Chapter 57 seems to be about liking Song Zhixu. ...

Tang Ran came out of the bathroom.

A towel was draped around her neck, her hair was wet and hanging down, and she had a face mask on.

It was prepared in advance by Song Zhixu.

With the face mask on, Tang Ran felt much more relaxed.

Song Zhixu was looking down at his phone, his brows slightly furrowed, and he was wearing glasses.

Over time, Tang Ran learned that Song Zhixu was not nearsighted; she only wore glasses when she needed to look at a screen for extended periods.

"Are you done washing?"

Hearing the sound, Song Zhixu looked up, put down his phone, and walked towards her.

The screen wasn't locked; it wasn't an office email, but the Big Eyes app.

China's largest social media platform by traffic.

Song Zhixu is not someone who enjoys surfing the internet.

Tang Ran then realized that she had been so focused on crying that she had forgotten something important.

She asked, "Sun Xiao has been exposed?"

Tang Ran had little experience in guiding public opinion. When she first discussed the plan with Song Zhixu, they agreed that it would be handled by her.

Tang Ran took out her phone from her pocket.

"No problem."

Song Zhixu pulled the towel from her neck and wiped the water droplets from the ends of her hair.

When the incident was first exposed, netizens were still in a state of gossip, trying to understand the identity of the person in question, and there were no overly extreme comments.

Tang Ran glanced at it casually, then put it away.

She had nothing to worry about as Song Zhixu would handle the rest.

With no water droplets visible in her hair, Song Zhixu went to get a hairdryer.

"I can blow it myself."

Tang Ran took the hair dryer from her hand.

She's not a child; she doesn't need Song Zhixu to take care of her in every way.

I also bought her a cartoon towel.

Why don't you even buy Pikachu underwear?!

She's twenty-two, not twelve.

Tang Ran has naturally thick hair, and it has been half an hour since her long hair was dried.

My emotions went through a rollercoaster ride throughout the night, and after relaxing, I felt like all my energy had been drained away.

I just want to get a good night's sleep.

Tang Ran yawned, threw off the covers, and got into bed.

Song Zhixu was leaning against the headboard, working on her laptop. When she saw her coming over, she closed the laptop and handed her the water glass beside her.

"Drink some water before you sleep."

After shedding so many tears, you need to replenish your electrolytes.

Tang Ran looked at the cup in her hand, her brows furrowing.

"What's wrong?" Song Zhixu asked, puzzled.

I glanced down at the cup.

When Song's shopping mall opened a cartoon brand pavilion, she saw it during her inspection and asked her assistant, Jiang, to buy a set of cartoon animal daily necessities that Tang Ran liked.

Tang Ran hesitated, as if she wanted to say something but then stopped.

"You don't like it?" Song Zhixu asked. "Did we buy the wrong thing?"

Could it be that the pet we bought was not the right one?

She remembered that Assistant Jiang told her there were over a thousand kinds of these little things.

"like."

Unable to think of a way to explain, Tang Ran took the cup and took a big gulp through the straw.

She was indeed thirsty.

The water was a little salty and a little sweet, and lemon was added.

Like the homemade electrolyte water recommended in a certain book.

"So what's so awkward about it?"

Song Zhixu noticed it, but couldn't figure out why she was acting so strangely again.

Tang Ran hesitated for a moment, put down the cup in her hand, and slid her body into the quilt.

"Don't buy cartoon stuff anymore, it doesn't suit your style."

They found a perfectly legitimate reason.

But it's also quite clumsy.

Song Zhixu raised an eyebrow, a smile appearing in his eyes.

"Okay." She nodded. "Then I'll deliver it directly to your home from now on."

"No." Tang Ran sat up again. "What I mean is, don't buy these anymore."

Most of the things in the house were bought before she came back.

Even though she still has the body of a 22-year-old, she is no longer the 22-year-old Tang Ran.

She didn't want Song Zhixu to treat her like a child.

"Um?"

"Oh well, just don't buy it."

Tang Ran held her hand, her tone tinged with a coquettishness.

"So what kind of person do you like now?" Song Zhixu asked again.

"Just like yours is fine."

"OK."

Tang Ran paused for a moment, then realized that what she had said might have been a bit ambiguous.

What does it mean to like someone like Song Zhixu?

It sounds like she's saying she likes Song Zhixu.

Looking at Song Zhixu again, his smiling eyes were sly.

"You did this on purpose?" Tang Ran glared at her.

"I'm innocent," Song Zhixu said innocently. "I couldn't possibly guess what you were going to say."

