Being Raised in Captivity by the Former Canary - Chapter 14

Working together proved much more efficient. Yue Tingqin silently helped Jiang Jixue search every corner of the art studio, but they still couldn’t find her phone.

“Jixue, are you sure you brought your phone to the studio?” Yue Tingqin asked.

Jiang Jixue paused, thinking to herself, Who goes out without their phone these days? After retracing her steps from home to school, she nodded firmly. “I’m certain I had it with me.”

Yue Tingqin sighed in resignation, then pulled out her own phone and handed it to Jiang Jixue without hesitation. “Try calling your number with mine.”

Jiang Jixue’s gaze lingered on Yue Tingqin’s face.

Yue Tingqin’s skin was strikingly pale, and her face always wore a gentle, spring-like smile. Her eyes now held genuine sincerity as she looked at Jiang Jixue.

Suddenly, Jiang Jixue realized that despite being roommates and classmates for so long, they had exchanged nothing more than WeChat IDs.

Snapping out of her reverie about Yue Tingqin’s appearance, Jiang Jixue finally took her phone and entered her own number. This phone had been a gift from Quan Ruo’an, but she had inserted her usual SIM card.

After a few seconds, she was met with a cold, automated voice announcing that the phone was switched off.

“It’s off,” Jiang Jixue said, her voice dropping slightly as she handed the phone back to Yue Tingqin, her expression darkening.

“Could it have been stolen on the way here?” Yue Tingqin asked.

Jiang Jixue immediately shook her head. “I lost it in the studio. I was even listening to music with my Bluetooth earbuds.” She held up the earbuds in her palm to emphasize her point.

“Do you have any other Apple devices? We could try tracking it,” Yue Tingqin suggested. “If that doesn’t work, we’ll have to request surveillance footage, but that requires reporting and a whole bureaucratic process. It’ll be a hassle.”

Jiang Jixue paused, then said, “I have one at my rented apartment. I’ll go get it at noon.”

Yue Tingqin had no choice but to agree.

Jiang Jixue retrieved her old iPhone XS Max from her apartment and, as soon as classes ended in the afternoon, prepared to leave, clutching the phone.

Yue Tingqin rushed over from across the room and grabbed her sleeve.

Heaven knows how frantic I was running from the left side to the right side door, Yue Tingqin thought, slightly breathless. “Did you find your phone?” she asked.

Jiang Jixue stopped and instinctively shook her head.

“Then why didn’t you ask me to come with you?”

Confusion flickered in Jiang Jixue’s eyes. She had thought she had already troubled Yue Tingqin enough that morning and had planned to search for it herself.

Yue Tingqin mentally facepalmed. Looks like she never intended to ask me at all.

“Let’s go together,” Yue Tingqin said. “Two people will be faster.”

That line again.

The two of them dodged the crowds and made their way to the end of the hallway. Only then did Jiang Jixue slowly power on her old phone.

After a few seconds of lag, the tracking page finally displayed an address.

It showed the phone was still on campus.

“It’s in Building A. Should we go get it now?” Yue Tingqin leaned closer to read the information on the screen.

Without hesitation, Jiang Jixue replied, “Let’s go.”

The phone itself wasn’t a big deal, but it had been specially purchased by Quan Ruo’an for their communication. If her elder sister sent a message while it was lost, Jixue would feel guilty for not replying promptly, potentially causing her sister worry or suspicion.

Jiang Jixue and Yue Tingqin arrived at Building A and eventually located the phone’s alarm sound near the first-floor entrance.

The phone was in the possession of a male student who had come to the art studio to wait for his roommate before heading to the cafeteria for lunch. Spotting the phone lying on a locker, he had succumbed to temptation and secretly taken it while his friend wasn’t looking.

Now, he was planning to pawn it at a digital store off-campus, figuring the owner wouldn’t come looking for it during the busy lunch hour.

As soon as the phone rang, Yue Tingqin darted forward and precisely plucked the culprit from the crowd.

Yue Tingqin shoved the man in front of Jiang Jixue, extended her hand, and spoke with unprecedented coldness, “Where’s the phone? We heard it ringing. If you don’t confess now, we’ll post this on the campus bulletin board.”

The boy initially denied it, his face flushing crimson as he argued. Soon, a crowd of students heading to dinner gathered at the exit of Building A.

The situation was finally resolved when a teacher arrived.

As the crowd dispersed, Yue Tingqin stood before Jiang Jixue, her cheeks still flushed from the heated exchange. Yet her tone was now much gentler, the familiar Yue Tingqin returning.

“Be more careful in the future,” she said. “Don’t lose your phone again.”

“Thank you.” Jiang Jixue glanced at her wristwatch and smiled sincerely. “Let’s go. I’ll treat you to dinner outside.”

“It’s almost seven, and we both have evening classes,” Yue Tingqin replied. “I’d rather go back and catch up on sleep. How about Saturday? We could go somewhere farther then.”

I don’t want our first date to be at the school’s food street on a Thursday, Yue Tingqin thought selfishly.

The excuse came easily. Fortunately, there were no obvious flaws, and Jixue didn’t notice her sudden chattiness and eagerness.

Hearing Yue Tingqin’s insistence, Jiang Jixue considered it and agreed. “Alright.”

