Chapter 20

After drinking the lemon water, Qiao Yumi felt dizzy and his head began to throb.

At the same time, he experienced acid reflux in his throat, making him feel nauseous.

Although he had prepared himself to bear the consequences when he decided to drink the lemon water, the burning pain in his esophagus from the stomach acid still made him feel miserable. It got worse when he touched the rash on his face, making him feel as though the sky was about to collapse.

He hadn’t had lemon in so long that he forgot about his allergy and the red rashes it caused.

He didn’t even need to look in a mirror—he could easily imagine how ugly his face must look right now… How could he possibly face Jiang Caifu like this?

He kept vomiting until his stomach was empty.

Taking a few slow, deep breaths to steady himself, he left the bathroom stall and approached the sink.

Under the bright light of the bathroom, the mirror nearby reflected his face, now covered with red splotches.

He could barely stand it after just one glance and quickly turned his head away, unable to bear looking.

Damn it!

He hid his face in his hands, bent over, and quietly groaned, “Why is this happening—”

It was even worse than he imagined, and how was he supposed to go out and face people like this?

What if he left her with a psychological scar and she never wanted to see him again?

The very thought shattered Qiao Yumi’s fragile heart.

Breathe. Stay calm. Keep it together.

He took several deep breaths.

It wasn’t a big deal. As long as she didn’t see his face, it would be fine. As long as he could get through today without her saying those things he didn’t want to hear, it would be fine…

He kept reassuring himself, doing his best to piece together his broken heart.

Slowly removing his hands from his face, he encouraged himself silently and then, stubbornly, looked into the mirror again. Two seconds later, he closed his eyes in discomfort, unable to bear it.

He swore never to use such a foolish tactic again.

But now, there was no choice but to try and salvage the situation.

With his head down, he splashed cold water on his face to cool down, wiped it dry, then ruffled his hair to cover the marks on his forehead and pulled his scarf higher to cover his mouth and nose.

When he looked at himself in the mirror again, at least he no longer saw those horrifying marks.

He exhaled deeply, releasing a sigh of relief.

It was time to go; she might be getting anxious waiting.

---

Perhaps it was because he had forced himself to vomit so hard that it caused insufficient blood flow to his brain, but during the short walk from the bathroom, he felt lightheaded, as if he were walking on clouds. Every step felt uncertain, as though he might collapse at any moment.

It wasn’t until he entered the lobby, which led to the private room, that he suddenly stopped in his tracks upon seeing a familiar figure sitting on the sofa.

It was Jiang Caifu.

How could she be sitting here?

His sluggish brain slowly processed this question, and before he could even form a guess, his gaze immediately shifted to the unfamiliar man sitting beside her.

At that moment.

The man was staring directly at Jiang Caifu, talking to her in a soft, cheerful voice, with a warm smile on his face. From Jiang Caifu’s expression, he didn’t even need to get close to see her face; just hearing her bright and cheerful voice made it clear that they were having a pleasant conversation.

In an instant, Qiao Yumi felt as though he had been hit by a hammer. The blow made his head spin, and the surrounding noise faded away, leaving only a loud ringing in his ears.

Who was that?

Why was he so close to Jiang Caifu? Why was he staring at her so intensely? His eyes were almost glowing green! And that ridiculous grin—so stupid!

Qiao Yumi hated that bright, straightforward smile to the core. Every time he saw it, it reminded him of another face with a similarly bright but annoying smile…

He had only left for a little while, so why was there another man by her side so quickly?

Damn, damn, damn!

He shut his eyes, feeling the blood rush to his head, the sharp, piercing alarm bells ringing in his mind. His already dizzy brain became even more clouded, and when he opened his eyes again, he saw black spots in his vision, like he was about to faint.

No, no, no—

Calm down. Stay rational. Keep it together.

He pressed his throbbing temples, and just then, Jiang Caifu finally noticed him. She quickly walked over, asking him questions, her eyes full of concern.

“How do you feel? Are you feeling nauseous…?”

The buzzing in his ears slowly shifted to her anxious but gentle voice.

Qiao Yumi looked down at her, suddenly realizing that, after hearing her concerned words, he didn’t feel the happiness he had imagined. Instead, he felt a strange, sour sensation, like the lemon water was making its way up his esophagus again, bringing with it a sense of frustration that was hard to swallow but even harder to vomit out.

He sniffed and, with a stomach full of questions, he asked—

“Why were you talking so happily with that man? When did you meet him? What’s your relationship with him? Did you think of me while talking to him?”

But all those words stuck in his throat. His Adam’s apple bobbed a few times, and in the end, all he could ask was the simplest three words:

“Who is he?”

He gazed deeply at her face, not missing a single micro-expression.

Hearing the question, she blinked in surprise, glanced at the man, and without thinking, answered immediately, “Oh, he’s an old classmate from high school. His name is Yuan Che.”

Her expression was innocent.

The words came out so straightforward and pure, without a hint of hidden intent.

Qiao Yumi felt a little bit of relief inside.

But soon, that subtle feeling of dissatisfaction resurfaced.

Did she really just answer the one question he asked, and nothing more? Was there nothing else to explain?

He wanted to ask her these questions, but he knew clearly that once those words left his mouth, even if she didn’t say anything on the surface, she would definitely think he was being unreasonable.

Forget it. Silence is golden. If he could avoid being scolded, then he’d rather not say anything.

His mind raced as he swallowed his unspoken words, preparing to leave with Jiang Caifu. But then, the man who had been staring at her also stood up, asking her gently,

“Is he your boyfriend?”

Qiao Yumi’s mind instantly sounded the alarm, his hair nearly standing on end.

What did he mean by “Is he, your boyfriend?”?

What kind of sarcastic tone was that?!

Who gave him the right to ask such a question?