Tang Ran looked her over suspiciously.

I didn't see any flaws.

When it rains, it pours.

After leaving his grandfather's study, Song Wuqi received a call from the project team: traces of an ancient city ruin had been discovered in the north of Rongcheng Ancient Town.

The cultural relics department of Rongcheng has intervened to protect it. Once it is confirmed to be a historical site, the development project of the ancient town will no longer be able to proceed.

Song Wuqi was stunned for a long time, then remembered what Ye Xiaoyu had told her: that she really had something urgent to do at the birthday party.

She opened her phone and saw several missed calls from Ye Xiaoyu. The earliest call was made before she went to Xinghe Building, and the most recent one was made half an hour ago.

When Ye Xiaoyu opened Green Bubble again, there were unread messages in her chat box.

The message was sent more than an hour ago, probably after Ye Xiaoyu left Xinghe Building.

Assistant Ye: [Please don't be angry with me, okay? I really need to talk to you about something.]

Assistant Ye: [There's been a problem with the project in Rongcheng; ancient city ruins have been discovered in the north of the city.]

Ye Xiaoyu sent two pictures of the scene, and then sent a voice message more than half an hour later.

Assistant Ye: [Life imprisonment, I'm so scared! Sun Xiao posted our story online, what should we do? Life imprisonment, waaaaah...]

Ye Xiaoyu's voice sounded extremely panicked.

Song Wuqi was already in a state of agitation and frustration, and hearing Ye Xiaoyu's crying only made him more irritable.

She had no intention of comforting Ye Xiaoyu, but she couldn't just ignore her either.

The news was spreading like wildfire online, and she had to keep Ye Xiaoyu in check so she wouldn't go around spreading rumors.

Song Wuqi suppressed his impatience and replied to Ye Xiaoyu's message, telling her not to be afraid, that he would ask for leave for her at the company, and that she should stay at home for a while and not go out. He would find a way to handle the rest.

After sending the text message, Song Wuqi also transferred 100,000 yuan to her as a consolation prize.

After receiving Song Wuqi's message and money, Ye Xiaoyu felt a little relieved.

The fact that Song Wuqi is still willing to comfort her shows that he still cares about her and hasn't severed ties with her just because the relationship was exposed.

She still has a chance.

The sky was just beginning to lighten.

Tang Ran was awakened by a knocking sound on the door.

It was the sound of knocking on her own door.

Tang Ran threw off the covers and got out of bed.

When I got to the living room, the sound was clearer.

"Tang Ran, open the door. I know you're inside."

"Tang Ran!"

It's Song Wuqi!

Tang Ran was furious. She turned around to look for her baseball bat, only to remember that she had slept at Song Zhixu's house last night.

She stormed to the door, but before she could even dial the intercom, she heard Song Wuqi arguing with the security guard outside.

It must be because Song Wuqi made too much of a commotion that the downstairs residents have already filed a complaint.

"Life imprisonment?" Song Zhixu frowned and walked to the door.

"Ignore her, I don't know what's wrong with her." Tang Ran pulled her back, "I'll call the housekeeper and block her in a bit."

After the renovation was completed, Tang Ran went to the property management office to register Song Wuqi's information and also registered it.

The events of her past life were too far removed from her past life; she had forgotten about them.

As I lay back down in bed, before I could even fall back asleep, Lin Jixin called again.

Tang Ran told Tang Wanru about her plan in advance, but not to her.

Lin Chi-hsin went to bed early last night and only saw the news online when she woke up this morning.

The first reason for calling Tang Ran was to ask if she knew about what was happening online.

Secondly, she told her that Grandpa Song and Jiang Mei would be visiting the Tang family today. Lin Jixin guessed that they were most likely there to annul the engagement, and she wanted to ask Tang Ran's thoughts in advance.

Tang Ran didn't answer directly, but told her that she would go back in a little while.

When Lin Jixin mentioned Song Wuqi on the phone, her tone was particularly regretful.

Tang Ran felt very uncomfortable listening to this, and she still looked somewhat displeased after hanging up the phone.

Song Zhixu sat up and put his arm around her shoulder.

Tang Ran forced a smile. "I'm fine."

Song Zhixu took her hand. "I'll take you home in a bit."

"No need," Tang Ran shook her head. "The driver is coming to pick me up."

We must be more cautious at critical moments.

If people see the two of them together now, wouldn't all the big fuss she's made have been for nothing?

Tang Ran cried a lot last night, and her eyes were still a little swollen when she woke up this morning.

