CH 115

Villainous Stand-in (13)

Song Xu Yi was certain that Li Yuqing had caught a glimpse of her own watery, shining eyes meeting hers, but after a quick blink, Li Yuqing lowered her head and continued removing her evening gown without a word.

Li Yuqing had matured since they last saw each other and now resembled real life, albeit a bit taller than Song Xu Yi.

She donned a black fishtail dress and wore her hair down, a standard attire for social events. As the zipper descended down her back, her snow-white skin, seemingly made of condensed fat, came into view, along with her slender, swan-like neck, and a beautiful waist.

Li Yuqing’s pure appearance was entwined with sexiness, giving her the appearance of a bewitching mermaid from a fairy tale.

Song Xu Yi felt her throat go dry and couldn’t bring herself to look. She covered her face and turned away, but the image of Li Yuqing lingered in her mind.

Was it possible that Li Yuqing’s recent teasing had caused her to have such dreams?

Disgust surged through Song Xu Yi as she had never felt so desperate to wake up from a dream before. But the more afraid she became, the more she felt a soft body pressing against her back.

Li Yuqing hugged Song Xu Yi and whispered in her ear, the scent of alcohol on her breath. “Sister, can you hold me?”

How could she possibly hug her in this situation?

Song Xu Yi remained frozen in place, feeling as though her entire body was on fire, emitting heat from all over.

“Please, let me go,” Song Xu Yi begged, watching as Li Yuqing’s hand inched closer to her collar from behind. Her voice was hoarse, almost on the verge of tears. “Let’s talk things out…”

“I won’t let go.” The drunkard was not easily persuaded and even resorted to threatening Song Xu Yi by biting her earlobe. Li Yuqing spoke in a helpless tone, “Do you no longer want me, even in my dreams?”

Dreams?

Could it be that even Li Yuqing in the dream thought it was only a dream?

“No, this is not a dream!” In an effort to prevent the situation from escalating, Song Xu Yi had to raise her voice and explain, following Li Yuqing’s words. “Yuqing, please calm down. I’m really here.”

The sentence seemed to have an effect as Li Yuqing’s movements abruptly stopped.

Song Xu Yi breathed a sigh of relief, yet couldn’t help but feel a bit dizzy again.

Despite wanting to convince herself that it was all just a dream, the pain of Li Yuqing’s bite on her earlobe, the sensation of her body burning up, and the feeling of her brain almost smoking were all too real. Unconsciously, Song Xu Yi began to doubt: Was it truly just a dream?

Before she could think further, a force pulled her from behind, forcing her to turn around. Suddenly, she felt a soft touch on her lips…

?!

Song Xu Yi widened her eyes.

In front of her was Li Yuqing’s flawless cheek.

Li Yuqing didn’t seem to have much experience, and was kissing Song Xu Yi’s lips haphazardly with half-closed eyes. Despite this, it was enough to overwhelm Song Xu Yi. She tightly pursed her lips, tensed her body, and felt like she was about to explode at any moment. Seeing that Li Yuqing seemed to have found some rhythm and was trying to pry open her lips, Song Xu Yi took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and tremblingly hugged Li Yuqing’s waist. She used her strength to bring Li Yuqing to the bed and covered her with the quilt in a lightning-fast motion…

Seeing Li Yuqing completely covered and only showing her beautiful head, Song Xu Yi breathed a sigh of relief. Sweat broke out on her back, and she felt more exhausted than if she had just fought a great battle.

“In the future, I have to make sure to remind Yuqing not to drink so much, or else she won’t even know if someone is taking advantage of her,” Song Xu Yi thought to herself.

She couldn’t resist stealing a glance at Li Yuqing beside her, only to find that Li Yuqing had already opened her eyes.

For a moment, Song Xu Yi wondered if Li Yuqing was still drunk. But as she looked into Li Yuqing’s gaze, she noticed an intense focus and complexity that didn’t seem like the gaze of a drunken person.

However, as quickly as the moment came, Li Yuqing’s clear and pure eyes grew misty again, and she reached out her soft and delicate arms to embrace Song Xu Yi’s waist. “Sister, don’t leave me,” Li Yuqing murmured.

