PANT - Chapter 19
Chapter 19
The next morning, the dong dong dong of construction came from upstairs. Shi Ning cursed under her breath and reached out, fumbling around her side. Her phone was sitting securely on the nightstand. She picked it up and glanced at it—it was only 7:40.
The sound of hammering on the walls was a constant racket, like someone was churning mud inside her brain. Annoyed, she opened her browser and did a quick search. The regulations were the same as in the world she’d come from. The state stipulated construction hours: on weekdays, work normally started at 8 a.m. It was only 7:40 now, so the people upstairs were clearly in violation.
Shi Ning threw off the covers and got up, her nightgown hanging loosely on her frame. She glanced at the bed. Su Tianxue, who had slept beside her last night, was already gone. On the spot where she had slept, the pillow was plumped up and fluffy. The quilt was also neatly arranged, folded into a perfect square like a block of tofu cut with a sharp blade, giving it a somewhat military feel.
Looking over at her own side, the spot where Shi Ning had slept was a mess. The high-thread-count cotton fabric was all wrinkled and twisted. When she got up, she hadn’t bothered to make the bed, just casually tossing the covers aside.
Their two styles were distinct and completely different.
Somehow, just looking at it, Shi Ning actually started to smile. By the time she realized what she was doing, she had already picked up her phone and taken a picture.
A special kind of bed photo.
Oh, not bad.
Shi Ning put her phone away. Her mood, which had been extremely irritated by the construction noise just moments ago, had improved considerably. Phone in hand, she pushed open the door. Hearing the sound, the two people outside both looked over at the same time.
Su Tianxue and Su Wanxing were sitting at the dining table, positioned directly opposite Shi Ning. Su Tianxue was drinking coffee, while Su Wanxing was holding a glass of warm milk, a little milk mustache on her upper lip. They seemed a bit shocked to see her.
Su Wanxing had just woken up, and seeing Shi Ning emerge from the room, her mind was still a bit foggy. She hadn’t yet processed why Shi Ning was here.
Although the woman had a despicable personality and was rotten to the core, Su Wanxing had to admit that Shi Ning was very beautiful. Having just woken up, she was leaning against the doorframe, her curly red hair hanging lazily. A small red mole dotted her lovely collarbone, making her look even sexier.
Shi Ning noticed Su Wanxing’s gaze lingering on her for too long and raised an eyebrow, teasing, “Stunned by what you see?”
Su Wanxing snapped back to reality and instinctively turned to see her sister’s reaction, only to meet her calm eyes, which made her feel even more ashamed. She retorted at Shi Ning, “Pah! You’re just a pretty face with a rotten core! Who’s stunned by you? I-I was looking at a puppy!”
Shi Ning: “Oh? Then you’re looking at the right thing. I am a puppy.”
Su Wanxing: Huh??
Shi Ning’s gaze shifted to Su Tianxue, her thin lips curling into a smile filled with hidden meaning.
“After all, your sister has firsthand experience with that.”
Su Wanxing didn’t understand. She turned to look at Su Tianxue in confusion, only to see her sister lift her cup, down the rest of her coffee in one gulp, and get up to rinse it in the kitchen.
Shi Ning showed no signs of being a stranger. As soon as Su Tianxue left, she deliberately moved closer and pulled out the chair next to Su Wanxing to sit down, causing Su Wanxing to shriek, “Y-You’re not allowed to sit here!”
“Wanxing, what’s wrong?” Jiang Ningran had just washed her face and changed into a new set of clothes. But Shi Ning could tell at a glance that the clothes belonged to Su Tianxue. Seeing this, she pressed her tongue against the inside of her cheek, her beautiful peach-blossom eyes filled with displeasure.
This Jiang Ningran, why the hell was she wearing someone else’s wife’s clothes?
Shi Ning looked up, her eyes meeting Jiang Ningran’s innocent expression. She smiled breezily. “Morning, Junior Jiang.”
