Panda Cub – Chapter 37

Angry

After hanging up the phone, Jing Dan remained somewhat dazed, thinking, “He Ying didn’t care about me at all, so she doesn’t even want to bother with me?”

With this realization, Jing Dan’s mood sank even further. She thought, “So I’m really this unlikable? She doesn’t even want to give me a simple reply.”

However, He Ying was almost frantic by now. After blabbing those words, hearing Jing Dan’s “Oh,” she nearly regretted her prior self who thought they had reached an understanding that didn’t require a response.

She got up, grabbed her things, and while dialing Jing Dan’s number, she hurried outside, fearing that the kid might be hiding somewhere, crying.

“Hey, what’s the rush?” Hu Tu grabbed her arm, raising an eyebrow in a thoughtful look at her. She had barely accepted her previous explanations, but now, this urgency seemed a bit too much, didn’t it?

He Ying was stopped by her. She looked down at Hu Tu with a sudden laugh, “Because I want to make you mad, Jing Dan is such a good person.” After saying this, she broke away from her restraint and left, letting this person who just said those inexplicable words see if she wouldn’t die of anger now!

Hu Tu’s eyes widened in shock, finally understanding what she meant, and immediately felt so angry that it hurt!

No wonder she wouldn’t promise earlier and kept beating around the bush. It turns out she had been harboring plans all along!

“F*ck!” She kicked the coffee table to pieces with one foot!

After making several calls with no answer, He Ying realized that the person was indeed angry, and couldn’t help but sigh deeply, feeling that she had really brought this upon herself.

But now that she’s not answering the calls, where could she go to find her?

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Sitting in the car, Jing Dan couldn’t help but feel deeply hurt by the realization that He Ying had not taken her to heart. Turning back into her true form, she curled up in the seat, feeling aggrieved.

She had genuinely cared for He Ying, even going to the restroom to check her phone when she received a message from her!

He Ying was not a qualified friend at all! Even Hu Tu had never treated her this way!

Engulfed in her own thoughts, Jing Dan watched as her phone screen lit up, displaying an incoming call from He Ying. She snorted coldly and sat back down, choosing to ignore it to keep her peace of mind.

Although out of sight, the ringtone continued to echo in her ears, stopping and restarting several times. Finally, it was replaced by the sound of an incoming message.

Jing Dan maintained a stiff expression, sitting silently for quite some time before she slowly got up, turned around, and looked at her phone, only to see many messages from He Ying.

“Hmph!” Jing Dan’s face held a grudge, thinking, so now He Ying remembers to message her. Didn’t she ignore Jing Dan before?

If you ignore me, I’ll ignore you too!

With this decision firmly in mind, Jing Dan didn’t reply at all. She just lay there on the seat for a long while, feeling utterly downcast.

She truly considered He Ying a friend, yet this friend didn’t seem to reciprocate the feeling.

The phone rang again, and with a lazy glance, Jing Dan only answered it after seeing it was Hu Tu calling.

Hu Tu bellowed, “Where are you now! Are you with that woman He Ying!”

Jing Dan shifted her head to the other side of the phone, Hu Tu’s roar almost piercing through her eardrums.

In a slow drawl, she replied, “In my own car, not with He Ying.”

She certainly didn’t want to be with He Ying, she was heartless.

Upon hearing this, Hu Tu breathed a sigh of relief, but thinking of He Ying’s words, got so angry that she wanted to grind her teeth, “I’m telling you, you better watch out for He Ying. That person has ulterior motives towards you! She likes you! You can’t let her deceive you!”

Jing Dan was stunned, lifting her head and blanking out for a moment – He Ying likes her?

Hu Tu went on to say a lot more, but none of it entered Jing Dan’s ears; at that moment, her mind was completely occupied with four words.

He Ying likes her?

Blinking, but didn’t Hu Tu say that He Ying didn’t give her any attention? If she didn’t even care, how could she say she likes her? In the TV shows, when expressing liking someone, isn’t it always said, “You are in my heart”?

But Hu Tu couldn’t deceive herself, so does it mean He Ying genuinely likes her?

