Chapter 7
The siblings on one side have a peaceful and harmonious relationship, while the siblings on the other side are in complete chaos.
In just one morning, they had already fought three sets of Wing Chun due to issues such as wake-up time, ordering food, and debating who was more handsome, Nicholas Tse or Edison Chen. In the end, Mu Zhengxi conceded defeat.
Those who rarely back down have their own agendas.
Mu Yashan looked at the several lipstick shades in her hand, unable to decide, so she decided to buy them all. She glanced at Mu Zhengxi beside her, who had just entered a new world and was being surrounded by sales assistants, diligently absorbing knowledge he used to despise.
Indeed, it's not that men are incapable of love, but rather that they don't love.
"It was bought for Ren Xin, right?"
Upon hearing this, Mu Zhengxi rolled his eyes.
Did I tell her I was going to buy it for her?
"I knew you two were having an affair all along!"
"Stop spreading rumors about Mu Yashan! What do you mean we're having an affair?!"
Seeing Mu Zhengxi's overreaction, Mu Yashan became even more suspicious and interrogated him with her arms crossed, "Weren't you watching a movie with someone else just now? Have you fallen for Mu Zhengxi instead?"
When it comes to teenage romance, it's sometimes like the only shoes you can wear besides your school uniform – if you have one, I have to have one too, and we even have to compare whose is more limited edition.
Mu Zhengxi wasn't really sure if she liked Ren Xin, but she felt pretty good hearing the cheers and envious comments when Ren Xin brought her water at the stadium.
But things are different now. People should have basic moral principles. This isn't called infidelity. If you know in advance that the right person is for you, there's no need to make mistakes. Staying chaste for your wife is called loyalty and family-oriented.
"Transfer your affections, buddy, I've never been in a relationship."
"Then who else could it be! Who else could it be!"
Mu Zhengxi shoved away Mu Yashan's probing face, saying, "Children shouldn't meddle in adult matters."
"Oh~ Mu Zhengxi, you have a problem."
Mu Zhengxi ignored her and glanced at the basket full of bottles and jars. "Is it all there?" He couldn't understand how so much stuff could be smeared on a face. If someone got poisoned after a kiss, it would take forever to test the ingredients.
"Tell me, who did you buy it for!"
"It's none of your business."
Mu Yashan, arms crossed, narrowed her eyes. "If you won't tell me, then I'll guess for myself."
Guessing is colloquially known as spreading rumors.
Mu Zhengxi didn't care.
"Guess."
After all, when it comes to gossip, the person who gets halfway through is the one who suffers the most.
"Mu Zhengxi!!!" Mu Yashan stepped forward, grabbed his arm, buried her head, and acted coquettishly, "Tell me, I promise I won't tell anyone! I swear!"
The man with his hands in his pockets smirked smugly, completely expecting Mu Yashan's reaction and having her figured out perfectly.
"What did you call me?"
"Brother, my dearest brother~"
"Good girl~" Mu Zhengxi reached out and ruffled Mu Yashan's hair, then looked down at his sister gently and said, "But even if you eat shit, your brother won't tell you, my dear—hiss, Mu Yashan..."
"I've given you too much face, Mu Zhengxi."
"Don't hit someone in the face, Mu Yashan!!"
"Was it wrong? Was it wrong?!"
"Okay, okay, I was wrong, I was wrong."
"Honestly, who is it? Don't even think about leaving me behind!"
"That brat is so strong!" Mu Zhengxi covered the half of his face that had just been controlled by the Nine Yin White Bone Claw, snatched back his baseball cap that had been taken from him, and said irritably, "Sister Xia, it's her birthday."
"Really?! You're not kidding me?!"
Mu Yashan clearly had doubts about this candidate, but since the two were in the same school and next-door classes, they would see each other all the time, and she really couldn't think of any girl who had appeared around Mu Zhengxi recently.
Believe it or not.
"Why didn't you say so earlier? These lipstick colors don't suit Sister Xia. I'll go change them. And this foundation—"
Mu Zhengxi quickly stepped aside to stop Mu Yashan from taking it away, "Who says it's not suitable? Maybe Sister Xia likes it this way. Let's go, I'm starving."
