Chapter 25 Confession

Recalling what happened last night, Ling Wei buried herself in the covers again.

The system's constant nagging still echoed in my ears: "I tried to stop you yesterday, but you insisted on saying 'the MVP has to be awarded a victory at the end of the year,' and I couldn't stop you at all..."

He spilled everything, then blocked everyone and stood there laughing hysterically with his hands on his hips, shouting "Awesome!"

Ling Wei: "..."

She wriggled out from under the covers, revealing half her face, her eyes vacant.

She admitted that it was quite enjoyable.

Now I understand why villains always die from talking too much. The sense of accomplishment from mocking someone for completely deceiving them and seeing them get angry and helpless is truly amazing.

System: "What do we do now?!"

Ling Wei completely gave up struggling, collapsing into a limp, cat-like state, and weakly replied in her mind: "I don't know, I'm too lazy to think about it."

She rolled over, lying flat again in an almost peaceful posture, even tugging at the corner of the blanket, her tone carrying a nonchalant, "what's the use" attitude:

"Don't panic. A good mindset determines a woman's life."

system:"……"

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, Ling Wei, carrying a garbage bag from home, shuffled open the apartment building door in her plush slippers.

A chilling wind swept over me, and outside, a light snow had begun to fall, covering the ground with a thin layer.

She had only taken two steps when she caught a glimpse of a tall figure leaning against the wall in the stairwell. He was wearing a black down jacket, and the large hood covered most of his face. There was some snow on his shoulders, as if he had been waiting for a while.

Ling Wei's heart skipped a beat, and almost reflexively, she turned around and was about to rush into the building.

The man moved even faster, taking a long stride to grab the hood of her down jacket, and deftly flipping up his own hood with his other hand.

With his spiky, golden hair and still-arrogant highlights, who else could it be but Lu Zhao?

His complexion was not good, whether from the cold or anger, it was hard to tell; his lips were pressed tightly together, and his amber eyes were fixed on her.

Ling Wei: "..." There's no way to escape now.

She took a deep breath, turned around, and adopted a nonchalant attitude: "What?"

Lu Zhao's voice sounded like it was being squeezed out from between his teeth: "He won't answer my calls, he won't reply to my texts, and he even blocked me on WeChat..."

He forced a smile, "I have no choice but to come to your door in person to wish you a Happy New Year."

Ling Wei shrank back, her eyes darting around: "...Oh."

"You're playing me." The aggrieved voice carried an accusatory tone.

"...Is this all you came here to say?" Ling Wei tried to change the subject.

"No one can fool me!" Lu Zhao's voice suddenly rose, becoming exceptionally clear in the silent snow.

Ling Wei remained silent, silently thinking to herself: So she's already played along, what can she do now?

Seeing her unyielding attitude, Lu Zhao's chest heaved violently. Suppressing his anger, he asked in a hoarse voice, "You really have nothing to say to me?"

Ling Wei seemed to only just realize what was happening, and slowly uttered an "Ah": "Yes..."

Lu Zhao stared intently at her, his jawline relaxing slightly: "Go on."

Ling Wei finally had time to tidy herself up.

She rarely gets a day off and stays in bed late. Underneath her down jacket, she wears a coral fleece pajama with a cartoon cat print. Her hair is casually pulled up, with a few stray hairs sticking up in a messy way. She wears a pair of black-rimmed glasses that cover half of her face. Her unmade-up face appears exceptionally fair and clear in the snowy light, giving her an unguarded softness.

She cleared her throat, even straightening the ill-fitting neckline of her pajamas with great seriousness, then looked up at him with utter righteous indignation: "I forgive you."

Lu Zhao: "???"

He wondered if he was hallucinating, or if the heavy snow had frozen his brain: "You...forgive...me?"

“Hmm,” Ling Wei nodded, her tone as natural as if she were discussing how nice the snow was today, “Regarding your rude remarks to me when we met, and your slander that I was a substitute, after these past six months of… well, ‘making amends,’ I hereby unilaterally declare that I forgive you.”

Lu Zhao was absolutely furious: "Ling Wei!!!"

Ling Wei immediately covered her ears, her brows furrowing in disgust: "Besides shouting my name, can you say anything else? It's so noisy."

Lu Zhao took several deep breaths before he could barely suppress the urge to strangle her.

He wanted to see what other shocking things she could say.

Ling Wei looked at him and continued, "However..."

Lu Zhao felt a sudden stirring in his heart and stared intently at her.

Now it's her turn to apologize, isn't it? Hmph! If her attitude is sincere enough, he... he might consider forgiving her.

Ling Wei's tone was calm and even: "Let's end things here between us."

Lu Zhao froze, as if he hadn't understood: "Wh...what?"

"It means we don't need to contact each other anymore," Ling Wei added. "The 'servant' game is over, and we're even."

Lu Zhao seemed to digest the words for a while before finally letting out a sneer: "You forgive me? And now you want to break off all ties with me?"

He took a sudden step closer, almost colliding with her. His amber eyes burned with fire, but his voice was low and deep, like the whimper of a trapped beast: "Ling Wei, what do you take me for? A dog that I can summon and dismiss at will?! You weren't satisfied with playing me once, you had to do it again?!"

His pride was being crushed, and his pride wouldn't allow him to continue acting like a jerk after being repeatedly toyed with like this.

After saying that, he seemed unable to bear it any longer. He turned around abruptly and strode away, the snow crunching under his feet. His back view exuded a resolute anger and sadness.

Ling Wei watched his figure disappear around the corner of the residential area, then turned around expressionlessly, picked up the trash bag she had just thrown away, and walked towards the trash can not far away.

After throwing away the trash, she clapped her hands and turned around—

"Whoa!" Ling Wei jumped back in fright.

Lu Zhao returned without her noticing, standing straight behind her like a silent snowman, his eyes red as he glared at her.

"Why?" he asked hoarsely, stubbornly demanding an answer. "What did I do to offend you? Just because of what happened when we first met?"

Ling Wei sighed, looking somewhat tired: "No, that matter is in the past for me."

"Why is that?!"

Ling Wei was too lazy to keep going back and forth with him. She raised her head, her gaze behind her black-rimmed glasses clear and sharp, directly tearing away the veil of pretense: "Lu Zhao, I don't believe you were really oblivious. The first time you met me, you harbored such hostility towards me. Was it really just a moment of impulsiveness on your part, with no one 'stirring things up' around you?"

Lu Zhao's pupils contracted slightly, and he subconsciously retorted, "Is it because of Sister Yuqing? Sister Yuqing didn't..."

"I'm not sure if she did or not, and I have no evidence."

Ling Wei interrupted him bluntly, "All I know is that if that hostility stems entirely from yourself, it shows that you're not a very smart person..."

She chose a slightly more polite word, "That's not quite right. Although I've forgiven your behavior back then, I don't like, and have no obligation to, continue to maintain contact with someone who isn't quite right in the head."

Furthermore, I've spent some time with you over the past six months, and in my opinion, I don't believe your sister Yuqing is entirely innocent.