The White Moonlight Who Went Mad in Silence [Rebirth] - Chapter 14

It wasn’t until Yi An mentioned that the Ye family planned to formally welcome her back and that she had already visited them that afternoon, with plans to move in the next day, that Ming Lan hesitated.

She understood that Yi An’s return to the Ye family was inevitable. Still, that family was not easy to return to.

“Do you know anything about the Ye family’s current situation?” Ming Lan asked.

Yi An shook her head. “I only know that Chairman Ye is my great-grandfather. As for the others, they’re all part of his extended family. That’s all I was told today.”

Ming Lan became even more uneasy. She didn’t know much about the Ye family either. Most of what she knew came from her time living there in her past life, along with some rumors—none of which she could fully trust. Still, she felt the need to tell Yi An what she could.

“Just remember, aside from Chairman Ye, don’t believe anything anyone else says. None of them have good intentions. You being brought back threatens their interests, so they’ll find every opportunity to target you. It could even become dangerous. Especially…”

She paused and thought for a moment.

“Especially a man named Ye Hai. He’s the son of the current president of the Ye Group. The president’s health is declining, and he’s preparing to hand the company over to his son. Ye Hai also has a son around your age. You must be extra cautious around their entire family. A large part of the company is already under their control. They’re ambitious, but the core leadership and major shareholders still side with Chairman Ye.”

“I understand. Don’t worry,” Yi An replied calmly.

She was well aware of all this from her past life. She couldn’t tell Ming Lan about her rebirth, but she also didn’t want her to worry too much.

Ming Lan nodded. She trusted that Yi An was smart enough to handle herself. In their past life, Yi An had acted too hastily, partly for Ming Lan’s sake, which led to her being used. Things were different this time.

She raised her hand and patted Yi An on the shoulder.

“Don’t forget you still have me. The Ming family isn’t weak. If you ever need anything, just tell me.”

Yi An looked at her and realized Ming Lan was genuinely unafraid of her making outrageous requests. They hadn’t known each other for long, but this was clearly Ming Lan’s nature. Still, Yi An made a mental note to remind her later not to be so kind to everyone.

For now, she let it go. Dinner had arrived, and it was getting late. They ate first.

Afterward, Yi An washed up and, as usual, waited in Ming Lan’s room for her to finish her bath. Ming Lan still needed her ankle treated, and it was easiest to do that after bathing.

As she bathed, Ming Lan kept trying to recall more about her past life, hoping to find something that could help Yi An. But after she had sold Qinglan Group, she had been imprisoned, cut off from all outside information. Her body had deteriorated rapidly, and she barely stayed conscious for a few hours a day, relying heavily on medication. Yi An had never told her much, probably to spare her from mental strain.

The more she tried to think, the more frustrated she became.

Lost in thought, she didn’t realize her time was up. When the alarm sounded, she got up without thinking and stepped into the tub with her injured foot. Pain shot through her ankle instantly.

Yi An heard the sound from outside and quickly approached the bathroom door.

“What happened?”

“I’m fine!” Ming Lan called out.

Thankfully, she hadn’t hurt herself more. Since she was in water, she hadn’t fallen. She steadied herself and reached for a towel to wrap around her body, then called Yi An in to help her.

Yi An entered and immediately saw the water trickling down Ming Lan’s injured foot. She moved to support her.

Today, Ming Lan wasn’t wearing a bathrobe—just a towel wrapped around her chest. Yi An reached for her arm, still damp with water. Her skin was delicate and untrained, so soft that the slightest pressure left an indentation.

Yi An hesitated, unsure where to hold her. But Ming Lan, fresh out of the tub and unable to use one leg, leaned fully into her. Yi An barely managed to catch her in time, ending up with Ming Lan in her arms, one hand around her waist, their bodies pressed close together.

Ming Lan thought she had nearly knocked Yi An over. Flustered, she gripped Yi An’s clothes until the two of them steadied.