Transforming back into her human form, she lowered her eyes in deep thought, reviewing every interaction with He Ying, wondering why she hadn’t noticed anything amiss.

“Jing Xiaodan, are you listening?” Hu Tu roared in anger.

Jing Dan snapped back to reality, “Oh, yes, I’m listening.”

In truth, she hadn’t absorbed a word.

Hu Tu: “Remember this! You two have no chance together, you got that?”

Jing Dan: “Oh.” They had no chance to begin with; she already knew that. And she was still mad at her!

Hearing Jing Dan’s straightforward response, Hu Tu felt relieved and hung up the phone contentedly.

After ending the call, Jing Dan started to think about how she should treat her from now on. After all, she didn’t like her and shouldn’t let her waste so much time on her, right? And she couldn’t just speak plainly about it. That’s how it always goes on TV—if you say it outright, meetings become awkward.

Feeling she understood the situation, Jing Dan began to relax. However, at this point, she still didn’t want to deal with He Ying. After all, Hu Tu had also said that if she didn’t come forward to apologize first, she would ignore her forever!

She drove home, and it was now time for a lunch break; she wanted to go back for a nap.

As she arrived at her place and stepped out of the elevator, she noticed the woman standing at her doorstep, still dressed in the deep-red suit that the paparazzi had overexposed. Upon hearing the noise from the elevator, the woman turned her head to look at her.

Jing Dan: “…” She hadn’t expected He Ying to be waiting at her doorstep!

Seeing Jing Dan, He Ying breathed a sigh of relief and slowly smiled.

Considering she had just been photographed leaving this place in the morning, it really wasn’t suitable for her to appear here again so soon. However, knowing that Jing Dan was feeling aggrieved and angry, she really couldn’t care less about that. Being photographed was being photographed; given the current situation online, it couldn’t get any worse anyway.

Seeing He Ying at her doorstep, Jing Dan’s first thought was of Hu Tu’s words, telling her that He Ying liked her, and even He Ying herself had told her this.

Now, suddenly seeing He Ying, Jing Dan felt a strange sensation in her heart, but she kept a straight face and didn’t show it, expressionlessly walking past her to open the door.

Seeing that she wasn’t speaking, He Ying didn’t immediately say anything either but followed Jing Dan, wanting to enter.

“What are you doing?” Jing Dan frowned, standing at the door in a way that made it clear she wasn’t letting her in.

He Ying’s expression faltered slightly, looking at Jing Dan’s furrowed brows, she said softly, “I’m sorry, not replying to your messages was my fault. I’m here to apologize. I promise, this won’t happen again, okay?”

Hearing her tone, Jing Dan was reminded of her feelings for her, making their interactions less natural than before.

She didn’t respond but maintained a posture that showed she didn’t want to let her in.

Seeing her face tense and utterly cold, He Ying laughed, “If I enter now, it’s certain that the paparazzi have already snapped photos. Now, if I leave just as you return, what would those online say?”

“Let me think… Probably that these two are having a spat, that He Ying was kicked out by Jing Dan, hinting at a crisis in their warm and bright relationship.”

Jing Dan: “…” Wouldn’t that be better? Then they wouldn’t nonsensically pair us together.

“You could just wait at the door like you did just now, leave after two hours, and then there wouldn’t be such gossip,” Jing Dan said.

He Ying: “…Are you serious?” Can this kid be so sharp-tongued when angry?

Jing Dan snorted coldly.

He Ying’s tone became even softer: “I really know I was wrong, can you forgive me this once? If it happens again, you can bar me from entering your door for life!”

Jing Dan felt somewhat swayed; she had sincerely apologized, so if she continued to harp on this matter, would it seem a bit unreasonable?

“Jing Dan~” He Ying softened her voice.

Jing Dan shivered! A current swept through her, leaving her feeling tingly all over.

It… it sounded like coquetry…

With a poker face, she sternly reminded herself not to be swayed, not to give He Ying any false hopes. Yet, her body reacted faster than her thoughts, stepping aside to let He Ying in.

Jing Dan: “…” Now she was annoyed with herself!

