Giving You Dawn And Dusk - Chapter 30.2

Probably because Liang Shi was usually too arrogant and domineering, there had been no way to connect her with the kidnapping case from back then, nor to empathize with the pain she had suffered. But now that Xu Qingzhu said this, Zhao Xuning suddenly remembered Liang Shi from that period.

That was when they had just gotten to know each other.

Zhao Xuning was a transfer student.

She was usually someone who paid no attention to the outside world, so she did not care about what had happened outside.

She only knew that there was a little girl in the class who had been kidnapped, and after coming back, she often spoke nonsense.

Zhao Xuning had not taken it to heart at all.

But one day, the comic book she had placed on her desk was torn apart. She was furious. When she turned around, she saw the other half of her comic book on that little girl’s desk.

And the little girl was still tearing paper into long strips.

Zhao Xuning went up and fought with the little girl.

That little girl was Liang Shi.

At the time, everyone said she was crazy.

Normal people had nothing to say to crazy people.

But no one knew when it started, the crazy person began to gather followers and became arrogant and domineering.

No one thought there was any problem.

Because crazy people were arrogant and domineering.

Zhao Xuning combed through her memories, but still did not discover any clues.

She continued listening to Xu Qingzhu.

“Even though that sister was very strange, I still thought she was very warm and kind. She looked beautiful when she smiled, and I was willing to believe her.” Xu Qingzhu said, “On the day we got married, I mentioned the kidnapping from childhood to her. She said nothing, as if she had never known me before.”

“Also, after we met again, her smile was always gloomy. It was nothing like the person I knew as a child. I also comforted myself by thinking we had both grown up, so we forgot, and people change. But recently…”

She paused. “I’ve begun frequently seeing familiar smiles on her face. The curve of her smile is exactly the same as when she was a child.”

“So you suspect she’s the person you met as a child?” Zhao Xuning asked.

Xu Qingzhu shook her head. “I don’t know.”

It was precisely because she could not judge that she explained the past in such detail, wanting Zhao Xuning, who was more rational, to help her analyze it.

“It’s just my feeling,” Xu Qingzhu said. “For some reason, I see a sense of familiarity in her.”

Zhao Xuning: “……”

“This is indeed difficult,” Zhao Xuning said. “I even tested her DNA. She is Liang Shi.”

Both of them were science students, leaning toward rational thinking, so they did not believe things without scientific verification.

“Is it possible that she has dissociative identity disorder?” Zhao Xuning said. “Can you describe any other differences?”

Xu Qingzhu thought about it, then told her everything she knew about Liang Shi after growing up, including those moments when Liang Shi’s mood was unpredictable.

Occasionally, Liang Shi would treat Xu Qingzhu extremely well, take her to high-end restaurants, send her air-shipped roses, and affectionately call her wife, baby, and sweetheart. But at the same time, she did the same with other women outside. She would cheat constantly. Sometimes, she would put on an act, but sometimes she would not even bother pretending. The most excessive time was when she brought a woman home, right into their newlywed bedroom.

That woman asked her, “Am I much better than your Omega wife?”

Liang Shi used all sorts of sweet words to coax the other woman in bed.

At the time, Xu Qingzhu had been standing outside and heard everything.

She had endured for four months.

This was the first time she told Zhao Xuning about her married life, and after hearing it, Zhao Xuning immediately clenched her fists. “Why didn’t you say anything back then? She was already that much of a bastard, and you were still covering for her?”

“It doesn’t really count,” Xu Qingzhu smiled bitterly. “I just felt there was no need to make you all feel sad with me.”

Zhao Xuning: “……”

Xu Qingzhu did not dwell on this issue for too long and quickly changed the topic.

After listening to everything she said, Zhao Xuning was silent for a long while before saying somewhat uncertainly, “She might have two personalities, or even three.”

“Since she woke up that day, has she maintained this state the whole time?” Zhao Xuning asked.

Xu Qingzhu nodded. “Yes.”

“Logically speaking, multiple personalities are a long-term mental disorder. The relationships between each personality are different. Some are split off after trauma to protect the self. Some are created to escape certain things, so the accumulated negative emotions are given to another personality. In the history of medical research, the most severe case of dissociative identity disorder reached thirty-two personalities. Mental illnesses all require analysis according to the specific situation, so I can’t give you a definite answer. It may be better if you ask Doctor Gu when the time comes.”

Xu Qingzhu let out a heavy sigh. “Life really does love giving me difficult problems.”

“Then are you going to forgive her just like that?” Zhao Xuning asked. “I used to think she might just be wild, but…”

That was far too wild.

