Even though Hu Ning had expected Liu Zihan to express her disapproval of a potential relationship between her and Liu Fengying, she still wrinkled her nose a little upon seeing the direct manner in which she did it. It was as if she were the carrier of some deadly, highly contagious virus—one where just sharing the same room meant a death sentence.
"I don't know what I did to make you have such a bad opinion of me, Hanhan. While it's true I like to play pranks sometimes, it's not like I've ever done anything illegal…" Hu Ning said, looking deeply disappointed, as though Liu Zihan had done her a great injustice.
Perhaps if she had stopped there, she might have made Liu Zihan wonder if she hadn't been a bit too harsh in her delivery. After all, troublesome as Hu Ning was, she was indeed someone with clear boundaries that she strictly respected—Liu Zihan had never seen her get carried away.
Nor was she the worst person to have around; Liu Zihan had to admit that she possessed good qualities too, such as being extremely smart. The best proof of this was the very fact that she had chosen to stay in touch with Hu Ning in the first place.
However, Hu Ning proceeded to paint such a saintly picture of herself that it made Liu Zihan roll her eyes.
"Besides, since I've never been in a relationship before, you have no way of knowing whether I'd make a good girlfriend or not. Who knows, maybe I have the potential to be the sweetest, most loving girlfriend in the world…"
"Right, probably the kind of girlfriend who waits for her partner wearing nothing but an apron, ready to cater to their every need…" Liu Zihan interrupted in a sarcastic tone.
Yet, she didn't do this just to make fun of Hu Ning. Influenced by how their conversation had gone so far, Liu Zihan expected her speech to take a perverted turn at any moment. So, she decided to beat her to the punch to make the whole thing look ridiculous—after all, as the saying goes: you have to fight fire with fire.
"Cough!…" Hu Ning was caught off guard by Liu Zihan's words. Truth be told, since she was trying to project a more delicate image, she had intended to keep her language wholesome.
'Could it be that I actually managed to corrupt Hanhan a little?' Hu Ning thought to herself, feeling slightly strange. After all, it was one thing to describe herself in erotic scenarios, but quite another to hear someone else do it.
Still, Hu Ning wasn't one to give in to her emotions for long, so she didn't lose her train of thought. On the contrary, she felt that Liu Zihan's reaction actually played into her hands, helping her steer the conversation where she wanted it.
At first, she began by complaining.
"I can see you're not taking me seriously. But what can I do?…"
Then, she suddenly trailed off, as if struck by a realization.
"Hanhan, what if the problem isn't actually with me, but with you?" Hu Ning asked after a few moments, giving Liu Zihan a peculiar look.
Liu Zihan didn't take it very seriously. She suspected Hu Ning wanted to accuse her of being a bad friend—the kind who dismisses her friends or is incapable of trusting anyone. Naturally, such accusations coming from Hu Ning couldn't affect her in the slightest. What kind of friendship could there truly be between humans and snakes? A human might keep a snake as a pet, but they could never be entirely sure it wouldn't bite them.
"What are you trying to say?" Liu Zihan finally asked, wanting to stop Hu Ning from staring at her as if she had grown a horn on her forehead.
"Hanhan…" Hu Ning spoke in an even lower tone than before, as though she were afraid someone other than Liu Zihan might overhear them.
She was in no rush to continue, waiting instead until she was sure she had Liu Zihan's undivided attention.
"…Is it possible that you're jealous?" she finally uttered, just as Liu Zihan was starting to lose her patience.
"......" Liu Zihan was left with a blank stare on her face; it took her a few moments to process Hu Ning's words.
"Tell me, am I right?" Hu Ning began to press her, operating on the principle that once the fish bites the hook, you have to reel it in quickly.
"What kind of nonsense are you talking about? She's my half-sister; how could I possibly have such thoughts about her?" Liu Zihan retorted once she snapped out of her daze. Still, despite her anger, she kept her voice as low as Hu Ning's; after all, she didn't want to risk their conversation catching anyone else's ear.
"Huh? Did I say you had inappropriate feelings for your sister? I just said you were jealous—you know, like when two friends are close and one of them starts spending more time with someone else…" Hu Ning put on a confused facade, as if Liu Zihan had completely twisted her words.
For a second, Liu Zihan hesitated, wondering if she had overreacted and misinterpreted Hu Ning's meaning. But reminding herself who she was dealing with, another possibility dawned on her.
'This schemer! She's definitely setting a trap to imply that a guilty conscience needs no accuser—or rather, that I assumed she meant romantic jealousy because I secretly harbor feelings for Liu Fengying…' Liu Zihan thought to herself.
