Chapter 62: The Love-Brain Female Lead Awakens 5

Zhou Yan grew solemn. He lowered his head and thought for a while before saying, “I don’t know what I did to upset you, but I hope you can give me a chance. If I’ve done anything wrong, I will definitely change. Go back for now, I’ll come find you tonight.”

Salty liquid traced paths down her cheeks and flowed past the corners of her mouth.

Sang Ruo reached out to wipe them away, only to find her face covered in tears.

Even though she no longer felt love for the man at this moment, the breakup still left her heartbroken. She felt it wasn’t worth it for the version of herself in the dream who had sacrificed so much only to meet a tragic end. In that dream, she didn’t even know if Zhou Yan had ever loved her for a single moment.

Sang Ruo smiled faintly. “Don’t. It’s better if we don’t see each other again.”

After saying that, she picked a random direction and walked away. Zhou Yan did not chase after her.

She didn’t know how long she had been walking until a deep, familiar voice called out, making her stop. A car was parked at the curb in front of her. Yi Chen’an stepped out from the open door, his expression somber.

Facing the ill-tempered look on Yi Chen’an’s face, Sang Ruo didn’t feel the fear or discomfort she usually did. Instead, she felt at peace.

It was as if she had returned to a scene from her dream. When she was desperate and afraid, he would appear by her side so abruptly, carrying a charm that brought stability.

The heavy traffic on the road became a mere backdrop. Suddenly, in that moment, Sang Ruo felt something different.

She gave Yi Chen’an a smile. Combined with her tear-streaked face and disheveled appearance, it looked incredibly comical.

Yi Chen’an didn’t say much and brought her back to his residence.

Although she had been in Qingyang for quite some time, every previous interaction with Yi Chen’an had been him bringing her something on behalf of her parents. Once the exchange was finished, they would go their separate ways. They rarely spoke more than a few sentences, let alone her visiting his home.

This was the first time Sang Ruo had stepped into Yi Chen’an’s private territory.

It was a moderately sized three-bedroom apartment with a bright, open balcony.

Before she had a chance to look at anything else, she was settled onto the sofa by Yi Chen’an.

“Treat the wound first,” he said, bringing over a household medical kit.

Before that, he found a small blanket and spread it over Sang Ruo’s legs. She was about to refuse, saying the air conditioning was at a moderate temperature and it wasn’t necessary, when she saw him squat down in front of her. He took her ankle and rested it on his knee. Sang Ruo had a sudden flash of insight, remembering she was wearing a skirt today. Could Yi Chen’an be worried that this movement would cause her to expose herself?

Yi Chen’an squatted on the floor and carefully treated the wound on her leg. Sang Ruo sat on the sofa, looking down at him from a high vantage point.

It was a somewhat intimate gesture that made her feel a bit uneasy.

The man squatting on the floor used an alcohol cotton ball to clean the fine sand and gravel from the partially scabbed wound. It stung a little, and Sang Ruo instinctively flinched back, only to be held firm. This time, the man’s grip was slightly stronger.

“Did you have a fight with your boyfriend?” he asked suddenly.

“Huh?” Sang Ruo’s mind wandered for a second. Taking advantage of the distraction, the man suddenly peeled away the stocking fabric that had stuck to the wound.

“Sss…” Sang Ruo’s toes curled in pain.

So it was to distract her, she thought. Once the surge of pain passed, she still said, “We broke up,” while grimacing.

Yi Chen’an looked up, glanced at Sang Ruo, and then looked back down. He gave a simple response, “Oh.”

Sang Ruo pursed her lips, feeling a bit awkward. He clearly didn’t care at all.

Yi Chen’an quickly finished cleaning the wound and sprayed on some medicine. He packed up the medical kit and stood up. “It’s hot out. Covering it will make it fester easily, so just leave it exposed.”

Sang Ruo nodded and shifted her body with her legs straight, leaning against the arm of the sofa.

Yi Chen’an went to put away the medical kit.

Sang Ruo watched him enter the bathroom and heard him turn on the faucet, seemingly washing his hands. After a moment, the sound of water stopped, and Yi Chen’an walked out holding a damp towel. He handed it over and said to her, “Wipe your face.”