Li Yuqing clung to Song Xu Yi tightly, making her hesitant to move and disturb her. Despite Song Xu Yi’s attempts to persuade her to let go, Li Yuqing insisted, and she finally relented with a resigned sigh, promising, “Fine, I won’t leave.”

Could it be just her imagination? If Li Yuqing were sober, she wouldn’t act so clingy…

Drunk and happy, Li Yuqing smiled up at Song Xu Yi with slightly reddened eyes, their moisture reflecting the light. She stayed glued to Song Xu Yi’s side, rubbing against her and hugging her waist while resting her head on her thigh.

As the blanket slid down, it revealed Li Yuqing’s graceful neck and shoulders, making Song Xu Yi steal a quick glance before quickly covering her again, not wanting to overstep any boundaries.

As a result, Song Xu Yi found herself completely entangled by Li Yuqing and was unable to free herself.

At this point, Li Yuqing seemed satisfied with her hold on Song Xu Yi. She began to smile and look up at her, calling her in a sticky and cloying voice: “Sister–“

“Hm.”

“Sister.”

“Hm.”

……

After several meaningless conversations, Song Xu Yi couldn’t resist the unknown emotions in Li Yuqing’s voice, so she deliberately closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep, no longer responding.

However, she heard a soft laugh in front of her.

“Sister,” Li Yuqing’s voice carried a hint of sleepiness, but it couldn’t hide the excitement and attachment in her words, “You don’t know how happy I am to see you back…”

Li Yuqing continued to chatter, but Song Xu Yi couldn’t hear clearly anymore. Her vision gradually dimmed, and she fell asleep without realizing it.

When Song Xu Yi woke up the next day, her face felt a little itchy. As she saw Li Yuqing staring at her so closely, she was slow to react, thinking she was still in the real world. Subconsciously, she yawned and said, “Yuqing, aren’t we on winter break?”

Li Yuqing blinked thoughtfully and then smiled, “No, sister. I’m just a freshman and school started not long ago.”

Recalling everything that happened before she fell asleep, Song Xu Yi suddenly woke up.

The decorations in the room indicated that she was still in Li Yuqing’s room. Could it be that she was trapped in a dream again?

So what was the reason for this time?

Song Xu Yi only remembered having a New Year’s Eve dinner but couldn’t recall what happened afterward.

……

Upon noticing the absent-minded look on Song Xu Yi’s face, a hint of darkness quickly flashed through Li Yuqing’s eyes.

“Sister,” Li Yuqing raised her voice, catching Song Xu Yi’s attention. Then, Li Yuqing’s cheeks suddenly turned red as she stuttered, “I-I want to ask you something. When I woke up, I found myself naked, and then I was hugged by you. You…”

Song Xu Yi widened her eyes, only then realizing that she had somehow ended up lying down. Looking at Li Yuqing’s shy and timid appearance, Song Xu Yi no longer had the mind to think about herself and could only rack her brain to explain to Li Yuqing: “This is what happened…”

Song Xu Yi concealed the fact that Li Yuqing had kissed her and simply said that Li Yuqing fell asleep while changing clothes, and she was afraid that Li Yuqing would catch a cold, so she carried her to bed.

However, this explanation didn’t really account for why she ended up sleeping next to Li Yuqing.

However, to Song Xu Yi’s surprise, Li Yuqing seemed to believe this explanation full of loopholes and looked at Song Xu Yi with a brilliant smile. “I know Sister always cares about me,” Li Yuqing said.

Song Xu Yi forced a smile with stiff lips.

Maybe it was because she was kissed by Li Yuqing last night, or perhaps it was because the Li Yuqing in front of her looked too similar to the real Li Yuqing, but Song Xu Yi always felt like the Li Yuqing in front of her was like a cute but secretly aggressive little wolf, and she was inexplicably afraid to look directly into her eyes.

Contrary to Song Xu Yi’s expectations, Li Yuqing sat beside her and began telling her everything that had happened in the three years that Song Xu Yi was away. Li Yuqing had followed Song Xu Yi’s previous teachings and invested her money over the years, accumulating a considerable amount of wealth.

She had also contacted an old friend of the Li family to systematically learn financial knowledge in secret.

