Wu Mei hadn't yet processed Ji Yuning's words and called out blankly, "Little Ji."
After digesting what Ji Yuning had said, Wu Mei turned to Fang Bai and asked in surprise, "Miss, when did you learn to cook?"
Wu Mei had never seen her mistress cook, which was another reason why she was in a hurry to come back – she was afraid that the two of them would only eat takeout if they stayed at home.
Ji Yuning then stood up and said, "I'm going upstairs."
From the moment Ji Yuning suddenly spoke, Fang Bai's gaze fell on her, but she didn't notice him looking at her until she got up to leave, and didn't even glance at him.
As Ji Yuning disappeared from sight, the footsteps on the stairs gradually subsided, and Fang Bai's brows relaxed. She said to Wu Mei, "Just these next few days."
After speaking, Fang Bai's eyebrows softened, revealing his confusion.
Why are you calling her Aunt Fang again?
10 PM.
Ji Yuning sat at her desk, with an exercise book lying on it. The person holding the pen seemed to be stumped by the questions, and didn't put pen to paper for a long time, only writing two multiple-choice questions.
"Knock knock"
Ji Yuning's thoughts were interrupted by two knocks on the door.
Ji Yuning glanced at the books on the table, casually put down her pen, and got up to open the door.
The door opened, and Wu Mei handed the clothes from her arms to Ji Yuning, saying, "Xiao Ji, your school uniform hasn't been taken away."
Ji Yuning lowered her head: "Thank you, Aunt Wu."
"Miss also asked me to bring you the milk."
After Ji Yuning took the milk, Wu Mei asked again, "I heard from Miss that you're going to commute to school?"
Ji Yuning: "Mm."
Wu Mei smiled with delight: "It's good to be a day student. That way, I can watch you eat your meals, and Miss won't have to worry about you."
Day students can rest in the classroom at noon and have lunch in the cafeteria. Ji Yuning had no intention of going home for lunch, so Wu Mei's description of the three meals was not entirely accurate.
But Ji Yuning didn't explain; she was more interested in the second half of Wu Mei's sentence, "Worried about me?"
Wu Mei nodded: "Yes, Miss has mentioned to me a few times that she is worried that you are not eating well, that you are only eating steamed buns and not vegetables. Every Friday before you get out of school, she asks me to go buy groceries so that I can nourish you."
After finishing her sentence, Aunt Wu unconsciously yawned. She had been traveling for several hours by train and was already exhausted. She was about to go to sleep, but when she passed by the laundry room and saw that Ji Yuning's school uniform had not been collected, she thought that school would start tomorrow, so she brought it upstairs to Ji Yuning.
Wu Mei realized she had lost her composure in front of Ji Yuning and smiled sheepishly.
Ji Yuning said calmly, "Aunt Wu, you should go and get some rest."
Wu Mei nodded. "Okay, you should go to bed early too. Staying up late all the time isn't good."
"Um."
Wu Mei turned around, and Ji Yuning closed the door.
Ji Yuning carried her school uniform to her bed. She was used to putting the clothes she would wear the next day on the other side of the bed so she could put them on as soon as she got up.
The school uniform in her arms emitted a faint scent of laundry detergent, a light and pleasant fragrance, unlike the soapy smell of the clothes Ji Yuning usually washed. It wasn't pungent at all; on the contrary, it was quite enticing.
This wasn't the first time Ji Yuning had smelled this scent; she had smelled it several times when she was very close to Fang Bai.
Ji Yuning, who was used to the smell of soapberry, felt a strange sense of unfamiliarity holding the school uniform full of fresh fragrance.
She couldn't help but think of the scene she saw in the laundry room: Fang Bai wearing her school uniform.
With a breath, Ji Yuning smelled the fragrance again. The scent overlapped with the images in her mind, reality and memory collided, and her sense of smell and taste intertwined.
In a daze, Ji Yuning felt that the smell did not come from the laundry detergent, but from the residue left on the clothes by Fang Bai.
"..."
Ji Yuning turned around and put the clothes on the sofa.
The next day, after Fang Bai dropped Ji Yuning off at school, he followed her inside. After chatting with He Wei for a few minutes, he went to check out of the dormitory.
Ji Yuning went into the classroom to put her schoolbag away.
Just then, the class representative was collecting homework, so Ji Yuning opened her schoolbag, took out a notebook, and was about to hand it over when someone snatched the homework from her hand.
Ji Yuning glanced to the side and saw He Ziyan throw the homework she had taken away to the class representative, then waved to the class representative to let him leave.
