Chapter 29 Anxiety: She only cared about whether she had a perfect result...
Jiang Xuchi told the driver to drive around the area first, and only after getting the driver away did Jiang Xuchi look at Qin Chen.
Qin Chen's gaze towards him remained unchanged, filled with disgust and contempt.
He looked down on Jiang Xuchi; in his eyes, Jiang Xuchi was nothing more than a brat he had bullied since childhood.
Jiang Xuchi was also well aware of how he thought of him.
He sneered and looked at the hand that had dragged Qin Man away.
“Qin Chen, since you’re afraid Qin Man will be taken away, you should show some brotherly courage,” he said.
Faced with Jiang Xuchi's attitude, Qin Chen pulled Qin Man behind him again.
If someone like Jiang Xuchi gets close to Qin Man, Qin Man will only be completely under his control.
Such a protective action would never have happened before. Jiang Xuchi raised an eyebrow, realizing that he was actually a threat to Qin Chen.
"Qin Man, go home," Qin Chen said.
Qin Man refused; would she dare go back now?
"Aren't you going back? This is none of your business."
Qin Mancai didn't leave; she clung to her brother's arm, staring at him nervously.
Qin Chen frowned. "Why are you so nervous? I just want to talk to him."
“There’s nothing to talk about,” Jiang Xuchi said abruptly.
Qin Chen remained noncommittal: "Hehe."
The tense atmosphere between the two made Qin Man's heart leap into her throat.
She tugged at Qin Chen's arm again, her voice soft: "Brother..."
Qin Chen clicked his tongue. "Don't call me brother. Now, right now, go back."
Qin Man tugged and pulled, refusing to leave. Qin Chen's patience ran out, and he was about to scold her.
“Qin Man,” Jiang Xuchi suddenly interjected, “come to my place, don’t go back tonight.”
Qin Man froze.
Qin Chen looked at him with displeasure, "What did you say?"
“I was talking to Qin Man,” Jiang Xuchi said. “You, as the older brother, are being too nosy.”
"Is he meddling in other people's business?" Qin Chen couldn't help but sneer.
Qin Chen's friends and acquaintances all felt that he was just keeping too close an eye on his sister.
After all, Qin Man had been lost by his side before and had been bullied by thugs.
No one has ever said anything bad about Qin Chen, the older brother.
Qin Chen took a few steps forward and grabbed Jiang Xuchi by the collar.
His face was frighteningly gloomy.
Jiang Xuchi remained calm, staring at him indifferently, an attitude that only further enraged Qin Chen.
Qin Man was terrified and rushed over to pull Qin Chen back.
"Brother! He's still sick! Don't do anything stupid, hitting someone is a criminal offense!"
Unable to pull Qin Chen away, Qin Man squeezed between them, spreading her arms wide and facing Qin Chen with a resolute attitude.
This is a protective gesture; Jiang Xuchi is behind her.
Jiang Xuchi was stunned for a moment, but quickly returned to normal.
"Get out of the way," Qin Chen said coldly.
Qin Man was genuinely afraid of Qin Chen's temperament, and said tremblingly, "No."
The brother and sister remained locked in this stalemate.
A few seconds later, Qin Chen's face darkened, he grabbed Qin Man's hand, and strode away.
Jiang Xuchi stared at their backs without speaking or showing any expression. Qin Chen's malice towards him was blatant, and he was already used to it.
But Qin Man was unaware of his thoughts, which only made things more tormenting.
Back home, Qin Chen released Qin Man's wrist.
He laughed angrily, "So you're hooking up with him now?"
"We are classmates."
"Still trying to fool your brother?" Qin Chen asked aggressively. "Weren't those jewelry pieces gifts from him? How many things has he given you? Haven't you ever seen anything like this before? You've already sold yourself out?"
Qin Man's cheeks turned red from the scolding: "You speak so harshly. What do you mean by 'selling'? What did I sell?"
Qin Chen didn't know Qin Man well enough. She blushed easily when she felt guilty and was someone who couldn't lie at all.
Qin Man didn't hear anything Qin Chen said.
She was just responding to Qin Chen's constant agreement, and when she finally returned to her room, she was still somewhat dazed.
She drew back the curtains and glimpsed a figure outside the house.
Jiang Xuchi was still there.
Qin Man picked up her phone and sent him a message.
Why haven't you left yet?
She was afraid that if Jiang Xuchi stayed there and Qin Chen found out, no one would be able to sleep tonight.
Jiang Xuchi: [Did Qin Chen scold you?]
Qin Man: [Hmm. But it's not that serious, you should go now.]
Qin Man thought for a moment, then continued typing to explain:
My brother is just very protective of me. When I was little, he took me out to play, and I was kidnapped. I wasn't found until a month later, and he's been watching over me ever since.
He'll only scold me for a short while; he won't hit me.
"It's alright, you can go now."
I don't know why things developed to the point where she started comforting Jiang Xuchi.
After sending the message, Qin Man glanced out the window every now and then, and finally breathed a sigh of relief after seeing him leave.
*
Students from Xilai have gradually returned to campus to prepare for the final half of the semester.
Some people failed to get into schools, some chose to study domestically, and others came to school to waste their time after the results were announced.
Qin Man didn't get much sleep yesterday because her older brother kept bothering her, and she fell asleep as soon as class started.
Qin Man slept until school was over and everyone had left before she slowly packed her schoolbag.
As she passed the water room with her bag on her back, she heard soft sobbing coming from inside.
Qin Man stopped in her tracks. The door to the water room was tightly closed, and someone was inside.
