Chapter 12: RIP

It had been a restless night.

Yan Jingyao hadn’t expected to wake so early. When she checked her phone, it was only six o’clock. It was probably because she had spent the entire night sleeping on her side.

It was all Ji Lan’s fault! That piggy bun! Yan Jingyao helplessly climbed out of bed and put on her loose bear-print pajamas. Without opening the curtains, she left the bedroom and was startled to find someone standing in the living room.

Ji Lan.

“Why… why are you still here?”

Yan Jingyao had ignored her for the entire night, yet she was still stubbornly clinging to her home the following morning. This woman was simply unbelievable.

Ji Lan remained perfectly calm. Wearing polka-dot pajamas, she held a cup of milk in one hand and a plate containing two freshly made sandwiches in the other. Behaving as though she were in her own home, she said, “Good morning.”

Yan Jingyao was completely dumbfounded. She watched Ji Lan glide steadily past her, elegantly sit at the dining table, and begin eating breakfast with an extraordinary sense of ceremony.

What the hell was happening?

The fragrance of heated milk still lingered in the air. Yan Jingyao hurriedly glanced toward the open-plan kitchen and saw two cartons of pure milk on the previously empty counter. When she looked toward the living room again, she discovered a suitcase in the corner. It had a childish Snoopy design, and a new set of bedding was stacked on top.

Ji Lan was clearly preparing to move in with her. Yan Jingyao was speechless—utterly speechless—yet Ji Lan merely ate breakfast in silence, as serene as a chrysanthemum.

“Are you seriously moving in?”

“Mmm.”

She answered with complete confidence and without the slightest hesitation. Yan Jingyao’s right eyelid twitched, while a breath remained trapped uncomfortably in her chest.

This woman… Forget it. She decided to wash up first and calm herself down.

Love arrived too quickly, like a tornado? No. When something was unusually strange, there was always something sinister behind it. The greatest illusion in life was believing someone liked you, and Yan Jingyao wasn’t narcissistic enough to make that mistake.

She stared at her reflection and contemplated for a long time. Although she considered herself reasonably attractive, Ji Lan’s behavior was far too sudden and absurd.

Her gaze gradually settled on her own lips. She stared absentmindedly into the mirror as memories of last night’s kiss silently resurfaced.

It had been pitch-black, so she hadn’t been able to see clearly, but that woman’s lips were truly soft—warm and tender, seemingly retaining a lingering fragrance. As Yan Jingyao continued staring, she involuntarily pressed her lips together.

Smack! She hurriedly slapped her cheeks to regain her composure. Being single for too long had made her sexually impulsive. It wasn’t as though she had never kissed a woman before!

Alongside her irritation came a trace of dejection. Xu Wei still hadn’t contacted her. That little hope she had harbored… No, it had been nothing more than wishful thinking.

It was completely over. As she looked at her reflection, her mood suddenly sank—the love she had believed existed had only ever existed in her imagination.

“Holy shit!”

Fuck piggy buns! Fuck Xu Wei! Fuck bullshit love! She would satisfy her body without involving her heart. She would evolve into a magnificent, lifelong-single playgirl, passing through countless stolen content flowers without allowing a single petal to cling to her!

Old Yan was suddenly overcome by the wild spirit of a playgirl. She opened the door and charged into the living room with her head held high, looking down imperiously at Ji Lan.

Fucking piggy buns! Ji Lan was only a woman.

“You can live here.” Yan Jingyao raised her chin, her gaze filled with contempt. “We’ll split the water and electricity bills fifty-fifty.”

Ji Lan thought she seemed slightly abnormal. “…”

“Buy whatever furniture or appliances you need yourself.”

The house was so sparsely furnished that it was only suitable for sleeping. Attorney Yan believed in freeloading above all else. “I’ll use whatever you buy too. You don’t object, do you?”

“…”

“Good. I’ll give you the spare key.”

“…”

Silence meant consent. Yan Jingyao cheerfully retrieved the spare key and slapped it onto the dining table.

She continued holding her chin high and looking down her nose at Ji Lan. Ji Lan was speechless, thinking there was definitely something wrong with this capricious woman.

Perhaps this was merely another aspect of her personality. Professor Ji professionally began constructing a psychological profile, evaluating the logic [bailiantales.com]behind Yan Jingyao’s behavior. After ruling out intellectual disability and mental illness, she was very…

Ji Lan tried hard to find an appropriate adjective, becoming thoroughly absorbed in the process. She had no idea that Yan Jingyao was staring at her blank expression and conducting an assessment of her own: Was this woman sick? Why did she suddenly look so stupid?

They silently assessed each other. When Ji Lan finally returned to her senses and began considering whether Yan Jingyao should undergo schizophrenia screening, she discovered that the other woman had already entered the bedroom and unceremoniously shut the door.

“…”

Fine. Obtaining a key could be considered a preliminary victory.

Ji Lan gathered her belongings and left. She had no idea that the iron-willed Attorney Yan was sulking inside her bedroom. Her unreliable mother and that adhesive-plaster Ji Lan were both piggy buns!

