Being Raised in Captivity by the Former Canary - Chapter 19

“Tingqin, what’s wrong?” Jiang Jixue finally noticed the unusual fluctuations in the other woman’s mood.

“Nothing…” Yue Tingqin replied, continuing to drive with unwavering focus, though her emotions remained turbulent, and her expression was strained.

In late spring, the grass grew lush and birds sang sweetly in the warm breeze. After enjoying a light, refreshing vegetarian meal at a restaurant near a city temple, their stomachs felt much more comfortable.

After lunch, they ordered a pot of Longjing tea to share, sipping it slowly. A cage hung from the eaves above their table, housing a cockatiel with “blush” on its cheeks. Sipping tea and teasing the bird, they enjoyed a truly leisurely afternoon.

“Should we order some dessert? Just eating these vegetables will make us hungry again soon.”

“If we get hungry early, we’ll just have dinner earlier,” Yue Tingqin said with a smile. “Any plans for tonight?”

“What’s this? Is Boss Yue trying to treat me to dinner again?” Jiang Jixue teased.

“Making you eat this ‘rabbit food’ for lunch was an insult,” Yue Tingqin replied. “Let’s have grilled Wagyu beef tonight.”

“I don’t mind freeloading on lunch, but I have plans for dinner. How long will you be staying in R City this time? We can always reschedule.” Her abrupt change of topic instantly distanced herself from him.

Yue Tingqin suppressed his disappointment and replied, “Now that things are settled over there, I’ll be staying longer this time. At least two or three months.”

“Then there’s no rush. We can take our time planning something.”

“Alright. Shall I take you home?”

“Mm-hmm.”

After finishing two or three cups of tea, the teapot was nearly empty. Yue Tingqin stood up, retrieved Jiang Jixue’s leather bag and light jacket from the back of her chair, and headed to the parking lot with the car keys.

The city center was congested with traffic, making parking a nightmare. Jiang Jixue sat in the restaurant, idly scrolling through her phone while waiting for Yue Tingqin to pull the car up to the curb.

A notification pinged on her phone.

It was a contact card from Teacher Hongfeng.

The prestigious jewelry designer she had asked Teacher Hongfeng to introduce her to.

Quan Ruo’an. She was determined to secure him. Jiang Jixue bit her lip in determination.

Just then, a car horn honked outside the restaurant. Jiang Jixue closed her phone, stood up, and walked toward Yue Tingqin’s car.

Yue Tingqin drove Jiang Jixue all the way to the villa in the suburbs. When the car came to a smooth stop in front of the gate, Jiang Jixue had already fallen asleep, her head tilted to the side.

Yue Tingqin hesitated, torn between waking her and letting her rest.

They had just returned from another city, and now they had to part again after only a morning together. Yue Tingqin was already fretting over what excuse she could use next time to invite Jiang Jixue out without seeming contrived or having ulterior motives.

The woman sleeping in the passenger seat looked serene and ethereal. Her slender, arched eyebrows and full, rosy lips resembled a melting snowflake, its sharp edges softened into pure, gentle curves.

Yue Tingqin’s eyes were filled with longing.

She braced herself on the heated seat cushion with one hand and leaned closer, drawn by an irresistible impulse…

Meanwhile, on the balcony outside the second-floor master bedroom, a tall, elegant woman stood with her black hair dancing in the wind, strands whipping against her face without causing her any discomfort. Her gaze was deep and complex, like the still, ancient waters of a forgotten well, as she watched the car parked outside for the past four or five minutes, lost in thought.

Quan Ruo’an counted down silently. If no one emerged from the car or it didn’t leave within the next sixty seconds, she would go down to investigate herself.

As she counted down to thirty seconds, the car door opened. A woman in a long trench coat stepped out of the driver’s seat and reached for the passenger door, but before her hand could touch the handle, the door swung open from the inside.

Quan Ruo’an stood at a higher vantage point, her gaze fixed on Yue Tingqin, her eyes narrowing slightly.

The distance was too great to clearly see the woman’s face, though her figure seemed vaguely familiar. Quan Ruo’an couldn’t place her, but she was clearly someone connected to Xiao Xue.

It wasn’t until the passenger emerged that the lingering weight in Quan Ruo’an’s heart finally lifted.

Jiang Jixue took her thin coat and bag from Yue Tingqin. Facing him, she said, “Tingqin, you’re still so thoughtful. Next time, don’t wait for me to wake up—just wake me up directly.”

Yue Tingqin smiled warmly. “Alright. I just thought you looked tired. You should get some rest when you get back.”

“Mm-hmm. But why were you leaning in so close just now? What were you trying to do?” Jiang Jixue asked casually.

“I was just trying to unfasten your seatbelt for you,” Yue Tingqin replied without a flicker of hesitation.

“Alright, goodbye then,” Jiang Jixue said, turning and waving as she walked away.

“Goodbye.”

Yue Tingqin stood rooted to the spot, watching until Jiang Jixue had completely entered her home before getting back into the car and driving off.

Jiang Jixue pushed open the living room door. Though she had mentally prepared herself to face Quan Ruo’an, the sight of the gloomy, aristocratic woman on the sofa made her realize she was woefully underprepared.

