Su Yan and Cen Qingqing

When did it start? This habit of feeling sorry for Cen Qingqing—was it the day Zheng Chong’s verdict came down? Yes, and yet not only then. The power of something that seeps in quietly is that you can never quite find its trace. By the time you look back, all that remains is a blur; by then, it has already changed you completely.

Su Yan had been through too much. No matter how bright and easygoing she seemed on the surface, there was always a dead pool somewhere inside her. Those things had already become part of her body. To rid herself of them would be as hard as an organ tearing itself away from the body on its own.

Sometimes, no matter how happy she was, the moment she thought of those things, every cell in her body went cold and lifeless, unable to stir at all.

On the road from home to Nanjing City, people had tried to pry open her door in the middle of the night to do unspeakable things. People had cursed her entire family. People had toyed with her like she was an ant pinched between their fingers. Her life had once been so cheap, and yet someone had once been willing to hold it carefully in their hands.

But heaven was blind. Someone that good hadn’t even been given a decent burial.

After leaving the hospital, everyone around Su Yan noticed that something was off. They looked questioningly at Qin Qingyan; Qin Qingyan only shrugged, saying she didn’t know either.

Bai Ruo suddenly crooked two fingers in a mysterious gesture, pointing to her own eyes and then at Su Yan. Qin Qingyan glanced at Li Xian; Li Xian nodded too. So she gave a small nod, agreeing.

The next morning, Su Yan said she had something to do and left in a hurry. Qin Qingyan immediately called them; she hired a car and followed after her without drawing attention.

The car stopped by the cemetery. Su Yan, carrying flowers and a pile of snacks, walked alone toward the rows of tombstones. By the time Bai Ruo and Li Xian arrived, they saw Qin Qingyan there and quietly went over.

"This place is creepy as hell. Why did Su Yan come here?" Bai Ruo said, pulling up her hoodie as a light rain began to fall.

The three of them hid off to the side and watched Su Yan.

Li Xian said softly, "Her family isn’t far from Nanjing City, right? Who is she paying respects to?"

Qin Qingyan understood then. So that was it. "Let’s go. She probably doesn’t want anyone to see her like this."

Bai Ruo and Li Xian looked at her together. Though confused, neither asked anything; they left in silence.

The rain fell lightly, not enough to be alarming, but enough to soak through clothes if it went on long enough. Su Yan hadn’t brought an umbrella; from the look of her, even if she had, she might not have opened it anyway.

Su Yan set down in front of Cen Qingqing’s gravestone a pile of things she had liked when she was alive, along with a bunch of ginger lilies. Even though they had been cut for some time, the petals were still tender and fresh.

The surrounding graves were all spotless, clearly tended by someone; the offerings on them were regularly replaced. Only Cen Qingqing’s grave had nothing but accumulated dust. The Cen family had brought back her belongings only so they could set this stone up in front of the cameras; that was all.

Even if Cen Qingqing had truly been innocent, she was still a laughingstock. The Cen family wouldn’t let their own reputation be ruined for the sake of one daughter. In fact, perhaps they would have preferred that Cen Qingqing had died.

Su Yan rested a hand on Cen Qingqing’s tombstone. "More than Zheng Chong getting what he deserved, I care about you being able to live well."

So even after Zheng Chong was sent to prison, she hadn’t felt as happy as she had imagined.

Her shoulders trembled faintly, but not a sound escaped her.

The rain went on, neither heavy nor light. Water began pooling in the low spots on the ground; just when one puddle was about to overflow, footsteps would splash through it, and then the water would gather again.

Qin Qingyan, Bai Ruo, and Li Xian waited together in a restaurant. Su Yan spotted them through the glass, smiled, and waved before jogging over.

"So even you, Miss Bai, have a generous day for once? You actually invited us? Then I’m definitely eating my fill," Su Yan said as she sat down.

Ever since Qin Qingyan had told her about Cen Qingqing, Bai Ruo looked at Su Yan with deep pity. She simply couldn’t bring herself to banter with her as she usually did.

"Hey, it’s just one meal. I can afford that much. Eat whatever you want," Bai Ruo said, forcing a cheerful smile.

Su Yan gave them a strange look. Something felt off. "What’s wrong with you two? Did something happen? You all seem kind of unhappy."

Under the table, Qin Qingyan nudged Bai Ruo’s arm. Bai Ruo could only force herself to speak.

"It’s my great-aunt’s son. He’s been loafing around all day, and this time he actually hit someone. The other side won’t settle; they want to take it to court," Bai Ruo said indignantly. "Honestly, people like that. If they’re useless, fine, but they still have to go around causing trouble for everyone else. Just asking for it."

So that was it. Su Yan nodded in understanding. That really was infuriating.

"Enough about that nonsense. The steak here is famous; don’t hold back. It’s on me, and I’ll make sure you’re full."

The first time Qin Qingyan attended the Golden Ro Award ceremony was when she was twenty. Unfortunately, she hadn’t been in the industry long enough; she was still a few months short. Otherwise, as far as the majority of online commenters were concerned, she should at least have received a nomination.

The audience seats were filled with big names from the entertainment industry. In the front row were major investors and several well-known directors.

One award after another was announced by the host, followed by the winners’ names. At the very end came the Golden Ro Best Actor and Best Actress awards. As the camera swept across the audience, when it caught Qin Qingyan, it seemed to pause for a few seconds, whether deliberately or not.

Qin Qingyan gave the camera a slight nod and smiled.

