Unworthy

At this time, Lin Lele pointed at the photo booth and started shouting again.

"Since we're here, let's take a picture!"

Zhang Ningxia glanced at Xu Zhiyi and the others and quickly agreed, "Yeah, yeah! Since we're here, it's worth the trip!"

After saying that, she quickly pulled Xu Zhiyi over and called out to Song Chengrui, "Come over here and take a photo together!"

The stall owner warmly invited them over and stood in front of the star-moon backdrop, saying, "Shoot now, get it now, don't miss it."

Zhang Ningxia arranged the positions, "Zhiyi, you stand in the middle, Lin Lele, you stand to Zhiyi's left."

She deliberately placed Song Chengrui on the far right, right next to Xu Zhiyi.

"Zheng Yan, stop making faces!"

She checked everyone's position again and waved to Lin Lele, "Lin Lele, move a little to the right."

"OK, OK, don't move." She immediately returned to the camera and nodded to the boss.

Stall owner: "Okay, everyone, look here. Three, two, one..."

The moment the camera took the picture, Song Chengrui turned his head towards Xu Zhiyi, and a barely perceptible smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

The flash went off and the picture froze.

Everyone took a group of photos, boys and girls respectively.

The photos were printed out quickly.

Zhang Ningxia bargained with the stall owner and printed a few more copies for everyone, so almost everyone had a photo.

“Bang—”

“Bang—”

“Bang—”

Suddenly, a countdown sound appeared on the huge electronic screen, and the numbers changed little by little, foreshadowing the upcoming new year.

Xu Zhiyi received the photo and put it in his pocket calmly.

"Ten, nine, eight..."

The crowd began to boil. Lin Lele excitedly pulled Zhang Ningxia forward, and unknowingly separated herself from Xu Zhiyi and the others by a distance.

As the crowd surged, Song Chengrui carefully kept Xu Zhiyi by his side.

Zhang Ningxia turned around and looked at them, her face filled with excitement and joy, but Xu Zhiyi couldn't hear what she was saying.

She just waved her hand, signaling them to move forward, it was okay.

"Three, two, one!"

"Happy New Year!"

"Happy New Year!"

Xu Zhiyi and Song Chengrui looked at each other at the same time, expressed their blessings, and then looked away at the screen at the same time.

"Bang--"

Gorgeous fireworks exploded in the night sky, and the bright light illuminated everyone's smiling face.

Cheers, noise, and blessings rang out one after another, and the entire rooftop was filled with a festive atmosphere.

"Xu Zhiyi, Happy New Year." This time, there was a hint of seriousness and concentration in Song Chengrui's eyes.

Amidst the uproar, Xu Zhiyi also formally responded to him, "Happy New Year, Song Chengrui."

The two looked at each other and smiled knowingly.

On the way back, the atmosphere was relaxed and pleasant. Zhang Ningxia discussed when they would get together next time, while Lin Lele packed a bunch of food to take back as snacks.

—

When Xu Zhiyi returned home, it was already one o'clock in the morning and the lights in the living room were still on.

She moved quietly, bent down to put her shoes away, and just as she heard the sound of the bedroom door opening.

It’s mom.

"mom……"

"You're back, go to bed early."

Seeing Xu Zhiyi arrive home safely, her mother closed the door again.

Xu Zhi thought of the quarrel before they went out and Xu Wangping's serious look, and felt a little scared at this moment.

Early the next morning, Xu Zhiyi got out of bed. Millet porridge was ready in the pot, and two plates of her favorite side dishes were placed on the table.

Xu Wangping is hanging clothes on the balcony at this moment.

After washing her face, Xu Zhiyi stood at the balcony, clutching the corner of her clothes, ready to face the reprimand from Xu Wangping.

"dad……"

Xu Wangping did not turn around, but remained silent for a long time before speaking.

"Let's eat."

The voice was a little tired and hoarse.

The expected scolding and cursing did not appear, but instead made her even more uneasy.

Should she apologize for what happened yesterday?

But she felt that what she said was not wrong. However, when she saw the obvious white hair on Xu Wangping's head, her heart seemed to be hurt again. She felt a little conflicted. She really shouldn't have contradicted him. After all, what he said was not wrong.

"Dad, I..." Xu Zhiyi's voice trembled and he was almost about to cry.

After hanging the clothes, Xu Wangping turned around without even looking at Xu Zhiyi. "I'm going to visit someone's home today. You can take care of your own dinner."

Xu Zhiyi made way from the door, feeling somewhat conflicted. "Then what about tutoring..."

Xu Wangping replied in a low voice, "Yu'an is busy lately, you can do whatever you want."

She stood there, somewhat at a loss, feeling as if something was stuck in her throat.

After a while, Xu Wangping left the house and the door was closed gently.

At this moment, Xu Zhiyi couldn't help crying. All her previous grievances and unwillingness seemed to have lost their support at this moment and collapsed in an instant.

Her father didn't say a word of blame and even made breakfast for her. The clothes she had thrown into the washing machine on the balcony yesterday were now neatly hung on the clothes rack.

She didn't know how to describe her current mood. She just felt that she was really an unfilial child, just as her father said.

