Chapter 5: Under the Same Roof

Meng Zhenyue walked over and sat down beside her.

“Tell me, why don’t you want me here?”

The girl’s ears turned so red they looked ready to bleed. Her fingers twisted tightly around the edge of her phone as she lowered her head and stayed silent.

Meng Zhenyue waited quietly. When it was clear Yun Zhixue really couldn’t bring herself to speak, she looked away and instructed the caregiver, “Help her wash her hair. Be careful around the wound.”

Once Yun Zhixue’s braided hair was undone, it spilled all the way down, already a bit tangled. When the caregiver’s comb touched the ends, she winced in pain.

“Gently,” Meng Zhenyue reminded.

Half an hour later, her hair was finally washed. The tutor arrived right on time and opened a book to start teaching physics. Meng Zhenyue listened for a moment, then stood up and went to the window.

Her tall figure was reflected in the glass; her fingers felt strangely empty, as if they were missing a cigarette. When she wasn’t smiling, her striking face always carried a faint trace of melancholy.

“Everyone out,” she suddenly interrupted the tutor. “I’m sleepy. We’ll listen to lullabies tomorrow.”

The tutor hesitated. Meng Zhenyue lifted her phone slightly. “I’ll call President Yun. Just bring a bowl of plain porridge tonight.”

After everyone left, Meng Zhenyue didn’t call Yun Jing at all. She lay straight down on the spare bed, covering her stomach with Yun Zhixue’s blue school uniform. In less than two minutes, her breathing grew long and heavy, as if she hadn’t slept properly for days.

Yun Zhixue stared blankly at the rise and fall of her shoulders, secretly relieved. At least now she didn’t have to think so hard, and she gave herself a perfectly reasonable excuse to keep looking at Meng Zhenyue.

She wanted to understand why her fickle mother would like someone like this.

Then another thought followed: her mother treated everyone as a temporary amusement anyway. At most, a week of novelty.

At exactly six, the caregiver came in carrying an insulated container.

Meng Zhenyue slowly woke up, wiped her fingers with a wet tissue, ladled out half a bowl, and handed it to Yun Zhixue.

“You can eat now.”

Steam rose from the plain porridge, carrying a long-missed fragrance of rice. As Yun Zhixue swallowed the last mouthful, a handful of colorful candies suddenly appeared in front of her eyes.

“Pick one.” Meng Zhenyue opened her palm. Lychee, grape, apple, orange, strawberry, several lollipops lined up together.

So she’d gone out to buy candy that morning.

Yun Zhixue’s fingertip hovered over the apple flavor. After eating, her blood sugar had mostly recovered, and she wasn’t craving sweets that much.

Meng Zhenyue unwrapped a grape-flavored one and put it in her mouth. As the sweet-and-sour scent drifted over, she said, “I like apple flavor too.”

Quietly, Yun Zhixue slipped the candy under her pillow.

That night, the caregiver stayed to keep watch. After Meng Zhenyue left, she didn’t appear again. Yun Zhixue occasionally thought that she had probably been angered by that phone call.

On the morning of the fourth day, Yun Zhixue developed a slight fever, and her head started to ache again. When the nurse came to set up an IV, she said, “It was better when your sister was here, wasn’t it?”

The hospital staff didn’t know their complicated relationship and assumed they were sisters.

The young nurse chatted casually, “Your sister stayed up with you every night before, especially the first night, she wiped your neck and checked the IV bag every half hour. Why hasn’t she been coming lately?”

Meng Zhenyue was beautiful and had a pleasant voice; everyone liked her.

Yun Zhixue stayed in the hospital for a full week. During the day she attended classes; at night she was forced to rest early. It felt like serving a sentence while sick.

One night, she unwrapped the lollipop, secretly licking it a few times behind the caregiver’s back. Apple flavor, sweet and slightly sour. It really was good.

On the day she was discharged, the caregiver packed up and left. Yun Jing was as careless as ever, she remembered the discharge date but forgot to arrange a car.

Yun Zhixue stood alone at the hospital entrance with her bag. Just as she was about to go down the steps, she caught sight of a car parked at the bottom of the ramp.

Meng Zhenyue was sitting in the driver’s seat.

Their gazes collided across the distance.

Meng Zhenyue wore her long, slightly wavy hair loose, the ends resting on her shoulders, one arm casually draped over the window. Yun Zhixue hurriedly looked away and quickened her pace, nearly bumping into a running child.

She twisted aside to avoid them, but still tugged painfully at her abdominal wound.

Meng Zhenyue sucked in a sharp breath, pulled the hair tie off her wrist, tied her hair up in a few swift motions, and strode up the ramp to take the bag from her.

“Someone’s coming to pick me up,” Yun Zhixue said stubbornly, stepping back when Meng Zhenyue reached out.

“Just let me take a look.” Meng Zhenyue’s hand hovered in midair. “I’m worried.”

After a few seconds of stalemate, Yun Zhixue’s grip on the bag loosened slightly.

“Come on.” Meng Zhenyue took the bag, then slowed down and glanced back at her. “Does it still hurt?”

Yun Zhixue walked hunched over, very slowly. The incision had healed much better than a few days ago, but a careless movement could still bring sharp pain. Meng Zhenyue was wearing a black V-neck bodycon dress today, still exuding a seductive aura.

Yun Zhixue stared intently. Suddenly, Meng Zhenyue moved closer, her hand protecting Yun Zhixue’s waist.

“Slow down.”

The children ran past again. Yun Zhixue’s heart thumped hard, she didn’t know whether it was from being startled or something else entirely.

That faint floral scent drifted over again, very light, as if it came from Meng Zhenyue’s skin itself. Yun Zhixue straightened her back unconsciously.