Song Zhixu boiled two eggs to apply to her skin.

Tang Ran took the egg from her hand. "No need to apply it. This is the effect we want."

It's impossible not to be upset when your girlfriend cheats on you.

After saying that, he cracked the egg on the table, quickly peeled it, put it on Song Zhixu's plate, and then went to get another one.

Song Zhixu took a bite of the egg and looked at Tang Ran, who had already peeled the other one and was about to eat it.

Tang Ran stopped what she was doing and asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing." Song Zhixu lowered her eyes and took a sip of milk.

I just think Tang Ran's hands are quite nimble.

Noticing the unnaturalness in her expression, Tang Ran looked down at the egg in her hand, then at Song Zhixu's egg.

I couldn't figure it out.

After finishing her meal, Tang Ran prepared to change her clothes.

"Ranran," Song Zhixu called out to her.

Tang Ran turned around.

Song Zhixu raised his hand and extended it in front of Tang Ran, his five fingers slowly spreading open.

A glittering beam of light slipped from Song Zhixu's palm.

Tang Ran was surprised for a moment, her gaze completely drawn to the sparkling little thing in front of her.

She reached out to take it without realizing it.

"The panda I promised you." Song Zhixu smiled and placed the item in her hand.

"So cute!"

Tang Ran happily picked it up and examined it carefully.

This is a phone charm featuring a black and white diamond-encrusted panda sitting with a round belly, looking adorable and clumsy, raising one paw to grab the green bamboo above its head.

Tang Ran glanced at it twice, then immediately took out her phone and replaced the old phone charm.

I must say, Song Zhixu has a good eye for shopping; this chain matches her sparkly phone case perfectly.

"Is it pretty or not?"

Tang Ran proudly waved her phone in front of Song Zhixu, completely forgetting who it was yesterday who righteously declared not to buy her cartoon stuff anymore.

"It looks good." Song Zhixu nodded in agreement.

Tang Ran picked up the panda and looked at it again, then suddenly remembered something.

His gaze lingered on Song Zhixu for a moment. "Wait for me!"

Before the words had even faded from the entrance hall of 1901, the person had already dashed back next door.

Song Zhixu leaned against the cabinet in the entryway, looking at the door across the hall with a slight smile.

Less than two minutes later, that cheerful figure reappeared in Song Zhixu's sight.

With her hands behind her back, Tang Ran walked lightly to Song Zhixu.

She smiled happily and said, "Close your eyes."

Song Zhixu obediently closed his eyes, and Tang Ran took his hands out from behind his back.

A sweet fragrance drew near, and a warm breath brushed against my neck.

Song Zhixu's breath hitched, and the fingers hanging by his side curled slightly.

The clothes on her chest were gently pulled up, and when they fell back down, they had an extra weight to them.

"All done!" Tang Ran's joyful voice rang out.

Song Zhixu opened her eyes, her gaze sweeping over the smiling face opposite her before falling on her own chest.

She wore a star brooch inlaid with sapphires and white diamonds.

"Since there's no little leopard to give you back, you'll have to make do with this one."

Tang Ran spoke casually, as if it were a return gift she casually received after accepting Song Zhixu's panda phone charm.

But in fact, when the brand's SA sent her the catalog a few days ago, she immediately fell in love with this brooch and felt that it would suit Song Ji-hee very well.

With Song Zhixu's panda pendant as an example, Tang Ran didn't need to rack her brains to find an excuse to give the item away.

Seeing her nonchalant expression, Song Zhixu wisely refrained from pointing it out.

She arched her eyebrows and gazed intently at Tang Ran, "Thank you, Ranran, I like it very much."

Those captivating, gentle eyes are enough to enchant anyone on ordinary days, let alone now, when they hold such deep, tender affection.

Tang Ran's ears turned red again, much to her dismay.

She coughed lightly and looked away, making an excuse as she walked out, "Oh dear, it's getting late, I need to go back and change!"

Slightly swollen eyes detracted from her beauty, so Tang Ran changed her clothes and put on a pair of sunglasses.

She lingered as she left her house, only to find Song Zhixu already waiting for her leisurely at the elevator entrance.

The two went downstairs together. Tang Ran went to the lobby, while Song Zhixu went to B2.

Tang Ran was texting the driver as she walked out when she was stopped by someone.

"Dye".

After being escorted out by security guards, Song Wuqi waited outside.

In the sweltering heat, once the sun comes out, it feels like being roasted alive; it's unbearably hot.

