Chapter 178 Chapter 178: Sorry, I Forgot, You Don'T Like Oranges
Chapter 178: Sorry, I Forgot, You Don'T Like Oranges
The petite girl, unlike Su Tao, had pupils completely devoid of light, as if she had lost all spirit and emotion, staring at Su Tao in disbelief.
Every step she took felt like a tread upon Su Tao's heart.
She looked down at Su Tao, who was slumped on the ground, and asked condescendingly, "Sister Su Tao, didn't you say last time that Little Cheng sister just went to a very faraway place and would be back in two or three months at most?"
"What does it mean that she died for you?"
"Were your words last time a lie?"
"You clearly promised me you'd tell me when she came back."
Her tone was utterly declarative, making it impossible to tell if Fang Ning was blaming Su Tao.
The girl braced herself on the floor with both hands, pressing her lips together, not daring to look at Fang Ning. She simply lowered her head, letting her hair conceal her expression.
Fang Ning reached out and gripped Su Tao's shoulders, forcing her to make eye contact. "Sister Su Tao, please tell me, is Little Cheng sister really dead?"
What kind of eyes were those?
Hollow and lifeless, like the despair of someone facing imminent death, feeling as if the sky was about to collapse.
Su Tao's words of defense caught in her throat. In the end, she could only stiffly utter three words.
"I'm sorry."
"So you really lied to me?" Fang Ning gently released Su Tao.
The latter tightly shut her eyes, bracing herself to be hit by the little girl, or even to be used as an object of vent.
To her surprise, however, Fang Ning did not fly into a rage or complain. She merely asked calmly, "Then where is Little Cheng sister now?"
"She... she's already dead."
"I'm asking about her remains, or her ashes, or her grave, anything will do." Fang Ning spoke expressionlessly, "I want to confirm it with my own eyes."
Her heart, like Su Tao's initially, refused to acknowledge or confront such a thing.
She clung to a sliver of hope, thinking, 'Perhaps this is a lie?'
However, Su Tao had already experienced the agony of receiving hope only to be plunged into despair again.
Twice.
She grit her teeth and declared loudly, "Little Cheng is dead. She died protecting me. I didn't lie to you about that!"
"You... you don't need to confirm her remains."
Fang Ning tilted her head. "What does my going to see my Little Cheng sister have to do with you? I call you Sister Su Tao because Little Cheng sister wanted me to. Since you couldn't protect her, please don't lecture me, okay?"
"Where are her remains?"
"Dongfang Yang's... private hospital, at Great Sun Hospital."
Fang Ning left without looking back after hearing this.
Su Tao watched her retreating back, her right hand instantly clenching into a fist, slamming heavily onto the ground.
Her teeth bit into her thin lips, drawing drops of blood.
No tears fell, yet her words were heartbreaking: "Why... why don't you even scold me!"
Flashbulbs began to flicker around her. The school beauty queen, once adored by countless people, was now in such a disheveled state.
Not long after, just as Su Tao was about to get up, a hand reached out.
"Why are you sitting here? What happened?"
Su Tao looked up to see Chen Qian, carrying lunch and fruit, who had just returned from the cafeteria.
Su Tao looked at the outstretched hand and at Chen Qian, who, by blocking the sun, appeared rather condescending. She did not reach out to take it.
Bracing herself on the floor, she stood up, explaining in a somewhat disheartened tone, "It's nothing, I just... fell."
"Oh, I see. Have you had lunch?" Chen Qian, still unaware that Chi Xiao Cheng had died, naturally reached into her bag and pulled out an orange.
"Want some fruit? This stuff is super expensive at the cafeteria."
Staring blankly at the orange Chen Qian offered, Su Tao did not take it.
Instead, she slowly asked, "Chen Qian, let me ask you something. Do you think... I'm worthy of Little Cheng?"
Chen Qian looked at Su Tao in confusion. "Why are you asking a question like that now?"
Su Tao seemed puzzled. "Can't I ask that kind of question?"
It wasn't that she couldn't ask.
It was just that Chen Qian didn't know what whim Su Tao was on now.
But Chen Qian was, after all, a "Cheng supporter" and a fun-loving person. Since Su Tao had asked, she answered obligingly, "From the perspective of a best friend, and taking your feelings into consideration, I would say you are."
"After all, you're pretty, and you're the school beauty queen. Your personality, though occasionally a bit slow-witted, is still very good among girls nowadays. Someone like you could be worthy of anyone, so there's no need to be modest."
Su Tao pressed her lips together, biting the part that was bleeding. "Then... if it's not from a best friend's perspective, and not considering my feelings?"
Chen Qian shrugged. "Then it goes without saying. Ever since Chi Xiao Cheng and Ye Liang argued in college, and you ignored her for months, I've felt you weren't worthy of her."
Su Tao's gaze became somewhat blank. "So you... you thought that?"
"I'm just telling the truth. You said she was a yandere and you didn't dare to accept her, but if I remember correctly, I advised you many times, didn't I?"
Chen Qian glanced sideways at Su Tao. "If you don't like her, refuse her. If you do, then accept her and bear her yandere tendencies. Though you might feel very conflicted yourself, to us outsiders, you're just a heartless woman who strung Chi Xiao Cheng along."
"You want everything, yet you don't want to give anything."
After she finished speaking, she tossed the orange she was offering again. "Never mind, let's not talk about this. Talking too much will hurt our feelings. Do you still want the orange?"
"I..."
Su Tao was about to reach out when she heard Chen Qian's words again.
"I forgot you never really liked oranges. My bad."
The orange was taken back by her.
And as Chen Qian turned and walked away, she faded into the distance.
Chen Qian didn't care what Su Tao might be thinking. She only cared if what she had just said was alright.
It should be fine, right?
Whether Su Tao had made any sacrifices, or what her true thoughts were, no longer mattered. At any rate, saying this should satisfy Chi Xiao Cheng.
She also wondered if, before the semester ended, Chi Xiao Cheng would give her another black tech pill that could improve her looks and change her figure.
One friend after another left her. Su Tao's outstretched hand, which had been reaching for the orange, remained unretracted.
Her expression, however, grew more pained, and her steps became increasingly lifeless.
"Am I really... not worthy of Little Cheng?"
She didn't go home. Instead, she returned to the cat cafe, not even eating lunch or dinner, and sat there for an entire day.
She wanted to sort out her thoughts, but her mind was in utter chaos.
In her mind, all she saw was Chi Xiao Cheng's figure.
Her beautiful memories seemed forever fixed in childhood.
Ever since the basement...
No, even earlier.
Ever since the argument during summer vacation, when she sided with Ye Liang and ignored Chi Xiao Cheng for those three months.
All that the girl with the tea-colored eyes brought her was pressure and fear.
Su Tao didn't know how she got home. By the time she reached Chi Xiao Cheng's apartment complex, it was already 11 PM.
The snow was falling heavily, coating her beautiful hair in white.
Before Su Tao could even step through the complex gate, she saw another small figure standing at the entrance.
It was Fang Ning, who had left without a word at noon, waiting there for quite some time.
Su Tao hurried forward, wanting both to show concern and to offer an explanation.
Just as she reached out to brush the snow off Fang Ning's shoulders, her outstretched hand was directly slapped away by the little girl.
The eyes staring at her were no longer hollow; instead, they held an indescribable loathing.
"Miss Su Tao, please don't come here, alright? This isn't your home, and you're not worthy to live in Little Cheng sister's home!"
No comments yet
Be the first to share your thoughts!