The Amnesiac Omega Who Reels Me In Every Day – Chapter 101
by Little PandaStranded Mermaid
She loves her jiejie so much.
Jiang Youwan really was made of water — soft and pliant against her, like a stranded mermaid.
Guilty and aching for her, Jiang Jinyi poured a glass of water and tried to give it to her to drink, but she fussed and refused — no, she wanted Jinyi to feed it to her sip by sip, mouthful by mouthful. Of course Jinyi spoiled her, and ended up having her soul lured away all over again.
Jiang Youwan was thoroughly satisfied with how effortlessly she could turn Jiang Jinyi’s head and leave her utterly infatuated.
Every bit of her heart and soul fixed on her — she would never change, never be able to leave her, never even want to.
…
The night was deep. Jiang Youwan was telling her a bedtime story, coaxing her to sleep, when suddenly the phone tossed on the nightstand began to ring. Jiang Jinyi ignored it — didn’t want to deal with it — but the ringtone was relentless, calling right back the moment it cut off on its own.
“Go answer it…” Youwan urged, her voice hoarse.
Reluctant, Jinyi still leaned over and picked up the phone. The caller ID read: Mom.
A little nervous, inexplicably guilty, she gave Youwan a warning glance and answered.
“Hello? Mom.”
“Xiao Jin, where are you? Why aren’t you home at this hour?” Jiang Ningshu’s voice came through the line. Jiang Youwan swept her long hair aside and kissed her cheek, and Jinyi hastened to explain: “I forgot to tell you, Mom — I’m at jiejie’s place, tonight I…”
“Such a good girl,” Youwan praised.
“Mom, I’m not coming home tonight. I’m sleeping at jiejie’s.”
“All right. Good night then, Xiao Jin…”
“Good night, Mom…”
Jiang Jinyi hung up at once, shut the phone off, and tossed it under the bed.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
Jiang Ningshu sat on the sofa in the villa’s grand hall, her phone already taken and tucked away by the person standing behind her.
Song Lian bent down, kissed the curve of her ear, and murmured, “Was I right? Xiao Jin was not coming home tonight anyway. Why insist on calling and interrupting her good time?”
Jiang Ningshu looked a little sheepish. “Calling… just to be safe.”
Song Lian gave a low laugh. “Relax. Xiao Jin’s heart is already with her jiejie. She probably won’t be home at night from now on — you won’t walk in on anything.”
Jiang Ningshu flushed to her ears. “Shut up…”
The two of them had moved from the master bedroom to another room to sleep. Jiang Youwan had gone completely soft, every last shred of her usual menace gone — just a sated fox, leisurely enjoying Jiang Jinyi’s attentions and her guilt-laced soothing.
Once she was soothed, Jinyi got up and took a shower. Ten-odd minutes later, thinking Youwan had fallen asleep, she lay back down on the bed — only for Youwan to cling to her of her own accord, hugging her with what little strength she had left.
Jinyi wrapped her arms around her in return and asked softly, “Why isn’t Jiejie asleep yet?”
“Waiting for you…” Youwan was already half in her dreams, her voice slurred. “Scared you’d run off. Can only sleep holding you…”
Hearing that, Jinyi felt her heart melt — but she was a little aggrieved too, and insisted, “I would never run. Jiejie has to trust me.”
Eyes closed, Youwan nuzzled lazily against her. “But jiejie doesn’t feel safe. I just need you with me all the time.”
“Then…” Jinyi blinked, gathering her courage to ask it aloud: “Does that mean Jiejie has forgiven me? What are we now, exactly?”
Youwan did not answer — she seemed to have drifted off. Jinyi was a little anxious, desperate to know the answer, but she couldn’t bear to wake someone so exhausted. She’d just have to ask, first thing tomorrow morning.
She closed her eyes and soon sank into dreams. Sometime in the small hours, she half-registered the person beside her getting up again and again to feel her forehead, take her temperature, press a cool wet towel to her, feed her medicine.
The next morning, she was woken gently.
Her head a little dizzy, she blearily opened her eyes just as Jiang Youwan’s hand lifted away from her forehead. “Feeling awful?” Youwan asked softly.
Jinyi shook her head, voice hoarse. “I feel fine…”
“Xiao Jin, you had a fever last night. I don’t know if it was from touching cold water yesterday, or from the medicine jiejie put on you.” Worried, Youwan urged her on. “Get up and wash up, then come with jiejie to see a doctor.”
Jinyi climbed out of bed, head still muddled, but she caught the important part, her eyes brimming with sympathy. “Jiejie did not sleep well at all last night, did she?”
Of course she hadn’t. Jinyi knew it the moment she thought about it.
Her heart ached and guilt swamped her. She whimpered out apology after apology — it’s all my fault, I made jiejie so tired she couldn’t even sleep properly — and very nearly cried, until Jiang Youwan, exasperated yet secretly delighted, coaxed her calm and coaxed her out of bed.
