It Seems I’m Not The Only One Who Reincarnated - Chapter 27: Misunderstanding

Shi Hai didn’t quite understand why she was suddenly apologizing and asked, rubbing his chin.

“Uh… what are you apologizing for?”

“I mean… it’s not that I hate you… it’s because… I have androphobia…”

“So, you hate all men, which means I’m included, right?”

“No, that’s not it—!”

Zhu Lingjie hurriedly took off her mask and said with all her might.

“I don’t hate you!”

That sentence flowed smoothly from Zhu Lingjie.

Actually, her androphobia was never completely cured in her previous life either.

The only man she could physically touch was Shi Hai, no one else.

To Zhu Lingjie, Shi Hai was the last straw she clung to.

Shi Hai’s response was unusually calm.

“I see, I get it.”

“Re-really? You understand?”

He understood?

But why was his reaction so small…

In her previous life, when she had revealed this to him, Shi Hai at least widened his eyes and replied with a bitter smile, “I see, that’s great. I thought you always hated me.”

In this life, Shi Hai’s reaction was different, leaving Zhu Lingjie a bit puzzled.

She thought maybe Shi Hai was brushing her off and continued speaking.

“Um, I’m just not used to being close to men… it’s really not about you…”

“I said I understand. Now put your mask back on.”

At his command, Zhu Lingjie felt her body react as if it had been shocked.

The next second, she obediently put her mask back on.

It was a reflexive action by now.

After putting on her mask, she naturally lowered her head.

She was waiting for a reward.

But as soon as she lowered her head, she realized that the current Shi Hai would not praise her for being good and pat her head after giving a command.

This feeling of unfulfilled expectation left Zhu Lingjie dazed.

She suddenly realized something was off.

Perhaps because Shi Hai was the only man she could touch and also the one she liked the most, she had become unable to refuse any of Shi Hai’s requests at some point.

No, it wasn’t that she ‘couldn’t refuse,’ but that she ‘didn’t want to refuse.’

Not only did she not feel annoyed by his commanding tone, but she also felt a sense of happiness when being commanded, eagerly anticipating both praise and punishment.

Yes, she was just eagerly anticipating ‘Shi Hai’s reaction.’

But now, Shi Hai was barely reacting at all… Zhu Lingjie felt especially scared.

Was it because he had a girlfriend, so he didn’t care about other women at all…

Was ‘not caring’ such a terrifying thing?

Zhu Lingjie recalled a saying she had heard somewhere before.

The opposite of love isn’t hate, but indifference.

Remembering her past actions, every time Shi Hai greeted her, she would respond with silence.

Because there was ‘no dialogue,’ even after being childhood friends for more than ten years, their relationship never grew closer.

Though it was due to her mental illness, what had she done…

Overwhelmed by immense guilt, her heart sank to the bottom.

Shi Hai didn’t notice her abnormal behavior and treated it as ordinary conversation.

He continued cleaning while asking.

“But androphobia… when did it start?”

“…”

“Hmm?”

Shi Hai looked over at Zhu Lingjie, seeing her standing dumbly at the door, head lowered, her expression unseen.

Worried that something might be wrong, Shi Hai put down the mop and walked over, waving his hand in front of her and asking.

“Hey? Are you alright?”

“Ah—! I-I’m fine…”

“You still don’t look well. Go back to my house.”

Another command.

This time, Zhu Lingjie refused to comply, her body trembling uncontrollably.

She forced herself to suppress the sweeping wave of anxiety and fear and answered Shi Hai’s earlier question.

“It started a long time ago… when I was in first grade…”

“Considering that, it must have been tough sitting next to me for six years.”

“No—! Not at all—!”

“That’s good.”

Shi Hai continued cleaning, noticing that Zhu Lingjie didn’t seem like she wanted to leave.

But since this was her home, she could stay wherever she liked; it wasn’t his concern.

Zhu Lingjie’s mind was in chaos.

She wanted to follow Shi Hai’s command and go back, but she felt that if she did, nothing would progress…

Why did it turn out this way?

It was because she had been reincarnated into the past.

It seemed like no matter what she did, her efforts always ended up in vain…

Why was fate always toying with her?

With her already fragile mental state further disturbed by her chaotic thoughts, Zhu Lingjie finally…

Broke down emotionally.

With a thud, Zhu Lingjie collapsed to the ground, tears streaming down her face.

“Ah…?”

Shi Hai’s heart skipped a beat.

“Aaaaahhhhh?!”

He was genuinely shocked.

What’s going on?

She’s crying?

Why?

He couldn’t understand!

What went wrong this time?

He had just scared Jian Sichun to the point of wetting herself, and now he had made Zhu Lingjie cry.

What was happening?

It couldn’t be that his appearance was too frightening, or maybe his gaze was too intense!

Zhu Lingjie, now kneeling and sobbing, clasped her hands together and began to speak in a repentant tone.

“I’m sorry…! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

“I’ll never ignore you again…”

“So… please… please!”

“Don’t ignore me…!”

“Don’t… ignore me…”

She knelt there, crying, almost pleading.

Shi Hai crouched down beside her, wanting to comfort her but hesitating to touch her, so he just spoke softly.

“I never ignored you.”

“I-I’m afraid you don’t believe me…”

“What? You mean about your androphobia?”

“And… that I don’t hate you…”

“I told you I understand.”

“But, but…”

Zhu Lingjie didn’t know how to explain herself.

Objectively, her crying did seem inexplicable, and anyone would be troubled by it.

But Shi Hai, after assessing her expression, asked.

“Hmm… Could it be that my calm reaction made you feel I was brushing you off?”

He hit the nail on the head!

Zhu Lingjie realized that she had become anxious over such a small reaction, leading to her emotional breakdown…

She felt somewhat ridiculous…

Even a slight frown or a click of his tongue, any hint of displeasure from Shi Hai, would make her anxious.

This showed that her entire being was tied to him.

“I reacted calmly because I could tell you were sincere.”

“…You could tell?”

“Yes, mainly from your expression. You used to look at me very coldly, like you were trying to kill me with your eyes…”

He was being polite.

It wasn’t just a cold stare; it was like she was looking at a dead ‘object.’

“Th-that was…”

Zhu Lingjie knew she had a cold demeanor.

She was too good at hiding her emotions, never showing them outwardly.

So most of the time, she was expressionless.

“But just now, your expression was very urgent, so I said I understood.”

“Ah…”

“And this time when we met, your expression was much softer than before, so I believed what you said. It seems your psychological condition has improved. Congratulations.”

However, when she first looked at him and Jian Sichun, her gaze was still as cold as before… Shi Hai added in his mind.

Zhu Lingjie suddenly realized.

In her previous life, Shi Hai had misunderstood and thought she hated him because she was mostly expressionless back then.

But since being reincarnated, Zhu Lingjie at least wasn’t as ‘cold.’

So the misunderstanding was resolved the moment they met again.

“Sorry, I’m not the type to have exaggerated reactions…”

“It’s okay… I misunderstood…”

“Alright, stop crying and wipe your tears.”

Shi Hai reached into his pocket and pulled out a ‘handkerchief’ to wipe Zhu Lingjie’s tears.

But as he took it out and extended it, he suddenly remembered he didn’t have a habit of carrying handkerchiefs.

Not even tissues…

So what was this ‘handkerchief’?

What else could it be!

Shi Hai broke into a cold sweat.

Now it was his turn to want to cry.

Zhu Lingjie naturally saw what Shi Hai had taken out.

It was a blue and white striped item.

And her first thought was…

He really likes this kind of thing.

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Tn: Shi Hai pullet out Jian Sichun panty