The Passerby Female Supporting Character – Chapter 83

Extra IF-Line – Modern Arc

Hand

The tutoring sessions continued for several days. If Song Linlin had classes during the day, she would rush to Chi Qianning’s home in the evening to clean and cook for her. In short, Song Linlin and Chi Qianning met daily these days. After a while, Song Linlin completely relaxed and was no longer as reserved as she had been at first.

Today, the food in the fridge was almost gone. Chi Qianning took Song Linlin to a large nearby supermarket to restock.

            

“Teacher Chi, do you want to eat that fish?” Song Linlin pushed the shopping cart and, passing a large fish tank, pointed to the live fish swimming happily in the water.

Chi Qianning looked in the direction Song Linlin was pointing, then frowned slightly, not looking very interested. She shook her head. “No need, but we can buy some salmon.”

Actually, Song Linlin was just asking out of curiosity. She had only started trying to cook these past few days, and whole fish were too much trouble to prepare. Pre-cut salmon was much more convenient.

            

“Okay, let’s keep going further in then,” Song Linlin said without objection.

Song Linlin pushed the shopping cart forward, with Chi Qianning strolling leisurely beside her. The two walked side by side. It was the first time Chi Qianning had wandered around an area like a supermarket with someone other than her parents.

The previous housekeeper hadn’t needed Chi Qianning to accompany her to the supermarket. She would regularly go to the supermarket and fill the fridge to the brim, so Chi Qianning never had to worry much about it.

            

Now, walking among various seafood and vegetables with Song Linlin, discussing everyday matters like groceries​¹, Chi Qianning felt a strange sensation. However, she didn’t dislike this feeling. Song Linlin didn’t know her tastes and kept asking endless questions, but Chi Qianning didn’t feel impatient.

Perhaps because Song Linlin’s Advanced Math scores were so poor, Chi Qianning’s impression of her was that of a not-so-bright girl. When faced with Song Linlin’s incessant questions, Chi Qianning summoned the same patience she used when explaining math problems.

It was like when Song Linlin still got something wrong after she had already explained it once; Chi Qianning would just sigh and continue to explain and correct her.

            

“Teacher Chi, do you want to eat that lobster?!” Song Linlin spotted a lobster about the size of her forearm and curiously pushed the cart closer.

Chi Qianning stood behind Song Linlin and said very calmly, “Can you cook it?”

These past few days, she had learned that Song Linlin was actually a cooking novice. Fortunately, what Song Linlin made wasn’t too bad; she could eat it, and occasionally, some dishes were quite good. Song Linlin turned around and silently pushed the shopping cart back. “Mm… I can’t. This looks really difficult.”

            

“Then let’s buy something else. We still have to go back and make dinner later,” Chi Qianning said.

Song Linlin had a good attitude and wasn’t discouraged. She continued towards the interior of the supermarket. The two had arrived at the supermarket in the evening, and just shopping took over an hour. By the time they came out, the sky was already completely dark. After putting the items in the trunk, Chi Qianning drove Song Linlin back to the apartment in the complex.

Carrying the shopping bags to the fridge, Song Linlin wasn’t in such a hurry to cook since it was already dark. Humming a song, she took out the various ingredients they had bought from the bags one by one, then sorted them into different areas of the fridge. When she was at her own home, unless her mom asked, Song Linlin couldn’t be bothered to do this kind of thing.

            

But now, at Chi Qianning’s place, Song Linlin had become exceptionally diligent. She always found joy even in doing chores, especially the satisfying sense of accomplishment she felt every time she cleaned the whole place. As a result, Song Linlin had even become more hardworking in her dorm room, getting into the habit of cleaning something every day.

Song Linlin busied herself in the kitchen, while Chi Qianning worked on her own things in the study. The two got along very harmoniously. Although they had only been living together in this apartment for a week, they had a rapport​² as if they had been together for a long time.

Selecting a few newly bought ingredients, Song Linlin started cooking, looking at tutorials on her phone and in a cookbook. She was even more focused on the recipes than when she reviewed for her final exams.

            

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When dinner was ready, Song Linlin called out from the kitchen to Chi Qianning, “Teacher Chi, dinner is ready! You can come and eat!”

