Morning light filtered through the curtain gaps in fragments, illuminating Cheng Yuexin’s not-so-relaxed sleeping face.
‘Long time no see… what exactly happened…’
She forgot to turn off the alarm from military training.
Half-asleep, Cheng Yuexin felt for her phone on the pillow and turned off the alarm from memory without needing to look.
But the warmth around her waist and abdomen jolted her nerves awake. Her purple eyes snapped open.
“Mm…”
Her brows furrowed, and her eyes quickly shut again.
The headache from the hangover dominated every nerve.
Then came the soreness in her body.
The sour and numb feeling was even more intense than pickled vegetables.
Having just escaped the torment of military training, she was tortured by Liu Yingqiu deep into the night last night.
What a terrible memory.
Her thoughts returned to normal. Cheng Yuexin picked up her phone. The screen was filled with messages and missed calls—some from Chen Yiyi, but more from Cheng Yueqing.
She had been missing last night, so of course Yue Qing was worried.
The instigator of all this was lying right beside her now.
Liu Yingqiu was holding her, not waking up from the alarm.
Cheng Yuexin glanced sideways at Liu Yingqiu, still sound asleep.
The corner of her mouth lifted slightly. Her eyes were closed but softly curved, as if she were smiling.
‘Wonder what sweet dream she’s having.’
She put down the phone and quietly pried away the hand on her waist, intending to escape her embrace.
“Mm, don’t fuss…”
Even while asleep, Liu Yingqiu’s arm still managed to wrap around Cheng Yuexin’s waist, not letting her go.
Cheng Yuexin had no time to waste. She had to go to Cheng Yueqing.
Today was a very important day.
She had promised that no matter what, she would be at the hospital by Cheng Yueqing’s side on the day of the surgery.
Now she had broken that promise.
Resolved to disturb Liu Yingqiu, Cheng Yuexin gritted her teeth and broke free from her embrace.
Free from the warm embrace, the morning chill crept relentlessly into her bare body.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, she shivered, clearing her head a bit.
Because of the jade’s escape, Liu Yingqiu subconsciously let out a low whimper and kept groping around the empty space beside her.
Cheng Yuexin took the chance to stuff a pillow into her arms. It smelled like her and still held her warmth—enough to fool her for a while.
It worked. Liu Yingqiu hugged the pillow, her furrowed brows relaxing slightly, her pale thighs clamping around it.
“Mm… baby… don’t run…”
Cheng Yuexin stared at her smiling face, expressionless except for a faint anger in her eyes.
‘Heartbreaker, you won’t even let me go in your dreams?’
‘Just keep dreaming. I’m done playing with you.’
She looked around and found her clothes scattered on the floor.
Holding her forehead, she sucked in a cold breath, forcing strength into her body.
“Hiss… my clothes…”
She half-squatted, her legs trembling uncontrollably, her jaw clenched tight.
Even squatting was hard work for her sore legs, so she knelt on the floor.
She glared fiercely at Liu Yingqiu on the bed, biting her cherry lips until they turned pale red.
First, she put on her top half to keep her stomach warm, then pulled on her pants.
“Hiss… ha… it hurts…”
Just moving two steps, the pain in her lower body forced her to stop.
But she had to get to Cheng Yueqing.
Determined, Cheng Yuexin staggered, quietly circling around the bed. The exit was right in front of her.
A glimmer of hope showed in her eyes—she was about to escape this den of demons.
Just then, the sleeping Liu Yingqiu opened her eyes.
Waking up hugging the pillow, Liu Yingqiu knitted her brows.
‘Where is she?’
‘How did a person turn into a pillow?’
Anger flared up, not because Cheng Yuexin had run away, but because she hadn’t noticed anything wrong while asleep.
She quickly got up to catch her, only to find Cheng Yuexin fully dressed, staring blankly at her.
Their eyes met, expressions starkly different.
The shock in purple eyes clashed with the disdain in red eyes.
“Little baby, in such a hurry to run away?”
The blanket slid off, revealing Liu Yingqiu’s stunning figure.
Cheng Yuexin’s eyes went a little straight. Deep down, she still hadn’t fully become a woman in her heart.
Such a top-tier beauty drew her attention.
But fear from within woke her up. Her eyes refocused, and Liu Yingqiu was already right in front of her.
Liu Yingqiu pinched her chin, raising an eyebrow as she leaned down to interrogate.
“Getting up so early, where are you rushing off to?”
Watching Cheng Yuexin’s panicked and fearful face, she curled her lips faintly.
‘Does she see me as some kind of villain?’
