Feigned Pity

Gu Jing Yuan was so exhilarated that he could not sleep last night. He only managed to groggily shut his eyes moments before the sun rose.

Although there were dark circles coloring the under of his eyes, his whole being was practically glowing with glee.    

After he rinsed his mouth, he stared at his reflection in the mirror as he touched his lips. A laugh escaped from his mouth. 

He closed his eyes, trying to recall every little detail of last night. Her lips were softer than he had imagined.     

He chortled even more unreservedly.

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“Cough…” He rubbed his face, as he forcibly skewed his expression to stop grinning. 

He made a few expressions in the mirror as he tried his best to maintain calm. He must not grin like a fool in front of her. 

When it was almost time, he patted his sore face and headed downstairs.

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Ebld bl yaakhle yv vbl ekdkdt assx, kv oyp lxrvu.

Xd dsaxyz eyup, vblal oswze byhl clld vos plvp sq calyjqypv zyke swv sd vbl vyczl. Tsolhla, vblal oyp sdzu sdl vseyu.

“Mys Zk Dk byp yzalyeu lyvld?” Tl ypjle.

Mbl plahydv oyp xsxldvyakzu eygle qsa pbl bye dlhla blyae pwnb y tldvzl vsdl qasx vbl uswdt xypvla. Rv oyp yp vbswtb vbl tzynkla xlzvle yde bkp wpwyz yzssq yway pzktbvzu qyele. Mbl uswdt plahydv nbydnle ydsvbla tzydnl yv bla uswdt xypvla’p bydepsxl qynl. Fbl czwpble yp pbl cypbqwzzu alrzkle, “Ykpp Mys eked’v lyv vbkp xsadkdt. Fbl zlqv lyazu okvb bla pwkvnypl.”

Mbl lmralppksd bl raynvknle ps byae vs xykdvykd pvkqqldle okvb bla osaep, “Zsw’al pyukdt vbyv pbl zlqv?”

“Zlp.”

Tkp saktkdyzzu fshkyz xsse hkpkczu ekprlzzle yv y ayrke prlle. Rd y czkdj sq yd lul, bl alvwadle vs clkdt vbl kdekqqlaldv uswdt xypvla vbyv ds sdl eyale vs rashsjl.

Tl vwadle vs zlyhl. Mbl vyjld-ycynj xyke bwaaklezu nyzzle swv vs bkx, “Zswdt Yypvla, obyv ycswv uswa calyjqypv?”

“Not eating.” His tone was so frigid that the little servant dare not try to persuade him further.

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The servant was stunned, it was as though the young master just now was all just her hallucination. 

Holding onto his phone, Gu Jing Yuan clicked into their chat. It was stuck on their last message exchange where he had texted first, asking about a practice question. 

She left without leaving him any messages.    

Scrolling upwards, he realized. Dang it, it turned out that he was always the one initiating the conversation.

His brows could not be scrunched any tighter. He felt stifled and agitated. 

Sulking by himself, he indignantly switched over to his gaming interface. He did not feel any better despite having pulverized his opponents until they cried for their fathers. 

Not long later, he found himself going back to the original chat page. With much contemplation, he started tapping intendedly.

[Why did you leave without saying anything?] Tone was too harsh. Delete.

[Why didn’t you tell me that you’re leaving? I could’ve sent you off.] That was too polite. Delete.   

[When are you coming back?] No. It made it seem like he was missing her. Delete. 

Half an hour passed but the message box remained empty. 

How annoying.

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Gu Jing Yuan scratched his head in agitation. The hairstyle he purposely styled earlier was completely messed up.

What’s the point? The person to who he wanted to show it was not around to see. 

His phone vibrated and he immediately picked it up to check.

It was nothing of importance.

Just an additional Weibo push message appeared on his phone’s notification bar. It was another weird relationship dilemma. On some days, there would be several such news articles. 

He accidentally clicked on the page. The comment section was rather lively and some people were even analyzing the situation in a straightforward and logical manner.

Today’s article was: –

{I gave my boyfriend my first time. But the next day, he told me that I was too boring. So upsetting, should I break up with him?}

Was the girl keeping this scumbag around for New Year? How retarded.

He was about to delete it when he was hit by a sudden inspiration.

He clicked into the private chat of the host’s page and sent a message.    

[Help me post a question. I’ll offer a good price for it.]

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Not long after, a hot Weibo post appeared.

{Why did the girl disappear after our kiss?}

With a click of the refresh button, several comments appeared. 

Hot Commentor No. 1: Bro, 90% sure that you’ve been played.

Gu Jing Yuan paused and chose to ignore it as he continued to scroll downwards.

Cat Fishing Fish: Host Poster, give us more details. How can we make heads or tails from such a vague sentence? 

Host Poster: (According to involved party) During New Year’s Eve yesterday, she took the initiative to kiss me. But she left early the next day without saying a word.

Cat Fishing Fish: Girls are usually shy. Since she even took the initiative to kiss you, it must mean that she’s interested in you.