To cover the handprint on his face, Song Wuqi deliberately wore a mask.

She had been waiting outside for over an hour, and was covered in sweat. Coupled with the fact that she hadn't slept all night, she looked haggard and disheveled.

When Song Wuqi saw Tang Ran come out, his eyes lit up.

Then she remembered that Tang Ran was clearly at home, yet she let the security guard take her away, and she couldn't help but clench her back teeth hard.

Having been raised in luxury and privilege, Song Wuqi had never experienced such treatment elsewhere.

She was filled with rage, but dared not utter a word of it.

Having botched two projects in a row, Song Wuqi had already guessed that her grandfather wouldn't give her a third chance anytime soon.

So she could only hold on tightly to Tang Ran.

As long as she can reconcile with Tang Ran, her grandfather will give her another chance for Tang Ran's sake.

Yesterday, she tried to persuade her grandfather not to go to the Tang family to discuss annulment of the engagement, but he did not agree.

She had no other choice.

He had no choice but to come and intercept Tang Ran early in the morning.

When the driver saw Tang Ran come out, he started the car and drove to the lobby entrance.

Tang Ran ignored Song Wuqi and walked straight to the car, bypassing her.

"Ranran, Ranran, please forgive me this time, okay?"

Song Wuqi tried to pull Tang Ran away, but Tang Ran warily dodged him.

Tang Ran glared at Song Wuqi, quickened her pace, opened the car door, and got in.

"Tang Ran, if you won't forgive me, don't you even think about the Tang family?"

Song Wuqi grabbed the car handle, preventing her from closing the door.

Tang Ran stopped closing the door, looked up at her coldly, and asked, "Are you threatening me?"

She was sitting in the car, and from Song Wuqi's perspective, he could see her red and swollen eyes behind her sunglasses.

It's obvious without even guessing that Tang Ran must have cried last night.

Song Wuqi suddenly felt more confident.

It seems that Tang Ran is only pretending to be indifferent on the surface, but in reality, he still can't let go of her, right?

She held onto the car door and softened her voice, "Ranran, I love you."

"If you love me, how can you sleep with other people?" Tang Ran was speechless.

She truly underestimated Song Wuqi's shamelessness.

"Song Wuqi, your brain has deteriorated from cheating so much that you don't even know how to write the word 'shameless' anymore?"

Song Wuqi was stunned by the scolding.

She knew Tang Ran had a sharp tongue, but she never imagined it would one day affect her.

"Love me?" Tang Ran scoffed coldly. "You're no longer worthy!"

After saying that, she slammed the car door shut.

Song Wuqi's hand was still clinging to the door. He tried to pull it back after realizing what was happening, but it still got caught in the door.

"Tang Ran!"

Enraged, Song Wuqi roared and kicked the car door.

The car door sank into a dent, giving the driver a big fright.

She had worked as a driver for the Tang family for many years and was not unfamiliar with Song Wuqi.

In my memory, she was always a person with a gentle smile on her face and a very gentle manner.

I never imagined that when he went berserk, he was no different from a street thug.

"Miss." The driver turned to look at Tang Ran.

Bang bang bang!

Unable to open the car door, Song Wuqi started banging on the car window.

Tang Ran rolled down the car window. "Song Wuqi, if you get sick, go see Sun Xiao's attending physician. I can't cure rabies."

It seems she really doesn't understand Song Wuqi at all.

They had been married before, yet they didn't even realize that Song Wuqi had violent tendencies.

But then I thought about it again, and it's not surprising that she didn't know.

In her previous life, the Song family headquarters moved to Beijing, and she and Song Wuqi were separated for many years after their marriage.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have been unaware that Song Wuqi and Ye Xiaoyu had even created a human being.

Suppressing the urge to attack, Song Wuqi took a deep breath and said in a stiff tone, "Let's talk."

"There's nothing to talk about." Tang Ran glanced at her coldly. "Let go."

Song Wuqi did not move.

Tang Ran stopped talking nonsense, took out pepper spray from her bag, and sprayed it directly into Song Wuqi's hand.

"ah!"

It felt like a bucket of boiling oil had been poured over my hand.

Song Wuqi shook his hands vigorously, but it had no effect.

Enraged, she shouted, "Tang Ran! Don't expect the Song family to lend you a single penny from now on!"

Tang Ran stopped closing the window, about to retort, when her gaze paused and she looked in surprise at Song Wuqi's back.

Seeing her reaction, Song Wuqi subconsciously turned around.

He stood there, stunned.