With his reminder, Sang Ruo remembered she had put on makeup this morning and had been crying for a long time afterward. Belatedly, she used her phone screen as a mirror. The sight of her smeared face almost made her scream out loud.

Looking at the slippers of the tall man standing right in front of her, Sang Ruo was too embarrassed to look up. It was lucky Yi Chen’an had such good eyesight; even with her face in this disastrous state, he had managed to recognize her on the street.

Then she thought, since it was already like this, it couldn’t get any more embarrassing. She tried to calm herself down and not lose her composure. Covering her face with the towel, she said with difficulty, “I’ll go to the bathroom to clean up.”

She stood up abruptly, forgetting the injury on her leg. The rapid movement of her leg muscles and skin pulled at the wound, and the pain made her knees buckle, nearly sending her kneeling to the floor.

Yi Chen’an caught her. His calm voice came from behind her side. “It’s best not to move your knees too quickly for the next few days.”

“Th… Thank you!” Sang Ruo practically fled, limping away.

Yi Chen’an’s bathroom was spacious and tidy. The vanity of a man living alone was “pitiful” to an appalling degree. It only displayed a rinsing cup, shampoo, and a bar of soap. There wasn’t even a bottle of facial cleanser.

Dejected, Sang Ruo had no choice but to make do with the soap to remove her makeup and wash her face. During the process, soapy water got into her eyes, stinging so much she wanted to claw at the walls. After washing, the skin on her face felt tight, screaming for moisture. Fortunately, it was summer, so it wasn’t particularly uncomfortable.

After washing her face, Sang Ruo dealt with her stockings. There were large holes at both knees, and wearing them like that was truly unsightly. But the dress she was wearing was a bodycon style; without stockings, it would be too easy to accidentally expose herself. After some thought, she went out to find Yi Chen’an. “Do you have scissors?”

Yi Chen’an was standing by the window with his back to her, lost in thought. Hearing her words, he turned and went to the kitchen. “I should have some. I’ll look.”

What he eventually handed to Sang Ruo was a pair of unopened scissors. Looking at the packaging, they seemed to be a gift that came with a set of kitchenware.

Sang Ruo returned to the bathroom, snipped the pantyhose into the length of safety shorts¹, and put them back on. Only then did she breathe a sigh of relief.

When she came out again, Yi Chen’an was peeling a peach. A plate of grapes, still glistening with water droplets, had appeared on the coffee table.

Sang Ruo walked over and sat down. Just as the peach was finished being peeled, Yi Chen’an handed the whole succulent, sweet honey peach to her. He then turned on the television, placed the remote by her hand, and said, “Watch some TV.”

“Oh.”

The peach in her hand was ice-cold, likely just taken out of the refrigerator. The unique fragrance of the honey peach lingered at the tip of her nose, but she looked at it with hesitation.

The fruit farmers had a bumper harvest this year, and this peach was as large as the mouth of a bowl.

Perhaps seeing that she hadn’t eaten it, Yi Chen’an asked, “You don’t like peaches? Give it to me then. There are also grapes.”

Sang Ruo felt awkward. Fearing he might misunderstand, she hurriedly said, “No, it’s just too big. I can’t finish it.”

Yi Chen’an seemingly hadn’t considered a young girl’s appetite at first. After a pause, he took the peach back, sliced it in half, and handed one half to Sang Ruo.

Whether intentional or not, the half in Sang Ruo’s hand seemed a bit redder. She noticed this and gave a small smile.

The two of them each ate their half of the peach, and Yi Chen’an pushed the fruit plate of grapes toward her. During this time, Yi Chen’an asked a few questions about her studies. She answered accordingly, but she still felt a lot of pressure, as if she were communicating with a stern elder.

Then the two fell silent, with only the noise of the television filling the room. Sang Ruo tried to find a topic of conversation a few times, but after a couple of sentences, they would lapse back into silence. Eventually, she gave up. Perhaps, in Yi Chen’an’s eyes, the topics she brought up were too boring and childish, Sang Ruo thought.

