Chapter 51

Because she had a spat with the woman, Jiang Lai deliberately refused to come down for either lunch or dinner. No matter who knocked on her door, she ignored them.

By late evening, when her stomach was growling so hard it hurt, Jiang Lai finally climbed out of bed. She slowly put on her shoes and stepped out of the room.

The hallway was utterly quiet, with no one else around. She carefully pulled the door shut, afraid of making any noise that might be heard.

There was no one in the living room downstairs either. She found it a little strange, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on what was off.

Her stomach no longer cared what she was thinking and began protesting loudly. There were no leftovers in the fridge; it was spotless, with only a lonely ear of corn left inside.

She felt a little discouraged, but there was nothing she could do. She could only resign herself to it.

Just as she was sitting on a stool gnawing on the corn, she happened to run into Xu Zhiyi coming downstairs. The two of them met each other’s eyes and both froze.

Jiang Lai hid the corn behind her back and gave an awkward laugh. “Teacher Xu, are you going out?”

The woman took two steps forward, then stopped and came back. “It’s not me going out. It’s us going out.”

Jiang Lai scratched the tip of her nose. “Huh? We’re still filming tonight? But I didn’t get any notice about a recording schedule...”

“Clumsy.”

Xu Zhiyi tapped her on the forehead. “No wonder Cheng Shuyang likes to knock you on the head; you really are dense. Director Zhang is taking us to the night market tonight. Aren’t you coming?”

“I didn’t know. No one told me...”

Xu Zhiyi clicked her tongue a few times. “How could that be? Didn’t Cheng Shuyang like you the most? What, did the two of you have a fight?”

Jiang Lai felt a little guilty and weakly protested, “No.”

“If not, then not. What are you feeling guilty about?”

Xu Zhiyi grabbed her hand. “Come on, stop eating corn. I’ll take you to eat at the night market; there’s lots of good food over there.”

Before Jiang Lai could react, the woman had already pulled her into the car.

As soon as she got in, she saw Cheng Shuyang, smiling warmly, and sitting in the spot that should have belonged to her was Yu Tian.

The moment the few of them looked at each other, Jiang Lai saw surprise and panic flash in the woman’s eyes.

Her heart twisted with jealousy, but she didn’t show it. Instead, she deliberately hooked her arm through Xu Zhiyi’s in an intimate gesture. “Teacher Xu, let’s sit over there.”

“Sure!”

Xu Zhiyi could tell Jiang Lai was deliberately using her to provoke the woman, but she didn’t call her out. She only found it interesting; besides, she also wanted to see exactly what Jiang Lai meant to Cheng Shuyang.

“Yu Tian, what do you mean by this? Didn’t you say Alai wasn’t in her room?”

Gu Xizhou was blunt and never bothered to save Yu Tian any face.

“When I knocked just now, no one answered me. How was I supposed to know she was in there...”

“Enough, stop talking.”

Cheng Shuyang closed her eyes, the irritability in her heart only growing. “I should’ve gone to call her myself.”

“Aunt Cheng, you really misunderstood me.”

Yu Tian clutched the woman’s sleeve, only for Xia Wanwan to yank her away at once. “Don’t touch my mom.”

Whether Xu Zhiyi had done it on purpose or not, she dragged Jiang Lai over and seated her right in front of the woman. Through the gap between the seats, the two shoulders looked very close together, almost intimate.

“When did Alai get so close with Teacher Xu..."

Xia Wanwan sounded a little unhappy.

“So what if it’s Teacher Xu? I think Teacher Xu is pretty great too; she dares to love and hate, and she looks really compatible standing next to Alai.”

“Gu Xizhou, why are you like this!”

Xia Wanwan looked unconvinced. “Every time Teacher Xu comes up, you seem so satisfied with her.”

“So what? If the fruit is hanging on the tree and you don’t pick it, are you going to stop other people from picking it?”

“You! What kind of twisted logic is that?”

Xia Wanwan muttered under her breath, but she couldn’t refute it.

“It’s the truth.”

Xia Wanwan was still about to argue when the woman cut her off. “Wanwan, pass me the water.”

“Oh, okay.”

“Teacher Cheng, do you think what I said makes sense?”

The woman’s hand paused; the smile in her eyes faded a little, replaced by an unreadable complexity. “What you said does make sense, but more than those things, I care about what Alai wants.”

Looking at the seriousness in the woman’s eyes, she suddenly understood why Jiang Lai had fallen for Cheng Shuyang.

The night market was crowded. The car could only drive halfway before stopping; the rest of the way they had to walk.

Jiang Lai bounced out of the car and looked around curiously. Then a bit of warmth settled on her shoulder. She turned and saw the woman handing her a bottle of water, her voice cool. “You ate quite a lot in the car. Drink some water.”

Jiang Lai took it dazedly, a little awkward.

How did Aunt Cheng know? Could she have been secretly watching her all along?

At that thought, the light that had gone out in her eyes instantly brightened. “Aunt Cheng...”

But the woman ignored her completely and walked straight past her.

“So what if she’s mad at me again? I’m mad too...”

Jiang Lai drooped a little, feeling frustrated.

“Alai, hurry up; there’s so much delicious food over here!”

Xia Wanwan waved at her from not far away. Jiang Lai gathered herself and forced a casual expression. “Coming.”

“Quick, quick, quick; I’ve already picked out the fried skewers, crepes, and fruit tea you like.”

