That “Bad” Woman Next Door – Chapter 11

For example, when I want to kiss you.

“Is that your girlfriend?”

The moment the words left her mouth, Yuan Yue regretted it.

Their relationship didn’t seem that close; prying so rashly into someone’s private life didn’t seem very appropriate. And she suddenly remembered that Yu Xi was German. Foreigners seemed to place a lot of importance on personal privacy. Was asking this a bit too much?

Gazing into that pair of eyes, bottomless like the deep sea, Yuan Yue couldn’t guess Yu Xi’s true thoughts at that moment. She panicked a little and immediately chickened out, saying, “I’m sorry, I…”

Just as she was giving up on the question, Yu Xi interrupted her. “Not a girlfriend.”

Not? Yuan Yue was stunned.

Yu Xi raised an eyebrow, a slight smile in her captivating eyes, and added, “I’m single.”

It was a very clear answer, but it still took Yuan Yue several seconds to fully digest the information. Her mood, like a roller coaster¹, shot from the bottom of the valley to the peak. She wanted to laugh from the bottom of her heart, but she was afraid of being too “so pleased as to forget her form”². She only moved the corners of her mouth reservedly, her eyes curving as she said, “Single, huh. Being single is great. I’m single too.”

She had no idea how that last sentence got tacked on. After saying it, Yuan Yue was annoyed with herself again, along with a bit of secret shame. Did she even ask you? Why are you adding your own drama³?

Yu Xi didn’t pick up the stalk⁴, the smile at the corners of her mouth deepening, making her somewhat hard to read.

“…” Yuan Yue averted her gaze sheepishly, put the gift away, and let her eyes dart around, cleverly pulling the topic aside. “The soup base is boiling. Hurry, sit down and eat.”

Since she couldn’t control her mouth, Yuan Yue had no choice but to use food to block it.

This was the second time the two had eaten together, and because it was at Yu Xi’s home, Yu Xi seemed more relaxed than last time. She gave the ingredients covering the table a rough scan and asked, puzzled, “Why are there no chili peppers this time?”

The scalding food made Yuan Yue stick her tongue out. She was eating quickly and hastily, her voice a bit muffled. “You can’t eat spicy food, so I didn’t get any.”

Because of me? Yu Xi paused for a moment, then looked at the bland-colored dipping sauce in her bowl and asked, “Can you get used to eating without chili?”

For Yuan Yue, for whom it was no spice, no joy⁵, eating clear broth hot pot was indeed a bit unusual. But eating something light and bland once in a while wasn’t impossible. She swished a slice of beef in the pot and said cheerfully, “It’s fine. I’ll get used to it after a few more times.”

There was another sentence she held back. Actually, what you eat isn’t the point. The point is who you’re eating with. If she were with Yuan Xi and the others, she would definitely find it bland and tasteless. But strangely, with Yu Xi, even if she could only look and not eat, she felt she would be satisfied.

It was probably the meaning of beauty that can be eaten⁶.

Tsk, how could she be so pathetic?

Just by brain-supplementing⁷ that kind of scene, Yuan Yue couldn’t help but blush. She pretended to choke on the oil, covering her mouth and coughing once. Blinking, she changed the subject. “Right, about the WeChat⁸ thing last time, you still haven’t replied to my message. Did you forget to register?”

Yu Xi hadn’t been in A City for the past few days. When she saw Yuan Yue’s message asking for her WeChat ID, she immediately downloaded the app, but her phone had died before she could let her know. Yu Xi smiled apologetically and said, “I didn’t forget. I’ve already registered. I’ll add you after we finish eating.”

“Let’s add each other now.” Yuan Yue didn’t want to wait a single moment. She eagerly took out her phone, then realized she was acting a bit too anxious. She gave an awkward smile. “I was afraid you’d forget again later… no, I’m not saying you have a bad memory, it’s just that I couldn’t find you a few times, and it feels like you’re really busy, so I thought it would be better to just add you now…”

Yu Xi understood. But seeing her so anxious, as if she were trying her best to hide something, she couldn’t help but chuckle. Without poking it open⁹, she took out her phone and said, “Sorry, I just returned to the country, so I had a lot of things to take care of. I was often out running around with friends. But all the necessary procedures are done now. I won’t disappear without reason again.”

