Chapter 17 Walkthrough: Day Seventeen - Encountering a Nemesis

But he smiled.

I don't know what he's laughing at, but Xiang Di is completely stunned.

It was as if a crack had appeared in the iceberg after being struck by the Titanic, letting in a ray of sunlight. The curve of his lips was restrained, but he couldn't suppress the faint smile in his eyes.

A particularly corny line suddenly popped into Xiang Di's mind.

It's been a long time since I've seen the young master smile so happily.

It's late at night, and it makes me dizzy.

Xiang Di blushed slightly. Since there was no one else around, and considering how much she liked him, could she, just this once, be a little narcissistic and think that his smile was because of her?

【Oh my god, I can't do it!】

[This boy's smile is so handsome and charming.]

The dialect accent she learned online sounded a bit comical because it wasn't standard. She deliberately used a funny tone to cover up her extreme infatuation at that moment, and paired it with her sweet voice, it had a strangely silly and cute charm.

She'd accept being called a lovesick fool; she was simply captivated by him.

I love it so much, I love it so much, I'm dying to love it!

His Adam's apple bobbed up and down with some difficulty, his cold and stern eyes completely surrendered, and even his dark eyelashes trembled. Bai Jiangxin felt a heat on his forehead, raised his hand to cover his cheek, and coughed a few times as if he had choked.

Xiang Di asked, "Are you alright? Did you catch a chill from the wind tonight?"

"Maybe." The night was cold, but his earlobes and the back of his neck were burning, as if he had caught a chill. Bai Jiangxin's voice was a little hoarse. "Go on up."

Xiang Di nodded: "Okay, then you should go home quickly too, lest you catch a cold again, bye-bye."

Bai Jiangxin nodded, watched Xiang Di turn around, push open the glass security door, and walk in.

They weren't far apart, and her thoughts were still within his range of reception for the time being. He only heard her sigh and mutter to herself.

My husband's health isn't very good; he catches a cold every few days.

It's said that if a man's physical condition is poor, he'll last a short time in bed and his sperm motility will be low.

With such a high nose bridge, it looks like she should have a lot of breasts too, but she's actually a sickly beauty, all looks and no substance...

"..."

Bai Jiangxin's face darkened, and his previous mood vanished completely.

Lustful groundhogs can't stay still for more than three seconds before they're back to their old ways.

He turned and left.

[But it doesn't matter anymore, it's none of my business. He wouldn't even be my deskmate, so how could he possibly like me? We could never be together. It's enough that I can see him at school every day.]

Cheer up! He drove you home today and even bought you cream puffs! You're such a lucky girl; be content.

Xiang Di was holding onto her backpack strap while waiting for the elevator, staring blankly at the numbers on the elevator screen.

There weren't many residents using the elevator at night, so it quickly reached the first floor. Xiang Di walked in, turned around, and looked out the glass door. Sure enough, there was no one outside.

Bai Jiangxin has already left. Although she hoped he could come home soon, the fact that he actually left still made Xiang Di feel a little disappointed.

That's true. As a classmate, he was already very responsible to walk her to her apartment building today. They're not boyfriend and girlfriend, so he has no obligation to watch her walk into the elevator.

The door closed, the elevator began to ascend, and the distance between us widened. The murmurs that had been echoing in my ears all night finally disappeared completely.

Bai Jiangxin hadn't gone far. The moonlight and the lights of the neighborhood cast shadows on him. His expression was calm, and his brows were lowered.

I could have just ignored it like before, but...

This time, I've truly encountered a nemesis that I can't ignore.

His Adam's apple bobbed very slightly, and Bai Jiangxin finally sighed in despair. He looked down at the puff pastry bag in his hand, and his breathing, though restrained, was still somewhat disordered. In the cool breeze of the early spring night, it turned into quiet, invisible water vapor that spread around him.

-

When the elevator arrived at the floor, Xiang Di quickly opened the door and went inside. Without even noticing that someone was sitting in the living room, she hurriedly ran to the balcony, opened the window, and looked outside.

She lives on a high floor, so it's not easy for her to see people downstairs, especially since he should have already left by now.

Xiang Di pouted, when suddenly a lazy yet irritating voice came from behind her.

"Are you going crazy in the middle of the night? It's freezing, close the window quickly."

Xiang Di said "oh" and closed the window.

