SWG Chapter 32
by VolareChen Yuexin took a tissue and handed it to Ruan Shengyi, saying, “What did she say?”
That damned woman, ever since she found that photo, Ruan Shengyi had been curled up in a ball for almost half the morning. She had buried herself, clutching her phone tightly in her hand, slowly moving it away from her ear to prevent it from slipping due to her weakness.
Ruan Shengyi was somewhat dazed, her lips trembling. She whispered, “She said she would delete it and contact those who reposted it to ask them to delete it too.”
She was so out of it that she didn’t even notice the tissue being offered to her.
Chen Yuexin, knowing about the past, naturally understood her timidity. Still, she couldn’t help but sigh, sitting beside her and gently wiping the cold sweat from her forehead.
After a long while, she said, “Don’t scare yourself. It’s been seven years. If they really wanted to find you, they would have already. Don’t worry.”
As long as there was even a hint of a topic related to that group, even the slightest risk of exposing herself, Ruan Shengyi would become like this. The fears that had clung to her since childhood gripped her tightly, trying to drag her into the abyss, to the place where those demons were, to keep her from ever turning over.
Chen Yuexin felt sorry for her but couldn’t do much more.
She could only gently hug her and say softly, “Don’t be afraid. Those people might already be dead. Don’t be afraid.”
“Teacher…” Ruan Shengyi called out, trembling, “My mother was driven crazy by them.”
“My mother, for my sake, was driven crazy by them, do you know…”
“I know, I know,” Chen Yuexin could only respond like this.
She had told her more than once that it was an adult’s choice, that adults knew what they were doing, and that the consequences should not be borne by a minor like her. How could she bear it?
But it was no use. Or rather, it would be strange if it were useful. Some things had long been deeply ingrained over the long years, becoming dark fears that lurked in the deepest recesses of her mind and surfaced from time to time.
She could only hug her like this, to help her relax a little, to calm down.
That’s why she asked Ruan Shengyi if she was really willing to let another person into her life? Was she really prepared to expose her dark side for others to see?
She thought Ruan Shengyi was ready, but now it seemed questionable.
The girl grabbed her arm, her throat feeling as if a heavy iron block was stuck in it, pressing against her voice, making it almost hoarse and squeezed out. The syllables stumbled between each other, staggering, “That’s not a small amount, that’s two million. I… I’m scared…”
“Okay, if you don’t trust other people, don’t you trust Xiao Wenyu? Xiao Wenyu will definitely delete those photos, right?”
“…” Will she?
Ruan Shengyi closed her eyes, exhaling a trembling breath.
She seemed to understand the deeper meaning of the questions Chen Yuexin had asked her.
Would it be better for someone like her not to enter into a close relationship?
Did she really have the courage to tell Xiao Wenyu that she had once carried a savings book with two million, and driven hundreds of kilometers alone to escape her hometown, behind the backs of all her relatives?
Could she really… do it…?
Chen Yuexin patted her, saying, “Don’t be afraid. Besides, the photo is blurred, isn’t it? It only shows the lower half of your face. Don’t worry, don’t worry.”
“Tell me about it. When was that photo taken? It’s quite beautiful, and the atmosphere is amazing.”
This matter was a thorn in Ruan Shengyi’s heart, and it had already become a trigger for ptsd. She could only try to slowly shift her attention and hope that Xiao Wenyu could handle it faster.
Besides, that photo was indeed beautiful.
It was a photo of Ruan Shengyi and Xiao Wenyu together. One was sitting casually, while the other stood in front of her, holding a strand of her hair.
Judging by the clothes in the photo, it shouldn’t be a recent photo, but not too early either.
But it was much earlier than she imagined the two of them getting together.
“Tell me, please?”
Ruan Shengyi shook her head.
She didn’t want to say these things. This was a secret between her and Xiao Wenyu. As for the child who randomly posted the photo, she would give her a good scolding.
“Hey, Xiao’s calling back.”
Chen Yuexin’s phone hadn’t even been held steady before it was snatched away by the other person, hugged tightly in her arms, trembling as she pressed the answer button.
“…Xiao Wenyu.” The voice, trembling as if she had just cried, made the person on the other end of the phone silent for a moment.
Chen Yuexin strained her ears to listen. A faint female voice floated out from the intermittent static of the microphone, very gentle, with a hint of coldness, saying, “Are you feeling unwell?”
This was obviously not about the photo.
But Ruan Shengyi’s chaotic mind couldn’t distinguish it. She only said, “Did you delete it? Can you delete it?”
“I have asked to delete all the ones I could find. The ones in the comments section can’t be helped. I can’t ask all the netizens to delete them.”
“Can you post a message, just one, asking everyone not to spread this photo anymore, please!”
Again, a long silence.
Chen Yuexin scratched the back of her head.
From her experience, something was about to happen.
Sure enough, the other person’s voice was colder, saying calmly, “That photo is blurred. If I post a message, it will only make things worse.”
“Can’t you even accept a blurred photo?”
Ruan Shengyi’s breath trembled. Her mind was much clearer, and after a long silence, she said coldly, “No, I can’t accept any information about me appearing online.”
“…Okay.” The woman was silent for a moment, “I understand. Goodbye.”
