"I don't like it, but Sister Xiaoshi does! Mom, don't you even understand this basic courtesy to your guests?"
He was in a bad mood, and his tone was harsh.
Before he could finish speaking, Xu Xinchen sternly interrupted, "Ji Bei!"
She turned around and smiled at Sister Zhao, who was stunned. "Sister Zhao, it's okay. I really like eating apples. Don't listen to his nonsense."
Sister Zhao paused for a second or two, placed the fruit plate on the table, and gave them a stiff smile. "Then you two go ahead and study. I won't disturb you any longer."
She went out and closed the door. The sound of the two reading could no longer be heard. Sister Zhao didn't leave. She just stared at the door for a few seconds, but Mr. Chen's voice echoed in her mind that day: "Aren't you afraid that they, a man and a woman, will be alone in a room together?"
After a long pause, her eyes were filled with mixed emotions, and she sighed deeply.
Sister Zhao was dozing off at the front desk when Xu Xinchen came downstairs, with Ji Bei following behind her with his hands in his pockets.
Startled awake by the noise, Sister Zhao called out to the two of them, "Xiao Bei, where are you going?"
Ji Bei stopped in his tracks. "I'll see Sister Xiao Shi off."
"stop!"
Sister Zhao suddenly called out to him and walked up to him, "Your sister Xiao Shi can walk by herself, come and help me look at the account books."
As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Xinchen and Ji Bei were both stunned.
Xu Xinchen was the first to react. She looked at Sister Zhao, forced a smile, and nudged Ji Bei, "Go look at the ledgers. I'll go back by myself."
Ji Bei looked completely bewildered, not understanding what his mother was up to. "What's so interesting about the ledger? I'll look at it for you when I'm done. I'll go deliver it first..."
Before he could finish speaking, Sister Zhao grabbed his sleeve and pulled him back, saying, "It's not your place to see Sister Xiaoshi off. You better shut up."
Ji Bei had no choice but to watch helplessly as Xu Xinchen left the house.
As Xu Xinchen stepped out the door, a gust of wind blew in. The temperature had dropped sharply recently, and she wasn't wearing many clothes, so she hunched her shoulders.
A touch of scarlet in the corner.
She looked closely and saw Chen Ningsheng walk out from the corner, stand in a bright spot, stub out his cigarette, and throw it into the trash can next to him.
He walked up to her, took off his clothes, draped them over her shoulders, looked at her, and said, "Let's go."
The two remained silent the entire way. Xu Xinchen was still silent. She knew that she was in a dangerous situation. Chen Ningsheng was getting closer to her in his own way. However, she knew that if she hadn't deliberately let it go, how could he have had any chance to take advantage of her?
All of this is my own doing; I have no one else to blame.
The two slowly walked to their front door. This time, Chen Ningsheng didn't go any further. He touched her hair and said, "Go inside. Goodnight."
Xu Xinchen was silent for a moment, then said, "I have something to tell you."
Chen Ningsheng was taken aback, looked at her features, and forced a smile, "Okay."
In the warm room, Chen Ningsheng held the tea she had brewed, his eyes lowered, lost in thought.
A moment later, Xu Xinchen sat down opposite him and spoke after a long pause, "Do you remember when we first met?"
Chen Ningsheng instantly looked up and smiled. "I remember not only the first time, but also the second and the last time perfectly." As he spoke, he leaned closer to her, pressing in step by step, his expression extremely aggressive. He smiled and said, "What? Do you want to relive it?"
Xu Xinchen placed her hand on his shoulder, "Don't push your luck."
He ignored her and remained in that close position for a long time. Then, he lifted her chin with two fingers, looked into her eyes, and asked, "What do you want to hear by asking these questions?"
Xu Xinchen tilted her head back, the warm white light shining on her skin, making it appear even whiter and bloodless. This time, she didn't avoid his gaze, looking directly into his eyes. "Why did you look for me?"
Upon hearing this, his expression froze for a moment, then an incredulous look appeared on his face. "You don't know the answer?"
He suddenly let go of her, took out two train tickets from his pocket, and placed them in front of her. "The train is tomorrow afternoon. Come, and I'll tell you the answer."
The destination was clearly printed on the ticket. Xu Xinchen glanced at it, remained silent for a moment, and then asked, "What if I don't go?"
