I gave myself to you; isn’t this gift enough?
Yuan Yue knew Yu Xi was exhausted today, so she didn’t plan on trying anything. The two played around for a while before Yuan Yue rolled over to the side, facing Yu Xi. While admiring her features, she said, completely flower-obsessed1, “How can you be so good-looking?”
Yu Xi gently held her hand and couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s because you’ve seen too few women.”
Yuan Yue felt she had a point. She admitted she was somewhat closed off and had very few female friends, but Yu Xi’s appearance was indeed outstanding—so much so that Yuan Yue had been stunned the first time she saw her.
Crucially, Yu Xi’s skin was flawless—tender, smooth, and always seemingly radiant. Yuan Yue wanted to touch it, but alas, her hand was being gripped by Yu Xi. Her heart itched, and she whispered, “Can I just touch it once?”
Yu Xi tightly gripped her hand and didn’t let go. “No. If you want to look, then just look properly. Don’t talk, and don’t start moving hands and feet2.”
“Why?” Yuan Yue protested vehemently.
Yu Xi deliberately kept a straight face. “Because your self-control is too poor. After touching, don’t even think about sleeping properly tonight.”
Yuan Yue was bewildered and didn’t understand what she meant. Just as she was struggling to pull her hand back, the phone on the bedside table rang.
Yuan Yue and Yu Xi’s ringtones were different; Yuan Yue immediately recognized that it was her phone ringing.
Yu Xi had no choice but to let her go. She turned to grab the phone for her, but inadvertently saw the name on the caller ID. Her eyes darkened, and she said, “I think you’d better not answer it.”
“Who is it?” Yuan Yue asked blurtingly.
“Sun Wenya.”
Yuan Yue froze, then shot up into a sitting position with a whoosh, asking in surprise, “Why is it her again?”
The ringtone continued. Yu Xi looked at her unblinkingly and probed, “Do you want to answer it?”
Last time, Sun Wenya said it was the last time she would harass her. Yuan Yue had actually believed it, but unexpectedly, she called again tonight.
Without thinking, Yuan Yue said, “I can’t answer. Hang up!”
However, Yu Xi intentionally or unintentionally swiped her finger to the right, and the call connected instantly. Yu Xi looked down at the phone screen and feigned surprise, “Oops, I pressed the wrong button by mistake.”
Yuan Yue didn’t expect her to have such a childish side. She quickly reached out to hang up, but Yu Xi beat her to it and pressed the hands-free button.
“What are you trying to do?” Yuan Yue clicked her tongue and whispered to the person opposite her.
Yu Xi shrugged and said indifferently, “Curiosity.”
Yuan Yue: “…”
The next second, Sun Wenya’s voice drifted out slowly, carrying a hint of timidity. “Yuan Yue, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to disturb you on purpose.”
At this point, hanging up would be a bit dramatic. Yuan Yue lay on Yu Xi’s lap, facing the microphone, and said perfunctorily, “Is something the matter this late at night?”
Sun Wenya seemed long accustomed to her coldness. She took a deep breath and hesitated. “Is she right next to you?”
Yuan Yue didn’t know why she would ask that. She couldn’t help but look at the expressionless Yu Xi and asked back lightly, “Do you need her for something?”
Although Yuan Yue didn’t answer her directly, the answer was obvious. Sun Wenya knew she was asking a superfluous question and gave a bitter laugh. “I’m not looking for her; I’m looking for you.”
“Oh.” Yuan Yue remained lukewarm.
This atmosphere made Sun Wenya feel a bit awkward. She knew Yuan Yue had long been impatient with her, but she couldn’t control herself. Inexplicably feeling a bit sour, she thought it over and deliberately lowered her voice, saying, “Yuan Yue, I’m pregnant.”
Yuan Yue already knew the news, so she didn’t have any emotional reaction. Yu Xi, on the other hand, heard it with surprise. Her expression was very intriguing. Seeing that Yuan Yue remained silent for a long time, she pondered for a moment and said to the person on the other end, “Congratulations.”
Sun Wenya already lacked confidence making this call. Hearing the voice change, she immediately realized it was Yu Xi’s voice. Her spirit went into a trance, and she said resentfully, “Thank you. I won’t disturb you two. Goodbye.”
Without waiting for Yuan Yue’s response, Sun Wenya hurriedly hung up the phone.