“It’s nothing, I was just teasing little sister Wanxing, right?”
Su Wanxing was extremely wary. “Who’s your little sister Wanxing?”
Shi Ning blinked. “I’m your sister’s friend. By all rights, I should call you little sister. Unless… you’d like to change our relationship? Then of course, I don’t have to call you that.”
Su Wanxing slammed her glass of milk down on the table. “Shi Ning! Show some respect! I have a girlfriend!”
Shi Ning’s expression was that of someone enjoying a good show. “Oh?”
Jiang Ningran frowned for a moment, a hint of anticipation in her eyes, as if she were waiting for Su Wanxing to say who her girlfriend was. After all, just yesterday, she had asked Su Wanxing to be with her.
As for Su Tianxue, she heard the commotion and came out of the kitchen with a plate of freshly steamed frozen buns. She placed them in front of Shi Ning, and just as Shi Ning was looking up at her with moved, starry puppy-dog eyes, she turned to Su Wanxing and said impassively, “How come I didn’t know?”
Su Wanxing cleared her throat, took out her phone, and flipped it over. Tucked inside the transparent case was a photo of a woman. The woman was holding a microphone, her smile bold and unrestrained.
Shi Ning nodded. “Got it. A girlfriend fan.”
The novel never mentioned that Su Wanxing was a fan of a celebrity. It seemed either the author couldn’t be bothered to write it, or this world wasn’t exactly the same as the novel. That made sense, she supposed. Even the longest novel was at most a few million words, but a complete world contained far more than a million people. How could a few million words possibly capture the entirety of a vibrant life?
At least Su Wanxing had a little hobby.
Shi Ning asked curiously, “Who’s this?”
Hearing her question, Su Wanxing’s eyes widened, her girlfriend-fan instincts kicking in. “You don’t know who this is?”
Shi Ning: “…Why should I know? She’s not my mother.”
Su Wanxing pressed a hand to the philtrum below her nose, feeling like she was about to stop breathing.
Jiang Ningran explained, “This is Wanxing’s favorite idol, Zhu Yu. She went solo after debuting in a girl group and is very popular now.”
Good, Shi Ning thought. She’d never heard that name in the plot. She definitely wasn’t one of Su Wanxing’s several Alphas.
Wait-
Shi Ning opened her phone, scrolled to a contact, opened their WeChat profile, and held it out to Su Wanxing, lifting her chin slightly. “Here, take a look. Is this the Zhu Yu you’re talking about?”
Su Wanxing glanced at it and froze. When she tried to speak, she couldn’t form a single clear word. “Sh-Shi Ning, y-y-y-you… how do you know-”
Shi Ning took a bite of a bun and answered casually, “It’s perfectly normal for a boss to know their employee, isn’t it?”
Su Wanxing’s voice rose. “Boss?”
The braised pork bun was fragrant. The outside was soft, and the inside was filled with tender, fatty pork. It was delicious. Shi Ning looked up at Su Tianxue. “Wifey…”
She had been about to call her ‘Wife,’ but Su Tianxue gave her a cool look, so Shi Ning changed her tune. “Sis, these buns you made are delicious.”
Su Tianxue: “I bought them online. They’re frozen buns.”
Shi Ning: “Well, you steamed them deliciously.”
Su Tianxue couldn’t be bothered with her. “I’m going to work. Ningran, go home soon. Su Wanxing, send me a message before you go out.”
After hearing her give out instructions, Shi Ning obediently asked, “What about me?”
“You?” Su Tianxue chuckled lightly. “You’re free.”
Shi Ning: …Help, she didn’t want freedom right now!
The moment Su Tianxue closed the door and left, Shi Ning felt the entire apartment become boring. Sigh. She let out a breath, a bun hanging from her mouth as she leaned back in her chair.
Su Wanxing’s mind was racing. She glanced at Shi Ning, then glanced again.
Shi Ning sighed. “If you have something to say, just say it. Stop acting like a thief.”