In this circle, playing outside was considered very normal.

Especially when marrying someone from an unequal family background, people often kept a few partners outside, while the wife at home turned a blind eye.

But someone like Liang Shi, who brought women home right after getting married and directly trampled on her wife’s dignity while indulging herself—

That was rare even in this circle.

Unless the two families had a deep feud.

But clearly, they did not.

Back then, it had even been Liang Shi who had actively pursued Xu Qingzhu.

“I haven’t forgiven her,” Xu Qingzhu shrugged. “Whatever attitude she has toward me, that is the attitude I’ll have toward her. Right now, I’m living under someone else’s roof, so if we can cooperate amicably, we’ll cooperate. If we can’t, I’ll move out. You also know my family’s current situation isn’t ideal. My parents definitely won’t agree to me divorcing, so there’s no need to make things stiff with her.”

Zhao Xuning was stunned hearing this. She suddenly asked in surprise, “Then did you ever love her? It feels like once you say you’re letting go, you really let go. You don’t seem sad at all.”

Xu Qingzhu: “……”

After a moment of silence, she calmly asked in return, “Would you have feelings for someone who is extremely emotionally unstable, cheats right after getting married, and often hovers at the edge of domestic violence? Even if I once liked her before marriage, after we got married, I slowly gave up.”

In truth, she could not even say exactly which moment made her stop liking Liang Shi.

It might have been when Liang Shi went to sleep with another woman on their wedding night. It might have been when Liang Shi flipped the dining table over in anger, sending all the dishes onto the floor, and even tried to make her kneel on the broken plates. Or it might have been when Liang Shi took away her phone, forbidding her from contacting the outside world, trying to make her a canary trapped in a cage.

But what finally broke her inner defense was Liang Shi hiding all the inhibitors in the house during her heat.

She did not want to die.

That was the final bottom line.

The things before that, as long as she held no expectations toward Liang Shi, would not hurt her too much.

She would just live this life steadily and quietly.

After all, people did not necessarily need love.

To her, family and friendship were more important than love.

She had once held hope for Liang Shi in a certain moment, but Liang Shi had personally shattered all of it.

Probably because the night was deep, Xu Qingzhu was more open than usual when talking about these things.

She said, “Sometimes, I think about how good it would have been if I hadn’t married her back then.”

“That way, she would have remained beautiful in my memory, at least leaving me a little hope.”

//

When Liang Shi woke up, it was already noon the next day.

Haizhou City, which had been overcast for several days in a row, finally had a bright sun, and it woke her on the hospital bed.

Her memory stopped at lying in bed and sleeping. Seeing the unfamiliar environment now startled her. When she looked more carefully, she realized it was the hospital.

By coincidence, it was even the same ward she had been in when she first transmigrated here.

As the saying went, the first time was unfamiliar, but the second time was familiar. Liang Shi no longer had her earlier restraint.

She looked at the back of her hand. The dense red rashes were gradually fading, but unlike in the past, they had not completely disappeared after one night’s sleep.

There was also a strip of white medical tape on the back of her right hand. She had likely just finished an IV.

Her phone was placed at the bedside. She turned on the screen and found there were no missed calls or unread messages. It showed that it was already 12:11.

Just as she was thinking about whether to call Xu Qingzhu, Zhao Xuning walked in wearing a white coat and casually greeted her. “Awake?”

“Mm.” Liang Shi’s attitude remained gentle. “How long did I sleep?”

“More than ten hours, I suppose.” Zhao Xuning said, “Mainly a high fever caused by allergies.”

Zhao Xuning took her temperature. “Your temperature has already returned to normal. Once the red rashes on your body fade, you can be discharged.”

Liang Shi asked, “What was I allergic to?”

Zhao Xuning glanced at her. “You’re asking me?”

Liang Shi: “……Who else would I ask?”

Zhao Xuning: “……”

“You forgot what you came into contact with yesterday?” Zhao Xuning asked back.

“I drank a cup of milk before bed, and also fell into the water yesterday.” Liang Shi said, “The weather was pretty cold, and I fell straight into the swimming pool. I suspect it has something to do with that. Why don’t you test my allergens?”

“What testing finds is only one substance. It can’t help you completely avoid everything you’re allergic to,” Zhao Xuning said. “So we generally don’t recommend patients do it. If you want to, I can arrange it.”

Liang Shi: “……”

“But you are allergic to milk,” Zhao Xuning said. “You ingested too much milk last night, so it’s best to observe for another day before leaving the hospital.”

“Can I be discharged tomorrow?” Liang Shi asked.

