Chapter 27: Whatever Ji Wushan Wanted, She Would Give Her.

Ji Wushan’s oddness was plain to see, but Xue Erbai couldn’t quite figure out why.

She naturally knew that Ji Yun was Ji Wushan’s little aunt. The Ji family was tangled up in all kinds of messy relationships; Ji Yun and Ji You were half-siblings, and there was a big age gap between them.

As for Xue Erbai… the reason she had fought so hard to get into Ji Yun’s vocal lessons despite her heavy schoolwork was that she knew about Ji Yun’s relationship with Ji Wushan and thought she might run into her someday.

Who would have thought that for more than three years, she wouldn’t even see Ji Wushan once.

Instead, because Ji Yun had such a gentle personality, the two of them grew close at an astonishing pace, and even…

Ji Yun had once pursued Xue Yanhe.

That was another thing Xue Erbai didn’t understand. Over the years, Xue Yanhe had changed girlfriends quite a few times, but she had always rejected Ji Yun. No matter how many times Ji Yun tried to comfort her, Xue Yanhe only ever treated her as a friend.

Luckily, Ji Yun wasn’t the type to stubbornly cling to things. In the years since, she had dated two girlfriends.

Right now, her relationship with the Xue family was quite harmonious. Even Xue Qian, the cousin from Xue Erbai’s second aunt’s family, had gotten into Xijing Conservatory of Music thanks to her help.

Old Master Xue spoiled his youngest daughter, and even his youngest granddaughter was doted on to the heavens.

Ji Yun hadn’t spent much time in Xijing in previous years; she had only come back not long ago this year, yet she had already made the guest list for the banquet.

Xue Yanhe and Xue Qian, mother and daughter, had arrived with her.

They were probably busy at the moment, which was why Ji Yun was standing beside Xue Yanhe. Since they had met, greeting each other was inevitable.

Xue Erbai didn’t ask any questions, but she didn’t miss Ji Wushan’s strange reaction. She slipped an arm around Ji Wushan’s waist and, in a slightly coaxing tone, asked Ji Yun, “Teacher, what were you and Shengsheng-jie whispering about? Tell me too…”

Ji Yun had a lively personality and was still the same even as she neared forty. She took half a step back and hid behind Xue Yanhe, then teased Ji Wushan, “You should ask Xiaobai. If Xiaobai says I can’t tell, then I definitely can’t tell.”

“Hmph, Teacher, you’re so stingy!”

“Isn’t it your wife who’s stingy?”

Ji Yun refused to back down. The topic circled back to Ji Wushan again, but Ji Wushan’s face had gone pale, her thoughts elsewhere.

Her gaze moved back and forth between the two familiar people.

She had no idea Ji Yun was Xue Erbai’s teacher.

Now that she knew, and remembered the fragment that had surfaced earlier, the impact hit her hard.

For the rest of the time, she stayed dazed.

When she saw Xue Yanwei and her daughter, she even felt a strong sense of dislocation.

After losing her memory, the person she had dealt with most was Xue Erbai; after that was work she was only half familiar with. The work had indeed been somewhat demanding, and Xue Erbai’s enthusiasm a little embarrassing, but she had never felt like this before.

As if she shouldn’t have been here at all.

The look of disappointment and desolation didn’t escape Xue Erbai’s eyes. While the elders were talking to Xue Qian about school, she pulled Ji Wushan into a corner.

With her arms around Ji Wushan’s waist, she leaned close and asked in a low voice, “Ji Wushan, are you okay?”

“My mom just now… anyway, the teacher doesn’t know about your amnesia.”

Xue Erbai explained what had happened when Xue Yanhe had shaken her head to warn her, worried that Ji Wushan might feel awkward.

When Ji Wushan still didn’t respond, she tightened her hold on Ji Wushan’s hand and said, “Let’s go back first.”

With Xue Yanhe there, there wasn’t much Xue Erbai needed to do. Whether they stayed or left early, she only had to say a word to Old Master Xue.

She very much wanted to tell Ji Wushan that it was fine.

But then she saw Ji Wushan’s eyes turn red as she looked at her.

Xue Erbai was far too gentle. Ji Wushan couldn’t help wanting to say what was in her heart, and her confusion only deepened.

If she counted the years she had lost her memory, Xue Erbai should never have been one of Ji Yun’s students. After hesitating, she still asked, “A few days ago, I remembered something.”