He glared fiercely at Yuan Che, sizing him up from head to toe with the most critical of eyes—hm, his face was just average, definitely not as delicate as his, and his body was nothing special either, though he was slightly bulkier than him…

But Jiang Caifu had said before that she liked slender builds! She liked tall, lean physiques!

So he definitely had the advantage!

With that thought, Qiao Yumi’s mood calmed just a little bit.

But only a little, not enough to stop him from glaring at Jiang Caifu with a more intense gaze.

He wanted to see how she would define their relationship!

“Uh, he…” Jiang Caifu awkwardly smiled and immediately denied it without hesitation, “He’s not.”

Qiao Yumi: …?

They had dated for at least three years, and she wouldn’t even call him her “ex-boyfriend”?

Yuan Che immediately laughed, “Oh, I see.”

His gaze floated carelessly over to Qiao Yumi, whose aura seemed almost tangible with its dark energy, and the corner of his mouth lifted slightly into a smile that, while polite and warm toward Jiang Caifu, seemed malicious to Qiao Yumi.

“Why is this gentleman hiding his face with a scarf? Is there something inconvenient about it?”

“…!”

The anger that nearly burned away all of Qiao Yumi’s rationality miraculously extinguished at that moment.

With a grim face, he quickly pulled his scarf up again, afraid that Yuan Che’s gaze might penetrate the layers of fabric and reveal the unsightly rash on his face.

Damn it, he had completely forgotten about his allergy…

“It’s none of your business.”

He answered gruffly, his voice raspy and dark like a snake ready to strike from a damp, shadowy place, sending a chill through the air.

However, Jiang Caifu caught a glimpse of him and immediately sensed the bluff.

She patted his back soothingly and explained to Yuan Che with a smile, “He’s extremely socially anxious, terrified of meeting strangers, and he just caught a contagious flu, so…”

What a ridiculous excuse. Even she felt like laughing.

But clearly, Qiao Yumi was extremely appreciative of her defending him in this way. His once cold gaze softened, and when he looked at her, there was a faint shimmer in his eyes, overflowing with unspoken pride.

See? She really cared about him, didn’t she?

Otherwise, why would she defend him like that?

She clearly didn’t want him to be mocked by other men!

Jiang Caifu pushed him toward the exit, unaware of the countless assumptions he was making in his mind, “We have other things to do, we’re leaving now… Hope you enjoy your dinner with your family tonight?”

Yuan Che opened his mouth but hadn’t spoken when Qiao Yumi pretended to be surprised and asked Jiang Caifu, “Aren’t we eating?”

Jiang Caifu’s brow twitched. She lowered her voice and said, “With your allergy this bad, you still want to eat?”

He covered his face well, and if he dared say it wasn’t a big deal, she wouldn’t believe him.

Qiao Yumi lowered his voice too, trying not to let a third person hear, “But you must be really hungry, right? Just eat here, I can go to the hospital on my own.”

He paused for a moment, his voice becoming softer, carrying a hint of complaint, “It’s not the first time I’ve gone to the hospital alone. I’ll be fine, just go home after eating. I’ll take care of the bill.”

Jiang Caifu: “…”

He sounded so pitiful that if she really left him alone to eat, she’d seem heartless, wouldn’t she?

Though, to be honest, she didn’t think she had much of a ‘heart’ in the first place.

“Stop talking nonsense, hurry up and go to the hospital. The sooner you see the doctor, the sooner we can go home.”

She still had worked the next day. She was so annoyed.

Qiao Yumi smiled slightly under his scarf and nodded obediently, whispering, “Mm, I’ll listen to you.”

The two of them walked side by side, exchanging a few more words. Just before they left, Qiao Yumi casually glanced back.

Seeing that Yuan Che was still standing there, deep in thought, he couldn’t help but lift his brow in satisfaction, feeling immensely pleased inside.

For a brief moment, it seemed like their gazes locked from a distance.

One second, maybe two, before it quickly broke.

Qiao Yumi nonchalantly shifted his gaze, but then he suddenly stumbled, falling straight into Jiang Caifu’s arms.

She reflexively wrapped her arms around his waist, steadying him, then looked at him in alarm, “Oh my, is your allergy really making you so weak? You can’t even walk without tripping? Don’t tell me you’re going to faint halfway?”

Qiao Yumi shook his head, leaning his head on her shoulder as he explained, “I vomited too much earlier, my heads dizzy. When I was walking just now, I saw double vision, so I almost fell.”

“So serious?”

Jiang Caifu released him—

Jiang Caifu held onto his arm, not quite trusting him to walk on his own, so she helped support him, allowing him to lean on her and making it a little easier for him to walk.

“Mm…” Qiao Yumi let out a soft, sticky hum through his nose, his well-shaped phoenix eyes half-closed and narrowing as he greedily traced the outline of Jiang Caifu’s profile with his gaze.

He swallowed, clearing his throat almost imperceptibly, and his voice, which was deliberately softened and slowed, seemed like a bubble that had suddenly burst—light, soft, yet mixed with a crisp, clear brightness. “I’m glad you’re here… Otherwise, I really wouldn’t know what to do.”

“…That’s a bit of an exaggeration.”

Jiang Caifu twitched the corner of her mouth, unable to suppress her urge to complain. “When are you going to stop saying all these cheesy things whenever you get sentimental?”

Qiao Yumi: “…”

What does be “sentimental” mean?

This is all genuine emotion! You heartless blockhead!

He glared at her in frustration, but as soon as he turned his head and saw Yuan Che turning away with an unpleasant expression, any lingering resentment he felt toward Jiang Caifu disappeared in an instant.

Hmph.

An irrelevant man who just popped out of nowhere, clearly not worth his time.

With just a little effort, he could easily control Jiang Caifu.