Chapter 41 The Young Lady in a Wheelchair 41: Not the Age for Early Romance
As the two walking side by side drew closer, Li Mi felt they looked more and more alike.
She took off her glasses, wiped them with the corner of her clothes, and put them back on. She looked even more like her now. If Cheng Zhishu had grown to this age back then, she would have looked almost exactly like this.
No, where did the boss find this person?
They look like twin sisters of the Ander Group heirs.
Xi Congshuang had no idea of the turbulent emotions beneath Li Mi's calm expression. She reached for the car keys and said, "You don't need to pick me up today. You can go home first."
Li Mi forced herself to look away from what was not far away: "Okay."
I remember Xiao Wang complaining in the group chat this morning that her boss asked her to deliver two sets of clothes in different sizes early in the morning. I wonder what kind of new hobby this is.
So that's why!
The clothes weren't something the boss suddenly decided to have delivered; someone actually wore them!
Strangely enough, even though Xi Congshuang's mental state was somewhat human in their minds, the key word that summed up her image in their eyes was "otherworldly".
She was abstinent, extremely abstinent, to the point that her small group of friends worried that one day their boss might quietly become abnormal.
Although she's not in bad shape now.
But then again, it turns out that the reason her boss suddenly messaged her last night telling her not to pick her up was because of this.
Li Mi was somewhat dazed.
"Meow—" The cat's meow came from the airline crate under the sofa in the waiting area. White cat paws kept scratching and pawing at the carpet through the gaps.
Xi Congshuang squatted down, pinched the paw, squeezed it and then let go, indicating that she had found it.
As expected, Nao Nao quieted down in the carrier and then used its other paw to hook Xi Congshuang's fingertip, wanting to come out and play with her.
The loud meow attracted the attention of the figure who had her back to them. She turned around to look, but her view was blocked by the sofa, so she turned back to continue looking at the koi in the pool in the lobby.
Xi Congshuang picked up the airline case, inside which was a white cat mountain, quite heavy, with prominent veins on the back of her hand.
She walked toward the figure with its back turned and said, "Zhi Shu rarely comes back. Do you want to see Nao Nao? It's grown quite a bit."
The figure moved and actually turned around to look at the flight case.
Through the crack in the iron gate, I met the blue eyes inside. The cat's pink and white nose twitched, and it meowed without fear.
Zhi, Zhi Shu?
Li Mi's eyes widened behind her glasses as she stared openly at Cheng Zhishu, drawing her final conclusion.
My apologies, it was you! I almost mistook you for the real person.
How could she forget that her seemingly human boss still knows how to do human things?
Having completed his mission, Li Mi left without a word.
As soon as she stepped out of the hotel, she took out her phone from her pocket. The first thing she did was not to call a taxi for herself, but to open her work group chat and send a message.
[Li Yanxin]: Case solved. This morning, my boss asked me to bring the cat to pick her up. It wasn't a sudden whim to take the cat on a spontaneous trip; it's because you can't catch a mother without her child.
[Ni An always beats adults]: Nao Nao's mom? Is it another blue-eyed white cat?
[Li Yanxin]: Not a biological mother, but another mother, Cheng Zhishu has returned to China.
[Xiao Liu]: !!!
[Both the Little King and the Big King are Kings]: !!!
[Ni An always hits adults]: My God, what year is it today??
*
Standing up, her figure wasn't apparent, but when Cheng Zhishu squatted down and looked inside, she finally understood what a figure that could be filled with an airline-approved suitcase truly meant.
She was inexplicably shocked, wondering why the cat's face was so deceptive.
From afar, it looks like a cute face; up close, however, behind that cute face grows a white winter melon with four chopsticks stuck in the bottom.
As Cheng Zhishu stroked the cat's head, she thought: It's probably because it's a long-haired cat. Long hair makes it look fat, but it gets thinner when it's wet.
But seeing Xi Congshuang carrying the airline case, her hands bulging with veins, Cheng Zhishu found it hard to convince herself.
Inside the box is a giant white radish, which will turn into a triangular rice ball or, depending on the situation, a white vortex after being released.
Nao Nao: "Meow!"
Xi Congshuang lowered her eyes to look at the scene before her: "I'm taking Naonao for a physical exam today, do you want to come along?"
Cheng Zhishu hesitated.
Xi Congshuang, carrying the cat in one hand, said like an orphan and widow, "If you don't have time, I'll take you home first, and then I'll go to the hospital myself to get Naonao a check-up."
