Wang Ziyue was a little surprised too, but she didn’t dodge; she met Jiang Cheng’s gaze head-on.
Time seemed to rewind to that night at the hotel, except now Wang Ziyue was the one standing outside.
Her outfit today was casual: an asymmetrical-length blouse paired with wide-leg jeans, and nude high heels on her feet.
“You…” Jiang Cheng took two steps back, her breathing quickening.
Why am I nervous?
Jiang Cheng felt annoyed with herself; her emotions surfaced on her face, which to Wang Ziyue looked like irritation.
Wang Ziyue’s brows knitted, and she stepped closer, stopping less than five centimeters from Jiang Cheng.
Jiang Cheng lowered her head and saw her wristband on the woman’s wrist.
Noticing the girl’s line of sight, Wang Ziyue raised her hand; the chiffon blouse slid down a bit, revealing a fair arm.
“Want it back?”
“I… never said I was giving it to you.”
Though she didn’t need it anyway.
The atmosphere grew heavy again; Jiang Cheng forgot that just this afternoon she had told Chen Ting she wanted to apologize.
The moment she faced Wang Ziyue, she seemed unable to control her emotions.
This isn’t right… it shouldn’t be like this. Jiang Cheng bit her tongue inwardly.
“Let me put it on for you.”
Wang Ziyue removed the wristband, took Jiang Cheng’s hand, and fastened it.
The delicate pads of her fingers brushed Jiang Cheng’s slender wrist; the cool touch sparked a tingling, numbing thrill.
Wang Ziyue noticed Jiang Cheng’s face turning red.
“Are you hot?”
Though the weather was warming up, it wasn’t yet enough to make someone flush like that.
Wang Ziyue’s lowered eyelashes fluttered like wings, stirring a fierce whirlwind that swept across the tip of Jiang Cheng’s heart.
Under those eyes, no thought could escape.
“Are you shy?”
Wang Ziyue was like someone who had discovered a new continent: slightly parted red lips, widened pupils—she was astonished.
Also a bit flustered and at a loss.
The ice around Jiang Cheng seemed to melt just a little.
Wang Ziyue leaned closer; she felt like a despicable hunter approaching a lured white rabbit.
The wristband, unwittingly used as a trap, had ensnared Jiang Cheng, pulling her suddenly into her domain.
“Why shy? Because I touched your hand? No way… little kid, I’ve even applied medicine for you before.”
Jiang Cheng’s eyes were wide enough to hold all of Wang Ziyue; through those bright black pupils, Wang Ziyue saw her own expression.
A bit much.
She withdrew her hand, suppressing the trace of charm in her heart.
No… this atmosphere is wrong no matter what. Wang Ziyue coughed, turning away.
Jiang Cheng felt like she had just stepped out of a sauna; the instant Wang Ziyue drew near, she grew even more tense—the unknown direction left her dazed and bewildered.
But when Wang Ziyue calmly pulled back, that unclear emotion faded too; Jiang Cheng’s face returned to calm.
“I just… didn’t expect you to… do that.”
Jiang Cheng paused; Wang Ziyue felt a bit embarrassed hearing this—she had seemed a little aggressive just now.
She had clearly breached the girl’s safety line.
Awkwardness, silence—the briefly eased mood turned gloomy again.
Their sunny sky seemed mixed with mostly rainy days.
Wang Ziyue wanted to explain something but felt there was nothing to say; the two returned to parallel lines.
“Sorry, I just wasn’t ready.”
Jiang Cheng took a deep breath and voiced her inner thoughts.
“Ready for what?”
Wang Ziyue hadn’t expected her to speak first; she turned, seeing seriousness and solemnity on the girl’s face.
“I wanted to apologize to you properly… over the phone wasn’t formal enough. But facing you makes me nervous.”
“You, me… apologize? You’re afraid of me?”
Wang Ziyue latched onto the last part.
“No, it’s that the other day, I took it out on you.”
“So when you said on the phone you wanted to keep distance for now, that was the reason.”
Wang Ziyue pieced together Jiang Cheng’s meaning from the fragmented conversation.
She wasn’t angry at her; she was troubled by something… haah—
Wang Ziyue felt her whole body lighten; even the corners of her eyes carried relieved joy.
The depression she had bottled up alone was finally vented.
“You’re not mad?”
Jiang Cheng actually felt quite guilty; she had casually vented her emotions on Wang Ziyue, which was improper.
As someone unaware, there was no reason for her to pay for her carelessness. Yet at the same time, she had her own confusion.
“That day, why did you call me by my cousin’s name?”
Jiang Cheng hesitated for two seconds but still didn’t reveal the reason.
“I don’t know, I must have been crazy…”
Wang Ziyue recalled her guess at the time and felt neurotic.
How could such a thing happen in the world?
But thinking of the mysterious relationship between the girl and that boy, Wang Ziyue felt her heart twitch.
“Right, you’ve officially transferred to this school now?”
Wang Ziyue shifted her focus, changing the topic.