Busy with what? Yuan Yue figured she’d have a chance to slowly find out later. Suppressing her curiosity, she didn’t inquire further, her finger tapping into WeChat, waiting to scan her QR code.

It seemed to be Yu Xi’s first time using it; her operations were a bit clumsy. It took her a long while to find the QR code.

Yuan Yue raised her phone, about to scan it, when the screen suddenly flashed. A call was coming in.

Yu Xi glanced at it and said, “You should take the call first.”

The caller ID showed a string of unfamiliar numbers. Yuan Yue ignored it, casually declining the call. “It’s fine, I…”

Before she could finish, that same number called again.

Interrupted twice, Yuan Yue was getting annoyed. She apologized to Yu Xi and answered the phone. “Hello, who is this?”

“Yuan Yue, it’s me.”

“…”

It was actually Sun Wenya.

Yuan Yue subconsciously glanced at Yu Xi, who was sitting opposite her. She saw that Yu Xi was just looking down, studying WeChat, and didn’t seem to be paying attention to her. Still, feeling a guilty conscience, she lowered her voice. “Do you need something?”

Her tone was exactly like she was speaking to a stranger.

“You didn’t even save my number,” Sun Wenya said, answering a question that wasn’t asked, her voice sounding very resentful.

“…” Yuan Yue thought about it carefully. Sun Wenya had called her a total of three times before. One of those times, Yu Xi had even answered for her when she was drunk. She really hadn’t saved it. Why should she? They had broken up long ago, and Sun Wenya had married someone else. Contacting your ex-girlfriend again and again behind your husband’s back—was that appropriate?

Yuan Yue didn’t feel she was in the wrong, but she didn’t know what to say, so she simply stayed silent.

Her silence wounded Sun Wenya. Sun Wenya said, very hurt, “Yuan Yue, do you really hate me that much?”

Yuan Yue suddenly felt irritated. Yu Xi was still waiting for her. Not wanting to show it, she tried hard to control her emotions and said wearily, “I’ve never hated you.”

“If you don’t hate me, then why won’t you answer my calls?” Sun Wenya was becoming a bit aggressive.

Yuan Yue maintained her good temper. “I thought it was a spam call.”

That wasn’t exactly a lie. Seeing an unfamiliar number, whose first reaction wouldn’t be some garbage spam call? Yuan Yue had hung up without a second thought. But Sun Wenya thought she was making excuses and became emotional. “What about last time? You wouldn’t answer my call last time either! Yuan Yue, are you using someone else as a shield for arrows¹⁰ to avoid me?”

“…What shield for arrows?” Yuan Yue was completely baffled by the baseless accusation.

Sun Wenya: “When I called you that night, another woman answered. She said you were asleep. Yuan Yue, who is she to you? Why was she at your place in the middle of the night?”

Yuan Yue finally understood she was talking about the night she got drunk. She didn’t remember it herself; Yu Xi had told her about it afterward.

While Yuan Yue was still recalling, Sun Wenya misinterpreted it as her deliberately ignoring her and shouted, “SPEAK! WHO THE HELL IS THAT WOMAN?!”

Yuan Yue looked at Yu Xi, and unexpectedly, her gaze collided with Yu Xi’s…

She didn’t know how long Yu Xi had been watching her. Maybe it was because her words sounded strange, but Yuan Yue felt that the look in Yu Xi’s eyes was full of deep meaning. She grew even more annoyed. Taking a breath, she said coldly to the person on the phone, “This doesn’t seem to have anything to do with you, does it?”

With just that one sentence, the other end went silent.

