Princess Syndrome - Chapter 26

Chapter 26: Infuriated Laughter

Su Lingyue watched Ji Zhiyi standing behind her. The air stilled for a moment, and a slight awkwardness emerged, subtly wrapping around Su Lingyue's senses. She forced a smile: "President Ji, are you finished washing up?"

Ji Zhiyi dried her wet hair with a towel and asked, "What are you looking at?"

Your lingerie.

Su Lingyue said, "Seeing if President Ji needs any further assistance."

Ji Zhiyi stepped out in her slippers. Seeing that Su Lingyue hadn't followed, she poked her head back in and asked, "Aren't you coming out?"

Coming!

Su Lingyue followed her out. The air conditioning cooled the lingering heat on her face. Ji Zhiyi handed her the hairdryer and sat down in front of the vanity. Su Lingyue bit her lip. As soon as the hairdryer started, the cat, its fur standing on end, darted away.

Only Ji Zhiyi and Su Lingyue remained in the room.

Su Lingyue lowered her head, drying Ji Zhiyi's hair. No matter how arrogant she had been in the past, she had never done something so personal for anyone else.

The more she thought about it, the more uncomfortable she felt.

But Ji Zhiyi seemed quite at ease.

She watched Ji Zhiyi through the mirror. Ji Zhiyi was looking down at her phone. From Su Lingyue's angle, she could see the contents of Ji Zhiyi's phone screen, but she wasn't that inconsiderate. She looked away, catching sight of Ji Zhiyi's profile in the mirror.

Without the cover of makeup after her shower, the finger marks on Ji Zhiyi's face were clearly visible.

Against her fair skin, they were very conspicuous.

She hit her that hard?

It must hurt.

Su Lingyue had been slapped before. It was when her mother had just passed away, and Zhou Shiyu wanted to move in. She refused. Zhou Shiyu was insistent, and she yelled at Zhou Shiyu, telling her to give up. Zhou Shiyu, enraged, slapped her.

Of course, she retaliated immediately.

But at that time, she was too weak, and her slap didn't hurt.

It was nothing compared to the slap she received from Zhou Shiyu. Later that night, sitting in front of the mirror, her face no longer hurt, but her heart ached.

Now, seeing the familiar mark of a slap, Su Lingyue couldn't help but ask, "Does it hurt?"

The hairdryer wasn't loud enough to drown out Su Lingyue's voice.

Ji Zhiyi paused her texting and looked up through the mirror, meeting Su Lingyue's gaze fixed on her cheek. The mark flushed instantly, a heat rising within her. She turned her head, and Su Lingyue's hand was suddenly empty. She looked at Ji Zhiyi, puzzled.

Ji Zhiyi said, "It's dry."

Her hair was half dry, half wet.

Su Lingyue gave a small "oh" and switched off the hairdryer, placing it to the side. The cat, hearing no more noise, darted back into the room. Afraid of disturbing Ji Zhiyi, Su Lingyue quickly called, "Xiao Mafan."

The calico cat wasn't yet familiar with its name and ignored her, continuing to bounce around the room. Ji Zhiyi sat at the vanity, watching Su Lingyue, seemingly indicating that she should take the cat away.

However, the cat, as if it had wheels on its paws, zipped away. Su Lingyue stared at it across Ji Zhiyi's room.

What a little trouble!

She patiently called again, "Xiao Mafan?"

This time the cat understood, plopping down on the edge of the bed. As Su Lingyue approached to pick it up, it darted past her waist and ran to the living room. Su Lingyue, having missed, sat down on the edge of the bed.

Ji Zhiyi chuckled softly.

Hearing the laughter, Su Lingyue turned her head.

Ji Zhiyi's eyes and brows were filled with amusement, her expression gentle, unlike her usual aloofness. Although it wasn't the first time Su Lingyue had seen her smile, it was rare. Her features seemed... lively.

As if a frigid beauty suddenly cast a coquettish glance at you.

Su Lingyue ignored her chaotic metaphors, only feeling that at this moment, Ji Zhiyi's smile was quite beautiful.

