Might As Well Try
The thick smoke that suddenly surged up was like a colossal black beast. For a moment, Cheng Jiqing couldn’t move. The shouts around her pulled her consciousness back, and she quickly turned, running frantically upstairs.
At the same time, she took off her shirt to cover her nose and mouth.
She was now glad she had worn a thin shirt today, with a camisole underneath, so she wasn’t left too exposed.
There weren’t many people in the fire escape stairwell at this moment, but due to the crowding and chaos, the crowd staggered crookedly, and she was constantly bumped against the railings or walls.
Her ascent slowed, Cheng Jiqing thought of Bai Xin at this moment. She had an uneasy premonition that she might not make it out.
What would Bai Xin do?
Even though it was a contract marriage, she still wondered, what would Bai Xin do?
Cheng Jiqing immediately dismissed the pessimistic thought.
It wasn’t a dead end yet, there was still a chance, she still had a chance to get out!
She finally made it back to the fifth floor, only to find this level also filled with rolling smoke. The power had long since been cut off.
After the explosion, the floors were being steamed and roasted by the massive fire, and the temperature was incredibly high.
Even the fifth floor was already glowing red from the firelight.
The fire suppression system had activated, and the pipes overhead were spraying water, but it was clearly futile against such an explosive fire.
But the water soaked her shirt and body, which offered some protection.
“Help me… wuwuwu… Help… cough cough cough cough… wu, Mom…”
Cheng Jiqing paused. In the smoke-filled corridor, she heard a girl’s cry for help.
It was a teenage girl, probably injured from a fall and unable to walk. She leaned against the wall, trembling with fear, her crying making her cough.
Cheng Jiqing tore her shirt in half, stepped across the water-slicked tile floor, and in a few steps, covered the girl’s nose and mouth with the fabric.
Then she helped the girl up and headed towards the restroom…
She looked at the floor, her eyes filled with the blinding glare of the fire. Her heart sank heavily!
The scene of the raging fire completely overlapped with certain fragments in her mind, flashing like photographs before her eyes.
A sudden panic seized Cheng Jiqing’s heart, her legs abruptly gave out, and losing her grip for a moment, she fell, taking the girl beside her down with her.
Cheng Jiqing propped herself up with her hands on the ground, coughed violently a few times, and realizing the danger, forced herself not to look at the fire. Covering her nose, she used one hand to help the girl up again.
A few minutes later, Cheng Jiqing placed the girl on the ground near a narrow window. Through it, the sky outside looked murky and heavy. She hoped the rain would start falling soon.
She thought of Bai Xin again. She reached for her phone, but it was gone, dropped somewhere unknown—she had promised Bai Xin she would accompany her to the cemetery. If she broke her word, Bai Xin would probably be unhappy again.
Cheng Jiqing glanced at the young girl beside her, who was about to pass out. “Don’t fall asleep! If you sleep, you really won’t get out!”
“I haven’t even taken the Gaokao yet… I haven’t gotten into university… Mom… wuwuwu…”
Hearing this, several people who had entered the restroom earlier also began to whimper. Someone was already on the phone reporting their location.
Cheng Jiqing’s throat felt a bit raw; she had inhaled some smoke earlier and now felt nauseous. She comforted the girl, “Talk less, save your strength so you can get out. You’ll definitely get into university.”
“Wuwuwu, Big Sister, are we going to die here?”
“No.”
Cheng Jiqing looked out the tightly shut window, heard the sound of fire trucks, and said firmly, “Definitely not.”
Cheng Jiqing waited. The fire was spreading. They didn’t dare touch the small restroom window rashly, afraid that a sudden influx of oxygen would make things worse.
She sat on the floor, listening to the clamor of the fire, finding it strangely familiar.
She saw the flickering firelight illuminate the restroom door. Cheng Jiqing’s breathing suddenly became extremely difficult. She lowered her gaze. Unable to take deep breaths, she couldn’t suppress the residual panic belonging to the original host that remained within her.
