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nFu Yangxi reached out his hand and hung up the call.

nHe didn’t know what he would do if he continued listening.

n…

nEverything is clear now.

nLittle Mask never liked me at all.

nFu Yangxi didn’t know what he was thinking, or maybe he wasn’t thinking about anything at all. His mind was buzzing, and there seemed to be a big hand coming out of his stomach, squeezing his internal organs. For a moment, he felt empty everywhere and had absolutely no energy. He sat down on the sofa and looked at the ground blankly without saying a word.

nKe Chengwen’s heart was beating like a drum as he looked at Fu Yangxi at a loss. “Xi ge—”

nKe Chengwen felt that he was also responsible for this. If he told Fu Yangxi when Zhao Mingxi first transferred that Zhao Mingxi used to pursue Shen Liyao before, then he wouldn’t let Xi ge’s feelings develop to this point. But he didn’t think so much at that time just because he was afraid that Xi ge’s temper would explode.

n“You can leave first.” Fu Yangxi interrupted him. “Let me be for a while.”

nKe Chengwen still couldn’t help but say, “If you feel deceived and angered and you don’t want to see Zhao Mingxi, why not get Lawyer Zhang to negotiate with the dean and transfer Zhao Mingxi to another class?”

n

n

nAlthough Zhao Mingxi was also his friend, Ke Chengwen only got to know her because of Fu Yangxi.

nKe Chengwen still subconsciously stood on Fu Yangxi’s side.

n“‘Deceive’? When did Zhao Mingxi deceive me? If you’re referring to those comments in the posts saying she was kind to me because she wanted to make Shen Liyao jealous, I don’t believe a single word of it.”

n“She’s not that kind of person. You’re not allowed to believe it or even talk about it. Next time you hear someone gossiping about this, just beat them up.”

nFu Yangxi’s tone was flat and emotionless.

nThe light in the room is dim, making it difficult to see his expression.

n“When I do things, I only care about what I want and don’t want. Even if you force me to do something by putting a knife to my neck, I won’t do it.”

nFu Yangxi said.

nHe would not like a person just because that person likes him. It started a long time ago, maybe it was the moment she took off the mask; maybe it was that night in the library; maybe even earlier, the moment his fingers touched hers when he realized that he liked Zhao Mingxi.

nTherefore, there was no deception, and there was no misunderstanding.

nHe also didn’t care if Zhao Mingxi used to like others. He only wanted to know if Zhao Mingxi liked him now.

nAnd now he knows.

nShe doesn’t like him.

nShe just treated him as a boss, and the series of good actions done on his behalf after her transfer was maybe just so she could integrate into the class more quickly.

nIt was because he had never received this before, so after getting a small match, he thought she had a whole pit of warm fire waiting for him.

nHe thought too much, way too much.

nFu Yangxi felt embarrassed.

nAfter being silent for a long time, he tugged at the corner of his mouth. “You are not allowed to tell anyone about what happened today.”

nNo one had yet to know that he had turned himself into such a big joke. After today, he could still pretend that nothing had happened.

nKe Chengwen looked at him and said, “Okay.”

nBut no matter how Fu Yangxi tried to cheer himself up, he was still shaking with emptiness.

nA flash of lightning struck, illuminating Fu Yangxi’s pale face.

nThen, the pouring rain started to fall outside the room.

n…

nMingxi hung up the phone, feeling puzzled. Why did Ke Chengwen make such a weird call? Why can’t he just tell me this in school tomorrow?

nBut she still wrote down Fu Yangxi’s birthday on her phone’s memo.

nThe last time they made a fuss about it, she was thinking about her own affairs, so she didn’t catch it.

nFortunately, Ke Chengwen reminded her again, so she remembered it this time.

nMingxi wrote a lot in her memo, all of which were important dates for important people. He Yang, Aunt Dong and Dong Shen.

nAfter giving it some thought, she circled November 5th and pinned it at the top so she wouldn’t forget it again.

n“Mingxi, the dishes are getting cold.” Dong Shen called out to her.

nMingxi hurried back.

nDong Hui placed Mingxi’s favorite food in front of her and asked carefully, “Do you want to move in with us? Though we have yet to receive the title for our house. I just paid the deposit when I was abroad two months ago and it’s estimated that there’ll be another month left before we can move in. It’s in a very good community, second-hand villa—”

n“It’s okay, Aunt Dong. I want to live in school. It’s more convenient.”

nDong Hui hurriedly asked again, “What about during the winter and summer vacations? Xixi, you must have a place to call home, right? Otherwise, how scared will you be when the school is empty? Come to our house! Just nod your head and we will allocate a room to you immediately after the house is delivered.”

nWhen Dong Hui saw Mingxi hesitating, she quickly said, “Why are you so hesitant? Uncle Dong and I watched you grow up. You are smart and hardworking, and we have always treated you as our daughter. Now that we are able to help you financially, why are you hesitating? Your grandma asked us to take care of you before she died. If we knew that the Zhao family would act like this, we would not have gone abroad in the first place.”