Walking back to the living room, she glanced at the person sitting on the sofa and asked in a flat tone, "What are you doing home?"

The person sitting on the sofa is Xiang Di's older brother. He is a senior in college this year and has already been accepted into a graduate program at his own university. His supervisor, who is in charge of guiding his graduation thesis, likes him very much and has already decided to take him on as his personal disciple. So while other senior graduates are still struggling with their graduation theses, her brother's graduation thesis has already been approved by his supervisor, and he is as idle as an unemployed bum every day.

Therefore, Xiang Di, a high school student who was about to go to the battlefield in three months, found his brother's leisurely life extremely annoying. Xiang Di didn't want to see him at all and wished he would be out having fun every day.

In addition, the relationship between the brother and sister was far from harmonious and loving. They weren't exactly strangers, but it was true that they didn't like each other.

"Is this your room all to yourself? Can't I go back?"

Xiang Sheng, wearing a wrinkled hoodie, propped his chin up with his hand, speaking in a lazy tone, and reclined on the sofa with his legs crossed. On the coffee table was a table full of orange peels and melon seed shells that he had eaten. He waved at her like he was shooing away a puppy.

"Move away, don't stand in front of the TV, you're blocking my view."

Xiang Di clicked her tongue in disdain, but still stepped aside.

Receiving a disdainful look from her younger sister, Xiang Sheng returned the look with a disdainful one.

"What are you looking at? Haven't you ever seen a handsome guy before? Go back to your room and do your homework!"

"..." Xiang Di said, "Only those who are handsome without realizing it deserve to be called handsome guys, please be aware of that."

For example, handsome guys like Bai Jiangxin become greasy once they realize they're handsome and start showing off.

Xiang Sheng laughed: "Being handsome without realizing it is called being blind. Let me tell you a cruel fact: every handsome man is pretending."

Xiang Di couldn't help but retort: ​​"There are also those who don't pretend, okay?"

"Who is it?" Xiang Sheng took a bite of an orange segment and mumbled, "The guy you have a crush on?"

Xiang Di's eyes widened: "I don't have anyone I have a crush on!"

Xiang Sheng scoffed and ignored her.

“…I need to do my homework. Turn the TV volume down. Also,” Xiang Di frowned at the mess on the coffee table, “clean up after you finish eating. When Mom and Dad come back, don’t blame me again and say I made this mess. I’m not taking the blame for you.”

Xiang Sheng curled her lip in annoyance: "What's wrong with taking the blame for your own brother? Haven't I taken the blame for you enough over the years? If it weren't for me—"

"Hey!!!" Xiang Di shouted.

Xiang Sheng was so startled by her scream that it seemed to shatter the roof that he sat up abruptly from the sofa.

"What are you yelling about, are you a reincarnated groundhog?" Xiang Sheng said, clutching her chest. "You almost gave me a heart attack."

"Get out of here!" Xiang Di gritted his teeth. "You've made such a mess of the house, just wait and see what happens to you."

"Then you might be disappointed." Xiang Sheng leaned back on the sofa, raised an eyebrow, and gave her a lazy, smug smile. "My parents' workplace is being inspected by their superiors, so they're working overtime these days and won't be coming home."

Xiang Di glared at Xiang Sheng, then went straight back to her room, slamming the door shut behind her.

Damn it, why bring this up? Sooner or later, he'll film this at home and post it on his little internet celebrity account, so all his female fans can see what kind of slovenly guy this "clean-up guy" who's always doing slow-motion and costume changes online is really like in private.

With that thought in mind, Xiang Di decisively took out her phone, intending to take the picture right away. As soon as the phone recognized its owner and the screen lit up, a flood of WeChat messages came in.

The school has repeatedly stated that students are prohibited from bringing cell phones to school, but some people still insist on bringing them. Xiang Di used to bring hers too, but with the college entrance exam approaching, she was afraid she wouldn't have the self-control, so she reluctantly left her phone at home. Anyway, if she needed to look something up, she could borrow a classmate's phone.

But just now at the bakery, she saw Bai Jiangxin take out his phone directly from his pocket, and thought to herself that she was indeed the only honest person there.

WeChat is mostly group messages. Class groups are full of emojis, and family groups are full of messages. There's a group chat called "Happy Family" where the whole family is in it. Every day, the elders send good morning and good evening messages and inspirational quotes, or they send links asking for likes and votes, or they ask for help to cut prices.

