Fang Bai looked into Ji Yuning's eyes. The girl's stubborn eyes flashed with a dark light. Looking into Ji Yuning's deep eyes, Fang Bai asked slowly, "Are you willing to give me a chance?"
Chapter 20
The room became so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Fang Bai met Ji Yuning's gaze directly, without any intention of avoiding it. His gaze was so clear that Ji Yuning saw her reflection in Fang Bai's eyes.
Fang Bai was the same.
When Fang Bai saw the fleeting sneer in Ji Yuning's eyes, she knew that what she said was like a joke to Ji Yuning, but she had no choice but to say it shamelessly.
If these words weren't spoken out clearly, Ji Yuning, living in hatred, would never notice her change.
Fang Bai had originally planned to wait for a suitable opportunity to discuss it.
But today's unexpected situation directly interrupted Fang Bai's plans, and she could only ask at this time, which she felt was not a good time.
Although Fang Bai had already anticipated the outcome, seeing Ji Yuning watching her as if she were a clown walking a tightrope, with every move she made looking ridiculous and laughable, a hint of resentment rose in Fang Bai's heart.
Fang Bai lowered his eyes slightly as his tongue swept across the roof of his mouth. "You don't have to answer my question yet."
Under Ji Yuning's mocking gaze, Fang Bai's eyes gradually darted away. But his tone remained firm: "I know this is very unfair to you. I'm the one who hurt you, and I'm the one begging for your forgiveness. I just want to tell you that from now on, I will never do anything like what I did to you before. I will try my best to make up for the harm I caused you. You—"
Ji Yuning couldn't listen anymore. Although the painkillers were effective, they couldn't suppress the dull pain in her heart.
Ji Yuning didn't know what was going on. She had been numb to everything about Fang Bai, but when she heard the person in front of her slowly say these words, her throbbing organ was awakened and long-dormant memories were stirred.
Each and every one of these things comes from the people right in front of you.
Ji Yuning called out softly, "Fang Bai."
His voice was low, but his tone was as cold as ice.
Fang Bai was stunned.
This was the first time she had heard Ji Yuning call her by her full name.
She had to admit that she was intimidated by the imposing tone in Ji Yuning's voice.
…Although it only lasted three seconds.
Fang Bai quickly realized what was happening, and her lips stiffly curved into a smile. "What?"
In this situation, Fang Bai forgot to correct Ji Yuning's way of addressing her; he just wanted to know why Ji Yuning called her by her full name.
Ji Yuning's tone was completely emotionless as she asked calmly, "Have you had enough fun?"
Fang Bai was puzzled and subconsciously asked, "What are you playing?"
Ji Yuning's eyes darkened. She admired Fang Bai's acting skills and was unsure whether to praise her for her poor performance or for her excellent acting.
So clumsy that he could see through her sudden change at a glance. Her undisguised goodwill and her incredibly sincere promise just now made it seem like she was a completely different person, showing him heartfelt kindness.
For a second, I almost fell for her gentle seduction and became immersed in the fortress of family affection she had painstakingly built.
Also let her,
I almost lost this game.
Ji Yuning's dark eyes suddenly changed, the fierceness in them vanished in an instant. She lowered her eyes, a sneer on her lips, and said softly, "It's nothing."
She won't lose.
"Knock knock"
The knocking broke the eerie atmosphere between the two.
Wu Mei's voice came into the room after the knocking, "Miss, are you in there?"
Fang Bai ignored Ji Yuning's unusual change in attitude, turned his head to look at the door, and answered softly, "Yes, what's wrong?"
The door was ajar. After thinking for a moment, Wu Mei pushed the door open a little wider.
Upon opening the door, Wu Mei saw Fang Bai sitting by Ji Yuning's bedside. She paused for a moment, then said, "Master called, asking why you haven't been answering his calls."
She didn't have her phone with her, so naturally she couldn't answer the call.
Fang Bai said, "I understand. I'll call him back in a bit."
"Okay." Wu Mei didn't leave. She asked, "Miss, are you alright? I just saw you rummaging through the medicine box."
Fang Bai shook his head: "It's nothing. Xiao Ning has a stomachache, so I found her some painkillers."
After hearing this, Wu Mei looked at Ji Yuning and asked, "Is Xiao Ji alright now?"
Ji Yuning hummed in agreement, "It's alright, Aunt Wu."
"That's good."
Wu Mei felt relieved and glanced between Fang Bai and Ji Yuning. It was obvious that the relationship between Miss and Xiao Ji had improved a lot.
Wu Mei smiled inwardly, her features softening as she said to Fang Bai, "Miss, I'll go downstairs now, so I won't disturb you and Xiao Ji's conversation any longer."
"Okay," Fang Bai said.
Ji Yuning: "".
Before leaving, Wu Mei closed the door.
