ORCBRB – Chapter 26
Chapter 26
Sang Shi'an spent a full ten minutes repeatedly reading the few short lines of their chat history, something that should have taken only half a minute.
She even mulled over the meaning of the word “Okay” again and again in her mind, considering the context, before she was finally willing to believe the truth—
Last night, while drunk, she had confessed to Jian Cenyu using her Kitty account, and Jian Cenyu had actually accepted.
No, she had accepted Kitty.
Sang Shi'an had never pursued anyone before and felt that winning someone over in less than a month was a bit too easy. But then she thought about all her pretty little dresses and decided it was perfectly reasonable.
Footsteps sounded again from the bedroom doorway, stopping at the bathroom entrance.
“I guessed you were dozing off again.”
“How can you not even wash your face properly?”
Her clear, pleasant voice carried a low chuckle as Jian Cenyu reached out and touched her cheek.
The remaining facial cleanser was wiped away by the pad of her finger. Jian Cenyu pulled out a new face towel and handed it to her. “Hurry and dry your face, or you'll really be late for your first class.”
Sang Shi'an: ...
As if finally snapping back to reality, a storm raged in Sang Shi'an's heart. “I...”
“What's wrong?” Jian Cenyu frowned slightly and placed the back of her hand on Sang Shi'an's forehead. “No fever. Does your head still hurt?”
Sang Shi'an stiffly shook her head. Her gaze swept over Jian Cenyu's neck and landed on a small, round, white bandage.
Memories from the bar last night were awakened. Sang Shi'an's foot slipped, and she nearly fell. Fortunately, Jian Cenyu quickly wrapped an arm around her waist, and Sang Shi'an managed to steady herself.
The words that came out of her mouth were shocked. “Did I bite your neck?”
Jian Cenyu touched the spot with the bandage and said, “Yes. It's nothing serious.”
Sang Shi'an only remembered biting someone. She had no sense of proportion when drunk, and the thought that she might have actually injured Jian Cenyu filled her with guilt. “If it's nothing serious, why are you wearing a bandage? It didn't bleed, did it?”
As she spoke, she reached to peel off Jian Cenyu's bandage. Just as her fingertips were about to touch it, her hand was caught by Jian Cenyu.
“No.”
Sang Shi'an didn't believe her. “This wasn't your attitude when I was hurt. Let me see.”
Jian Cenyu still stopped her. “I'm really fine.”
Sang Shi'an: “If you're fine, why are you wearing a—”
“It's just a little red.” Jian Cenyu couldn't win against her persistence and said in a low voice, “If other people saw it, it might cause a misunderstanding.”
“A misunderstanding?” Sang Shi'an still didn't get it.
Her confusion was written all over her face. Seeing that she still didn't understand, Jian Cenyu explained, “A hickey.”
Sang Shi'an's face instantly turned beet red. “I-I-I-I didn't mean it like that last night.”
“I know. You were completely drunk by then.” Jian Cenyu unscrewed a jar of face cream on the counter and handed it to Sang Shi'an. “Even if you did that while sober, I wouldn't think too much of it. Now, put on some cream and let's go, or you'll really be late.”
Sang Shi'an nodded.
She didn't use any other skincare products, just quickly applied the cream and some sunscreen before heading to the walk-in closet.
While changing her clothes, she felt that something was off.
At first, she thought it was because Jian Cenyu had said she “wouldn't think too much of it.”
It wasn't until she was leaving with Jian Cenyu that she realized what was strange: when Jian Cenyu mentioned “other people” might misunderstand, did those “other people” include Kitty?
Sang Shi'an still found it hard to believe that Jian Cenyu had agreed to an online relationship with her.
On the way, she ate whatever breakfast Jian Cenyu handed her, feeling light and floaty. She stared at Jian Cenyu walking ahead, finding it more and more incredible.
Wasn't Jian Cenyu supposed to be hard to pursue?
The campus belle that so many people had tried so hard to win over... had been won over by her so easily?
The moment she walked into the academic building, Sang Shi'an glanced at the large full-length mirror in the hallway and secretly praised her own beauty, especially her gorgeous figure.
It felt pretty great.
