In the back seat of the luxury sedan, it was so quiet that only the low hum of the engine and the streaks of streetlights racing past the window could be heard.
The air was filled with the scent of the expensive perfume Jiang Muyun wore.
Jiang Muyun was looking down, her fingers lovingly stroking the brand-new handbag resting on her lap.
The Moonlight White rare leather, the metal buckle engraved with a unique number.
This was the handbag Su Qinghan had just given her—a global limited edition from a top luxury brand this season. Word had it that this was the only one in the entire city.
A smile lingered at the corners of her mouth as she mentally planned which dress to wear tomorrow to match it, aiming to casually stun everyone at school.
“Qinghan, look at the shine on this buckle. Isn’t it especially beautiful?”
She turned her face sideways, her voice soft and coquettish, hoping to get the same focused admiration from the person beside her.
But Su Qinghan wasn’t looking at her, nor at the expensive bag.
She was frowning slightly, staring at her phone screen. On it was the message Yan Yu had just replied with.
[Qinghan, how could you think that of me? I haven’t… I never said anything bad about Classmate Jiang. This afternoon during sketching, I was drawing on my own, far away from everyone. Could it be… could it be a misunderstanding?]
Between the lines was Yan Yu’s usual tone—cautious, even a little humble in her defense.
But for some reason, as Su Qinghan read it, a faint trace of… surprise? brushed through her heart.
In her impression, when Yan Yu received a reproachful message like this from her, she would either stay silent or rush to explain and plead more urgently, which only annoyed Su Qinghan.
Yet this reply, though still worded weakly, had an oddly calm tone?
The statement in the text was more like an objective fact than a complaint.
Was she overthinking it? Or… was there really some misunderstanding?
“Qinghan?”
Jiang Muyun called out again, her voice tinged with a dissatisfied pout.
Su Qinghan snapped back to reality, turned off her phone screen, and suppressed that faint trace of emotion.
She turned her head to look at Jiang Muyun, her face already restored to its usual composure, though deep in her eyes lingered a hint of contemplation over the message just now.
“Mm, it suits you very well.”
She replied casually, her gaze falling on Jiang Muyun’s face as she tried to find some words of praise from the girl’s slightly pouted expression.
But Jiang Muyun caught her brief moment of distraction.
The smile on her face faded a little as she set the bag aside. “What were you looking at just now? So serious… Did I do something wrong today that upset you?”
Su Qinghan looked at her glistening eyes. The ripple of emotion stirred by Yan Yu’s message was suddenly replaced by a faint weariness.
She raised her hand and rubbed her temples.
“No, it’s just some family matters,”
She brushed it off casually, then paused, remembering Jiang Muyun’s earlier complaints. She softened her tone a bit, adding a coaxing note,
“Yun Yun, about Bai Yan’er and Yan Yu… they are sisters in name, after all. They’ve known each other longer. It’s only natural for Bai Yan’er to be closer to Yan Yu. Don’t take it too much to heart.”
She meant to soothe Jiang Muyun, to stop her from dwelling on it.
But those words sounded completely different to Jiang Muyun.
“Only natural?”
Jiang Muyun’s voice suddenly rose a notch. Her pretty brows knitted together, and tears welled up instantly in her eyes,
“Qinghan, are you saying I’m petty? I just… I just can’t get used to it, that’s all! I just came back; nothing is familiar yet. Bai Yan’er embarrassed me in front of everyone and then turned around to be so nice to Yan Yu… I-I feel awful. Can’t I even talk to you about it?”
The more she spoke, the more aggrieved she became. Tears hung on her eyelashes, threatening to fall but not quite, as if she had been terribly wronged.
“Besides, Yan Yu obviously… You said it yourself before—she has a lot on her mind. And now it’s like this… I’m just worried that, because of our relationship, she might do something behind the scenes on purpose to mess things up for me…”
Su Qinghan watched her, seeing how she acted as if the whole world had wronged her. A flicker of irritation rose deep inside.
It was happening again.
In the few days since she returned, scenes like this had already played out several times.
A slight dissatisfaction, an unintentional comment from someone else, or even a careless glance could make Jiang Muyun read countless meanings into it. Then she would run to Su Qinghan and seek comfort in this weak, wronged manner.
The Mu Yun from childhood… didn’t seem like this.
In Su Qinghan’s memory, the girl who saved her had a bright smile.
In the bone-chilling lake water, that hand gripping hers with force… that strength had carried her through many years.
But the Jiang Muyun in front of her…
“Yun Yun,” Su Qinghan’s voice dropped, carrying a hint of detachment she herself didn’t notice, “let’s end this here.”
She rarely used such a firm tone.
Jiang Muyun froze, as if she hadn’t expected Su Qinghan to speak to her like that.
The tears hanging on her lashes finally fell, tracing a path down her pale cheeks.
But this time, the tears weren’t just full of grievance. There was more shock, and a glimmer of anger at being offended.
“Su Qinghan,” she called her full name, her voice trembling, “what kind of attitude is that? Have you forgotten who pulled you out of the water? If it weren’t for me, would you even be sitting here right now? Now you’re talking to me like this for an outsider, a substitute you already discarded?”
The fact that she had saved Su Qinghan back then was Jiang Muyun’s greatest leverage and her most habitual ace card, meant to make Su Qinghan soften and compromise.
As expected, Su Qinghan’s expression shifted slightly, a complex undercurrent passing through her eyes.
That vague memory was always the softest part of her heart.
But for some reason, hearing Jiang Muyun bring it up again now, with such a self-righteous tone, Su Qinghan felt no guilt rise in her heart.
Instead… a weariness she didn’t want to delve into set in.
Would the girl who saved her—that little sun—really be the Jiang Muyun in front of her, who fussed over trivial matters and constantly needed her reassurance and favoritism?
That thought flashed through her mind so quickly she almost couldn’t catch it, but it pierced her heart like a tiny, silent thorn.
The car fell into a suffocating silence.
Only Jiang Muyun’s muffled sobs and the flowing city lights outside the window remained.
Seeing Su Qinghan remain silent, her expression even colder and sterner than before, Jiang Muyun grew even more angry and flustered.
She grabbed the brand-new limited-edition handbag beside her, pushed open the car door, and was about to get out.
“Stop the car! I want to get out!”
The driver glanced at Su Qinghan in the rearview mirror.
Su Qinghan closed her eyes. When she opened them again, they were filled with helplessness.