Chapter 177 Chapter 177: Nowhere To Run (Thank You All For Your Encouragement And Support)
Chapter 177: Nowhere To Run (Thank You All For Your Encouragement And Support)
“I… misunderstood Xiao Cheng?”
Su Tao’s eyes widened, fixated on the content on the bulletin board. She felt a sudden constriction in her chest.
Cheng Cheng, standing nearby, added unceremoniously, “Please don’t put it so lightly. You completely distrusted your Xiao Cheng, didn’t you?”
Cheng Cheng turned sideways, standing before Su Tao, meeting her gaze.
“Even though Chi Xiao Cheng is dead, you’ve blamed yourself, haven’t you? You’ve said time and again how much you regret it. I’m not entirely clear on the specifics, but when you talked to me, you also felt that much of it was your own fault, right?”
“If that’s the case, why are you still unwilling to face those mistakes?”
Su Tao looked up, meeting Cheng Cheng’s eyes. “I didn’t!”
“Then in the past half-month, what have you done?”
Cheng Cheng showed no intention of comforting her; instead, she questioned, “You didn’t kill that Ye Liang, did you? You haven’t avenged Chi Xiao Cheng, nor have you explained anything to her brother or parents, and you certainly haven’t dared to tell her parents that Chi Xiao Cheng is dead, have you?”
“You’ve stayed in Chi Xiao Cheng’s house for half a month, not stepping outside, deluding yourself that a few tears signify remorse and salvation.”
“Just because she loved you, you could brazenly enjoy her love without giving anything in return!”
Su Tao recoiled a step, feeling a strange unfamiliarity with the friend who was lecturing her so harshly.
Her lips trembled. “I wasn’t brazenly enjoying it! I was trying to figure out how to cure Xiao Cheng’s unhealthy obsession, okay? Don’t say I didn’t do anything!”
“But weren’t you still doing it for yourself?”
Cheng Cheng’s brief remark made Su Tao’s trembling hands suddenly stiffen.
“Did you ever think about what Chi Xiao Cheng wanted?”
“What have you ever done for her?”
“Pretending to like her, deceiving her, coaxing her—don’t say curing her unhealthy obsession was for her own good. Weren’t you just doing it so you could have a ‘better’ Xiao Cheng for yourself?”
“Even after Chi Xiao Cheng died!”
Cheng Cheng’s voice suddenly rose. “Chi Song and Brother Long are being hunted by the Ye family, all because Chi Song killed Ye Liang in your stead, drawing their fire away from you!”
“Dongfang Yang is still handling the aftermath of Chi Xiao Cheng’s death!”
“Si Chen is investigating Xiao Ming and Lin Fangya, and has also sent people to her hometown to look after Chi Xiao Cheng’s parents, so busy he’s practically tearing his hair out.”
“And you? Not only have you done nothing, you weren’t even willing to go to the hospital to give Chi Xiao Cheng a second glance!”
“What, just because Chi Xiao Cheng liked you, loved you, you could be so reckless?”
“Even blaming the dead Chi Xiao Cheng, saying things like, ‘Ah, actually, it’s all Xiao Cheng’s fault. If she hadn’t been so consumed by obsession, things wouldn’t have turned out this way’?”
Each word, one after another, was like a sharp knife piercing Su Tao’s heart.
Her shoulders trembled, and her fists slightly clenched.
Cheng Cheng glanced at her, then scoffed, “What, angry?”
“I’m not!” Su Tao roared at Cheng Cheng. “I never blamed Xiao Cheng! And curing her unhealthy obsession wasn’t for myself! Cheng Cheng, you don’t understand obsessive love, nor have you ever been loved by someone with such an obsession.”
“You simply don’t know—”
Slap—!
Su Tao was mid-sentence when Cheng Cheng raised a hand and slapped her hard across the face.
A crisp sound echoed through the school path, startling several other students walking nearby.
Cheng Cheng’s force wasn’t particularly great; for Su Tao, it barely registered as pain.
In her ear, her friend’s disappointed voice spoke again, “Even now, you’re still saying these things.”
“When Chi Xiao Cheng was alive, you treated her affection like a game.”