In addition, Xiang Di's family has a small group chat of four members: her parents, her brother, and herself. In the afternoon, her father said in the group chat that he and her mother would be staying at their workplace to work overtime for the next two days, and then tagged Xiang Sheng, asking him to come home.

Xiang Rongqiang: [You should go home and stay for the next few days. @Mr.sandman]

Xiang Rongqiang: [Your mother and I are worried about your sister being home alone.]

Xiang Sheng: [She's eighteen years old; she can manage on her own.]

Luo Qinshu: [Are you going back or not?]

Xiang Sheng: [I'm not replying. I've made plans to go on a trip out of town with my roommate in the next couple of days.]

Luo Qinshu: [Go back to your place. I'll have your dad transfer 5,000 yuan to your travel fund.]

Xiang Sheng: 【!! Thank you, Mother Empress】

Xiang Rongqiang: [I'm sending you money, and you're thanking your mom [picking nose]?]

Xiang Sheng: [Thank you, Father!]

Xiang Rongqiang: [Okay, you can step down now. Take good care of your sister.]

Xiang Sheng: [Yes, Your Majesty.]

"If you don't give me money, I'm an old man; if you give me money, I'm an emperor. What a touching father-son relationship!" Xiang Di rolled his eyes.

It would be better to leave her at home alone. She's eighteen already, and she doesn't have separation anxiety. She can live without an adult at home. Now that there's Xiang Sheng, she has to do housework for him.

It wasn't that she was particularly diligent or loved cleaning; it was just that her brother was so careless that she couldn't stand it anymore and had to take matters into her own hands. Housework doesn't belong to men or women; it only belongs to those who can't stand it.

He collapsed onto the bed, closed the group chat, and suddenly realized there was still a red dot that hadn't been clicked off.

She sat up in bed again.

She was so angry with her brother that she completely forgot that Bai Jiangxin had added her as a friend!

She quickly added it to her contacts. Bai Jiangxin's profile picture was a very handsome Ragdoll cat, which she guessed he owned. The profile picture wasn't unfamiliar to her, since she had secretly looked at it several times in group chats before adding him as a friend.

We weren't friends back then, so even if I clicked on his profile picture, I couldn't see anything. Now I can finally observe his Moments as a friend.

Xiang Di clicked on it with great interest, but still found nothing.

If it were any other guy, Xiang Di would just think he's pretentious, acting all aloof. But it's Bai Jiangxin, and she thinks, "Hmm, that's typical of him, very much his style."

After adding each other as friends, Xiang Di didn't expect Bai Jiangxin to message her first. She sent him a cute emoji first, and then sent him a red envelope.

Xiang Di: [The money for milk and bread~]

After waiting a few minutes, Bai Jiangxin replied: "No need, it's not much money."

Xiang Di found it strange. Didn't he ask her to transfer the money to him afterward? Why was she saying she didn't need it now?

Xiang Di: [If you don't want money, then why should we add each other as friends?]

Bai Jiangxin didn't reply for several minutes, so Xiang Di assumed he was busy. She sat down at her desk, listened to music, wrote her test paper, and waited for his reply.

When the music in his headphones was suddenly interrupted by a message notification, Xiang Di immediately unlocked the screen.

Bai Jiangxin: [You can delete it now if you don't want to add it.]

Xiang Di: [No, no, I really wanted to add it!]

She sent the message but then felt it might be too forward, so she wanted to retract it. However, retracting it would only make her look more suspicious. So she added: "Actually, I've always wanted to add you. I have some questions I can't answer, and I don't know who to ask when I get home. Can I ask you on WeChat if I have any questions in the future?"

Using studying as a pretext, Xiang Di thought to herself that this would make her seem less eager.

Bai Jiangxin: [You can ask me directly at school.]

Xiang Di: [Oh, I was mainly afraid of bothering you.]

Bai Jiangxin: [If it's just a question about the purpose, then no.]

Does that mean asking other questions would bother him? Has she asked him anything else?

Xiang Di racked her brains for a while, but couldn't think of anything she had done to bother him. She felt that she was usually quite polite and considerate towards him.

Did she offend him in some way that she herself didn't even notice?

That's for sure, no wonder he said he wanted to change seats!

