Chapter 13 Like This, Would You Have No Regrets?

Chapter 13 Like This, Would You Have No Regrets?

Outside the window, dark clouds gathered, lightning flashed, and thunder rumbled as a violent storm raged on.

Inside, Lin Yao had already climbed onto Shi Nian's bed, her face pressed against Shi Nian's pillow, her body nestled in Shi Nian's blankets, and both hands tightly gripping Shi Nian's arm.

Her nose was filled with the familiar scent of lilies of the valley mixed with citrus, a light and pleasant aroma.

This used to be the smell Lin Yao hated the most.

But now, smelling it made her feel strangely at ease.

Lin Yao noticed that Shi Nian's sleeping posture seemed a bit stiff and gently tugged at her, saying, "Shi Nian, it's okay; don't mind me... You sleep, and I'll just stay beside you."

Shi Nian thought for a moment before asking, "...Are you sure?"

Lin Yao nodded emphatically. "Yes!"

Shi Nian: "..."

She couldn't help but look at the head poking out from under the blanket.

Shi Nian's left hand tried to move slightly, only to feel the small hands of the pitiful puppy clinging to her sleeve tighten their grip.

Could she really... not worry about this?

Under the blanket lay a fragrant and soft girl who seemed extremely insecure.

But there were many things to do tomorrow, and the medicine Shi Nian had taken earlier was already taking effect.

She could only let Lin Yao hold her hand, fighting off sleepiness, and gradually drifted off.

In the room, Shi Nian's breathing became steady.

Lin Yao lay on her side, her eyelashes fluttering lightly as she carefully watched Shi Nian sleep.

How strange...

Being by Shi Nian's side, she felt inexplicably at ease, and her mind no longer conjured up those terrifying nightmares. She didn't even dare close her eyes anymore.

Even the thunder outside seemed less frightening.

If the novel in her dream was real, then Shi Nian must be the heroine... Indeed, being the heroine is great; not only does she have a protagonist's aura, but she can also ward off evil spirits.

Lin Yao tightened her grip on Shi Nian's sleeve, her mind filled with random thoughts.

Her eyelids finally grew heavy, and she slowly fell asleep.

Just before losing consciousness, one thought lingered in her mind... Shi Nian wasn't as hateful as she thought.

...

The next morning, when Lin Yao woke up, she felt an unprecedented sense of comfort and relaxation.

Shi Nian's bed was so comfortable to sleep in.

Shi Nian's pillow smelled so good.

Sleeping next to Shi Nian, she didn't have a single nightmare...

Lin Yao suddenly realized the benefits of being the heroine's best friend.

The little girl stood in front of the mirror, brushing her teeth, and couldn't help but think: How stupid was she in the book... She was already Shi Nian's best friend, yet she didn't know to cling to the heroine's thigh and instead went to compete with other girls.

"The green tea supporting character backstabbed Shi Nian and stole her boyfriend... I would never do something like that," Lin Yao muttered softly, spitting out the foam.

"Lin Yao, come eat breakfast."

Shi Nian's voice came from outside, and Lin Yao quickly put away her toothbrush and cup and went out.

In the dining area of the Shi household, only a stone slab kitchen island remained. All the other furniture had been sold.

When Lin Yao came out, she saw Shi Yu and Shi Nian standing by the island.

Seeing her, Shi Nian waved her over. "Come here."

Shi Yu looked coldly and walked to a slightly distant spot, lazily pulling out a chair and sitting down.

Lin Yao: "..."

She knew Shi Yu disliked her.

She didn't want to deal with him either.

Lin Yao pretended not to see Shi Yu.

She went over and greeted Shi Nian. "Shi Nian, good morning."

Shi Nian: "Good morning. Eat quickly."

On the island sat a glass of soy milk, a tea egg, and a fried dough stick.

Lin Yao's eyes brightened slightly; her mother usually didn't buy fried dough sticks for her.

Shi Nian inserted a straw into the soy milk and handed it to her.

Lin Yao eagerly took it, sipped the soy milk, and tasted that it was from the best breakfast shop downstairs, Chen's Breakfast Stand.

