Chapter 14: Even If He Doesn't Want You, Others Will [Diamond Bonus]

Xing Ani nodded. “You’ve been cheated on.”

Xing Jue smiled. “How interesting.”

With that, he pushed her aside and turned to leave. When he reached Si Yao’s door, it opened.

Si Yao was dressed in a fitted, high-neck sweater. Her slender neck, ample chest, and slim waist—just looking at her from the front was enough to make one’s throat go dry.

Xing Jue paused by the wall, leaned against it, and lit a cigarette. He exhaled a stream of smoke in Si Yao’s direction. “I heard your room reeks. Looks like I’ve been cheated on.”

His tone was laced with laughter, tinged with a teasing ambiguity.

Xing Ani laughed along, then teased, “Who was it? The gardener or the security guard? There are only a handful of men here… Wait—”

She covered her mouth and giggled. “Tan Fei said it was just a brown sugar rice cake vendor, but Ke actually made a big fuss delivering it himself yesterday afternoon. Could it be… Ke?”

The atmosphere froze instantly.

Xing Ani, oblivious, folded her arms and approached Si Yao. “Sister Yao, Ke won’t do. After all, Tan Fei is my best friend. Stealing my best friend’s fiancé, even if it’s just for fun, feels like an insult to me.”

Si Yao stepped back and smiled. “Noted.”

“So it really was him?” Xing Ani raised an eyebrow.

“A dog, if that satisfies you,” Si Yao replied, and walked off.

Xing Ani clicked her tongue, arms crossed. “As I said, old habits die hard. No matter how gentle Si Yao pretends to be, she can’t change her incorrigible nature.”

Xing Jue flicked his cigarette to the ground and stamped it out. “Let’s go.”

That morning, Si Yao didn’t teach. After lunch, she feigned discomfort and hid away in the attic.

She had no desire to see that damned Ani right now. She feared she might not resist slapping her.

She hadn’t been in the attic long when the door creaked open.

Only the old servant, Aunt Xiang, knew Si Yao liked to hide in the attic. Facing away, she spoke calmly, “Is Xing Ani still looking for me?”

No reply came—just the sound of footsteps, measured but not heavy.

Then the steps grew heavier. Someone entered quickly from outside.

Si Yao frowned and looked back, but before she could fully turn, a hand covered her mouth.

A low voice: “It’s me.”

Si Yao relaxed a little, speaking in a muffled voice. “Let go!”

That earlier, measured step—she’d thought it was Xing Jue.

Ke released her, but not completely, keeping an arm around her shoulders and speaking softly, “You’ve lost weight again. Not eating properly?”

With no one else around, no prying eyes, Si Yao rubbed her eyes, weary. Her voice was gentle and languid. “I don’t want to eat. No appetite.”

Ke paused, then raised his brows with a teasing smile. “Are you pregnant?”

Si Yao rolled her eyes. “Yes, yours.”

It was just a joke.

Ever since her miscarriage, Si Yao not only used contraception but took extra precautions. She never missed a dose, and after Xing Jue became more reckless, she even increased it.

She sighed, not waiting for Ke to speak, and pointed outside at the golden sunlight. “Look. Isn’t it beautiful?”

Si Yao closed her eyes, feeling the early winter sun, frowning as she murmured, “It’s just a pity—the sunlight’s too harsh at this hour.”

Ke silently reached out, shielding her from the intense rays. His voice was warm. “How about now, is it still too bright?”

Si Yao knew exactly what he was doing.

He had always been a gentle soul—unchanging over the years, completely unlike Xing Jue.

If only, back then, she’d chosen Ke. They were close in age, his temperament far gentler, never as unpredictable as Xing Jue.

She murmured, “Sometimes I wish it had been you I got engaged to.”

Ke’s eyes darkened as he replied quietly, “But I prefer what we have now.”

Si Yao nodded. “Yes, this is better.” They didn’t speak in front of others, played the role of secret siblings, yet she still couldn’t help but complain, “Don’t talk to me when others are around.”

Ke didn’t answer, just stared at her profile, lost in thought. After a while, he said softly, “Yao Yao.”

She responded with her eyes closed. “Mm?”

“He’s back.”

Si Yao’s face didn’t change. “Oh.”

“Do you know who I mean?”

“Bai Yu.” Si Yao opened her eyes, pushing his arm away from the sunlight. Her gaze sharpened with a teasing glint. “What, you hope Bai Yu’s return will rekindle our old flame?”

With those close to her, Si Yao was always irreverent and careless. This comment, however, was hard to read—after all, four years of love was no trifling matter.

Ke raised his brows, his meaning half-veiled. “If he’s willing, would you want that?”

“Of course. If you won’t have me, I’ll take him.”

Si Yao knew perfectly well that Bai Yu would never want her. She joked easily, directly.

A gust of wind nudged the wide-open door, revealing a glimpse of a white shirt. A hand dangled a tie, the other in a pocket, a cigarette unlit between his lips. His face was unreadable, eyes brimming with contempt, disdain, and a hint of cold malice.