He felt his depressing mood ease slightly. 

So it turns out that she was just shy.

Propping his head with one hand, her smiling visage appeared in his mind.

Umm… He could not imagine her looking bashful. After all, when the two of them separated yesterday, it seemed that he was the only one whose face was burning so hot that he was still blushing when he looked at himself in the mirror.

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She had always been difficult to read. So maybe he just was not able to tell that she was shy yesterday. 

Gaining back some confidence, he edited the message once again: [I heard from the servant that you went back to your hometown?]

Although the message was sent out an hour ago, there was still no reply from her end. 

That should not have been the case. Previously, even if she did not reply in seconds, her replies were usually quite fast. 

Was his phone faulty? Or was he experiencing bad reception?

[Qi Yue, reply immediately once you see my message.]

The other party replied in seconds: [Brother Yuan, I’m here! I’m suffering from a bad cold… qwq] 

He had invested a lot in their romance. 

This was one of the rare moments that Gu Jing Yuan felt guilty. It was thanks to Qi Yue’s contribution that they were able to take a step forward in their relationship yesterday.

[Have a good rest. I’ll send a doctor to you.]  

[Was there any progress between you and Sister Yi Xi yesterday?] Although he was currently nursing a cold, he did not forget to fish for gossip. 

The memories from yesterday flashed through his head once more. Every episode, every minute detail of her expression, he could still recall clearly. Slowly relishing those memories, he felt his face heating up again. 

[Not bad.]

[Oh?~]

[Ah right, change the way you address her.]  

[Hehe… I got it. I’ll start addressing her as sister-in-law from now on.]  

The corners of Gu Jing Yuan’s lips raised and he sent Qi Yue a big red envelope. Qi Yue squealed in excitement.

He switched back to the chat box that he had with her but it was still dead silent.

There seemed to be nothing wrong with his mobile signal. So why had she not returned his message? 

**

“Xiao Xi, your phone vibrated.”

“I’ll check it later.”

Grabbing a cabbage, she skillfully peeled back each individual leaf and coated them with a mixture of salt and spice paste while nagging, “Grandma, next time remember to wait for me to come back before making pickled cabbages.”

Today, as soon as she reached back home, she witnessed her grandmother stumbling as she carried a big cabbage head in her thin trembling arms. With a head full of white hair, it clearly showed her elderly age. Tao Yi Xi dropped her luggage without a second thought as she jogged over to her grandmother’s side to give her a hand.  

Her grandmother tacitly handed her the container, “I didn’t have anything to do. So I thought I would start pickling some vegetables to pass time.”  

“Cabbages are usually heavy, and you even bought so many. Carrying them back by yourself is too strenuous!” 

“You love eating it. Back when your mum was younger, she also enjoyed them. That’s why I wanted to pickle more. Don’t worry about me. I met Xiao Ji at the market and he offered to help me carry them back.”  

Knowing that her grandmother received help, Tao Yi Xi breathed a sigh of relief. But she still pouted and complained coquettishly, “You can buy ready-made ones from outside.” 

“How can those factory-made ones compare to the ones we make at home? When you go back, remember to bring some back as well.”

Tao Yi Xi felt a little helpless. It was not easy to persuade an elderly once they made up their minds. “Alright. The ones made by Grandma are the best. It’s a hundred times more delicious than those store-bought ones~ But you’ll still have to wait until I come back before you do it, okay?~”

She softened her tone while acting coquettishly. The elderly’s heart became a puddle under her gentle little coaxing tone. 

Grandma’s wrinkles deepened and one could tell that she was very happy. 

Without much thought, the grandmother responded accordingly to her granddaughter’s wishes, “Okay, okay.” 

Her granddaughter was still so sensible. Though she felt that she had become thinner since they last met. Thankfully, her granddaughter’s complexion still looked fine.

“These few months since arriving at your mother’s, have you gotten used to the place?” 

“It’s acceptable.”

“I heard from your mum that there’s a boy staying together as well. From what she told me, it seems that his personality isn’t very amicable. Were you bullied over there?”

Thinking of Gu Jing Yuan, Tao Yi Xi smiled, “He didn’t bully me.”

On the contrary, he had suffered quite a bit of bullying from her.

Her grandmother observed that her smile did not seem superficial and was temporarily put at ease, “Then that’s good.”

Auntie Zhou from next door came out to discard some trash and was surprised to spot Tao Yi Xi. 

“Xiao Xi is back!”

“Yes, I’m back. Happy New Year, Auntie Zhou.”

“Happy New Year to you too, Xiao Xi. You’ve become more beautiful. I thought that after you left for the city, you wouldn’t be coming back.” Back then, that was the case with her mother. After she left for the city, she never returned. 

“Grandma is still here, so I’ll definitely come back.” Tao Yi Xi replied seriously.

“Grandma Zhang, you have a filial granddaughter.”

“That’s right, my Xiao Xi is the most obedient.”

Due to the cold weather, Auntie Zhuo returned to her house after exchanging a few words with Grandma Zhang. 