“It was… the scene of my mom telling me not to like girls.”

That one sentence exploded violently in Xue Erbai’s heart.

She had figured out her own orientation when she was still a teenager; she had only ever liked playing with girls, and when she met Ji Wushan, her feelings only became even more impossible to rein in. Xue Yanhe’s example had also made her feel that liking girls was perfectly normal.

And not long after that, same-sex marriage was legalized.

It wasn’t that she didn’t understand there were people in this world who disliked homosexuality, but hearing those words come from Ji Wushan—hearing that her mother had forbidden her from liking girls—was still an unimaginable shock.

What shocked her even more was…

Ji Wushan had liked another girl before???

Her hand flew to her chest, and her voice trembled as she asked, “When…?”

Ji Wushan only shook her head in confusion. “I don’t know.”

Xue Erbai very much wanted to say: Ji Wushan, you’d better get your memory back soon!

But the words wouldn’t come out. Ji Wushan’s eyes were red, and she clearly wasn’t doing well.

She could only swallow her frustration.

For the rest of the birthday banquet, her mind stayed on that matter.

It was only when Xue Shan, who had arrived late, appeared at the banquet that she finally came back to herself.

Forget it!

Ji Wushan was her wife now!

Pulling Ji Wushan along, she introduced her with a bit of brightness, “Dad, this is Ji Wushan, my wife.”

Ji Wushan, who had already let the question in her heart spill out, looked much better too. When she saw Xue Shan, she gave him a quiet, gentle smile.

Perhaps because of his profession, Xue Shan didn’t feel as much pressure as Xue Yanhe did.

Ji Wushan spoke a little more than usual, but even so, the banquet couldn’t help her fully relax.

Originally, Xue Erbai had brought her over to greet Old Master Xue and was preparing to leave early. The two of them were walking in the opposite direction of the people coming in when two familiar figures made Ji Wushan stiffen.

Xue Erbai noticed her reaction and followed her gaze.

It was Ji You, hand in hand with Song Quwen.

When they reached the two of them, both of them stopped at once. Ji You smiled first and said, “Erbai, Wushan…”

The last time Xue Erbai had seen Ji You was when the contract was signed; he had smiled like this then too, with a touch of ingratiation.

Knowing he was Ji Wushan’s father, Xue Erbai had been polite enough, but today was different.

The two families were now in-laws. Xue Erbai knew perfectly well why they had come back; she still held a grudge over Song Quwen blocking the entrance to XTV and frightening Ji Wushan. Now, seeing Song Quwen still sizing up Ji Wushan and her with that condescending air, anger flared in her chest, and it spilled over onto Ji You as well.

She called them dad and mom after Ji Wushan, but she had no intention of chatting any further.

Fortunately, Song Quwen had no intention of talking either. With a trace of impatience, she tugged on Ji You’s sleeve. Ji You had originally wanted to say something else, but could only laugh it off and leave first.

The way their family ties were so cold and distant was hard for Ji Wushan to bear. She didn’t want to see it laid out so plainly, so she quickly pulled Xue Erbai away.

As they reached the doorway, the two of them heard an unexpected voice.

“Ah-Yun~”

The voice came from Song Quwen, and both of them stopped.

Xue Erbai was a little surprised. The same person who had kept her face as stiff as stone on both previous occasions was now calling her mother so… warmly?

Ji Wushan said nothing, only pressed her lips together.

Her gaze shifted back and forth between Song Quwen and Xue Yanhe.

Song Quwen had already let go of Ji You’s hand and was walking toward Xue Yanhe, while Xue Yanhe looked… somewhat evasive?

Her mind was full of questions.

And yet she couldn’t help watching, even though she didn’t want to.

This was her mother, in all the memories she had.

----

By the time the two of them finally returned to where they were staying, it was no longer early.

They hadn’t eaten much at the banquet, so Ji Wushan went straight into the kitchen to boil some pasta and told Xue Erbai to take a shower.

She had been even quieter on the way back.

Xue Erbai was tactful enough not to say much or ask anything.

After dinner, she handled some work, then checked the schedule the program assistant, Cong Yuan, had sent her. On the island, they didn’t need to be assigned separate rooms; she was still staying with Ji Wushan.

But there would be a filming transfer to another location; after that… they would still have to switch rooms.