Before class, Sang Shi'an had sent Su Ningyue a message saying she'd found someone to cover for her, but Su Ningyue never replied, leaving Sang Shi'an with no one to confide in.
After holding it in for so long, she finally switched to her Kitty account and messaged Jian Cenyu: [Jiejie?]
Jian Cenyu replied when the bell rang for the end of class: [I was in class just now. What's up?]
Sang Shi'an typed with a nervous heart: [I just wanted to ask, Jiejie, we're officially together now, right? Your ‘Okay’ meant you agreed to be my girlfriend, right?]
Jian Cenyu: [I thought you understood last night]
[Are your reflexes that slow?]
[I was starting to think you were going to love me and leave me after you got what you wanted]
Having gotten her confirmation, Sang Shi'an's face flushed betrayingly, as if Jian Cenyu had whispered those words right in her ear.
Love me and leave me...
She, she, she had been a little rude, hadn't she.
But she had been drunk last night. She probably hadn't even seen Jian Cenyu's reply before passing out.
Of course, Sang Shi'an couldn't admit she was drunk, so she typed: [I was so scared you'd reject me, Jiejie, so I didn't dare look at my phone after sending the message. I never expected you to say yes. I've been in a daze all morning and only just now worked up the courage to ask for confirmation]
Jian Cenyu: [So I was overthinking it]
Sang Shi'an didn't know how to sweet-talk people, so she could only cater to her in the simplest way: [When you're free, Jiejie, can I make it up to you?]
Jian Cenyu didn't ask what the compensation would be; it was a tacit understanding between them: [Okay]
Sang Shi'an followed Xu Taotao and the others to their next classroom, along with the student Su Ningyue had found to cover for her.
The substitute was a third-year senior. Students in their major were worked to the bone in their first two years, but by the third year, they only had one major class a day. She could earn quite a bit of money by attending classes for others.
As they walked to the next classroom, she walked beside Sang Shi'an and asked curiously, “Junior, are you chatting with your partner?”
Sang Shi'an was using a privacy screen protector, so she wasn't worried about anyone seeing her messages. “It's the person you're covering for. She said she found another substitute for the afternoon and asked me to keep an eye out for them.”
The senior chuckled. “You second-years are so energetic, running off to have fun all day on a Monday. Not like us third-years. We just lie in our dorms all weekend, only moving our fingers to order takeout when we get hungry.”
Sang Shi'an smiled but didn't comment.
As they entered another academic building, the substitute asked again, “Junior, do you know what kind of person Senior Jian likes? She's so hard to pursue. Several guys in my class have been trying to ask her out recently, but they all got rejected.”
“It's December, with Christmas and New Year's at the end of the month. If you can win someone over in the next couple of weeks, you'll have a bunch of romantic anniversaries lined up.”
Sang Shi'an thought to herself, Is Jian Cenyu hard to pursue?
Well, I got her.
And it feels great.
“What's so strange about that? Is Senior Jian someone just anyone can pursue? When she came to be a TA and proctor our exams, she never gave out her personal contact information. She's only a little closer to Sangsang. But she does buy us milk tea and snacks sometimes. She's a really nice person.” Xu Taotao overheard and chimed in to speak up for Jian Cenyu.
The substitute senior agreed. “That's true. Even when she rejects people, she's always polite and never looks annoyed. She doesn't accept random gifts either. You're making me want to pursue her too.”
Xu Taotao teased her, “If Senior Jian liked girls at all, our Sangsang would have been snatched away long ago. You should just give up, Senior.”
The substitute laughed even louder. “True. But the forum posts about the two of them are so good to ship. Even those female CPs in the entertainment industry right now aren't as pleasing to the eye as they are.”
At this point, the substitute senior glanced at Sang Shi'an with considerable regret. “It's a pity you two are just for show. Sigh.”
Sang Shi'an: ...
At noon, Sang Shi'an was called over by Gu Yao for a short Youth League Committee meeting. It was only for the second and third-year officers, not the first-year students.
After the meeting, under Gu Yao's expectant gaze, Sang Shi'an stayed behind to transcribe a new copy of the meeting minutes. Then, taking one of the approved proposals with her, she headed to the Chemistry College.