Yu Xi looked at the darkened phone screen and frowned. “She called just to tell you this news?”
Yuan Yue said absent-mindedly, “How would I know what she’s thinking in her heart?”
Yu Xi pulled her ear, half-doubting. “Didn’t I tell you to explain things clearly to her before? Why is she still coming to pester you?”
“I already explained it clearly to her! I really don’t know what on earth she wants to do.” Yuan Yue was very depressed and looked at her with a face full of grievance.
Yu Xi spared her for the time being and said coldly, “Blacklist3 her.”
“Huh?”
Yu Xi raised an eyebrow. “Reluctant?”
How would Yuan Yue dare say the word “no”? She took the phone from Yu Xi’s hand, trembling with fear. Just as she was preparing to blacklist Sun Wenya’s number, the screen flashed, and a text message popped up.
The text message was sent by Sun Wenya.
Yuan Yue looked at that text message, her heart filled with a hundred mixed flavors4.
It read: I can’t accompany you in the future, nor am I qualified to pester you anymore. I wish you a happy birthday.
Yu Xi naturally saw that line of text too. Her heart gave a thump, and she said, “Today is your birthday?”
Yuan Yue’s movements stalled. She suddenly looked up and said blankly, “No, my birthday isn’t until next month.”
“Next month?” Yu Xi’s expression was playful. She snatched the phone from her hand and said calmly, “She really is thoughtful.”
Yuan Yue watched Yu Xi put the phone back and reminded her in a small voice, “I haven’t blacklisted her yet…”
Yu Xi ignored it. “Forget it. Since she’s pregnant, let’s not anger her.” She turned around and said to the bewildered Yuan Yue, “Good girl, go to sleep now.”
…
In the coming month, Yu Xi was busy doing body sculpting5 for Chen Yuan. She left early and returned late every day, so the time she could spend being affectionate with Yuan Yue was very little.
Yuan Yue also started to get busy because of some matters at the shop, so she didn’t fuss over Yu Xi’s temporary cold-shouldering of her.
Zhuang Xiaochen had already agreed to join the partnership. She no longer had designs on the chili sauce, behaved herself, and readily signed the agreement with Yuan Xi. During this period, Yuan Yue followed Yuan Xi and Zhuang Xiaochen running back and forth to learn things, feeling much more fulfilled as a person.
One time, just as Yuan Yue was preparing to go home, Yuan Xi suddenly grabbed her and said, “Your birthday is coming up soon. Do you plan to spend it alone with Yu Xi, or do you have other arrangements?”
Although Yuan Xi sometimes did things unethically, he really had nothing bad to say regarding this younger sister of his. He knew he couldn’t change the facts, and slowly accepted the reality that Yuan Yue and Yu Xi were together. If Yuan Xi hadn’t reminded her, Yuan Yue, who was dizzy from being busy, would have almost forgotten about the birthday matter.
Everyone had been busy lately, and Yuan Yue hadn’t had time to discuss it with Yu Xi yet. She thought for a moment and said, “I don’t know yet. I’ll ask for her opinion when I get back.”
Since no result could be reached, Yuan Xi didn’t probe further.
Yuan Yue arrived at the parking lot to get her car. She first called Yu Xi to say she was going to pick her up, but Yu Xi told her she had already gone home.
Because Yuan Yue was worried about tiring Yu Xi out these past few days, she had been acting as Yu Xi’s driver. They had clearly agreed to leave together every day, so why did Yu Xi go back first by herself today?
Yuan Yue felt a bit puzzled and worried at the same time. “Are you not feeling well?”
Yu Xi hurriedly explained, “No, I came back to get something and forgot to tell you.”
“Oh.”
“Drive slowly when you come back. Absolutely don’t rush, and be careful.” Yu Xi gave her a few detailed instructions, then hastily hung up on her.
This was the first time Yu Xi had actively hung up on her. Yuan Yue felt depressed, and the more she thought about it, the more suspicious she felt.
She didn’t heed Yu Xi’s instructions; she started the car, slammed on the gas, and arrived home very quickly.
Yuan Yue took out her key to open the door, but found that the door wouldn’t open no matter what. She realized the door had been locked from the inside, so she had to ring the doorbell.
During the wait, the ball of suspicion in Yuan Yue’s heart grew bigger and bigger.
