Zhong Ruyi stared intently into her eyes, her gaze sharp, as if trying to see through them.

Mingyao's heart skipped a beat, but she smiled and said, "I'm sure."

Her tone wasn't entirely certain, but she had complete faith in Ni An.

Zhong Ruyi sighed, gripped Mingyao's hand tightly, and said helplessly, "Xiao Su, you're just too naive."

"Madam Zhong, why do you say that?"

Zhong Ruyi didn't answer the question immediately, but stared at her and asked in return, "You trust her that much?"

"She is my friend."

Seeing Mingyao's resolute expression, Zhong Ruyi swallowed back the words she wanted to say.

"I'm not entirely sure about this either."

"But you can investigate it."

Mingyao opened her mouth, and after a long while, she managed to squeeze out a sentence: "Does Madam Zhong suspect that Ni An and Lin Bin are still in contact?"

Zhong Ruyi nodded: "Lin Bin told me with certainty that he had broken off his relationship with Ni An."

But I don't believe it.

"And it feels like the two of them are back together."

Mingyao did not answer Zhong Ruyi, but simply lowered her head.

Zhong Ruyi felt the atmosphere was heavy, so she changed the subject and talked to Mingyao about other things.

Mingyao was absent-minded, her mind filled with the strange things Ni An had done with her these past few days.

After chatting with Zhong Ruyi for a while, Mingyao walked out of the sanatorium with a heavy heart.

The sun shone on my eyes, stinging and burning.

She trusted Ni An completely, but Zhong Ruyi's words were like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, creating ripples in circles.

She had contacted Ni An and Lin Bin last time, and she had a big argument with Ni An.

Ni An kept apologizing and admitting her mistakes, and even said that she had broken up with Lin Bin.

Recently, there's nothing suspicious about Ni An, but her heart is still pounding.

In a daze, Mingyao arrived at the gate of the high-tech company.

She was about to send a message to Pei Siyu when she caught a glimpse of Lin Bin not far away.

Lin Bin looked radiant, holding a large bouquet of roses and carrying a birthday cake.

Mingyao's heart skipped a beat, and a bad feeling welled up from the bottom of her heart.

Birthday cake? Roses? What a coincidence.

Mingyao, as if possessed, hid herself and did not enter the company.

Lin Bin stopped at the company entrance, and he took out his phone with a bright smile, as if he was dialing someone's number.

Mingyao was hiding in a position that allowed her to see his every move clearly.

While Lin Bin was on the phone, Ming Yao also took out her phone and dialed Ni An's number at the same time.

"The number you dialed is currently busy..."

The mechanical female voice repeated itself in her ears over and over again. Mingyao's heart stopped, and even her breathing became heavy.

Lin Bin was chatting animatedly with the person on the other end of the phone, just like a couple deeply in love.

Mingyao hung up the phone expressionlessly, remaining motionless in one position.

Her reaction was much calmer than she had imagined.

She thought she would be angry, sad, and have a strong sense of betrayal.

But Mingyao showed no emotion whatsoever, remaining completely unmoved.

Perhaps when Ni An contacted Lin Bin last time, she already knew that the two of them would stay together forever.

The unexpected calm brought a mocking smile to Mingyao's face.

Lin Bin stood at the company entrance, made a phone call for a while, and then strode away.

Mingyao stared at his back and watched him hang up the phone before dialing Ni An's number again.

After two beeps, Ni Anming's bright voice came from the other end of the phone: "Sister Su, is there anything I can help you with?"

The moment the call connected, Mingyao's heart sank to the bottom, and her body felt cold.

"It's okay, let's arrange a time tonight."

Mingyao forced a smile. "I have something to tell you."

"Huh?" Ni An hesitated for a moment, then said apologetically, "Sister Su, I have other things to do tonight. Can we meet tomorrow?"

"Okay, sure."

After hanging up the phone, Mingyao stared intently at Lin Bin's retreating figure, a chill creeping into her eyes.

Ni An lied to her from beginning to end.

Perhaps they hadn't broken up by the time she discovered their contact.

Thinking of this, Mingyao felt even more disappointed in Ni An.

To deceive her, Ni An even acted with Lin Bin, making her believe that they had really broken up.

In retrospect, Ni An completely treated her like a fool and fooled her.

Just then, a thin, small girl walked over.

The girl had her hair tied in a ponytail, wore a plaid shirt and jeans, and exuded a scholarly air.

Mingyao frowned, staring at the girl's face, which looked somewhat familiar.

After staring at the girl's face for a long time, Mingyao finally recognized her.

Qiao Yu, carrying a backpack, hesitated at the entrance of the high-tech company, wondering whether to go in.

She took out her phone and made a call, but after two rings, no one answered.

She bit her lip, gripped her phone tightly, and prepared to enter the company.

Mingyao was about to come out and greet them when a sharp voice rang out: "Who let you in?"

Qiao Yu trembled with fright, and the expression on her face vanished instantly.

She turned around and forced a smile as she looked at the middle-aged woman who was approaching her at top speed.

Without saying a word, the middle-aged woman raised her hand and slapped Qiao Yu hard across the face.

Qiao Yu's face was thrown to the side by the woman's movement, leaving red marks on half of her face.

She staggered back two steps, covered her face in astonishment, her mouth agape, unable to utter a single word for a long time.

The woman had no intention of letting Qiao Yu off so easily. She glared at Qiao Yu angrily and said, "You're such a good-for-nothing! I've raised you all these years, and you dare to disobey me!"

"Hmph, ask your cousin for help?! Don't even think about it!"

"Go back!"

Qiao Yu twisted her wrist, trying to break free from the woman's grasp.

She choked back tears and pleaded, "Auntie, I really know I was wrong!"

"Please let me go!"

She kept backing away, her face streaked with tears. "Auntie, can we talk about this when we get back?"

She looked around at the people staring at her with a worried expression, her face full of pain.

Mingyao frowned, feeling annoyed.

Where can you find an aunt like this? Right there at the company entrance, amidst all the bustling crowds, she slapped Qiao Yu across the face without a word.

The middle-aged woman's expression turned even more unpleasant in response to Qiao Yu's plea.

Her lips twitched twice, and she retorted sarcastically, "Look at what you've done!"

"You actually begged me to let you go?"

Qiao Yu broke free from the woman's hand, took two steps back, and pleaded with tearful eyes, "Auntie, I just want to go to school properly, please, please let me finish my studies."

"I promise I will listen to you and will never disobey you again."

The middle-aged woman glared at Qiao Yu, her eyes burning with a fierce rage that seemed to engulf Qiao Yu entirely.

"Heh, are you rebelling against me?"

Qiao Yu shook her head repeatedly, choking back tears, "Auntie, I..."

The middle-aged woman didn't care about anything else; she rushed forward and grabbed Qiao Yu's hair.

She had a strong grip and almost ripped Qiao Yu's hair off.

Qiao Yu screamed and kept begging for mercy.