Peach-Orange! – Chapter 179 – She Was Wrong, And So Were You

How can a person’s personality undergo such drastic changes?

The renowned sunshine-boy Dongfang [surname omitted] once said: “Perhaps it’s encountering something utterly devastating and unacceptable, or latent mental illness, or even a second personality.”

And the current Fang Ning clearly fell into the first category.

At noon, after parting ways with Su Tao, she went straight to the hospital. Upon reaching Chi Xiaocheng’s ward and seeing the girl lying motionless with a flatlining heart monitor, the last sliver of hope in her heart was extinguished.

She stood by the bed for a long time, but she wasn’t the only one in that room.

There was also a strange older brother she didn’t recognize.

This odd man was shirtless in winter, with something like “Never Love Peach” written on his back. If he didn’t like peaches, he didn’t need to write it on his back like that.

But considering this strange man also knew Chi Xiaocheng and had been watching over her remains longer than she had, Fang Ning politely greeted Si Chen out of courtesy.

Si Chen had merely been waiting for Chi Xiaocheng’s fake death to end so she could wake up. He hadn’t expected Chi Xiaocheng to have other friends who knew about her “death.”

After all, aside from their group and Su Tao, they had kept Chi Xiaocheng’s “death” completely under wraps.

Even the school faculty only knew Chi Xiaocheng had taken an extended leave, unaware of the truth.

More importantly, when Si Chen met Fang Ning’s hollow, empty gaze, he instantly understood what kind of girl she was.

A contingency plan left behind by Chi Xiaocheng after her fake death.

The thought flashed through his mind.

After all, those hollow, despairing eyes, weren’t they just like a yandere’s?

Si Chen glanced at Chi Xiaocheng lying on the bed, then crooked a finger at Fang Ning. “Kid, want to know how Chi Xiaocheng died?”

“How… did Xiaocheng jiejie die?”

“Yeah. She died for someone, but that someone didn’t love her at all.”

Si Chen buttoned his shirt, his gaze dark as he looked at Chi Xiaocheng’s closed eyes.

‘I don’t know what you’re thinking, Chi Xiaocheng, but… if Su Tao keeps going like this, even if you wake up from your fake death someday, she might never truly come to love or care about you.’

‘This incident with Ye Liang has blown up. If the news spreads discreetly and reaches your “War Hero” father, maybe he’ll return from abroad.’

‘This is for my plans, but also for your relationship with Su Tao.’

‘I won’t feel at ease until the two of you are married!’

Si Chen took Fang Ning to a hospital lounge and began chatting with her.

Like a puppeteer behind the scenes, he subtly guided Fang Ning’s thoughts.

Was Fang Ning stupid?

Of course not. After leaving the hospital, she went straight to Chi Xiaocheng’s apartment complex.

She understood that the strange older brother had told her all that just to make her realize Xiaocheng jiejie had died because of Su Tao, and that Su Tao didn’t love Xiaocheng jiejie in return.

She couldn’t accept that Chi Xiaocheng was dead, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t think rationally about the circumstances of her death.

Because she had already braced herself for this long ago.

Standing at the complex entrance, waiting for the person in question to return, Fang Ning’s memories drifted back to those warm nights.

She had been rescued from a snowstorm, brought to a place with warm water, comforting heating, rare care, and genuine concern for her life.

“Ningning, for me… could you pretend to be a yandere?”

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Back then, she had learned what a yandere was and heard Chi Xiaocheng say those words.

“What should I do?”

“Become friends with Tao-Tao first. Ideally, become someone she trusts. That way, if something happens to me someday and she’s lost, you can scold her awake. If she’s about to break down, comfort her. But you mustn’t become her pillar, okay?

“After all, the one I love most is her, and she should love me too.”

Fang Ning didn’t understand. “But that doesn’t sound like pretending to be a yandere?”

“You don’t get it yet. There needs to be emotional buildup and tragic turning points to qualify as yandere. If you barely know Tao-Tao and start acting crazy around her, that’s not yandere. That’s just mental illness.

“Being too abrupt will only make you seem insane.

“Becoming her close friend first is the setup for the later twist. Anyway, if you don’t understand now, I’ll teach you later. For now, the first step is becoming friends with Tao-Tao.”