After a long pause, I heard his deep voice in my ear, "You'll find out tomorrow."
Xu Xinchen was out of sorts all day. The train tickets in her bag were crumpled up, and she held them in her hand, turning them over and over to look at the information.
Sister Zhao came over, handed her a few oranges, and said with a smile, "Xiao Shi, Xiao Bei's exam scores just came out, and her English has improved a lot."
I'm so sorry to have troubled you.
Xu Xinchen smiled and said, "It's nothing."
"Well, his English grades have improved, so he no longer needs a tutor. Thank you for your hard work during this time."
She took out a few banknotes and handed them to her, saying, "This is the payment for tutoring Xiaobei for this amount of time. It's extra."
"Oh, right," she said, without looking her in the eye, "Xiao Bei and I are going to stay with his dad for a while after he finishes his exams. You know, he hasn't seen his dad in a long time, and business at the shop hasn't been great lately, so I don't plan on leaving anyone to watch the shop..."
Xu Xinchen was taken aback. How could she not understand that she was trying to get rid of her? But... she didn't understand why.
"You've been doing a good job lately, I'll settle your salary in a bit."
Xu Xinchen was stunned, not yet realizing that she was about to lose her job?
"Wait!" she called out to Sister Zhao, who was about to leave. "Sister Zhao, is there something I did wrong? You can tell me directly."
Sister Zhao stopped, turned around and looked at her, "Xiao Shi, you've done a great job in every way, but I only have one son."
Xu Xinchen felt a chill in her heart, knowing that she had misunderstood, but she didn't press the matter for an explanation. After spending time together, Sister Zhao did feel guilty towards her, and paid her double her salary.
With her last bit of money and a train ticket in her pocket, she wandered aimlessly through the streets.
When she realized it, she found herself heading in the direction of the train station.
So, deep down she was actually willing? Xu Xinchen didn't want to deceive herself anymore; she liked him, she knew it better than anyone else.
With a firmer stride, she quickened her pace toward the train station, not wanting to keep him waiting too long, when suddenly someone called out to her from behind.
"Miss Lu."
She paused, turned around, and saw the woman holding a bag, staring at her.
She approached her, smiled, and said, "Miss Lu, may I have a word with you in private?"
Xu Xinchen followed Chen Bailing to a nearby park, where the two sat on a bench.
She didn't know why she had come with her. Since she had made a decision, she should stick to it. But this girl was indeed a hidden danger in her heart.
The moment she saw her, the image of Chen Ningsheng holding her flashed through her mind and wouldn't leave.
That's why she decided to come and find out the truth.
"He's waiting for you at the train station right now, and you're still willing to come with me?" Chen Bailing said aggressively.
Xu Xinchen smiled and said, "Just tell me what your purpose is in contacting me."
"You two can never be together."
Chen Bailing looked directly at her and said each word with great certainty.
Xu Xinchen paused for two seconds before asking, somewhat amused, "Where does your confidence come from?"
Hearing this, Chen Bailing scoffed disdainfully, "How much Asheng likes you is his business. Do you know his family background? Do his parents know you? What is their attitude towards you? Has he mentioned you to his parents?"
Xu Xinchen snorted, "So what? Relationships are between the two of us."
"That's right, your relationship history is between you two, but marriage is not something you can decide for yourselves," Chen Bailing said firmly. "Asheng's family doesn't..."
They will approve of your marriage, do you know why?
She looked at Xu Xinchen, who was staring at her with a confused expression, and smiled confidently. "Because his fiancée is me."
Xu Xinchen walked slowly, like a walking corpse, with Chen Bailing's words echoing in her mind: "Asheng defied his parents' orders to find you, and now his aunt and uncle are very angry. Because of you, he has fallen out with his family. Can you bear to see him have a rift with his family in the future because of you?"
"Besides, do you really think he cares about you that much? If he cares about you, why didn't he tell you everything? He left you without any mercy, didn't he? How much sincerity do men usually have in their words?"
Her mind was a mess, about to explode. She went home, lay quietly on her bed, and watched the sun slowly sink in the west.
She thought that he should have left by now.
It's possible he was with Chen Bailing. Yes, he even lied to himself back then, saying that Chen Bailing had already left.
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