After hesitating for a few seconds, Xiang Di decided to find out. Although she didn't expect Bai Jiangxin to like her, she couldn't let him hate her, could she?

Xiang Di: [Can I ask you something?]

Bai Jiangxin: [Hmm.]

Xiang Di: [Why do you want to change seats with the teacher? Is it my fault?]

Xiang Di: [If I do anything that makes you uncomfortable, please tell me, and I will definitely be more careful in the future.]

Her tone was exceptionally sincere; even through the phone screen, one could almost see the genuine sincerity in her expression.

After a long silence, Bai Jiangxin replied: 【No.】

No, then why change seats? Is it simply because you don't like her as a person? So now she doesn't even have a chance to try?

Disliking someone without a reason is simply a lack of feeling. Xiang Di didn't know how to continue the conversation for a moment, and decided to end it with silence. She wasn't the kind of person who would force herself on someone even if she knew they didn't like her.

At this point, Bai Jiangxin added: "It's my own problem."

His problem? What problem could he have?

He didn't say anything, and Xiang Di couldn't possibly be so offensive as to ask.

She could only try one more time: "You don't need to shift the blame onto me. If you have any complaints about me, you must tell me so I can change."

She added, with particular politeness, "You're the top student in the grade. If being my deskmate affects your studies, I'll get a real beating from the teacher, lol."

Bai Jiangxin: [No, you're fine. It didn't affect me, and I have no problem with you.]

Xiang Di was stunned for a moment.

Bai Jiangxin... said she was very good.

Even if she knows that this sentence is nice, it's no different from giving someone a "friend card," and she doesn't have any feelings for her, she just doesn't dislike her.

Xiang Di was already very happy, because this at least showed that even if they weren't deskmates, they could still be good friends.

That's great! I'm happy! Hehe.

-

Xiang Di sent him a kitten smiling emoji, asking if he had arrived home yet.

Bai Jiangxin said she hadn't yet, and told her to be careful on the road and to send her a message to let her know she got home safely.

Bai Jiangxin agreed.

She had originally intended to playfully tease him, saying that even handsome boys should be careful when walking alone at night, but then she thought that she wasn't sure if Bai Jiangxin could accept such a joke, so she didn't say anything.

Bai Jiangxin took a taxi straight home. His housekeeper knew he was working hard studying, so she would make him a nutritious late-night snack every night for him to eat when he got home.

When I got home today, it was the same as usual, except that my aunt made an extra bowl of late-night snack.

Bai Jiangxin frowned as he watched the man sitting in the restaurant, watching a tablet and drinking porridge.

The man was still wearing a suit, his coat still on, clearly having just returned from a business dinner.

Bai Jiangxin looks somewhat like him, with handsome and upright features and a cool and aloof expression, but the man's eyes have more of the marks of time.

President Bai, who is usually very busy, was having a late-night snack at home today. Bai Jiangxin didn't say anything and just sat down opposite the man.

After a silence of more than ten seconds, the man finally spoke: "High school seniors' evening self-study sessions end this late?"

Bai Jiangxin disliked explaining things he felt were unnecessary, and even when facing his father, he would simply grunt in response.

There was nothing more to say. Bai Guang frowned, put down the porridge spoon, and looked at his son.

Bai Jiangxin seemed oblivious, not even raising his head, continuing to eat his porridge with his head down, looking refined, his drooping eyelashes obscuring his eyes that revealed his emotions.

Bai Guang mentioned the upcoming school parent-teacher meeting, which will be the last one for senior high school students. The teachers had already notified all parents in the group chat that those who could attend should definitely do so.

Although Bai Guang was busy, he wasn't so busy that he couldn't spare a few hours to attend parent-teacher meetings. His hesitation to go was purely because he was used to missing them. Anyway, his son had never made a mistake at school, so even if he went, he would just be praised by the teacher. He had heard too much flattery in his work and social interactions and didn't want to deal with the teacher anymore.

In addition, the father and son were not close at all.

Bai Jiangxin wasn't like this from childhood to adulthood. When he was young, he still acted like a child and was quite affectionate towards his parents. However, ever since he and his ex-wife filed for divorce, his son's attitude towards him and his ex-wife has instantly turned cold.