Once she’d washed up, Youwan bundled her up tight and led her all the way down to the underground parking garage, where the driver was already waiting. They got in, the car pulled out — headed for the hospital where the gland specialist Youwan knew practiced.
Still, Youwan worried about Jinyi’s state of mind, afraid her pride might take a hit — like coaxing a child to the doctor for a shot. “Don’t worry, Xiao Jin. We’re just going in for a look — to see whether this fever has anything to do with your gland. And when it’s done, jiejie will give you a reward.”
Jinyi was not upset in the slightest. She leaned into Youwan’s arms. “Whatever jiejie says.”
“Good girl.”
They drove for a while. Just as Jinyi was about to doze off again, Youwan suddenly pressed a button and the partition between the front seats and the back sank, sealing the rear seat into a closed, private space.
Puzzled, and instinctively wary, Jinyi asked, “What’s wrong?”
A little sheepish, Youwan crooked a finger at her, beckoning her ear closer, and whispered, “Xiao Jin, jiejie might…”
What follows is a side story — twenty-six-year-old Jiang Jinyi travels back to her eighteen-year-old self.
All the servants here had told her the same thing: the Eldest Miss of the Jiang family was spoiled rotten, with a terrible temper. Never provoke her; give way to her in everything. If she got angry, the entire Jiang household would know no peace.
Just now Auntie had said she was in a mood and told her to make herself scarce. So why — why was the Eldest Miss now coming to her on her own, calling her jiejie?
And she didn’t look fierce at all.
“That’s right. I am calling you…”
The Youwan of this moment was night-and-day different from the one in her memories. How could Jiang Youwan be so careful, so humble, in front of her?
Jiang Jinyi couldn’t bear it. The more she thought, the more her heart ached.
She couldn’t understand why she had ever bullied her like that. Youwan had been pitiful enough already, and she had still humiliated her in public, mocked her, and on and on…
She had done every wicked thing under the sun — and Jiang Youwan had still fallen for her.
Jinyi’s chest tightened with bitterness. All she wanted was to make up for all of it.
“Jiejie…” Jinyi called again, walking toward her.
A puzzled look crossed Youwan’s gentle, fair face. She didn’t understand — had she bullied her somehow? Why did the girl’s voice sound so aggrieved?
Youwan sensed Jinyi come to stand before her. She didn’t know what she meant to do — and she was a little curious about it.
“Jiejie, do your eyes hurt?”
The concern and worry in her voice were so sincere, edged even with the faintest trace of tears. Stunned, Youwan answered, “They don’t hurt.”
Her eyes had been deliberately blinded — back then it must have hurt terribly, must have been so hopeless. Jinyi comforted her: “It’s all right. In a while, Mom will take you to the hospital for surgery. It will go smoothly, and you’ll be able to see again very soon.”
“Really?” Youwan said softly.
“Mm. Trust me.”
Jinyi went on: “You’ve suffered so many grievances before, haven’t you? From now on, you must think of this place as your own home. Mom and I are your family — no one will ever wrong you again.”
Why was she so earnest, so certain? Youwan had braced herself to be bullied by a pampered Eldest Miss — and this left her completely at a loss.
“Really?”
“Of course it’s true. Don’t doubt it. I would never bully you, Jiejie.”
Jiejie? The address was so unfamiliar — so why did she like calling her that so much? Youwan was a little curious.
Jiang Ningshu discovered that after months away, her daughter seemed to have grown far more sensible. Not only had she quickly accepted her relationship with Song Lian, she showed no resistance to this older sister brought home without a word of consultation — no resistance at all; in fact, she was extraordinarily good to her.
Logically, after such a long absence, Jiang Jinyi should have clung to her so hard she couldn’t take a step. But no — the one she clung to was Jiang Youwan, who had been in the house less than a day.
At meals she no longer sat beside her, no longer clung; instead she attached herself to Youwan, serving her food, pouring her water. When the servants standing by tried to help, she even snapped at them — she insisted on doing it herself.
And to think — Ningshu had long worried she’d spoiled Xiao Jin too badly. In all her life, the girl had never served food to anyone but her mother; she looked down on everyone, always waited to be waited on.
How could she possibly be serving someone food?
How could Xiao Jin call her jiejie, jiejie, and after dinner offer to walk with her in the courtyard — even pick her own most treasured flower to give her?
Since when was Xiao Jin so warm to a guest? Ningshu had certainly expected nothing of the sort when she first came home.
After dinner they returned to the second floor. Song Lian saw something weighing on her and kneaded her shoulders. “What’s troubling you?”
Ningshu glanced back at her. “Ah Lian, did something happen to Xiao Jin while I was away? How could she change this much?”
Song Lian thought for a moment. “If you think about it, apart from being so good to Youwan, she hasn’t really changed that much. Could it be…”
She looked into Ningshu’s eyes, hesitating on the words. “Could it be that Xiao Jin fell for her at first sight — that she likes her?”
“Xiao Jin is eighteen now — exactly the age when the heart blooms. Maybe an older sister like Youwan is just her type.”
