The fake heiress loves to act? The max-level boss isn't interested in playing along.

Fu Hua fell into the third illusion, and the world remained quiet and dark.

Having experienced the revival of touch in the illusion of family affection, and the revival of smell in the illusion of master and disciple,

In this life, she unlocked her sense of taste.

Sweet, sour, bitter, spicy, crispy, soft, hot, cold, fresh, and astringent – ​​the sensations on the tip of the tongue are incredibly vivid and precise.

But she still can't see or hear.

His eyes are permanently black, and his ears are permanently silent.

But everything is getting better.

The future seems full of hope.

She is not mute; her vocal cords are intact, and she can speak.

But there were no human voices, no light or shadows, no human faces, and no signs of smoke or fire.

.........

This time, she was born in the late 1990s into an ordinary family in a small county town.

With many children in the family, the parents are busy making a living all day long.

No one paid attention to her daughter, who was blind, deaf, silent, and strange.

She lived in her own silent, dark world from birth.

All communication with the outside world can only be done through touch, writing, and smell.

Others saw her as aloof, arrogant, strange, and unapproachable.

In reality, she is indeed difficult to approach, and she disdains to pretend.

If it weren't for Lin Xiaoran, she would have lived such a lonely life.

Lin Xiaoran was her next-door neighbor, about six months older than her, around eighteen or nineteen years old.

Enthusiastic, sunny, talkative, loves to laugh, loves to eat, and is full of energy.

Throughout the old street, everyone was wary of Fu Hua's eccentricities and gossiped about her silence and aloofness.

Only Lin Xiaoran was willing to get close to her.

I spent every day with her, trying to understand her and accommodate her.

The way these two people communicated was different from others, even from childhood.

She couldn't hear Lin Xiaoran speak, nor could she see her expression.

Their only means of communication are writing with pen and paper, the warmth of fingertips touching, and the taste of food in their mouths.

Lin Xiaoran is extremely patient. Since childhood, she has been used to holding a notebook and pen and writing down words for her to read, one by one.

"Huahua, the weather is lovely today."

"I bought some sugar cakes, they're super sweet, I saved some for you."

"I'll wait for you after school, and we'll go home together."

She doesn't mind the trouble and never does things half-heartedly.

When others try to communicate with a deaf-mute person, they often become impatient and frustrated.

Lin Xiaoran is different; for more than a decade, she has been earnest in every word and gentle in every sentence.

It was precisely because Fu Hua's sense of taste had fully recovered that she developed an extreme craving for the flavors of human food.

These two completely complementary girls were bound together for an entire youth.

Fu Hua's world is dark, quiet, and cold.

But Lin Xiaoran was a ray of light in her dark world, illuminating and softening this corner of the world.

In the early morning, crispy fried dough sticks, soft and chewy glutinous rice balls, chilled sweet and sour plum drink, fragrant pork tenderloin from the night market, and warm roasted chestnuts in winter...

Lin Xiaoran loves to eat, and he's willing to share with her.

She wrote her a note telling her what it tasted like, what the food vendor looked like, and what shape the clouds were today…

She took Fu Hua's hand and led her step by step through the alleys of the old street.

Let her rely on her sense of smell to find her way, on her sense of touch to perceive the steps, and on her sense of taste to remember the warmth of humanity.

To outsiders, Fu Hua was a strange and disabled child, dull and wooden, not very talkative, and easy to bully.

Back in elementary school, a few teenagers in the alley always liked to ambush her.

Knowing she couldn't see the road, they deliberately threw pebbles and moved bricks near her feet.

Knowing she couldn't hear the shouts, they whispered in her ear, mocking her for being mute and blind.

Fu Hua wasn't necessarily outmatched by a few kids; she was just too lazy to bother.

That evening, Fu Hua was slowly making her way home by her sense of smell when someone suddenly tripped her.

She lost her balance and fell straight onto the hard concrete floor, scraping a large patch of skin off her knee, which stung painfully.

She couldn't see who did it, nor could she hear the group's laughter.

She could only sense through touch that several feet were deliberately rubbing against her clothes and bumping into her arm, full of malice.

Normally, she would never pay attention to it.