“Mm.”
“Then you’re in the same class as that Jiang… your cousin.”
Wang Ziyue’s peripheral vision caught something on the desk; the textbook cover read “Jiang Cheng” in two characters.
She frowned slightly, then casually looked at the girl.
Pink hair lay smoothly on both sides; curled lashes danced like little elves on a pair of bright orbs.
Wang Ziyue noticed a very faint mole at the corner of Jiang Cheng’s eye—something she hadn’t seen before.
“Mm, sort of… President Wang, is there something you want to ask?”
Jiang Cheng’s reply was somewhat nonchalant; she didn’t want to discuss this.
“Now you only call me President Wang, but forgot you’re supposed to call me Big Sister? Do I look that old?”
After speaking, Wang Ziyue tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, revealing an earlobe with a diamond stud.
“I…”
Jiang Cheng had deliberately switched back to President Wang; now called out directly, her expression turned embarrassed.
“Didn’t you say you’re grateful to me, that I’m a good person? Then why be distant?”
Wang Ziyue guided gently; her voice carried a magnetic huskiness, deliberately lowered to sound rich, like a glass of red wine intoxicating Jiang Cheng.
“Big Sister…”
Just like that night, the address was reestablished.
Wang Ziyue felt a ceremonial sense of signing a contract with the girl.
“I think I should give you a new nickname too…” Wang Ziyue pondered, then snapped her fingers. “How about Xiao Cheng?”
Though a bit corny, it surprisingly fit.
Jiang Cheng looked troubled; it took her a while to refuse: “That’s what my mom calls me.”
Wang Ziyue awkwardly scratched the back of her head; she had never been this tongue-tied even in negotiations.
“Chengcheng then?”
Wang Ziyue recalled hearing Jiang Cheng’s classmate call her that in the empty classroom. “Or Jiang Jiang—”
“Mm… whatever makes you happy.”
Jiang Cheng seemed quite helpless; Wang Ziyue also felt her behavior was a bit childish, like kids giving each other nicknames to prove their uniqueness.
“You can just use ‘you’ with me from now on.” Wang Ziyue changed the subject.
“That doesn’t seem right.”
Subconsciously, Jiang Cheng still saw Wang Ziyue as an elder—after all, she was Wang Yu’s aunt.
Wang Ziyue thought of this too and added for herself.
“It’s fine; you and Wang Yu address each other your way. I see you as a peer.”
“Mm… but I have a request: in front of others, we use normal addresses.”
Wang Ziyue raised a brow and nodded.
Actually, she wasn’t too happy about it deep down—she wasn’t sure why, but she just didn’t want to interact with this girl as an elder.
Perhaps because Jiang Cheng was far more mature than Wang Yu, with a thoughtfulness rare for her age.
She found talking with Jiang Cheng comfortable; the only knot in her heart was probably the relationship with that Jiang Cheng and the deliberate concealment.
Though Jiang Cheng hid her emotions well, her mental maturity wasn’t enough; subtle expression changes were hard to escape the eyes of a seasoned business veteran like Wang Ziyue.
“Auntie!”
Wang Yu’s goofy shout broke Wang Ziyue’s thoughts.
He came in hugging a soccer ball, reeking of sweat.
“Ah, Sister Chengzi, you’re here too?”
He looked puzzled between the two; for some reason, he felt like they had been talking for a long time before he arrived.
“Mm.”
Jiang Cheng only glanced at him and continued packing her bag.
“You’re all sweaty; hurry and pack your things. I’m taking you to Grandpa and Grandma’s.”
“Oh? Auntie’s eating at home today?”
Lately, Wang Ziyue had even skipped family gatherings; today she was actually going back voluntarily.
Wang Ziyue felt depressed thinking of her big brother’s nagging; she didn’t explain much, just waved for Wang Yu to hurry.
“Then, classmate Jiang, we’ll be going.”
“Ah, Sister Chengzi, want my auntie to give you a ride?”
Wang Yu was still immersed in the earlier game and didn’t sense anything odd in his auntie and Jiang Cheng’s farewell.
“No need.”
Jiang Cheng’s refusal was expected; Wang Yu slung on his bag and followed his auntie downstairs.
Only after the car pulled out of the school gate did he realize.
“Auntie? You know my Sister Chengzi?”
“You can know her, so why can’t I?”
“But she’s my classmate…”
Wang Yu’s curiosity piqued; he pestered Wang Ziyue for answers.
Wang Ziyue just smiled without speaking; at a red light, she suddenly turned to her nephew.
“The one who used to sit in front of you was that Jiang Cheng, right?”
“Yeah! What does that have to do with you knowing my Sister Chengzi?”
Wang Yu scratched his head, couldn’t figure it out, and simply pulled out his phone to play games.
Wang Ziyue fished sunglasses from the armrest box and put them on; the black shades paired with full red lips made her look like a formidable female boss.
She kept a straight face, floored the accelerator, and the car soon vanished at the end of the road.