While calling out, she proactively dished out rice for Chi Qianning. Then, carrying two bowls of rice, she walked out of the kitchen. As she was setting out their bowls and chopsticks, Chi Qianning arrived in the dining room. Song Linlin, as usual, pulled out a chair for her.

“Thank you,” Chi Qianning said, sitting down. She thanked Song Linlin first, then looked at the dinner.

            

Today, Song Linlin had made four dishes. She had noticed that Teacher Chi didn’t like soup, so she hadn’t bothered to make any. This was enough for the two of them, but mainly because the dining table wasn’t very big and couldn’t fit that many plates.

Song Linlin waited for Chi Qianning to sit down before going to her own seat opposite. The dishes looked quite presentable, so Chi Qianning picked up her chopsticks, took a piece of beef from the plate closest to her, and chewed it carefully.

“How is it, Teacher Chi? Is it good?” Song Linlin, also holding her chopsticks, tilted her head and asked Chi Qianning.

            

It was the first time Song Linlin had made this dish, so she wasn’t sure if it was a fail​³ or if Chi Qianning would like the taste.

Chi Qianning chewed for several seconds, then her throat moved as she swallowed the beef. She nodded. “It’s okay, not bad.”

Hearing this, a smile immediately appeared on Song Linlin’s face. As long as Chi Qianning could eat it, it meant she had succeeded, or at least it wasn’t so bad it was hard to swallow.

            

Chi Qianning’s feedback was always very blunt. Song Linlin remembered how, a couple of days ago, on a whim, she had followed a phone tutorial to make sweet and sour pork ribs for her. It turned out a bit too sweet, and Chi Qianning took one bite and decisively spat it out, even though Song Linlin herself didn’t think it was inedible.

It was quiet in the dining room. Chi Qianning didn’t talk much while eating, and Song Linlin focused on the act of eating itself. After they quietly finished dinner, Song Linlin began to clear the table and the dishes, putting all the bowls and plates into the sink. Water gushed from the faucet. During this time, Song Linlin took a cloth and started wiping the table.

Watching Song Linlin’s constantly busy figure, Chi Qianning stood nearby without leaving. For the past few days, Song Linlin had been the one to clean up after meals. The thought that Song Linlin was doing all the work after a meal they both ate made Chi Qianning start to feel embarrassed.

            

So, Chi Qianning rolled up her sleeves, walked into the kitchen, and offered, “Song Linlin, let me wash the dishes today.”

She felt she should do something; otherwise, Song Linlin had to wash dishes, wipe the table, and then clean the living room and other rooms. The girl was even a few years younger than her and was her sister’s roommate. Chi Qianning felt quite bad just thinking about it.

Just as Chi Qianning was about to reach for the dish soap, Song Linlin, having just finished wiping the table, heard her and immediately rushed over. She quickly grabbed the dish soap first and said:

            

“No, no! Teacher Chi, you should go rest. I’ll take care of this!”

She had promised to take over the housekeeper’s duties for Chi Qianning. Besides, she was eating food that Chi Qianning had paid for; how could she possibly let her wash the dishes? Song Linlin thought Chi Qianning should just relax and enjoy herself; she could handle all these things.

“It’s fine. I’ll wash the dishes today. You can do something else,” Chi Qianning said lightly, firmly taking the dish soap from Song Linlin’s hand.

            

Seeing Chi Qianning’s firm attitude, Song Linlin could only hesitate and nod. “Alright then…”

However, she didn’t leave the kitchen. She started tidying up miscellaneous items on the counter, her peripheral vision always on Chi Qianning. She had a feeling Chi Qianning was the type who hadn’t done much housework and needed to be watched.

Chi Qianning picked up a dishcloth, squeezed some dish soap onto it, and then a few pumps into the sink. Her long, slender fingers picked up a white porcelain bowl, and she began to wipe the grease stains off it. The white bowl, covered in suds, became slippery. She rarely did this kind of thing. The next second, her fingers slipped, and the white porcelain bowl crashed to the floor.

            

Clang! The porcelain bowl shattered into several pieces. Chi Qianning froze on the spot, staring at the pieces on the floor, at a loss.

Hearing the noise, Song Linlin, who was nearby, immediately turned her head to look at the floor, then her gaze lifted. Their eyes met, and she saw clear embarrassment in Chi Qianning’s eyes.

