Chapter 47: I Like That You Have Clear Goals, and I Also Like…

Bai Yuanzhi stayed at the hospital until the people arranged by Chen Shuojie arrived and had already started taking care of Zhou Sier. Only then did she get into Chen Shuojie’s car, and the two of them headed back to the Bilanting Hotel.

On the way, Chen Shuojie asked Bai Yuanzhi, “When are you quitting your job?”

Bai Yuanzhi glared at him and turned her gaze to the car window.

Chen Shuojie was a rather domineering person.

Although she currently needed his help, she absolutely could not let herself fall into a weaker position in front of him.

She couldn’t let him climb over her head and gradually take control of her life in the future.

Seeing that Bai Yuanzhi didn’t answer, Chen Shuojie asked again, “What are your plans for the future?”

If Bai Yuanzhi were chatting with A Yao about this topic, she could let down her guard and talk about many things with him, even discussing and deliberating with him.

But now, facing Chen Shuojie,

Bai Yuanzhi replied irritably, “Get into Hong Kong University, become Miss Hong Kong!”

Chen Shuojie chuckled softly.

After a moment, he sighed deeply, “Do you really dislike me that much?”

“I’ve already apologized to you for what happened before, and you’ve accepted my apology.”

“So why are you still holding onto it?”

“Ah Zhi, why can’t we just have a calm conversation?” Chen Shuojie asked.

Bai Yuanzhi stubbornly retorted, “What? Do you think I can’t get into Hong Kong University, or that I can’t become Miss Hong Kong?”

“If you want to attend Hong Kong University, I believe you, because you’ve already taken action toward it,” Chen Shuojie said. “…But I don’t believe you actually want to participate in the Miss Hong Kong pageant.”

His slender fingers lightly tapped on the metal cane. “If you really want to enter the pageant, I can lend you a hand.”

“No need, thank you!” Bai Yuanzhi politely and distantly declined. “…Even if I really wanted to compete, I’d rely on my own abilities.”

Chen Shuojie smiled. “So, Ah Zhi, haven’t you realized it yet?”

“Becoming Miss Hong Kong isn’t your goal, which is why you so directly refused my help.”

“And you’re also very confident about getting into Hong Kong University, so you don’t even want to bring it up with me.”

“You don’t accept help you don’t need… because you’re not greedy.”

“Just like when you need help, you actually hint at it… right?” Chen Shuojie said with a smile.

Bai Yuanzhi’s face flushed bright red in an instant.

She bit her lower lip tightly, unable to utter a single word.

Chen Shuojie’s smile deepened. “Ah Zhi, you really are adorable. I’m growing fonder of you by the day.”

I like that you have clear goals,

I like your diligence and ambition,

and I also like your boundless drive.

As soon as they returned to Bilanting, Bai Yuanzhi fled from the car as if escaping and dashed into the staff elevator without looking back.

Ah Bin pushed the wheelchair to the rear door of the car, helped Chen Shuojie out and into the wheelchair, then wheeled him into the exclusive VIP elevator. He couldn’t help but mutter quietly, “Miss didn’t even wait for you, young master.”

Chen Shuojie smiled and stopped Ah Bin. “Young girls are thin-skinned. Having her little schemes exposed, it’s only natural she’d be a bit upset. Let her vent a little; it’s fine.”

Ah Bin sighed. “Young master, I feel like ever since you met Miss, you’ve become completely different from before.”

Chen Shuojie was slightly surprised. “Oh, really? Tell me more.”

“Ah? Uh… Can I not say?”

“Speak!”

“But—”

“Hurry up and speak!”

“Young master, if I say it, you must promise not to get angry!”

“Alright, go ahead.”

Ah Bin had no choice but to say, “Young master, have you ever thought that before, you yourself were as willful as a child, getting upset over every little trivial matter… But ever since you met the young lady, you’ve become like…”

At this point, Ah Bin scratched the back of his head, “To make an inappropriate analogy, you’re like a doting parent, unconditionally and endlessly indulging the young lady.”

“If you don’t give her something, you’re afraid she’ll be thirsty or hungry. If you do give it to her, you’re afraid she’ll choke or get hurt.”

“So the young lady seems to feel toward you what a child feels toward a parent—afraid you’ll find out her secrets, even more afraid you’ll get angry with her if you do. She needs your family background and status to protect her, but she resents you using your family background and status to influence her…”

Chen Shuojie was stunned.

He had never imagined that his relationship with Bai Yuanzhi could be described with such an analogy.

But upon careful thought,

Ah Bin’s words made a lot of sense.

“I didn’t expect you to be so eloquent, Ah Bin!” Chen Shuojie laughed. “Tell William (Chen Shuojie’s personal assistant) that you’ll receive an extra half-month’s salary as a bonus this month.”