There was a girl crying inside.
Qin Man looked around but couldn't find the culprit. She reached out and pressed the doorknob; the door wasn't locked. After hesitating for a few seconds, she pushed the door open.
Lin Nuo squatted on the floor of the washroom, completely soaked, her face wet with tears, and strands of her hair dripping water.
Qin Man walked over.
Lin Nuo shrank back when she saw her delicate heels. "Don't come any closer."
"Who bullied you?" Qin Man asked, looking down.
Lin Nuo remained silent.
Lin Nuo's family wasn't well-off enough, and she was constantly ostracized by the other students in her class. But she desperately wanted to fit in, which led to many funny situations.
Their malice, indifference, and slander towards Lin Nuo occurred frequently. Sometimes it was just a glance or a rumor behind his back. These may seem like trivial matters, but they accumulated like snowflakes, which could make people feel chilled to the bone.
"If you're bullied, you should yell back." Qin Man didn't comfort her; instead, she disliked her cowardice.
Lin Nuo had stopped crying, but upon hearing Qin Man's words, she couldn't hold back her tears once again.
"You don't understand, Qin Man, I'm not you."
Lin Nuo curled herself up. What had she done wrong? She didn't want to hurt anyone, nor did she want anyone to ostracize her.
She is not Qin Man, and she will never have Qin Man's confidence.
Qin Man stood there for a long time, not knowing what to say, and finally took out an unopened bottle of juice from her bag.
She placed it in Lin Nuo's hand and said, "Then drink some water. You need to drink more water after crying."
His tone was no longer aggressive; it was calm and gentle.
Lin Nuo stared at her blankly.
She never expected Qin Man to have such a gentle side. Everyone in the class knew Qin Man's temper, and she never dared to provoke her.
Lin Nuo sniffed and thanked him.
Qin Man didn't leave; instead, she stood aside playing on her phone.
This silent companionship made her feel even more cared for, and Lin Nuo gradually felt embarrassed, so she stood up with her drink.
"Thank you." Lin Nuo still didn't have the courage to look up at her face, and only stared at her phone with the jewelry pendant on it, saying, "Qin Man, you're not like what they say."
What did they say about me?
Qin Man's gentleness gave her a false impression.
Lin Nuo began to tell Qin Man all the bad things she had heard from others. She started to talk non-stop, searching her memory for bad things that others had said about Qin Man, trying to get closer to Qin Man in this way.
Qin Man didn't want to hear these specific accusations, but she didn't interrupt.
Lin Nuo said that her classmates thought she had a bad temper, was arrogant, looked down on others, and acted domineeringly because her family was rich.
They say she's a spoiled rich girl, pretentious and affected.
Lin Nuo blurted out all sorts of vulgarities without even thinking.
Lin Nuo seemed never to realize that she was disliked not only because of her family background, but also because of her humble attitude in trying to please others.
Qin Man forced a smile, unable to utter a word, her unease growing stronger with each passing moment.
On her way home, Qin Man couldn't help but think of Lin Nuo and the reasons why Lin Nuo was bullied.
In Xilai, the lack of family support is considered a cardinal sin, and some people are adept at opportunism and taking advantage of others' misfortunes.
Qin Man's glamorous life cannot tolerate such a stain.
Like a stained dress, its final destination is only the trash can; it will never be washed and worn again.
*
At home.
Qin Chen was carrying a notebook, and Qu Lan was sitting opposite him. The mother and son were sitting in the living room, seemingly discussing something. After Qin Man returned, they fell silent again, tacitly understanding each other.
As soon as Qin Man got home, she sensed something was off. She walked over, put her bag down, and gave him a questioning look.
"Look, which one do you want to order?" Qin Chen tossed the booklet in front of her.
Qin Man took the booklet in a daze.
Qu Lan turned a page in her hand, pointed and said, "Let's hold the coming-of-age ceremony at Chengxi Garden. The team that helped you with your 16th birthday celebration should be the same one. You should be very satisfied with them."
Qin Man saw the familiar team introduction on the inner page.
Before Qin Weiguo absconded with the money, his family of four had given Qin Man a grand birthday party. It was her 16th birthday, and they booked a French restaurant in Chengxiyuan. Half of her classmates were invited, along with her parents' relatives and friends.
At that time, she was still in her first year of high school. After the birthday party, she started to make friends in her class, and people would invite her to lunch.
This made her enjoy being pampered even more.
Her brother promised to help her with her coming-of-age ceremony, but she had no idea how much the budget would be.
It can't be as shabby as the coming-of-age ceremonies of those people in my WeChat Moments.
"Can I invite my classmates?" Qin Man asked.
“Of course,” Qu Lan said.
Qin Man looked at Qin Chen with some hesitation.
Qin Chen replied impatiently, "Why ask such nonsense?"
Qin Man's heart finally settled down, and she couldn't help but feel overjoyed.
She desperately wanted to have a high-class coming-of-age ceremony. How long had it been since she had splurged like this, and how long had it been since she had posted anything worthy of praise on her social media?
She must have a beautiful, glamorous, and high-class coming-of-age ceremony.
I must never let my classmates outdo me.
Qin Man finalized the address, chose her outfit, and ordered the cake she bought when she was 16. All in all, it only cost her 150,000 yuan.
Qin Man didn't even blink as she spent so much money. With Qin Chen's card in hand, she went to buy more clothes.
She didn't know where Qin Chen got the money, and she didn't care.
She only cares about whether she has a perfect coming-of-age ceremony.
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