Yuan Yue thought the other person had hung up. She checked the screen and saw the call was still connected. She realized her cold attitude had scared the other person, but she couldn’t soften her tone. She could only say stiffly, “Wenya, since you’re already married, you should understand boundaries. Please don’t come and bother me again in the future. I’m eating with a friend right now. I’m hanging up, goodbye.”

“DON’T HANG UP!” Sun Wenya cried out in alarm.

Yuan Yue had no choice but to keep holding the phone. She thought Sun Wenya was about to get sentimental with her again, but unexpectedly, Sun Wenya changed the subject and asked, “Are you with that woman again right now?”

Yuan Yue frowned. “Which woman?”

Sun Wenya said, gritting her teeth, “The one who was in your house in the middle of the night!”

So she was talking about Yu Xi.

Impressive. She could even guess that.

Even though she’d been found out, Yuan Yue didn’t want to answer. She really disliked the tone she used when mentioning Yu Xi; it sounded too sharp and mean.

Yuan Yue didn’t speak, and Sun Wenya brain-supplemented a pile of drama for herself again, her heart aching to an unbearable degree. She said with a sob, “Yuan Yue, is there already someone else in your heart?”

Yu Xi was sitting right across from her, watching her quietly. Pestered again and again by Sun Wenya’s questions, Yuan Yue was a mess inside, but she had to pretend on the surface that nothing was wrong. Steeling her heart, she said, “That’s right. Can you let your heart die¹¹ now?”

“…”

All that was left in her ear was the sound of intermittent sobbing. Sun Wenya was crying.

Through the electric current, the crying sounded even more miserable, but Yuan Yue found that she couldn’t feel a shred of pity, only a stifling feeling in her chest. She knew she was being cruel right now, but what could she do? Sun Wenya was already another man’s wife. How was she supposed to comfort her? And with Sun Wenya’s personality, the more concern she showed, the more entangled she would become. Yuan Yue truly felt exhausted. Let it end here.

In order to make Sun Wenya let her heart die completely, she didn’t hesitate to play the villain.

Yuan Yue didn’t wait for her to finish crying, nor did she want to say any meaningless goodbyes. She unilaterally ended the call.

She thought she wouldn’t be affected at all, but when she put down her phone, her mood was still in turmoil.

Yuan Yue adjusted herself with the fastest speed possible. Lifting her gaze, she faced Yu Xi with a beaming smile and said, “Come, come, I’ll add you.”

Yu Xi’s gaze was fixed on her face. A moment ago, she had clearly shown a flash of dejection, but she had quickly covered it up. Looking at the brilliant smile on her face, Yu Xi was again a little unsure whether something was wrong or not.

Picking up her phone, Yu Xi added her on WeChat.

With the friend request sent, Yuan Yue finally felt at ease. She put her phone aside, wiped her hands with a wet wipe, and picked up her chopsticks, ready to continue to do rice¹². Suddenly, she heard Yu Xi ask, “That was your ex-girlfriend calling just now, wasn’t it?”

It was phrased as a question, but her tone was certain.

The hand Yuan Yue was using to pick up food trembled. A piece of soft tofu went “splat” back into the pot, and the splashing hot soup made her jump. She dodged nimbly, raised her eyes, and stared blankly at Yu Xi across from her. “How did you know?”

Yu Xi looked very relaxed. She used a slotted spoon to fish for the missing tofu and said nonchalantly, “A guess.”

“Oh…”

“She seems to really care about you.”

“Care?” Yuan Yue was stunned again.

“Mhm, a gut feeling.” Yu Xi recalled the accusatory tone Sun Wenya had used on the phone last time. If it wasn’t because she cared, how could Sun Wenya harbor such obvious hostility toward a stranger?

Yuan Yue watched her scoop the cooked tofu into her own bowl, then picked up her own chopsticks and poked at a piece of tofu, wanting to eat it but also not wanting to. The corner of her mouth quirked up in a slightly mocking way as she said, “What’s the point of caring about me? She’s already married and still comes to pester me. What is this? I have no desire to be a little three¹³ who breaks up someone’s family.”