Later, the court ruled that he and his ex-wife should be divorced and their property should be divided. At that time, Bai Jiangxin was still very young, so the judge was inclined to award custody of the child to the mother's side, but Bai Jiangxin's mother refused.

Bai Guang asked his son if he wanted to live with him, and Bai Jiangxin said he wanted to live with his grandfather.

My grandfather retired many years ago. He prefers peace and quiet and doesn't like to interact with people. He and his wife live in a nearby second-tier city. Bai Jiangxin lived with my grandfather until he graduated from elementary school. Later, in order to go to school and get better educational resources, he returned to his father's side when he went to middle school.

After bringing his son back, the father specifically instructed Bai Guang to be careful what he said in front of Xin'er and not to tell him about his work and relationship problems.

Bai Guang said he had never complained to his son, and his father said that he couldn't even think about it in his heart!

Bai Guang felt quite helpless. He wasn't a carefree child anymore; he was an adult who had to face all sorts of pressures from work, family, and society. How could he not have any complaints at all?

If he can't even have a slight complaint in front of his son, he'd rather avoid him.

He had no demands on his son, and his son had no demands on him either. One was responsible for providing material support, and the other was responsible for studying hard. After his son grew up and moved out of the house, he, as the father, had fulfilled his duty of supporting his son. The father and son remained strangers under the same roof for many years.

Bai Guang subconsciously didn't want to go to the last parent-teacher conference for his senior year, but the teacher mentioned it several times in the group chat, and he felt that it was the last time, so it might not be good not to go.

This time, Bai Guang brought it up himself, but Bai Jiangxin's attitude remained the same: "If you don't have time to go, your secretary or driver can go in your place."

After saying that, he pointed to the cleaning lady who was cleaning nearby and said, "If your secretary and driver are also unavailable, you can let the cleaning lady do it."

Upon hearing this, the aunt waved her hand hastily without even taking off her gloves: "This is the last parent-teacher conference for senior high school students. How can I go in person for you? It would be better if you went in person, Mr. Bai."

Upon hearing this, Bai Guang looked at Bai Jiangxin.

Bai Jiangxin said calmly, "Anyone can go."

Then he put down his spoon and said he had finished eating. Bai Guang glanced at his bowl and frowned: "You haven't eaten much. Don't you have an appetite?"

"I bought some desserts on the way back, I'll eat those."

Bai Jiangxin got up and passed by Bai Guang. Bai Guang noticed that there was a small leaf stuck to the back of Bai Jiangxin's school uniform collar, so he subconsciously wanted to help him remove the leaf.

But no sooner had his fingertips touched his hand than his son, as if by reflex, turned around and pushed his hand away.

If the awkward conversation between father and son just now wasn't a big deal, then this action made Bai Guang feel that his son had really made him lose face.

Bai Guang said in a deep voice, "There are fallen leaves on the collar of your school uniform."

Bai Jiangxin was slightly taken aback, reached out to grab it, and actually caught a leaf.

He opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, Bai Guang spoke first: "Bai Jiangxin, I am your father, not your enemy."

"If you don't want to see me so much, then after you go to university, you can live wherever you want. I won't care anymore."

He thought this would intimidate his son, but Bai Jiangxin suddenly smiled, raising his cold eyebrows and looking at his father with sharp and mocking eyes.

"Okay," he said casually. "Just don't forget to send me living expenses every month."

Children know best how to make their parents angry. This kind of indifferent tone, which is unyielding to both soft and hard approaches and mixed with a hint of frivolity, is most likely to provoke adults' anger.

Although Bai Jiangxin wasn't very enthusiastic at school and seemed aloof and unapproachable, he was at least distant but polite and courteous to his classmates and teachers, and would never have acted like this.

Bai Guang had completely lost interest in staying at home. He straightened his suit and turned to leave.

As the host was about to leave, the aunt hurriedly chased after them and asked, "Aren't you sleeping at home tonight?"

"I'm not going to sleep anymore," Bai Guang said, "Please change the sheets for me."

The door was pushed open with a bang, not closed. It was still cold, and the heating system was still on, so a cold wind whistled into the empty living room.

The aunt hurriedly went to close the door. When she returned, Bai Jiangxin was still standing by the dining table, his eyes downcast, his pale face expressionless.

The aunt walked over and gently patted his arm.

"Don't hold it against your dad, get some rest."