“Big Sister, are you okay?”
Cheng Jiqing couldn’t quite hear the voice clearly. Her head was buzzing, as if something was about to be [dug out]1 from the deepest part of her.
The person beside her only saw her head bowed, her breathing heavy, like someone trapped in a nightmare.
Cheng Jiqing felt like she had become that 10-year-old child again—
This time, she saw her surroundings more clearly.
It was a small room.
Surrounded by demonic flames, waves of smoke rushed into her nostrils. She couldn’t help coughing, lying panic-stricken on the floor.
Her eyes stung from the smoke, and her throat had been torn raw from her initial screams; now, she couldn’t make a sound.
The heat wave enveloped her, gradually evaporating the moisture from her body.
At the brink of life and death, she heard someone call her ‘Chengcheng’. She thought there was hope for survival. It was her sister, the sister who was the very, very best to her.
She wanted to say, “I’m here.”
But she couldn’t cry out. Yet, her sister still found her… She clearly saw her sister open the door with her own eyes. Her sister was right there at the doorway, about to save her.
But the next second, someone dragged her sister away.
She despaired again, even more deeply than the first time.
However, just as she was about to lose consciousness, someone pulled her up, held her in their arms, and gave her a cloth to cover her mouth. “Cover your mouth well, take small breaths.”
It was a pair of very soft, warm hands.
She saw a jade bracelet2. There seemed to be a faint crack on the bracelet.
“Don’t sleep, cough cough, I’ll take you out.”
Cheng Jiqing felt extremely dizzy. She was actually aware that people around her were calling her, but she was trapped in the dream, unable to wake up.
However, because the memory was too fierce, Cheng Jiqing’s resistance subconsciously suppressed some of the original host’s conscious feelings.
She was carried out by the woman. Outside was also engulfed in flames.
“Chengcheng! Let go of me!”
She heard Cheng Jing’s voice. Glancing over slightly, she saw Cheng Jing trying to break free from Fu Rongjun’s grasp. The woman ran over. “Hurry, go!”
Fu Rongjun was also pulling Cheng Jing, shouting.
They headed towards the main entrance together. Just then, the person carrying her stopped for some reason.
Then, Cheng Jiqing seemed to hear a sound, very familiar, yet not entirely familiar. Her consciousness overlapped slightly with the original host’s. She thought—it was a cry for help.
It seemed to be a man’s cry for help, she wasn’t sure.
The sound of the fire was too noisy; she couldn’t distinguish it clearly.
It was also at this moment that the woman put her down…
Her mind was in chaos. She subconsciously grabbed the woman’s arm. The woman lowered her head and smiled, just for an instant, then turned and ran back without hesitation!
How could she run back! That direction was already a sea of fire; going back was suicide!
Cheng Jiqing was too deeply immersed in the emotions, the stimulation causing a ringing in her ears—
Cheng Jiqing’s breathing became extremely difficult, her heart pounded violently. A sudden jolt to her body made her eyes fly open!
Her vision filled with orange-yellow fire rescue uniforms.
Cheng Jiqing let out a short breath, a sting in her nose. She spoke softly to the firefighter helping her up, “Thank you.”
She was going to live.
Cheng Jiqing was taken by medical personnel to an ambulance outside the cordon line. Dehydrated, her legs were still a bit unsteady when they touched the ground. Before she could stand firm, Song Ling enveloped her in a bear hug.
Luckily, someone behind supported her, preventing her from falling.
“Cheng Jiqing, you scared me to death! Oh my god… wuwuwu.”
Cheng Jiqing: “…”
“Were you terrified? Such a huge fire, I thought you were gone… If you were gone, since you came out with me, your sister would definitely eat me alive… You scared me to death, wuwuwu.”
“…”
Most of the touched feelings Cheng Jiqing had just felt dissipated. Cheng Jing would surely be gratified to hear this.