It was truly strange. Why would Yu Xi lock the door while home alone?
Yuan Yue waited for about two minutes. The moment the door opened, she looked displeased and questioned right off the bat, “What are you doing locking yourself inside?”
Yu Xi deliberately ignored her annoyed look, smiled, and said, avoiding the heavy and choosing the light6, “How did you get back so fast? I was even preparing to go down and welcome you.”
Yuan Yue never had much resistance to Yu Xi’s smile. Her anger instantly subsided, and she complained in a muffled voice, “Isn’t it all because of you? I was worried about you and wished I could fly back in one second.”
Yu Xi pulled her inside, actively took the bag from her hand, and said lightly, “I’m fine. What do you have to worry about?”
Yuan Yue looked at her face unblinkingly. “Don’t try to change the subject. You haven’t answered my question yet.”
“What question?” Yu Xi smiled a smile that wasn’t a smile.
Yuan Yue knew she was playing dumb. She glared at her angrily and didn’t speak.
Seeing she couldn’t muddle through, Yu Xi composed her expression and said, “Chen Yuan entered the drama crew7 today. I had nothing to do, so I had to come back early. I slept for a while in the afternoon and didn’t do anything else.”
Yuan Yue was still unsatisfied with the answer. She looked at her suspiciously and said, “Sleeping is just sleeping; why did you lock the door?”
It was the first time Yu Xi had seen her being so unwilling to forgive or let go. She rubbed her forehead and said helplessly, “Maybe I locked it by accident.”
“I just feel you’re acting weird today.” Yuan Yue stared closely at her face but couldn’t make heads or tails of it. She simply made a bold hypothesis: “You didn’t hide someone in the house, did you?”
Yu Xi was also impressed by her brain hole8. She unconsciously raised her eyebrows and, instead of getting angry, laughed. “What do you think?”
Yuan Yue was made even more neurotic by her ambiguous attitude. She suddenly looked toward the closed bedroom door, narrowed her eyes, pointed a finger, and said with certainty, “There’s definitely something fishy in there.”
“Go take a look?” Yu Xi said leisurely, standing right behind her.
Under Yu Xi’s instigation, Yuan Yue took a step toward the bedroom.
When she pushed open the bedroom door and saw the room full of floating colorful ribbons and balloons, Yuan Yue was dumbfounded. She abruptly turned back to look at the person behind her. “You locked yourself inside just now to set this up?”
Yu Xi’s face reddened slightly, and she said bashfully, “Yeah. It’s not done well; don’t laugh at me.”
Yuan Yue simply didn’t know what to say. She walked in carefully, looking at the large and small balloons flying overhead, and only felt a wave of dizziness.
“Be careful.” Yu Xi supported her.
Yuan Yue retracted her sore neck and looked at her in a daze.
Yu Xi knew what she wanted to say. Without waiting for her to ask, she answered honestly, “The day after tomorrow is your birthday. I wanted to celebrate your birthday in advance, just the two of us. Is that okay?”
Yuan Yue’s head was groggy, and she still felt it was very unreal. “How long did you work on this?”
“About a day.”
That meant Yuan Yue had already been deceived by her when she left the house.
Frankly speaking, these balloons looked dreamy, but they lacked any novelty.
Yuan Yue really didn’t expect Yu Xi to come up with such cheesy stuff, but because Yu Xi did it for her, she was very moved. She hurriedly pulled Yu Xi’s hand over to examine it carefully. Confirming there were no blisters, she still couldn’t help but feel heartache. “How tiring must it be for one person to blow up so many balloons?”
Yu Xi smiled indifferently and comforted her, “Doing even more for you wouldn’t be tiring.”
Yuan Yue didn’t want her to see her reddened eyes. She pretended to look around and asked in confusion, “Why are there no roses?”
“This…” Yu Xi paused and said embarrassedly, “I’m allergic to pollen. If I knew you liked them, I should have bought some fake flowers to put in the house.”
Yuan Yue actually didn’t know about Yu Xi’s pollen allergy. She opened her mouth slightly, fell into a trance for a moment, and said, “It doesn’t matter. No flowers, but what about the gift?”
Yu Xi looked at her outstretched hand, stunned for a moment, then suddenly broke into a smile. She placed her own hand in Yuan Yue’s palm, looked at her sincerely, and said, “I gave myself to you; isn’t this gift enough?”
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