Xu Zhiyi spent the entire afternoon quietly doing exercises until Zhang Ningxia came and knocked on her door around five o'clock, and she ended her punishment on herself.

"Hey, baby Zhiyi, look at me, am I beautiful today?"

Zhang Ningxia was wearing a newly bought light blue dress with a furry short jacket over it, and she kept spinning around.

“It looks great!”

"Hehe, that's fine. It's worth my whole afternoon of dressing up."

She walked into the living room with her handbag, changed into slippers and sat down on the sofa.

"I brought you a new product from your favorite milk tea shop. It just came out today, New Year's Day. I waited in line for a long time before I could buy it. It's pretty good!"

"Thank you."

Xu Zhiyi opened the bag and saw that it was a new co-branded model. "They have a new co-branded product again."

"Yeah, there are a lot of people here today."

Xu Zhiyi's smile was forced, which was noticed by Zhang Ningxia. She turned her head and sat next to Xu Zhiyi.

"Why are your dark circles so heavy? Didn't you sleep well last night?"

Xu Zhiyi sighed, "When I came back last night, my dad didn't say anything to me. He even cooked for me and hung out my laundry in the morning. He also stopped signing me up for tutoring. I feel like I'm really unfilial."

"Hey, don't think like that. Maybe this is the difference in thinking between our two generations. You have your ideas, and uncle has his own. You just haven't communicated well enough. Maybe if you sit down and have a serious talk, maybe everything can be solved."

Zhang Ningxia shook her milk tea and spoke coherently.

"It's because you're all reflecting on yourselves that uncle still cooked for you. You're also reflecting on yourselves, so you're sad. Isn't this a good sign? Relax, sort out your feelings, and sincerely apologize. He's your biological father, and he won't blame you too much."

"Besides, if you study hard and show him that going out to watch fireworks won't affect your grades, it will make him feel more at ease."

Chatting and laughing with Zhang Ningxia, the afternoon passed quickly.

When seeing Zhang Ningxia off, Xu Zhi wanted to say something but stopped himself.

"Ningxia, that incident at the scene..."

"That's not important. You should deal with your relationship with your father first. There will always be a next time."

Zhang Ningxia waved her hand and waved vigorously towards Xu Zhiyi, "No need to send me off, go home quickly."

"Thanks……"

Before he could finish saying thank you, Zhang Ningxia had already made a gesture to keep quiet and smiled at Xu Zhiyi.

At eight o'clock in the evening, the sound of keys rang out, and Xu Wangping walked in with a cold air and a tired face.

Seeing Xu Zhiyi getting up from the sofa, he looked a little surprised.

"Dad, I'm back. The rice is hot in the pot."

Xu Zhiyi was actually a little nervous, and she didn't know how to face Xu Wangping's embarrassment.

"You've already eaten. Go to bed early. You still have classes tomorrow."

After that, he walked towards the bedroom alone without saying anything else.

Xu Zhiyi's heart sank, and the guilt in his heart deepened.

She stood in the living room with tears in her eyes, and did not dare to speak again.

The moonlight outside the window was like water. Xu Zhiyi tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep. Her cell phone had been confiscated, and she was now even more isolated and helpless.

The next day.

As usual, Xu Zhiyi wrote the latest class schedule on the blackboard, but Song Chengrui suddenly came in from the classroom door.

When he passed by Xu Zhiyi, he pretended nothing had happened and stuffed a bottle of yogurt into her hand.

Before Xu Zhiyi could react, he had already walked around the podium and returned to his seat.

Most of the other people in the class didn't notice this action. Xu Zhiyi was secretly delighted and smiled secretly. After finishing writing, even his steps became much lighter.

After the morning exercises, Zhang Ningxia ran to the last row of the team.

Xu Zhiyi saw this and followed him to the back row. She saw that Zhang Ningxia was not in good condition and felt a little worried.

"Ningxia, what's wrong with you?"

Zhang Ningxia remained silent.

"Ningxia?"

Zhang Ningxia was extremely frustrated. "Gao Ze didn't show up for the appointment yesterday. I waited by the river for over two hours."

"Ah? So what delayed him?"

Zhang Ningxia shook her head. "...When I arrived at the classroom today, my deskmate said that she saw Gao Ze with another girl at the movie theater in the city center yesterday..."

Xu Zhiyi was speechless for a moment and could only gently hold Zhang Ningxia's hand.

Zhang Ningxia raised her head, her eyes red. "Am I stupid?" She forced a smile. "Actually, I know he's quite handsome and has a lot of girls around him, but I just like him. What should I do?"

"Ningxia, this isn't your fault, it's his. He kept you hanging without saying anything, neither refusing nor explaining clearly. Last time, he came to bring you a drink, making you misunderstand that he still cared about you. In fact, the responsibility lies with him."

She said righteously, "He is not worthy of you. Don't be sad. Let's find someone new. You are so good and deserve better. We don't want this kind of rotten guy!"

When the bell rang, Xu Zhiyi handed her two tissues and said, "Let's go. Let's study hard first."

In math class, Xu Zhiyi saw Zhang Ningxia's listless look and couldn't help feeling distressed. She glanced at Song Chengrui beside her, and the burden in her heart seemed to become heavier, making it difficult for her to breathe.