She had indeed been scared earlier, and had almost gotten lost in the original host’s PTSD3, unable to get out. Thankfully, she had pulled through at the critical moment. At that time—she had briefly thought of Bai Xin.
Cheng Jiqing was squeezed painfully, her throat still recovering. She raised her hand and patted Song Ling’s arm. There were people all around; she wanted her to stop embarrassing herself.
Suddenly, her gaze stopped a few meters away.
Bai Xin stood there, dressed in a long black dress and flat white shoes. The hem of her skirt swayed, pulled by the hot wind. The black formed an extreme contrast with her pale skin.
Not just pale, but deathly pale.
There wasn’t a trace of color on her face, except for her lips, coated with a faint lipstick, which gave her a slight semblance of life.
Bai Xin’s gaze was fixed on her. Her peach-blossom eyes held an unreadable emotion—perhaps panic, perhaps relief, perhaps anger and desolation.
There was also a trace of the desiccation Cheng Jiqing had seen in Bai Xin before.
It was the first time Cheng Jiqing felt the distance between herself and Bai Xin. She had an indescribable thought—Bai Xin seemed ready to detach at any moment.
It was as if Bai Xin’s other half of the world contained only herself.
Cheng Jiqing opened her mouth, watching Bai Xin walk towards her.
Song Ling had already been pulled away. Medical personnel reminded her to get into the ambulance with the other injured people to go to the hospital.
Cheng Jiqing accepted the water handed to her by the paramedic and took several large gulps, moistening her throat slightly. “I’m fine, I’ll go later by myself.”
She saw many others around who were more seriously injured. Going to the hospital now would mean competing with them for resources. She had fainted for a moment earlier, but felt fine now.
As Cheng Jiqing said this, her gaze was still on Bai Xin, who was only a few steps away.
“No way, you have to go!”
Hearing this, Song Ling thought of Cheng Jiqing’s usual stubborn ways and suspected she was deliberately avoiding the hospital.
“I feel fine. There are so many people going now.”
Song Ling, having procured a jacket from somewhere, draped it over her shoulders and insisted somewhat irritably, “You need to get checked immediately! What if your brain got damaged by the heat?! If you don’t go, I’ll call your sister right now! Aren’t you scared!”
Cheng Jiqing: “…”
That really wasn’t necessary. She didn’t want special attention. Cheng Jing would just assign her a few bodyguards, wouldn’t that be troublesome?
“Please don’t tell her. Thank you.”
Song Ling was about to say more when her peripheral vision caught Bai Xin. She paused. “Why are you here?”
“Go to the hospital.”
Bai Xin’s voice was devoid of any inflection, her gaze on Cheng Jiqing exceptionally cold.
Cheng Jiqing: “…”
Song Ling narrowed her eyes. “Cheng Jiqing, did she just ignore me?”
Cheng Jiqing looked at those eyes, almost devoid of human warmth, and fell silent for a moment. “Oh, then let’s go to a different hospital.”
Song Ling: “? Are you ignoring me too? Why are you listening to her?”
Cheng Jiqing glanced at Song Ling. “No, I was moved by your concern.”
Song Ling looked a bit skeptical but felt this was highly possible. She nodded. “Then I’ll have someone bring the car over.”
“No need, wait here.”
After saying this, Bai Xin turned coolly and walked towards a car not far away.
After Bai Xin turned away, Song Ling asked suspiciously, “How come Bai Xin is here so coincidentally? And when did you two get so close? Did the AA relationship rumors spark actual feelings?”
“We’re collaborating on a project, lots of communication, we get along well, so the relationship improved, you know4.” Cheng Jiqing coughed twice, her voice hoarse.
Song Ling was still somewhat considerate5. Hearing her voice, she didn’t press further, only saying, “What project requires such deep communication? Why do I feel like you’re closer to her than to me?”
Cheng Jiqing: “…”
She glanced at Song Ling, confirming there was no hidden meaning.
Bai Xin drove the car over. Cheng Jiqing and Song Ling sat in the back seat.
