Chapter 13: Jealousy 【Three-in-One】

The next day, both in the morning and the afternoon, Ji Fanling attended an interview. It couldn’t exactly be called smooth, but by the time the afternoon session ended, it was late. Without time to eat, she hurriedly headed to Chuanteng Mansion on Fuxing Road.

Chuanteng Mansion was originally a famous Sichuan restaurant in Sichuan itself, but it had recently opened a branch in Beiwan. As she entered, the distinct aroma of spicy and numbing Sichuan flavors greeted her.

Ji Fanling went up to the third floor, searched around, and finally found Cheng Jiali seated at a two-person table by the window.

Four dishes were already on the table. The man sat alone, with striking features, wearing earphones and looking down at his phone.

It wasn’t until Ji Fanling walked over that Cheng Jiali removed his earphones. When he looked up, a clear spark lit up in his eyes. “You’re here?”

Ji Fanling extended her hand to him, but unexpectedly, Cheng Jiali took her hand directly. “Why is your hand so cold?”

Ji Fanling: “…Where’s the beaded bracelet?”

“Why are you acting like a debt collector?”

Cheng Jiali chuckled through his nose. “If you don’t tell me who you are, how am I supposed to give you the item?”

“Do you actually have it or not?” Ji Fanling’s voice rose.

Seeing her impatience, Cheng Jiali laughed, “Alright, it’s not like I’m not giving it to you.”

He took the beaded bracelet out of his pocket and gave it a little shake. “Here, the string inside probably aged and broke. I had someone fix the broken part for you.”

Ji Fanling took it, recognizing it was indeed her bracelet. She wrapped it around her wrist twice. “Thanks.”

She turned to leave but heard Cheng Jiali call out, “Wait.”

Turning back, she saw him smiling at her warmly under the light. “Just a ‘thank you’ and you’re leaving?”

Ji Fanling looked at him. “…So what else do you want?”

“You’re already here; keep me company for a meal.” Cheng Jiali gestured to the seat across from him.

“I’m not hungry…” Ji Fanling had barely spoken when her stomach suddenly protested loudly: “Grrrr…”

The amusement in Cheng Jiali’s eyes became even more obvious as he raised his eyebrow playfully. “Not hungry?”

Ji Fanling: “…”

“Having a meal won’t do anything to you. Let’s just get to know each other.”

Ji Fanling sighed and walked over.

…

Just consider it a farewell.

At first, when Cheng Jiali pursued her, Ji Fanling didn’t feel moved at all—in fact, far from it. She even found it quite annoying. Cheng Jiali would constantly find random excuses to talk to her, while people around them would tease her as if they were ambulance sirens, and girls from other classes would inexplicably come to confront her.

After a few months, however, things took a turn.

Around that time, Ji Guoliang was off playing cards day and night at his friend’s place, leaving her alone at home.

She had no money for food and couldn’t find any at home either. By evening, starving and unable to bear it any longer, she found half a serving of leftover malatang in the fridge. Too tired to heat it, she ate it cold and quickly.

It turned out the malatang was from who-knows-when and had gone bad. Ji Fanling spent the entire night getting up to vomit repeatedly.

She was probably truly starving. During PE class the next afternoon, after only three minutes of warm-up exercises, Ji Fanling suddenly felt dizzy and chilled, then collapsed the next moment.

In her blurred vision, she vaguely saw a figure running toward her.

That person lifted her up, his voice hoarse with urgency, like a rush breaking through an icy layer:

“Ji Fanling… Ji Fanling!!!”

…

When she woke up, she was already in the infirmary.

A narrow white bed, clean blue curtains fluttering in the breeze, and the distant sounds of the playground could be heard.

“Fanling, you’re awake?”

Cheng Jiali was sitting by the bedside, keeping watch over her. Seeing her open her eyes, he immediately leaned over to help her sit up.

Ji Fanling was still breaking out in a cold sweat, her ears buzzing so much that she couldn’t hear clearly. It wasn’t until she drank a cup of sugar water that she seemed to regain her senses. “…Why are you here?”

“I was heading to the lab building for an experiment and passed by the playground. What would you have done if I hadn’t been there?”

Cheng Jiali frowned and said, “The school nurse said you fainted because of low blood sugar. Have you not been eating properly?”

“I ate, of course I did. How could I not?” Ji Fanling averted her gaze.

Cheng Jiali took the empty cup, poured her another cup of glucose water, and couldn’t help asking the school nurse, “Ma’am, isn’t there anything else to eat here?”

“No,” the nurse replied. “Besides, glucose works quickly. Even if it doesn’t taste good, just bear with it and swallow it down.”

Ji Fanling actually thought the glucose tasted pretty good and quietly held onto the cup without saying a word.

Cheng Jiali kept staring at her, making her feel a bit uneasy. She looked up and asked awkwardly, “What? Do you want some too?”