“More or less.” Zhao Xuning gave an ambiguous answer. Then she saw Liang Shi frowning, not knowing what she was thinking about. Rarely kind, she reminded her, “Xu Qingzhu went to send her sister to school. She drove your car. She should be back after a while. If you’re hungry, I’ll have a nurse get you a meal from the cafeteria.”

Liang Shi said without thinking, “Forget it.”

Zhao Xuning said, “Mm? You’re not hungry?”

Liang Shi said, “……Hungry.”

Zhao Xuning scoffed lightly. “Being polite with me?”

After hesitating, Liang Shi still chose to tell the truth. “I’m not being polite with you. The food at your hospital is too bad.”

Zhao Xuning: “……”

She rolled her eyes and said coldly, “You deserve to starve.”

In truth, Liang Shi was simply sitting there reflecting.

Why could she so naturally treat the original owner’s body as her own?

She herself was not allergic to milk, but she did not know the original owner was allergic!

She suddenly understood what Xu Qingzhu’s hesitant, probing, scrutinizing gaze last night had meant.

Xu Qingzhu knew the original owner was allergic to milk but did not stop her.

……

That was good.

Liang Shi felt like she had used her life to “prove her innocence.”

Now everyone would think she had lost her memory, not that she had been replaced by another person.

But she could not laugh.

She had nearly… died.

As she sat there with complicated feelings and thought about the problem, Zhao Xuning said teasing words in a tone without the slightest fluctuation. “In less than ten days, you’ve already been hospitalized twice. Are you planning to buy an annual pass at our hospital?”

Liang Shi: “……”

She was silent for a moment. “I hope after I’m discharged this time, I’ll never set foot in your precious establishment again.”

//

Last night, Liang Shi had even thought she had been prepared for a rainy day. She was afraid Xu Qingzhu might have something to do the next day and cause the mission to expire. But she had not expected that at the last moment, she herself would end up in the hospital. Because she could not be exposed to wind, the movie tickets she had bought were also wasted.

After Xu Qingzhu sent Xu Qingya off, she came back and went upstairs to see Bai Weiwei.

Bai Weiwei’s condition was not very good. Chen Liuying had gone out to work.

She sat alone in the ward reading a book, much quieter than usual.

Xu Qingzhu chatted with her for a while, but no matter what she said, Bai Weiwei’s expression remained淡淡, looking rather gloomy.

Xu Qingzhu also asked whether she and Chen Liuying had broken up. Bai Weiwei only remained silent for a moment, then lightly shook her head.

Xu Qingzhu frowned. She really wanted to tell her that Chen Liuying was not a good match. If Bai Weiwei truly had not already loved her to the point that she could not separate from her, then it would be better to cut the knot quickly. Otherwise, things would be difficult to end later.

One was a manager, and the other was an artist. Their professions were already drastically different.

On top of that, Chen Liuying had only debuted not long ago. The marketed persona of “the internet’s number one dominant Alpha” had also been stepped on by others, and voices of opposition kept appearing.

Adding in the incident of her manager jumping off a building this time, her reputation kept falling. Everyone felt that she had debuted through improper means.

Bai Weiwei was hospitalized, the studio was ineffective, and no one could respond to those malicious marketing accounts. Chen Liuying’s resources were also being lost.

If this continued, the two of them would definitely have conflicts again.

Last time, nothing had even happened, yet Chen Liuying had already shouted at Bai Weiwei. If they stayed together afterward, these things would become like a thorn, slowly growing larger.

No one would feel comfortable with that in their heart.

But when Xu Qingzhu saw Bai Weiwei’s pale face and poor mental state, she did not bring it up. She only comforted her, “As long as you’re okay.”

“What about you?” Bai Weiwei asked her in return. “Did Liang Shi bully you because of what happened last time?”

“No. Why would she bully me?” Xu Qingzhu said. “She told me not to go to Huayue International again. There are too many unspoken rules there that we don’t know. She also said that if I do go, I should remember to call her.”

Xu Qingzhu paused. “But I probably won’t go again in the future. I checked afterward, and that place really isn’t proper. You shouldn’t go again either. Liang Shi investigated that director. Many of his works were marketed into popularity, and most of his works were invested in by Huaguang Group. Liang Shi also cut ties with Cheng Ran. As my friend, if you go there, you might also be implicated or targeted. Cheng Ran is a very petty person.”

“So you’re saying what happened to us last time was because of Liang Shi?” Bai Weiwei quickly caught the subtlety in her words. “Because Liang Shi cut ties with Cheng Ran, Cheng Ran used us as targets to vent her anger?”