“That scared me. I thought we were both going to fall,” she said, letting out a breath of relief.

Yi An didn’t respond. She quietly adjusted her grip and helped support Ming Lan again.

Still holding onto Yi An, Ming Lan tried to hop out on one leg, but the towel wasn’t nearly as secure as a bathrobe. After a couple of hops, it began to slip. She had to stop and fumble to tighten it.

Yi An looked away politely.

“Forget it. Hold your towel tight. I’ll carry you.”

“Alright.”

Ming Lan realized she was just wasting time and obediently wrapped her arms around Yi An’s neck. Yi An picked her up in a bridal carry and walked toward the bed.

Yi An kept her eyes straight ahead. Ming Lan, however, looked up at her, feeling the firm support of Yi An’s arms.

“When my foot’s better, I want to start working out,” she said.

“Exercise is good,” Yi An replied. Considering Ming Lan’s condition, moderate physical activity would benefit her. Right now, the most important thing was for her to recover.

When they reached the bed, Yi An gently set her down. After drying her hair, she opened the wardrobe.

“Where’s your sleepwear?”

“On the right side. There should be a few hanging up,” Ming Lan answered.

Inside the wardrobe were the comfortable clothes Ming Lan wore at home. It was easy to find what she meant. Yi An pulled it open and spotted a row of nightgowns.

“Which one do you want?”

“The one on the far right,” Ming Lan said, glancing at her ankle.

Yi An looked at the silk slip dress, hesitated for a moment, then took it down and handed it over.

“Is it this one?” Ming Lan asked. After a brief pause, she accepted it. “Sure, that’ll work.”

She began to untie her towel. Yi An quickly turned away, her movements a little rushed. Once Ming Lan was dressed, she noticed that Yi An still had her back turned.

“I’m done,” she said.

When Yi An turned around, Ming Lan smiled casually.

“It’s fine. We’re both girls. What’s there to be shy about?”

“Right,” Yi An answered vaguely. “Let me put the medicine on your foot.”

“Okay.”

Ming Lan leaned back against the bed while Yi An sat at the edge. Ming Lan lifted her leg onto Yi An’s lap. The silky fabric of the nightgown slid up slightly, revealing a long, smooth leg. Her skin was flawless, like polished jade.

Yi An warmed the medicine in her palms and gently placed her hands around Ming Lan’s ankle. Her gaze remained fixed on the distant wardrobe. She refused to look down. Even though Ming Lan said there was nothing to be embarrassed about, Yi An couldn’t explain why she always felt a little strange in these moments. It wasn’t easy for her to remain unaffected.

This time, she applied the medicine faster than usual. Before the warmth could even settle in, she had already finished and gently set Ming Lan’s leg down. Then she pulled the blanket over her.

“Get some rest. You have to wake up early for work tomorrow,” Yi An said as she stood up, already preparing to leave.

“You’re moving tomorrow. Of course I’m going to help you. Why would I go to work?” Ming Lan grabbed Yi An’s hand. “You’re moving out. Let’s sleep together tonight.”

Yi An paused in place.

“I’m… not used to sharing a bed.”

“Me neither. That’s why we should try it.”

Ming Lan couldn’t help thinking of their past life. When they lived in the Ye family’s house, she had constant nightmares and poor health. Yi An had set up a small bed beside hers to keep watch. During their days in exile, they had shared a narrow space on a ship. Yi An had slept on the damp floor beside the tiny bed, never once leaving her side.

They had never slept in the same bed. But Yi An had stayed up through countless nights, keeping her safe.

Thinking of this, Ming Lan tugged Yi An back toward the bed and patted the space beside her.

“I’ve seen close friends sleep in the same bed and talk until they fall asleep. I’ve never had a best friend like that before. Except for you.”

Faced with Minglan’s persistent invitation, Yian couldn’t find a reason to refuse anymore.

