Chapter 40 The Young Lady in a Wheelchair: "Who am I in your eyes?"
A tall, slender figure landed beside the bed; it was standing.
Is someone with Xi Congshuang's voice standing by my bedside?
stand?
She can stand up?!
Her sluggish brain slowly began to work, and Cheng Zhishu's hand, which was holding the water glass, slowly fell down and pressed against the quilt. She looked up.
Xi Congshuang took the cup and asked, "Are you sober now?"
"..."
I'm awake, I just can't stay awake any longer.
Looking at the familiar face, Cheng Zhishu suddenly remembered that last night, during the struggle, her hand pressed on a slightly taut but elastic spot, but she was too flustered to tell what it was.
She thought she had accidentally pressed her hand on Xi Congshuang's stomach, and she was so frightened that she hurriedly pulled her hand away.
Looking back now, it must have been her legs.
These are still firm, bouncy thighs, completely different from the thighs I remember that swayed in loose pants.
"..."
And most importantly, she was carried back in a princess carry by Xi Congshuang last night, and she didn't even notice?
What a medical miracle!
Cheng Zhishu, Cheng Zhishu, are you drunk and confused?
Do you understand that drinking can lead to trouble?
Cheng Zhishu, having figured everything out, slowly cracked open.
Xi Congshuang thought she was still sleepy due to jet lag, and her face was flushed, so she raised her hand and pressed it on her forehead to check her temperature: "No fever, the temperature is normal."
While still in that position, Xi Congshuang asked, "Are you hungry? Should I have someone bring up some decent food?"
Like a robot that had crashed, Cheng Zhishu finally reacted, slowly raising her hand to grab Xi Congshuang's wrist, then pulling it away, and smoothly lying down with the blanket over her head, turning her back to her.
She didn't know what expression to make when facing her first love; all she could think about was how humiliating she was, and she hoped that she could wake up one morning and be back home abroad.
The person standing by the bed is freckled Annie, not my first love Xi Congshuang.
Although it was her first love that ended without a trace before it even began, it was her first love in her heart.
Even if I really don't want to admit it, it is indeed the kind of experience I will never forget.
"Why did you go back to sleep? Is there anything else that's bothering you?"
Whether in the past or now, Cheng Zhishu simply cannot understand Xi Congshuang's true thoughts. Doesn't she dislike her?
Why be so good to her?
They brought me to my bedside, took care of me all night, and now that I'm awake, they even offer room service.
The eldest daughter of the Xi family is providing her with room service? Cheng Zhishu is really something else.
Is Xi Congshuang really a saintly figure with a redemption complex? Does she have a lifelong hobby of helping anyone who is pitiful?
But then again, how can it not be counted?
After she left, Xi Congshuang immediately helped Xi Hanran rise to power, giving up fame and fortune and willingly retiring behind the scenes.
She was furious and never looked at news from China again.
"Honkai value +0.2, current Honkai value 51.52."
"..."
Xi Congshuang lowered her eyes, staring at the bulging mound, her hand still suspended in mid-air after being grabbed.
Red Apple couldn't hold back any longer and finally appeared, firing off a barrage of questions: "What exactly did you do? I could tolerate the Honkai value increasing by a little bit every four years, but how come it increased by 0.52 in just one day?"
"Did you accidentally appear on the news in the US and get discovered by the female protagonist who was reading the newspaper early in the morning, making her feel that she still hates you, thus silently increasing your Honkai value?"
Over the years, it has become increasingly arrogant, adopting a "if it doesn't die, it will keep going" mentality as Xi Congshuang's system.
He's just getting later and earlier, and since the female lead isn't around, it doesn't matter whether he's there or not. He did the same last night, and he has no idea what happened last night.
Therefore, they missed a particularly important reunion.
Red Apple: "Why aren't you saying anything? Under the blanket... Oh my god! What's under the blanket?!"
After rambling on and on, full of resentment, it finally noticed some unknown creature on the bed, with a noticeable bulge.
Red Apple tried to fly closer to take a look: "?" Who's this?
Let me see.
Then a strong force came from behind it, and a hand grabbed it and pulled it back, preventing it from seeing anything.
"Ugh, why are you touching my butt!" Red Apple yelled, shaking off Xi Congshuang's hand and flapping its wings away, spitting out, "So shameless!"