They're used to the cold, they endure pain, they tolerate being bullied, and they never argue or make a fuss.

This body can be discarded at any time; what is a little pain?

Before she could even push herself up from the ground, a small, energetic figure rushed over.

It was Lin Xiaoran, who had just finished school.

Lin Xiaoran saw from afar that the group of children were surrounding and bullying a person who was blind and deaf, and her eyes instantly turned red with anger.

Despite her small stature, she had a fiery temper and rushed forward to shield Fu Hua tightly behind her.

She stood with her hands on her hips, arguing and debating with a group of children without any stage fright.

"What are you doing! Is it fun to bully people?! She's already pitiful enough that she can't see or hear, and you're deliberately picking a fight with her!"

"Try touching her again, and I'll camp out in front of your house every day!"

She has a loud voice, a commanding presence, and is generally well-liked.

His fierce demeanor intimidated the mischievous children.

The children, embarrassed by the scolding, muttered a few words and slunk away.

After everyone had left, the alley became completely quiet.

Lin Xiaoran immediately squatted down, saw the wound, and burst into tears.

She didn't dare touch the wound, but gently held Fu Hua's uninjured wrist.

Carefully, I took the small notebook and pencil I always carried with me and quickly wrote something for her to see:

Don't be afraid, the bad guys are gone, I'm here.

"I'll take you to buy medicine."

After finishing writing, she gently blew on Fu Hua's knee wound, her movements incredibly light.

He helped her stand up slowly, holding her hand as he led her home step by step.

At that time, Fu Hua was not particularly moved; she was habitually indifferent at heart.

She could feel the warmth of Lin Xiaoran's palms and smell the sweet scent of laundry detergent on her.

You can taste the astringency of the dust that got on your lips when you fell.

The person beside her was a rare source of warmth in her dark and silent world.

After that incident, the neighborhood children no longer dared to bully Fu Hua.

But no one can ever shield her from the grievances she suffers at home.

Fu Hua's parents were already busy and had many children, so they didn't really like their disabled and strange daughter.

Once, because she didn't sit down at the dinner table on time, which delayed her housework, her parents got really angry.

With many children in the house, it was noisy and chaotic, and the adults vented all their pent-up anger on her.

Her parents thought she was deaf and blind, a burden on the family, and immature, so they punished her in public by not allowing her to eat or eat anything, and forcing her to stand against the wall and reflect on her actions.

None of her siblings dared to speak up for her; they all ate and chatted amongst themselves.

Nobody cared whether she was hungry or uncomfortable.

All day long, Fu Hua stood quietly against the wall.

She couldn't see her family's faces, nor hear their reproachful voices.

But you can clearly smell the aroma of food inside the house.

I could feel the sour, empty feeling in my stomach, and I quietly endured the punishment.

No one knew about this, but Lin Xiaoran, who was always clinging to her, immediately noticed that she hadn't left the house all day.

She guessed that her family must have punished her.

The next day at lunchtime, Lin Xiaoran took advantage of the adults in her family not paying attention...

She secretly took a large spoonful of rice from her own bowl, added several pieces of lean meat and some green vegetables, and carefully put it into a clean little lunchbox.

Afraid the food would get cold, she tucked it into her bosom and ran all the way to Fu Hua's door.

Not daring to go in directly and displease Fu's parents, she gently knocked on the doorframe.

When he didn't get a response, he fumbled to open the door, found Fu Hua, and stuffed the warm lunchbox into her hands.

Then quickly write:

I secretly brought you food; no one saw it. Eat quickly, don't go hungry.

From that day on, for several days in a row.

Lin Xiaoran secretly delivered two meals a day to her.

Steamed buns in the morning, hot rice at noon, and porridge and side dishes in the evening—they never stopped having them.

She was afraid that Fu Hua would get a stomachache from eating cold food, so she would always tuck it into her bosom to warm it up.

Afraid that her meals would be monotonous, he would always pick out the best meat from his bowl and give it to her.

Fearing she would feel inferior and sad, I would gently comfort her every time I wrote to her.

During those years, Fu Hua endured hunger, suffered injustice, and the pain of having no one at home to care for her.

It was all thanks to Lin Xiaoran, who made up for it little by little with each bite of hot food and each bit of warmth.

