Let’s also buy some snacks for the afternoon.”

The shelves were piled high with an array of chocolates, potato chips, and various biscuits, dazzling Ruan Jiyun. She subconsciously asked Jiang Peifeng: “Which one do you want? I’ll get it for you.”

“Which one do you want? Choose for yourself,” Jiang Peifeng patted the shopping basket. “We can only go home when it’s full.”

Ruan Jiyun froze.

Jiang Peifeng’s words suddenly made her recall a small memory.

She was only seven or eight years old then. Once, her parents seemed to be in a good mood and unexpectedly took her and her brother to the supermarket. Her brother was naturally the main character. He sat in the shopping cart, pushed along by their father, while their mother stood beside him, smiling warmly: “Son, take whatever you want to eat. We’re filling the cart today!”

What about her back then? She remembered silently following behind, feeling like someone unrelated to them. After a while, her mother suddenly looked back, seemingly just realizing her presence, and said to her: “You buy something too.”

She listened to the words blankly, somewhat incredulous. It wasn’t until her mother’s expression grew a little impatient that she reached out and pulled a bag of biscuits from the bottom shelf.

It was the cheapest item on the entire shelf. Even so, her mother seemed to frown. She finally put the biscuits into the shopping cart, placing them alongside the pile of glittering imported snacks. Then her mother said: “Your mom and dad are good to you. You must remember this well and be filial to us when you grow up, understand?”

From then on, the young Ruan Jiyun learned a lesson: love was not unconditional. The things you desired required something in exchange.

But her young hands were empty and penniless. She had no capital to exchange for love and affection.

“What’s wrong? Too many choices?” Jiang Peifeng saw that she hadn’t reacted for a long time and said with a smile, “Just grab a box of everything to try.”

Ruan Jiyun snapped back to reality. She lowered her eyelashes to hide her expression: “I don’t eat snacks. I’m afraid of getting fat… Tell me what you want to eat, and I’ll get it for you.”

But Jiang Peifeng didn’t move. She just watched Ruan Jiyun quietly. A moment later, she reached out and took a box of chocolates from the shelf—the exact spot the little white flower’s gaze had clearly lingered.

“It’s just a box of candy,” she said softly. “Our Xiao Yun deserves all the good things in the world.”

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