Xi Congshuang: "..."
Red apples don't have a front or back; who knew they also had a bottom?
She also often eats apples while peeling them, so what?
On one side is Cheng Zhishu, who's hiding in bed like an ostrich, and on the other side is the system that forbids Xi Congshuang from touching its butt.
Xi Congshuang slowly closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
There's no one reliable in this house.
Xi Congshuang gave the system a "shut up" look, successfully turning the red apple from loud cursing into a quiet muttering. Who says there are no systems in the world that are afraid of their hosts?
That is it.
For the past four years, Xi Congshuang has never been a human being, not even for a single day or night.
It was genuinely afraid of this person.
He's always either inexplicably emitting black smoke towards things in the house, or inexplicably eating a lot of blueberry-flavored foods, or inexplicably taking a red-eye flight abroad in the middle of the night.
If one day Xi Congshuang finishes enjoying the breeze on the rooftop, suddenly stands up and tells Red Apple that she wants to try what it feels like to jump into the water on the concrete, and then jumps right off the railing, it wouldn't be surprised.
She seemed to have been insane since birth; after sending the female lead away, she couldn't even maintain her humanity, and was reduced to mere human form.
"I know you don't want to see me right now."
Huddled under the covers, Li Zhishu pricked up her ears and slowed her breathing.
Xi Congshuang lowered her eyelashes, making it impossible to see the emotions in her eyes: "Since you don't want to see me, then I'll leave first. I'll call room service for you before I leave, and they'll bring it up to you in five minutes. I won't stay any longer to disturb your mood, so I'll leave now."
Red Apple: "??"
What the hell? Who is this green tea bitch?
If you have such high emotional intelligence, why don't you say something normal to me?
After saying that, Xi Congshuang didn't linger and turned to leave.
The footsteps gradually faded away. Cheng Zhishu couldn't take it anymore and threw off the covers: "Wait a minute!"
Xi Congshuang stopped and turned around.
Cheng Zhishu sat cross-legged between the pillows and blankets, with a snow-white blanket draped over her shoulders and back. She closed her eyes and said loudly, "Eat, eat before you leave."
To be honest, Xi Congshuang got drunk and was kidnapped here. After being taken care of, she was kicked out and not even given food.
This is truly a case of losing both face and substance.
The red apple, finally seeing its true form under the covers, was like: "???"
No, is this the female lead? Why didn't anyone tell it that she returned to China early?
Xi Congshuang: "Okay."
Cheng Zhishu still turned her head away and refused to look at her: "Then you go out and wait for a while. I'll come out after I've finished washing up."
Xi Congshuang naturally agreed and went out the door.
Red Apple hurriedly followed through the crack in the door, puzzled, and asked, "What do you want to do now? You still have five years left to live, it's not impossible to try your best."
Seeing that the female lead has returned to China ahead of schedule, and judging from her appearance, she won't go to jail for industry monopoly, so the mission is saved!
Xi Congshuang picked up the phone on the table to order food. She wasn't sure if Cheng Zhishu's tastes had changed, so after thinking for a while, she chose the dishes that Cheng Zhishu used to eat.
"Think about what I'm saying," Red Apple persisted, relentlessly urging him to work.
Xi Congshuang looked at it and said as the other increased the frequency of its wing flapping due to excitement, "There is something I need to discuss with you."
Red Apple: "What?"
Xi Congshuang: "I'll tell you next time."
"..." Red Apple sometimes really wanted to fight her. She'd get struck by lightning for leaving things unsaid!
This is retaliation, this is absolutely retaliation!
Red Apple decided to retaliate: "Next time you watch a show, I'll definitely spoil the plot for you, spoiling every scene as it unfolds."
Let you taste the pain of the system.
Xi Congxue: "I'm not afraid of spoilers. To avoid seeing scenes I don't like, I'll search for the ending in advance to decide whether I want to continue watching."
"..." Damn it, where exactly is this woman's weakness?
Five minutes later, the waiter rang the doorbell, and Xi Congshuang went to open the door.
The waiter pushed the food cart in, arranged the dishes, and then left.
Not long after, Cheng Zhishu, having finished washing up and changed her clothes, also came out.
She had blow-dried her hair until it was half dry, the wet ends of which draped over her shoulders. As she passed the wheelchair next to the sofa, her gaze was complicated.