The car slowly drove away from the fire scene. Layers of smoke from the extinguished fire rose towards the dark clouds overhead, looking as if the clouds were sucking up the thick smoke.
Perhaps unable to bear the weight.
The drizzling rain finally began to fall.
Raindrops smashed down through the smoke, landing on the shopping building. Though it came late, it had arrived eventually.
The quiet car was filled with the drumming sound of the rain. Cheng Jiqing looked at Bai Xin in the driver’s seat. She had asked the time earlier; it was past two o’clock.
If Bai Xin went to the cemetery now, she could still make it.
“Miss Bai, it’s past two now, this might delay your plans.”
Bai Xin’s expression was icy. Cheng Jiqing thought, seeing her state, Bai Xin probably didn’t want her company for the anniversary of that aunt’s death anyway. She just wanted to indirectly hint6 about the time to Bai Xin.
Bai Xin paused for a few seconds, seemingly reluctant to speak, but perhaps feeling obligated to respond politely due to the presence of an outsider. “Mm.”
“…”
Since the other person clearly had it figured out7, Cheng Jiqing didn’t press the issue.
She hadn’t intentionally encountered this situation. Did it count as standing her up? Was that why Bai Xin was unhappy?
Probably not to that extent.
Then why was she so angry?
They went to the hospital where Tang Jia worked, a private hospital. A few burn victims had also come over, but Cheng Jiqing could go to the VIP exclusive service area.
After the examination, apart from two scrapes from falling, there were no other external injuries.
The results of the CT scan and various other tests were also good. However, because she had inhaled some smoke, the doctor recommended staying hospitalized for observation for a day, just to be safe. If everything was fine, she could be discharged tomorrow.
She didn’t refuse this time. Although she disliked hospitals, having just escaped death by a hair’s breadth, she was mentally exhausted. So, she decided to stay.
She changed into a hospital gown. The doctor prescribed two bottles of saline and glucose.
While Cheng Jiqing was on the IV drip, Song Ling came in from outside, followed by a woman carrying bags of all sizes8. It looked like they had brought fruits and all sorts of snacks, everything one could wish for.
“Big Sister is here to keep you company today, aren’t you touched?” Song Ling referred to herself.
Cheng Jiqing: “Touched. But I don’t need you to stay. You being here will affect my sleep.”
Song Ling rolled her eyes. “I’m only pitying you because you went through a fire today, understand? Pity! Ungrateful thing, so ungrateful!”
Hearing her affected tone, Cheng Jiqing quickly cut her off.
Song Ling heard her and said, “Alright, then I’ll come pick you up tomorrow morning, okay? After all, this happened while you were out with me. Thinking back now, it’s really scary. You must have been terrified back then, right? Your PTSD isn’t cured yet, I was really scared too.”
She had been lucky; she had answered a phone call and decided to go downstairs to buy ice cream, getting out just before the explosion.
Song Ling still remembered Cheng Jiqing’s terror of fire. Once, during a birthday celebration, lighting candles accidentally set the tablecloth on fire, though it only burned a tiny bit. Cheng Jiqing had fainted from fright right then and there.
With such a massive fire today, it was truly remarkable that Cheng Jiqing survived… What if— Song Ling’s slightly baby-fat face showed a trace of lingering fear.
“Yes, I was scared.”
Bai Xin stood at the door, listening to the conversation inside. Only then did she belatedly feel the pain in her fingertips.
She lowered her eyes. There were marks brutally dug out by her own fingernails.
PTSD.
Cheng Jiqing had experienced it too, that fire fifteen years ago. Her mother died in that fire.
And today, in this fire, Cheng Jiqing almost didn’t make it out.
Almost died in that smoke-filled building.
Bai Xin’s chest felt tight and stifled9. She felt an overwhelming need for an outlet to release the fire building inside her. Her emotions were currently a complete mess.
Bai Xin’s phone vibrated. It was a WeChat message from Tang Jia.