This was the second time Sang Shi'an had delivered a Youth League Committee document for Gu Yao. The last time, she had run into a graduate student who tried to exploit her into doing an experiment. This time, however, it went smoothly, and no one stopped her.
After dropping off the document at the office, Sang Shi'an walked down the stairs and was surprised to find that many parts of the laboratory building had been renovated.
Just as she was peering inside curiously, one of the laboratory doors slid open, and she came face to face with Jian Cenyu.
Both of them froze for a moment. Jian Cenyu was the first to react, asking, “Here to deliver another document for the Youth League Committee?”
“Ah... um, yes, that's right.” After confirming that Jian Cenyu was really in an online relationship with Kitty, Sang Shi'an couldn't help but feel a little nervous when facing her, even though she was unwilling to admit that she was Kitty.
It was three parts shock, four parts a guilty conscience.
“It's almost one. Have you eaten?”
Jian Cenyu stepped aside, revealing the laboratory behind her. “I've already eaten. I'm waiting for a set of data to react right now. I saw you looking around outside just now. Want to come in and have a look?”
“Is it... convenient? Do I need to change clothes or anything?” Sang Shi'an hesitated, looking at the precise instruments and various test tubes inside.
“Come in. It's not a sterile lab, so you don't need to be so particular.” Jian Cenyu led the way, and the door automatically sensed their presence and closed behind them.
“Did your lab get a new set of lights and tables?” Sang Shi'an voiced the question she'd had from the start. “The last time I was here, the light tubes seemed much shorter, and the tables weren't this color.”
“Yes, they were just replaced over the weekend. My aunt said that since I'm the one using this lab, I shouldn't shortchange myself, so she had the company allocate funds to replace a few things.”
Jian Cenyu got a stool for Sang Shi'an and then went to the lab bench.
Sang Shi'an watched quietly for a while. When Jian Cenyu finished a few steps and had a free moment, she suddenly spoke up, as if making small talk. “Jian Cenyu, your family's company doesn't lack top-tier talent. Why do you still spend so much time in the lab?”
In Sang Shi'an's mind, Jian Cenyu pursuing a second master's at Yanjing University was for the same reason she had studied pharmacology at Oxford: so that when she took over the company, she would be able to understand her subordinates' reports and not be deceived or fobbed off.
Jian Cenyu picked up a test tube with tongs and heated it in the outer flame of an alcohol lamp for a few seconds before gently swirling it in the air. Her focused movements were elegant yet relaxed. It was a long moment before she spoke.
“Because I like it.”
Sang Shi'an looked at Jian Cenyu's pinned-up hair and softly repeated the word “like.” As she finished speaking, Jian Cenyu placed the test tube in a rack and turned to face her.
“I like brilliant things.”
Her voice was light and gentle, as if not wanting to disturb the chemical reactions in the reagents.
Sang Shi'an didn't quite understand, but she continued to look up at Jian Cenyu, facing the bright light from above.
“When reagents react, they create many brilliant colors. When elements combine, they form new substances. Some of these are known to humanity, but there are also many more unknown things. I really like the surprises it can bring.”
When she looked at Sang Shi'an, her light-colored eyes had lost their usual coolness. The light reflected in them, sparkling like stars.
Sang Shi'an's voice was very low. “But in many people's eyes, chemistry is a dry and tedious subject, one that's enough to wear down a scholar's sharp edges and make them rigid and uninteresting, just like...”
Just like the impression Jian Cenyu gave people. That cool, moon-like aura seemed to separate her from everyone else at the university, as if the hustle and bustle of the mortal world were an offense to her.
Jian Cenyu seemed to understand Sang Shi'an's unspoken words. She lowered her head, chuckled softly, and said, “Just like me, right?”
Sang Shi'an felt her words were a bit offensive and immediately shook her head in denial. “No, no, no, I didn't say that. I meant, just like the equipment in the lab.”
“You can think of it that way if you like.” Jian Cenyu was silent for a moment, as if she were thinking or perhaps choosing her words.
Her gaze returned to Sang Shi'an's face as she said, “But the brilliant things I like are not limited to chemistry experiments.”
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