The kindness we showed back then was truly heartfelt.

The companionship I gave back then was truly selfless.

It is precisely this genuine, day-to-day tenderness that...

That makes the subsequent breakdown of friendships, the scheming of interests, and the betrayal at drinking parties all the more heartbreaking.

Fu Hua is cold, indifferent, distrustful of people's hearts, and never relies on anyone.

In those more than ten years of darkness and silence, only smell and pen and paper were her only human tenderness.

The sweetness on the tip of my tongue is real, the warmth of the food is real.

Lin Xiaoran's unwavering companionship is also genuine.

Fu Hua couldn't see her smiling face, nor could she hear her chatter.

But she could taste every bite of sweetness she had saved for herself.

You can feel the warmth of her fingertips as she writes.

You can smell her ever-fresh, sweet, youthful scent.

This is enough.

For Fu Hua at that time, Lin Xiaoran was the only friend and source of warmth in her dark life.

The friendships of youth are pure and untainted.

Others disliked her because she was disabled, strange, and withdrawn.

Only Lin Xiaoran accepted all her imperfections and accompanied her through her silent and bleak youth.

As the years went by, the two grew into their twenties.

The pure joys of youth are gradually diluted by the fame, fortune, interests, and connections of adults.

Lin Xiaoran dropped out of school early to make her way in the world. Quick-witted, charming, and adept at handling people, she made a fortune in just two years.

He infiltrated the business district, made friends with countless business owners, and completely escaped the ordinary life of the old street residents.

She became increasingly busy, wrote less and less, and ate with me less and less.

Fu Hua couldn't see the changes in her or hear the lively social engagements she was having.

But she has a keen sense of smell and a clear sense of taste.

She could smell the increasingly strong scent of alcohol and expensive perfume emanating from her, along with the pretentious and ostentatious atmosphere of the business district.

She could taste the sweet, pure flavor of their past friendship on her tongue.

It gradually becomes astringent, bland, and cloudy.

Fu Hua never asked many questions, nor did she pester anyone.

You can't change other people.

She was inherently cold-hearted, accepting relationships and partings as they came and went, and had long been accustomed to it.

Until that business dinner that completely shattered their friendship.

Lin Xiaoran rarely took the initiative to write to her, and her handwriting was enthusiastic.

"It's been so long since I've had a meal with you. Tonight I'll take you to the best buffet, with all your favorite desserts."

Fu Hua, craving the exquisite taste of the meal and thinking of reuniting with her friends, nodded in agreement.

She couldn't see the lavish banquet or hear the boisterous laughter and chatter.

All she could smell was the expensive aroma of wine and food, and taste the sweet cream of the desserts on her tongue.

But she has a keen sense of touch.

She could clearly sense that Lin Xiaoran was deliberately pushing her forward.

Countless unfamiliar hands touched her shoulders and the backs of her hands; some deliberately moved closer to her, exuding a frivolous aura.

Lin Xiaoran took the notebook and quickly wrote something to deceive her:

We're all friends, I like you, and I want to get to know you.

Fu Hua understood instantly.

She cannot see people's hearts, nor can she hear their words.

But she was very familiar with the malice in human nature.

The warm aroma of alcohol, the man's frivolous breathing, the deliberate close contact, and Lin Xiaoran's deliberate pulling and pushing.

She was used by her only best friend as a bargaining chip, a social tool, and a face to curry favor with powerful figures.

Lin Xiaoran utilizes her quiet, aloof, and flawed beauty, along with her unique temperament.

He curries favor with powerful figures in the business world, using her to gain business resources.

That night, Fu Hua stood in the endless darkness and silence.

The mouth tastes the sweetness of a top-tier dessert, but the heart feels utterly cold.

The sweeter the taste, the colder the heart.

The next day, Fu Hua took the initiative to invite Lin Xiaoran to a stall in the old street.

It was still the same sweet tofu pudding and candied hawthorn that they often ate when they were young.

Fu Hua picked up a pen and, slowly and deliberately, wrote down her final decision on the paper:

【Xiaoran, our friendship ends here. Don't come looking for me again.】

Lin Xiaoran panicked the moment she saw those words.