She had remembered Chi Xiaocheng’s words. After becoming the dorm supervisor, she had tried to approach Su Tao quickly.

But back then, she hadn’t known that Chi Xiaocheng’s pressure on Su Tao had already peaked, and that Chi Xiaocheng herself was becoming increasingly unstable.

Su Tao rarely returned to the dorm, and their few encounters involved no interaction whatsoever.

Let alone becoming friends.

Until now.

She saw Su Tao stumbling back through the darkness.

The emptiness in her eyes gained a tinge of disgust.

“Sorry, Xiaocheng jiejie. I can’t obey you this time. After how much you loved Su Tao jiejie, I should be on your side helping you. But I think… she doesn’t deserve you!”

Si Chen had already told her everything she wanted to know.

‘And Xiaocheng jiejie, if you want to scold me, wait until I join you to do it.’

‘After all, you’re already dead. I don’t have to follow your instructions anymore, right?’

“Miss Su Tao, please don’t come here anymore. This isn’t your home, and you don’t deserve to live in Xiaocheng jiejie’s house.”

This wasn’t her home, but it was filled with memories.

Su Tao tried to take another step forward, but Fang Ning shoved her hard. “Miss Su Tao, you didn’t even love Xiaocheng jiejie. After she died, you did nothing. How can you have the audacity to keep living in her home?”

Staggering back, Su Tao retorted, “I— I didn’t do nothing! And I’m not shamelessly living in her home!”

Her voice rose slightly. “Xiaocheng is gone. Of course I need to preserve everything in her apartment. None of it should change. And I have to take care of King. I—”

“Aren’t these just excuses for yourself?”

Fang Ning stepped closer. Though much shorter, her upturned face felt more aggressive. “I know everything now. Xiaocheng jiejie gave so much for you and even died for you. If you had regretted it after her death and tried to redeem her past, that would be one thing.

“But you did nothing.

“Don’t take her love for granted!”

Not just Fang Ning, even Si Chen and Chen Qian had said similar things to her.

Today, she had also learned the truth about Sister Long and her advisor, realizing she had misunderstood Chi Xiaocheng.

Her emotions were already at their limit.

Even if Fang Ning’s relentless words echoed others’, each one pierced her heart.

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‘Saying I didn’t care about Xiaocheng.’

‘Saying I did nothing.’

‘Saying I was selfish, that everything was for myself!’

‘What do any of you know?’

‘Stop judging from your outsider perspectives!’

‘She cut herself in front of me, locked me in rooms, and would spiral into darkness at the slightest disagreement! What was I supposed to do?’

‘Everyone says I didn’t love Xiaocheng, that I didn’t deserve her, but what could I have done? I was terrified of her bloody, horrifying yandere episodes!’

‘Accepting her meant accepting her yandere side, enduring her madness.’

‘Rejecting her would make her yandere, forcing me to endure her madness anyway.’

‘What choice did I have?’

‘Was there even a choice?’

‘I… didn’t try to “cure” Xiaocheng for myself. I just… wanted her to get better.’

‘And now you say I didn’t regret her death?’

‘What a joke!’

Su Tao suddenly looked up, tears welling as she gritted her teeth and shouted at Fang Ning: “Stop making it sound so simple! After she was gone, I regretted it every second. I wished it had been me instead!”

“But what’s the point of saying that now?”

Fang Ning tilted her head, her dark eyes staring blankly. “What have you done since Xiaocheng jiejie died?”

“I….”

Su Tao staggered back two steps and collapsed onto the snow.

She had done nothing.

Even the “revenge” was mostly handled by Dongfang Yang, Si Chen, and even Chi Song. She had only found Ye Liang’s location because of a note.

Different perspectives revealed different truths.

To Fang Ning, Chi Xiaocheng had died because of Su Tao.

And her final wish had been for Su Tao to love her.

Yet even in death, that wish went unfulfilled.

So didn’t that mean Su Tao was unworthy?

Fang Ning didn’t press further, but Su Tao saw profound disappointment in her eyes.

She didn’t hate Su Tao or resent her.

She just thought Chi Xiaocheng’s death had been wasted.

Because even now, Su Tao’s feelings for Xiaocheng remained shallow.

Let alone love.