“Goodby…”
“Hey, no, no, no!” Chen Yuexin shouted in her heart, rushing forward to grab the phone, covering the microphone and striding away, listening to the other end cooperating with her and not hanging up. She couldn’t help but sigh in her heart that Xiao Wenyu’s temper was really good, saying gently, “Xiao, hello, I am the person traveling with Ruan Shengyi, and also her teacher. My name is Chen Yuexin.”
“Hello.” Xiao Wenyu’s voice was faint, without joy or sorrow.
But the more it was like this, the more nervous people became. The more gentle a person was, the scarier it was to get angry, and the harder it was to appease them.
Chen Yuexin felt a cold sweat break out on her back, and she licked her lips, saying strongly, “I think I still need to explain. Ruan Shengyi, she…”
“Teacher Chen,” Xiao Wenyu interrupted her softly, “If there is anything to say, please let Ruan speak to me herself. If this is what she wants, then I will find a way to delete all traces of that photo, all of them.”
“Hey, don’t! That photo is quite beautiful, right? You can still keep a negative, right? As for the comments section, don’t worry about the blurred ones. Get some rest.”
Xiao Wenyu: “Can you represent her opinion?”
Chen Yuexin turned her head to look at the person who was still submerged in the fear of the past, and sighed. “She didn’t mean to. It’s a long story…”
“Then I won’t say it. I still have work to do.”
“Xiao!”
The response to her was a cold and merciless static, and after two seconds, there wasn’t even static anymore.
What they didn’t know was that after hanging up the phone, Xiao Wenyu felt a slight darkness in front of her eyes as she got up to walk outside, staggering two steps. Before she could reach the door, she leaned on the door frame and started throwing up into the trash can.
It was as if she was throwing up all the food she had eaten yesterday.
Li Wan rushed over with water, but Xiao Wenyu raised her hand to stop her. She only took the water, rinsed her mouth, and straightened her back again.
Even though her eyes were filled with a layer of mist at this time, and her eyes were still red.
At this time, she didn’t want her weakness to be seen by others even more.
Li Wan’s concerned eyes made her feel uncomfortable.
Li Wan wanted to say something, but she spoke before she could, saying, “Help me prepare things. It’s almost time for the agreed-upon outdoor shoot.”
“…Okay, Teacher. Do you want to eat something?”
Xiao Wenyu dragged her body, lowered her head slightly, and said softly, “Not hungry.”
She was already full of anger.
The two people on the other end of the phone naturally didn’t know these things.
Chen Yuexin threw the phone at Ruan Shengyi with disappointment, gnashing her teeth and saying, “You were clearly calm! What are you talking nonsense about? Don’t you understand what she meant?”
Ruan Shengyi picked up the phone that had fallen on the ground and gently wiped the dust off the screen. After a long time, she opened her mouth sadly, “I just think you were right before.”
“How can someone like me be worthy of liking someone else? I took away two million. This is not a small amount. That group of people who want to eat the inheritance will chase me to the ends of the earth.”
“Besides…” She smiled self-deprecatingly, “I can’t accept intimate behavior. I can’t even kiss. Are she and I going to turn off the lights and tell each other fairy tales until we are mentally satisfied, and then go to sleep happily?”
She had indeed calmed down, even feeling for her glasses and putting them back on her face. The thin and pale face added a bit of fragility because of these glasses.
Chen Yuexin looked at such Ruan Shengyi, shook her head and sighed, and found a place to sit down next to her.
She was too familiar with Ruan Shengyi, so familiar that she had introduced her to the house and helped her save money for it. She knew almost everything about her past, so she felt even more melancholy.
Money was easy to solve, but mental illness was difficult to cure.
“But you haven’t even tried intimate behavior with her. How do you know that it won’t work even with love?”
“…In short, I know.” After all, she couldn’t say who started that kiss, but she was the one who hurriedly chose to end it.
Chen Yuexin sighed again, suddenly feeling something was wrong, huh?
Was this a bit profound? Wait, did she hear something between the lines?
But that wasn’t the point right now, and she definitely couldn’t get the answer, so she could only ask, “What are you going to do?”
“Don’t tell me you’re going to give up on Xiao! Ruan Shengyi, pour the water out of your head! You don’t have the right. No one has the right to say they want to give up on another person. Either you get out of here, or you think clearly.”
Ruan Shengyi looked at her blankly. After a long time, her lips trembled, “You are a teacher. Can’t you coax me a little…”
Why did she scold her as soon as she came up?
“Didn’t I coax you? I’ve been coaxing you for seven years. Has it been useful? If you want someone to coax you, go find someone who can.”
“But…”
Chen Yuexin was even more disappointed, “You’re opening your mouth to speak, would you die if you said one more sentence? Would you die if you said one more sentence later? How do you know that Xiao can’t accept it? I’ve already told you, if they want to find you, can you escape?”
Ruan Shengyi was stunned by this person’s scolding. She lowered her head and subconsciously swiped the screen, clicked into Xiao Wenyu’s comments section, and her face turned pale again.
Chen Yuexin hurriedly asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Someone, recognized me…” Ruan Shengyi held up her phone, her lips trembling violently, “Someone directly said my name.”
…