As soon as Jiang Zhirou finished speaking, a flicker of astonishment clearly crossed Cecilia's face. She stood there at a loss, hesitant to speak.
Seeing her like this, Jiang Zhirou let out a laugh and addressed her in Country A's language, "Just say what's on your mind. Are you feeling shy with me now?"
Jiang Zhirou's tone carried a hint of playfulness.
Only after hearing this did Cecilia stammer, "Miss, you hated red beans the most when you were a kid..."
As she spoke, she kept her head down, not daring to look into Jiang Zhirou's eyes. Naturally, she didn't see the stunned expression on Jiang Zhirou's face.
Jiang Zhirou stood there rooted to the spot, the smile on her face freezing. Her gaze fell on the bowl of bird's nest on Cecilia's tray. A buzzing sound rang in her ears, and suddenly, all the surrounding noises seemed to disappear in an instant.
...
She didn't know how much time had passed when Cecilia's voice rang in her ear.
"Miss?"
Cecilia looked at Jiang Zhirou's pale face and called out to her nervously.
Hearing the voice, Jiang Zhirou suddenly came back to her senses.
"Hmm?"
"Miss, are you okay...?"
Cecilia noticed that Jiang Zhirou's state seemed off and felt worried for a moment.
The Third Master had instructed that she was to take care of Jiang Zhirou's daily life during this period. Jiang Zhirou couldn't have any problems at this time.
Cecilia tightened her grip on the tray slightly, until Jiang Zhirou shook her head at her and said, "I'm okay."
Only then did the tension in her heart ease.
Just as she was about to put down the tray, she suddenly remembered Jiang Zhirou's words. Summoning up her courage, she asked, "Miss... do you still want this bird's nest?"
Jiang Zhirou glanced at the almost cold bird's nest with a complex look in her eyes, then tilted her chin towards the table beside her and said, "Put it there."
She motioned for Cecilia to put the things down.
Before Cecilia could say anything, Jiang Zhirou's voice rang out again, "You can leave first. I want to be alone for a while."
Hearing this, Cecilia didn't dare to stay any longer and quickly left the room.
After the person left, Jiang Zhirou walked to the small refrigerator in the corner. She took out a bottle of mineral water, unscrewed the cap, and brought it to her lips. Tilting her head back, she quickly finished the 500ml bottle of water.
It's not enough...
Not enough...
She threw away the empty bottle and continued to take more from the refrigerator.
Mechanically repeating the same action, tilting her head back and gulping it down.
After repeating this for quite a while, there were already quite a few empty mineral water bottles scattered around her feet.
The cold mineral water fiercely irritated her stomach. Outside the window, the weather was fine and the temperature was just right.
But inside the room, Jiang Zhirou only felt a chill creeping over her body.
It started from the soles of her feet and kept spreading upwards until it invaded her brain. The intense stimulation pulled her back to reality a little.
Jiang Zhirou's face was as pale as a sheet. She dragged her feet towards the bathroom.
Then, she suddenly stopped in front of the bathroom mirror.
Looking at herself in the mirror, she felt both strange and familiar.
Who on earth was she now... Jiang Zhirou or Chen Qingmian?
She couldn't tell anymore...
Just then, the phone on the table suddenly rang.
A familiar ringing sound came.
Jiang Zhirou in the bathroom froze.
She looked out through the glass door of the bathroom. The screen of the phone on the bedside table lit up, and at the same time, that familiar ringing sound echoed.
She had just heard this sound yesterday.
It was the incoming call sound of WeChat.
It was Chi Yu...
Jiang Zhirou stared in the direction of the phone for a long time. Just as the call was about to be automatically hung up, she suddenly pressed the answer button.
This time, Chi Yu made a voice call, not a video call.
The moment the call was answered, Chi Yu on the other end of the phone was stunned for a moment.
To be honest, he didn't hold much hope for this call.
Uncle Shen's words from last night still seemed to be lingering in his ears.
"Qingmian is busy. These two days are a crucial time."
"If there's nothing important, try not to bother her these two days."
"Let her stay in the best state for the performance."
Chi Yu held the phone and was in a daze for a long time. It was not until the word "Hello" appeared on the screen that Chi Yu suddenly snapped out of his thoughts.
Seeing that Chi Yu didn't say anything, Jiang Zhirou moved the phone away from her ear a bit. Looking at the call timer on the screen, she put the phone back to her ear and said hello to the person on the other end.
Her voice was very cold, but Chi Yu couldn't hear it. Looking at the words that appeared on the screen in real-time, the worry that had been weighing on him during the journey eased a little.
Just then, a flight attendant in the first-class cabin of the plane walked up to Chi Yu and made a gesture indicating that the plane had landed and it was time to get off.
Chi Yu nodded, and then said into the phone, "The official performance is tomorrow. Are you nervous?"
While holding the phone and talking, Chi Yu walked out. He didn't plan to tell Qingmian that he had already arrived in Country A at this moment. He wanted to go directly to the theater to see her tomorrow.
He wanted to give her a surprise.
Hearing Chi Yu's gentle and concerned voice on the other end of the phone, a strange emotion welled up in Jiang Zhirou's heart.
She unconsciously tightened her grip on the phone. It was not until she heard the word "Qingmian" from the phone that the expression on Jiang Zhirou's face suddenly changed. Then she said to the person on the other end, "There's nothing to be nervous about. It's just a competition. Whether I win or lose won't have a significant impact on my life."
Jiang Zhirou's voice was even colder than before.
But the real-time broadcast only showed the words and didn't describe the tone or mood of the other person.
When Chi Yu saw the words on the screen, he stopped in his tracks and unconsciously frowned.
The way Qingmian was speaking now made him feel as if she had returned to the time when she first came back to the imperial capital.
She seemed to be sending out a signal of "keep your distance".
Just as Chi Yu was about to say something after reading what Jiang Zhirou had said, Jiang Zhirou's voice rang out again.
"I still have a rehearsal. If there's nothing else, I'll hang up."
Chi Yu's face changed, and he let out a soft grunt.
Jiang Zhirou on the other end of the phone didn't hesitate at all and directly hung up the call.
She set the phone to silent mode, deleted the exclusive ringtone for Chi Yu in WeChat, and then pushed open the door and walked out.
Just as she reached the corner of the stairs, she ran into Si Moshen, who had come to check on her.
She stopped in her tracks and looked at the man and asked, "Where's the rehearsal room?"
Hearing this, Si Moshen's eyes flashed. He looked at Jiang Zhirou in confusion and said, "Rehearsal room?"
Facing his attitude, Jiang Zhirou was even more confused, and her tone was a bit displeased. "Who was the one who got hypnotized? Me or you? Don't I have a performance tomorrow? Shouldn't I rehearse well?"
As soon as the words left her mouth, the expression on Si Moshen's face darkened slightly. He stared at her for a long time before slowly saying, "The rehearsal room is on the second floor. Manda is still there. You can go directly to her."
"Who is Manda?"