Unexpectedly, she saw Xi Congshuang stand up one day, and she was even taller than she had imagined.
Looking up, she saw Xi Congshuang with her back to her, busy at the dining table. Hearing the commotion, she beckoned Cheng Zhishu to come and sit down for a meal.
They took it for granted, as if there were no four-year gap between them.
However, when Cheng Zhishu approached, Xi Congshuang's words still revealed some things that had already changed: "I don't know your current tastes yet, so I only picked some light and easy-to-eat dishes. If you don't like them, there's a menu over there."
"I'm fine with anything." Cheng Zhishu quietly tiptoed, trying to get shoulder to shoulder with Xi Congshuang.
The question she's thinking about now coincides with the one Xi Hanran was thinking about before.
When Xi Congshuang was in a wheelchair, she looked thin and frail, and not very tall. How come she looks so different when she stands up?
Like a Arctic hare.
Can leg reattachment surgery really make someone grow a few centimeters taller?
Xi Congshuang knew she hadn't made a mistake. She took a step back, only to see the person next to her move their shoulder and land on their back foot.
"..."
Cheng Zhishu said loudly, "I'm hungry, let's eat first. I don't even know what time it is now."
After saying that, she plopped down in the chair, her back straight.
Xi Congshuang handed her chopsticks: "It's a little past two in the afternoon. You've been sleeping for a long time."
"Mmm, no wonder I was so hungry." Cheng Zhishu nodded haphazardly and reached for some food.
She was used to Chinese food, and it was difficult to change her lifestyle habits after more than ten years. During the years she lived abroad, she ate Chinese food more often than Western food.
At first, Wen Lingwang couldn't pay attention to some details, and the family chef cooked according to her taste.
Later, Wen Lingwang learned about her habits and arranged for a Chinese chef to cook for her. Otherwise, Cheng Zhishu would have been so hungry that she would have rolled up her sleeves and cooked for herself cola chicken wings, braised chicken, and braised eggplant...
Cheng Zhishu picked up a piece of steamed pork rib and put it in her bowl, then lowered her head to eat.
However, Xi Congshuang's habit of not speaking while eating remained unchanged, with only the slight clinking of bowls and chopsticks on the table.
The quieter it was, the more inexplicably agitated Cheng Zhishu became.
The emotions of the two seemed to be divided by their age difference; one was agitated, while the other remained calm.
Four years later, she still unconsciously stands in a position of looking up at Xi Congshuang, unable to see what the other person is thinking.
Whether it was four years ago or four years later, Xi Congshuang remains reserved and gentle.
She really couldn't tell whether this was Xi Congshuang's polite formality or a heartfelt gesture.
Xi Congshuang is much older than me and has seen the world much earlier. She understands many hidden rules and can make more rational judgments and choose the best solution.
As it turns out, Xi Congshuang was right. Staying in Wenhai would have meant giving up too many possibilities in her life, and she would not have achieved what she has today.
It's even less likely that he could easily find Xi Congshuang and lock her in his room after getting drunk.
How does Xi Congshuang really view herself?
Rationally, I think she's right, but emotionally I still get caught up in the dilemma, and when I can't figure it out, I even think that everything is my fault.
Judging from today's outcome, she was once again forgiven by Xi Congshuang. The other party accepted all her mistakes without making a sound, warning her like a respectable elder that this was wrong.
Gradually, Cheng Zhishu found the food tasteless, put down her chopsticks, and began to have thoughts of escaping.
—She wanted to leave.
Xi Congshuang picked up the white porcelain bowl: "Would you like some soup?"
Cheng Zhishu remained seated without flinching: "Drink."
Xi Congshuang stood up, ladled out two bowls of soup, one for each of them.
Cheng Zhishu lowered her head and drank the soup. She wondered if it was because Xi Congshuang had cooked it, but it seemed to taste better than the soup made by her family's chef.
Seeing the almost untouched boiled shrimp, Xi Congshuang put on gloves and said, "I want to eat shrimp, do you want some?"
Cheng Zhishu absolutely didn't want to leave: "Eat."
At first, Xi Congshuang wasn't very skilled at peeling shrimp, and she put the first few shrimp pieces, which weren't very pretty, into her own bowl. Cheng Zhishu held the empty bowl and waited on the side, his amber eyes fixed on her hands.