There was a lot of information in that. Yu Xi’s brow twitched slightly. Since it concerned someone else’s private life, Yu Xi just listened without offering any opinion.

Yuan Yue also realized she had said more than she should have. She lowered her head and randomly stuffed the tofu into her mouth. The inside of the tofu was still scalding. Her mouth was burned, but she held back from making a sound and silently swallowed it.

Yu Xi also ate in silence.

The atmosphere had stiffened.

The two of them didn’t speak again until the meal was over.

If it hadn’t been for Sun Wenya’s harassing phone call, Yuan Yue felt this meal could have been very pleasant. But things just had to go wrong.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Yuan Yue, in an effort to liven up the atmosphere, said she wanted to tour Yu Xi’s home. There wasn’t really much to see; the decor in Yu Xi’s home was overly simple. But Yuan Yue put on an act of being very interested, so Yu Xi generously showed her around.

After one tour, Yuan Yue felt she understood a little more about Yu Xi. She noticed that the guest bedroom in Yu Xi’s home didn’t even have a bed and couldn’t resist asking, “Did you come back to China alone?”

Yu Xi gave a sound of assent. “Mhm.”

Yuan Yue was surprised. “Then what about your family?”

“They’re all in Germany.” Yu Xi tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and said in a conversational tone, “I was actually here until I was five. The whole family immigrated to Germany after that. I came back by myself to develop my career. They’re all very supportive.”

Yuan Yue hadn’t expected Yu Xi to take the initiative to talk about these things with her. She was secretly delighted, growing bolder by gaining an inch and advancing a foot¹⁴. “But if you’re all alone, and the people are strange and the place is unfamiliar¹⁵, don’t you feel very lonely?”

“Lonely?” Yu Xi hadn’t thought about that question. She had been independent since she was young, and her family hadn’t managed her much after she became an adult. She was long used to coming and going alone; the word “lonely” didn’t seem to exist in her life’s dictionary. She thought about it seriously and said, “It’s actually okay. It’s just a new environment that I haven’t completely gotten used to. I don’t have any friends here. Besides work, I usually just like to be by myself.”

Yuan Yue wanted to ask what she did for work, but she felt that would be impolite, like she was checking my household register¹⁶. She suppressed the question, glanced at Yu Xi cautiously, and said, “We’re neighbors now. If you’re ever bored by yourself, you can always find me. I’m usually very free. I can keep you company.”

“You’ll keep me company?”

“Yeah, is there a problem?”

“How will you keep me company?” Yu Xi pulled a thought-provoking smile.

Yuan Yue didn’t think too much about it, counting on her fingers as she said, “For example, keeping you company while you eat, keeping you company while you shop, or watching movies with you, things like that.”

“But all the things you mentioned are things I can do by myself.” Yu Xi gave her an unexpected answer.

Was she being rejected? The smile on Yuan Yue’s face froze for a moment. She scratched her head and said hesitantly, “Well… there must be some things you can’t do by yourself, right?”

“For example?” Yu Xi raised an eyebrow with great interest.

For example…

Why is Yu Xi so hard to deal with today? Yuan Yue thought. She had naively assumed that after this meal, adding each other on WeChat, and having a reasonably pleasant chat, their relationship would have improved. But Yu Xi was still so hard to read, asking one question after another until she was about to get dizzy.

Yuan Yue racked her brains for a long time but couldn’t come up with the answer Yu Xi wanted. Just as she was biting her lip, looking embarrassed, Yu Xi suddenly interrupted her train of thought. “But some things, indeed, cannot be done by one person.”

“For example?” Yuan Yue threw the same question back at her.

Yu Xi’s gaze landed on her lips, which were rosy and full from the hot pot she had just eaten. She hooked her lips into a slight smile and said in a slow voice, “For example, when I want to kiss you.”

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