Mute Beauty

Chapter 88: Madness

Yu Ting didn't expect Ran Ling to reply, complaining: "This is all your fault."

Yu Ting paused, not sad but instead feeling both guilty and inexplicably happy. It felt like Ran Ling was acting spoiled.

Yu Ting admitted: "It's my fault."

Yu Ting: "I also have a private villa back in China with a great medical team. If you'd be willing to come back, everything I have is yours."

Ran Ling: "Really?"

Yu Ting: "Of course it's true."

Ran Ling: "I don't believe you."

The smile on Yu Ting's face grew wider. She replied: "I always keep my promises."

Ran Ling, teasing her intentionally, didn't reply after that.

Yu Ting grew impatient, unwilling to miss any chance to chat with her: "Did you just get home?"

After a long wait, Ran Ling replied: "Yes."

Yu Ting: "No classes tomorrow. Do you have any plans?"

Ran Ling: "I want to sleep in."

Yu Ting pressed on: "And after you wake up?"

Ran Ling: "None of your business."

Yu Ting: "I don't want to interfere; I'm just curious."

Ran Ling stopped replying.

Was she annoyed?

Yu Ting preferred to think she was just sulking. She enjoyed this kind of playfulness, at least if Ran Ling was willing to talk to her. But now she wasn't sure again.

Yu Ting could still taste the blood from her bitten lip, staring intently at the screen with a possessive longing for the person on the other end. She typed bluntly, expressing her feelings: "I miss you."

She missed Ran Ling—and what Ran Ling meant to her. When Ran Ling ignored her coyly, Yu Ting spent the night calculating in her mind.

Ran Ling was safe and well, comfortably staying under Wei Rumei's care. Yu Ting couldn't just keep showing up unannounced, so how could she get Ran Ling to meet her? Or better yet, make Ran Ling reach out to her instead?

Yu Ting remembered how Ran Ling had gently touched her face and bruises the day she arrived—she'd felt Ran Ling's sympathy.

Why? Was it because Yu Ting had cried, because she was wounded and vulnerable... maybe Ran Ling felt soft-hearted toward someone hurt?

Yu Ting's mind clicked, and she sent a quick message saying she was heading for a shower, then went to the bathroom, turning on the cold water without hesitation. She didn't bother to dry her long, dripping hair afterward and lay down immediately, checking her phone to see if Ran Ling had messaged.

Still nothing. Ran Ling was far less affectionate than she used to be; Yu Ting could admit to some disappointment. But she kept her spirits up and sent a goodnight message: "Good night, rest well."

The past few days had been a blur of frenzied emotions, with sleepless nights now her new normal. Last night, the sleeping pill had helped, but Yu Ting knew it wasn't just the medication. Ran Ling's gesture—taking the ring, giving her a bit of comfort—had been the true relief.

But Yu Ting remained restless, haunted by Fang Chi's presence...

The insomnia gnawed at her as she flipped through her messages with Ran Ling over and over, thoughts spiraling, her mood plummeting to its darkest.