What's her aunt doing here?

Song Zhixu walked to Song Wuqi's side, gently lifted her eyelids to look at her, and asked, "Since when did it become your place to make decisions for the Song family?"

"Auntie." Song Wuqi shrank back, not daring to answer her question.

"Does Dad know you're here?" Song Zhixu asked again.

Song Wuqi panicked even more.

The fact that my aunt asked this question means she must know about what's going on online.

Judging from her attitude, she was clearly biased towards Tang Ran.

Grandpa is one thing, but why does my aunt also favor the Tang family?

Can't she see that Lin Jixin just wants to curry favor with the Song family and leech off them?

Song Wuqi couldn't understand it, and dared not ask for clarification.

She lowered her head. "I...I'm here to apologize to Ranran."

"Using threats to apologize?" Song Zhixu's face was cold.

"I...I..." Song Wuqi was speechless.

"Bullying others with your power, threatening and intimidating." Song Zhixu's tone was stern, displaying the authority of an elder. "Is this how you usually behave outside?"

Sweat streamed down Song Wuqi's face as he hurriedly explained, "I...I didn't, I really had no other choice..."

"You don't need to explain to me."

Song Zhixu interrupted her, glancing at the car parked behind the Tang family's house, "Since you're here to apologize, then hurry up and apologize. I have a meeting at nine o'clock."

Song Wuqi suddenly realized that his aunt hadn't come to help Tang Ran.

She was scolded by her aunt because she blocked Tang Ran's way.

"dye……"

Song Wuqi was interrupted by Tang Ran after only uttering one word.

"An apology is unnecessary; I will not accept it."

Tang Ran's tone was indifferent.

Her expression changed instantly when she turned to Song Zhixu, and she gave her a sweet smile, "I'll leave right away, so as not to delay Sister Song from work!"

Upon hearing Tang Ran's address to Song Zhixu, Song Wuqi's expression stiffened.

In the past, when they were together, Tang Ran would deliberately follow her seniority when mentioning the Song family in order to accommodate her.

This made Song Wuqi forget that Tang Ran was actually of the same generation as her aunt.

Tang Ran deliberately called her aunt "Sister Song" at this moment, wasn't that intentional?

After the Tang family's car drove away, Song Zhixu glanced at Song Wuqi with a detached expression, giving her a "you'd better watch yourself" look, then turned around, got back into her car, and drove off.

Song Wuqi clenched his fist, took out his phone, dialed a number, and said in a cold tone, "I agree to what you asked for."

When Tang Ran returned home, Lin Jixin was sitting on the sofa, frowning as she looked at her phone.

Upon seeing her daughter return, she immediately put down her phone and angrily complained to Tang Ran.

"These people online have no morals whatsoever! How can they post other people's private photos everywhere like that!"

After a night of speculation, in addition to uncovering the identities of Song Wuqi and Ye Xiaoyu, netizens also dug up the timeline of what appears to be their secret relationship.

It started when a netizen compiled news photos of the two participating in an event together and began to meticulously analyze their expressions and body language frame by frame as a basis for analysis.

The original poster initially deduced that the two had an affair in May.

It was originally just a regular trending topic post, and not many people participated.

Until a reply came in, saying that the original poster was just making conjectures based on a few photos, spreading rumors without any cost, and clearly just trying to attract traffic and build an account by using the topic.

The original poster denied creating an account, claiming to be a micro-expression analyst and even made a bet with the people who replied below.

If the person replying can prove that the two people's time was earlier than the time he said, he will eat dog poop live on stream.

The person who replied was also quite tough, offering a reward of 100,000 yuan to the first person to provide evidence of the two being together before May.

Someone claiming to be a staff member of Song's business partners said that in April, Song Wuqi brought Ye Xiaoyu to discuss business with them, and after getting drunk, they booked a room upstairs.

If only I had taken a picture back then, I could have easily gotten 100,000 yuan.

There was also an anonymous employee of the Song family who saw Ye Xiaoyu blushing as she came out of Manager Song's office in February.

Besides those who revealed information from before May, employees of Daning Supermarket also came forward to confirm the original poster's analysis. They said that when the two companies were discussing business in May, they felt that the relationship between the two was unusual.

A former employee of Yangcheng Hotel said he often saw Ye Xiaoyu staying overnight in Song Wuqi's room.

Because of this bet, the post attracted a large number of netizens who were waiting to see it, with over 100,000 people watching overnight.

The betting post and the news that broke were both pinned to the top of the trending searches.