Mute Beauty

Chapter 78: Fell Ill

Yu Ting came down with a fever.

She had already felt unwell that morning on her way to finalize the divorce—head pounding, sluggish. Maybe it was from exhaustion and lack of sleep, or that winter chill after washing her hair without drying it, pulling an all-nighter on top of everything.

Still, she couldn't sleep that night.

Her forehead was burning, her head throbbing, and she only managed to drift off on the sofa right before dawn. Even then, her sleep was shallow and restless, constantly breaking in and out, a state of unsettled, uneasy half-dreams.

She had just dozed off when she was startled awake by noises outside the door. Morning light was already streaming in through the window—it was day. Heart racing, Yu Ting got up, steadying herself against the wall when a wave of dizziness washed over her, nearly causing her to faint. She opened the door and came face to face with a moving company employee carrying Ran Ling's art supplies downstairs.

"Hello, Ms. Yu..." The young man seemed a bit intimidated by her bleak expression and hollow stare. He stammered as he quickly explained himself, "We met yesterday. I introduced myself. I'm here to help Ms. Ran move her art supplies."

Yu Ting asked, "Is Ran Ling here too?"

"Yes... Ms. Ran is in the studio."

Yu Ting said nothing, allowing him to continue, and then glanced toward the studio, pausing before making her way downstairs.

She pulled out her phone and unlocked it. It had very little battery left. Opening a food delivery app, she scrolled aimlessly, finding nothing she wanted. She had no appetite, only empty fatigue, and sank back onto the sofa.

Sitting there, her presence seemed to cast a chill through the room. The movers worked quietly, almost hesitantly, aware that she was not someone to be crossed.

In the studio, Ran Ling was carefully packing up her paintings herself, too particular to let anyone else handle them. It wasn't a large collection, so after about half an hour, she was nearly done. For now, she planned to store them at Waiting for Bloom.

"Is that everything? If so, Ms. Ran, you can go on ahead, and we'll handle the rest of the supplies. We'll be very careful."

From the stairwell came the voices of the moving company staff, accompanied by light footsteps. Yu Ting looked up, and through the worker's shoulders, she saw a woman in a long dress.

She was slender, pale. Her hair was loosely tied up, with a few stray strands framing her face in a slightly disheveled way. Her eyes were downcast as she walked slowly down the stairs, dressed in a cotton dress layered with a cashmere coat.

Yu Ting's eyes followed her involuntarily. She lifted her gaze, meeting Yu Ting's for only a second, with a glance like a clear, icy winter spring—cold, remote, with a hint of weariness. She lowered her gaze immediately, continuing toward the door with quickened steps.

Yu Ting felt a sinking in her chest. Ran Ling seemed like a stranger—so distant, yet unmistakably herself, her Ran Ling—just no longer Yu Ting's.

Her heart hammered as Ran Ling disappeared from view amid the sound of boxes being moved. Yu Ting closed her eyes.

She caught a faint scent of jasmine in the air.

It felt like a small consolation.

With her head tilted back, Yu Ting slumped on the sofa, her mind drifting. Later, she would recall this moment in her dreams. And after that day, Ran Ling would vanish entirely from Yu Ting's life.