Let her go
I closed the door, but the bad mood like a mudslide was not stopped outside.
Zhuang Yu'an sat down dejectedly, feeling bitter in his mouth, his chest blocked, and his shoulders as if a thousand pounds were pressing down on him.
Yesterday evening, he witnessed with his own eyes how a man lost his mind because of a woman, leading to the loss of his dignity and respectability, becoming worse than a dog! If he continued to indulge himself in lust, wouldn't he be following in her footsteps?
He thought he had seen through everything after learning from his mistakes and was ready to stay away from the control of desire, but he still felt a piercing pain the moment he saw the scratches on Luffy's neck.
Anger, frustration, hopelessness, jealousy... these ugly emotions were like poisonous snakes, strangling his sanity and devouring his self-esteem.
He felt his reaction was irrational. He had only known her for less than two months, so how could he have fallen so deeply for her? None of his knowledge or experience could explain the reason behind this.
Even if he could accept that he'd lost his mind over a woman he'd only just met, he definitely couldn't accept it being over a woman like this. Not to mention how shrewd, cunning, and vulgar she was... How could she have slept with Luffy after only knowing him for a few days?! What did she think of her own body? Did she even have the slightest sense of shame?
No, no, he should stop paying any attention to her and refuse her any form of continued influence on him.
However, the more one tries to suppress a thought, the more frantic the backlash becomes. Suddenly, a breathtakingly beautiful image leaps into his mind: She clings to Luffy as if boneless, her two jade-like arms wrapped around his neck, leaving a glaring scarlet mark in the moment of passion...
Zhuang Yu'an stood up suddenly: Something must be done, otherwise he will go crazy!
He went down to the basement alone and called Chen Quan in the car to ask him to cancel the rest of his trip. After arriving home, he locked himself in the gym and fought with the boxing bag until he didn't even have the strength to lift his hands.
When Zhuang Jinghao returned home, he smelled the aroma of stewed meat. He walked into the kitchen and saw his brother busy at work.
"Brother, why did you come back early today?"
"Well, I'm back after I'm done." The brother waved the spatula, turned around and said with a smile, "Go out quickly, don't let the fumes make you sick."
"What's wrong with your hand?" Zhuang Jinghao stared at his brother's fingers holding the spatula, "Why are they so red? Is it because of the spicy chili peppers?" He turned to look at the ingredients on the cooking table. There was no spicy food in today's dishes.
"I just practiced boxing for a while." Zhuang Yu'an said, "It's okay, I'll be fine in a while."
While eating, Zhuang Jinghao couldn't help but look up frequently: I always feel that something seems strange about my brother today, but I can't put my finger on it... Maybe it's because he's tired from 618?
An idea suddenly occurred to me: "Brother, are you free this weekend?"
"I'm free. I'm going to Dongguan on a business trip next week, which will last about half a month. I can spend this weekend with you."
"No no..." Zhuang Jinghao shook his head and said with a chuckle, "Would you like to accompany Si Rui?"
Zhuang Yu'an was slightly stunned, and said yes after a moment.
As Zhuang Jinghao ate, she secretly rejoiced: Xiaoxiao had agreed to help her get Chen Liqing, and her brother would soon find love. The siblings, single from birth, were finally headed for a wonderful romance this beautiful summer!
Oh, and there's Xiaoxiao Beibi and Luffy...
When she thought of them, her heart began to pound and her face became hot. Pink bubbles danced before Zhuang Jinghao's eyes—she officially announced:
This summer is pink!
At nine o'clock in the evening, Zhuang Jinghao came back from walking the dog, and her brother was just walking down the stairs with a paper bag in his hand.
Their eyes met, and he paused: "You're back so soon?"
"I'm a little tired today and want to rest early." She would never say: It's because I was worried about the meeting between Zuo Xiao and Chen Liqing, so I prepared to go to bed early and refresh the status at any time!
"Yeah, that's fine." The brother walked towards the door. "I'm going to go out for a walk."
Zhuang Jinghao's eyes fell on the paper bag in his hand: "Where are you going, brother, in the middle of the night?" She was about to speak, but then she thought: If my brother has something to do but doesn't say it, it must be something that is inconvenient to say.
Zhuang Yu'an closed the door and blended into the night.
It was a dull, windless night. Although the temperature had dropped, the stagnant air made one feel oppressive and weary, as if sinking into a pool of still, still water.
He left the complex and found a public trash can. He bent down and placed the bag beside it. If anyone happened to need it, they could take it.
He turned around, took two steps, and stopped.
He turned around and picked up the bag.
After walking for about half an hour, I finally found a convenience store with the lights on.
"Welcome."
Today is Li Jing's last night working at this store, and also her last night wandering around this city. Tomorrow she will return to her hometown and begin another uneventful life.
I thought it would be a boring night, but at ten o'clock in the evening, an unusual customer walked in.