"If you're going to choose, choose carefully—"
"Hurry up, do you still want to go to the book signing this afternoon?!"
"Let's go, let's go!"
What a joke! If Mu Yashan knew this, it would be no different from announcing it to the whole world.
The fourth day of National Day.
Mu Yashan and her mother went on a shopping spree in Japan, which gave Mu Zhengxi the perfect opportunity to get rid of this clingy burden and head straight to Changqing alone.
Inside the shaved ice shop.
A handsome guy with a blue baseball cap backwards by the window rested his chin on his hand, looking worried. It's hard to imagine what troubles could possibly bother him on Earth.
Several employees shyly declined as they went forward to serve the food.
In the end, it was the store manager who had to step in.
"Handsome, your watermelon ice is ready."
"OK, thanks."
After Mu Zhengxi took a big spoonful of shaved ice, he felt like he had come back to life. His eyes lit up. Jiang Jiawei was right, this watermelon shaved ice was really good. Before worrying about how to give a gift, satisfying his appetite was more important.
"Handsome, are you here to have fun?"
"Ah, no, I'm here to find someone."
That's what they say, a blessed mouth is like this: one second you're saying you're looking for someone, and the next second that person appears outside the glass window.
"Then let's order watermelon ice."
Jiang Jia nodded. "Okay."
Just as Jiang Jiawei was about to push the door open, her arm was grabbed by Jiang Jiayi, who pulled her out and led her in the opposite direction.
"Sis, I suddenly have a stomachache, let's go back first."
"Why does my stomach hurt?"
"It just started hurting suddenly."
"ah?"
"Let's go quickly."
Just as Mu Zhengxi was about to greet them, he saw Jiang Jia glance at him and then grab someone and run away.
Holy crap, is this some kind of ghost story?
Mu Zhengxi looked at himself in the glass window with self-doubt. He was quite handsome.
No, it seems I have to deal with this brother-in-law first. As far as I can remember, he was the one who had the most objections to his relationship with Jiang Jiawei. In the beginning, he did a lot of urging his sister to break up with him.
Mu Zhengxi tapped his finger on the table. What could be the reason that Jiang Jiayi had such a big problem with him? It didn't seem to be entirely because of his sister complex. What was it then?
"Jiang Jiayi."
The person sitting on the ping-pong table, biting an ice pop, swung their legs and heard someone calling their name. They looked in the direction of the sound.
Mu Zhengxi stood not far away, holding a basketball in his hand.
The person who jumped off the table tried to run away, but Mu Zhengxi grabbed him by the collar in a few steps.
"Why are you running? Do you think I'm going to eat you?!"
Mu Zhengxi rolled his eyes, shoved the basketball into Jiang Jiayi's arms, and said, "Your dad asked me to take you to play basketball. He said you're too short."
Jiang Jiayi looked at the extra ball that had appeared in her arms.
"Don't believe me? Go back and ask him."
"Look for yourself, is this your basketball?"
Mu Zhengxi's two sentences immediately silenced all doubts.
The little devil, now quiet, pursed his lips and arrogantly raised his head, declaring, "I don't want to fight."
"If you don't want to hit me, why do you come here every day to look at things?"
Mu Zhengxi could clearly feel the other person stiffen for a moment. He raised an eyebrow, having eaten rice for three years longer than the other person, and reached out to put his hand on the thin, shorter shoulder. "Let's go."
Jiang Jiayi shifted her shoulder and stepped back, resisting, "I'm not going."
Mu Zhengxi forcefully pressed him down, "But before we play basketball, we need to take care of something first." Without waiting for a reply, he led the group away.
Ironically, even Jiang Jiayi, a model student in the eyes of his teachers, couldn't escape school bullying. And the person who bullied him was none other than the son of the police chief and the dean of students.
This is what Jiang Jiayi revealed to Mu Zhengxi after he got drunk during a confession session after marrying Jiang Jiawei.
