Peach-Orange! – Chapter 111 – Great, Xiaocheng Is Becoming More and More Normal

There were other matters to attend to….

Over the past ten-plus days, although Su Tao came to the house every day to stay for a while, she had only slept over twice. The number of times Chi Xiaocheng got to sleep while holding Su Tao was far fewer than those spent hugging the big brown teddy bear.

Occasionally, King, the proud tabby cat, would burrow into the blankets. Her soft fur was much more comfortable than the teddy bear’s.

Chi Xiaocheng opened her mouth, then lowered her head. In the end, she didn’t say anything spoiled or demanding. Lifting her head again, she forced a relaxed smile and said, “Then Tao-Tao, make sure to rest and don’t overwork yourself, okay?”

“Mm!”

Su Tao reached out and patted Chi Xiaocheng’s head, her smile just as relaxed and content. She said, “But I won’t be leaving so soon either. It’s only 6 o’clock now and I’ll leave at 8. Is there anything left in the fridge? How about we have dinner first?”

Chi Xiaocheng pulled Su Tao to sit on the sofa and said with concern, “Let’s order takeout. Since you’re hurt, don’t trouble yourself.”

“Then what does Xiaocheng want to do?”

Hearing this, Chi Xiaocheng ran to the room and picked up King, who had been sleeping. Ignoring the cat’s struggles, she held her up in front of Su Tao. “Hold the cat for ten minutes, then hold me.”

Su Tao couldn’t help but laugh. “Why does there have to be an order?”

“Tao-Tao really likes cats, so I’ll let King get close to you for a bit.”

Su Tao smiled dotingly and reached out to take King into her arms. The proud tabby cat looked slightly displeased but still buried herself in Su Tao’s embrace. Su Tao stroked King’s head again and said playfully, “Actually, I can hold both Xiaocheng and King at the same time. Neither of you weighs much.”

“No.” Chi Xiaocheng lifted her little face and sat next to Su Tao. “Tao-Tao’s arms are only for me. King doesn’t count as a person, so she can stay for a little while at most.”

‘Sure enough, she even gets jealous of a cat.’

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But perhaps it was precisely because she had always indulged her that, over the past half-month, Chi Xiaocheng hadn’t had a single episode. She had remained so well-behaved and adorable.

If that was the case….

Su Tao unceremoniously tossed King aside.

The cat spun twice midair before landing precisely in the trash bin, which only had two dry tissues inside. King looked up, bewildered, only to see her two servants already pressed close together.

Su Tao wrapped an arm around Chi Xiaocheng and pulled her into her embrace. “Then I won’t hold King anymore. You’re my precious little sweetheart.”

She pinched Chi Xiaocheng’s delicate nose with one hand while using the other to play with her tea-colored hair.

Leaning back into Su Tao’s arms, Chi Xiaocheng noticed that Su Tao seemed to enjoy fiddling with her hair, so she shifted to rest her head on Su Tao’s lap instead. Lying on her side like this, she basked in the gentle head pats.

A sweet warmth rose in her heart. Chi Xiaocheng truly wished this moment could last forever.

The bright white light overhead illuminated her and Su Tao’s lovely faces. King tried to squeeze onto Su Tao’s lap but was ruthlessly kicked away by Chi Xiaocheng.

Meanwhile, from the shadows where the light didn’t reach, a voice tinged with envy and longing murmured, “How nice… such a heartwarming scene.”

Chi Xiaocheng opened her eyes just enough to glance at her before closing them again to continue enjoying the moment.

It was Dark Xiaocheng again. This inner demon born from hallucinations, always trying every possible way to tempt her.

Whatever. If she ignored her, she’d eventually disappear.

Faced with Chi Xiaocheng’s silence, Dark Xiaocheng didn’t get angry. Instead, she remarked calmly, “This lap pillow must feel really nice, huh?

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“Warm, comfortable, and soft… Just leaning into her arms lets you enjoy Su Tao’s faint fragrance and her gentle caresses.