“Sister, I have been doing quite well these past three years. Everything has been going according to my planned path,” Li Yuqing smiled at Song Xu Yi. “It’s just that I missed you a bit—”

“I don’t know how happy I was when I saw you,” Li Yuqing seemed unaccustomed to saying such words and felt a bit embarrassed as she lowered her head. “I thought I was dreaming…”

Song Xu Yi did not expect Li Yuqing to rely on her so much. Although she felt a little uncomfortable, she had watched Li Yuqing grow up over the years and felt touched in her heart. She couldn’t help but pat Li Yuqing’s head as before and said, “Silly child, sister has always been thinking of you.”

However, this action by Song Xu Yi provoked Li Yuqing’s protest.

“Sister, you haven’t come for more than three years. I’m not a child anymore!” Li Yuqing smiled and turned her head, acting like a spoiled child to Song Xu Yi, leaning over to hug Song Xu Yi’s arm and looking up expectantly. “Sister, I am about to turn nineteen soon. Can you stay with me a little longer this time and wait until after my birthday before leaving?”

Song Xu Yi was momentarily taken aback.

She looked at Li Yuqing’s attentive and hopeful expression, and realized that, despite their age difference, the Li Yuqing in her dream and the Li Yuqing before her looked almost identical.

Yet, there were subtle differences between the two.

In the dream, Li Yuqing had gazed at her with an intense and unwavering focus, as if she was the sole focus of her world. But the Li Yuqing in reality seemed to hold back, as if there was a veil of mist between them that prevented Song Xu Yi from fully understanding her.

As Song Xu Yi remained silent, Li Yuqing seemed to grasp the situation. The light in her eyes faded, and she lowered her head once more.

“Sorry,” Song Xu Yi didn’t expect the dream version of Li Yuqing to be so emotional in front of her. However, she couldn’t stand to see Li Yuqing so upset. Almost instinctively, she comforted her: “I’ll try to spend more time with you. Although I can’t control how much time I have, no matter where I am, I’ll always think of you.”

Despite her sweet words, Li Yuqing remained silent, biting her lip.

Song Xu Yi felt rare helplessness in her heart, not knowing how to cheer her up. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door, which relieved Song Xu Yi’s embarrassment.

“Miss Li,” a servant walked in with a bowl of hangover soup, “This is from the master for you. The master was deeply moved by your act of blocking alcohol for the young master last night. He has arranged for you to take the day off from school today so you can rest at home with peace of mind.”

“I’ll thank Grandfather Song myself.” Li Yuqing’s polite and courteous smile returned, one Song Xu Yi had become accustomed to seeing. She took the hangover soup and drank it all.

After delivering the soup, the servant lingered. Seeing that Li Yuqing had finished the soup, he continued: “By the way, the master also asked me to inform you that in three days, Young Master and the Wang Group will have a gathering. Young Master is weak, and he hopes you can accompany him.”

“I understand,” Li Yuqing replied with a gentle smile, seemingly unfazed by the request. “I will prepare accordingly.”

The servant took note of Li Yuqing’s response and left the room with the empty bowl.

Song Xu Yi was surprised to overhear the conversation.

In the plot summary, it was mentioned that Li Yuqing rarely attended school, claiming to be sick. At first, Song Xu Yi didn’t think much of it. However, witnessing this interaction, Song Xu Yi suddenly realized that behind Li Yuqing’s “sick leave,” Grandfather Song may have been the one forcing her to attend various social events.

With this in mind, Song Xu Yi couldn’t help but feel even more heartbroken for Li Yuqing.

After the servant closed the door, Li Yuqing’s smile faded, and she turned to face Song Xu Yi. Catching the compassion in her gaze, Li Yuqing’s face brightened, and she looked at her with shining eyes. “You promised to spend more time with me. You can’t go back on your word! Let’s go out and play this afternoon…”

Song Xu Yi blinked, thinking that the Song family’s strictness in caring for Li Yuqing would never allow her to have a chance to go out and play.

Nevertheless, Li Yuqing appeared extremely excited, and he didn’t want to disappoint her, so he nodded his head.

