Chapter 15

The three of them chatted and laughed over hotpot until 10:30 PM.

By the time they divided the cleanup tasks, it was already past 11 PM.

Sliding open all the windows on the balcony, Ruan Xinyi returned to the kitchen to slice some fruit. She casually suggested, “It’s so late. Why don’t you both stay over tonight and head back tomorrow?”

Jiang Yun, rubbing her full stomach and leaning against the sofa, instinctively glanced at Cheng Yue, who sat upright and proper beside her, upon hearing Ruan Xinyi’s suggestion.

Noticing the stares from both Ruan Xinyi and Jiang Yun, Cheng Yue chuckled and said, “Alright, let’s head back tomorrow.”

Jiang Yun let out an exaggerated sigh of relief, leaning over to wrap her arm around Cheng Yue’s shoulder, teasingly saying, “Yue Yue, you’re the best!”

Cheng Yue dodged with a look of disdain, and when Jiang Yun tried to lean in again, she quickly stood up from the sofa, her tone slightly unnatural. “Enough already.”

“Hehe.” Jiang Yun didn’t mind. She turned to Ruan Xinyi and said, “Xinyi, thanks for the trouble tonight!”

Amused by Jiang Yun’s carefree demeanor, Ruan Xinyi replied, “It’s no trouble. You two just sit and rest. I’ll go tidy up the guest room.”

Cheng Yue originally wanted to offer, “I’ll help you,” but before the words left her mouth, Jiang Yun discreetly nudged her slippered foot. Reluctantly, Cheng Yue changed her response. “Xinyi, can I borrow your phone charger? My battery’s almost dead.”

“Of course,” Ruan Xinyi readily agreed. “Wait a moment; I’ll go get it for you.”

“Sure.”

Bending down, Ruan Xinyi pushed the fruit plate closer to the two before heading to her room to fetch the charger.

As soon as they heard the door click shut, Jiang Yun nudged Cheng Yue with her elbow and whispered, “Cheng Yue, how much do you think Xinyi pays for this apartment each month?”

Cheng Yue calmly forked a piece of apple and asked in an indifferent tone, “What do you think her family’s financial situation is like?”

Jiang Yun thought for a moment and tentatively said, “Upper-middle class?”

Although Ruan Xinyi was usually low-key, earning scholarships every year and working part-time in her free time, Jiang Yun could tell from her spending habits that she came from a well-off family—at least one that didn’t worry about money.

Cheng Yue subtly hinted, “This complex has strict property management. Many celebrities in City A buy homes here because they don’t rent them out.”

“You’re saying…?” Jiang Yun’s voice dropped to a whisper, filled with surprise.

Just then, the sound of the bedroom door opening interrupted them.

“Mhm.” Cheng Yue gave a small nod.

“Here’s the charger you asked for,” Ruan Xinyi said, carrying two sets of pajamas and towels, placing them on the sofa. “The guest room has fresh sheets I just put on a couple of days ago. I’ll grab new toiletries for you.”

Cheng Yue responded as usual, “Thanks, Xinyi.”

Jiang Yun swallowed nervously, using the act of reaching for fruit to mask her momentary awkwardness.

After fetching two sets of new toiletries, Ruan Xinyi led the two to the guest room. Scanning the room to ensure everything was in place, she half-jokingly said to Jiang Yun, “Jiang Yun, sharing the bed with Cheng Yue tonight shouldn’t be a problem, right?”

Jiang Yun glanced at Cheng Yue, her tone filled with uncertainty. “Probably… maybe… should be fine?”

Cheng Yue shot her a blank look.

Suppressing her laughter, Ruan Xinyi said, “If it’s a problem, then one of you will have to sleep on the sofa.”

Jiang Yun’s eyes widened in shock as she blurted out, “Why me? Why not Cheng Yue?”

Cheng Yue said nothing, but her gaze spoke volumes.

Jiang Yun swallowed hard and immediately backed down. “Alright, fine, I’ll take the sofa.”