Usually, one has to wake up at least an hour earlier to queue for them.

Lin Yao took a bite of the fried dough stick and asked curiously, "What about you? Why aren't you having breakfast?"

Shi Nian shook his head with a composed expression, "We're not hungry."

Lin Yao: "That won't do. How can you not be hungry?"

"There's nothing wrong with it," Shi Nian peeled a tea egg for her and placed it on the plate in front of her. "Lin Yao, hurry up and eat. When you're done, go back. From now on... we should try not to interact anymore."

Last night, a moment of softness led him to let the pitiful little puppy with red eyes inside.

This morning, Shi Nian regretted it.

All their money had to be used to pay off debts. The siblings' lives were already suffocating under the weight of those debts, without even considering their own basic needs.

And those debt collectors outside—though the bald man named Zhang Qiang was temporarily arrested, the people behind him wouldn't let them off easily.

After getting up this morning, Shi Nian and Shi Yu didn't say much to each other.

But they seemed to have silently reached a final decision on this matter.

No matter how reluctant they were, they had to cut ties with Lin Yao and say goodbye.

"Why... why shouldn't we interact..." Lin Yao was so shocked that she dropped her soy milk cup onto the table, her eyes welling up with tears, "Did I do something wrong?"

She had just made up her mind to start over with Shi Nian and get along well.

"It's not about doing something wrong." Shi Nian looked at her, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes. After a moment of silence, he lowered his head and took out his phone. "Look at this yourself."

Shi Nian handed over his phone, which displayed detailed transfer records.

Ever since Aunt Song and Uncle Shi had their accident a few days ago, there had been continuous transfers out of their account.

Now, the balance was zero.

The last expense was this morning's ten-yuan breakfast bought for her.

"Lin Yao, our current situation doesn't allow us to be friends with anyone."

Shi Nian thought for a moment and decided to tell Lin Yao directly.

"As you can see, any money in the account is immediately transferred out. Last night, a client paid a deposit to buy our house, and as soon as the deposit came in, it was transferred out to pay off debts. Even keeping a bit of living expenses is difficult."

"To be honest, neither Shi Yu nor I know what our future will be like. We only bought one breakfast this morning because... Shi Yu and I don't have enough money to buy a second or third portion."

Her voice faltered slightly before she continued.

"So, we'll be moving away soon. With all these debts to repay, we might not even be able to continue school... Our lives will soon be very different from yours. Do you understand, Lin Yao?"

After Shi Nian finished speaking, he looked at Lin Yao seriously, waiting for her response.

Even Shi Yu, who had slightly lowered his eyelids, raised his gaze, his cold and deep eyes falling on Lin Yao's face.

The siblings waited for Lin Yao to process the information.

They waited for her to understand that they were destined to live in different worlds and then distance herself from them.

"I... I think I understand..." Lin Yao tilted her head, pondered for a moment, and nodded lightly.

Shi Yu's shoulders relaxed slightly, and he lowered his gaze.

Shi Nian managed a weak smile, "It's good that you understand..."

"Yeah, I understand." Lin Yao hurriedly stood up, "I'll go back first..."

The young girl ran off after saying that.

Neither of them expected Lin Yao to leave so easily.

The restaurant fell silent.

A few minutes later, Shi Yu got up.

"I'll close the door."

When Lin Yao left, they heard the door open but not close.

Shi Yu walked to the door and saw it wide open. He paused, then reached for the handle.

Just as he was about to close it.

"Wait a moment..."

Lin Yao's voice suddenly came.

Shi Yu lifted his gaze and saw Lin Yao running out of the opposite house, carrying her backpack.

Shi Yu's face turned cold, "Why did you come back?"

"I... I came back to find Shi Nian... not you," the young girl muttered softly, a tone that suggested she wanted to retort but was hesitant.

She tried to enter, but found Shi Yu blocking the door with his arm.

Lin Yao frowned, then suddenly crouched down and slipped past his arm nimbly.

Shi Yu: "..."

Lin Yao didn't dare look back, holding her backpack tightly as she darted inside like a frightened rabbit protecting its food.

In the living room, Shi Nian didn't expect Lin Yao to return.

