The Passerby Female Supporting Character – Chapter 84

Extra IF-Line – Modern Arc

Stunning

Song Linlin had classes all afternoon today, so she didn’t arrive at Chi Qianning’s doorstep until evening. Song Linlin raised her hand and rang the doorbell.

After waiting quietly for a few seconds, the door was opened from the inside. Chi Qianning’s familiar face appeared behind it. Song Linlin looked at the person in front of her and was instantly stunned.

            

Chi Qianning was wearing a full face of makeup. Her face was already extremely beautiful even without any embellishment. Now, with low-saturation smoky eye makeup, her usually cool temperament had an added touch of allure. She wore a simple black slip dress with a cinched waist design on the side. The fabric was high-quality and structured, not at all tacky, but rather exuding an air of sophistication.

Even without a necklace, her delicate collarbones and beautiful shoulder and neck lines were perfectly displayed. It was a pity the dress didn’t have a side slit. Further down, she wore a pair of simply designed high-heeled shoes.

The moment the door opened, a special fragrance wafted out. Chi Qianning had also sprayed perfume.

            

Chi Qianning looked at the clearly dazed Song Linlin, stepped back to make room for her to enter, and said in a light voice, “Come in.”

“O-Okay, Teacher Chi.” Song Linlin snapped back to her senses and nodded, her words still carrying a stutter.

Today’s Chi Qianning was quite different from before. In the past, Chi Qianning rarely wore makeup, or at most, just a simple light makeup. She also always wore proper and meticulous clothes, looking sufficiently cool and serious.

            

But now, looking at the Chi Qianning before her, Song Linlin felt like she had accidentally discovered an unknown side of her, a huge contrast to her previous image. Although her aura was still just as aloof and unattainable, she lacked her usual stern demeanor.

Song Linlin had been here once this morning. She remembered that Chi Qianning wasn’t dressed like this then, nor was she wearing makeup; she was dressed pretty much as usual.

But now, as soon as the door opened, Teacher Chi was dressed so beautifully. Did she go out this afternoon?

            

Song Linlin walked in. As she passed by Chi Qianning, the fragrance became stronger, yet not overpowering. It was a very special scent, much like Chi Qianning’s own temperament—light and subtle.

Song Linlin, who had been quite relaxed when she arrived, couldn’t help but feel a bit reserved. Once she was fully inside the house, Chi Qianning closed the door again.

Because the room hadn’t been cleaned yesterday, and Teacher Chi was still walking around indoors in high heels, Song Linlin decided not to bother changing her shoes either. The two of them walked into the living room together.

            

Chi Qianning sat down on the sofa. She said to Song Linlin, “Sit down and rest for a bit. It’s okay if we make dinner a little later.”

“Mm, okay.”

Song Linlin nodded and sat down near Chi Qianning. Looking at the person beside her, she took the initiative to start a conversation, asking curiously, “Teacher Chi, did you go out this afternoon? You look so beautiful today.”

            

Chi Qianning leaned back lazily against the sofa, her elbow resting on a cushion, her chin on her shoulder. She turned her head to look at Song Linlin and said casually:

“Meeting someone.”

Her simple two-word reply made Song Linlin’s mind race with possibilities. Did she go to meet a friend, or someone else?

            

Especially since her outfit today was so stunning, there weren’t many people who would require such careful dressing up to meet. It seemed Teacher Chi didn’t even have a romantic partner, and she always lived alone.

Could it be some kind of ambiguous romantic interest?

Looking at Chi Qianning, who was so beautiful it was hard to look away, Song Linlin’s first reaction was: Who could possibly be good enough for her!

            

She was incredibly curious, but Chi Qianning had brushed it off so simply, clearly unwilling to say more. Now Song Linlin felt too embarrassed to ask further.

So, Song Linlin could only suppress her curiosity. She remembered Chi Qianning cutting her finger yesterday, so she changed the subject and asked with concern, “Teacher Chi, how’s your hand?”

“It’s almost healed, look.”

            

Saying this, Chi Qianning opened her palm, facing it upwards. Now Song Linlin could see the wound clearly. The cut from yesterday looked much better; it would probably heal completely in a couple of days.

“That’s good.”

Song Linlin felt relieved, but still reminded her, “In the future, don’t pick up glass shards or ceramic pieces with your bare hands. It’s easy to get cut. Be careful.”