Hearing the door open, Quan Ruo’an turned her head. A small patch of gloom settled between her brows.

Didn’t you ask me to pick you up? she thought, but when she spoke, her words twisted into a roundabout question, “A friend drove you home?”

Her expression feigned indifference as she asked.

So Elder Sister still cares about my daily life, Jiang Jixue thought, her lips curving into a smile. Her tone brightened as she replied, “Tingqin drove me home. We had lunch together outside.”

“Tingqin?” Quan Ruo’an felt a vague unease creep into her heart at the mention of the name.

“Yue Tingqin, my roommate. Haven’t you met her before?”

“…I remember now.”

Quan Ruo’an stared into Jiang Jixue’s pure, innocent eyes, her inner turmoil intensifying.

Jiang Jixue’s words reminded her, though she clearly remembered warning her that Yue Tingqin’s feelings for her were far from ordinary.

Quan Ruo’an had seen through it immediately at the restaurant. But after all this time, did Yue Tingqin still harbor feelings for Jiang Jixue?

“Your roommate… she’s quite attentive to you. I saw her car parked outside for a long time.”

“Tingqin has always been very considerate,” Jiang Jixue said with a smile. “I fell asleep, and she didn’t want to wake me. I woke up on my own.”

Quan Ruo’an: “???”

What did she mean by “didn’t want to wake me”?

Standing there, Jiang Jixue easily caught every shift in Quan Ruo’an’s expression.

So she gets jealous too, Jiang Jixue thought, unable to suppress a smile. The corners of her lips curved upward in satisfaction.

Deliberately saying nothing more, Jiang Jixue glanced at her, yawned lazily, and swayed her hips as she strolled toward the bedroom on the second floor.

“I’m going to take a nap. If you’re tired, you can come up and sleep next to me.”

Quan Ruo’an watched her figure ascend the stairs.

Jiang Jixue had truly changed her demeanor. The only constant remained her cold, detached nature, devoid of joy or sorrow.

After Jiang Jixue went upstairs, Quan Ruo’an began checking the guest rooms and nanny’s quarters on the first floor. To her surprise, they were all empty—not even a bed in sight. The room on the second floor where she had slept on her first night was also locked.

It seemed Jiang Jixue was truly determined to keep her confined to the master bedroom. Recalling Xiao Xue’s aggressive advances the previous night, Quan Ruo’an couldn’t shake the feeling that something inappropriate would happen between them in the coming days.

Quan Ruo’an sank back onto the sofa, feeling genuinely tired after returning from the law firm.

She rarely took afternoon naps.

But when she was with Xiao Xue at their apartment near school…

Xiao Xue would always beg and cajole her into taking one, acting sweet and pleading.

In the past, Quan Ruo’an would only mercifully grant Xiao Xue’s wish and nap in the guest room for an hour when they were together.

And now, here she was again…

Facing the empty living room, a wave of loneliness washed over her. Quan Ruo’an sighed, wondering what exactly had changed with the passage of time.

What could be easily changed had already been altered, while what resisted change remained unchanged, no matter how long had passed.

A person’s habits, for example, rarely changed easily—like taking afternoon naps.

Jiang Jixue’s natural, effortless laziness and her decisive, efficient actions coexisted within her without the slightest contradiction.

When Quan Ruo’an opened his eyes, he found a blanket draped over him. The curtains on the first floor had been drawn, casting the afternoon interior into a cool, dim twilight. The blanket pressed against his skin radiated a gentle warmth from its core, but its familiar scent immediately brought him a sense of peace.

How did I drift off on the sofa like this? When did Xiao Xue leave? I didn’t even notice.

As Quan Ruo’an sat up, he noticed a note on the coffee table, along with a gift bag from a certain fruit-branded store standing beside it.

“I’ve left. Remember to pick me up tonight, okay? Use the new phone I gave you. (P.S. Elder Sister looks so cute when she’s asleep!)”

The scene of her gifting him a phone felt eerily familiar.

Waking from his nap with a dull headache, Quan Ruo’an massaged his temples with one hand while picking up the note with the other. The handwriting was delicate and elegant; just looking at the words made Jiang Jixue’s voice involuntarily echo in his mind. He could even picture the little expression she must have worn as she wrote them.

Quan Ruo’an ignored the phone on the table and stood up to wash her face in the bathroom.

But when she saw her reflection in the mirror, her steps froze, and every muscle in her body stiffened.

The face in the mirror was strikingly beautiful, even without makeup. Her features remained sharp and deep. Yet, on that pale, cool face, a vivid red lipstick mark stood out clearly on her left cheek.

Quan Ruo’an’s eyes instantly filled with panic, disbelief, and self-doubt. Her lashes trembled as she watched her cheeks flush crimson, the redness spreading rapidly from her earlobes down to her neck.

Suddenly, an unbearable heat surged through her body, especially in her chest, where it burned as if trying to melt her heart.

Xiao Xue… she’s so wicked!

Quan Ruo’an unconsciously bit down on her lower lip.

Speechless, she stood before the mirror, her figure swaying slightly. The faint scent of the blanket drifted from her nose…

Shame, frustration, and an indescribable feeling engulfed her, pulling her into a whirlpool entirely consumed by Jiang Jixue.