nDong Shen also said, “Exactly. Besides, Mingxi, didn’t you say you want to take me shopping for new clothes? In a few days, I will have to trouble you with all kinds of transfer procedures.”

nMingxi lowered her head and held her chopsticks tightly. The tip of her nose felt slightly sour. Finally, she nodded and agreed, “Okay.”

nSeeing that Mingxi had agreed, the Dong family was very happy. But this time the Dong family had just returned to China and was also staying in a hotel. Many things have not been arranged yet, so Mingxi could only live in school first. Then when it’s time for winter vacation, she can move to the Dong family’s newly bought house.

nMingxi and Dong Hui’s family had a lively meal. After dinner, the four of them came down from the second floor of the restaurant.

nSeeing as it was an absolute downpour outside, Dong Hui said, “We’ll send you back to school first, then we’ll head back to the hotel.”

nMingxi stopped being overly-polite with them and said directly, “Okay. Thank you, auntie.”

nMingxi, Dong Hui and Dong Shen waited under the eaves of the hotel for Uncle Dong to drive his car over.

nA familiar car was also slowly driving over.

nThe driver was holding an umbrella. Madam Zhao, Zhao Yuan, and Zhao Yuning got out of the car.

nMadam Zhao and Zhao Yuning have been in a stalemate, making Zhao Yuan anxious. She was worried that if the stalemate goes on for a long time, Zhao Yuning will not go home and Madam Zhao will blame herself.

nSo she thought of a way, which was to ask both of them out to have a meal together.

nMadam Zhao was still depressed about Zhao Mingxi’s affairs and had no appetite, but when she heard that Zhao Yuning was also eating together with them, she hurried out, thinking that she had already lost a daughter so she could not afford to risk her relationship with Zhao Yuning anymore.

nAs for Zhao Yuning, he didn’t want to come at all. The reason why he came was because after talking to Zhao Mo that day about what Zhao Yuan did in the Department of Literature, his second eldest brother gave it some thought and asked him to pay more attention to Zhao Yuan.

nHe wanted to see what Zhao Yuan wanted to do, hence why he came.

nBut the three of them didn’t expect to see Mingxi standing under the eaves before they got out of the car.

nIn reality, A City was not that big. Moreover, there were only so many famous five-star hotels. As long as you live in this city, you will definitely bump into someone familiar some day.

nZhao Mingxi looked thinner and her clothes were a little thicker. Maybe she just came out of school. Her school uniform was covered by a long coat, but she didn’t look bloated at all. On the contrary, she looked slim because of her tall stature. She had fair skin and she still had on the long-life charm that her grandmother got for her.

nShe was a beautiful young girl that could be easily identified even from afar.

nMadam Zhao’s heart felt congested. The children in her family were all very excellent in terms of appearance, but Mingxi was undoubtedly the most outstanding one. When she first brought Mingxi home, she was shocked to see how beautiful Mingxi was. At that time, she really wanted to pull her close and take more looks at her.

nBut because she was worried about Zhao Yuan’s feelings, she never dared to take more glances.

nAnd now, such a beautiful child belongs to someone else’s family.

nBoth Madam Zhao and Zhao Yuning noticed Dong Hui and Dong Shen who were next to her.

nThey never expected that the first thing the Dong family did when they returned to China was to find Mingxi.

nThe expressions of the two were exactly the same as if they had been hit with a bat. They immediately walked over with their umbrellas.

nOriginally, Madam Zhao thought that even if their relationship had been severed, Mingxi would at least say hello to them if she encountered them in the crowd, right?

nBut unexpectedly…

nNo.

nMingxi did see them, but she immediately withdrew her gaze and got into the Dong family’s car.

n“…”

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n

nMadam Zhao felt suffocated. Her heart suddenly felt as though it had been pierced by a needle.

nWithout giving it any further thought, she rushed to block the door and the driver hurriedly followed with the umbrella.

nZhao Yuan stood alone on the steps of the hotel, but when she turned around, she saw that both Madam Zhao and Zhao Yuning hadn’t followed. Instead, they braved the heavy rain to stop the car. There was an instant change in her expression.

n“Zhao Mingxi!” Madam Zhao felt a pain in her heart. “You won’t even say hello anymore when we meet?!”

nMingxi got into the car, but Madam Zhao pulled the door to prevent her from closing it. Mingxi frowned. “Let go.”

nDong Shen was sitting on Mingxi’s right. When he saw Madam Zhao and Zhao Yuning, he became angry and said, “What’s wrong with you guys? Can’t you just let her go? Stop pestering her. What were you doing before this? Why should she say hello? Why should she greet you guys after she severed her relationship with you?”

nZhao Yuning held the umbrella and looked at Zhao Mingxi sadly. He couldn’t help saying, “Jie*—”

n*jie = elder sister

n“‘Jie’? What ‘jie’? She’s my elder sister now!” Dong Shen deliberately said this to trigger Zhao Yuning. He hugged Mingxi’s arm and leaned his head on her shoulder.

nZhao Yuning was anxious and desperate. He wanted nothing but to rush in and fight Dong Shen. “Let go of Zhao Mingxi, you fatty.”

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