The cat meowed from outside the door, and she snapped back to reality, hurrying out. Ji Zhiyi watched her retreating figure and lowered her head to continue replying to her messages. Zhang Xian asked: [So, both of Xie Lan's shoes, I'll make them for the Autumn collection?]

Ji Zhiyi: [Yes.]

Zhang Xian: [I'll tell her tomorrow. Aren't you resting yet?]

Ji Zhiyi: [Soon.]

Zhang Xian: [I'll be resting soon too. By the way, your godmother left this afternoon.]

Ji Zhiyi had guessed as much.

The call her godmother had received in the afternoon was from abroad. Her daughter was in a vegetative state, and at the slightest change, she would drop everything to rush back.

Ji Zhiyi: [Yes.]

Zhang Xian: [Your...sister, she's gone too?]

Ji Zhiyi gripped her phone and sent another: [Yes.]

Zhang Xian, seeing the two "yes" replies on the screen, felt a pang of sympathy. When she first met Ji Zhiyi, she truly thought she was a high-spirited, privileged woman. With impressive designs, excellent performance, and even the creation of the first exclusive series by a Chinese designer, there seemed to be nothing she couldn't achieve.

But after getting to know her, she realized that Ji Zhiyi was also constrained.

Perhaps "constrained" wasn't the right word.

After all, she had genuinely benefited from Jiang Ya's kindness.

During Ji Zhiyi's freshman year, her father had a serious heart attack. Her mother borrowed money everywhere, finally managing to scrape together the amount, only to have it stolen. In despair, she climbed to the roof of the hospital, where she met Jiang Ya.

Jiang Ya, whose daughter had been declared to be in a vegetative state, was despondent. She only had this one precious daughter. To see her bullied and hurt was devastating. She went to the rooftop to get some air and encountered Ji Zhiyi's mother, who was contemplating suicide.

Later, Jiang Ya paid for Ji Zhiyi's father's medical expenses and cleared their debts.

She had initially pitied the Ji family and offered help out of kindness, but Ji Zhiyi insisted on repaying Jiang Ya after earning the money. Perhaps her stubbornness appealed to Jiang Ya, who took her in as her goddaughter.

She also made a deal with Ji Zhiyi.

Zhang Xian didn't know the specific details, only that Ji Zhiyi was sent abroad during her sophomore year, returning with the goal of acquiring Dingsheng.

Over the years, Jiang Ya's daughter's condition fluctuated. There was a time when they said she had woken up, and Jiang Ya was overjoyed, but it was a false alarm. At the hospital, they discovered it was just a natural bodily reaction. After that, Jiang Ya became even more insistent that Ji Zhiyi acquire Dingsheng before her daughter passed away.

Ji Zhiyi had been following Jiang Ya's plan since returning to China.

But the sudden acquisition of Su Qi disrupted Jiang Ya's plans.

Considering Jiang Ya's temper...

Zhang Xian feared her daughter's condition had worsened again.

That was probably why she was so furious.

All these years, Ji Zhiyi had been her executioner. Her sister didn't understand the reasons behind it, thinking they had a good relationship, and even stayed close to Jiang Ya.

If she were Ji Zhiyi, she'd be exhausted.

Zhang Xian wanted to comfort her but didn't know how. Ji Zhiyi was good at everything, especially masking her emotions. In front of others, she always maintained a calm and composed demeanor. Even if she had been scolded and slapped by her godmother just a moment before, she could still switch into work mode the next.

Besides inviting Ji Zhiyi out for a drink, she didn't have any other ideas.

But tonight, Ji Zhiyi refused to go out.

Zhang Xian figured it was because Jiang Ya had put pressure on her again, and Ji Zhiyi, stressed, didn't want to leave the house.

Ji Zhiyi was indeed stressed. She hadn't closed her bedroom door before going to sleep. She woke up with the cat sleeping on her chest, almost suffocating her. The rock in her dream had turned into a cat. She got out of bed, carrying the cat, and as soon as she lay back down, the cat jumped back onto the bed, directly onto her chest.