A second later, she suddenly realized, “Wait—no, no, no problem at all! Sharing with Cheng Yue is perfectly fine! Absolutely no problem!”

Cheng Yue’s lips twitched slightly as she coolly added, “I’m not interested in you.”

“That’s not what I meant…” Jiang Yun muttered defensively.

“Ahem,” Ruan Xinyi interrupted at the right moment. “You two should get some rest early. I’ll be leaving for work around 7:30 AM tomorrow. Just make sure to lock the door when you leave.”

Jiang Yun, who had been trying to change the subject, quickly added, "Alright, Xinyi, you should get some rest too. Good night."

Ruan Xinyi gently closed the guest room door. "You too."

As soon as Ruan Xinyi left, the atmosphere in the room became slightly awkward.

To ease the tension, Jiang Yun casually brought up a topic. "Cheng Yue, do you like someone? Otherwise, how could you twist my perfectly innocent words like that?"

Cheng Yue plugged in her phone charger, her eyes lowered to conceal her expression. After a long pause, she murmured a barely audible, "Yes."

"Wait, really?" Jiang Yun's curiosity was piqued, and she eagerly followed up. "Who is it? Are you two together?"

"No." Cheng Yue scrolled through her phone, her brows slowly furrowing. Finally, with a blank expression, she set her phone on the bedside table. Her tone was calm. "She doesn't know I like her."

"Huh?"

Perhaps the emotions she'd been suppressing for so long finally found an outlet, as Cheng Yue continued, "She's seven years older than me and has been pressured by her family to go on blind dates for the past six months."

"Seven years isn't a big gap," Jiang Yun replied, puzzled. "Have you confessed? You're so amazing; I don't think she could reject you."

"Jiang Yun," Cheng Yue's voice was slightly hoarse, "the 'she' I'm talking about is the one with the feminine pronoun."

Jiang Yun opened her mouth, then broke into a light laugh. "Oh, an older sister, huh? Older sisters are great! Haven't you heard? Everyone says older sisters are the best these days."

Cheng Yue blinked in surprise before curling her lips into a faint smile. "She really is the best."

Jiang Yun patted her shoulder and said in a heartfelt tone, "If you like her, go for it! Didn't we just tell Xinyi earlier that you have to take the initiative to seize opportunities?"

Cheng Yue nodded thoughtfully. The next second, she unplugged her charger, grabbed a pillow from the bed, and headed for the door.

"Cheng Yue, where are you going?" Jiang Yun called after her.

"I'm sleeping on the sofa." Cheng Yue didn't even look back, her tone resolute. "I need to keep my distance from other women."

Jiang ‘Other Women’ Yun: "???"

---

The next morning, Ruan Xinyi woke up early.

She quietly opened her bedroom door and stopped by the fridge to grab a bottle of yogurt she had bought from the convenience store the day before. As she turned around, she was startled to see Cheng Yue curled up on the sofa under a thin blanket, sleeping fitfully.

Startled, Ruan Xinyi almost dropped the yogurt in her hand but managed to catch it just in time.

Tiptoeing around the sofa, she went to the coffee table, picked up the air conditioner remote, and raised the temperature by two degrees.

Just then, Cheng Yue shifted in her sleep, her right arm dangling off the sofa. The lack of support startled her awake.

"Ruan Ruan?" Cheng Yue called out groggily, her voice thick with sleep.

"Why are you sleeping here?" Ruan Xinyi whispered.

Cheng Yue rubbed her neck and slowly sat up. "To maintain boundaries."

"Huh?" Ruan Xinyi was confused. "What boundaries?"

"Distance creates beauty," Cheng Yue replied earnestly, pointing at herself and then toward the guest room. "Jiang Yun and I could never happen."

"I like someone else."

Ruan Xinyi said nothing, merely placing the air conditioner remote back. "Why don’t you sleep a bit more? I have to head to work."

"Okay," Cheng Yue murmured, still a bit dazed. She rubbed her eyes and added, "But I really do have someone I like."

"I'm heading out now. There's food in the fridge—help yourself."