But seeing He Ying already bending over to change her shoes, it seemed somewhat inappropriate to kick her out at this point, right?

With a rigid expression, Jing Dan walked straight to the sofa and sat down, her gaze deliberately avoiding He Ying.

If Jing Dan wouldn’t approach her, then He Ying would go to her. Sitting beside Jing Dan, she coaxed again, “Please don’t be mad, okay? I was being presumptuous before. Now, I’ve deeply realized my mistakes. Could you forgive me this time?”

He Ying never imagined that in her over two hundred years, she’d actually apologize and exert so much effort to appease someone significantly younger than her.

Jing Dan’s eyes flickered slightly as she muttered, “Just this once?”

Hearing her question, He Ying breathed a sigh of relief, “Just this once, it absolutely won’t happen again!”

Jing Dan turned to look at her, awkwardly saying, “Then it’s only this one time! If there’s a next time, I won’t bother with you ever again!”

That feeling of waiting for a reply, but the other person simply doesn’t want to respond at all, really sucks.

“I promise!” He Ying laughed lightly, raising four fingers.

Jing Dan: “…” Hmph!

After resolving the previous issue, Jing Dan realized another problem.

“If you come over now and get photographed, the internet will start making wild guesses about our relationship again!”

Hearing this, He Ying could only smile helplessly. She had already given up on trying to change the minds of those fans who were obsessed with shipping. It didn’t matter anymore.

“Let them guess. We know the truth, and that’s all that matters.”

Moreover, the fans of both sides are probably close to fighting by now. After all, Daidai’s fans are also numerous. In various entries about Chun and Jing Ming, there are not a few topics gossiping about Daidai’s affair.

However, He Ying’s words took on a different meaning for Jing Dan. After learning about He Ying’s affection for her, Jing Dan began to suspect ulterior motives in everything. It seemed to her that not caring about being photographed together or how people online tied them together was a ploy to create the impression they were truly involved.

To outsiders, they had become a genuine couple, which might eventually turn the facade into reality.

Yet, seeing He Ying like this, Jing Dan, not wanting to make things awkward between them, chose not to expose her little scheme, swallowing her pride instead.

If He Ying knew what Jing Dan was thinking, she’d probably be so frustrated that it hurt. Why are you so suspicious of others and yet so naively trusting towards her, as if you suddenly grew eight hundred eyes just for her!

Fortunately, after a heart-to-heart, their relationship returned to normal, which relieved He Ying significantly. Otherwise, leaving the kid to sulk on her own could have led to who knows what level of frustration.

As they speculated, neither the paparazzi nor the netizens failed to live up to their expectations, setting off another frenzy.

The fervor that had cooled down in the morning flared up once again due to this incident, bringing a spring season for the CP fans.

—— Still claiming it’s nothing! Just after the explosion of news in the morning, by noon you’re already rushing to be together again; don’t you think your actions and words are going in completely opposite directions!

—— These two are really showing off in front of the CP fans, and you’re giving us the candy, how could we not be excited about it! Sorry! So, we’re very enthusiastic!

—— Ah, Teacher He, it’s only noon, and you’re already so eager to go back and hug your wife, huh?

—— Above! What wife! My President Jing is absolutely the dominant one!

—— Sisters, you’re being too narrow-minded, it’s okay for them to take turns~

Various fanfictions and fan arts began to emerge in abundance, which greatly enriched their leisure time in the days to come.

Upon seeing this news online, Hu Tu was dumbfounded: “…”

Did you just get together right after I mentioned it?!

She was so annoyed by Jing Dan that she almost had a brain hemorrhage!

After clearing things up, He Ying soon left Jing Dan’s place. However, before she left, she gave Jing Dan a ticket to her dance troupe’s upcoming performance.

After the pandemic was under control, their dance troupe needed to survive, and that naturally meant they couldn’t do without performances. They are now preparing a stage and plan to sell tickets to the public in the form of a performance.

Jing Dan looked at the ticket in her hand, which was a Supreme VIP ticket. How good of a location must it be to deserve the title “Supreme”?