            

Chi Qianning wanted to argue, but she had indeed gotten cut. She could only listen quietly. Remembering yesterday’s incident, her tone became a little unnatural again: “Got it.”

The two chatted about other things. Because they weren’t from the same school, and Song Linlin was an undergraduate while the other was a direct PhD student​¹, there weren’t many topics Song Linlin could discuss with Chi Qianning. She could only talk about some trivial things she’d encountered to prevent the atmosphere from becoming awkward.

So, it was mostly Song Linlin talking, while Chi Qianning leaned against the sofa, listening. She didn’t show any impatience; instead, she focused on Song Linlin as she spoke.

            

As Song Linlin talked, she inexplicably found herself unable to continue. When Chi Qianning listened intently, she would keep looking into her eyes. A brief moment of eye contact was fine, but this prolonged gaze made Song Linlin actively avoid her eyes, and eventually, she just couldn’t speak anymore.

Seeing Song Linlin pause, Chi Qianning tilted her head slightly, “Not talking anymore?”

“Teacher Chi, I… I think I’ll go make dinner,” Song Linlin said and stood up.

            

Chi Qianning also stopped leaning back on the sofa, straightened her back, and looked up at Song Linlin standing beside her. She nodded, “Alright then, you go ahead.”

“Okay!”

Song Linlin quickly escaped into the kitchen. Only when Chi Qianning was out of sight did she finally relax. Even when talking to other people, having someone stare into your eyes like that would inevitably create pressure, let alone being stared at by someone as beautiful as Chi Qianning.

            

Today’s Chi Qianning was just too different. Song Linlin wasn’t quite used to it. When she had conversations with Chi Qianning before, she hadn’t stared at her like this.

Patting her cheeks, Song Linlin tried to clear her head, then opened the refrigerator and started to get busy with tonight’s dinner.

Meanwhile, in the living room, Chi Qianning remained seated. Due to the walls, the kitchen and dining room couldn’t be seen from the living room. Now alone, her long fingernails were idly picking at the corner of a cushion.

            

Actually, she had only gotten home around four in the afternoon. At that time, Chi Qianning was still wearing the clothes she wore at school. There was still plenty of time before Song Linlin would arrive, as Song Linlin wouldn’t come until at least past six.

Chi Qianning took off her shoes, intending to change into the slippers she usually wore at home. As she opened the shoe cabinet, she saw a delivery package on top of it—a pair of high heels she had bought.

She opened the shoebox and tried them on to see if they fit. There was a full-length mirror attached to the wall in the entryway. Looking at herself in the mirror, she thought that such a pair of high heels would look good with a dress.

            

Then, thinking that Song Linlin would arrive around six-something, and there was still some time, perhaps on a whim, or for some other reason, Chi Qianning went to dress herself up.

And then, at 6:21 PM, the doorbell rang. Chi Qianning opened the door, and Song Linlin had a stunned expression. The girl outside suddenly became reserved.

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Song Linlin made Western-style food today. She set out the plates and cutlery before asking Chi Qianning to come and eat.

            

The two sat on opposite sides of a small dining table. The disadvantage of a small table was naturally that it couldn’t hold too many dishes; the advantage was that they could sit close, face to face. If the lights were dimmed a bit and a few roses were added to a vase, it could create an intimate atmosphere.

Song Linlin kept her head down, cutting her steak with a knife and fork, but her gaze kept uncontrollably drifting upwards to look at Chi Qianning opposite her. She ate elegantly, chewing each bite slowly, which in turn slowed down Song Linlin’s eating pace considerably.

Their eyes met unintentionally. Chi Qianning noticed Song Linlin looking at her and asked, “What’s wrong?”

            

“Nothing… I just wanted to ask if the dinner tastes okay?” Song Linlin quickly came up with an excuse.

Chi Qianning put down her knife and fork and gently wiped her mouth with a napkin. “It’s pretty good.”

Saying this, she picked up her wine glass and took a sip of the liquid inside. Chi Qianning often drank a little wine in the evening. This was a habit she had developed when staying up late studying, and she couldn’t break it later on.