Red Apple glanced at Xi Congshuang speechlessly. Why did she emphasize the words "myself" so much?
Unable to bear watching any longer, and seeing Xi Congshuang as just dawdling, it shook its head and went anonymous.
Cheng Zhishu: "I don't have anything to do, let's go together."
Without saying a word, Xi Congshuang took out her car keys: "Let's go then, the pet hospital is nearby."
"..."
Following her into the car, Xi Congshuang first opened the back seat, put the cat inside, closed the door, and walked to the driver's seat.
Cheng Zhishu was going the wrong way. She walked around the back of the car to the passenger seat, opened the door, and sat down.
She started to feel that something was wrong again, but she couldn't figure out what it was. The other party had only extended an invitation, and whether or not to accept was up to her.
It seems like there's really nothing wrong with it.
Soon, Cheng Zhishu, who was in the car, put these questions out of her mind and kept secretly watching Xi Congshuang's movements out of the corner of her eye.
Having grown accustomed to seeing Xi Congshuang always in a wheelchair, I had never seen her drive before. Her movements were unexpectedly skillful, making her seem like a seasoned driver.
She couldn't help but wonder what had happened during those years that made someone who doctors had basically determined had no chance of standing up again.
While waiting at the traffic light, Cheng Zhishu lowered her eyelashes, which must have been very tiring.
The two remained silent the whole way, and arrived at the pet hospital a dozen minutes later. Although the receptionist was surprised, she still greeted them and took them to the pet hospital for a check-up.
The receptionist offered them hot water, but Xi Congshuang refused, worried that Naonao would be scared. She waited at the door and watched the cat's check-up through the observation window.
Cheng Zhishu held the water glass in both hands, sat to the side and waited, looking at the figure standing in front of the light blue door.
She is very attentive; you can tell from Nao Nao's condition that she takes good care of the cat.
She was the one who picked up the cat, but in the end, it was Xi Congshuang who took care of it.
Nao Nao has regular check-ups, and this time the results were also very good. The doctor held the test report, patted the cat's head and explained the results. Cheng Zhishu was bored outside, so she came in to take a look.
The doctor said, "Everything else is fine, but Nao Nao is a bit heavy and needs to lose weight. We need to reduce the number of times we feed him canned food."
Xi Congshuang also saw the weight on the medical examination report and nodded in agreement.
Nao Nao, who was squatting on the table cosplaying as a triangular rice ball, had no idea what the humans in front of him were talking about, and was snoring with his eyes half-closed.
The shaved pouches are piled on the hind paws, while the folded front paws conceal the bulging belly fat, proving the weight of the doctor's advice to lose weight.
Cheng Zhishu was shocked again. She reached out and poked the original bag. The soft touch made her feel novel. She reached out and pinched the cat's belly.
Rejected by the snoring Nao Nao, the cat reached out its paw and pressed down on Cheng Zhishu's wrist.
Seeing the scene before her, Xi Congshuang suddenly changed her mind and said to the doctor, "Nao Nao hasn't had a bath in a long time, let's bathe her together today, I'll come to pick her up later."
The doctor was of course pleased. Nao Nao, who knew nothing about this, was picked up by the nurse. Before being carried away, she squinted and called out to Xi Congshuang a few times.
Xi Congshuang pinched its outstretched paw to comfort it, then coldly ordered the nurse to take it away.
After doing all this, Xi Congshuang said, "While we have some time, why don't we go and rest nearby? There's a park nearby, so the air should be nice."
"If you want to go back and rest early, I'll take you home first, and I'll come pick up the cat myself later."
"..."
Here we go again with this trick.
Cheng Zhishu couldn't hold back any longer and closed her mouth, but she didn't stop her head from nodding.
Damn it, why did I agree to that again!
In the end, the two still couldn't go to the park. On their way to the park, they came across a street selling snacks behind the university. Cheng Zhishu hadn't been back to China for a long time and was very interested in the food street behind the university.
Seeing this, Xi Congshuang parked the car in a nearby parking lot, and the two got out and walked over.
As she was about to get off the bus, Cheng Zhishu thought of Xi Congshuang's legs and hesitated several times before speaking.
Xi Congshuang smiled and said, "It's okay. The doctor advised me to exercise more now. My recent checkup said I'm recovering very well, so there's no need to worry."
Cheng Zhishu felt relieved and quickly unbuckled her seatbelt and got out of the car.
It's not far from the food street; just cross the road and turn the corner.