Ah Bin was overjoyed, “Ah… thank you, young master!”

Late into the night, as Chen Shuojie lay in bed, he was still pondering Ah Bin’s words.

Indeed,

Even he hadn’t realized that before meeting Bai Yuanzhi, his extreme insecurity due to his physical condition made him moody and unpredictable;

Born with a silver spoon in his mouth, his father’s guilt over his physical shortcomings led to him being indulged in every way.

This robbed him of ambition and filled him with resentment.

After meeting Bai Yuanzhi, it was as if… he suddenly had something to do.

This vibrant and ambitious young woman was actively pursuing everything she wanted.

This was what Chen Shuojie lacked, and what he desired.

So he couldn’t help but want to be close to her; he wanted to see her achieve her dreams.

Witnessing her success firsthand—wasn’t that like… nurturing her?

Chen Shuojie smiled.

He closed his eyes and drifted into a joyful and pleasant sleep.

At the crack of dawn the next day, Chen Shuojie called Bilanting Restaurant to have a highly nutritious medicinal breakfast delivered. He then called the duty room, wanting to summon Bai Yuanzhi to join him for the meal.

—She was already eighteen years old, yet still so short. If she didn’t eat well, how would she grow taller!

But what Chen Shuojie didn’t expect was,

“I’m sorry, Mr. Chen, Ah Zhi is off duty again this morning. Is there anything I can help you with?” The service staff, A Xi, politely replied over the phone.

Chen Shuojie didn’t say a word and simply hung up the phone.

—How could that girl be so elusive?

He was so angry that a surge of fury clogged his chest, burning fiercely and growing stronger by the moment!

As Ah Bin had said,

No matter how angry Chen Shuojie was, looking at the array of nutritious breakfast on the table, his temper subsided.

He called A Xi again to ask when Bai Yuanzhi had left.

Upon learning that she had left at a quarter past six in the morning,

Chen Shuojie grew worried that she hadn’t eaten breakfast.

As for Bai Yuanzhi’s whereabouts,

Chen Shuojie could guess with his eyes closed—it was either night school or the hospital.

At such an early hour, night school couldn’t possibly be open.

So, she must have gone to the hospital to visit her cousin.

Even though Chen Shuojie was half-dead with anger,

He still angrily packed the breakfast into a food container one by one.

He really wanted to chase after her to the hospital and personally watch that girl eat all this breakfast.

But,

Ah Bin’s words from last night still echoed in his ears.

It seemed that she really didn’t like him controlling her every move…

Chen Shuojie held back again and again, finally suppressing a bellyful of anger, and had Ah Bin drive the breakfast to the hospital for that ungrateful little wolf to eat.

Yes, Bai Yuanzhi had gone to the hospital early in the morning to visit Zhou Sier.

Zhou Sier hadn’t woken up yet.

Bai Yuanzhi had come by bus,

and had just sat down

when Sister Cai came over with a smile, carrying a large pile of packed breakfast. “Good morning, Miss! You’re here so early? The young master had Ah Bin bring breakfast over and specifically said you must finish it all!”

After a pause, Sister Cai added with a smile, “Miss Zhou hasn’t woken up yet. Once she does, she’ll naturally have her own special breakfast too.”

Bai Yuanzhi: …

Right now, the nanny taking care of her eldest sister was the most important person in the world.

Besides,

because she didn’t want to run into Chen Shuojie, Bai Yuanzhi had left early in the morning and was now starving!

So Bai Yuanzhi thanked Sister Cai,

walked over to the small table, and started eating breakfast.

—The jade bamboo and lily lean pork porridge was fragrant, sweet, and moist; the red date and walnut buns were rich, soft, and sweet; there was also a delicious fried egg and a small bowl of not-too-sweet but incredibly tasty black sesame paste.

Each breakfast item wasn’t too large in portion,

so after finishing, she felt just right and not too full.

But her mouth and stomach were completely satisfied!

After finishing breakfast, Bai Yuanzhi saw that her eldest sister still hadn’t woken up, so she simply took out her textbook and sat down to read.

She didn’t know how much time had passed when she finally heard her eldest sister’s voice, “Ah Zhi?”

Bai Yuanzhi’s heart leaped with joy. She closed the book, set it aside, and rushed to the hospital bed. “Eldest Sister!”

As soon as Zhou Sier woke up, a caregiver came over to help her with washing up and such.

Bai Yuanzhi couldn’t say anything,

—This middle-aged female caregiver surnamed Liu was likely the one who had tipped off the real culprit.

So, Bai Yuanzhi and Zhou Sier spoke in their hometown dialect, talking about their hometown and their relatives.