Since Minglan was still recovering from her injured foot and shouldn’t move around much, Yian walked to the other side of the bed and lay down. Minglan’s bed was large, and there was nearly half a meter of space between them.

Minglan glanced at the distance between them, gently pulled Yian a bit closer, tucked the blanket around her, and only then lay back down herself.

Just as Minglan’s hand reached toward Yian, Yian suddenly sat up.

“I’ll go turn off the lights.”

“You can just use voice control. Stay in bed.”

Once Yian lay back down, Minglan turned off the main light and turned on the night light. Then she reached out and gently turned Yian’s face toward her.

“You seem really nervous.”

“I’m not,” Yian replied, her voice stiff and her lips pressed into a line.

“Let’s just chat then,” Minglan said, rubbing Yian’s cheek. Even though Yian looked expressionless, that only made her seem cuter. “What do you think other girls talk about when they share a bed with a good friend?”

“I wouldn’t know.” Yian looked at Minglan helplessly as she continued to pinch her face. She held back the urge to retaliate, her fingertips curling slightly.

“How could you not know? Don’t you have any friends?”

“Well…” Yian thought about it. The only person she could really call a friend was Cheng Yurong. They had gone to the same junior high, high school, and even ended up in the same university. Later, they both found jobs in A City and decided to rent a place together. As for casual chatting, it was a foreign concept. Back in school, they weren’t that close, and once they started working, they were so exhausted that they barely spoke. Most of their communication was just short messages about food deliveries or unlocking the door.

Yian wasn’t fond of talking much, and even when she did, Cheng Yurong would often get bored and give up trying.

Thinking of that, she suddenly remembered she had a message she hadn’t replied to.

“I need to grab my phone.”

She said this to Minglan and got up to retrieve it from her room. When she had received Cheng Yurong’s message earlier, she’d been walking through the Ye family estate with her great-grandfather. Distracted by the flood of past-life memories, she had only glanced at the message and then forgotten about it.

Back then, Yian had never thought badly of Cheng Yurong. In school, she had been diligent and hardworking. By university, she was already self-reliant. Most importantly, she was cheerful and pleasant to be around, which made living together easy. Otherwise, Yian wouldn’t have chosen her as a roommate.

In her past life, when Yian returned to the Ye family, Cheng Yurong had been genuinely happy for her. She didn’t accept any help and even refused expensive gifts, insisting she could make it on her own. The only time she ever asked for anything was over a year later, when she said she was in trouble and wanted to leave the country under a new identity. Since Yian was abroad at the time, she asked her great-grandfather to help. After that, they lost touch.

The next time they met, Yian had returned to China and was desperately searching for Minglan. It was Cheng Yurong who secretly revealed Minglan’s location—locked in the basement of the Li family home. At that point, Cheng Yurong was living there and dating Li Jue.

Yian had no idea what had happened between them, but she knew very well what kind of man Li Jue was. He treated Cheng Yurong terribly. In truth, Li Jue couldn’t have Minglan, so he used Cheng Yurong as a substitute. Yian tried many times to convince her to leave, but Cheng Yurong said she loved him. She even begged Yian to stop fighting against Li Jue, saying she was torn and miserable.

They parted on bad terms and never saw each other again. Yian hadn’t heard anything about her since.

Thinking about all that, she opened her phone and saw Cheng Yurong’s message saying she had failed another interview.

Maybe this was a good opportunity to end their entangled connection once and for all.

Yian replied, asking if Cheng Yurong had considered leaving A City for a fresh start elsewhere. Their university was in B City, which was just as good. If she wanted, Yian could help her find a job there.

Cheng Yurong replied almost immediately.

But I still want to try again. I don’t want to leave A City.

Why not? Yian asked.

On the other end, Cheng Yurong stared at her phone, thinking of Li Jue. Her heart ached. If she left, with such distance between them, she might never see him again.

Because I still love him.

Yian blinked at her screen, utterly speechless.