The two continued their conversation, completely on different wavelengths.

---

Ruan Xinyi left the apartment early, parked her car in the office building's underground garage, and brought along her half-finished yogurt. Before heading to work, she stopped by a porridge shop for a quick breakfast.

While eating, she messaged Cheng Yue to ask if she wanted some porridge delivered.

Cheng Yue: [No need to trouble yourself. We’re planning to grab breakfast at the shop across the street.]

Ruan Xinyi stirred her bowl of millet pumpkin porridge, added a spoonful of sugar, and stirred again. Taking a small spoonful, she tasted it. The sweetened porridge tasted better—almost delightful.

After Ruan Xinyi left, Cheng Yue sat on the sofa for a few minutes, fully waking up. However, as soon as she was completely alert, she was hit by soreness in her back and neck. The discomfort made her more irritable, and in her frustration, she got up and marched straight into the guest room.

Seeing Jiang Yun sound asleep, Cheng Yue smirked mischievously. She set an alarm for two minutes later, cranked the volume to the max, and held the phone tightly, determined to wake her.

Two minutes later, the deafening alarm blared. Jiang Yun bolted upright on instinct. "The last alarm already went off? I'm going to be late!"

She frantically threw off the blanket and scrambled out of bed.

The moment her feet touched the cold floor, Jiang Yun froze. Slowly, she looked up at Cheng Yue, who stood nearby with her arms crossed, clearly enjoying the spectacle.

Cheng Yue calmly remarked, "Jiang Yun, you've already graduated."

Jiang Yun: "..."

Now fully awake, Jiang Yun glared at Cheng Yue before storming off to the bathroom, puffed up with indignation.

When Jiang Yun came out of the bathroom, Cheng Yue had already packed up and was lounging on the sofa, scrolling through her phone. "Ready to leave?"

"Where’s Xinyi?" Jiang Yun asked.

Cheng Yue glanced up. "She left twenty minutes ago."

Just then, her phone buzzed with a message. "Xinyi asked if we wanted porridge. She said she could have it delivered."

Stretching lazily, Jiang Yun suggested, "Let’s not trouble her. There’s a breakfast shop across the street. Let’s eat there."

"Sure." Cheng Yue stood up and gestured with her eyes. "Let’s go."

As Cheng Yue was about to close the door behind her, she heard the door across the hall creak open. A woman holding a black briefcase stepped out.

Upon seeing the two young women in their early twenties standing across the hall, Wen Xihan maintained a composed expression as she closed her door. Noticing that the two were still watching her, she adjusted her glasses in a subtle gesture, masking her emotions. She gave a slight nod in acknowledgment before stepping directly into the elevator without hesitation.

Jiang Yun was momentarily stunned and took a long time to regain her composure before exclaiming, "She's so stunning! Is she some kind of celebrity?"

"I can't let this slide—I need to ask Xinyi about this. Her neighbor is practically a goddess!"

Cheng Yue remained silent, her gaze lingering on Wen Xihan's retreating figure, her expression thoughtful.

---

With thirty minutes to spare before work, Ruan Xinyi sat in a porridge shop, casually scrolling through her phone while sipping sweetened millet pumpkin porridge at a leisurely pace.

Suddenly, her dormitory group chat lit up as Jiang Yun tagged her three times in a row.

Ruan Xinyi opened the messages and responded with a simple question mark.

Jiang Yun: [Xinyi, have you ever met your neighbor across the hall?]

Ruan Xinyi: [There's someone living across the hall?]

Jiang Yun: [... That’s not the point.]

[Just now, Cheng Yue and I saw her. She’s incredibly beautiful, even more stunning than when I saw her outside the complex yesterday. At first glance, I thought she was a celebrity. Truly breathtaking.]

Ruan Xinyi: [Oh. Then you haven’t seen my boss yet.]

Jiang Yun replied with a confused emoji.

Ruan Xinyi continued typing: [Or you can think of it this way: in my eyes, my boss is the most beautiful of all.]  

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