Having passed the initial novice stage with the first three shrimp, the fourth shrimp was perfectly shaped and beautiful. Xi Congshuang reached out and placed it in her bowl.
Cheng Zhishu ate calmly.
"Honkai value -0.2, current Honkai value 51.5."
Xi Congshuang paused in peeling the shrimp, pretending not to hear the annoying announcement, and then placed another shrimp in her bowl.
"Honkai value -0.1, current Honkai value 51.4."
Add another shrimp.
"Honkai value -0.3, current Honkai value 51.1."
Keep feeding, and Cheng Zhishu continues to eat.
"Honkai value -1, current Honkai value 50.1".
Add another shrimp.
The damned broadcast continued, mockingly.
"Honkai value -0.1, current Honkai value 50."
Xi Congshuang: "..." Her mood worsened.
At this moment, Cheng Zhishu said, "I'm full."
So she was full. Xi Congshuang felt a little better and took off her gloves.
Red Apple, on the other hand, seemed quite disappointed, muttering to herself, "Sigh, why didn't I eat more?"
After some consideration, Red Apple was quite satisfied: "At least we've returned to the numbers from four years ago, so it's not like there's no hope."
Xi Congshuang suddenly got up and walked past. If she could, she didn't want to hear the system announcement at all and just wanted to block it out.
After washing her hands and rinsing her mouth, Xi Congshuang went into her room to change her clothes. When she came out again, Cheng Zhishu was sitting cross-legged on the sofa, busy with her phone, her fingers never stopping.
She had her back to Xi Congshuang's room door, seemingly indifferent to the other person's comings and goings.
Xi Congshuang noticed that her long hair, which was still wet, was hanging down her back, and turned to go back to her room.
Hearing the door open and close, Cheng Zhishu's shoulders slumped; she guessed the door had left.
She thought it was better to leave; if she didn't leave, she wouldn't know how to face Xi Congshuang.
Not long after, the sound of the door opening rang out again. Cheng Zhishu, who had almost forgotten how many doors there were in this apartment, turned her head and looked at the hair dryer in her hand in surprise.
Xi Congshuang picked up the thing in her hand and waved it: "Your hair isn't dry yet, want me to blow-dry it?"
Cheng Zhishu: "..."
I don't know how things turned out this way. Cheng Zhishu remained in a cross-legged position, her back to Xi Congshuang, feeling her hair being touched.
She felt she had made something of herself, having a pampered young lady who never lifted a finger peel shrimp for her and blow-dry her hair.
So how does she actually feel about herself?
Although this wasn't the first time Xi Congshuang had blow-dried her hair, she was under a lot of pressure during her senior year of high school and couldn't hold on any longer, falling ill a week before the college entrance exam.
At that time, she was delirious with illness and would cry whenever she had a fever. Her eyes would be like a tap that never stopped flowing. She would complain that the medicine was bitter or that the blanket was cold, and she insisted that Xi Congshuang coax her to take the medicine and go to sleep.
Before her fever subsided, she started fussing about wanting to wash her hair again. Xi Congshuang had no choice but to ask Xiao Liu to bring a spray bottle filled with water to wet part of her hair. She then lied to her, saying that her hair was already washed and told her not to move around and to start drying her hair and go back to sleep.
Cheng Zhishu was completely confused, but when she touched the wet ends of her hair, she believed it to be true.
It was like this: she was drowsy, her head drooping, her back to Xi Congshuang, the hairdryer buzzing in her ear, her long fingers gently brushing her wet hair dry.
"Okay, it's dried."
The voices from her memory overlapped at that moment, bringing Cheng Zhishu back to her senses.
She turned to look at Xi Congshuang's profile, where the thread was rolled up, and almost reached out to grab the other's hand.
Seeing that Xi Congshuang was standing, she realized that this was four years later at the Ligong Hotel, not on the third floor of Wenhai.
Leave the things on the table, and someone will come upstairs to tidy them up later.
Xi Congshuang asked, "Where are you staying now? I'll take you back. Li Mi has already driven the car downstairs."
Just as Cheng Zhishu was about to say no, Xi Congshuang said, "If you have a driver to pick you up, I'll take you downstairs?"