Ningshu’s pupils widened; it took her a long moment to find her voice. “Xiao Jin… has grown up?”
By the time they finished talking it was evening. Ningshu decided to go have a word with her daughter — but she knocked and knocked with no answer. Only when she asked a servant did she learn that her daughter had gone to Jiang Youwan’s room.
Jiang Ningshu: “!!”
Youwan had just showered and was drying her hair, the long strands still damp. Through the hum of the hair dryer she caught the sound of the door opening — and one sweet, soft “jiejie.”
Youwan switched off the dryer and turned her face toward her. “Xiao Jin? Is something the matter?”
The Youwan of eight years ago was far greener than the one eight years later — cool, pale, and clean, like a fairy.
“N-no, nothing’s wrong.”
“Why aren’t you asleep yet?”
Jinyi blushed and blurted the first thing that came to her: “Can’t sleep.” In truth, she just missed her too much and had come to find her.
Youwan considered for a moment. “If you can’t sleep, I hear drinking milk works well.”
Jinyi didn’t know what to say to that.
Her eyes seemed to droop, wounded and sad.
Youwan still spoke gently, patiently — but Jinyi could hear it: there was no feeling in her voice.
Or rather, it wasn’t the way Youwan sounded when she loved her.
She’d heard Youwan call her Xiao Jin with love in her voice for so many years; she could tell at a single listen.
It hadn’t seemed like anything before. But now, discovering that she needed an excuse just to come see her, she felt a deep ache.
This was her wife — the person closest to her in all the world.
Youwan was very perceptive; she could probably even pick up the molecules of sadness diffusing through the air.
“What’s wrong? Is something bothering you?”
“Mm. Someone’s been bullying me.”
Bullied?
It was truly impossible to imagine anyone in Luo City daring to bully the Eldest Miss of the Jiang family — yet why did the girl’s voice sound so genuinely aggrieved?
“Who’s been bullying you?”
“Just… been bullied.”
“Then you…”
“Jiejie…”
Youwan tilted her head.
“Can I stay, and you comfort me a little?” Jinyi was practically wheedling — but there was no refusing it.
The unreasonable request left Youwan not knowing what to say.
She couldn’t quite understand why this little younger sister she’d known for half a day was so affectionate with her — but the servants had said the Eldest Miss’s requests were never to be refused. And so, of course…
“All right.”
Back when she’d first arrived, Youwan would have agreed to any outrageous demand — how much more so something as simple as a request for comfort?
Youwan asked softly, “How were you bullied? Who bullied you?”
“Wait a moment.” Jinyi noticed her hair was still damp, picked up the dryer, and settled her in place to dry it for her. “Your hair isn’t done yet. Doesn’t Jiejie know you can’t sleep with wet hair?”
Youwan froze for a beat. She truly hadn’t thought of that — she’d only thought of not keeping her waiting.
Why was she so skilled — as if she knew every strand of her hair? And why did it feel so soothing? Youwan found herself an explanation: perhaps because this was the first time in her life anyone had ever tended to her.
“There. All dry.” Jinyi put the dryer away. “Jiejie, my arms got a bit tired drying it for you — can I lie down on your bed and rest a moment?”
Youwan blinked, startled again. “Of course.”
“Thank you, Jiejie.” Jinyi’s tone lifted brightly. She lay down with practiced ease and patted the space beside her, urging Youwan to hurry over.
She and Youwan weren’t close yet — this was rather forward of her — but she knew Youwan would never refuse her anything. So, half a minute after Youwan lay down, she burrowed into her arms.
She clearly felt Youwan’s body go rigid, and it was like a needle to Jinyi’s heart. Youwan was not used to being touched. Stiffly, she asked, “How were you bullied, Xiao Jin?”
Jinyi made something up on the spot. “The servants whisper behind my back that they hate me.”
Oh? Bullied like that? Youwan had just opened her mouth to comfort her when Jinyi suddenly murmured, “Jiejie… are you bullied often, too?”
Youwan let out a small “mm,” her voice trembling faintly in her throat.
“Jiejie…”
“What is it?”
In truth, Jinyi had so much she wanted to say — but she knew saying it would mean nothing.
She could keep it in her heart. As long as Youwan was beside her, that was enough.
Perhaps Heaven had granted her one chance to mend the regrets of the past. This time, she would protect her properly — never again would she let her suffer so much.
She closed her eyes and held the body in her arms tighter — so much frailer than the one in her memory.
Youwan’s guard was high; she stayed awake the entire night, while the girl in her arms had long since slipped into dreams.
She had never known such a person existed.
Someone who called her jiejie the moment they met, asked if her eyes hurt, knew the dishes she liked, knew her favorite flower, dried her hair for her unasked, insisted on falling asleep defenseless in her arms.
Youwan listened to her sleep-talk nearly the whole night through.
Things like: I love jiejie so much… Jiejie… kiss kiss jiejie…
This jiejie she spoke of — who could it be?
Could it be her?
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