Because of this unpleasant experience during her adolescence, Jiang Jiayi automatically views anyone from an official family with prejudice and has no good feelings towards them.
The man wearing a black jersey with the number 45 printed on the back was the one who dominated the entire basketball court, and was the culprit who caused Mu Zhengxi to be implicated.
How did you know?!
Jiang Jiayi has never told anyone about being bullied at school—not her father, not her sister, and not even her teachers.
Chen Pengfei had threatened him, saying that if he dared to tell anyone, he would get trouble for his sister and make his father's shop go out of business. He had that kind of power.
Jiang Jiayi didn't want to cause trouble for her family. Because her mother was at school, Chen Pengfei didn't dare to go too far. It was just that she didn't have any friends to play with, just some sarcastic remarks, and just small things like cleaning.
They're quite tolerant.
Mu Zhengxi lowered his voice and called out, "Chen Pengfei."
Jiang Jiayi was astonished, "You even know his name???"
In less than an afternoon, Mu Zhengxi almost figured out how old this famous playboy was when he had his first nocturnal emission.
Little brat, just wait till you're all calling him Brother Xi.
The person whose name was called stopped his breakthrough move, turned around, and his displeasure at being interrupted was written all over his face.
"Why are you calling me 'your father'?!"
"There's something I want to talk to you about."
Upon hearing this, Chen Pengfei became intrigued. Who was so foolish as to be courting death? He stood up straight, turned around, and saw an unfamiliar face. Then he saw Jiang Jiayi standing next to Mu Zhengxi and immediately understood. With a disdainful smile, he dribbled the ball over and walked over. "You've come looking for backup. What do you say, a fight?"
Mu Zhengxi estimated the height of the person in front of him to be 1.75 meters, no more. He was slightly chubby but sturdy, and his face was nothing special, with two eyes and a nose.
A group of people stopped playing basketball and gathered around to watch, each with a malicious glint in their eyes.
Jiang Jiayi tugged at Mu Zhengxi's clothes, "Let's go, several of them are involved in organized crime."
"Why are you such a coward, Jiang Jiayi?"
Mu Zhengxi reached out and pressed his palm against the unconsciously hunched back. "Stand up straight."
The large, warm palm brought an inexplicable power. Jiang Jia glanced at the person beside her. Mu Zhengxi, with the same contemptuous expression as Chen Pengfei, was not intimidated at all. But he was more handsome than Chen Pengfei, much more handsome in every way.
Which boy who watched the "Young and Dangerous" movies hasn't idolized and fantasized about becoming Chan Ho-nam?
Jiang Jiayi was no exception.
“We,” Chen Pengfei gestured to his group of people, then looked at Mu Zhengxi, “It’s not fair to just give it to you, brother. I’m afraid you’ll get crippled.”
The shrill laughter of the crowd assaulted my ears, making me reflexively feel nauseous.
Mu Zhengxi tilted his head and smiled, with a hint of helplessness in his expression. He reached out and took the basketball from Jiang Jiayi's hand, tossed it in his hand, and raised an eyebrow, indicating, "Dare you?"
Just kidding, if Jiang Jiayi got into a gang fight, and Jiang Jiawei and his father-in-law found out, he'd be dead.
Chen Pengfei spat, "Anyone who doesn't dare is a coward."
Men are just easily provoked.
Especially during adolescence.
One-on-one tag team battle.
Standing on the sidelines, Jiang Jia stared in disbelief at the group of people who had collapsed from exhaustion on the field, then looked at Mu Zhengxi, who remained as steady as a rock after completing a round of play.
Judging by the intensity of a football team's training, this was just a warm-up for Mu Zhengxi. The man who easily tossed the basketball into the hoop kicked Chen Pengfei, who was sitting on the ground panting heavily, and asked, "Are you convinced now?"
"I give up." Chen Pengfei's character is terrible, but his sportsmanship is not. He doesn't have many hobbies, just playing basketball. He readily admits this, pushes himself up, and pats his pants.
Which school did you go to?
I'd never heard of this person before.
