Chapter 22 - Thank You For Understanding Me

After an embarrassing lunchtime, which forever changed Li Caiyi's image, she felt that something was gradually changing inside of her. Previously, she was so lost about everything, but now she felt like the mist in her head had gotten clearer.

It was amazing how a small gesture of encouragement could give a person tremendous strength and courage.

Li Caiyi vaguely recognized her mistake in her past life and reflected on it a lot. She should have sought outside help when she couldn't get it from inside. The world is vast with limitless possibilities. Even if your close ones didn't acknowledge you, someone else would if you reached out to them.

Li Caiyi wasted her whole life just to learn about this one obvious fact; she felt pathetic. Sometimes the answer has always been in front of you, but if you closed your eyes and ears for everything, of course you wouldn't notice it.

At first, it was only Shen Qiang, but then she met Zhou Ya, Chen Ruolan, and Feng Nian. The number of people who acknowledged her increased, and she couldn't help but wonder if there were actually more people out there. People who always had her in their eyes, but she was too blind to notice them.

Li Caiyi caressed her phone screen and fondly smiled when she saw the contact list of her three new friends. She swore she would treasure them forever.

"Xiaoyi, what are you doing?"

Li Chunhua's sudden appearance snapped her out of her daze. Li Caiyi put down her phone and smiled at her. "Nothing. Have you finished your homework?"

Li Chunhua pouted. "I'm done already, but you barely make any progress. Daddy would scold you again if you don't focus, you know?"

"Sorry. I'll finish them now."

Li Chunhua folded her arms on top of the table and propped her chin with it as she looked up at her twin sister. "Xiaoyi, you seem to be in a good mood today. Did something good happen?"

"I'm the same as usual, though?"

"No, you aren't! You can fool anyone else but me! Spill it out. Who made you so happy like this? Is it Shen Qiang again?!"

Li Caiyi sighed. "No, it isn't. Xiaohua, I'm doing my homework now, don't bother me."

Li Chunhua pursed her lips sulkily. "You have a new friend, so you don't need me anymore. Humph, I see. Then just play with your friends from now on."

How did it become like that? Li Caiyi knew that Li Chunhua was a willful one, but her older version had gotten a lot milder than her teenage version was. She has always looked at her sister with her adult version in mind, forgetting that this Li Chunhua was the same, yet different from what she remembered. This disparity made her feel disoriented.

"Don't say that. It wasn't easy for me to make a new friend. I'm not like you, who are friendly and bright."

"Xiaoyi! You don't even try to coax me like you always do! That's it! Where does Shen Qiang live? I need to talk to him."

"You're speaking nonsense again. It has no relation to Shen Qiang or anyone. I just think that it's about time I change."

Li Chunhua stopped moving, and her expression turned serious. "Change? Why do you need to change? Xiaoyi is already good the way she is. Did someone say something about you? Just tell me who it is, and I'll scold them for you!"

Li Caiyi's pen also halted when she noticed Li Chunhua's change of tone. She thought that this was a chance to clarify things with Li Chunhua, so she put the pen down and stared at the very similar face in front of her.

"Xiaohua, we're not kids anymore. I realized that the way I do things all these times isn't good, so I intend to change. I might not be able to be with you as often, but you are my precious sister, and I'll always be by your side when you need me."

Li Chunhua cast her gaze downward. Li Caiyi couldn't guess what she was thinking from her hooded expression, so she continued, "Your body has gotten a lot better now, so you won't need me around as much. We are twins, so we are closer to each other than anybody was. Even if we become busy with our businesses from now on, we will always have each other in mind."

The air in the room stagnated after she finished talking. Li Chunhua was silent throughout her talking, and it gave Li Caiyi a weird, uneasy feeling.

A few seconds later, Li Chunhua raised her head with a big smile on her face. "So it's like that. I agree with Xiaoyi. We are slowly becoming adults, so we can't become too dependent on each other anymore."

Li Caiyi heaved a sigh of relief. It seemed Li Chunhua had taken the news pretty well.

Previously, since Li Chunhua was very close to her, she couldn't bring it in herself to tell her she wanted some space for herself. Li Chunhua has always been popular even without trying, but Li Caiyi was different. By the time she realized she was alone, it was all too late. She was too preoccupied with unnecessary worries that she lost sight of what she needed the most.

This time, she wanted to claim her own self righteously. She had spent her previous life solely for others, so it was okay if she was a bit selfish in this life, right?

"Xiaohua, I know you will understand." Li Caiyi felt someone had lifted a heavy rock from her heart, so she reached out and clasped Li Chunhua's hand in hers gently. "Make no mistakes. No matter what happens, you are still my most important person. Thank you for understanding me."

Li Chunhua smiled brightly. She wrapped Li Caiyi in a gentle embrace as she giggled. "Xiaoyi is always so serious about everything. That goes without saying. You are my most important person, too."

Li Caiyi was worried for nothing. In the end, it was all her fault that everything in her previous life had gone messy. If only she had acted more decisively, her fate wouldn't have ended so miserably like that.

Now that Li Chunhua had understood her point of view, she could face her properly starting from now. Everything would be okay between them.

Li Caiyi was too busy basking in the sense of relief, and she didn't notice Li Chunhua's smile gradually faded and was replaced by coldness.. However, when Li Caiyi looked up at her, she would revert to her previous cheery self, as if the dark and dangerous gleam in her eyes now was just an illusion.