A perfectly good bowl had shattered less than half a minute after she touched it. As the elder, messing up such a small thing made Chi Qianning very embarrassed. She squatted down, intending to nonchalantly throw away the pieces and continue washing dishes to salvage some face.

            

“Teacher Chi, don’t touch it, be careful you don’t get cut! I’ll get a broom to sweep this up,” Song Linlin quickly said, afraid something else might happen to her.

However, Chi Qianning had already squatted down. She was anxious to pick up the pieces. The more anxious one feels, the worse one tends to do things. Her finger touched a shard, and she felt a sharp pain. Red blood immediately welled up.

“Hiss—” Chi Qianning pulled back her hand.

            

Song Linlin was stunned. She wondered if she had a jinxing mouth​⁴; how could Chi Qianning get cut right after she’d warned her?

“Teacher Chi, are you okay?!” Song Linlin also squatted down, looking at Chi Qianning with concern.

Chi Qianning pressed her finger; bright red blood was still oozing out. She shook her head. “I’m fine.”

            

“You’re bleeding and you say you’re fine…”

Song Linlin muttered, then pulled out a few tissues. She took Chi Qianning’s injured hand, holding her palm. Song Linlin lowered her head and carefully wiped away the flowing blood. Chi Qianning’s palm felt icy cold to the touch; compared to Song Linlin’s hand, it was like a heat pack.

Holding the cold hand, Song Linlin examined the wound. Luckily, the shard hadn’t cut too deeply; it was only a very shallow gash. The amount of blood earlier had really scared Song Linlin.

            

“It’s okay, not too serious. It should heal in a few days,” Song Linlin said, looking up at Chi Qianning.

Chi Qianning also looked up at Song Linlin. The warmth pressed against the back of her hand was hard to ignore. She moved her palm, pulling her hand out of Song Linlin’s.

Unsure if it was due to the embarrassment of messing up two things in a row, or some other reason, she turned her head away, not looking at Song Linlin again, and just gave a soft “Mm.”

            

Song Linlin didn’t notice the other’s subtle change. She was still looking at the wound that kept bleeding, reached out again, and dabbed at the blood with a tissue. “How about we disinfect the wound in a bit?” she suggested.

“No need. It’s just a small cut, no need for such trouble.” Chi Qianning took the tissue from Song Linlin’s hand and pressed it to the wound herself.

Song Linlin just assumed Chi Qianning was too lazy to bother. She remembered seeing iodine in the living room cabinet when tidying up a couple of days ago. So, Song Linlin stood up. “It’s no trouble. Teacher Chi, go sit on the sofa. I’ll get the iodine to disinfect it.”

            

With that, Song Linlin sprang into action. Chi Qianning had no choice but to stand up and follow Song Linlin into the living room, sitting down on the sofa and watching Song Linlin take out cotton swabs and iodine from the cabinet.

Opening the cap, Song Linlin dipped a cotton swab into the brown liquid. Holding the swab, she said, “Teacher Chi, hold out your hand.”

Chi Qianning quietly looked at the person opposite her for a few seconds, then finally extended her hand. Meanwhile, Song Linlin moved a bit closer to where Chi Qianning was sitting to get a better view of the wound. She once again took the cold palm in hers, her own warm palm against the back of Chi Qianning’s hand. Song Linlin lowered her head, focused on disinfecting the wound for Chi Qianning.

            

Now, the distance between the two was closer than ever before. Song Linlin held Chi Qianning’s hand, dabbing the cotton swab onto the injured finger. Because the wound wasn’t big, it was treated in a moment.

Only then did Song Linlin look up, looking at Chi Qianning at close range. Her gaze met those beautiful red eyes. She didn’t know what to say at that moment and just subconsciously voiced her first thought.

“Teacher Chi, your hand is very cold.”

            

“Mm, your hand is quite warm.”

Chi Qianning pulled back her palm. “Go home early after you finish the dishes today. It’s getting late.”

Song Linlin threw away the cotton swab. “But I haven’t cleaned the other places yet.”

            

“It’s fine. One day without cleaning is okay. You can do it tomorrow,” Chi Qianning said.

“Well… alright then.”

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