“When Chi Xiao Cheng died, you felt regret, you felt you should have accepted her confession so she wouldn’t die. Then, if she were alive, you could continue to enjoy her love as before, without ever considering what you had to give.”
“From beginning to end, you believed that because Chi Xiao Cheng liked you, she belonged to you. So even after she died, you never truly understood how dazzling and rare her devotion was.”
“That’s why you didn’t know how to cherish it.”
“After all, even in death, she would only like you and no one else, right?”
Cheng Cheng bent down and picked up the things Su Tao had dropped on the ground.
She tucked them into Su Tao’s arms. “Someone who pretends to be asleep will never be woken up.”
Has no one ever tried to wake you?
Dongfang Yang, Si Chen, Doctor Cheng, and the other two psychologists, even Chen Qian and little Wei who loves to sleep, they’ve all tried to wake you up, haven’t they?
But why do you keep sleeping?
Is it that you dare not face it, or do you simply want to sink into that dream?
Cheng Cheng took out her phone, glanced at the time, and said indifferently, “You don’t care, but there are plenty of people who do.”
“I’m very disappointed in you, Tao Tao.”
The familiar yet brief voice made Su Tao suddenly look up, but in her line of sight, Cheng Cheng had already walked away.
“Why was it… Xiao Cheng’s voice?”
The last words left behind were nothing short of a massive blow to Su Tao, piercing through her fragile protective shell and stabbing into her heart.
Utterly shaken to her core, she didn’t even stop to consider why Cheng Cheng, who was just an online friend, knew so many things.
She simply stood there, unmoving, clutching that pile of things.
Recalling the past, what had Cheng Cheng said that wasn’t true?
Even if Xiao Cheng’s methods were extreme, she only wanted to keep her by her side.
Attacking Sister Long and her mentor was only because her Tao Tao had been bullied; it was for her.
And in the end, she even preferred to die herself rather than let that bullet hit her.
“And for such devotion, what was the return?”
Su Tao murmured from the corner of her lips, as if asking herself, and yet also repeating Cheng Cheng’s question.
In her line of sight, a petite figure slowly emerged from behind a tree to the side.
The girl who walked out seemed to sway weakly, her lower lip bitten tightly.
Su Tao’s pupils constricted again. As she staggered two steps backward, she tripped and fell to the ground.
The one who had come was Fang Ning!
Suddenly, Cheng Cheng’s recent words echoed in her mind.
—You don’t care about Chi Xiao Cheng, but there are plenty of people who do.
And the person before her, wasn’t she exactly that kind of person?
From their last conversation, Su Tao had already sensed that this child before her truly regarded Chi Xiao Cheng as her one and only.
So when Fang Ning had asked where Xiao Cheng went, Su Tao had chosen to conceal the truth.
She didn’t want that news to shatter the girl.
But now…
The lie was exposed.
She didn’t know when Fang Ning had started listening, nor how long she had been there.
Fear and avoidance began to intertwine in her heart.
It was as if a silent scream constantly urged the little girl not to come closer.
But with every step Fang Ning took, it was as if she was saying: this was the consequence of Su Tao’s own making.
Fang Ning, her eyes empty, slowly walked up to Su Tao and spoke with a numb expression.
“Sister Su Tao, Sister Xiao Cheng… she’s dead?”
......
Ps: Finally out of the small dark room. Orange juice is gone, no touching beyond the line, not even kisses allowed. My mind’s been a mess these past few days, my state is too poor. I can tell myself that the recent chapters have been a bit drawn out.
I revised it three or four times for review, then got traffic restrictions. My full attendance bonus for last month was wiped out, and it was also canceled because the book was put in the 'small dark room'. In the middle of it, I even briefly entertained the idea of abandoning the novel.
But seeing everyone’s encouragement, I thought about it and decided to keep writing. The story of Orange and Tao hasn’t reached its end yet, and it definitely will. I’ll adjust my state to bring everyone better content.
Thank you all for your encouragement and support. Since entering the 'small dark room,' I’ve had zero income, uwu. Even after getting out, there are still traffic restrictions, so I’d trouble everyone to help promote the book. Lastly, shamelessly, I’ll ask for a wave of tips. Love you all ❤~
No comments yet
Be the first to share your thoughts!