The closed doors and windows slowed down the air circulation in the room. Both of them had already taken a shower, and the scent of shower gel lingered around them.
Wu Mei's sudden appearance disrupted Fang Bai's thoughts. After composing himself, Fang Bai said, "You must be wondering why I'm suddenly being so nice to you."
Ji Yuning's hands were curled up on the blanket. "Mmm."
Fang Bai's eyelashes trembled. "Last time Liao Li came to treat your illness, she asked me if I wasn't afraid Lu Xia would come looking for me if I treated you like this. After that day, I thought about how I promised Lu Xia that I would take good care of you when she sent you to my house, but now I have failed her expectations and broken my promise."
Although the original owner did not make any promises to Lu Xia, she only promised to raise Ji Yuning, but did not say that she would treat her well.
"If you don't believe my previous explanations, then just assume I changed my attitude because I was afraid of retribution. Of course, this is just a reason I gave you to believe me."
Ji Yuning paused for a moment and said, "I didn't disbelieve you; I misunderstood Aunt Fang."
Fang Bai nodded. She had said everything she needed to say. Whether Ji Yuning believed her or not was beyond her control, and she had no excuse to stay any longer.
The important thing is that if Fang Bai doesn't leave soon, he'll freeze to death.
There's no need to turn on the air conditioning in the room; Ji Yuning's coldness is enough to cool it down.
Fang Bai stood up, smiled gently, and said, "It's getting late, you should rest."
Ji Yuning: "Mm."
Fang Bai took two steps closer, raised his hand and placed it on Ji Yuning's head, rubbing it gently. "Goodnight."
Thinking that Ji Yuning wouldn't reply, Fang Bai didn't linger. She removed her hand from Ji Yuning's head, turned around, and left the room.
The moment the door closed, Fang Bai crossed his arms, rubbed the goosebumps that had risen on his arms, and quietly went downstairs.
The next day.
Ji Yuning maintained her school habits and got up at six o'clock.
After washing up, Ji Yuning went back to her room to finish the homework she hadn't been able to complete the night before because of a stomachache, and then memorized some vocabulary words.
Ji Yuning didn't come downstairs until eight o'clock.
When they reached the first floor, Wu Mei had just brought breakfast out of the kitchen and placed it on the dining table. When she caught sight of Ji Yuning, Wu Mei smiled and asked, "Little Ji, you're up? Does your stomach still hurt?"
“It’s all done,” Ji Yuning stepped forward and asked, “Do you need any help?”
"No need, I've already taken care of everything."
As Wu Mei spoke, she remembered something. She looked up at Ji Yuning and said, "Miss hasn't gotten up yet. Would you like to go upstairs and call her down for breakfast?"
"..." He dug his own hole and jumped in.
Meeting Wu Mei's pleading gaze, Ji Yuning could only say, "Mm."
As she went upstairs, the conversation from last night resurfaced in Ji Yuning's mind, lingering there.
Standing in front of Fang Bai's bedroom, Ji Yuning knocked twice on the off-white door.
Then Fang Bai's voice rang out: "Go in."
Ji Yuning didn't move, but said in a voice that was clear enough for the person inside to hear through the door, "Dinner's ready."
A woman's surprised voice came from inside the door: "Xiao Ning?"
Ji Yuning turned to leave, but just as she made a move, the tightly closed door was pulled open from the inside with a "click".
Fang Bai looked at Ji Yuning's ponytail, the upturned ends of which were completely out of character for Ji Yuning's playful and cute nature, and Fang Bai's heart softened. "Don't go yet, come in for a moment."
Perhaps because he had just woken up, Fang Bai's tone was languid, and each word he spoke had a drawn-out ending, which sounded like... he was being coquettish.
Ji Yuning declined to comment on this emerging perception.
Ji Yuning stood still, turning around to meet Fang Bai's sleepy eyes.
Knowing that Ji Yuning wouldn't listen to her, Fang Bai had no choice but to say, "I have something to tell you."
After saying that, Fang Bai opened the door and went back inside, regardless of whether Ji Yuning came in or not.
Ji Yuning hesitated for a moment before stepping into Fang Bai's bedroom.
Unlike the pink walls of her room, Fang Bai's room was all off-white, elegant and tranquil, with cabinets and other objects in the room also in plain colors.
The only bright spot in Fang Bai's room was probably the royal blue pajamas she was wearing.
The contrast is striking yet not jarring; on the contrary, the strong color difference is more eye-catching.
Fang Bai went straight into the bathroom. She had just brushed her teeth and was about to wash her face.
While looking in the mirror, Fang Bai noticed Ji Yuning had entered the room. She asked, "Does your stomach still hurt?"
Ji Yuning: "No."
Fang Bai said "Oh," and then added, "I forgot to ask you yesterday, does this pain occur every time you have your period, or is it just an occasional pain?"
Ji Yuning: "Occasionally."