The Night’s Secret

“Sss——What’s going on? Where the hell did he run off to again?” Lin Cheng rubbed his red, frozen hands while Xu Ming helped him take off his scarf.

“I don’t know.” Lin Ziyan’s indifferent voice came from a distance.

“That brat’s been gallivanting around for days. Can’t study, won’t do chores. When he gets back, I’ll break his legs!”

“Alright, alright, calm down.” Xu Ming tried to soothe him. “Ziyan, are you eating? I’ll make you something.” Even though it was late for dinner, out of concern for her daughter, she still asked.

“Okay.” After receiving the reply, Xu Ming went to the kitchen, while Lin Ziyan’s father sat heavily on the sofa, exhaustion written all over his face.

“Come on, kiddo, give your dad a shoulder rub.”

“Let Mom do it later.” Lin Ziyan replied flatly as she headed for the stairs.

“Hey? Your mom’s cooking. Is it that hard to just rub my shoulders?” Lin Cheng turned around in discontent, only to find Lin Ziyan had already gone upstairs, completely out of sight.

Disappointment washed over him, and he let out a weary sigh.

“What’s wrong? Sighing like that?” Xu Ming came out of the kitchen just in time to catch the scene.

“Nothing. Daughter’s grown up, getting more disobedient. Just a thought.”

“What’s the big deal? Our girl’s beautiful, gets good grades, just has a bit of a temper. That’s nothing these days. Besides, who spoiled her rotten?”

“As if you’re not part of it?”

“Alright, alright, we’re both to blame. Just gotta deal with it.”

Since she put it that way, Lin Cheng couldn’t say anything more.

********

After going upstairs, Lin Ziyan didn’t head to her own room. Instead, she walked toward the staircase leading to the attic, directly opposite her bedroom. Using her phone’s flashlight to illuminate the way, her face was dark and grim.

It was already past ten at night. Even yesterday, Ye Xingmian had braved the snow and made it back before eight. That meant, barring any accidents, there was no way she was coming back tonight.

Why didn’t she come back? Lin Ziyan recalled the answer she had demanded from Ye Xingmian that morning. She thought of the cozy scene in the kitchen between Liu Yinuo and Ye Xingmian. She also remembered Liu Yinuo unashamedly saying, even in front of her, “Want to come over to my place?”

The answer… was obvious.

Her right hand unconsciously clenched into a fist, teeth grinding audibly. Phone in one hand, Lin Ziyan grabbed the doorknob of the attic door with the other and twisted it open.

The old wooden door let out its usual grating screech. Her parents, like her, almost never came to this little attic except to dump odds and ends. So it had always been Ye Xingmian’s job to clean and organize it. Lin Ziyan remembered once when the door of that old wardrobe fell off and crashed to the floor; Ye Xingmian had spent a whole morning struggling to reattach it, but it was still loose, creaking and shifting constantly.

The flashlight beam swept across the dim attic. Squeezing through the narrow path blocked by old furniture, she reached the place where Ye Xingmian slept. She didn’t know where the light was, so besides her phone, she had to rely on the streetlamp light filtering through the tiny window. Lin Ziyan’s eyes darted around, lips pressed together, searching for something.

The white light wavered erratically across the attic. Finally, she fixed her gaze on the bed. She hadn’t noticed earlier, but the middle of the blanket was slightly puffed up. She lifted the blanket, and there it was—exactly what she was looking for.

—Ye Xingmian’s teddy bear.

Grabbing the teddy bear by its stubby neck, she yanked it up. Lin Ziyan’s eyes blazed with unquenchable anger.

‘Don’t take my words seriously? Like hiding out at Liu Yinuo’s place? Is her home so great? Are you having a good time there?’

Originally, Lin Ziyan had planned to be gentle with Ye Xingmian. After all, all she wanted was a cute maid to cuddle whenever she liked. But since Ye Xingmian was ungrateful, Lin Ziyan felt she didn’t need to be so polite anymore.

She stormed off, slamming the already decrepit door hard, the bang echoing loudly. Back in her own room, she stared at the teddy bear. Gnashing her teeth, she ultimately abandoned the idea of throwing it away like trash.

No. Can’t act rashly. This thing is still useful—can keep it to threaten Ye Xingmian.

Threaten her with what? Still fuming, Lin Ziyan hadn’t decided yet, but she sure wouldn’t let Ye Xingmian off easy. Just as she was pondering, a knock came at the door.

“Time to eat, Ziyan.”

Hearing this, she had to collect herself, took a deep breath to suppress the agitation, and walked out with a cold face.

Arriving at the dining room, her mother had already prepared a simple, steaming-hot meal and was serving it for the three of them. Her father sat beside her mother, smiling while looking at his phone.

“Eat quickly, Ziyan. Finish up and go to bed. You have to get up early tomorrow.”

“Mm.” Replying flatly to her mother, Lin Ziyan sat across from them at her usual spot.

Normally, when her parents came home this late, they were exhausted and in a bad mood. Their jobs weren’t easy, and they had little free time. Although they loved and doted on their daughter, Lin Ziyan didn’t really care much for them. Most of the time, they felt like people who shared blood but lived in different worlds.

But tonight was different. Both her parents were smiling and chatting cheerfully, clearly in high spirits—a stark contrast to the usual heavy atmosphere.

Lin Ziyan had no idea what was going on, nor did she care. She just ate in silence.

Until Lin Cheng suddenly called out to her.

“Ziyan, Mom and Dad have some good news to tell you tonight!”

Frowning, she looked up, puzzled. “What?”

“We might be getting a raise!”

“Oh. Didn’t you say ‘might’?” Lin Ziyan paused, then replied.

“Oh, Ziyan, can’t you say something nice? Your mom and I work in the same department. Tonight, our supervisor suddenly told us that the big boss’s daughter is helping to smooth things over with the legal department. If all goes well, the company will expand, and we old-timers will likely get promoted and a raise!”

“Oh…” Though uninterested, Lin Ziyan nodded along.

“By the way, I heard this young lady goes to the same school as you. If you get a chance, try to get close to her. It might bring a lot of benefits to our family.”

Lin Ziyan frowned, irritation bubbling inside. But she held back and said, “Yeah, okay. What’s her name? I’ll keep an eye out.”

“Her name is Qin Haiyue.”

“Qin Haiyue?” The name sounded familiar. She thought for a moment, then suddenly realized—wasn’t that the blonde punk who always bullied Ye Xingmian?

Her? A rich young lady?

“Got it? Pay attention, Ziyan. And whatever you do, don’t offend her.”

“Okay.” She nodded, but Lin Ziyan didn’t take it to heart.