The man was in his thirties, tall and strong, with a crew cut, a face that looked like it didn't like to smile, and deep, strong and tough features.
He stopped at the cash register: "Where are the scissors?"
Meeting his calm and serious black eyes, she couldn't help but look stern and pointed to the container: "The second row on the right."
"Thanks."
"25.8 yuan, please show me the payment code."
Her eyes followed the man as he pushed open the glass door, turned a corner, and stopped by the trash can outside the store. From her angle, she could just see his profile, watching the streetlight stretch his lonely shadow.
The man pulled a light-colored garment from a paper bag and held it in one hand, looking at it calmly, like a statue. Suddenly, he picked up a pair of scissors and slowly and persistently ran them over the garment. Then he crumpled it up and threw it into the trash can.
A tall and handsome man came alone late at night to buy a pair of scissors to get rid of a piece of clothing...
It seemed like a sad story, she thought.
At the same time, Zuo Xiao and Chen Liqing walked into a convenience store. Suddenly craving ice cream, Zuo Xiao chose chocolate milk ice cream, while Chen Liqing asked for a popsicle.
Just now, while eating barbecue, Zuo Xiao had chatted with him about their childhood, her words hinting at how close they had been since childhood, and Chen Liqing couldn't have failed to understand. But she felt that some things still needed to be brought to the surface, otherwise there would always be a barrier between them.
The two walked side by side. Zuo Xiao opened the ice cream bag and said suddenly, "Yesterday, Zhou Zhihui came to see me."
Chen Liqing paused, angrily saying, "Shameless! Do you still want to get back together?"
"Yeah." Zuo Xiao took a bite of ice cream. "He said he broke up with me for a reason, and it wasn't cheating... Well, I won't go into details about that. Anyway, he's mentally ill."
"He's seriously ill!" Chen Liqing frowned. "So what do you think?"
"What else can I think? Am I going to get back together with him? I'm not crazy."
"Yeah. I was just worried you might get soft-hearted."
"Soft-hearted?" Zuo Xiao sneered, "I beat him up. Later, Luffy and Zhuang Yu'an passed by and beat him up again."
Chen Liqing's expression froze, and he remained silent for a moment. Zuo Xiao glanced at him, his expression unchanged as he said,
"I put Luffy to bed last night."
Chen Liqing stopped and the popsicle in his hand fell to the ground.
Zuo Xiao glanced down and said, "After Zhou Zhihui, there's Luffy, and after Luffy, there'll be Zhang Fei and Li Fei... Chen Liqing, you have to understand that I, Zuo Xiao, will have many men in my life, but there won't be a place for you among them."
Chen Liqing's lips were trembling, and there was a glimmer in his eyes. He was as fragile as a newborn puppy.
Zuo Xiao looked at him seriously and said firmly, "Most of them will be passers-by in my life, but you are different. You are my friend and family who will accompany me for the rest of my life. To me, a man is a man, and Chen Liqing is Chen Liqing. There can be many men, but there is only one Chen Liqing."
"I'll wait for you at the convenience store in front. Come over when you've thought it through, and I'll compensate you with a popsicle." Zuo Xiao said, and walked forward alone.
She finished her ice cream at the convenience store entrance, but Chen Liqing still hadn't come. She waited a while longer, then went inside and got herself a mung bean popsicle.
Just as I was about to pay, Chen Liqing walked in and asked, "Where's my popsicle?"
Saturday arrived in a flash. Zuo Xiao organized a badminton game. Besides Chen Liqing, there were Zhuang Jinghao, Lu Fei, and Zhan Jiaxin.
The five of them rented two venues. Chen Liqing vs. Lu Fei, Zhuang Jinghao vs. Zhan Jiaxin. Zuo Xiao arranged everything clearly for everyone, and she sat on the sidelines to watch the show, testing their abilities first.
Chen Liqing's badminton skills were nearing professional level. He'd previously held back against her, but this time, he was clearly going all out. Luffy, though a decent player, was completely overwhelmed, his shots leaving him exhausted and breathless, losing eight out of ten.
The gap in skill next door was even greater. Zhuang Jing was so bad at badminton that she kept missing her serves. Zuo Xiao even suspected she'd never even touched a racket. It was a shame that when she'd asked her if she could play badminton the day before yesterday, she'd actually managed to say "okay."
If this continues, Luffy will be tortured to death and Zhan Jiaxin will be bored to death.
Zuo Xiao redistributed the tasks, calling Luffy down and letting Zhan Jiaxin and Chen Liqing fight.
Luffy's face flushed with fatigue, and his forehead was covered in sweat. Zuo Xiao handed him the iced mineral water and said, "Rest for a while. I'll go teach Jinghao. We'll fight each other two later."
Zuo Xiao picked up the racket and handed a bottle of water to Zhuang Jinghao: "With your level, I'll be embarrassed to call you next time."
Zhuang Jinghao wiped the sweat off his face and said, "I'll find a badminton coach tomorrow!"