“President Jing, the gown for tonight’s banquet has been selected. Would you like to see it first?” the assistant asked as she knocked and entered.

Jing Dan lifted her eyes, only then remembering that there was a banquet tonight, and nodded indifferently.

Seeing her nod, the assistant quickly took out the clothes and held them up for Jing Dan to see.

Upon a clear view, Jing Dan: “…”

A red sequined deep-V dress.

“…Who chose this?” Who wants her dead?

The assistant blinked, quickly selling out the responsible party, “It was chosen by Vice President Hu.”

Jing Dan was expressionless: “Seems she’s quite idle, to even interfere with choosing dresses now. Isn’t there a problem with the photoshoot in Baiyan City? She should take a trip there to solve it.”

The assistant briskly agreed.

“Take this suit out.” Jing Dan looked down at the suit she was wearing, thinking it wasn’t too shabby?

In the end, she still went to the party wearing that suit, thinking it was just a matter of showing her face and then she could leave.

When Jing Dan entered, the place was already filled with a bunch of so-called high society elites, but she found herself rather disinterested.

“President Jing is here!”

As soon as she arrived, someone immediately came forward to greet her.

Having attended numerous similar soirées and bolstered by her diligent studies, Jing Dan had honed her ability to engage in small talk without drawing attention to herself.

“Jing Dan,” she heard a female voice tinged with amusement. At the sound, Jing Dan’s expression subtly softened as she turned to look.

“President Xu.”

Xu Zhihuan chuckled lightly, her gaze sweeping over Jing Dan, before complimenting, “You look very nice today.”

“But you can’t copy it,” Jing Dan replied with a tense face.

Xu Zhihuan was momentarily taken aback by her words, then burst into laughter again, “You’ve also learned to joke now.”

“Who would have thought the two of you are actually friends!” someone nearby commented with a laugh upon seeing their interaction.

“Yes, don’t you guys bully our Xiaojing in the future,” Xu Zhihuan stepped forward, attempting to hook her arm around Jing Dan’s.

Jing Dan, keeping her composure, discreetly moved her arm behind her back to avoid Xu Zhihuan’s gesture.

“Ha, who would dare to bully someone under Boss Xu’s protection!”

Jing Dan: “…” R*ll!

After the others walked away, Jing Dan turned to look at Xu Zhihuan. Inside, she was quite displeased with her earlier behavior but didn’t show it openly.

“President Xu, I’m going to check out other places.” The earlier dissatisfaction wasn’t shown, but she didn’t want to stay with her any longer.

“Xiaojing,” Xu Zhihuan called out to her.

Jing Dan’s face was cold. “What is it?”

Xu Zhihuan looked at her softly, “Xiaojing, after all this time, I thought you would understand my feelings. I wonder what you think?”

She couldn’t believe that her signals were so obvious yet Jing Dan seemed completely oblivious.

Jing Dan frowned, not expecting her to be so straightforward in asking.

“I’m sorry, I don’t like you,” she also bluntly rejected.

Not liking someone is just that – not liking them. From the first moment she saw her, she didn’t like her, and her actions thereafter only turned that dislike into disdain.

Xu Zhihuan’s face slightly changed, her gaze fixating on her, “You don’t like me because of He Ying?”

Seeing the tremendous buzz online about the CP involving the two of them, it seems like the fervor isn’t the least bit afraid to dance right in front of the people involved. And surprisingly, the two subjects of these rumors are letting it slide!

Jing Dan gave her a puzzled look. What does her disdain have to do with He Ying?

“No, it’s just that I don’t have those kinds of feelings for President Xu,” she said indifferently.

Watching her cool demeanor, Xu Zhihuan was evidently provoked. She stepped closer to Jing Dan, her voice somewhat deep, saying, “I believe that feelings can be developed, and I also think that I am a very suitable match for you. I can contribute bricks and tiles to your career.”

As she moved closer, the scent of her perfume also drifted over, immediately causing Jing Dan to hold her breath, her mood souring.

It smells bad.

“I can earn my own success, I don’t need you to help me build it. Sorry.” After saying that, she didn’t wait for Xu Zhihuan’s reaction and quickly turned away.