In her haste, she grabbed a pen and paper and began to write rapidly, her handwriting frantic and trembling:

Why? We've been together for over ten years, how can you just end it like that?! What have I done to wrong you?!

Fu Hua calmly stroked the paper with her fingertips and continued writing:

Last night at dinner, you used me as a bargaining chip to exchange for connections. I couldn't see or hear it, but I felt it perfectly clearly.

I don't blame you for wanting to make money; everyone has their own ambitions.

But I cannot accept that my only friend would take advantage of my disability and my uniqueness to scheme against and betray me.

She paused for a moment, then continued writing:

I remember all the good things you did for me.

You stayed with me through the dark, silent years, feeding me, keeping me company while I wrote, and never showing any disdain for me.

The sincerity I once felt was genuine.

The person you are now is not the person they used to be.

If a friendship has soured, there's no need to force it.

Lin Xiaoran completely broke down.

Looking at the cold, resolute handwriting on the paper, years of pent-up inferiority, resentment, and unwillingness finally erupted.

Frantically writing, each character written with force:

Fu Hua! You are so selfish and cold-blooded!

You are blind and deaf, and have lived a lonely and aloof life. From childhood to adulthood, I have always been the one to accommodate you, take the initiative for you, and care for you!

Everyone else stays away from you, fears you, and despises you, but I will never abandon you!

You're perfect in every way: good-looking, your parents have good jobs, you have a great presence, you're blind and deaf yet still got into university, you're pure of heart, and you're always aloof and superior!

I will always be there for you, chasing after you, giving to you, and trying to please you!

I've invested over a decade in this friendship, and you just dismiss it all with a casual "it's gone bad"?! How could you do this to me?!

The paper was almost torn apart by the pen tip, filled with her years of imbalance and grievances.

She always felt that she was the one who went to the front line, gave her all, and tried to warm the ice that could never be warmed.

Fu Hua quietly touched the dense, menacing handwriting on the paper, her heart completely unmoved.

She picked up her pen and slowly wrote the final words:

I admit that you gave to me, accommodated me, and warmed my heart.

I've lived a life of blindness, deafness, and confinement in darkness and silence; you were the only source of joy you ever gave me.

I remember kindness, and I will never deny it.

But friendship is never bound by debt, nor is it coerced by sacrifice.

The sweetness of the past was real, and so is the change in its current state.

Providing companionship during certain periods is a normal part of life.

Thank you for sharing the sweetness of life with me.

I also wish you success in your future endeavors, both in terms of fame and fortune, and that you achieve all your desires.

After she finished writing, she put down her pen.

"I will never see you again."

After saying that, she stopped looking at Lin Xiaoran's frantic tears (though she couldn't see her, she could sense her trembling breath and disordered breathing), and turned away.

Relying on my familiar sense of smell and touch, which I've known for many years, I gradually made my way out of the old street.

The aroma of sweet tofu pudding and candied hawthorn berries behind me still lingers.

But she tasted it all and realized that even the sweetest moments in life can turn sour and bitter, and eventually spoil completely.

She used to be cold-blooded and indifferent, unable to understand companionship, warmth, or the joys and sorrows of life.

But in this life, thanks to the revival of his sense of taste,

She savored the friendship of her entire youth, bite by bite.

I've tasted the purest sweetness, and I've also tasted the most realistic bitterness.

At that moment, she finally understood the true meaning of friendship.

Most companionship in life is only temporary.

Having someone accompany you through the darkness and through the sweetness is already an incredible blessing.

There's no need to resent betrayal, no need to dwell on debts, and no need to deny the beauty of the past.

Having experienced it, warmth, sincerity, and fulfillment is enough.

Partings and reunions are inevitable; people's hearts may change; and the fireworks of life will eventually fade.

Fu Hua's sense of taste was completely and perfectly revived in this friendship that went from sweet to bitter.

She still cannot see the light and shadow of the world, nor hear the noise of humanity.

But she finally came to fully understand the warmth and coldness of human relationships, the impermanence of gatherings and separations, the rise and fall of life, and the bittersweetness of human nature.

Of the five senses, the sense of taste has been completely restored.

The full spectrum of human experience, from this moment on, becomes clear...