She had a headache. The bathed cat had a faint, fresh scent, but even so, weighing five or six pounds, it was too much for anyone to sleep comfortably under. She had no choice but to carry the cat to the door and close it.

The cat began to howl miserably.

Ji Zhiyi opened the door and looked at it. The cat sat on the floor, looking up at her, tail swishing. Ji Zhiyi rubbed her eyes, her sleepiness dissipating. She stepped out of the room and checked the food bowl on the balcony. There was cat food and water; nothing was lacking. The cat was also full of energy.

It clearly wanted to play.

She, at night, not sleeping...to play?

Ji Zhiyi pursed her lips. Two minutes later, she sat on the sofa, dangling a cat teaser. The cat mercilessly trampled on her, its nose red with excitement. Ji Zhiyi leaned back on the sofa, her hand unconsciously shaking the teaser back and forth. With a jump, the cat caught the teaser, biting down firmly. Ji Zhiyi tugged, but it wouldn't come loose, so she let go.

The cat, with the teaser in its mouth, circled the coffee table, the bells on the teaser jingling.

Hearing the jingling, Su Lingyue thought she was dreaming. She woke up and noticed the living room light was on. Curious, she slipped on her slippers and walked out. Ji Zhiyi was sitting on the sofa, arms crossed, watching the cat drag the teaser around like a playful child.

She couldn't help but ask, "President Ji, why aren't you resting?"

Ji Zhiyi turned, looked at her, and said, her gaze faint, "Why do you think, Assistant Su?"

Su Lingyue: "..."

She walked over and picked up the cat: "I'll take it to my room to rest."

Ji Zhiyi raised her hand in a "go ahead" gesture. Su Lingyue carried the cat toward her room. Actually, before going to bed, she had wanted to take the cat to sleep with her, but it kept meowing at the door. Worried about disturbing Ji Zhiyi, she hadn't insisted.

Sure enough, as soon as they went in, the cat started howling.

Su Lingyue felt somewhat helpless.

On the sofa, the two sat together. Su Lingyue waved the teaser and looked at Ji Zhiyi's tired face, saying, "President Ji, should I ask my friends if anyone wants to adopt a cat?"

Ji Zhiyi turned her head: "You have friends?"

Su Lingyue: "..."

There was no need to be so pointed.

She said, "Then shall I ask your friends?"

Ji Zhiyi said, "I don't have any friends."

No need to be so honest.

The two sat together on the sofa. For the first time, Su Lingyue felt a sense of camaraderie with Ji Zhiyi. She, who was hated by Ji Zhiyi, felt this way. Who would believe it?

But right now, they both really wanted to sleep!

Su Lingyue forced herself to stay awake but still yawned. Ji Zhiyi was beside her, the faint scent of her shampoo drifting over, dry and fragrant. She shifted her position, curling up on the sofa, unconsciously dangling the cat teaser.

The cat darted back and forth. Suddenly, it pounced towards Su Lingyue. Ji Zhiyi reached out to stop it. The cat sat beside Su Lingyue, and Ji Zhiyi took the teaser from her hand, turning to look at her.

Su Lingyue's eyes were closed as she leaned against the sofa. With nothing in her hands, she curled up. Ji Zhiyi looked at her sideways. Su Lingyue was quite different from the one in her memory. The Su Lingyue in her memory was flamboyant and bright, always the center of attention whenever she appeared. Now, she was calm and indifferent, seemingly unconcerned about everything, without desires or demands.

Like a pearl covered in dust, only a faint glimmer remained.

She reached out, wanting to brush the stray hairs from Su Lingyue's forehead behind her ear, but her raised hand hesitated. Su Lingyue, sensing a shadow approaching, jolted awake. Her mind still hazy, she saw Ji Zhiyi's raised hand and proactively moved her face closer: "President Ji, are you going to hit me?"

Ji Zhiyi let out a laugh of exasperation and casually pulled the thin blanket from the sofa over Su Lingyue's face.

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