However, in the afternoon, Song Xu Yi realized that she had underestimated Li Yuqing’s capabilities at that time.

When Li Yuqing mentioned to Grandfather Song that she wanted to go out to learn flower arrangement, he didn’t suspect anything.

The driver from the Song family had dropped off Li Yuqing at the flower arrangement club, where she received a key from the teacher and left through the back door. Waiting for her at the exit was a chubby man with a friendly and honest face who was driving a car.

Upon closer inspection, Song Xu Yi realized that he was the owner of the fast food restaurant next to the bus station where she had taken Li Yuqing before.

“Miss Li,” the man greeted her as she emerged from the door. “What brings you here today?”

“It’s not business,” Li Yuqing said, her eyes sparkling. “Uncle Zhang, I just want to go out and have some fun today.”

The chubby man was taken aback, but then he smiled: “It should have been like this a long time ago. My son is about the same age as you, and he’s always out playing. You’ve been too uptight.”

Li Yuqing smiled and got into the back seat.

From Uncle Zhang’s perspective, Li Yuqing was excited for the afternoon outing, but only Song Xu Yi knew that Li Yuqing had been staring at her phone, continuously typing and showing it to her:

【Sister, how about going to the amusement park first?】

Li Yuqing suggested, and when she saw Song Xu Yi nodding, she smiled with her eyes curved.

【Then, we should still have enough time to catch a movie.】

【Sister, what genre of movies do you prefer?】

Song Xu Yi recalled the time when she and Li Yuqing watched a horror movie and Li Yuqing was frightened. She answered thoughtfully, “Anything except horror movies.”

【Sister, are you afraid of watching horror movies?】

Li Yuqing glanced at Song Xu Yi, and Song Xu Yi sensed that Li Yuqing’s eyes were somewhat unusual, as if she was having second thoughts about something. However, Li Yuqing quickly looked away and typed on her phone with pursed lips:

【Got it!】

Following Li Yuqing’s itinerary, they visited the amusement park first.

Song Xu Yi is an invisible person in this world, and no one can see her. However, Li Yuqing convinced Song Xu Yi that “even invisible people must follow the rules of the world.” Thus, the two of them played games suitable for couples.

They rode a big carousel together, and Li Yuqing allowed Song Xu Yi to sit on the horse first. At first, Song Xu Yi didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary, but as the carousel started to spin, due to inertia, Li Yuqing from behind naturally leaned in, hugged Song Xu Yi’s waist, and almost held Song Xu Yi in her arms… Song Xu Yi felt extremely strange, but when she looked around, she realized that the other people riding the carousel were all couples, and they were in similar positions…

During the balloon game, Li Yuqing insisted on letting Song Xu Yi choose a gift and promised to hit the balloon corresponding to that gift and give it to Song Xu Yi. Song Xu Yi saw a manga on the shelf and randomly pointed to that one. She thought that Li Yuqing made this promise because she had the ability, but Li Yuqing failed to hit the balloon corresponding to that manga after many attempts…

Seeing Li Yuqing blushing with embarrassment but still persistently trying, Song Xu Yi couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

The vendor sighed at Li Yuqing’s stubbornness and handed over the manga: “This manga was my son’s precious possession before he passed away due to illness. He said this manga was a treasure, but we old folks don’t read manga. Whether it’s a treasure or not, it doesn’t matter to us. Since you’ve worked so hard, I’ll give this book to you. I hope you take good care of it.” Li Yuqing was overjoyed and repeatedly expressed her gratitude. She held the manga in her hands, and when Song Xu Yi saw the cover, her eyes widened: this manga was the same one that Li Yuqing had given her in real life…

Was it all just a dream?

Song Xu Yi couldn’t help but doubt once again, everything seemed too perfect to be true.

She carefully examined her surroundings, trying to recall if she had ever been to this amusement park before in the original owner’s memories. If the amusement park in real life was different from this one, then everything was just her imagination and a dream. But if everything was the same as it was here…

Lost in thought, Song Xu Yi suddenly found herself on the Ferris wheel with Li Yuqing.