My Elder Sister must be tired of me already, she thought. Saturday would indeed be a good time to take a break from painting and go somewhere nice with Yue Tingqin.

And so, the two parted, each with their own hidden intentions.

After retrieving her phone, Jiang Jixue deliberately waited until she was back in her apartment before turning it on.

When she opened WeChat and saw no red notification dot on the pinned profile picture, she quietly exhaled in relief, though a strange sense of emptiness lingered.

There was one missed call. After changing the contact name to “Yue Tingqin,” Jiang Jixue tapped “Search.”

She was about to update her device management settings when a familiar name suddenly popped up:

Contact: “a Elder Sister”

The note was the one she had used for Quan Ruo’an in her address book, but she was certain she hadn’t added him through the “Search” function.

That meant… it could only be Quan Ruo’an himself.

When did Quan Ruo’an get hold of my phone to add himself? Did he do it when he gave me the phone? Or did he add himself while I was drunk that one time?

Jiang Jixue’s gaze darkened, as if it could swallow everything whole.

Quan Ruo’an could track her location, her movements, and any changes in her whereabouts with a simple refresh. Her every move was held in Quan Ruo’an’s grasp.

Suddenly, cold sweat drenched her, and a chill ran down her spine.

A daring idea struck Jiang Jixue: if she proactively deleted her data, would Quan Ruo’an receive a notification? And what would her reaction be?

Unfortunately, there was no way to know.

That night, Jiang Jixue followed her usual routine: shower, check social media for updates, and then sleep.

Out of habit, she opened a certain penguin app and scrolled down to find the school’s confession wall.

Anonymous post: “A male dancer from the dance department stole a phone and stubbornly denied it. Isn’t earning enough at the nightclub? Not loose enough in the back? Want me to introduce more clients?”

Dozens of comments flooded the thread:

“Is this about what happened at Building A this afternoon?”

“The teacher had to intervene to resolve it. I only caught the tail end of the commotion and wondered what was going on. Never imagined it was about someone stealing a phone.”

“How desperate for money must she be? Stealing phones is disgusting. Shouldn’t the school be doing something about this?”

“I think I know who it is—the one who works at the succubus bar?”

“That’s just how dance guys are. All ladybugs and duckies, giggling behind their hands.”

“…………”

Jiang Jixue burst out laughing, immediately recognizing the culprit. She then checked the WeChat forum mini-program and, sure enough, found the same post.

She couldn’t help but imagine Yue Tingqin saying these things in person, but the image felt so jarring it gave her goosebumps.

Jiang Jixue didn’t bother confirming with Yue Tingqin whether she had posted it.

After all, the post was deleted after three days.

Yue Tingqin had always been very measured and principled.

The Saturday Jiang Jixue had agreed to with Yue Tingqin arrived quickly.

Initially, Jiang Jixue had offered to treat Yue Tingqin to dinner as a thank you. However, on the morning of their date, Yue Tingqin sent a last-minute change of plans.

Jiang Jixue emerged from her shower to find three messages:

Address: No. 23, First Ring Road, West Garden District, Western Restaurant.

Caption: “I picked the place, so I’ll treat this time.”

“You can treat next time. 捂嘴笑jpg”

Jiang Jixue roughly dried her wet hair with a towel as she typed a simple “OK” in response.

Let her treat if she wants to, Jiang Jixue thought.

She assumed Yue Tingqin just wanted a nice weekend meal and was too embarrassed to let her pay.

They had agreed to meet at 6 PM. Jiang Jixue applied light makeup, wore a lavender dress, and threw on a thin sun-protective jacket before heading out.

As she entered the restaurant, she immediately spotted a familiar face waiting at a table in the distance.

So early?

Jiang Jixue tightened her grip on her purse strap and slowly walked toward her.

“Tingqin,” Jiang Jixue greeted her with her usual social smile as she sat down across from her.

Yue Tingqin had never expected Jiang Jixue to call her so affectionately. Her face lit up with joy. “Jixue,” she replied warmly, then handed her the menu.

Jiang Jixue didn’t hesitate or act coy. After flipping through a couple of pages, she selected two main dishes that looked particularly appealing and handed the menu back. Yue Tingqin chose two dishes as well and passed the menu to the waiter standing nearby.

Throughout the entire process, the two women didn’t exchange a single word, yet in a way, they seemed remarkably in sync.

Jiang Jixue silently observed this, and the thought inexplicably crossed her mind.

Before long, the dishes arrived one by one—classic and exquisitely prepared Western cuisine.

Jiang Jixue had only cut a few pieces of steak when she set down her knife and fork. After all, who could endure the burning gaze that had been fixed on her face the entire time?

“Tingqin, do you have something you want to say to me? Or is there something on my face?”

Yue Tingqin smiled, her expression a mix of shyness and barely concealed delight.

“No, it’s just… dining face-to-face with you, Jixue, feels so surreal.”

“What’s so surreal about it?” Jiang Jixue murmured.

We sat across from each other at the hotpot place during the dorm outing last time.

Yue Tingqin simply smiled, offering no further explanation.

Jiang Jixue glanced down and noticed that a large, parsley-sprinkled shrimp had mysteriously appeared on her plate while she wasn’t paying attention.