“Ah?” Xu Qingzhu froze. “I didn’t say that. Didn’t you go last time to discuss cooperation? And I was more or less called there by you too. It probably has nothing to do with Cheng Ran, right?”

“But you said Cheng Ran would target us because of Liang Shi.” Bai Weiwei frowned, her tone turning cold. “I don’t believe what happened last time has nothing to do with her.”

Xu Qingzhu shook her head. “At present, we haven’t found too many connections. But we learn from every setback. In the future, if we can avoid this kind of occasion, then we should avoid it. Even if we go, we shouldn’t drink too much. Otherwise…”

She let out a light breath. “If Liang Shi and Zhao Xuning hadn’t arrived in time that night, the consequences would have been unimaginable.”

“It would have been better if they hadn’t arrived.” Disgust flashed in Bai Weiwei’s eyes. She lowered her voice and said, “Too disgusting.”

“What?” Xu Qingzhu spaced out for a moment and did not hear her words.

Bai Weiwei immediately adjusted her state, leaned back, closed her eyes, and said, “I’m tired.”

“All right.” Seeing that she was truly exhausted, Xu Qingzhu stood up and said, “Then I’ll go first. Rest well.”

“Mm.” Bai Weiwei’s reply was perfunctory.

Xu Qingzhu had originally wanted to swallow all her words, but seeing Bai Weiwei’s state, she was still worried and could not help asking indirectly, “Weiwei, do you really love Chen Liuying that much?”

“She’s all right. Why?” Bai Weiwei immediately pierced her with a sharp gaze. “Are you here to persuade me to break up too?”

“No.” Xu Qingzhu subconsciously denied it first, then caught the key word. “Too? Who else?”

“Zhao Xuning.” Bai Weiwei curved her lips in a cold smile. “She clearly doesn’t like me and clearly can’t forget her ex, yet she still wants to stand from God’s perspective and persuade me. Does she think she’s so great? Is she treating herself as a savior?”

Xu Qingzhu: “……”

She felt that Bai Weiwei’s state was very wrong.

“Weiwei, is there some misunderstanding between you and Doctor Zhao? I feel like you might…” Before Xu Qingzhu could finish speaking, Bai Weiwei interrupted her. “Misunderstanding? Hah.”

Xu Qingzhu frowned. “Weiwei, don’t get worked up. I was only asking casually. And I don’t think Doctor Zhao…”

“You think?” Bai Weiwei glared at her fiercely. “Eldest Miss Xu, can you stop using what you think all the time? If your feelings are so accurate, how did you end up marrying a scumbag? Everyone knows she cheats and plays with women, treating you like a maid. I advised you so many times. Why won’t you divorce? Can you use your precise feelings to feel whether the current Liang Shi is pretending or real?”

“Weiwei…” Xu Qingzhu was afraid of provoking her and did not dare speak again.

But Bai Weiwei gave a cold laugh. “Do you really think Liang Shi has changed for the better now? You believe her just because she says so? When have your feelings ever been useful? Your own life is clearly a mess, so why are you coming to interfere with mine?”

“I’m not.” Xu Qingzhu was helpless and patiently explained, “Your dream is to become an excellent manager. But when you date an artist, it’s very hard for you to maintain professional rationality. You told me before that you would never date an artist, but now…”

“If you really love Chen Liuying, I won’t persuade you to break up. Your life is something you have to experience yourself. I’m not qualified to point fingers.”

“Hah.” Bai Weiwei’s eyes reddened as she listened, and they were filled with crystalline tears. The tears condensed into beads and fell. She raised the back of her hand and wiped them away.

Xu Qingzhu panicked and immediately went forward to apologize. “Sorry, Weiwei. I said the wrong thing. Don’t cry.”

She pulled out a few tissues, sat beside the bed, and wiped Bai Weiwei’s tears for her, but Bai Weiwei pushed her away.

“Xu Qingzhu.” Bai Weiwei sneered. “If you want to scold me, then scold me. There’s no need to be so sarcastic, right?”

“I wasn’t…”

“Yes, I dated an artist. I violated my professional principles. But Chen Liuying at least treats me well. She listens to every plan I make for her. She is moving forward step by step. She has never gone to find another woman just because I wouldn’t sleep with her. If your feelings are so accurate, then why did you marry that scumbag Liang Shi?”

“Do you really think she has changed for the better? Which time before was not like this? She bullied you viciously, then coaxed you back, again and again. Now you’re insinuating that I’m pointing fingers at your life, is that it? I was too stupid.”