It happened to be the weekend, and the place was packed with people, almost overflowing with people. The lively atmosphere was overwhelming.
Xi Congshuang was used to quiet and had almost never been to such a place before. At first, she felt uncomfortable and followed behind Cheng Zhishu to avoid getting separated.
The two didn't attract much attention because there were just too many people around—students, tourists who came to experience the place, and couples taking a break from school to go on dates. It was a real mix of people.
No one leaves this street empty-handed; almost everyone carries something in their hands, whether it's milk tea or takeout food, and chats with the people around them as they walk.
"What's that smell?" Cheng Zhishu sniffed and followed the scent to a roasted sweet potato noodle stall, where a long line of people was waiting.
The owner was enthusiastically roasting sweet potato noodles, sprinkling seasonings quickly and efficiently. In just a few moments, he wrapped the roasted noodles and handed them to the customer, then asked the next customer how many they wanted.
Cheng Zhishu found it intriguing and was quite interested in trying it.
If she hadn't gone abroad that summer, she probably would have done the same as everyone else, gathering with a few friends after class to secretly eat these junk foods that had no nutritional value but tasted delicious, behind Xi Congshuang's back.
During her years abroad, due to her immigration status, she was mostly alone. She had everything, but she always felt that something was missing.
Infected by the atmosphere around her, Cheng Zhishu turned around and asked Xi Congshuang, "Do you want to eat some? I'd like to buy some to try."
Xi Congshuang never eats these things, but when she met Cheng Zhishu's gaze, she nodded and said, "Mm."
Cheng Zhishu went to queue up, while Xi Congshuang, who was left behind, saw a nearby milk tea shop, which, like other shops, was full of people waiting to place their orders.
She remembered that Cheng Zhishu used to love drinking milk tea, and Xiao Liu often made it for her, so she walked over to Cheng Zhishu and asked, "Do you want to drink milk tea? If we queue up separately, it will be faster."
All things considered, Cheng Zhishu is only 22 years old. She shares similar interests with most young people in their early twenties. She is energetic and vibrant, and the heavy burden cannot diminish her true nature. She has always been herself.
Upon hearing her question, Cheng Zhishu was taken aback, nodded, and almost stammered as she spoke: "Okay, I'll have a cup of mango pomelo sago."
Xi Congshuang turned around and went to queue up.
Cheng Zhishu: "..."
Suddenly, I stopped regretting asking Xi Congshuang if she ate roasted sweet potato noodles.
Ten minutes later, the two met up with their respective spoils and found a place to rest.
Cheng Zhishu got the mango pomelo sago she wanted, while Xi Congshuang ordered herself a cup of jasmine tea, and even more outrageously, didn't add any sugar.
Whether it tastes good or not is hard to say, but it's definitely good at cutting through greasiness.
The two sat together, finished eating what they had, and prepared to get up and continue their walk.
As dusk approaches, there are more people and it's more lively than when we first arrived. We have to be careful while walking around, or we might bump into someone.
No one mentioned the cat that had been forgotten in the hospital, and they tacitly enjoyed their long-awaited time together.
Here, no one knows them, and they don't need to think about anything; they only have the most basic instinct—to walk side by side.
Lost in thought, Cheng Zhishu was bumped by someone. The person next to her quickly put their arm around her shoulder, said "Sorry" hurriedly, and then disappeared into the crowd.
"Did it hurt?"
"No, I just lost my balance."
Xi Congshuang did not let go of Cheng Zhishu's hand, her gaze fixed on Cheng Zhishu's profile. She wanted to say, "There are too many people here. Should we hold hands so we won't get separated?"
She wasn't sure if she would get a response or just drive people away after she said those words.
Before she could finish speaking, someone called out from behind: "Orange! Cheng Zhishu—"
The loud voice rang out, completely drowning out the loudspeaker blaring to attract customers. Cheng Zhishu was startled and turned around to look.
For a moment, she couldn't find the head that was calling her among the heads scattered on the ground.
The voice said again, "Here, here! Look up, I'm on the second floor!"
Many people heard the sound and looked up. Cheng Zhishu also looked over and saw a head peeking out from the second floor of a coffee shop. The person was wearing brown glasses, had a bun on the back of their head, and a carrot hair clip in their bangs.
Cheng Zhishu asked in surprise, "Shangguan Yin?"
Shangguan Yin, who was leaning against the window, hurriedly said, "Stay where you are! I'm coming to find you."