"Don't try to play dumb with me; we both know exactly what you meant. If it were really as you explained, why would you act like I had committed some terrible crime?" Liu Zihan confronted her. Since her relationship with Liu Fengying was already complicated enough, she had no intention of letting Hu Ning mess with her head even further.
It seemed Liu Zihan had guessed her intentions correctly, as Hu Ning didn't bother to deny it. Unlike others who tried to wriggle out when their schemes were exposed, Hu Ning made no attempt to excuse herself—Liu Zihan felt this was due to something akin to the pride an artist feels for their own creation.
On top of that, it appeared Hu Ning had no intention of dropping her speculations about Liu Zihan's feelings toward Liu Fengying. Seeing that beating around the bush hadn't worked, she decided to get straight to the point.
"You're awfully defensive about this topic; don't you think that makes you look a bit suspicious?" Hu Ning addressed her with utmost nonchalance, as if she hadn't even noticed Liu Zihan's growing annoyance.
"How could I not be affected? I'm sure you're smart enough to realize the kind of repercussions a rumor like that would have…" Liu Zihan said, piercing Hu Ning with a threatening glare.
And it wasn't just a cold, calculated sense of vengeance; there was a raw, primal edge in her eyes that gave Hu Ning the distinct impression Liu Zihan was actually planning to strangle her if people ever started talking about an inappropriate relationship between her and Liu Fengying—even if Liu Zihan didn't have concrete proof that Hu Ning was the one behind it.
"Relax, spreading rumors about someone isn't my style. Besides, we're friends; even though I like to tease you from time to time, I'd never put you in an uncomfortable situation…" Hu Ning tried to de-escalate the tension.
Even if Liu Zihan didn't intend to resort to violence right then and there, it was entirely possible she might cut ties with her completely—a scenario Hu Ning desperately wanted to avoid. If she fought with Liu Zihan, with whom else could she truly be herself?
"Are you sure about that? I have a hunch it's thanks to you that my mother found out Han Yu is interested in me…" Liu Zihan countered. Since Hu Ning had shared confidential information about her in the past with her own family—which Hu Ning's mother had then used to strengthen her relationship with Wang Xia further—it didn't seem out of the ordinary for something similar to have happened this time as well.
Although she understood why Liu Zihan was wary of her, Hu Ning felt wronged. Ever since they had started being honest with each other, she had stopped trying to take advantage of Liu Zihan or plot against her in any way. Just like other recent occasions when Liu Zihan suspected her of causing things around her to go awry, she was completely innocent.
"The entire school already knows Han Yu wanted to ask you out. Why couldn't your mother have heard about it through someone other than my mom? Even your brother knows about it. Either way, whether you believe me or not, I had nothing to do with it…" Hu Ning attempted to lower Liu Zihan's suspicion, at least enough so she wouldn't be the primary suspect anymore. Even if she wasn't bothered by people having a bad opinion of her, she hated being falsely accused. To her, it was like an artist being credited with a low-quality artwork they hadn't actually created.
Liu Zihan was well aware there were other ways her mother could have heard about Han Yu besides Hu Ning; that was precisely why she had only said she suspected her.
Furthermore, hearing her mention her brother made Liu Zihan realize she might have dismissed him too quickly from her list of prime suspects.
Initially, she hadn't paid much attention to the possibility of Liu Zihao being the culprit. She had assumed that because he had been skipping school often lately, he would be afraid that bringing up her affairs to their mother might cause her to return the favor.
However, given how stressed he currently was because of Liu Fengying, it was entirely possible he had done it anyway. He was likely eager to fulfill his dream of gaining an influential brother-in-law who could help him suppress Liu Fengying. And to cover his tracks, all he had to do was convince their mother not to reveal she had heard about Han Yu from him.
Of course, Liu Zihan was aware that all of this was mere speculation; chances were she would never learn the truth—after all, who among the people around her could she truly trust?
"Eh, who knows?" Liu Zihan finally said. Out of everyone around her, Hu Ning was by far the most cunning.
Besides, to keep Hu Ning somewhat in check, she always had to show that her guard was up. It wasn't that Hu Ning would be intimidated by this; rather, it was a way to prevent her from feeling that their relationship had grown boring and suddenly getting the itch to plot against her again.
***Spoiler regarding Liu Zihan:
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For those who haven't seen it on RR and SH (1-2 month ago), I should clarify that Liu Zihan and Liu Fengying don't actually share the same father. It's not that I wouldn't have been willing to write 'orthopedic literature'; after all, with how many Japanese yuri novels and manga I've read, I've developed a taste for all kinds of taboo relationships. The issue is that we're not in Japan, so to make sure I avoid any publishing issues down the line, I decided to play it safe.
Anyway, it's not like I made a huge compromise; on the contrary, it gives me the chance to come up with some interesting storylines.