"From social schools."
Chen Pengfei looked at the people behind him questioningly, but they all shook their heads. So he immediately took a small step back warily.
Mu Zhengxi smiled, reached out and grabbed his shoulder, pulling him back. "It doesn't matter which school I go to, what matters is that Jiang Jiayi is my brother."
Mu Zhengxi turned his head and called out, "Jiang Jiayi, come here."
"Jiang Jiayi."
The people on the sidelines snapped out of their daze and jogged over, now standing tall and full of energy.
Chen Pengfei felt like his shoulders were about to be crushed, and he gritted his teeth and said with great difficulty, "I'm sorry."
Jiang Jia looked at him, her expressionless face showing no emotional fluctuation.
Mu Zhengxi asked, "Anything else?"
"I was wrong."
"Anything else?"
"Let go first!"
Mu Zhengxi tilted his head and readily agreed to loosen the restrictions.
Chen Pengfei grinned, shrugged, and glared at the person next to him. "Any more would be too much! Don't think I won't beat you up!"
Mu Zhengxi glanced at him coldly, "What? Are you going to tell me who your father is?"
"you!"
"I'm not buying it." Mu Zhengxi suppressed his anger, grabbed the other person's neck, and lowered his head to whisper in his ear, "Do you recognize the big characters written on the police station sign? Even though you got into high school through connections, you should have learned the nine-year compulsory education, right? Do you know what 'serving the people' means?"
"Is this how your father raised you? To bully others because of your power? Hmm?"
Mu Zhengxi was well aware that while he couldn't say that his current confidence was entirely due to his family background—he too was born a beneficiary of this bureaucratic system—Jiang Wenqing had once said that the biggest difference between people was their conscience.
At least, he's not a heartless person.
"Don't mention my dad!"
"Are you getting angry out of embarrassment? You know you've lost face? Or is it a case of 'like father, like son'? Is this how your father serves the people?"
"My dad isn't!!!"
"Not the best." Mu Zhengxi let go of his hand and pushed the person away.
He didn't ask for a full apology; something insincere was meaningless, especially since the damage had already been done. He picked up the basketball he had just used to dominate the court, shoved it back into Jiang Jiayi's arms, and left with his men.
When it comes to showing off, if you can do it well, you're king.
"Hey, Brother Xi, are you really that good at basketball?" The person following behind him said it smoothly.
"So now you know to call him Brother Xi?"
Mu Zhengxi remembered that apart from pretending to be obedient and calling his brother-in-law in front of his sister, this kid basically always called him by his full name, Mu Zhengxi. It seemed that he needed to establish a better image and authority and not let this kind of thing happen again.
"I'm better at soccer."
"You can play soccer?"
"uh-huh."
"Please teach me, okay?"
"Alright, I'll take you as my apprentice."
Little brat.
Jiang Jiayi once said that the reason Chen Pengfei bullied him was very simple, so simple that it was laughable: his mother always compared him to herself at home.
Mu Zhengxi scoffed. Some people are just bad at what they do but can't stand seeing others do well. Tsk, Chen Pengfei, Chen Haosen, all those with the surname Chen are the same.
"Jiang Jiayi."
"Um?"
"You will become someone more powerful than many people in this world in the future, so don't take these words and actions to heart."
The gifted boy who skipped a grade to attend junior high school is not only the first top scorer in the college entrance examination in this county, but also a future tech giant.
Mu Zhengxi looked down and saw that the boy's eyes were full of surprise as he looked at him.
"I'm serious, you have to believe me."
After all, he was chosen by fate to foresee the future. Oh my god, right? So he also saved a boy with childhood trauma. Is God making him sacrifice himself?!
Mu Zhengxi recalled that Jiang Jiawei seemed to have a few cousins. One was also a top scorer in the college entrance examination, another was selected by the Air Force Military Academy after graduating from high school, and there was another one... hmm... I can't remember.
"Hey, do you have a younger brother?"
"You mean my aunt's son?"
"right."
How many?
"I have two younger brothers."
Holy crap! It actually matches!