They talked about their hometown and the people there (without mentioning Zhou Niandi),

about Zhou Xiangmei,

about Zhou Zhaoer…

It wasn’t until Zhou Sier finished her breakfast

and Sister Cai brought a nurse over to help Zhou Sier with her rehabilitation that Caregiver Liu reluctantly left.

Then, after Zhou Sier finished her rehabilitation and Sister Cai left with the nurse,

Bai Yuanzhi quickly locked the door from the inside,

leaving only the two sisters in the room.

“Eldest Sister, what exactly happened?” Bai Yuanzhi asked anxiously. “Who on earth wanted to harm you?”

But Zhou Sier hesitated. She whispered, “Ah Zhi, let’s not talk about this anymore. At least until I’m discharged, we can’t bring it up again.”

Bai Yuanzhi was stunned. “You—”

“Listen to me,” Zhou Sier said firmly.

Bai Yuanzhi bit her lower lip.

Just then—

Someone knocked on the door of the hospital room and even tried to turn the doorknob.

Unfortunately, the door had already been locked from the inside by Bai Yuanzhi.

Bai Yuanzhi and Zhou Sier exchanged a glance.

Zhou Sier, being older and calmer, gave her younger sister a reassuring look.

Bai Yuanzhi took a deep breath and called out loudly, “Who is it?”

A timid female voice sounded from outside the door, “Hello, I’m Luo Jiaojiao, a good friend of Zhou Sier’s.”

Bai Yuanzhi looked at Zhou Sier again.

Zhou Sier pursed her lips, signaling her younger sister to open the door.

Bai Yuanzhi had no choice but to walk over and open the door.

Standing outside was a young girl dressed in a pure and innocent style, her eyes and brows somewhat familiar.

Presumably, this girl was Zhou Sier’s close friend Luo Jiaojiao.

But!!!

Standing shoulder to shoulder with Zhou Sier was—Song Junshu?!

Song Junshu still had a band-aid on the bridge of his nose.

Bai Yuanzhi was stunned, then flew into a rage, “…You!”

Song Junshu was also taken aback, but his face lit up with joy, “Ah Zhi? You’re here too!”

Luo Jiaojiao looked suspiciously at Bai Yuanzhi, then at Song Junshu.

The moment Bai Yuanzhi saw Song Junshu, she remembered what had happened that night at the Yewong Nightclub.

Her anger flared up uncontrollably. She turned and rushed back to Zhou Sier’s side, pointing at Song Junshu as she complained to her elder sister, “Sis! You mustn’t be with Song Junshu anymore! He’s a bad person! The other night… he bullied me!”

Song Junshu grew frantic with anxiety.

As Bai Yuanzhi spoke,

He tried to explain, “Ah Zhi, it’s not what you think! There’s a misunderstanding! I didn’t bully you! I didn’t! With so many people watching that night, how could I possibly bully you? I… I was just a bit impatient, wanting to talk to you…”

“Ah Zhi, you have to be reasonable! I was a bit impatient at the time, wanting to take you away from that nightclub. A good girl shouldn’t be in such a place full of unsavory characters. But you wouldn’t listen to me and even ordered someone to beat me up…”

“Look, Sier, the injury on my nose is from that night, and it still hasn’t healed!”

“Ah Zhi, if you’re still angry with me about that night, then I apologize… Ah Zhi, I’m sorry!”

“Sier, Sier, your sister is just a child. Be reasonable and listen to what I have to say too.” Song Junshu was so flustered he began to ramble.

Zhou Sier looked at Bai Yuanzhi, then at Song Junshu.

Finally, she said, “Ah Jun, regarding this matter… I won’t believe whoever speaks the loudest.”

“But Ah Zhi is a girl, and she’s my sister. I believe her.”

“As for the conflict you mentioned, I’d like to deal with it later, is that alright?”

Then Zhou Sier said to Bai Yuanzhi, “Ah Zhi, I know you’ve been wronged, but my mind isn’t quite clear yet. I can’t fairly resolve this in such a noisy environment. So, let’s put this matter aside for now, okay? Because I have something more important to discuss with them first.”

Bai Yuanzhi nodded.

—It didn’t matter. She had already taken revenge on the spot. As for the grudges from her past life, she could settle them slowly later.

But Zhou Sier’s words made both Song Junshu and Luo Jiaojiao turn pale.

Zhou Sier asked Song and Luo, “Why are you here?”

Song Junshu gazed at Zhou Sier with infatuation, “I heard from Qiao Sen yesterday that you had woken up. I was so worried, so I rushed over first thing this morning…”

Bai Yuanzhi truly despised Song Junshu. Hearing this, she couldn’t help but sneer sarcastically, “Hmph, you heard about it yesterday? If you’re so concerned about my sister, why didn’t you come yesterday? And you say you rushed over first thing this morning! It’s already eleven o’clock now—can that still be called first thing in the morning?”