The netizens staring at their screens immediately started hammering out bullet comments, afraid of missing anything. Far away from Nanjing City, someone else also noticed her; they hurriedly dropped the documents in their hands and leaned toward their daughter’s phone. That fleeting figure seemed like an illusion as it vanished.

Their daughter had never seen him so shaken and asked, puzzled, "Dad, what’s wrong?"

The man pointed at the screen, staring urgently at his daughter. His voice trembled slightly. "Who was that person just now?"

"Qin Qingyan. Dad, you think she’s pretty too, right? I’ve been a fan of hers lately," his daughter said with a sweet smile.

The man sank back into the sofa. After a long while, he slowly got up and went upstairs, not even glancing at the documents scattered on the floor.

When the awards ceremony ended, Qin Qingyan was about to leave when someone stopped her. Yu Qingyan, holding Zheng Jingteng’s arm, walked toward her with an elegant sway.

"Something wrong?" Qin Qingyan asked, keeping her manners. The cameras nearby were still rolling; she couldn’t leave anyone with something to say about her.

"Since you’re here too, we thought we’d come say hello. Jingteng and I haven’t seen you in ages," Yu Qingyan said with a smile.

"Miss Qin, long time no see," Zheng Jingteng said with a proper, gentlemanly smile.

"I’ve long heard the Xu Family places great importance on Mr. Zheng, and for that reason invested in him. Looking at things now, Mr. Zheng hasn’t disappointed them. Whether it’s your acting or anything else, you’re quite surprising," Qin Qingyan said, her gaze flicking meaningfully toward Yu Qingyan.

Yu Qingyan caught the implication in her words, but the setting prevented her from reacting. She could only keep smiling.

"At such a young age, Miss Qin already has such high-quality work. Perhaps the next Golden Ro Award will land in Miss Qin’s hands," Zheng Jingteng said.

"I’ll borrow your good words," Qin Qingyan said. "Su Su is still waiting for me, so I’ll excuse myself first."

After she left, Yu Qingyan watched her retreating figure, a smile still on her lips, but her words were especially mocking. "I remember you used to flirt with her. How did you become so polished and proper now?"

She only had Zheng Jingteng’s support to rely on, but she had still assumed he would help her a little. She hadn’t expected him to let Qin Qingyan look down on her like that.

"Don’t think I don’t know what you’re after. You’ve been up to no good all these years, and now that you see her climbing higher and higher, you want to curry favor with her too?" Yu Qingyan said.

Zheng Jingteng held himself back, his expression dark. He was just about to pull his hand free when Yu Qingyan tightened her grip.

"There are so many people watching. What do you think you’re doing?" Yu Qingyan said, smiling faintly at the fans in the distance who were greeting her.

"I’m warning you; don’t push it," Zheng Jingteng said.

Yu Qingyan paid no attention to the threat. Just as she had been able to blackmail Zheng Chong, she happened to be holding leverage that was enough to ruin Zheng Jingteng completely.

Perhaps even the whole Xu Family.

But she also knew that those things were only useful when flashed at the right moment. Push too far, and one Xu Family could take her down with ease. She kept the balance between those extremes with great skill.

Yan Yue habitually had the television on, even though she never watched it. She was sitting on the sofa handling files on her computer when there was suddenly movement at the door. The only people besides her who had the password to the place were Qin Qingyan and the others.

Over the past year or two, Qin Qingyan had come to find her from time to time; to make things more convenient, Yan Yue had entered her fingerprint and facial recognition into the system.

Sure enough, the one who opened the door was Qin Qingyan, with Yan Huan and Su Yan beside her.

What Yan Yue noticed first was Qin Qingyan. She was wearing a coat over a red evening dress she hadn’t yet changed out of, the faint outline of a slender waist visible beneath it. That color suited her skin beautifully; besides, Qin Qingyan was already fair. Her hair was slightly curled, every detail from head to toe carefully done. She was the kind of presence people had no choice but to notice in a crowd.

"Sis, I missed you," Yan Huan said, sitting beside her and staring at her with shining eyes.

Yan Yue smiled and rubbed her head. "Eat first, then go home?"

"Mm-hmm."

Qin Qingyan and Su Yan also sat down. As Yan Yue felt the sofa sink beside her, a cool, clean fragrance drifted over; it was the one Qin Qingyan used most often.

Glancing sideways, Yan Yue asked, "Why didn’t you change your clothes?"

"I didn’t have time to go home. I ran into Huanhuan on the way, so we came straight over together," Qin Qingyan said, looking at her. The affection in her eyes was completely unhidden.

Yan Yue nodded and, after sending a few files, closed the computer.

"I only have tea and milk here. What do you want to drink?" Yan Yue asked.

Su Yan said, "Milk is fine."

Yan Huan said, "I want milk too."

"What do you want to drink?" Qin Qingyan asked, standing up and cutting in before her.

Yan Yue understood immediately. "I’ve brewed some tea; I’ll have tea."

"Okay." Qin Qingyan smiled, meeting Yan Yue’s gaze. Their interaction seemed to have become more and more natural lately; that was a very good thing.

Qin Qingyan walked to the fridge with practiced ease and brought back two bottles of milk, handing them to the others. After being with Yan Yue, she had done her best to bring her life closer to Yan Yue’s—for example, learning to drink tea. At first, she had only done it to feel the things Yan Yue liked. But before long, she had gradually fallen in love with it herself.

The air-conditioning was on inside, and after several cups of hot tea, Qin Qingyan felt warm from the inside out. She took off her outer coat, revealing a delicate collarbone and slender arms.

Yan Yue noticed the movement and thought for a moment before saying, "You all chat first. I’ll go get something." She went around the sofa and back to her room.