Isn't this some kind of divine hint?!
He truly lives up to his reputation; he married a wife who turned out to be a talent pool. His eye for talent is unparalleled.
This is far superior to Mu Zhengting's.
Mu Zhengxi patted Jiang Jiayi on the shoulder, "Study hard. Make me proud."
Mu Zhengxi suddenly found his brother-in-law more and more pleasing to the eye.
But then I remembered, "Why did you run away when you saw me at noon?"
Logically speaking, Jiang Jiayi should not know anything about his family situation.
Jiang Jiayi pursed her lips and said after a while, "I was worried that you were with them. I thought you were here to cause trouble for my sister."
Mu Zhengxi's vision went black. His reputation was severely damaged. Damn Chen Pengfei! But wait!
"Someone's been causing trouble for your sister???"
Jiang Jiayi quickly denied it, "No."
Originally, his family moved their shop here because Jiang Weichao was worried about Jiang Jiawei. No. 3 Middle School is considered to be in the middle to upper range among high schools in Changqing, but the students' levels vary greatly. Many parents don't care and hang out with unruly youths in society.
Even though they were separated by a street, Jiang Weichao would always wait at the door to pick up Jiang Jiawei from school every evening after self-study.
"That's good."
Mu Zhengxi relaxed.
"Let me treat you to shaved ice, Xi-ge!"
Mu Zhengxi snorted coldly as he looked at the fawning smile. Sure enough, his younger brother and sister were all the same.
What do you think of me now?
"You...you're a good person!"
Jiang Jiayi said this sincerely.
Mu Zhengxi's lips twitched. This was the first time in his life he had been treated like a pervert and given the "friend zone" card. He had it all done at once. Fine... whatever.
"Actually, I didn't completely think you were one of them at first..."
After all, their looks are on completely different levels.
“But that day you…” Jiang Jia started to speak but then quickly shut up.
Mu Zhengxi reached out and grabbed the back of his neck, pinching it threateningly, "Say it, but what?"
"Don't be angry when I tell you."
"OK."
Jiang Jia glanced at him cautiously, carefully choosing her words, "I think you're a bit strange."
That's it, okay.
Mu Zhengxi admitted that he felt his previous behavior seemed strange to others.
"You're not angry, are you?"
Mu Zhengxi released his hand and said generously, "No."
Jiang Jia asked, "Brother Xi, were you scared if there had been a real fight just now?"
The man with his hands in his pockets exuded confidence: "Fear? That word doesn't exist in my dictionary."
Jiang Jiayi's eyes lit up. "Can you beat them? There are so many of them."
"Your brother—" Mu Zhengxi quickly stopped talking, turned around and sternly lectured, "You're just a kid, always thinking about fighting. What if your sister finds out!"
"No! My sister can't know about this!"
"Now you know fear?"
"My sister definitely can't beat them all by herself."
“I knew it,” Mu Zhengxi said, his eyes widening. “Wait, is Jiang Jiayi’s sister really this wild??”
Jiang Jiayi said in a muffled voice, "My sister will be very sad if she finds out. She will definitely go to Chen Pengfei and the others."
Mu Zhengxi scoffed, "Of course! You're your sister's precious darling. Your sibling bond is a mutual, earth-shattering display of affection." Mu Zhengting's face appeared in the image perfectly at that moment. Mu Zhengxi, caught up in the scene, felt a chill and rubbed his arms, which instantly broke out in goosebumps.
Ugh, that's disgusting.
Of course, it's impossible not to fight.
Some men, unless they are thoroughly beaten into submission, always think they are still capable. Reasoning is only suitable for the negotiating table when they are absolutely suppressed by force.
"Are you convinced now?"
"I'm impressed."
"Are you really convinced?"
"I'm really impressed, bro!"
Chen Pengfei clutched his stomach.
Mu Zhengxi stood up and clapped his hands. "Study hard. You don't seem stupid. Let your mother see what you're made of."
How did you know?!
"Just a guess."
"Which school do you go to?"
"I mentioned the social school."
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