"..." Cheng Zhishu shook her head, "I didn't call the driver over. Flora's inspection is not over yet, and she used the driver."
Actually, she didn't know why she said those words; she just found herself speaking the lie fluently, almost unconsciously.
"No driver to pick you up? What about your clothes? Dry cleaning won't dry them that quickly." Xi Congshuang seemed genuinely worried about what she would wear today, and took a few steps closer.
She suggested, "I had an extra set of clothes delivered this morning, why don't you just wear this?"
With things having come to this point, it seemed there was no other way. Cheng Zhishu took the paper bag handed to her by Xi Congshuang and went into her room to change her clothes.
Unexpectedly, it was a perfect match, but Xi Congshuang's height and dimensions were different from mine, so it shouldn't have been such a good fit.
If the clothes had been delivered in Xi Congshuang's size, they would have been a bit looser, and the length of the top and pants would have been different, but this set fits her perfectly, just like it was bought in her size.
Cheng Zhishu flipped to the label at the bottom of the bag, and it really was her size.
Could it be that Xi Congshuang prefers to wear more form-fitting clothes?
With this question in mind, Cheng Zhishu walked out of the room. The person waiting outside turned around upon hearing her voice, their gaze softening considerably: "It's very suitable."
Cheng Zhishu: "Why is it so suitable?"
The moment Cheng Zhishu saw Xi Congshuang, she realized she was completely wrong; the clothes Xi Congshuang was wearing were also quite suitable.
Xi Congshuang said in a serious tone, "When I hugged you last night, I roughly estimated how it would fit. This morning, when I had someone bring over some clothes, I also brought a set with me. I didn't expect it to fit so well."
"..."
This answer was really unexpected.
Cheng Zhishu didn't really want to believe it, so she walked past her and went out.
Xi Congshuang followed at a leisurely pace, leaving the wheelchair and other items in the hotel room, where someone would send them back to the Xi family.
Seeing that she came out empty-handed, Cheng Zhishu glanced back, held back her anger, and continued walking.
The two entered the elevator together, and Xi Congshuang put away her phone: "Is there something you want to ask me?"
Cheng Zhishu blurted out, "Now that you're better, why were you in a wheelchair last night?"
She was so emboldened by alcohol that she thought the other person was physically disabled, and she did a series of irreversible things.
Cheng Zhishu knew she was in the wrong, but she was genuinely curious.
Xi Congshuang pondered for a moment and replied, "Because this way, I won't have any clueless people constantly talking to me, and I won't have to carry out invitations to dance on the dance floor. It's too troublesome to refuse them one by one."
"Moreover, sitting in an electric wheelchair means you don't have to walk. If you're in a bad mood, you can speed up and hit people at any time. It's safer than a car and won't affect the company's image."
After all, what outsiders see is that Xi Congshuang, who is in a wheelchair, was so angry that she bumped into someone, so it must be the other party's fault.
"..."
Silence fell over the elevator.
Cheng Zhishu, her head full of question marks, turned her head, her face clearly saying: Just because of this?
Xi Congshuang calmly looked back, and Cheng Zhishu struggled to get two words out of her face: "Indeed."
Cheng Zhishu fell silent again, unsure how to react to the answer.
It does sound absurd, but the core idea is very much like Xi Congshuang's.
Soon, the two went down to the lobby on the first floor. There were a few people at the front desk checking in, and a person was sitting in the waiting area not far away.
She was sitting facing the elevator area when she saw Xi Congshuang stand up as she came out of the elevator.
Soon, Li Mi realized that the person standing next to her boss was someone who had been traveling with her, and that it wasn't a chance encounter.
Because that person looks a lot like Cheng Zhishu.
Judging by the outline alone, it's about 80% similar; if you squint your eyes, it's a perfect resemblance!
In that instant, many thoughts flashed through Li Mi's mind.
The background music in my head suddenly stopped, seamlessly switching from the unchanging "How could I bear to blame you for making a mistake? It's because I gave you too much freedom" to "Who am I in your eyes? Who do you want me to replace?"
Li Mi: "..." The hand holding the key trembled slightly.
Help! My boss is still on the path of villainy and there's no turning back. What should I do?
Before, even if you lost your humanity, at least you maintained a human form. Now, are you no longer planning to be human?
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Li Mi just likes listening to music.
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