Su Wanxing gripped the handle of her glass, a little nervous. “I was just wondering… um, Shi… CEO Shi, are you thinking of going to work today? C-Could you take me with you?”
She wanted to see Zhu Yu, just once, and tell her to be careful of this terrifying woman, Shi Ning! Ugh, if something like the ‘unspoken rules’ happened, Su Wanxing didn’t dare to imagine it.
“Sure,” Shi Ning agreed easily.
Su Wanxing’s eyes lit up.
Having been ignored for a long time, Jiang Ningran couldn’t stand it anymore. She stepped forward and asked with feigned obedience, “Then, Senior, can I go with you?”
Jiang Ningran didn’t want to let Shi Ning and Su Wanxing be alone together, nor did she want Su Wanxing to meet Zhu Yu.
…In her past life, there was no such person as Zhu Yu. In this life, Jiang Ningran was afraid that if Su Wanxing met Zhu Yu, it would cause another unexpected complication.
Su Wanxing was frantically shaking her head on the inside, but she was afraid Jiang Ningran would notice and retaliate. Who knew what this person was capable of! After the past two days, Su Wanxing was certain that the person in front of her wasn’t her lovely Jiang Ningran at all, but a lunatic. Compared to being with Jiang Ningran, even a scumbag like Shi Ning seemed refreshingly decent.
Shi Ning noticed the subtle tension between Jiang Ningran and Su Wanxing. She clicked her tongue and said, “No, you can’t.”
“I don’t know you well, Junior Jiang. Besides, I don’t like you.” Shi Ning’s voice was laced with a smile, but her eyes were ice-cold. She stood up and glanced at Su Wanxing. “Give me ten minutes to change, and then we’ll go.”
The moment she entered the bedroom, Jiang Ningran’s face darkened, and she advanced on Su Wanxing step by step. Su Wanxing trembled with fear and disgust.
Jiang Ningran’s voice was hoarse. “Wanxing, why did you ask to go with Shi Ning? Do you like her? Su Wanxing, you really are a slut. It doesn’t matter whether those things happened or not, you’re still so promiscuous. If you’re like this, why did you seduce me that day? Why did you go to the hotel with me? I should have fucked you then. If I permanently marked you, you’d belong to me, wouldn’t you?”
Su Wanxing was frantic, and tears immediately started to fall. “Jiang Ningran, I told you, I don’t remember anything from that day! I-I wasn’t in my right mind… I’m sorry, it was my fault, okay? Can you please let me go?”
Jiang Ningran suppressed her emotions, her hand tightening around Su Wanxing’s neck. She was about to do something more when a pair of hands suddenly grabbed her collar from behind, yanking it tight and creating a choking sensation. Jiang Ningran’s eyes widened. She instantly released her grip on Su Wanxing and instinctively clawed at her own neck.
Su Wanxing collapsed to the floor. She looked up at Shi Ning, who was standing behind Jiang Ningran, and covered her mouth as tears streamed down her face.
Shi Ning lifted Jiang Ningran up like a baby chick, pulled her close, and leaned in to whisper in her ear, “Junior Jiang, I’m still in this house. Don’t treat me like I’m dead, and I’m not deaf, okay?”
With a flick of her hand, Shi Ning tossed Jiang Ningran to the floor. She glanced at Su Wanxing, who was crying uncontrollably, and frowned deeply.
Her wife leaves and trouble starts at home. If her wife found out, wouldn’t she blame her?
No, she had to handle this.
Shi Ning grabbed a pack of tissues, squatted down, and placed it beside Su Wanxing. Her voice was gentle. “Don’t forget to wipe your tears when you’re tired of crying.” She knew Su Wanxing hated her, so she didn’t offer any further comfort. After that, she stood up, walked over to Jiang Ningran, and lifted her foot, pressing her pink bunny-ear slipper onto Jiang Ningran’s face. Shi Ning’s tone was light, but her eyes were vicious. “Speak. What exactly did you do to her?”
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