Tang Jia: 【I saw the report, confirmed no issues. This level of exposure is unlikely to have aftereffects10. Little CEO Cheng is in good health.】
Tang Jia: 【But she might not sleep well tonight. It might take some time to adjust after experiencing a major disaster.】
How could she not understand this point?
To this day, her own insomnia had never fully healed, sometimes good, sometimes bad.
She wasn’t in the mood to reply. Her eyes stared at the screen, her thoughts drifting.
The people inside were still talking. She heard Cheng Jiqing’s hoarse voice: “Did you see Bai Xin?”
“No idea. Haven’t seen her since we got out of the car.”
“My phone is gone. Can you help me buy a new one?”
“Sure, I’ll have someone deliver it now.”
Bai Xin’s eyelashes fluttered slightly. Before the screen went black, she saw a Weibo link sent by Tang Jia.
Tang Jia: 【CEO Bai, your wife is in the news.】
Bai Xin frowned subconsciously and clicked the link.
It was a small real-time news site.
A video from the fire scene—a girl of seventeen or eighteen, rescued and lying on a stretcher, crying pitifully11. ” Wuwuwu, it was a big sister who saved me! I fell down, she gave me her mouth covering, wuwuwu… She’s still up there, she told me to come down first… Can I wait for her? I want to ask for her WeChat, wuwuwu…”
She had seen this girl too. More accurately, she had seen every single person brought down.
But what did this have to do with Cheng Jiqing?
Bai Xin recalled what the girl had said, then scrolled down to the comments.
‘Hahahaha so cute, someone help the kid find the big sister.’
‘Latest news! The big sister has been found!’
The comment included a picture and already had over five thousand likes12.
Bai Xin clicked on it.
It was a picture captured unintentionally by a netizen filming the scene, which someone had screenshotted.
A woman, lightly supported by a firefighter, her exquisite, palm-sized features marked with a trace of soot.
Her teal hair was messy from the heatwaves. She wore a black tank top with excellent elasticity and jeans below, highlighting almost all her body’s best features.
Behind her was the gray, hazy building, the entire background appearing dim under the overcast sky.
But she stood there, creating an unexpected magnetic field with the firefighter beside her, the two of them seeming to instantly light up the entire sky…
Especially the woman, possessing a unique beauty amidst the shattered environment.
Who else could this person be but Cheng Jiqing?
She roughly scanned the comments below.
‘My god, this isn’t just a rescuing big sister, this is a beautiful angel!!’
‘Looks like a poster.’
‘Thank you for your hard work, firefighter brothers and sisters! Also, I need this beauty’s phone number within five minutes!’
‘This figure, these legs… I could admire them for a year (not)13’
‘F%ck, isn’t she better looking than many celebrities? Beautiful and kind-hearted, wuwuwu.’
Bai Xin’s fingers tightened slightly. She sneered inwardly. Cheng Jiqing actually thought about saving others at a time like this, even letting others go down first?
It was six o’clock in the afternoon. It was still raining outside.
Song Ling’s person delivered the phone an hour later. The SIM card was temporary. She couldn’t live without the internet; in an unfamiliar environment, a phone also provided her with a sense of security.
Holding the phone, she thought, Bai Xin still hadn’t shown up. She might have gone to the cemetery by herself.
Remembering Bai Xin’s attitude when they met earlier, she still felt a bit uncomfortable.
But she and Bai Xin probably wouldn’t see each other tomorrow morning. After thinking for a moment, she still sent Bai Xin a message: 【Temporary number. Heading back tomorrow morning. Cheng Jiqing.】
“Holy crap, Cheng Jiqing, you’re trending?!”
Hearing “trending,” Cheng Jiqing instinctively looked over. Song Ling held the phone in front of her. “Look, but this picture is really good, eh? Are you really this good-looking?”
It really was her.
Seeing it was one thing, but Cheng Jiqing didn’t feel much turbulence inside. In her previous world, she had trended quite often. She just hadn’t expected her first time trending here to be for this reason.