“But haven’t you noticed? The time she spends with you is getting less and less.

“She’s busier and busier outside.

“If you want to freeze time like this forever, why not just claim her for yourself?

“Wouldn’t it be better to take off this well-behaved mask of ‘normalcy’?”

Chi Xiaocheng kept her eyes shut, remaining unmoved.

All that talk about Su Tao spending less time with her was just a deliberate attempt to ruin her relationship with Tao-Tao!

As she stayed silent, the whispers of temptation faded into a sigh.

When she opened her eyes again, she saw Dark Xiaocheng staring absently in her direction, neither leaving nor speaking further.

The tender moment was fleeting. After a mediocre dinner and some TV, it was nearly 8 o’clock when Su Tao stood up to leave. “Xiaocheng, I have to go now. I’ll come again next time.”

Chi Xiaocheng nodded obediently but still asked, “Who are you going to see, Tao-Tao?”

“Si Chen.”

Su Tao uttered the name. “There’s something I need to ask him for help with.” After tying her shoelaces, Su Tao didn’t notice the melancholy look on Chi Xiaocheng’s face as she bit her lower lip. Waving goodbye, she said, “I’ll come see you tomorrow, Xiaocheng. Bye-bye!”

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Chi Xiaocheng abruptly lifted her head, forcing a smile. “Bye-bye~ Be careful on your way, and don’t trip again.”

Bang—!

The door shut heavily.

The cold at the far end of the entryway, where the heater’s warmth barely reached, grew more biting.

Outside, Su Tao rubbed her hands together and exhaled lightly.

The corners of her lips curled up involuntarily. “It’s been half a month, and Xiaocheng has been unbelievably well-behaved, not a single sign of her yandere tendencies. It seems like she’s steadily returning to normal.

“Is this what successful treatment looks like?”

Su Tao took out her phone, happily wanting to report the good news to Dr. Cheng, but then remembered he’d said he was too busy lately.

So instead, she sent a message to her friend Chengcheng: “Xiaocheng’s been getting more and more obedient. I feel like it won’t be long before her yandere tendencies are completely cured.”

Chengcheng replied instantly: “Congrats, Tao-Tao! I was a little worried after how serious you made it sound before.”

Tao-Tao: “I still have to thank you for your suggestion. The idea of making her more controllable really worked. I kept emphasizing that as long as she behaved, I wouldn’t leave her, and she really did become very well-behaved.”

Chengcheng: “Hehe, I’ve been reading up on psychology books lately. These are just small strategies. As long as you keep pampering her like this, she’ll slowly get better.”

Tao-Tao: “Yeah. When we both have time, how about meeting up for a meal? Our schools aren’t far apart.”

Chengcheng: “Let’s wait until winter break. Finals are coming up, and I’m swamped!”

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Tao-Tao: “Haha, sure.”

Chengcheng: “Oh, one more thing. Do you like how obedient Xiaocheng is now?”

Tao-Tao: “Why do you ask?”

Tao-Tao: “If I had to say… of course I like it.”

Chengcheng: “That’s good, then. Hehe.”

The conversation ended. Su Tao put away her phone and stepped into the elevator, shaking her head helplessly.

“Chengcheng can be a bit unpredictable sometimes… but I guess that’s just how online friends are. Out of all the people in the world, it’s really nice to have met someone like her.”

Su Tao sighed in contentment. Over the past half-month, she and Chengcheng had chatted a lot. The other girl was also interested in the study of yanderes, and, even more surprisingly, they shared many hobbies.

“A true friend is hard to find.”

Those words couldn’t be more fitting.

“Xiaocheng isn’t yandere anymore, and she doesn’t cling to me like before. Maybe the medicine is working too. Given how things are now, if I focus a bit more on my own things, she’ll understand, right?”

Stepping out of the apartment complex, Su Tao opened her umbrella and looked up at the snowflakes swirling in the sky.

Even though the streetlights were dim, reflected in her eyes, the path ahead grew clearer and clearer.