Chapter 351: 344: Another Woman

But, she feels no joy. On the contrary, she is in a low state, deeply melancholic.

She is not a clingy woman, but there are things she just wants answers to. She wants to know what she did wrong, or maybe it was just a heart-wrenching deception the whole time.

Once again, she stands in front of this small building, hesitant to take that final step.

Even with her hand on the door, she still can’t knock.

What is she afraid of? What is she worried about?

Or perhaps, how much longer must she deceive herself?

Tang Yuxin, oh Tang Yuxin, you’ve lived for a lifetime, even died once, why do you still fear rejection? Isn’t being rejected now better than getting trapped deeper, and then being kicked away?

Yes, she thinks like this, but her heart still aches as if pricked by numerous fine needles. Although the pain isn’t unbearable, it is nonetheless hard to endure.

She takes a deep breath before finally placing her hand on the door.

“Knock, knock …”n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

She knocks on the door.

Not long after, the door opens.

Qin Ziye is standing there, and when he sees Tang Yuxin, he doesn’t show any surprise. Perhaps he’s known all along that this day would come.

“Come in,” he says dully. No explanations, no surprises, no shock. Just nothing.

Tang Yuxin follows him in, then up the stairs.

As she steps inside, she immediately senses medicine’s sharp smell.

“Are you sick?” she tentatively asks. But it doesn’t add up. She is good at reading people. Qin Ziye looks weary, exhausted, not sick.

On the contrary, as Qin Ziye seats himself, he watches Tang Yuxin languidly, remaining silent for a disproportionately long time.

All of a sudden, there’s noise from inside. He stands up abruptly, dashing to open the door, and at the moment the door swings open, Tang Yuxin’s heart also plummets to the cold, desolate abyss.

She slowly turns around. The door is still open, and on the large bed inside lays a young woman. The strong smell of medicine permeating the room is coming from within.

“Jingjing, are you alright?” Qin Ziye quickly helps the woman on the bed to sit up.

The woman continues to cough, her face devoid of color.

“Do you want some water?” Qin Ziye gingerly helps the woman sit up. However, she shakes her head. She doesn’t want to talk, occasionally pounding her head with her hand, then breaking into a violent fit of coughing again.

Qin Ziye hurries out, but just as he’s about to fetch some water, Tang Yuxin grabs his wrist.

“What are you doing?”

Qin Ziye spins around angrily, his voice tense and stern, looking at Tang Yuxin as if she’s his nemesis.

However, Tang Yuxin’s hand still remains on his wrist.

“Let go,” Qin Ziye suddenly pushes Tang Yuxin away, making her stagger backwards.

But Yuxin steps forward and reaches out once again.

With a smack, her hand is pushed away, yet she stubbornly approaches him again.

“Get out!” Qin Ziye grasps Tang Yuxin’s wrist hard with one hand, while holding a cup in the other, and throws her out towards the door. The moment he opens the door, the wind gusts in, carrying with it waves of unbearable cold.

“You’ve seen it all, haven’t you?” He sneers coldly. The man in front of her is no longer the gentle Qin Ziye she knew, the one who had confessed his love to her.

“She is the one I love, the one I like, and you …” He gazes contemptuously at Tang Yuxin. Inexplicably, his heart churns, leaving him in unbearable pain.

However, despite this, he still utters these cruel words.

He bursts out laughing, a cruel, emotionless laughter, “You know, when I first saw you, I felt a sense of déjà vu because you resembled her. You reminded me so much of her, your presence, your scent. Had it not been for this resemblance, this familiar scent, why do you think I would have chosen you?”

Tang Yuxin silently watches him, showing no anger, no grief, no pain, no tears. It’s as if she had always known she would be abandoned. After all, how can someone like her deserve a love so great?

The person who once told her, “May you be treated gently in your next life,” was not him.

That voice was not his.

Yet, she still feels a chill at the corner of her eyes, and the tears begin to well up.

She doesn’t ask him if he has ever loved or liked her. She does not inquire if he has ever loved or liked her even a little bit. All of that is useless now.

To be discarded is to be discarded, to be betrayed is to be betrayed, to be deceived is to be deceived.

Does the reason matter? Does the past matter?

“Get out!” Qin Ziye turns and picks up the cup from the floor. His trembling fingers reveal his uneasiness.

He disappears into the kitchen, washing the cup clean. His hand throbs with a numb pain.

Coming out, he pours another glass of water.

But all of a sudden, Tang Yuxin comes to him, reaching out to hug him from behind.

“Don’t go …” She croaks, her voice showing some form of restraint. She’s hurting, in pain, uncomfortable. What to do now? Yes, what to do? What should she do?

Qin Ziye looks at the pair of hands around his waist, forcibly prying them open, disregarding Tang Yuxin’s ensuing pain. Her skin, originally pale, is now visibly swollen and bruised.

“Tang Yuxin …” Qin Ziye laughs coldly and says brutally, “Could you stop being so despicable?” He lightly pats her face in an alienating, humiliating gesture.

“Could you stop disgusting me? I’ve told you already, I don’t like you. Let’s end things amicably, or else …” He pulls out his wallet, producing a stack of money without even counting it, and flings it directly at Tang Yuxin’s face.

The cash turns into sharp blades in that instant, slicing Tang Yuxin’s cheek. She feels a sharp pain in the corner of her eye, lowering her gaze to see money scattered on the floor and a droplet, either blood or tear, falling from her eye.

The woman inside suddenly descends into another violent fit of coughing, striking Qin Ziye’s heart.

“Get out!” He spits out the destructive word again, taking the cup and moving forward.

But Tang Yuxin steps forward again, extending her hand to block him.

“Don’t make me hit you.”