If she didn’t leave now, she was afraid she’d carry the bad smell of Xu Zhihuan’s perfume on her.

Finding a corner to stay in, her thoughts drifted away, somewhat puzzled. Why was Xu Zhihuan so confident in saying these things to her? Did she really look like someone eager to climb the ladder quickly?

She couldn’t quite understand Xu Zhihuan’s thoughts; her mind wandered, and as it did, she thought of He Ying.

Similarly, He Ying also likes her, but the feeling she gives her is much more comfortable. When it comes to liking someone, it’s better to learn from He Ying. Looking at Xu Zhihuan’s actions today, in dramas, she’s just like a dispensable character who gets slapped in the face.

She shook her head, thinking it’s ironic that she’s the boss of a leading company in the entertainment industry, yet her understanding of characters is so superficial, making herself seem like a supporting role.

He Ying’s approach is much better, though. Even though she likes her, she doesn’t rashly declare it. She stays by her side in a normal way, intending to let time cultivate their feelings, just like the plots in dramas.

Unfortunately for her, she has seen through all her tactics.

Thinking of He Ying, it’s as if she could also hear her name being mentioned around her. She slowly came back to reality and listened more closely.

“You have no idea, I ran into her in person today, and she looks even better than in the videos! Especially her figure, as expected from a dancer, it’s amazing.”

“Wow, got your eye on her? But it’s no use, you know, she and Jing Dan are pretty tight.”

“I don’t buy it, you telling me you’re not interested? Tight with Jing Dan? In circles like ours, a little connection and everyone claims they’re best friends, can’t trust that.”

“Hiss—”

“I’m not kidding, He Ying looks really stunning, just not sure if she’s as energetic in bed.”

“Just try and see? If she still wants to make it in this circle, she would dare not to come if we ask her to, right?”

“Hahaha ye—ah!”

A scream suddenly pierced the air.

Right after, another person also cried out in pain, clutching his lower body, his face turning pale as he writhed on the ground.

Their commotion quickly attracted the attention of others, who started to gather around.

“Hey, aren’t those the bosses of Hummingbird Entertainment and Together Entertainment?”

“What’s happening?”

On the other side, Jing Dan’s face was icy cold, her gaze towards those two men was as if looking at two dead bodies, or two pieces of trash.

Hearing those words, a towering rage began to build inside her. How could someone so naturally harbor such dark thoughts?!

Her hand, hanging by her side, clenched into a fist. They actually dared to target He Ying! As her friend, seeing such a thing, she naturally couldn’t stand by and do nothing.

She snorted coldly, “Fond of playing with women? Then I’ll make sure you can’t play with them for the rest of your life!”

She pursed her lips, mentally noting the terms “hummingbird” and “together”.

The two men rolling on the ground had no idea why they suddenly experienced unbearable pain down there, without seeing anyone approach. So they ended up crying and screaming about ghosts.

The organizer of the party turned pale upon hearing their words.

If words like “There are ghosts at his party” got out, wouldn’t it be like they were asking for him to be laughed to death?

Jing Dan couldn’t care less about how those two men had botched up the party. She took the chance to leave amidst the chaos, fearing that if she stayed even a second longer, she would be caught by Xu Zhihuan, who was making her way towards her.

Her mood, already soured by an earlier incident involving Xu Zhihuan, turned utterly foul after overhearing those two men.

She returned home with a scowl, sitting on the couch and growing angrier the more she thought about it. If she hadn’t heard their conversation, how would they have treated He Ying? And how would He Ying have dealt with them?

The more she pondered, the more she felt stuck. With a frosty expression, she was about to get up and grab a bottle of iced water from the kitchen when, suddenly, she turned back into her panda form and thudded back onto the couch…

Jing Dan: “…”

She slapped the couch in annoyance, now even this was making her mad!

The panda cub, irritated, buried itself in the corner of the couch, revealing its black shoulder straps, balled up like a black and white dumpling.

Angry, frustrated, and even feeling she had been too soft earlier!

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The author has something to say:

Jing Dan: Utterly aggrieved!

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