"Not bad, you're ambitious." Zuo Xiao patted her shoulder and said with a smile, "Where are you going to find it?"
She was stunned for a moment: "Sports College? Badminton Hall?"
"Little fool." Zuo Xiao laughed, "There's a ready-made coach, why don't you look for one?"
Seeing her bewildered face, Zuo Xiao pointed to the side. Zhuang Jinghao turned around, her eyes widening: "Ah, you mean..." Then she thought again and became depressed again, "He definitely doesn't want to teach me..."
"Don't worry, I'll arrange this for you. You can find another coach and practice with him regularly."
Zuo Xiao taught her some basic moves on the spot, then waved his hand to call Luffy up.
Her skills were considered above average for an amateur, and she played Luffy back and forth. However, in order to get her apprentice involved, she had to catch some of the balls, which ended up falling to the ground.
Zhuang Jinghao felt that he was holding them back and affecting their playing experience, so he felt a little discouraged and said, "How about you guys play, I'll go downstairs and rest for a while."
Zuo Xiao looked at her for a while, then suddenly raised his eyebrows, turned around and shouted, "Chen Liqing, teach her a lesson!"
She was so domineering that she stunned everyone. Zuo Xiao ordered again, "Jiaxin, come here and play doubles with me." Without further ado, he grabbed his apprentice's hand and pulled her to the next court, stopping in front of Chen Liqing.
Chen Liqing lowered his hands, his lips curled downwards, and he looked reluctant. Zuo Xiao pretended not to notice and pushed the apprentice towards him. "Teach well, or you'll be finished if I catch you slacking off." With that, he left in a dashing manner.
Zuo Xiao and Zhan Jiaxin were fighting two against one, and the fight was getting more and more exciting.
With a "bang", she hit a beautiful smash and won another point. Just when she was happy, Zhan Jiaxin grabbed her wrist and winked: "Look, Jing is good..."
She turned around and saw the little apprentice holding the ball in his hands, his head bowed. Chen Liqing stood aside and said sullenly, "Why are you so stupid?"
Zuo Xiao was immediately furious and rushed forward aggressively: "What's your attitude?"
Chen Liqing's face was not looking good either. He said angrily, "I've taught you many times but you still don't know how to do it. Can you find someone else and stop bothering me?"
"That's precisely because you don't know how to do it that you need someone to teach you. Is anyone born with the ability?" Zuo Xiao teased him, "You're in second grade and you still can't use chopsticks properly!"
Chen Liqing was humiliated, tossing his head and silently walking to the sidelines to sit down. Zuo Xiao didn't have time to care about him. He turned his gaze back to his young apprentice, patted her shoulder, and said soothingly, "It's okay. When you're done practicing, you can slap him in the face!"
The young disciple didn't react, his face still drooping. Suddenly, a few tears fell to the ground.
Zuo Xiao was startled, but without thinking, he hugged her in his arms, patted her back gently, and said softly, "Okay, okay, don't cry... I'll help you teach him a lesson, okay?"
"I'm just too stupid... I can't do anything right..." the poor little thing sobbed, "Don't scold him... I... I will practice well on my own..."
Zuo Xiao frowned and looked up at Chen Liqing. He had also noticed the movement here. Zuo Xiao warned him with his eyes, then put his arm around Zhuang Jinghao and walked over.
She settled the little cutie on the bench and then gave Chen Liqing an order: "Apologize to her."
Chen Liqing bit his cheek and protested with his eyes. Zuo Xiao glared at him, fighting with his eyes.
In the end, Chen Liqing was defeated. He exhaled through his nose, paused, and said reluctantly: "I'm sorry, I was too fierce."
"You don't have to apologize. I'm just too stupid..." The poor little thing still hung its head and sniffed. "My classmates have always said that my cerebellum is underdeveloped. I know it all..."
Zuo Xiao's heart sank as he heard her sobbing, dejected words. Chen Liqing, still somewhat conscientious, replied sternly, "It's true that some people are born with underdeveloped motor skills, but it's not a big deal; you can train them."
"Well, I will practice hard." The little cutie wiped her tears, looked up, and smiled at him with her rabbit-like red eyes.
Zuo Xiao saw that Chen Liqing's expression was clearly shaken. After a moment, he pursed his lips and said, "Then I'll teach you after you've rested well."
Oh, these two might actually have a chance! Zuo Xiao chuckled and turned back to the court.
After playing ball, everyone had dinner together. Zuo Xiao asked Zhan Jiaxin to ride with her in Luffy's car, and asked Chen Liqing to take Zhuang Jinghao home. Chen Liqing gave her a resentful look and nodded.
Zuo Xiao looked at his and Zhuang Jinghao's backs and said in his heart: "Chen Liqing, your blessing is yet to come!"
Half an hour later, Luffy sent Zhan Jiaxin to the gate of the community. Before restarting the car, he turned his head:
"Want to go see the stars?"
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