A short stretch of road took five full minutes. At the car, Meng Zhenyue opened the back door and tossed the bag onto the passenger seat. Her gaze swept over Yun Zhixue’s loose white T-shirt. She hesitated, then only said, “You’re really thin.”

Yun Zhixue pressed her lips together and said nothing.

On the drive, Meng Zhenyue put on some instrumental music, humming along occasionally and glancing back at red lights. Yun Zhixue never managed to ask the question stuck in her throat. Did you come specifically to pick me up?

As they entered the house, Meng Zhenyue said casually, “With your mom’s level of parenting, it’s impressive you made it this far on your own.”

It sounded like praise, but Yun Zhixue heard the implication clearly.

The noon heat was stifling. Cicadas screeched, and even the sparrows seemed unusually restless.

Carrying her bag into the entryway, Yun Zhixue heard Meng Zhenyue ask, “Can you cook?”

She nodded toward the kitchen. Yun Zhixue clenched her bag, her wound still ached faintly, and this person expected a patient to cook? She bit her lip. “Later.”

Meng Zhenyue suddenly smiled in that half-amused way.

“Ten minutes,” Yun Zhixue blurted.

“That’s not what I meant.” Meng Zhenyue twirled her car keys. “Is there anything you want to eat? I’ll make it.”

“…Fine.”

“Home-style dishes okay?”

Soon, the sound of sizzling oil came from the kitchen. Through the glass door, Yun Zhixue saw Meng Zhenyue in a black apron, moving with practiced ease. With a flick of her wrist, the aroma of food spread through the room.

The smell made Yun Zhixue think, absurdly, of the word nurturing. She shook her head at once. She would never see Meng Zhenyue as a mother, never call her that.

“Dinner.”

The clink of plates pulled her back. Yam and rib soup with the oil skimmed off, mashed potatoes, fluffy golden eggs. Yun Zhixue washed her hands and sat down, abandoning that ridiculous thought.

It tasted far better than what the nutritionist made. Yun Zhixue said, “I’ll call her and have her arrange a nanny.”

Meng Zhenyue replied, “Can’t the two of us manage?”

Yun Zhixue paused. Meng Zhenyue added, “I don’t like living with a crowd either.”

Yun Jing lived in a much larger villa. Only on holidays or at banquets would Yun Zhixue be taken back to stay briefly. Usually she boarded at school, coming home once a week, with everything prepared in advance.

Meng Zhenyue had already told Yun Jing she didn’t want to live in a place full of servants and rigid hierarchies. That suggestion suited Yun Jing perfectly.

After a moment, Yun Zhixue muttered, “You smoke.”

“Not around you.”

Meng Zhenyue had quit smoking in front of her since knowing she was still a student. Yun Zhixue lowered her head and kept eating.

After waiting a bit, Meng Zhenyue asked, “Done picking out the bones?”

“I still need to think.”

“Alright. The caregiver can’t come tonight. What about bathing?”

“I can manage myself.”

Meng Zhenyue laughed softly

“With so many incisions, what can you do?”

Meng Zhenyue said, “I’m already looking for someone to take care of you. Your mother is unreliable, but speaking of your mother, treat me like your mother.”

Yun Zhixue was always easily provoked by her; a thin blush would rise to her face when she got angry. Meng Zhenyue crossed her long legs; her skirt was short, vaguely revealing the black lace covering her white flesh.

“Call me Mommy, Mommy will help you take a bath.” Meng Zhenyue raised an eyebrow, teasing her.

“I don’t need you to.” Yun Zhixue bit her lip, “I can manage myself.”

“What if you fall?”

“I’ll get up by myself.”

Meng Zhenyue gave a short laugh and said, “Baby, you should say I won’t fall.”

She hated Meng Zhenyue; Meng Zhenyue always humiliated her like this.

Wait.

What did Meng Zhenyue call her, baby?

Yun Zhixue rubbed her hands together fiercely a couple more times.

Her ears turned red, then the redness spread to her entire face.

Meng Zhenyue noticed as well, pursed her lips, turned to the side and took out several sterile waterproof patches from her bag. “Use these. Read the instructions.”

Yun Zhixue looked at her suspiciously. “And you…?”

“It says online that Mommy should respect her daughter’s wishes. If my baby says no, then I’ll respect what you want,” Meng Zhenyue said lightly.

Yun Zhixue didn’t listen further. She loaded the dishes into the dishwasher, grabbed her bag, and went upstairs.

“So fierce,” Meng Zhenyue commented lazily.

Yun Zhixue returned to her room, found her schoolbag, and sat down at her desk to write. Meng Zhenyue, having finished her nap and with a face mask on, noticed a piece of paper stuck to the door.

The villa wasn’t large, nearly 300 square meters, with a large living room and dining room in the middle, and the living quarters on the second floor.

Meng Zhenyue had only been able to open Yun Zhixue’s room, assuming it was the room of one of Yun Jing’s former lovers, which was why she went in and used the bathroom.

Now the two were separated. She lived across from Yun Zhixue, with a large movie theater and gym in between. She peeled back the paper and examined it carefully.

The handwriting was neat and beautiful.

Rules:

1. No smoking.
2. No physical contact without my consent.
3. Except for meals, we don’t meet or enter each other’s space.
4. I will never like you. Don’t try to please me.
5. Don’t provoke me with words.
6. Don’t do unnecessary things. I don’t need you to like me.
7. Don’t look at me secretly. Don’t wear my clothes.
   If violated, I’ll throw your things out. Repeated violations: leave. (To be continued)

Meng Zhenyue laughed.

Late at night, someone knocked twice. Yun Zhixue opened the door, no one was there. On the floor lay the blue waterproof dressings. A pink note was taped beside them, like an old-fashioned blossom slip.

She read it, then added a short reply beneath.

“If you break the rules too, shouldn’t you accept a very serious punishment?”