Seeing that her mood was still low, Xia Wanwan leaned in close. “Hey, what’s wrong? Why are you so unhappy? Aren’t these all the things you like?”

“Your mom seems angry at me..."

“My mom? Angry at you?”

Xia Wanwan barely suppressed the corners of her mouth from lifting. She glanced at the dejected woman ahead, then at the dispirited girl in front of her. So the two of them were flirting here and getting jealous over each other.

She wasn’t afraid of the spectacle getting any bigger. “Actually, Alai, why don’t you take Gu Xizhou’s advice and like someone else? For example, Teacher Xu, or maybe senior sister?”

“...You’re at it again.”

“This is called strategy. You really don’t have to hang yourself from my mom’s tree.”

“Fine, stop talking.”

Jiang Lai covered her mouth and took a resentful bite of the grilled gluten skewer in her hand.

“Excuse me, may I ask if you’re Jiang Lai?”

A hesitant voice called Jiang Lai’s name.

She froze, then turned to look at the speaker while still chewing on the skewer she hadn’t finished.

“It really is her! She’s so cute!”

The girls could hardly hide their excitement as they came up to her. “Hello, we’re your fans. Could we take a picture?”

“Yes, yes.”

Jiang Lai was still a little dazed.

“Are you filming a variety show?”

“Mm-hmm.”

Xia Wanwan smiled as she talked to them. “Remember to watch it later; help our Alai boost the view count.”

The girl’s eyes lit up and she nodded quickly. “Don’t worry, we definitely won’t miss a single episode!”

“But..."

One of the bolder girls glanced around and asked tentatively, “Is Teacher Cheng not here? I really like her too..."

At that, a flicker of amusement passed through Xia Wanwan’s eyes. “You mean Teacher Cheng? She’s ahead. She and Alai had a little disagreement, so the two of them are mad at each other.”

“Oh... I see!”

The girls all looked a little disappointed.

“Should I go call her for you?”

“Could you?”

“Of course. Teacher Cheng likes you all too.”

Cheng Shuyang had actually seen Jiang Lai surrounded by fans long ago. The girl was always bad at handling this kind of situation; every time, she ended up flustered and scrambling.

She had already started to step forward to help Jiang Lai out, but after taking half a step, she suddenly remembered the scene of Jiang Lai chatting with Xu Zhiyi.

The thought of going over to help her suddenly went out like a flame.

She drew back her foot and let her gaze pass over the crowd, landing on the girl at the center.

She thought the girl was always so likable; it seemed like every time, she was the one in the spotlight, always surrounded by everyone.

One more admirer among those people didn’t make much difference; one fewer probably didn’t matter much either...

“Mom, hurry up and help Alai.”

Xia Wanwan ran over and affectionately wrapped her arm around her.

“Help what? Isn’t there you?”

“Oh come on, they want to see you with Alai, not me..."

“I’m not going. She can handle it by herself.”

“Mom~”

Xia Wanwan tugged her toward Jiang Lai. “Please, just go once. Just help her out of the crowd...”

The woman was worn down by her enough that she had no choice but to follow her forward. “...Just this once.”

“Got it.”

Xia Wanwan immediately beamed. “Alai, I brought my mom over for you.”

At the sound of her voice, Jiang Lai looked up; the moment she saw the woman approaching, a smile spread across her face at once. “Aunt Cheng!”

Cheng Shuyang naturally walked up beside her and smiled at the surrounding fans. “Sorry, I was eating over there just now and didn’t see everyone. But I already asked my assistant to buy some things for everyone; remember to pick them up later.”

Her arrival greatly eased Jiang Lai’s tension.

Just as she let out a breath of relief, a hand supported her lower back.

“Stand properly.”

The woman still wore a smile on her face; no one noticed the small movement hidden beneath her sleeve.

“Teacher Cheng, we really like the interaction between you and Jiang Lai. Could there be more of it in the future?”

“Of course.”

Xia Wanwan hurried to answer before either of them could speak. “Remember to watch the show then; take your time finding the candy. I guarantee it’ll be even sweeter than you expect.”

“Okay.”

The photos were taken, the autographs signed, and the fans all left satisfied.

“Are you ready to go on the hot search?”

Cheng Shuyang looked at her like that. Between them, it felt as if there was an invisible barrier; Jiang Lai didn’t like that feeling at all.

“...Aunt Cheng, don’t treat me like this. I don’t like it.”

“Sorry, Alai.”

The woman sighed. “It’s my problem. I may have some issues with my emotions lately.”

Jiang Lai sniffled; her voice was aggrieved.

“Aunt Cheng, my wrist hurts...”

Seeing her like this, the woman ultimately softened again, stepping forward to gently rub her wrist. “Is it because you wrote too much earlier?”

“Could it be that Yu Tian was too rough..."

She had meant to ease the tension between them, but she still didn’t see the smile she wanted on the woman’s face.

“If it still hurts, remember to have Wanwan take you to the hospital and get it checked.”

Cheng Shuyang let go of her hand. “You’re not a child anymore; your body matters most.”

It was that same indifferent attitude again. Jiang Lai felt as if she had thrown a punch into cotton; she couldn’t get her anger out.

“It’s time to go back. We can’t keep everyone waiting too long.”

Jiang Lai stood still and didn’t move.

Noticing that the girl hadn’t followed, the woman frowned and looked back at her. “Alai?”

The girl looked up, hurt flashing in her eyes.

“Aunt Cheng, can you please not always be so calm, so restrained? Being hot and cold like this... I’ll get upset too...”