It was impossible for Cheng Zhishu not to be pleasantly surprised to see a friend of many years. She said to Xi Congshuang, "I'll wait for her here. If it's you..."
Before he could finish speaking, Xi Congshuang interrupted him: "I'll wait with you."
Cheng Zhishu had no choice but to swallow her words and stand there waiting. She suspected that Xi Congshuang was not happy, but when she looked at her phone, her expression was neither happy nor unhappy.
The coffee shop wasn't far away, and Shangguan Yin, having packed her backpack, quickly arrived and successfully met up with Cheng Zhishu: "Chengzi! I knew it was you, I'd recognize you even if you turned to ashes!"
She carried a backpack covered in plush trinkets, making it look like a walking general store compared to her high school days.
"It's been years since I last saw you, how come you're dressed so professionally? Standing next to me, you look like you're a generation older than me." Shangguan Yin leaned closer, grabbed Cheng Zhishu's shirt jacket with both hands, and opened it to look inside.
She wore a black turtleneck sweater as an inner layer, and a silver sweater chain on top, looking both sophisticated and simple.
She glanced at the other person, then at herself, her eyes meeting the dog print on her clothes before she instantly looked away.
She certainly has proper clothes, but nothing beats the convenience and comfort of a regular crew neck t-shirt and wide-leg trousers. They can be worn with extra layers to keep warm or taken off to cool off, making them versatile enough for any occasion.
Shangguan Yin let go and gave Cheng Zhishu a thumbs up: "Elite! Truly an elite!"
Cheng Zhishu: "..."
Xi Congshuang spoke up at the right moment: "It's getting late, how about we find a place to eat and have a meal together?"
Why are strangers even trying to chat me up?
Shangguan Yin was startled and realized that the person standing next to Cheng Zhishu was not a stunningly beautiful passerby, but Xi Congshuang herself.
She's grown taller; you have to look up to see her face... No! She's stood up!
Xi Congshuang actually stood up!
The shopping trip was cancelled, and the three of them went to a nearby restaurant. They managed to get the last empty table, and Shangguan Yin patted her chest and exclaimed how lucky she was, excitedly telling Cheng Zhishu how delicious the food was.
Cheng Zhishu listened attentively, and the two of them huddled together, whispering to each other about the menu, and decided on the dishes. It made her feel as if she had returned to the past, when the two of them, as students, would go out for private meals on the weekend.
Just as she was about to place her order, Shangguan Yin suddenly felt a chill down her spine. She stopped in time and handed her phone to the person across the table: "Miss Xi, what would you like to eat? Take a look?"
Xi Congshuang took the phone, ordered two dishes, and then returned it.
Across the table, Shangguan Yin placed her order, thinking to herself that she had really made something of herself, that she would one day treat Xi Congshuang to a meal.
To be honest, she had never seen Xi Congshuang since Cheng Zhishu left, and her family members gradually became reluctant to mention her name.
It is said that she is the mastermind behind the Xi family business. Xi Hanran almost obeys her every command, and many things are inseparable from Xi Congshuang's influence.
Fortunately, Xi Congshuang wasn't too interested in these things, only appearing occasionally and then disappearing, like a hermit who only appeared at crucial moments.
Unexpectedly, when I saw her again, it was under these circumstances. Contrary to everyone's expectations, she was not bedridden with her increasingly frail body.
She stood up, and not only that, she even ate snacks on the back street of the university!
Who would believe it if I told them? The person in charge of the Xi family is like a college student, eating street food with lethal amounts of seasoning on the weekend!
If I told anyone, they would question whether I had hysteria.
If Shangguan Yin, who was just happily chuckling, were to think about it for a moment, she would remember that Cheng Zhishu, who was sitting next to her and seemed confused about the popular Chinese internet memes, was the heir to the Ander Group.
Each of them is a renowned name, but Shangguan Yin only talks to Cheng Zhishu about how incredibly delicious the snail rice noodles on the next street are, so delicious that she dreams of them in the middle of the night and wakes up with a hallucination of their aroma, wishing she could order takeout to eat them right there in the middle of the night.
Cheng Zhishu was shocked by her description and unconsciously agreed to the invitation to go out for a meal together next time, thus unknowingly prolonging her time back in the United States.
Xi Congshuang, sitting across the table, took in all of this. The dark aura around her lessened considerably, and she looked at the person opposite her as if she had gained some insight.
So that's how it can be done.
Unaware of this, Shangguan Yin asked happily, "How come you're around here?"
