Ye Xingmian’s uncharacteristically firm response stunned Xu Ming. Based on her experience, whenever she spoke like that, Ye Xingmian usually had no choice but to follow her instructions. How could the girl actively question her?
She felt a bit strange, sensing that things were slowly slipping out of her control. However, she couldn’t figure out what Ye Xingmian was relying on, so she simply chalked it up to a mistake in her own perception.
Thinking of this, she gave a dry laugh.
“Actually, it’s quite simple. Look, you’re leaving our home in six months. Aunt was just thinking, since you’ve lived here for so long and grew up with Ziyan, I hope our family can live in harmony for these next six months…”
Seeing that she was still beating around the bush, Ye Xingmian knit her brows. She quickly lowered her head to hide the annoyance in her eyes.
“So? What exactly do you want me to do?”
If it wasn’t something very important to her, the woman would never waste so much time talking. This actually made Ye Xingmian curious about what she wanted.
“…” Seemingly surprised that her words had no effect, Xu Ming’s expression cooled.
“It’s just, can you stop mentioning that matter to Ziyan from now on?”
“That matter?” For some reason, a faint smile appeared on Ye Xingmian’s face.
Xu Ming was getting truly angry, so she decided to lay it all out. “I mean, stop telling Ziyan things like how Uncle and Aunt are scamming your mother out of her money!”
“Oh!” Ye Xingmian nodded as if she finally understood.
Seeing her like this, Xu Ming let out a powerless sigh. Honestly, she had considered using more forceful methods like threats or physical punishment, but on second thought, wouldn’t that be even more suspicious?
Lin Ziyan already had those suspicions. If she found out Ye Xingmian was being mistreated, wouldn’t that be an admission of guilt? Furthermore, if they went that route, Ye Xingmian might not take their words seriously and could even become more defiant.
Ultimately, the two children were grown up, and they were becoming harder to control.
“Do you hear me!” Her expression turned more severe, hoping to intimidate Ye Xingmian. However, Ye Xingmian simply nodded again.
“As long as you don’t tell her, you can just do whatever chores you feel like from now on. Uncle and Aunt will help share the load. How does that sound?”
“Okay.”
Since Ye Xingmian agreed to everything she said, Xu Ming couldn’t tell if she was being sincere or not. She felt uneasy.
“By the way, does Aunt really value Ziyan’s feelings that much?”
“Hmm? Of course. She’s my biological daughter, so how could I not care? Sigh, once you become a parent yourself, you’ll definitely understand me.”
‘Understand… No, I can’t.’
Since she cared so much about Lin Ziyan’s opinion and her own reputation in front of her daughter, why did she do such a thing in the first place? Since she did it, she should have expected the risk of being exposed, right?
Of course, Ye Xingmian wouldn’t say those words aloud unless she wanted a beating.
In the end, the conversation ended on a sour note. Xu Ming followed through on her promise and did a portion of the housework. Afterward, she went upstairs to prepare for bed early since she had to work the next day. Ye Xingmian took a shower and returned to her room to change into a pair of faded pajamas.
The fabric was thin, and it felt a bit cold in the corridor where the heating had been turned off. Ye Xingmian’s eyes dimmed slightly as she knocked on Lin Ziyan’s door.
She hadn’t forgotten what Lin Ziyan had said. To avoid trouble tomorrow, she decided to seek her out proactively. It was just sleeping in the same bed; it didn’t hurt or itch. To her, it was nothing.
A moment later, Lin Ziyan opened the door. Being half a head taller than her, Ziyan looked down at her.
Seeing that it was Ye Xingmian, she wore a mocking smile. “Oh, you actually showed up. So, how was your stay at Liu Yinuo’s house? Seeing how she acted when she came over, she’s probably already lost patience with you, right?”
Greeting her with mockery right away made it clear that Lin Ziyan was in a bad mood, but Ye Xingmian didn’t want to deal with her. After a moment of silence, she said, “It’s a bit cold out here. Can you let me in first?”
“Of course!”
As soon as she entered, Ye Xingmian’s gaze subtly scanned the room. Fortunately, she soon saw her schoolbag tucked in a corner. Although there were signs it had been rummaged through, the hidden compartment holding her cellphone hadn’t been touched.
She felt relieved.
“You were quite sensible tonight, knowing to come over on your own — “
“Mhm.”
“I’m asking you, what are you supposed to call me?”
“Big Sister.”
“Good girl.” Lin Ziyan showed a smile. She wasn’t wearing much herself and couldn’t stand the cold, so she immediately pulled Ye Xingmian into the blankets with her. On the bed, she pulled Ye Xingmian into her arms and rested her head on the pillow. By the light of the nightlight, she could see the girl’s fair, smooth profile and her pinkish earlobes.
She looked like a little cake covered in cream and jam, making one want to take a bite.
However, from her perspective, she couldn’t see Ye Xingmian’s expression. Therefore, she didn’t know that Ye Xingmian’s face was currently filled with boredom, annoyance, and misery. Of course, even if she knew, she probably wouldn’t care much.
“When are you going to give me my stuffed bear back?” Ye Xingmian suddenly asked in the darkness.
This caused Lin Ziyan to pause for a moment.
“Didn’t I say? I’ll give it back when I’m in a better mood.”
She didn’t know what the girl was thinking to ask such a question. Was she asking because she was worried? Ziyan couldn’t help but smirk. However, since Ye Xingmian was behaving fairly well, she wasn’t in a hurry to do anything cruel.
“Right, speaking of that, let me ask you something. When my mom kept you downstairs earlier, what did you talk about?” This was something that had suddenly crossed her mind. She was indeed confused about why her mother had suddenly wanted Ye Xingmian to stay behind. It couldn’t be that what her mother told her at noon was a lie and she was threatening Ye Xingmian not to speak out, could it?
After a moment of silence, Ye Xingmian thought about it and decided that telling the truth would be more interesting.
“Nothing much. Aunt just told me that she’ll be nicer to me from now on and told me to stop telling you about how they scammed my mother out of her money.”
As she said those words, an unprecedented feeling flowed through her heart. Yes, it was probably called pleasure.
“What?!”
As expected, Lin Ziyan’s reaction was huge. She suddenly flipped Ye Xingmian over and pinned her down, straddling her. The blankets were pushed behind them as she propped herself up with both hands. Her eyes burned with intensity as she glared down at Ye Xingmian through gritted teeth.
“You’re lying!”
“I’m not.”