‘Am I really that bad?’
“I… I need to go to the hospital?”
Liu Yingqiu blinked, then the corners of her mouth flattened before lifting slightly.
“The hospital? We just did it last night, you don’t actually think you could get pregnant that fast, do you?”
Cheng Yuexin was dumbfounded. Her cherry mouth slightly opened, pupils contracting slightly.
‘What nonsense are you talking about? Do you think I’m stupid?’
When Cheng Yuexin didn’t respond, Liu Yingqiu wrapped her arms around her slender waist, squinting her eyes.
“Little dummy, it’s not that easy. Don’t go to the hospital. Let’s sleep a little more.”
Cheng Yuexin placed her hands on Liu Yingqiu’s shoulders, straightening her arms to keep a safe distance.
Not wanting to waste any more time, she spoke seriously and urgently.
“I really have something to do at the hospital. My little sister has surgery today. I have to be with her.”
Liu Yingqiu paused, remembering Cheng Yueqing.
“Cheng Yueqing? What happened to her?”
“No time to explain. I have to go to the hospital right now. Let me go.”
Cheng Yuexin tried to push her away, but her petite body lacked the strength to break free from Liu Yingqiu’s hold.
“I’ll go with you. Maybe I can help.”
Cheng Yuexin blinked her almond eyes.
‘Liu Yingqiu coming with me? She’d only cause trouble.’
‘Who would believe that someone who treated me so roughly yesterday would actually help me?’
“No, you can’t help me.”
Her eyes full of distrust darkened. Liu Yingqiu couldn’t see the light in her purple pupils, her expression complex, tinged with self-blame.
Gently taking her slightly cold hand—delicate and slender—she said softly.
“Yuexin, trust me. I will help you. At least, we used to be friends.”
Cheng Yuexin gave a bitter smile, pulled her hand away, and leaned back.
Liu Yingqiu still kept her arm around Cheng Yuexin’s body, but the dismissive gesture stabbed at her heart.
“And now?”
Cheng Yuexin asked expressionlessly.
“At least classmates.”
Liu Yingqiu said with a gentle smile, her tone warm, completely unlike the person she was last night.
Cheng Yuexin’s heart was conflicted.
She couldn’t forgive Liu Yingqiu, but given the situation, if she wanted to leave, not agreeing to let her come along seemed impossible.
“Fine. I’ll give you three minutes. If you’re not ready by the time three minutes are up, I’ll leave alone.”
Cheng Yuexin gave in and made her demand. If she could manage it, then fine.
“Got it!”
Hearing this, Liu Yingqiu immediately let go of Cheng Yuexin, jumped onto the bed to find her phone, and quickly put on her clothes.
She simply ran her fingers through her messy hair and tied it into a ponytail with a purple hair tie.
Cheng Yuexin glanced at the hair tie. It looked familiar.
‘It’s just a little thing I gave her in high school. Why is she still using it?’
‘For a rich girl like her, using this kind of hair tie is a bit cheap, isn’t it?’
She shook her head, not understanding, and didn’t want to think about it.
“Two minutes, if I’m not mistaken.”
Liu Yingqiu stood in front of Cheng Yuexin, smiling confidently.
“You passed.”
Cheng Yuexin dropped her arms from across her chest and quickly walked toward the door.
Liu Yingqiu followed closely.
“In such a hurry?”
“Of course. Surgery starts at 8:30, and it’s almost 7:00 now.”
Liu Yingqiu understood and grabbed Cheng Yuexin’s hand to slow her down a bit.
Seeing her unsteady stride, she realized she had been too rough on her last night.
In the elevator, Cheng Yuexin tried to break free, but Liu Yingqiu still wouldn’t let go.
“If walking is inconvenient, do you want me to carry you?”
Cheng Yuexin shot her a displeased glance.
“No need. This is all your doing anyway.”
“I’m… I’m sorry.”
Liu Yingqiu rubbed the back of her head as she apologized, forcing a smile, but still didn’t get a good expression from Cheng Yuexin.
“…”
The elevator fell silent until it reached the first floor with a clear chime.
“Hey! Liu Yingqiu, do you not understand human language?”
Cheng Yuexin pouted as her body was already lifted into the air. Her slightly flushed face only showed anger, without the struggle from yesterday.
Every joint in her limbs was sending signals of exhaustion.
Liu Yingqiu ignored her angry words, smiling at Cheng Yuexin’s frowning face.
“Carrying you like this, won’t we get there faster?”
“Smooth talker! Put me down. I’ll definitely walk faster than you.”
“Impossible. I’ll put you in the car first.”