After thinking it over, Xue Erbai still sent a message to Qiao You, telling her to work behind the scenes and make absolutely sure she and Ji Wushan could stay together.

Just thinking about it made Xue Erbai lower her head and laugh.

Knock, knock.

Her smile faded. Xue Erbai straightened first, then got up to open the door.

But she was too hurried; she nearly ran into Ji Wushan, who was carrying a cup of milk.

There was a flurry of hands and feet. Xue Erbai steadied the milk and wrapped an arm around Ji Wushan’s waist.

Looking down, she saw her white camisole nightdress, her hair fluffy and soft from the blow-dryer, scattered across her chest.

“...Have some milk before bed,” Ji Wushan said gently. Only then did Xue Erbai lift her eyes to look at her.

Perhaps because she had just bathed, Ji Wushan’s eye corners were flushed pink, faintly damp.

Her throat bobbed. She took the milk and said, “Thanks, Shengsheng-jie.”

The milk was warm and sweet. Xue Erbai drank more than half of it in one go.

Only after finishing did she remember she was still holding Ji Wushan’s waist. She loosened her grip; seeing that, Ji Wushan’s fingers poked at her. “Here… you got it on yourself.”

Xue Erbai instinctively licked it off. After she did, she looked up at Ji Wushan…

Something about the atmosphere felt off.

She let go completely, took the cup back to the desk, grabbed some tissues, and wiped her mouth clean before returning to Ji Wushan.

Her work was done anyway, so she thought it would be nice for the two of them to watch the show together.

Today was the premiere.

But just as she walked over, Ji Wushan circled her wrist, her eyes holding an unreadable emotion.

A rumble of thunder sounded; Ji Wushan flinched as well.

In the middle of the thunder, Xue Erbai saw her red lips part and close as she asked, “What are you going to do?”

She was moving closer and closer too. If not for the cup between them, Xue Erbai felt the two of them could have been pressed skin to skin.

She glanced at the distance, then at the cup, and explained, “I’m going to wash the cup.” After a moment, she added, “Actually… it doesn’t need to be washed right away.”

Then she held the cup and wrapped it around Ji Wushan’s waist.

Ji Wushan didn’t say anything. She buried her head against Xue Erbai’s shoulder.

The thunder still rolled on. Ji Wushan’s voice was muffled. “On the contract… we’re wife and wife who can sleep together, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then… teach me how to do it, okay?”

“I trimmed my nails.”

Xue Erbai’s free hand was already sliding upward along Ji Wushan’s waist when she heard that. She stopped, tilted her head to look at her, and let out a sound. “Huh…?”

She blinked, remembering the first time between them.

Ji Wushan had been very direct then, going straight to the point, and then…

It had failed.

Could it be that after losing her memory, some instincts were still the same?

And they had to start over?

It wasn’t that Xue Erbai couldn’t; it was just…

It was just that every time Ji Wushan kissed her, she went soft, completely unable to perform.

And every time she hesitated, it only made Ji Wushan more impulsive.

This time was the same.

Thunder crashed. Ji Wushan looped her arms around Xue Erbai’s neck and kissed the mouth that had just asked the question.

This time she was a little more urgent than during the filming, her breathing even steadier...

Xue Erbai cooperated, guiding her out the door.

The study was too small; it wouldn’t do.

But Ji Wushan pressed her against the wall.

Imitating what Xue Erbai had done before, she kissed her back. The more they kissed, the heavier both their breathing became; little by little, Xue Erbai ended up the same as always, holding her waist, brushing her cheek against hers in an intimate coaxing motion, silently telling her to slow down.

But Ji Wushan took it the wrong way.

Panting lightly, with hazy eyes, she asked, “...You don’t want to?”

Xue Erbai had just opened her mouth when Ji Wushan bit her lip and mumbled, “Since it’s on the contract, you can’t refuse.”

The bite hurt a little. Xue Erbai drew in a breath and wanted Ji Wushan to stop.

But looking at Ji Wushan’s trembling shoulders, she still softened.

She steadied her by the shoulders, then down her back, gently, again and again, slowly prying open the seam of her teeth. Their scattered breaths tangled together. Ji Wushan no longer pressed so hard; instead, she gradually went weak, clinging to her and letting out sweet, soft sounds...

Xue Erbai lightly nipped her ear and murmured as if coaxing her, “As long as it’s what you want, Ji Wushan, I’ll give it to you.”