Chapter 34.2

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Chi Yin froze for a moment, then politely nodded to Qiao Ziman before walking past her and sitting in the front row. “Anything else?” she asked.

Qiao Ziman stared at the empty seat next to Chi Yin, just about to speak, when a figure darted past and claimed it first. “Sister Chi, there are only two seats left, I’m sitting with you,” Jiang Zaozao said.

Chi Yin paused for a second, then nodded. “Alright.”

Qiao Ziman’s face darkened, and she abruptly turned and walked to the back. Ji Yun, seeing her approach, scooted over and teased, “You really wanted to sit with President Chi, huh? Is sitting next to me that bad?”

Qiao Ziman didn’t respond, her eyes locked on the two at the front, chatting and laughing.

“What’s going on? Are you two fighting or something? Your face looks terrible,” Ji Yun asked.

“No,” Qiao Ziman shook her head, her expression suddenly dimming as she fell silent.

Ji Yun: “…”

The bus left the bustling city and headed toward the mountain resort. As they distanced themselves from the noise, people on the bus started to drift off to sleep. Though Qiao Ziman’s eyes were half-closed, her attention stayed on Chi Yin in the front row. Ji Yun, meanwhile, was scrolling through her phone, occasionally letting out surprised gasps.

Ji Yun kept clicking her tongue in amazement, grabbing Qiao Ziman’s attention. “What are you doing?” Qiao asked curiously.

Ji Yun handed over her phone, the screen turned sideways. “Look at this post—it’s wild. ‘After confessing to my same-sex boss and she agreed, what do I do next? Help, urgent!’ This thread has thousands of replies, but there’s no update. Now it’s not the original poster who’s anxious—it’s me!”

Qiao Ziman suddenly couldn’t find it in herself to laugh. What’s it like to read gossip that mirrors your own life?

“You want to know the update?” she asked.

Ji Yun nodded enthusiastically. Qiao Ziman gave her a resentful look.

Ji Yun’s expression shifted as a suspicion formed in her mind. “No way…”

Qiao Ziman smiled. “Yep, you guessed it right—I’m the one losing my mind here.”

Ji Yun jumped up in shock, banging her head. “Ow! Wait, seriously? You didn’t tell me about something this big?”

“Wait, so you and Chi…”

Qiao Ziman quickly pulled Ji Yun back into her seat under the disapproving gaze of others. “Shh,” she hissed, shooting her a glare. “This is all your fault.” First the little video, then the awful idea—Ji Yun was to blame for at least half of this mess.

Ji Yun thought to herself, So this woman doubts every reason except the one that points to herself.

Qiao Ziman sighed and recounted the entire situation to her in detail. The more Ji Yun listened, the more surprised she became. “So, not only did your mom agree, but she also gave her a family heirloom bracelet?”

Qiao Ziman nodded.

Ji Yun, overly excited, almost stood up, but Qiao Ziman firmly pushed her back down. “What are you waiting for? Go for it!” Ji Yun urged. “Come on, don’t overthink it!”

Qiao Ziman stared at her, bewildered. “Huh?“

“I’m just saying, it’s rare that your mom is so open-minded. Do you know how hard it is to come out these days? Back when I came out, my family nearly killed me. After that mixed beatdown, I was bedridden for half a month!”

Ji Yun finished speaking and, out of the corner of her eye, kept glancing at Qiao Ziman, waiting for her response. To her surprise, Qiao Ziman remained unusually silent. Ji Yun thought, Isn’t she usually supposed to shout “I’m straight!” at this point? Could it be…?

Ji Yun cautiously asked, “What do you think about it?”

Qiao Ziman’s gaze darkened. “I owe my mom an apology, and I also owe Zaozao an apology. I shouldn’t have deceived them. Even though I didn’t expect things to get this serious at the beginning…”

Ji Yun quickly grasped the key point. “So the ‘Zaozao’ you mentioned in the post refers to President Chi?”

Qiao Ziman looked at her with innocent eyes. “Yes.”

Ji Yun, with a slight frown, asked, “So what do you think about where things stand between the two of you?”

Qiao Ziman remained silent. Ji Yun thought to herself, Who’s the real “Zaozao” here? My silly sister. She sighed inwardly. What else could it be? Look at how clever President Chi is. She knows you’re feeling burdened, so she’s giving you space to process things, occasionally easing up to let you take the bait yourself.

Qiao Ziman lowered her gaze to her toes and added softly, “Even if we end up together, it shouldn’t be based on deception.”

Ji Yun stared in silence. See? She’s biting the hook.

Then, Qiao Ziman asked, “By the way, how did you realize you liked women?”

Ji Yun blinked, clearly taken aback. See? She’s already questioning herself.

“I just have no interest in men,” Ji Yun explained, stressing a point, “I never feel anything, not even a physical reaction—not even in a dream.“

“But I do feel something for women.”

Qiao Ziman paused, then defended herself, “Don’t misunderstand. I took on a yuri project, and Chi Yin said I should understand the community better.”

Tsk tsk tsk. Ji Yun wasn’t buying it, but she decided to give her friend some face. “Sure, get to know it. You can ask me anytime—I’m an expert.”

Suddenly, Qiao Ziman squinted, her sharp gaze shooting toward the first row. “Have you noticed? I think Jiang Zaozao is into Chi Yin.”

Ji Yun’s eyes widened in shock. How did someone as emotionally oblivious as you notice that someone else is interested in President Chi?

Qiao Ziman was certain. “She’s definitely interested!”

“I’ve been watching her for a while. Jiang Zaozao keeps leaning toward Chi Yin for no reason!”

Just then, the bus hit a bump. Qiao Ziman noticed Jiang Zaozao’s head gradually leaning toward Chi Yin.

Qiao Ziman suddenly clenched her fist, the sound of her knuckles cracking echoing in the air.

“See? I told you I was right!”

Ji Yun stared in disbelief. Look at you, getting jealous now. Heavens above!

***

Author’s Note:

Chi Yin: The little white flower’s wife is awakening!

Last Episode Answers:

1. Qiao Ziman mentioned that the neighbor is a beautiful little mute who looks like a doll.
2. On her birthday, Chi Yin opened up and said, “From now on, I’ve learned to be numb and learned to… shut up.”

The two characters’ story will be released separately later.