He Ziyan, hands in her pockets, looked down at Ji Yuning and asked, "I heard you're going to commute to school?"
Ji Yuning packed her schoolbag and said, "Mm."
He Ziyan: "Why?"
Before Ji Yuning could answer, He Ziyan said to herself, "You're not afraid of me, so you're trying to avoid me, are you?"
Ji Yuning glanced at her.
After packing her schoolbag, Ji Yuning got up and walked out of the classroom.
Before he could take two steps, He Ziyan caught up with him, saying, "Wait a minute."
He Ziyan approached Ji Yuning, leaned closer, and sniffed something.
Ji Yuning silently distanced herself from He Ziyan.
At the same time, He Ziyan straightened up and asked, "Why do you smell like Fang Bai?"
Author's Note:
Xiao Ji: Because my aunt and I are intertwined, I am in her and she is in me.
Chapter 39
Fang Bai's...taste?
What does Fangbai taste like?
As soon as He Ziyan finished speaking, she realized there was some ambiguity in her words and quickly clarified, "I meant the stain on the clothes."
He Ziyan paused for a moment, then said, "The smell of laundry detergent."
She smelled it on Fang Bai in the auditorium last time.
It was the faint, mellow fragrance that Fang Bai smelled when he spoke close to her.
After that day, He Ziyan thought it was the scent of perfume, so she bought several different perfumes, but in the end, she couldn't find the same one.
It wasn't until just now that He Ziyan realized that it wasn't the smell of perfume.
He Ziyan asked, "Do you all use the same laundry detergent?"
Ji Yuning glanced at He Ziyan sideways and said calmly, "We live together."
"...?"
"We live together"—He Ziyan thought this was a provocation.
We lived together, using the same laundry detergent and everything else. In the time you couldn't see, we lived together and did many things you didn't know about.
The thought flashed through her mind quickly, but He Ziyan soon dismissed it.
She knew that what Ji Yuning meant was different from what she thought, and that she had overthought things.
He Ziyan looked at Ji Yuning, about to ask what brand of laundry detergent it was, when she saw Ji Yuning walking out of the classroom. "Where are you going?"
Ji Yuning had already left the classroom. He Ziyan stood still and turned back to her seat. She met Mu Xuerou's gaze and heard Mu Xuerou say, "Yu Ning may have gone back to the dormitory."
"Class is about to start, what is she going back to the dormitory for—" He Ziyan thought of something: checking out of the dormitory requires a parent's signature, and the dormitory belongings also need to be cleared out.
Not knowing whether Ji Yuning's parents would send someone or come in person, He Ziyan changed direction and caught up with Ji Yuning.
When Ji Yuning glanced at her, He Ziyan said, "I won't see you in the dorm anymore. This is my final farewell."
Ji Yuning remained silent: ".
Fang Bai stood in front of the dormitory building waiting for Ji Yuning, and saw two figures walking towards him from afar.
One of them walked with an upright posture and a cool, aloof demeanor, giving off an unapproachable vibe. The person walking beside her had their chin slightly raised, looking as spoiled as a peacock about to spread its tail feathers.
Fang Bai raised an eyebrow slightly, wondering why He Ziyan had come along.
Does He Ziyan really want to be friends with Ji Yuning? Then why hasn't He Ziyan changed at all in the story?
Before Fang Bai could figure it out, the figure in the distance was already approaching her.
He Ziyan took her hands out of her pockets the moment she saw Fang Bai, and said, "Aunt Fang."
Fang Bai smiled and called out, "Classmate He."
The smile, bathed in light, was veiled with a soft, ethereal quality.
The person whose name was called paused for a moment.
Ji Yuning stepped onto the stairs without expression.
Fang Bai followed behind Ji Yuning, while He Ziyan only stepped forward to follow them when they were about to enter the dormitory.
In the dormitory.
Aside from some essential items for accommodation, Ji Yuning didn't have many other belongings.
After everything that was visible was tidied up, Ji Yuning went to the balcony and opened the storage cabinet.
Fang Bai took in all the scattered items inside. Before Ji Yuning could make a move, Fang Bai reached out and took out the gift bag. When he opened it and saw what was inside, Fang Bai understood why she felt a sense of familiarity.
Isn't this the stuff she gave Ji Yuning when she came to school to deliver living expenses?!
Apart from the phone, which she had He Wei pick up, everything else was left untouched inside.
Fang Bai looked up, "You didn't eat any of these?"
Ji Yuning: "Mm."