"Boss, it's time to leave," Jing Weinan reminded.
Shen Zhining looked at the tombstone one more time before turning around. He'd only walked two steps when he turned back to look at the girl still standing in front of the grave. "You're not leaving?"
"I...I still want to stay a little longer," Sheng Jiaoyang said.
Shen Zhining no longer cared about her and left the cemetery.
After he'd left, Sheng Jiaoyang went back to sitting and leaning on the tombstone as if she was snuggling in her mother's bosom, quietly talking about everything that had happened.
Halfway through, rain suddenly started to pour from the dark sky, going from small drips into a heavy downpour.
Sheng Jiaoyang was quickly soaked. Droplets of water covered her glasses, turning her vision fuzzy so she couldn't even see the picture on the tombstone. She rubbed her face on the cold tombstone, her voice quiet as she said, "Mum, I really don't want to leave...but I know that you wouldn't want to see me like this. I'll come again to visit you soon."
She leaned there quietly for a few more moments before standing up and walking towards the exit. She'd just arrived at the cemetery's exit when bright headlights flashed at her and she heard a car honking. As Sheng Jiaoyang's eyebrows furrowed and she raised her hand above her eyes to see clearer, she heard an angry shout.
"What are you standing there for?! Get in!"
Ning Xiaoruan? Sheng Jiaoyang suppressed the doubt in her heart and sat in the front seat. She'd just sat down when a suit jacket was thrown at her. She turned her head to see Ning Xiaoruan in a dress shirt with a tie, seemingly just coming from a meeting.
"Wear this for now so you don't catch a cold," Ning Xiaoruan said.
"Your cousin told you to come?" Sheng Jiaoyang felt that was possible. Otherwise, why would Ning Xiaoruan so conveniently come here to pick her up?
"Yeah. If he hadn't, how would I know you'd be in such a creepy place?" Ning Xiaoruan turned on the radio as he complained, "Cousin and Weinan left midway and just left me there to deal with annoying people at the dinner party. It hadn't even finished when he called me, saying that it was going to rain and to come to this weird place to pick you up."
Hearing this, a strange feeling appeared within Sheng Jiaoyang's heart. How could Shen Zhining possibly be so kind?
"I'd originally wanted to go to a bar to celebrate, but I was grabbed by Cousin to pick you up. He cares about you so much, yet why didn't he pick you up himself, rather than go to Germany? He even took the plane. What was so urgent for him to go? And look at you, don't you know that it's raining? Who did you come here for? Aren't you afraid of being alone? I've waited for you so long outside! If I weren't scared of missing you, then I would've gone in to find you."
While waiting for the traffic lights to turn green, Ning Xiaoruan turned to look at the soaking wet person beside him and suddenly realised that even though Xu Jiaojiao always seemed like she could do everything, she also needed to be taken care of sometimes.
His cousin was seriously too much. He knew that his girlfriend was in the cemetery alone, yet he still ran off to Germany.
"Isn't your throat dry from speaking so much?" Sheng Jiaoyang glanced at Ning Xiaoruan.
"Don't change the topic, I won't be fooled by you. Who did you visit at the cemetery? Based on my memory, none of your family members are buried there."
"I came to visit someone very important to me." Sheng Jiaoyang closed her eyes, hiding her true mood behind her lashes.
"Who was it?" Ning Xiaoruan asked without thinking.
Sheng Jiaoyang didn't answer.
"You're not even telling me? Why are you so secretive? It isn't some first love, right? If it is, then you really are pitiful. Let me tell you..."
Once Ning Xiaoruan started speaking, there would be no end. At the next red light, he turned his head to find that she'd already fallen asleep.
"Hey, you!"
When they arrived at the apartment, Ning Xiaoruan shouted at her, yet she still didn't react. He pushed her again, finally waking her up.
"We're here?" Sheng Jiaoyang frowned as Ning Xiaoruan confirmed it. She unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door, not caring if it was still raining or not.
"Hey, try and sleep earl-" before Ning Xiaoruan could finish speaking, the figure walking towards the hotel suddenly fell down.
Sheng Jiaoyang was taken to the hospital to be put on an IV drip. She'd been in the rain for too long and slept even longer than last time. When she woke up, it was already the morning of the next day.
Before she could open her eyes, she heard Ning Xiaoruan talking to somebody on the phone.
"When are you coming back? Your girlfriend's sick, aren't you worried? Cousin, even if I don't have a girlfriend, I know that your current behaviour isn't right. If you're so inconsiderate, she'll definitely break up with you. Then, let's see where you can find somebody you like again!"
"Hey hey hey! How could you hang up on me? What I'm saying are facts. If you weren't my cousin, I wouldn't even be reminding you about this!" Sheng Jiaoyang opened her eyes and saw that Ning Xiaoruan was talking to himself as he stared at the phone.
"If it were me, I'd also hang up," Sheng Jiaoyang said hoarsely.
"You're awake!" Ning Xiaoruan was pleasantly surprised before continuing to complain, "Did you make a mistake? I was trying to help you just now! You two really are lovers. If you guys break up in the future, I definitely won't help you! Hmph!"
"If we break up, would your help even be useful?" Sheng Jiaoyang had a slight smile on her face.
Ning Xiaoruan suddenly choked. He could totally imagine that scene. With his cousin's temperament, he probably wouldn't listen to him at all. His cousin was just like a dictator!
Knock, knock.
Zeng Huan pushed the door open and entered with a hot lunch box in her hands. She walked up and set the lunch box on the table. "I boiled some porridge for you, although I don't know if you'll like it."
"Thank you." Sheng Jiaoyang leaned against the headboard.
Zeng Huan hesitated as she looked at her. "Jiaojiao, when I was helping you get your laundry, I found paparazzi downstairs. I already reported it to President Li, and he said that he'd help you change location."
"Oh, sure," Sheng Jiaoyang replied, completely uninterested.
"Change location? My cousin has a house in the Northern suburbs and stays there if work gets busy. I think you can just stay there, and it's only half an hour away from your school too. Wait, let me call my cousin." Ning Xiaoruan immediately went to make a call.
"There's no nee-"
"Cousin will definitely agree." Ning Xiaoruan was very persistent. Since his cousin and Xu Jiaojiao were in a serious relationship, having his girlfriend stay in his place wasn't anything big. He'd definitely agree. Sure enough, once he'd told him, the line went silent for a moment before Shen Zhining consented.
"See, Cousin really did agree!" Ning Xiaoruan proudly waved his phone. "Cousin said to call Felix to help prepare your room."
Sheng Jiaoyang just glanced at Ning Xiaoruan silently before thinking that it was actually quite good. If she lived with Shen Zhining, then there'd be more chances to make inquiries about her grandfather and her own body's current situation.
BINABASA MO ANG
Rebirth of a Fashionista: This Life Is Soo Last Season
JugendliteraturSynopsis Cinderella went from rags to riches, but when you are already at the top, fate is more than happy to kick you down. A car accident kicks off Sheng Jiaoyang's reverse Cinderella story by trapping her soul in the body of a poor girl, leaving...