“Tsk tsk tsk, the beautiful and kind-hearted angel sister… Are they talking about you? You really saved someone?”
“I suppose so.”
“In your state, you could still save someone. I don’t know whether to call you amazing or just reckless14.”
Cheng Jiqing said, “I wasn’t thinking that much.”
Before turning off her phone, she glanced at the blank text message screen and took a sip of water. In truth, the last few sentences of their conversation had left her somewhat unsettled.
After Cheng Jiqing finished the last IV bottle, she prepared to send Song Ling off. As Song Ling was leaving, she suddenly paused and said, “Huh? I just thought of something. Can Cheng Jing see the trending topics too?”
Cheng Jiqing: “…”
Song Ling: “I gotta bolt quickly! I really don’t want to see that face. Take care!”
Cheng Jiqing: “…”
Song Ling bolted15 before Cheng Jiqing could even remind her that her phone was lost. Cheng Jing couldn’t contact her, but she could definitely find out that she was with Song Ling this morning.
Therefore, before Cheng Jing looked for her, she would still look for Song Ling first.
Cheng Jiqing wasn’t in a great mood right now and didn’t particularly want Cheng Jing finding her so quickly. But thinking about the memories of the original host she recalled today—Cheng Jing’s desire to save this younger sister had never changed.
Her heart wasn’t really made of stone; she couldn’t be that hard16.
If she came, she came.
Cheng Jiqing recalled those scenes. Back then, it was actually Fu Rongjun who had held Cheng Jing back.
Thinking of this, she began to seriously question something—was the original host really Fu Rongjun’s biological child?
Fu Rongjun had pulled Cheng Jing away, leaving the original host behind.
A biological mother’s love for her daughter was less than that of a strange woman.
Cheng Jiqing’s thoughts paused slightly. She seemed to have seen the woman’s face back then, but it wasn’t clear in her mind now. Only the jade bracelet was etched more clearly, with that tiny crack on the beautiful jade.
She suddenly recalled the image of the woman turning and running back. It seemed she had heard someone’s cry for help, but she wasn’t sure now.
Because when she dreamed of this, cries for help were everywhere around her.
But the woman had turned back without hesitation. Besides saving someone, she couldn’t think of any other reason.
She had never paid much attention to that fire because no one around her ever mentioned it.
Now she felt there was a reason these fragments kept appearing. Although the mechanical voice hadn’t prompted her about anything, the things she remembered each time were closely related to the original host and the Cheng family’s affairs.
Over and over, forcing her to remember deeply and pay attention.
For example, why did Fu Rongjun treat the original host like that?
And the woman who saved the original host.
Who was she?
Cheng Jiqing thought, if Cheng Jing came looking for her, she would ask.
Her chaotic thoughts finally slowed down.
Cheng Jiqing felt a bit drowsy. She turned off the lights in the hospital room. A sliver of light reflected onto the glass from outside. Cheng Jiqing stared at the ceiling for a few seconds, then closed her eyes.
Just as she closed them, the door opened from the outside.
This was a VIP ward with strict security. Besides the nurses, no one else should be coming in.
Silence for a moment.
The door closed.
Cheng Jiqing sat up in bed, turned on the light, and her gaze met the person at the door.
“Did you go to the cemetery?”
“Should I have waited for you to go with me?”
The very first sentence was sharp-tongued17.
Cheng Jiqing: “That’s not what I meant. What happened this afternoon was an accident. I didn’t want it either.”
She had also just escaped death.
Bai Xin stared. “Cheng Jiqing, do you think you’re some kind of saint?”
Cheng Jiqing frowned slightly, bracing herself for worse words to follow.
Bai Xin: “After all, you’re so good to everyone. In a moment of crisis, disregarding your own danger, you can still save others. Not even afraid of death.”
At first glance, these words sounded like praise, but her expression and tone were truly unflattering.
Cheng Jiqing suppressed her anger18 and managed a smile. “I know I’m a good person. Didn’t you know that already?”