            

Ever since trying it once, Song Linlin had lost interest in that cabinet full of alcohol. She actually preferred drinking soft drinks with her meals, but Teacher Chi’s house clearly didn’t have such beverages, so she had to settle for cooled boiled water.

After quietly finishing their meal, and after yesterday’s incident, Chi Qianning no longer offered to do the dishes. Song Linlin was quite content washing the dishes alone in the kitchen; at least she didn’t have to worry about other things.

After she finished cleaning the kitchen and dining room, it was time to clean the living room and the other rooms. They hadn’t been cleaned yesterday, so she had to work diligently today.

            

The master bedroom door was closed. Chi Qianning had gone into the bedroom after dinner. Song Linlin was afraid she might be busy inside, so she decided to clean the master bedroom last.

Perhaps to reduce Song Linlin’s workload, the entire living room wasn’t messy, much better than when Song Linlin first came.

After Song Linlin finished mopping the living room and the other rooms, she had just walked out of the bathroom with the mop, intending to knock on the master bedroom door, when she saw that the door was already open.

            

Song Linlin walked towards the master bedroom. The door was ajar. From her angle, she couldn’t see Chi Qianning inside. By the time Song Linlin reached the doorway, she could clearly see the situation inside; Chi Qianning was not there.

Just in case Chi Qianning was in the master bedroom’s bathroom, Song Linlin still knocked on the door before entering, reminding, “Teacher Chi, I’m coming in.”

There was no response from inside. Song Linlin walked into the room. The bathroom door was also open, and she could feel warm steam wafting out, but there was no sound of water running in the bathroom.

            

“Teacher Chi?”

Still no reply. Song Linlin could only guess that she might have just finished showering and stepped out.

Things inside should be messy after a shower. Since both the room and the bathroom needed cleaning anyway, Song Linlin decided to go into the bathroom first. It was filled with the scent of shower gel.

            

Song Linlin’s gaze swept around briefly, but she keenly noticed two sets of clothes piled on the clothes rack.

The white set was what Chi Qianning had worn in the morning, and the other black one was the dress she had seen Teacher Chi wearing tonight.

These were clothes that had been changed out of and needed to be washed. Song Linlin picked them up casually, intending to take them out and put them in the washing machine.

            

However, just as she turned around, before she could even start walking, she saw Chi Qianning standing at the bathroom doorway. At this moment, their eyes met. Chi Qianning had probably just walked into the master bedroom and happened to see Song Linlin holding her changed clothes.

“What are you doing?”

Their gazes met, and Song Linlin froze. The clothes in her hands suddenly felt scalding hot. Although her intentions were good, being caught in this act by the owner herself made her feel like some kind of pervert stealing clothes.

            

Song Linlin’s face immediately flushed as she explained, “I-I just wanted to take the clothes to the washing machine.”

After speaking, she didn’t forget to add for her own sake: “I really didn’t mean to take your clothes!”

Chi Qianning looked at Song Linlin for a few more seconds, feeling that what she said was probably true. She said, “You… you can put the clothes down first. I’ll do it myself.”

            

“I can help you.” Song Linlin saw that she had already returned to the master bedroom; going out again would be troublesome, so it would be better to save her the trip.

Chi Qianning stood at the bathroom doorway, looking like she wanted to say something but was too embarrassed to. Song Linlin didn’t react at first, but then a possibility occurred to her.

Then her gaze shifted downwards, to the clothes she was holding. Only then did she realize that under the black dress on top, a strap and an underwear clasp were dangling down.

            

It turned out Chi Qianning’s underwear, changed after her shower, was still among the clothes. She had just stepped out for a moment and was probably planning to come back to wash them, but then Song Linlin had picked them up.

Realizing what she was holding, Song Linlin couldn’t help but blush deeply. She immediately and awkwardly placed the clothes on the washbasin beside her. “Sorry, sorry, I’ll put the clothes here.”

Song Linlin was just about to leave this embarrassing place immediately, but perhaps because the ceramic surface of the washbasin was too slippery, the black bra under the dress fell off it the next second, landing at Song Linlin’s feet.

            

Now the air in the bathroom fell completely silent. Song Linlin simply didn’t dare to look, much less face Chi Qianning not far away. She quickly squatted down, reached out to pick up the black bra, and hurriedly placed it back on the washbasin.

“I’m sorry, I-I’ll come in later!”

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