Hunched over, Su Tao turned away in despair.

If she really wanted to enter the complex, Fang Ning likely wouldn’t stop her.

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But….

She truly had no face to go back.

The snow was heavy, the wind bitingly cold.

How she longed… to embrace that warm little body one more time.

…

It wasn’t quite a fight, just differing perspectives and priorities. After Su Tao left, Fang Ning turned to look at Chi Xiaocheng’s apartment.

Standing in the snow for ten minutes, she wiped away tears shed after Su Tao’s departure.

Finally, she bowed toward the apartment before walking away into the snow.

Neither noticed the small snowman by the gate, inside which a straw doll had hidden, listening to their entire conversation.

[Host, this was completely outside the plan.]

The system’s voice snapped Chi Xiaocheng out of her thoughts.

She crawled out of the snowman and stared at Su Tao’s retreating figure in silence.

“System, do you think… I was wrong?”

[…]

‘How am I supposed to answer that?’

Chi Xiaocheng pressed her lips together. “I just wanted Tao-Tao to love me too. Even after I died, she’s still like this… I feel so disappointed. So hurt.”

Even now, the “Affection” meter on her status glasses hadn’t reached the passing mark of 60.

It had been 49 before. Now it was 51.

If Su Tao overthought things, would she start to hate her?

‘I died for you, why can’t you love me a little more?’

Chi Xiaocheng fell silent, then murmured softly, “I… I’m not blaming Tao-Tao. I just… want to know how to make her love me faster.”

[Host, love isn’t something you can rush.]

[Your methods might indeed be too extreme.]

“But if even my death didn’t change her, won’t we just keep repeating this cycle after I wake up in a month?”

She was desperate. Because she really wasn’t normal anymore, perhaps genuinely a bit yandere.

That was why she was so frantic to change things.

To make Su Tao love her.

So future male leads wouldn’t sway her, nor would the world’s will.

The system sighed.

[Host, love goes both ways. You need to give Su Tao time to understand her own feelings. Right now, she’s like a boiling pressure cooker.]

[Honestly, she just got pushed past her limit. She just didn’t show it outwardly.]

Anyone could see she needed to decompress.

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Otherwise, she’d never think rationally about their relationship.

She’d just keep shrinking into self-preservation under this pressure, subconsciously making excuses.

She wasn’t like Si Chen, a purely rational type who would stop at nothing for his goals. Like most people, she was impressionable, easily confused, and hesitant when facing problems.

You can’t expect every normal person to be perfect.

[Host, both of you have things you need to change.]

“I’m already trying.”

Chi Xiaocheng shook off the snow. “I’m doing my best to be normal.”

Normal when not using her “Intermediate Acting” skills.

‘Because I thought… maybe then Tao-Tao would accept me?’

She browsed the system shop, stopping at an item she’d wanted for a long time.

[Dream-Inviting Red Thread: Can bind to a person and construct a dream, pulling them inside. The target will clearly recognize it as a lucid dream.]

[Single-use only.]

[Price: 1,500 Emotion Points.]

“System, buy this for me.”

[Host, that’s too expensive! Earning Emotion Points is getting harder now.]

Su Tao was undoubtedly the biggest source of Emotion Points.

But after enduring so much pressure, she was growing numb. The points from her stress and breakdowns had dwindled.

With 1,500 points, she could roll for a random skill instead.

But Chi Xiaocheng just shook her head. “I did put too much pressure on Tao-Tao. I want… to at least give her one good dream.”

She clicked “Purchase.”

A faint smile touched her lips. “And… I want to see Tao-Tao.”

Even if only in a dream.

The red thread connected, but Su Tao wouldn’t fall asleep immediately.

For now, she wandered aimlessly down the road, letting the snow lash her face through her coat.

It was cold. It hurt.

But it cleared her mind, kept her from forgetting today’s events and others’ words.

Lost in thought, she unknowingly reached the riverside. The freezing weather had iced over most of the water.

The remaining slush shimmered under streetlights.

Gazing at the city across the river, she didn’t notice the figure that had appeared beside her.

“Rare to see someone out here so late.”

The figure chuckled softly, as if finding a kindred spirit. Leaning on the icy railing, he asked casually:

“Miss, are you here to jump too?”