“I didn’t mean that.” Xu Qingzhu was somewhat at a loss. She sat there and handed Bai Weiwei tissues.

Bai Weiwei did not take them and directly lay down. “I don’t need your hypocrisy.”

“No.” Xu Qingzhu said, “You’re my best friend. How could I blame you? I know you’re doing it for my own good.”

“Get out. I don’t want to hear it,” Bai Weiwei said coldly.

Xu Qingzhu let out a soft breath and asked in a low voice, “Weiwei, can I know what happened that day?”

She did not believe Bai Weiwei would become like this for no reason.

“Why do you need to know? In any case, you black out after drinking and don’t remember anything. Besides, it was the Liang Shi you love who saved you, wasn’t it? You didn’t lose anything. Isn’t that enough? You just came here to look down on me from above and mock me, didn’t you?”

“How could that be? Weiwei, we’ve known each other for so many years. In your heart, am I that kind of person?” Xu Qingzhu said.

Bai Weiwei suddenly sat up and said decisively, “Yes. You’ve always been like this. You’re noble. You’re amazing. You’re a little princess high above everyone else. Everyone loves you. You’re beautiful. People pursue you. Everyone protects you. Satisfied?”

Xu Qingzhu: “……”

She took a step back, her heart sour and bitter.

“Xu Qingzhu, you’re hypocritical.” Bai Weiwei scolded her fiercely. “When I told you to divorce Liang Shi, you wouldn’t. Now that it’s my turn, you come to persuade me to break up with Chen Liuying. You can even tolerate a scumbag like Liang Shi, so why do you have a bias against Chen Liuying? At least she loves me.”

“I don’t have a bias against her,” Xu Qingzhu said.

“You clearly can’t stand seeing me do well!” Bai Weiwei said. “Don’t you want to know what happened to me that day? Fine, I’ll tell you.”

“When Zhao Xuning broke in that day, an Alpha had already stripped off my clothes. I was completely naked. I was in heat, lying there like a dog. I was even begging her, begging her to do it with me. She admired my pitiful begging. Zhao Xuning beat her up, so I could only turn around and beg Zhao Xuning. What the hell did that make me!”

By the end, Bai Weiwei’s emotions had already collapsed.

Xu Qingzhu hugged her and comforted her. “I’m sorry, Weiwei.”

“Leave.” Bai Weiwei pushed her away with so much force that Xu Qingzhu was directly pushed to the floor.

“Get out,” Bai Weiwei said. “I don’t want to see you again.”

//

After Xu Qingzhu came out of Bai Weiwei’s ward, she saw Zhao Xuning.

Zhao Xuning smiled bitterly at her. “Want to go eat something?”

Xu Qingzhu wiped away her tears and went downstairs with her.

It would be a lie to say she was not sad.

Back then, she and Bai Weiwei had been so close they could share one ice cream.

At Xu Qingzhu’s wedding, Bai Weiwei had been her only bridesmaid.

She sat with Zhao Xuning in the café, unable to speak for a long time.

She did not know what to say.

“Her emotions have been very agitated these past few days,” Zhao Xuning said. “What happened that day affected her a lot. For several days, she kept having nightmares.”

“I didn’t know that kind of thing happened that day.” Xu Qingzhu said dejectedly, “And I didn’t know that in her heart, I was that kind of person.”

Noble and hypocritical.

These words, which had only ever appeared from the mouths of her many pursuers, had one day come from her best friend’s mouth.

“So that day, Weiwei was only not violated, but that doesn’t mean nothing happened,” Xu Qingzhu said.

“Mm.” Zhao Xuning nodded. “She doesn’t seem able to accept the state she was in during heat. The main problem is that Chen Liuying cares too much. Chen Liuying would tell her that what she did betrayed Chen Liuying’s love, and that she was too shameful.”

“That’s…” Xu Qingzhu frowned. “What is Chen Liuying even saying? Weiwei was clearly the victim in this matter.”

“That’s why Bai Weiwei became like this.” Zhao Xuning drank some coffee and leaned back, her voice exhausted. “She thinks the whole world is innocent except her. That way, her guilt won’t be so heavy.”

Even if, that day, she had gone to Huayue International herself to secure resources for Chen Liuying.

Even if, because of her, her best friend had almost been violated too.

“Liang Shi and I checked,” Zhao Xuning said. “Bai Weiwei and those people had arranged to meet at Huayue International from the start, and Bai Weiwei was the one who suggested it. That text sent to you was sent by the director, but under Cheng Ran’s orders. So, Bai Weiwei…”

She paused. “Is not innocent.”

Xu Qingzhu was so shaken by this news that she could not speak.