She thought Lin Yao had understood everything already.

Shi Nian: "Why did you come back..."

"Shi Nian, don't worry about not having money for food. I have some... I have a lot!"

Lin Yao's beautiful deer-like eyes sparkled as she pulled Shi Nian to sit beside the coffee table.

She turned her bulging backpack upside down, emptying its contents onto the coffee table.

Like Doraemon's magic pocket, all sorts of miscellaneous snacks fell out from her backpack.

The coffee table was soon piled high with snacks like a small mountain.

Shi Nian stared in amazement: "What is this?"

Lin Yao: "This is my secret stash of snacks. There's chocolate, meat jerky, spicy chips..."

Lin Yao picked up the pack of spicy chips and suddenly remembered that Shi Yu had given them to her.

At the time, she pretended to throw them away but couldn't bear to do so.

Feeling a bit guilty, fearing Shi Yu might see, she quickly stuffed the spicy chips to the bottom of the pile.

"Anyway, these are all the snacks I've hidden at home. You know my mom doesn't let me eat them... Just hold on for now."

Lin Yao held Shi Nian's hand, her eyes filled with unease.

"If this isn't enough, I still have some pocket money. Next time, I'll secretly buy more for you. I... I can take care of you too."

The little girl's voice was sweet and soft.

She was trying hard to help Shi Nian.

Although Lin Yao kept reminding herself that she was only doing this because Shi Nian was the protagonist of this world and she feared repeating the tragic fate of the scheming side character in the novel.

She absolutely wasn't doing it because she felt sorry for Shi Nian.

Shi Nian was stunned.

When she was young, she knew that the chubby little girl next door was a warm and comforting presence.

But... she didn't realize that even after all these years, the little girl who once warmed her heart could still easily make her eyes well up with tears.

For a moment, Shi Nian didn't know how to continue holding onto her previous thoughts.

She should be driving Lin Yao away.

But facing Lin Yao's earnest and warm gaze, she couldn't bring herself to say anything harsh.

"Lin Yao."

Suddenly, Shi Yu's calm and cold voice broke the strange atmosphere of warmth between Shi Nian and Lin Yao.

He came in from outside, his dark pupils flickering upon seeing the table full of snacks.

"Come with me."

Shi Yu stepped forward, grabbed Lin Yao's arm, and forcibly pulled her up.

"You... what are you doing..."

Lin Yao clung to Shi Nian like a koala.

Shi Nian also felt that Shi Yu's actions were inappropriate. "Shi Yu, we can talk to Lin Yao calmly..."

Shi Yu turned back, his eyes cold and resolute. "Do you think we have time to talk calmly now?"

Shi Nian froze: "..."

Shi Yu: "I'll handle it."

With that, he took Lin Yao outside, to the gate of the Lin family's house.

"Shi Yu, what are you doing? I'm not going back, not going back..."

Seeing her own front gate right in front of her, Lin Yao struggled fiercely.

She hated Shi Yu and didn't want to deal with him at all.

"I know you always find me annoying, but I came to see Shi Nian, not you..."

Shi Yu's expression was indescribably cold and grim. He lifted the struggling girl and pressed her against the gate.

His large, knuckled hand caught Lin Yao's clawing fingers.

Their fingers tightly interlocked.

His dark, deep eyes were frighteningly intense.

In Lin Yao's ear, he spoke in a low, hoarse voice: "Listen, Lin Yao... stay out of my family's affairs. Otherwise, one day, you'll regret it."

"I... I won't regret it..."

Lin Yao's breathing hitched slightly. She was a bit afraid of Shi Yu like this, but she still mustered the courage to say,

"I just want to help Shi Nian... I... I'm not doing anything bad. Why would I regret it? Don't try to scare me!"

"Is that so? No regrets?"

Shi Yu suddenly lowered his dark eyelashes, narrowing his eyes as he stared at her.

Lin Yao's heart skipped a beat.

"O-of course not. I..."

Before the young girl could finish her sentence, Shi Yu's distinct cool and distant scent enveloped her lips.

This time, Shi Yu's low and dangerous voice asked,

"Even like this, no regrets?"