Hearing this, Bai Xin’s eyes darkened. “Should I have added another clause to the agreement back then? During the agreement period, don’t randomly play the hero and get yourself killed?”
Cheng Jiqing got out of bed. “Are you here to argue?”
“To remind you.”
“There’s no need to remind me of our agreement relationship again and again. I remember.” Cheng Jiqing’s smile vanished. She stood up. Her limbs were slender and well-proportioned; even the hospital gown looked aesthetically pleasing on her.
“Then what about you, Miss Bai?”
Cheng Jiqing’s voice still held the hoarseness from the fire. To Bai Xin’s ears, it was like being pricked by smiling thorns on her soft heart, tiny and dense. Not painful, but unbearably irritating.
She heard Cheng Jiqing’s question: “The one who doesn’t remember the agreement, but keeps crossing the lines of the agreement, seems to be you? What happened on the night we registered our marriage, and the night we returned to Nanjing after the meeting at Cheng Corporation—were those within the agreement?”
Bai Xin bit her lip. Her eyes were cold, yet softer than before.
She was used to Cheng Jiqing’s gentle yielding. Now, with Cheng Jiqing standing before her, expressionless, emotionless, aggressively confronting her, she actually felt wronged.
Even though she had been the one to flare up first.
Bai Xin’s chest felt tight with anger19. “Yes. So should I thank Little CEO Cheng for her kindness and generosity?”
Cheng Jiqing looked at her for a while, then asked seriously, “Do you really think I’d be kind and generous this way towards just anyone?”
Bai Xin froze, her heart suddenly pounding.
Cheng Jiqing continued, “Let’s just say I am kind and generous. Then what about you? What category do you fall into? You get close to me just because of physical needs? Is all this anger now entirely because you’re afraid I won’t be able to fulfill the agreement?”
—Or is it because, besides physical needs, it’s also because of her as a person?
—Or is it because you were worried I’d die, so you became anxious and angry?
The sound of the rain outside lessened, and the room suddenly fell silent.
The white incandescent light in the hospital room shone on the two of them. Cheng Jiqing had, at some point, moved to stand by the door. She looked down at Bai Xin, emanating the innate oppressiveness of an Alpha.
Bai Xin was 3S-rank, barely able to withstand it. But with Cheng Jiqing so close, her heart was still thrown into disarray.
Bai Xin was quiet for a moment, not answering any of the questions, seemingly not choosing any of them either.
She looked up slightly. “Is it only my need, Cheng Jiqing?”
This phrase seemed familiar to Cheng Jiqing—Bai Xin had asked her the same thing that time at her house.
“The night the meeting ended, after you helped me, how long did you stay in the bathroom? Do I need to describe it in detail?”
Bai Xin didn’t back down. At this moment, whoever retreated would lose.
Even though this was escalating from inexplicable anger, to an inexplicable argument, and finally to this point.
Rarely, Cheng Jiqing also showed no sign of retreating.
It felt as if some kind of conclusion was about to be reached.
Pressuring step by step, it was unclear who was pressuring whom.
“Haven’t you crossed the line too?” Bai Xin asked her again.
Cheng Jiqing replied, “Yes.”
Bai Xin looked at her.
Cheng Jiqing’s tone was no longer forceful, finally regaining some semblance of her usual gentleness, though her expression still revealed no emotion.
Another few seconds passed.
Cheng Jiqing took a step closer. Bai Xin’s face paled slightly, her lipstick faded, revealing the original pinkish-white hue. A strand of hair, slightly damp, slipped down her cheek.
She stared at Bai Xin and said slowly, “Alright. Since neither of us can figure it out, might as well try.”
Bai Xin’s lips parted. “What?”
The moment the word left her mouth, Bai Xin’s eyes were shadowed—
Cheng Jiqing leaned down and kissed her.
The author has something to say:
Chengcheng: Then let’s try.
Bai-jie: Try then, try.
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