Especially when she had only just experienced that scene.

After a long while, Xu Qingzhu could only smile bitterly. “She really loves Chen Liuying.”

Zhao Xuning did not speak.

“So has she always hated me?” Xu Qingzhu murmured.

But Zhao Xuning could not give an answer to this question.

Zhao Xuning sighed softly, looking at the endless stream of traffic outside the window. In a low voice, she said, “Perhaps.”

//

Liang Shi and Xu Qingzhu did not manage to watch the movie.

That Sunday, they stayed in the hospital the whole time.

Xu Qingzhu read for the entire afternoon, but only turned ten pages. Her mood was low.

Liang Shi asked Zhao Xuning and only then learned that it was because Xu Qingzhu had argued with Bai Weiwei.

So Liang Shi did not disturb her.

And so… the additional mission expired, deducting one luck point.

On Sunday night, the system’s strange mechanical voice sounded again: [Host, if this continues, what year of the monkey and month of the horse will it be before you accumulate enough luck points? You couldn’t even complete such a simple mission.]

Liang Shi: “……Oh.”

System: [Please do not be sarcastic to Little System.]

Liang Shi: “……Oh.”

System: [Please continue working hard next time and complete the mission!]

Liang Shi: “……Got it.”

The system probably also sensed Liang Shi’s speechlessness. After saying a few more lines, it went offline.

The next day, Xu Qingzhu went to work, while Liang Shi stayed in the hospital for observation.

She had originally wanted to ask for leave, but for a moment, she did not know whom she should ask. Only after Xu Qingzhu reminded her did she remember that on her first day at work, Editor-in-chief Sun had assigned her to the editorial team.

So she prepared to ask the editorial team leader for leave, only to realize she did not have the other party’s number.

……

She could only give up.

This was the most leisurely day Liang Shi had spent since transmigrating over.

In the morning, she had two bags of IV fluid and had her temperature taken. At noon, Zhao Xuning brought her lunch: beef with green peppers.

When Liang Shi saw it, she hesitated at first. Because in the past, due to her allergy, she had always kept a respectful distance from green peppers.

But now, the original owner’s body was allergic to milk and not green peppers.

Since she had no way to drink milk, she maliciously ate a lot of green peppers, making Zhao Xuning frown. “You like eating green peppers?”

Liang Shi nodded. “They’re all right.”

It was nothing more than retaliatory eating.

At three in the afternoon, Zhao Xuning changed shifts and brought her a cup of coffee.

Liang Shi was overwhelmed by the favor, yet still teased, “Doctor Zhao, cold on the outside, warm on the inside.”

Zhao Xuning glanced at her. “You can be discharged now. Are you waiting for Xu Qingzhu to come handle it, or are you doing it yourself?”

“I’ll do it myself,” Liang Shi said. “Who knows what time she’ll get off work? By then, your hospital staff will already be off duty.”

Zhao Xuning waited for her to complete the discharge procedures.

After handling her discharge, Liang Shi asked Zhao Xuning whether it was suitable for her to visit Bai Weiwei now.

Zhao Xuning shook her head. “Not really.”

Even Zhao Xuning herself did not go up to the top floor much anymore.

Actually, the things Bai Weiwei saw as very serious were nothing to Zhao Xuning at all.

She was a doctor. In university, she had already seen many people naked.

Once they entered the hospital, they were only patients.

Even if the other person was her friend.

If she did not even have that much professional ethics, what kind of doctor would she be?

She also understood that Bai Weiwei, whose heat had been triggered, would need physical comfort, so Zhao Xuning did not find it shameful or laughable.

But Bai Weiwei did not think that way.

Zhao Xuning had tried to explain, but Bai Weiwei did not want to listen.

She could only handle it coldly.

If she said too much, Bai Weiwei would feel that her sympathy was overflowing and become even more sensitive.

After Liang Shi asked, she also let it go.

Zhao Xuning then asked whether she had contacted Cheng Ran recently. Liang Shi shook her head. “It feels like this person vanished from the face of the earth. She didn’t come to the Liang family banquet that day either.”

“Maybe she did something guilty and ran away,” Zhao Xuning said. She had just finished her shift and took a ride home in Liang Shi’s car.

On the way to sending her home, Liang Shi casually chatted with her for a bit and discovered that Zhao Xuning was indeed not as icy as she appeared.

Liang Shi also had a sense of propriety and only chatted casually.

Most of what she asked was related to Zhao Xuning’s profession.

When Zhao Xuning was interested, she answered a few more sentences. When she lacked interest, she lazily brushed it off.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Xuning suddenly asked her about being kidnapped as a child.

