Cannon Fodder – Chapter 59 – You’re Starting to Like Me~

Chi Xiaocheng was inherently adorable.

But aside from strangers, everyone who looked at her did so through some kind of filter.

Take Su Tao: having grown up together, how could she not recognize Chi Xiaocheng’s charm?

She’d simply grown accustomed to it. From an older sister’s perspective, she took the cuteness of her appearance for granted while dismissing behavioral quirks as mere clumsiness.

Yet after Chi Xiaocheng’s gradual psychological conditioning, the charm Su Tao now perceived was distinctly….

Feminine.

No longer viewed through a sisterly lens.

Without realizing it, Su Tao’s heartstrings had been plucked.

Flustered, she gently pushed Chi Xiaocheng away, seeking an escape. “N-Next time… don’t say things like that. How could I ever treat you as a pet? You’ll always be my dear little sister.”

Chi Xiaocheng blinked, then pressed a finger to her lips with a giggle. “Just a sister?”

The unspoken question hung heavy. After all this, can we still be just “sisters”?

“I’m quite greedy, you know~”

She burrowed back into Su Tao’s embrace before the latter could protest, placing a silencing finger on her lips.

“Shh… let me nap like this, okay?”

“Xiaocheng….”

“I can feel it.” Chi Xiaocheng tightened her hug, voice softening. “Tao-Tao’s starting to like me a little, isn’t she? The way you look at me has changed. When I wake up… you’ll be discharged~”

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“Discharged….”

The word lingered on Su Tao’s tongue.

Did that mean freedom?

She’d lost track of time, maybe a week had passed?

‘Could I really have fallen for Xiaocheng in just a week?’

Holding the warmth in her arms, Su Tao’s expression grew complicated.

‘No… perhaps it’s been longer.’

‘And no, I don’t like Xiaocheng.’

‘I’m just pretending.’

‘She’s been fooled.’

‘That’s why she’d say such things.’

‘Just sleep. When we wake up, everything will return to normal.’

Curling around the petite form, Su Tao lay down yet couldn’t rest.

Chi Xiaocheng’s words echoed relentlessly in her head:

—You’re starting to like me~

Even if just a little.

When confronted with feelings that contradict one’s self-image, the mind obsessively circles them, trying to deny and rationalize.

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In truth, Chi Xiaocheng understood Su Tao better than she did herself.

“Like” was too strong. At most, there was budding affection.

Days of yandere extremes followed by sudden docility created whiplash, distorting Su Tao’s perceptions.

Now, minimal prompting would make her misinterpret her own emotions.

She’d dwell on it endlessly, self-rejecting until Chi Xiaocheng became an inescapable mental presence.

No Cinderella handkerchief needed—

The effect was achieved!

The incense burner’s muscle relaxant still worked, but the bedroom door stood open.

Su Tao yearned to escape, to check her phone. What had happened during this “week”? Why had no one come?

Dr. Cheng’s ignorance was understandable, but—

Sichen?

Chen Qian?

Shouldn’t Ye Liang have searched for her after returning?

Why complete radio silence?

Noticing Chi Xiaocheng’s peaceful slumber, her agitation oddly subsided. She must be exhausted too….

Where did the orange-juice taste that was present in every meal come from?

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Suppressing nausea, Su Tao pieced it together:

Only things fed directly from Chi Xiaocheng’s mouth retained natural sweetness, proving her taste buds worked.

The rest? Likely takeout doctored with Chi Xiaocheng’s own….

“Orange juice.”

Lifting Chi Xiaocheng’s sleeve, full of fresh cuts alongside old scars, confirmed it.

A yandere’s love was unbearably heavy.

Yet was this really Xiaocheng’s fault?

Su Tao smiled bitterly.

‘If I hadn’t tested her….’

If I’d accepted her yandere nature instead of provoking her with Ye Liang….’

‘This was self-inflicted.’

‘And I dragged Xiaocheng deeper into her illness, harming her already frail body.’

Guilt made her embrace gentler. Had Chi Xiaocheng known Su Tao was blaming herself, she’d have marveled again—

This is why she’s the white moonlight heroine!

Just being near her makes people adore her.

That’s why she must be kept close, no wandering eyes allowed~

Sunlight streamed outside but couldn’t penetrate the blackout curtains. The room remained dark even with lights off.

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Su Tao drifted in and out of restless sleep.

Why isn’t it morning yet?

Mental fog thickened her exhaustion. Each moment was torment. Her sole comfort: the warm weight in her arms, the soft snores easing her tension.

Chi Xiaocheng’s silent promise: I’ll never leave you.

The darkness felt less terrifying.

Eventually, Chi Xiaocheng stirred. Rubbing sleepy eyes, she mumbled, “What time is it? Why didn’t you wake me?”

Just like high school mornings when she’d overslept, every mannerism tugged at nostalgic heartstrings.

Su Tao turned on the light. “Not sure. Morning, probably?”

“Oh right!” Chi Xiaocheng perked up, pulling Su Tao toward the door. “Since Tao-Tao’s cured, discharge time~”

Like a caged bird glimpsing freedom, Su Tao stepped forward—

Blinding sunlight made her wince.

As her eyes adjusted to the golden rays painting the clouds, one question consumed her:

Sunrise… or sunset?

The glow warmed her face, intertwining with dark memories as she picked up the phone Chi Xiaocheng had left out.

“Time…?”

Less than three days had passed?!