However, to make the situation less awkward, Sang Ruo tried to make herself look busy. She ended up eating the entire plate of grapes.

Even though Yi Chen’an said they were watching television, and she had focused her gaze intently on the screen, she truly did not understand a single word of what was playing.

“There are still some grapes in the refrigerator,” a slender hand suddenly reached out to take the empty plate in front of her. Yi Chen’an’s voice said, “I’ll go wash some more.”

Sang Ruo hurriedly held the plate in place, firmly rejecting the host’s kindness. “No… there’s no need!”

Yi Chen’an looked at her suspiciously and said, “I thought you liked them quite a bit.”

Sang Ruo gave a forced laugh. “I shouldn’t eat too many.” She was already stuffed to the point of bursting, alright?

Yi Chen’an accepted this explanation and sat back in his original spot, then pulled out a wet wipe and handed it to her.

This time, Sang Ruo did not refuse.

The television was broadcasting a very popular variety show. The guests were being pranked by the production crew until they were in a miserable state, creating endless comedic moments. If it were any other time, Sang Ruo would have been rolling around laughing. But today, the presence of Yi Chen’an beside her seemed to have suppressed her sense of humor, making her threshold for laughter extraordinarily high.

After another period of silence, Sang Ruo felt she was truly suffocating from the tension. She stood up to take her leave. “It’s getting late, I should head back. Thank you for today.”

Yi Chen’an turned his face away from the television. For some reason, he seemed a bit unhappy.

“I ordered takeout. Eat first, then I’ll take you back.”

From his tone, Sang Ruo could tell this wasn’t just polite small talk; he truly intended for her to stay for a meal.

Although her stomach was full of fruit that still needed to be digested and she wasn’t hungry at all, Sang Ruo didn’t have the courage to refuse Yi Chen’an when his expression wasn’t looking too good.

While waiting for the takeout, Sang Ruo took her phone and went to the bathroom. It was a brief relief from the awkward atmosphere.

She hadn’t noticed her phone while it was in her bag, and only now did she see several missed calls and WeChat messages from Zhou Yan.

Seeing this name made Sang Ruo feel restless and irritable; she had no desire to deal with him. She only caught the gist of Zhou Yan’s message saying he would be waiting for her at the bottom of her dormitory building.

Although Sang Ruo’s emotions had stabilized a lot over the past two days, she was still influenced and dominated by her dreams.

She felt an instinctive repulsion and disgust toward Zhou Yan.

As for Yi Chen’an… her feelings were complicated. That was why she felt so awkward when facing the real-life version of him.

The Yi Chen’an in her dreams was gentle and talkative; the real-life Yi Chen’an was serious and reticent, making him difficult to approach.

The Yi Chen’an in her dreams, in his final moments, had tenderly used a small bouquet of flowers to ask her for a marriage in the next life. Every time she thought of it, that final look he gave her made her feel as if she could see until the end of time.

The real-life Yi Chen’an was a man who was almost a stranger, someone who looked after her as a junior but had barely spoken more than a few sentences to her.

However, since Sang Ruo woke from the dream, a different kind of seed had been planted in the deepest part of her heart. Perhaps with one careless slip, it would take root and sprout, growing into a towering tree that would guard Yi Chen’an until the end of time.

Sang Ruo wasn’t sure yet whether she wanted to let that seed wither in her heart or let it sprout.

Sighing, Sang Ruo left the bathroom.

She didn’t even bother to respond to Zhou Yan’s messages, pretending she hadn’t seen them.

The takeout had arrived. The tall man was busy by the dining table, transferring the food from disposable containers into the household tableware.

Hearing her approach, he turned his head and said to Sang Ruo, “Just in time. Let’s eat.”

Going through so much trouble just for takeout… wouldn’t that mean having to wash dishes? It completely took away the joy of eating takeout.

As if he had grown a pair of ears inside her heart, Yi Chen’an glanced at her and said, “Don’t worry, there’s no reason for me to make a patient and a guest clean the kitchen here.”

Sang Ruo stood not far away, watching him work.

In her heart, she asked: Yi Chen’an, is this life the ‘next life’ you asked of me?

Translator’s Notes