Liang Shi only knew that Xu Qingzhu had PTSD because she had been kidnapped as a child, but she knew nothing about whether the original owner had been kidnapped. Still, she could not say she did not know, so she could only helplessly shake her head. “I don’t remember.”

It was obvious Zhao Xuning was greatly disappointed by this answer.

However, Zhao Xuning suggested that when she had time, she should go to the hospital for a full examination, including the psychiatric side.

Liang Shi found this person rather interesting. Before Zhao Xuning got out of the car, they added each other on WeChat.

Two minutes later, Zhao Xuning liked the only post on her Moments and commented: Be a good person.

Liang Shi: “……”

//

That night, Liang Shi did not have the servants prepare dinner.

She was not used to the food made by this family’s servants. The flavor leaned sweet. In addition, she was free, so she went downstairs, planning to make spaghetti for herself.

Before making it, she sent Xu Qingzhu a message: [What are you eating for dinner?]

Although the two of them had said before that if the other person was working overtime, there was no need to wait.

Liang Shi had never had the habit of eating alone. In the past, when her assistant occasionally stayed over at her place, Liang Shi would also make a portion for her.

However, Xu Qingzhu was probably busy and did not reply.

So Liang Shi ate by herself.

After dinner, she stayed in the living room to watch a movie.

The TV in the living room was very big, and the picture quality was clear. This time, she did not trust those movie tags. She genuinely opened an animated film to watch.

It was unique to this world and was called The Rabbit Doesn’t Cry.

She found the title novel, and the rabbit on the cover was drawn quite cutely, so she clicked on it.

It had a bit of a dark fairy-tale flavor.

It was not until after eight that Xu Qingzhu came back.

She looked exhausted. Seeing Liang Shi watching a movie, she greeted her, changed her shoes, and went upstairs to wash up.

As she went upstairs, Liang Shi asked, “Have you eaten?”

Xu Qingzhu said, “Not yet.”

Liang Shi: “……”

“What do you want to eat?” Liang Shi said. “I had spaghetti tonight. There’s still some sauce in the fridge. Should I cook you a bowl of spaghetti?”

“That works.” Xu Qingzhu’s voice was weak and powerless. “Thank you.”

“It’s nothing.” Liang Shi went to the kitchen as she spoke.

Xu Qingzhu returned to the room, removed her makeup, and took a quick shower. After coming out, she wiped her hair while preparing to check proposals on her phone. But when she pressed the button, she discovered it had turned off.

The key was that she did not even know when it had turned off.

She wiped her hair until it was half dry, charged her phone, and then went downstairs.

The aroma of food came from downstairs, awakening her sense of taste.

Originally, she had not felt hungry, but the moment she smelled the food, she felt her stomach was completely empty.

“It’s done.” Liang Shi was already sitting on the sofa, continuing to watch her animated film. “Hurry and eat. If you leave it any longer, the noodles will get cold.”

“Okay, thank you.” Xu Qingzhu went to eat the noodles.

Her dining manners were excellent. Even when eating noodles, she did not make a sound, and she did not eat slowly either.

After finishing, she went to wash the bowl.

One had to be polite after eating someone else’s food.

She also felt embarrassed to keep going upstairs to work right after eating, so she exchanged a few words with Liang Shi. “Who handled your discharge today?”

“Zhao Xuning,” Liang Shi said. “She seems to like me quite a bit now.”

After saying this, she paused and immediately corrected herself. “Not that kind of liking. Just normal liking, between friends.”

Xu Qingzhu laughed lightly, and her whole body relaxed.

She felt Liang Shi had a kind of magic to her, always making people unconsciously become more at ease.

“Then what did she feel toward you before?” Xu Qingzhu asked.

Liang Shi said, “You didn’t know before? Of course she hated me.”

She awkwardly touched the tip of her nose. “When I first woke up, she scared me by saying she had dug out my gland.”

Xu Qingzhu’s gaze swept over her ear. “I didn’t expect Doctor Zhao to have such childish moments.”

“She was always pretty childish,” Liang Shi said. “This morning, I saw her watching Chibi Maruko-chan while on duty.”

Xu Qingzhu: “……?”

After a long while, she looked at the bunny hopping around on the TV and said faintly, “So were you infected by her?”

Liang Shi: “……”

She coughed lightly. “Occasionally returning to childlike innocence is pretty good. Some films made by adults nowadays aren’t very suitable for self-cultivation.”

She emphasized the last four words heavily, as if she were specifically naming the movie they had watched two nights ago.

