Chapter 26: I Didn’t Even Blush, Why Are You Blushing?

He Tingzhou leisurely enjoyed his cake, seemingly oblivious to her.

Shuangxu looked at him, trying to get him to control his dog: “It’s licking me.”

He Tingzhou didn’t even raise his eyelids: “It’s hungry.”

?

If it’s hungry, then go eat dog food.

Shuangxu was exasperated. She moved a little further away, placing her hand on the side furthest from the dog. She was thankful she was wearing long pants today.

“Don’t you… have dog food at home?”

He was busy feeding himself but didn’t even think to feed the dog, making it so hungry it was licking people.

“No.”

“Then what does it usually eat?”

He Tingzhou finished half his cake, put down his fork, leaned back lazily, and glanced at her, saying, “It eats meat.”

She knew he was mischievous and liked to tease her, but she was genuinely a little scared.

She decided to leave immediately, getting up from the sofa: “I’m going back.”

He Tingzhou didn’t say anything, leaning back against the leather sofa with his index finger propping up his temple, calmly watching her.

Shuangxu looked around, caught in a dilemma.

He Tingzhou was sitting on her left, and the dog was on her right. To get out of here, she had to pass one of them.

Hesitating between He Tingzhou and the dog for a moment… should she climb over the back of the sofa? Or jump over the coffee table?

Forget it, that’s too undignified.

“Brother Tingzhou，can you make it move away for a second?” she said. “I can’t get out.”

He Tingzhou，unconcerned, didn’t intend to help: “Talk to it yourself.”

“…”

Shuangxu looked at the imposing adult Doberman, trying to communicate with a good attitude: “Can you move a little?”

The dog didn’t seem to understand.

The dog lay down on the spot.

Shuangxu let out a long sigh and walked towards He Tingzhou.

At least He Tingzhou wouldn’t bite.

The distance between the sofa and the coffee table was enough for one person to pass through. However, He Tingzhou’s legs were long, almost blocking the entire passage.

He sat comfortably, like a lord, with no intention of moving.

Shuangxu didn’t want to ask him to move his precious feet again. She simply lifted her foot, carefully stepping sideways over his legs.

Her front foot landed firmly, but her back foot tripped over him unexpectedly, causing her to lose her balance and fall forward.

He Tingzhou watched coldly, not offering any support.

When people fall, their instincts are not something the brain can control. In a moment of panic, Shuangxu instinctively reached out to support herself.

When she realized what she was doing, she discovered her hand was pressed against He Tingzhou’s thigh.

He Tingzhou glanced down at it, then raised his eyes.

Shuangxu was caught off guard by the dark, swirling depths of his eyes.

“You fell pretty naturally,” He Tingzhou commented with raised eyebrows. “Does it feel good?”

The hand controlled by her survival instincts regained its sense of touch with his words. The muscles under her palm were firm and strong, making her almost imagine their fierce explosiveness.

Shuangxu immediately retracted her hand as if burned, blushing profusely as she apologized: “I’m sorry.”

He Tingzhou stared at her with deep eyes, but his expression seemed carefree: “You touched me, and I didn’t even blush. Why are you blushing?”

“I didn’t mean to touch you,” Shuangxu quietly put her hands behind her back, trying to cover it up.

“You wouldn’t let me pass.”

He Tingzhou’s lips curled up slightly, teasingly: “Pass where?”

It was two ordinary and common words, without any special meaning. But for some reason, Shuangxu’s face felt burning hot, perhaps because of those eyes.

He Tingzhou had high cheekbones and deep eye sockets, making his eyes exceptionally sharp, giving off a sense of distance and aloofness most of the time.

But as soon as he smiled slightly, his eyes became affectionate and charming.

“I returned your clothes, and I’ll consider the cake as my treat. We’re even. Goodbye.” After she finished speaking, she turned and left.

He Tingzhou watched her retreating figure, which was calm yet contained a hint of panic. The dog was also staring at her back.

After Shuangxu’s figure disappeared, He Tingzhou looked away, and the dog boredly lay down on the ground.

Shuangxu had never been in love, not even half a time. Her liking for Shen Yu had just begun to sprout when it was nipped in the bud.

No matter how calm and composed she appeared, she was still a blank sheet of paper untouched by love.

After leaving the house, she pressed her palm against her cheek, manually cooling herself down.

He Tingzhou knew she liked Shen Yu，and the phrase “love and loss” was a cruel blow.

Shuangxu also knew he was teasing her, but how did things seem to be going off the rails?

Wait… He Tingzhou wouldn’t actually think she was secretly in love with him, would he?

Back at her home on Songming Road, she scrolled through her WeChat Moments before bed and saw Lu Manman’s new post.

She had been hanging out with Yue Zifeng and his group a lot lately. As Shen Yu’s fiancée and He Tingzhou’s cousin, she naturally received a lot of preferential treatment.

Plus, her cheerful and outgoing personality made it easy for her to win people over.

She was quickly integrating into Shen Yu’s circle.

It was originally Shuangxu’s circle too.

It would be hypocritical to say she was welcome, and it wouldn’t be accurate to say she was excluded. It was just a damp, indescribable mist that permeated her chest, not causing pain, but unknowingly soaking her clothes.

Shuangxu gave it a like and scrolled past.

She really wanted to talk to Shu Yang，but it was too late, and he was probably asleep. Chemotherapy was too damaging to his body, and each session took half his life.

She didn’t have many friends. If it weren’t for Shu Yang’s chance encounter with her, she would have resisted making friends.

So now she had no one to talk to.

She used to have a good friend she could tell everything to, but eventually, all the secrets she shared turned into knives stabbing her in the back.

Shuangxu put her phone aside and forced herself to close her eyes and go to sleep.

She saw Lu Manman again at the hair salon. Shuangxu was getting her hair trimmed and was about to leave when a group of chattering women walked in.

Lu Manman and Song Leyan were surrounded by a group of socialites, including the twins she had met at Shen Yu’s birthday party.

“Leyan, isn’t that your sister?” someone noticed her first.

Song Leyan was two years younger than Shuangxu. She looked five parts like Cui Ning and five parts like Song Mianzhi, while Shuangxu completely inherited her mother’s features.

However, Song Leyan was spoiled and willful, lacking any of Cui Ning’s grace. She was only twenty years old, and with a bright and arrogant face, she rolled her eyes, crossed her arms, and scoffed, “What are you talking about? I’m an only child, where would I have a sister?”

Her friends, who always flattered her, immediately agreed, “That’s right, your grandpa and your dad don’t even acknowledge her.”

“Director Song even took her abroad when he was transferred, and her mother doesn’t want her either. You know how much she must hate her. Even her own parents don’t want her.”

Shuangxu didn’t bother to pay attention, not even giving them a glance.

Lu Manman spoke up for her, “You guys are being a bit too harsh. Xiao Jiu is my friend too.”

The twins immediately reminded her with a heavy tone, “Manman, don’t be fooled by her innocent appearance. You consider her a friend, but you don’t know what she did to Shen…”

Shuangxu, who had already reached the door, stopped and turned back to look at them.