Cheng Zhishu relaxed a lot: "I should be asking you that. What are you doing here?"
"This is my university!" Shangguan Yin's eyes widened. "Don't you know?"
Cheng Zhishu: "I don't know."
After getting off the bus, she went straight to the back gate. Moreover, she hadn't been back to China for many years, and many places had changed. She really didn't know that this was Shangguan Yin's alma mater.
Shangguan Yin waved her hand: "I forgive you. Luckily, I've been lazy lately and managed to escape the lab to steal a moment of leisure, otherwise I would have missed out on you."
"And let me tell you, I think I'll be staying on as a teacher at the university in the future. My family is overjoyed. They say that after years of doing business, our ancestors have finally produced a cultured person. I've become someone else's child."
There's never a problem talking to Shangguan Yin; she can start conversations from all angles. After she finished talking about her plans, she casually asked, "What about you, Orange? Which university are you studying at abroad?"
When she asked the question, she didn't realize anything. She just thought that her future plan would be the same as most heirs: no matter which university she went to, she would go straight to inheriting the family business after graduation.
Cheng Zhishu opened her mouth: "Ha..."
Shangguan Yin raised her hand and covered her mouth, saying in a deep voice, "Alright, stop talking, stop talking, I know everything."
Cheng Zhishu: "..."
With her mouth covered, Cheng Zhishu listened helplessly as Shangguan Yin talked about the school cat that was as fat as a chicken leg and the idiot who actually confessed his love with a candle. It turned out that what she encountered in high school was not an isolated case.
The number of cases multiplied dramatically in the university, and the posts were frequently posted outside the women's dormitory. Shangguan Yin couldn't stand it, and after living there for a year, she couldn't wait to escape the dormitory and rent a place to live outside.
Shangguan Yin was overjoyed to finally see her old friend and talked animatedly. Cheng Zhishu was helpless and speechless. She glanced at the glass and saw Xi Congshuang, who had been quiet all along, reflected in it.
Before she sat down, she thought Xi Congshuang would find an excuse to leave early, but she didn't expect her to actually sit with her in the crowded restaurant.
Cheng Zhishu's eyes flickered slightly as she noticed Xi Congshuang sitting opposite her looking at them with longing.
Longing?
What does she yearn for?
"By the way, are you also required to live in dormitories at universities abroad?" After saying that, Shangguan Yin realized something was wrong; she had been covering Cheng Zhishu's mouth to prevent her from speaking.
For some reason, Xi Congshuang turned to look at the window, and Cheng Zhishu suddenly turned her head as well.
Shangguan Yin didn't get a reply from Cheng Zhishu because the dishes she ordered were served, successfully silencing her incessant chatter.
After dinner, Shangguan Yin had to rush back to school to take care of some business, so she parted ways with the two of them.
Before parting, she took her phone and insisted on adding Cheng Zhishu's current contact information so they could make plans to eat snail rice noodles together next time.
Cheng Zhishu left suddenly back then, and her account was later deleted, but she still remembers who tutored her the year before the college entrance examination and tried every means to help her improve her score. This is more important than many other things.
It was already late, and the moon was high in the sky. The two walked home, their long shadows trailing behind them.
Xi Congshuang was even more silent than when she arrived. Cheng Zhishu said goodbye to her by the car and walked to the passenger seat.
"It's getting late, it's time to go back. After you pick up Naonao, please take me back to my hotel."
Hurried footsteps approached, and Cheng Zhishu's hand was pulled back. An unexpected embrace enveloped her, the body heat burning like a spark in her heart.
I hear someone's aggrieved voice in my ear.
Xi Congshuang spoke again: "You and she are so close, and I haven't heard anything you said to her. Can you make it up to me?"
Cheng Zhishu opened her eyes wide in her arms, her heart racing. After so many years, she found that she still couldn't resist this feeling.
"I……"
She caught a whiff of the fragrance in Xi Congshuang's hair and was suddenly reminded of the glimpse of her charm when she accidentally saw Xi Congshuang pull down her zipper in a huff last night.
My mind was instantly in turmoil.
Xi Congshuang: "Shangguan Yin only met you for two hours, and she already got your contact information. I can only look at it and don't know if you're willing to give it to her."
Cheng Zhishu: "..."
Xi Congshuang gave a self-deprecating laugh: "That's true, we're way past the age of puppy love now, it's your freedom to do whatever you want."
Cheng Zhishu: "…………"
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