“Actually, there was no need for you to make the trip back. I’m living well on my own. It isn’t nice for you to come back here on the first day of the Lunar New Year.”  

“What’s so bad about it? If it wasn’t for your insistence, I would’ve wanted to come back on Lunar New Year’s Eve.”

All the youngsters from the neighboring families rushed back from the city to celebrate the festivals and have a reunion dinner with their loved ones. Yet, Grandma was all alone.  

Just thinking about this made her eyes water. 

Other people’s homes were decorated with lanterns and colored banners but there was none of such things at their place. This year, she had to go to the city, so even the Spring Festival couplets were not pasted on their doors. 

“I’m just one elderly, there’s no need for so much hassle to celebrate the festivals.” 

“But I missed Grandma. I also want to always celebrate the festivities with you.”

She slowly lifted her head, staring at her grandmother with misty eyes, looking very pitiful. 

Grandma’s cloudy eyes also started to water. She tenderly stroked Tao Yi Xi’s head as she ceased to persuade her otherwise.  

**

After Tao Yi Xi finished with her chores and the duo settled their lunch, she took her grandmother out for a stroll after their meal.

By the time she recalled that she received a message, it was already past afternoon. At least six hours had passed since then.

Seeing that the message came from him, her emotions stirred. 

It turned out that she was not as unaffected as she had originally thought.  

It was not as Gu Jing Yuan had assumed, where she had escaped due to being overly shy. She was just slightly ashamed of her actions.

Last night, it felt more like it occurred in a spur of the moment than affection.

The place, the timing, the atmosphere, and everything else just felt right and she could not help herself. 

And… it also contained a little bit of ulterior motive. 

[Sorry, I was busy just now.]

His reply came back in a few seconds: [It’s okay, it wasn’t as though I was waiting for your reply either.] 

In a blink of an eye, the message disappeared. 

*The other party had withdrawn the message.*

Tao Yi Xi’s solemn mood was instantly shattered by him. He was really cute. 

The moment the message was delivered, he regretted it and withdrew it immediately. He was afraid that she would take his words seriously. 

He typed and sent another message. 

[Where’s your hometown? Is it cold there?]

[The temperature here is acceptable. The lowest temperature recorded is also only seven to eight degrees celsius. It’s already considered to be warmer than most places.]

[But you must still remember to keep warm.] 

[En.]

The conversation reached a stalemate. Gu Jing Yuan was racking his brain with things to talk about. However, before he managed to send out the message, she texted back first.

[My grandma is calling for me, I have things to do. Talk to you later when I have time.] 

[Oh, okay.]

All alone, Gu Jing Yuan waited and waited. He waited for her to get back to him when she was freer.

However, it seemed that she had forgotten about him? 

In the end, he was the one who conceded first again. This time around, he gave her a call as he wanted to hear her voice.

“Hello?” A familiar voice rang in his ears. It felt like it had been decades since he last heard her voice when in fact, if he were to really count the hours, she had only barely left for a day and a half. 

“What have you been up to these days? I’ve been waiting for you for a long time.” His voice was low, sounding very lonely.

“You were waiting for me because?” 

“Didn’t you say you’ll talk to me later when you have time?”

Tao Yi Xi paused for a moment.

“Ge-ge, don’t you grasp the concept of exchanging pleasantries?”    

Gu Jing Yuan was momentarily at a loss. 

All his life, he had been fawned over and everyone wanted to get into his good books. Who would dare make him wait, let alone just superficially exchange pleasantries?

As for himself, as long as he was upset, he could turn around and ignore the other party, there was no need for him to be polite.  

Tao Yi Xi probably had also come to the same conclusion as she took a step back and explained, “But I’ve indeed been busy recently. We were doing some spring cleaning.”

“Oh.” Gu Jing Yuan reluctantly accepted this explanation.

Before they even managed to exchange a few sentences, he acutely heard another male’s voice transmitting from her end of the line, “Xiao Xi, I’m going to the supermarket. Do you want me to bring something back for you?”

Xiao Xi?

He slightly furrowed his brows, “Who was that?”

“A neighboring Ge-ge.” She casually explained.

“You have quite a lot of Ge-ges.” He used to find her addressing him as ‘Ge-ge’ to be extremely annoying. But now, hearing her addressing some other male as ‘Ge-ge’, he found it very jarring. 

He heard her reply, “Ji Ge-ge, I have quite a bit of things I need to buy. I’ll make a trip down later myself.” 

Then the guy answered, “Then I’ll wait for you, and we’ll go together.” 

“Okay.”

Okay?

She actually agreed?!

“You cannot go!” The words that he thought of were immediately blurted out.  

“Why not?”

Gu Jing Yuan was stunned as he awkwardly explained, “How can you casually go out with some random guy?”

“He’s not just any random guy, we grew up together.”

Fuck, a childhood sweetheart?

Gu Jing Yuan’s expression sank to a terrifying level. The maid that came over for the regular cleaning schedule was petrified and hastily retreated. 

“Just you wait.”