Song Junshu flushed red with embarrassment, wishing he could vanish on the spot.

Luo Jiaojiao lowered her head and eyes, her expression gloomy.

“Ah Zhi!” Zhou Sier motioned for her sister to sit beside her, then said to Song Junshu, “Ah Jun, my sister is young and doesn’t understand things. Don’t mind a child’s words.”

Song Junshu nodded awkwardly.

Zhou Sier continued, “However, I also have something I want to ask you—”

“Yesterday, I heard from Qiao Sen that I actually… became your girlfriend?”

“Ah Jun, is this true?” After speaking, Zhou Sier stared intently at Song Junshu.

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone’s expressions changed.

Bai Yuanzhi widened her eyes.

Because she could tell that this was Zhou Sier questioning Song Junshu.

So???

So Zhou Sier wasn’t Song Junshu’s girlfriend after all?

Song Junshu grew inexplicably flustered, while Luo Jiaojiao began panting heavily.

Seeing that Song Junshu remained silent for a long time,

Zhou Sier turned to Luo Jiaojiao and asked, “Jiaojiao, you’re my best friend. Tell me—how did I become Ah Jun’s girlfriend?”

After a pause, Zhou Sier asked word by word, “Clearly, the one who has always liked Song Junshu is you, Luo Jiaojiao!”

Bai Yuanzhi was shocked!

What on earth was going on?

The matter of “Song Junshu being Zhou Sier’s boyfriend” had affected Bai Yuanzhi’s life across two lifetimes.

And in this lifetime, whether it was Qiao Yusheng, Zhou Sier’s team partners, or her female dormitory roommates, everyone believed that Zhou Sier was Song Junshu’s girlfriend…

So why was Zhou Sier now bringing this up to question Song Junshu and Luo Jiaojiao?

And,

Zhou Sier actually said that the one who liked Song Junshu had always been Luo Jiaojiao?

What was going on?!

As everyone knew, Zhou Sier and Luo Jiaojiao were best friends who had weathered hardships together.

If Zhou Sier had known all along that Luo Jiaojiao liked Song Junshu, given Zhou Sier’s character, she would never have agreed to Song Junshu’s confession!

What on earth was going on?

Faced with Zhou Sier’s questioning,

Song Junshu was very flustered.

He breathed rapidly, opened his mouth as if wanting to say something but not knowing what, then closed it again.

At that moment, Luo Jiaojiao calmly spoke up, “Sier, I heard from Qiao Sen yesterday that you lost your memory, right?”

Zhou Sier said, “Even if I lost my memory, I didn’t lose my mind!”

“I couldn’t possibly have agreed to Ah Jun’s confession, especially since Ah Jun would never confess to me in the first place!”

“Jiaojiao, you and Ah Jun… didn’t you two get together behind our backs a long time ago?” Zhou Sier asked.

Song Junshu was shocked and firmly denied it, “N-no, that’s not true!”

Luo Jiaojiao was also taken aback and asked Zhou Sier in return, “You… knew?”

Zhou Sier said, “We’re classmates, team partners, roommates, and best friends! Although you and Ah Jun kept it hidden, I’ve known for a long time.”

“Only, I don’t know why you kept it from me.”

“I also wondered if you felt embarrassed to be in a relationship because I wasn’t… so I never exposed it.”

Zhou Sier said, “So then, Jiaojiao, Ah Jun, why does everyone think Ah Jun is my boyfriend?”

After speaking, she looked at Song Junshu, then at Luo Jiaojiao.

Song Junshu’s face burned with shame,

While Luo Jiaojiao’s face turned ashen.

The room fell into silence.

After a long while,

Luo Jiaojiao released her lower lip, which had been bitten pale, lowered her head to look at the ground, and said, “Sier, you’ve lost your memory, so you don’t know. Later, Ah Jun confessed his feelings to you, and you… you accepted his confession.”

“You two are a perfect match—talented man and beautiful woman, aren’t you?” Luo Jiaojiao recited the words like a script, devoid of any emotion.

Zhou Sier remained silent for a long time, simply staring quietly at Luo Jiaojiao.

After a while, Zhou Sier finally spoke softly, “Is that so? Do you really think that?”

Luo Jiaojiao closed her eyes briefly. “Yes.”

Zhou Sier stared at Luo Jiaojiao, her eyes slightly reddened, and asked word by word, “Why?”

Luo Jiaojiao fell silent for a long moment before suddenly letting out a cold laugh. “You don’t know why?”

Zhou Sier replied in a hoarse voice, “I don’t know. I want you to tell me yourself.”

Luo Jiaojiao glared at Zhou Sier with gritted teeth, her eyes brimming with surging hatred.

Bai Yuanzhi was so anxious she was scratching her head and ears.

She thought to herself, what on earth is going on?

Just say it already!