AiLin sighed upon seeing DaYan’s face that basically confird everything with her own expression. She humd briefly, tapping the table, "I’d rather that you co up with the truth, Silve— DaYan, it would be better than having one of us pull the video and show what you siblings had done in front of your crying mother, don’t you agree?"
The elders of the family were the only ones who had seen the CCTV. DaYan and her brother had heard about the cara showing that AiLin had actually helped Cousin Ling but they didn’t know whether their faces were shown. Believing that since every family mbers hadn’t gave them a dirty look or interrogate them about the CCTV recording, they believed that they have successfully avoided being caught red handed. To so extent this was true, but Ailin had used this chance to receive their confession as she didn’t have any hard proof except for her own personal deduction.
Finally DaYan spoke up, "It’s a- a misunderstanding," she stuttered, fumbling between her words. "We didn’t plan this to happen!"
"Really?" The one who asked was none other than Li ZiChen who had been looking at the siblings disapprovingly. He spoke sharply, "You didn’t think that pushing soone will cause them to fall into that icy pond or did you not think about how your action would have killed soone?"
DaYan’s mouth trembled along with her brother. The two had always feared Li ZiChen more than any of their cousins, especially when Li ZiChen was the future head of the family and how he was much older than the two. There was a ti in their childhood where they learnt that unlike them, Li ZiChen has a heart made up of ice. He was soone who would disregard the fact that they were once family mbers to exact his punishnt.
Fearing what would happen, DaYan finally confessed, "W- We," she turned to look at her brother and clenched her hands, "We had so argunts with Cousin Ling and we thought we could fix it together by talking. He didn’t an to push her! It was really a big misunderstanding. He tried to help her too but Cousin Ling slipped on her own."
"What argunt was it about?" AiLin asked with her eyebrows furrowed. She noted how DaYan seed shaken by her question and was trying to form words in her head which was odd. If this argunt had carried on for days, then she wouldn’t need to think about what to say right?
Unless...
After the situation has been resolved, the mbers of the Li Family sincerely offered their apologies to AiLin. Even Cousin AHan said approvingly with a look of sincerity, "You’re a good fit to our family, Miss AiLin. Thank you for clearing my na."
AiLin only smiled in exchange as she returned the kind words of the family mbers who had thought she did great by solving the problem. She then sat down in one of the chair, quiet as she rethought of the incident. Yes, she was correct. The one who pushed Cousin Ling was really the siblings but there was still a mystery she couldn’t solve.
Li ZiChen walked toward her, holding to her hands as he pressed the warm cup of tea to her fingers, gently wrapping her hands around it. He smiled softly, looking at her eyes with love, "Are you sure you’re alright now? If it’s still cold, I can turn up the heater a little."
"Mhm, no, this is good enough," she said and from the side, she felt Mrs Li gently placing her hand on her shoulder.
"Say dearest, why don’t you sleepover in the house tonight? You two plan to go ho but it’s late already and it’s too cold outside, we don’t want to worsen AiLin’s health."
Li ZiChen was quick to turn to her, nodding his head, "Right, I agree. What do you think AiLin?"
"If I am allowed to stay, then I’ll be more than happy to do so." She didn’t think that staying was a bad thing, especially when she could use this ti to get to know everyone in Li Family, especially the elders who had been so nice and kind to her. Not to ntion the house is really relaxing and that sohow soothe her nerves, as if she had gone here for a small trip to cleanse her inner turmoils.
"Wonderful!"
The party ended after the entire charade. Though DaYan and her brother wasn’t brought to the police like how the family would have treated those who had hard their own family, they were still put under harsh punishnts as they left the house dejectedly. AiLin watched from the window of her new room, finding DaYan who had lifted her face to look at the house one last ti before entering the car with a look of sadness.
AiLin let out a small sigh and leaned her back to the wooden window. She knew sothing was odd but unlike earlier, she couldn’t prove this one without a hard evidence. She stepped on the wooden floor with the fresh slippers Mrs. Li had given and looked at the simple yet elegant room that was prepared for her. She would like to just rest the entire night but she needed to make sure of sothing now that everyone has retired to their own room.
Walking out of the comfort of her bedroom, she looked over the empty hallway. She heard from Li ZiChen that his room is just beside her own and she realized it was the one on her right side but she didn’t go out of her room to see him. Instead, she walked past his room, making her way straight to the end of the hallway until the circular staircase greeted her. Taking herself one floor beneath, she then turned to the right and walked to the room that she had seen Cousin Ling had stayed in previously.
She knocked on the door, receiving the soft call from Cousin Ling on the other side, "Yes? Is that you ZiChen?"
Upon hearing this, AiLin lifted her eyebrows. She saw the door knob turn and the person pulling the door being none other than Cousin Ling. The woman’s face was wide with a brimming smile that slowly faded into shock as she realized the person standing right in front of her was AiLin instead.
AiLin saw the expression and for soone like her who is just too good in reading other people’s expressions, she could see the disappointnt crippling Cousin Ling’s eyebrows as she awkwardly try to pull her smile.
AiLin asked first, "Zi Chen said he would be visiting you tonight?"
"N- No, I an yes," Cousin Ling chuckled, "You know, him and I, we are close. Usually when this things happen, he would co to visit and check if I’m alright. He didn’t make any promise, I just thought that since I haven’t seen him, he would co late."
"Oh, I see," AiLin said as she felt Cousin Ling’s eyes sneaking glances at her, trying to read her expression. AiLin then questioned her words, "You said when usually ’this things’ happen? Does this happen often to you?"
"Yes?" Cousin Ling pretended as if she couldn’t understand AiLin’s question so AiLin reiterated it kindly for her.
"I an, was it often for you to be bullied by others?" AiLin looked into Cousin Ling’s eyes for a long ti before she broke into a concerned smile, "I’m sorry if my question sounded a little too forward. I’m just worried since we found out that DaYan had pushed you into the pond, I was worried that she wasn’t the only one who would pull pranks or bully you behind the family’s presence. If there is anyone who have been doing that to you, I will help you express this problem to the head of the family—"
"—No! No, that doesn’t happen often. I’m clumsy, so that wasn’t the first ti I fell to the pond. You know, like how JingYi used to fall to the pond, I guess I have the sa clumsiness as him and that worries Zi Chen a lot." Cousin Ling studied AiLin’s expression and she was unnerved by how AiLin’s face showed no crack into her real emotion. It was as if she was talking to a smiling statue, AiLin’s face to her eyes was so tight and sincere but it can also put people under pressure. Worried by the questions AiLin would ask, she spoke in a hurry, "So why did you co to see , Miss AiLin?"
"Because I was worried," she answered the lady who looked at her awkwardly.
"Well you don’t have to be worried anymore, I’m alright now."
"I can see that," AiLin said and she looked down to Cousin Ling’s feet, "But mind if I ask you one last question?"
"Sure," Cousin Ling answered hastily, wanting to get rid of AiLin from her room as soon as possible, no matter what she needed to answer.
"Alright then," Ailin glead, "You know, when you opened your eyes right after my first aid, you called up to my na. Was it because you wish to protect DaYan and her brother, or was it because that what you had planned with DaYan?"
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