[Tsk tsk, what a tragedy! Father and son treat each other like enemies. If I had a dad that rich, living in such a nice house, I'd be willing to kneel and serve him every day.]

[Rich kids are always so troublesome. They're never satisfied with just having money, they always act like the whole world owes them something. If that were my kid, I would have slapped him long ago and refused to give him a single penny, then see if he dared to give me that attitude again.]

Seeing the worried look on his aunt's face, Bai Jiangxin didn't want to look anymore and looked away.

There's nothing to be angry about. Different living environments and different life experiences. My aunt's job is not easy, and she has to watch his mood every day. I think he's just whining, which is normal.

Just like when his parents divorced, his mother hugged him and said that she had her reasons for not being able to live with him. In reality, she was just planning to live abroad with her new boyfriend, and her new boyfriend would not be happy if she took him along as a burden.

There's nothing wrong with a mother wanting to pursue her new life, and he has nothing to condemn about her.

There are many other people whom Bai Jiangxin doesn't resent, but he also doesn't want to get close to.

That's settled then.

The aunt stayed to finish cleaning up the late-night snack that the father and son hadn't finished. Bai Jiangxin said to the aunt, "Thank you for your hard work," and then picked up his schoolbag and went upstairs to his room.

Sitting down at the desk, Bai Jiangxin took out the cream puffs he had bought downstairs from Xiang Di's house. She had strongly recommended them, saying they were the best cream puffs she had ever eaten. Even he, who didn't like cream, was somewhat persuaded by her.

He took one in his hand, took a bite, and frowned.

The outer crust had softened, and the cream inside had melted. Apart from a sticky, sweet taste, it had no other flavor.

He still didn't like cream puffs. He put down the cream puff and picked up the milk, which was still a bit too sweet for him.

My phone vibrated in my pocket. I took it out and saw that it was a message from Xiang Di.

The profile picture is of a chubby orange cat, and the WeChat name is "Didi Dadi Da". Even the nickname is noisy. The signature is a string of meaningless numbers followed by three even more meaningless emojis.

As a science student, Bai Jiangxin is naturally sensitive to seemingly irregular numbers and subconsciously tries to figure out if there are any patterns behind them.

Xiang Di first sent a peeking emoji, then asked him: "Aren't you home yet?"

Bai Jiangxin replied: 【Arrived.】

Xiang Di: [That's good.]

Xiang Di: [By the way, did you eat that cream puff? I forgot to tell you, the crust gets soggy and doesn't taste good when it's cold, so you should eat it as soon as possible.]

Bai Jiangxin was speechless for a few seconds before replying: "You're too late."

Xiang Di: [It's my fault...]

But she quickly added, "Then you don't need this one, I'll get you another one."

Bai Jiangxin wanted to say no, but as if she had already anticipated his refusal, she added, "Give me a chance to make it up to you. I really want you to know how delicious this cream puff is."

He didn't feel forced upon him; he just felt like she wanted to give him everything she thought was good. But now they were too far apart, and Bai Jiangxin couldn't hear her thoughts. He pursed his lips, feeling a sense of emptiness, but he didn't refuse her. He replied with an "okay."

Xiang Di: [Okay, okay.]

Xiang Di: [Then get some rest, goodnight~]

Seeing her say goodnight so quickly, Bai Jiangxin suddenly realized that she was actually quite capable of both taking things in stride and letting go of him.

Didn't you like him to death? Don't you want to chat a little longer? If you say you don't want to chat anymore, then stop bothering him immediately.

He swiped his finger across the phone screen a few times, then suddenly asked, "I have a question for you."

Xiang Di: [Yes, you go ahead.]

Bai Jiangxin: [What does your signature mean?]

Xiang Di: [Huh?]

Bai Jiangxin guessed to himself: [A numerical code?]

Xiang Di: [It's not that sophisticated. I just typed whatever came to mind when I registered for WeChat. It's nothing special, haha.]

Since she didn't say anything, Bai Jiangxin naturally didn't ask.

There was nothing left to talk about, so Bai Jiangxin clicked on her profile picture again.

I continued staring at the string of numbers and those three expressions.

The number is 22454264946. The three emoticons are a tree, a painting with flowing river and lush mountains, and a star.

He didn't know, since he wasn't in intelligence, but he instinctively felt that this shouldn't be a random attack.