“Me? Want some?” Cheng Jiali scoffed. “Like I’d take yours?”

“Then what are you looking at?”

“You really don’t know what I’m looking at?” Cheng Jiali looked at her expression, unable to hold back a smile. He reached out, pinched her cheek, and said lazily:

“Tell me… why do I like you so much?”

The wind billowed through the bright blue curtains.

Ji Fanling hurriedly lowered her head, staring at the swaying cup in her hands.

She didn’t know what to say.

She almost wished she could faint again.

…

Cheng Jiali still had class, so after staying with her for a while, he left in a hurry.

Shortly after he left, the school nurse came over to check on her and handed her a large bag of food. “That boy who carried you here just bought these. You can have something to eat, rest for a bit, and then call your parents to pick you up and take you home.”

Ji Fanling was stunned.

The school supermarket and the infirmary at Beiwan No. 1 High School were located on the south and north ends of the campus, spanning the entire school. Running back and forth between them was exhausting, especially in the heat.

The plastic bag was packed with all sorts of snacks: fruit candies, chocolate, jam-filled bread, room-temperature juice and milk, a can of eight-treasure porridge^[1]Eight-treasure porridge (八宝粥, bā bǎo zhōu) is a traditional Chinese dish made from a mixture of grains, beans, and other ingredients., everything she could need, and even a pack of hand wipes.

…

It was as if a tiny needle pricked her heart, leaving a bittersweet ache.

Damn it.

Cheng Jiali genuinely seemed to care about her.

It was one of those rare afternoons in high school when she wished time could slow down.

On the distant playground, her classmates were drenched in sweat under the blazing sun, while she lay in the air-conditioned room, munching away like a squirrel preparing for winter, until both her heart and stomach were filled with a bittersweet fullness.

She could no longer remember the last time she had been cared for so thoughtfully.

Because of this.

In that classroom filled with roses back then, she couldn’t bring herself to say the words of rejection.

*

Chuanteng Mansion.

On the table were mao xue wang, stir-fried squid, and kung pao chicken.

Slices of boiled meat, covered in dried chili peppers, were doused in bright, sizzling hot oil, releasing an appetizing, spicy aroma.

Ji Fanling ordered a bowl of rice, mixing it with the meat slices, and ate with fierce appetite.

The edge of the bowl hid most of her face, and her long eyelashes softly lowered.

Cheng Jiali propped his chin in his hand, watching her with great interest, his fox-like eyes narrowing unconsciously.

…She really was just like the Ji Fanling from back then. No wonder she was someone he noticed at first glance.

“Are you still in school?” Cheng Jiali poured her some tea.

“Preparing for work,” Ji Fanling mumbled, then paused and looked into Cheng Jiali’s eyes. “What about you? What do you do?”

“Four years ago, I started a band called Sunset Exiles. I’m the guitarist and the lead singer.”

As Cheng Jiali spoke, he pulled up some photos on his phone. “Last year, we released an album called Metal Rose. We’re performing at the Ice and Snow Music Festival next month. Want to give it a listen?” He offered her one of his earbuds.

The earbud pulsed with loud heavy metal rock, intense and charged, like metal pipes of various sizes clashing wildly in a storm.

Ji Fanling struggled to pick out Cheng Jiali’s voice amidst it all. “It’s… okay, I guess.”

“Just okay?” Cheng Jiali raised his eyebrow.

“How did you… meet your wife?” Ji Fanling changed the subject.

“We met during a gathering arranged by mutual friends while studying in the U.S.,” a barely perceptible hint of irritation flashed in Cheng Jiali’s eyes.

“I studied music, and she studied architecture, so we were both in creative fields. After she graduated with her master’s and went abroad, we were in a long-distance relationship for a few years. The main issue was that her parents were pressing for us to get married soon… I guess you could say it was a marriage of convenience. After all, she’s not that young anymore.”

“Do you really like her?”

“Marriage and liking someone are two different things.”

Cheng Jiali absentmindedly swirled his wine glass. “Sometimes, I feel like she doesn’t quite understand me. Even when we’re close, it feels like she’s on a different wavelength, you know what I mean?”

Ji Fanling: “Nope.”

Cheng Jiali chuckled quietly and served her some food. “It’s like you, you can’t marry me, but that doesn’t mean you can’t like me.”

The girl choked, raising her eyes. “Who the hell likes you?!”

“It’s just an example, just an example.” Cheng Jiali lazily drew out his words. “You know, I always feel like we’ve met before.”

“…Cough, cough, cough.”

Ji Fanling had a chili pepper stuck in her throat, still coughing uncontrollably. Cheng Jiali couldn’t continue his words and sighed helplessly. “I thought you’d like spicy food. Should I order a few non-spicy dishes?”

“No need,” Ji Fanling replied stubbornly, her face flushed from the spice.

“This is nothing. I usually eat extreme spice myself.”