Xu Qingzhu understood and laughed softly without speaking. She sat there and watched the little rabbit with her for a while.

Then she asked, “Do you need the study?”

Liang Shi shook her head. “I didn’t go to work today, so I don’t have any work. You can use it.”

Xu Qingzhu said politely, “Okay, thank you.”

After coming home for less than an hour, Xu Qingzhu had already said thank you three or four times.

Hearing it made Liang Shi feel a little uncomfortable. Although she herself was also a very polite person, that was because in an environment where every word and action could be infinitely magnified, she had to maintain those unnecessary courtesies. Sometimes, when attending an event, she might have to say thank you ten times in ten minutes. If she missed even one, netizens might notice and maliciously screenshot it, saying she was impolite.

But at home, she usually did not say it much.

She rubbed her ear and discussed gently, “This home is yours too. Use whatever you want. You don’t need to tell me, and you don’t need to thank me.”

“All right.” Xu Qingzhu no longer stood on ceremony with her. “Then I’ll requisition it tonight.”

“Okay.” Liang Shi added a reminder. “Don’t work overtime too late.”

By the time she finished speaking, Xu Qingzhu had already closed the study door.

Who knew whether she had heard it or not.

Liang Shi’s gaze returned to the TV screen. The cute pink bunny was still tugging on its own ears and acting cute, begging its mother to buy her comic books.

Something suddenly flashed through Liang Shi’s mind.

Comic books.

Crap!

The novel Xu Qingya gave her that day was still lying on the study desk!

She immediately ran to the study and opened the door, only to see Xu Qingzhu holding that brightly colored book, Sweet Daily Life with the Female CEO, reading it with a very serious posture.

Liang Shi: “……”

She immediately said, “Your sister left that in the study.”

“She gave it to you?” Xu Qingzhu said. “For you to study?”

Liang Shi: “……”

A few seconds later, Liang Shi honestly nodded. “I haven’t read it yet.”

“Don’t read it.” Xu Qingzhu said, “It’s a banned book.”

Liang Shi: “?”

“No way.” Liang Shi said in disbelief. “It’s just a domineering CEO novel. How explicit can it be?”

Xu Qingzhu casually opened a page and read seriously, “Tonight, I came to her home. Before I even entered the door, my eyes were covered. A black strip of cloth plunged me into darkness. Then the buttons of my shirt were undone, and a pair of cool hands traced downward along my collarbone. Her fingers were very long. I liked them very much.

I asked her, What are we going to do tonight?

She hugged me from behind and said, We’re going to do the things we love.

I could not resist her voice. It was as if she were singing beside my ear. I only wanted to sink with her.”

Liang Shi’s face turned red hearing it.

Xu Qingzhu finally stopped and lifted her head from the book. Her cool, clear voice was the same as always, but it carried a hint of teasing as she asked, “Do you still need me to read?”

Liang Shi: “……”

Absolutely unnecessary.

But for some reason, the scene just now made her think of that scene from the movie they had watched last night.

The young lady kneeling there in the basement, reading passion-filled words with emotion and expression.

She swallowed and tried to clear her name. “I really haven’t read it.”

Xu Qingzhu said, “I know.”

Liang Shi stood there, not knowing whether to leave or stay.

Xu Qingzhu directly threw the book into the trash can and looked back at her. “Anything else?”

Liang Shi: “……”

She felt she could still save herself a little, so she struggled to clear her name. “The discs that night were all bought by the housekeeper. I hadn’t watched them before, and I didn’t know what was in them. I didn’t deliberately show that to you. And this book too. I haven’t read it since I got it. Your sister gave it to me when I was pouring milk that day, and I never had time to flip through it.”

Xu Qingzhu’s expression was calm. “Oh. There’s nothing wrong with that, right?”

Liang Shi: “……?”

“Isn’t it normal for literary works to have these things?” Xu Qingzhu said. “It’s just that reading too much isn’t good for the body.”

Liang Shi said, “……I didn’t read it.”

“Also.” Xu Qingzhu was expressionless. “I finished watching that movie. It was a pretty good suspense film.”

Liang Shi: “……When did you watch it?”

“When I was bored yesterday,” Xu Qingzhu said. “There were three layers of reversals in total. It was a pretty good film. Also, the actresses had very good figures.”

Liang Shi: “……”

Xu Qingzhu said very seriously in that cold, detached voice, “One should view movies with an artistic eye, right?”

Liang Shi: “……”

Very right.

She was the narrow-minded one.

She felt there was no need to save herself anymore.

In Xu Qingzhu’s heart, she definitely was not a proper person.