As the Ferris wheel rose, two other couples began to kiss at the highest point of the city. Song Xu Yi held onto her principle of not looking when it was inappropriate, and hurriedly walked to the other side, pretending to admire the view. Surprisingly, Li Yuqing remained quiet, her back turned as if making a wish. Song Xu Yi thought that Li Yuqing would also feel awkward in this kind of environment, and was about to ask her what she wished for to shift her attention. However, she didn’t expect Li Yuqing to turn her head at that moment, and her lips brushed against Song Xu Yi’s cheek…

Song Xu Yi’s eyes widened as Li Yuqing’s reaction seemed even greater than her own. Li Yuqing blushed and lowered her head, unable to meet Song Xu Yi’s gaze.

Feeling that Li Yuqing was still young and inexperienced, Song Xu Yi decided to overcome her own shyness and pretend that nothing had happened. She comforted Li Yuqing, “This was just an accident, Yuqing. Don’t take it to heart.”

Li Yuqing was extremely shy and didn’t dare to look at Song Xu Yi until the Ferris wheel came to a stop. When she finally glanced at Song Xu Yi, she shyly took her hand.

At first, Song Xu Yi didn’t feel much about the incident, but watching Li Yuqing’s shy behavior made her feel a bit uncomfortable. She couldn’t help but blush.

Later, the two of them went to a private cinema.

The owner greeted Li Yuqing with a smile and seemed to know her, “Little sister, are you still watching the same movie as last time? Where’s the girl who brought you here?”

Li Yuqing’s eyes instantly turned cold, and she pursed her lips, “I came alone this time. I want to watch a more refreshing love movie.”

The owner was taken aback for a moment before nodding and said, “Sure, I’ll arrange a more refreshing love movie for you.”

Song Xu Yi noticed the owner’s smile was a bit peculiar, but couldn’t pinpoint why.

Following Li Yuqing, Song Xu Yi entered the room, and the owner adjusted the movie before turning off the lights.

The movie’s picture quality was indeed beautiful, but the plot was monotonous. After watching about twenty minutes of the mundane daily life of the two girls who grew up together and went to school together, Song Xu Yi couldn’t bear it any longer and turned to talk to Li Yuqing: “Who brought you here last time?”

Song Xu Yi didn’t expect Li Yuqing’s gaze to meet hers when she turned around. Li Yuqing was looking at her thoughtfully, but she didn’t know for how long.

“It was Song Xutian.” Li Yuqing pursed her lips, and a hint of disgust appeared on her face.

Song Xu Yi widened her eyes. Although she rarely went back to her old house, she knew all the younger generation there. Song Xutian was the daughter of one of Song Xu Yi’s aunts and was notorious in the circle for not discriminating between men and women…

Thinking about how Song Xutian brought Li Yuqing alone to the private cinema, Song Xu Yi couldn’t help but feel that Song Xutian had ulterior motives…

“Did Song Xutian do anything to you?” Song Xu Yi frowned. “She’s known to be a bold and reckless person. Yuqing, you need to protect yourself.”

Li Yuqing tilted her head and looked at Song Xu Yi with an inquiring gaze. “Sister, have you met Song Xutian? How do you know she’s not a good person?”

Song Xu Yi was taken aback, realizing that she had never actually met Song Xutian in person. She could only laugh it off and say, “I heard the servants in the Song family talking about her.”

Fortunately, Li Yuqing didn’t pursue the matter further. Instead, she thought for a moment and answered another question. “She didn’t do anything to me, just showed me a movie…”

Li Yuqing’s expression darkened as if she had just recalled something unpleasant.

Soon enough, Song Xu Yi discovered what Song Xutian had shown Li Yuqing that day.

Noticing Li Yuqing’s reluctance to answer, Song Xu Yi refrained from probing further and was about to change the topic when a loud gasp from the movie startled her. She furrowed her brows and turned to the screen, only to see two girls kissing each other in a disheveled state.

?!

Her face instantly flushed red, and she frantically grabbed the remote control to exit the scene.

In contrast, Li Yuqing appeared much calmer than Song Xu Yi. She gazed intently at Song Xu Yi, her eyes flickering with a wildfire of emotions that Song Xu Yi couldn’t discern clearly. Then, she smiled and spoke softly, “That’s what Song Xutian showed me at the time, with a similar plot…”