Smoke practically billowed from Yan Jingyao’s head. She became increasingly furious until she pitched forward onto the bed and worked herself into unconsciousness.

She even snored from anger. At around eight o’clock, the vibration of her phone finally awakened her.

Yan Jingyao climbed up and opened the door. Speak of the devil—“Piggy Bun” Pei Jinxi had arrived carrying her piggy buns.

They were probably filled with sweet red bean paste yet again. The filling hadn’t changed through all the ages, from oceans to mulberry fields. Pei Jinxi herself was nothing more than a lump of silly red bean paste. Yan Jingyao’s groggy mind became even more confused. She rubbed her eyes. “Sit down. I’m going to wash my face.”

The cold water immediately jolted her into realizing she had lost her mind—Ji Lan’s stupid suitcase was still sitting in the living room!

The great Attorney Yan never bowed before love. She needed to remain proud, her nose pointed toward the sky, looking down upon everyone just as she had looked down upon Ji Lan that morning. She must remain high above others and never lower her head.

After constructing this persona for herself, Yan Jingyao emerged. Who could have imagined how much panic was concealed beneath her calm appearance? As expected, Pei Jinxi immediately [stolen content]asked about the suitcase and whether she had brought a woman home for the night.

Piggy bun! You’re the one who brings women home for the night! Yan Jingyao was being clung to by another woman!

“Overnight, my ass! I encountered an absolute weirdo who forced her way into staying here.”

“Who? Who could possibly freeload at your place?”

“Ji Lan, an associate professor in Licheng University’s psychology department. Apparently, Professor Ren Jingxi wrote her recommendation letter. Her mother previously worked for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, so both families have government backgrounds, and she knows my mother. A while ago, my mother suddenly announced that she needed to stay at my house for a few days…”

“With credentials like that, and she’s still staying with you?”

“Exactly. Those are her credentials.”

“Then… do you sleep together?”

Only piggy buns would sleep together!

“What nonsense are you imagining? We each use our own blankets!”

They truly had used separate blankets. Yan Jingyao hadn’t allowed Ji Lan to experience even the tiniest trace of warmth beneath her covers last night. She had been heartless, aloof, and utterly righteous!

Pei Jinxi naturally couldn’t hear the frantic inner monologue raging inside her. After finishing her noodles, she moved on to the real purpose of her visit and pestered Yan Jingyao to show her porn.

Yan Jingyao had always believed she was a foolish dog of a piggy bun, so innocent that she had never even masturbated. She casually found several videos to broaden Pei Jinxi’s horizons, only for that meddlesome hand to select a lesbian porn video.

“Ahhh—ahhh—”

The moaning sounded as though someone were singing the high notes of “The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.” Yan Jingyao calmly bit into an apple, but for one fleeting moment, she remembered the previous night.

Ji Lan’s lips had been soft and seductive.

She suddenly noticed that Pei Jinxi had turned red. Unable to resist, she poked her cheek. “Pei Jinxi, why are you blushing like a bubbling teapot?”

“W-Who’s blushing?”

The young CEO immediately exploded. “Yan Jingyao! If you’re so capable, become my practice partner!”

“Don’t come any closer!”

The two chased each other around the sofa. Attorney Yan confidently believed that circling it like the King of Qin around the pillar would prevent her from being caught. Unexpectedly, Pei Jinxi lunged forward with all her strength and executed a “Black Tiger Snatches the Pants,” tearing Yan Jingyao’s pajama bottoms with a loud rip.

With the sound of fabric tearing, her ass suddenly felt cold. Her “I’m a Little Duck” panties were exposed in all their eye-searing glory—and at that exact moment, Ji Lan opened the door!

The young CEO lay sprawled on the floor, still clutching the other woman’s pajama bottoms. The great attorney stood with both legs completely exposed and her glaringly bright underwear on full display.

The room fell utterly silent. Three people occupied the same space, yet time seemed to stop and even the air froze.

Ji Lan adjusted her non-prescription [stolen content]black-framed glasses and spoke in the calmest voice she could manage. “I only came back for my textbook.”

The textbook was resting on the shoe cabinet beside the entrance. She picked it up, turned around with apparent composure, and gently closed the door.

It was as though nothing had happened.

Tears instantly streamed down Yan Jingyao’s face. She regretted everything so deeply that her intestines practically turned green. She was the piggy bun! She was the foolish lump of red bean paste! She was sick! Why had she given Ji Lan a key?!

“Motherfucker! Pei Jinxi, you stupid dog of a piggy bun!”

Holding up her torn pants, she kicked Pei Jinxi out. “You fucking idiot! Did you stuff yourself sick with piggy buns? Get out!”

Her pants had been torn apart, and Ji Lan had seen everything. The mere thought sent her into another rage. She decisively slammed the door, carried her ruined pants back into the bedroom with smoke practically pouring from every orifice, and collapsed face-first onto the bed, passing out from anger again.

The unyielding, iron-willed Attorney Yan—RIP.