"hiss--"
They were shocked to learn a shocking piece of gossip, and Lin Jicheng and the others stared wide-eyed!
"An arranged marriage? A partner chosen by your parents?"
An Xinmeng rubbed her hands together excitedly.
"I know this Huang Tianci! He's that internet celebrity with millions of followers on Douyin! He claims to be the son of the richest man in Beicheng, and his family has moved to Beijing to develop their business; they're extremely wealthy..."
"Their family has actually formed a marriage alliance with your Qiao family! I feel like I'm reading a romance novel..."
Qiao Lingyuan smiled self-deprecatingly:
"Marriage alliance, ha... That sounds nice, but it's nothing more than a tool to consolidate the Huang family's wealth!"
An Xinmeng's expression froze, and Qiao Lingyuan continued in a low voice:
“I have an older brother. Compared to him, who doesn’t like studying at all, I never caused my parents any worry. Whether it was studying or anything else, I did everything better than my brother…”
"I always thought my father gave me good educational resources because he loved me and wanted to nurture me, but I only found out later—"
"No matter how good my grades are, no matter how hard I work to get into the business school of a top university in the country, no matter how hopeless my brother is, and how much he ruined our family business to the point of bankruptcy... not a single penny of our family's assets will be mine!"
"It's simply because... I'm not a man!"
"My God... I can't believe this happened!"
Xu Qingning was amazed:
"So even wealthy families have a preference for sons over daughters? I thought it was only in poor families like ours..."
"Whether one's mindset is progressive or not has little to do with a family's wealth."
Qiao Lingyuan shook her head in despair:
"What's worse, they're going to force me into a marriage with Huang Tianci against my will..."
“At first, I felt that the age gap between Huang Tianci and me was too big, and I didn’t want to date. But my parents sang his praises about his family background and character, and they kept brainwashing me, telling me to ‘make the most of him.’ I didn’t want to disappoint my parents, so I went to meet him, and then I discovered…”
Qiao Lingyuan and Lin Jicheng exchanged a glance, both instantly recalling their experience at the SXP shopping mall—
"Huang Tianci is nothing like the good person he claims to be online! He tried to touch me inappropriately the first time we met. He's just a selfish, vain person who doesn't respect women!"
"I really can't feel any liking for someone like that!"
Qiao Lingyuan sighed:
"After returning from the mall that time, I secretly inquired about Huang Tianci through friends in the industry. I didn't expect him to be even more terrifying in private..."
“He started bullying classmates from a young age. Everyone in the circle whose family was not as well off as his had been bullied by him. He also had a lot of messy relationships with women. The number of women he had one-night stands with could fill two football fields... In short, he did whatever was most promiscuous!”
Qiao Lingyuan's tone grew increasingly desperate:
"However, in my parents' eyes, no matter how bad Huang Tianci is, marrying a daughter into the family will bring them a lot of resources and money. It's definitely a worthwhile deal!"
As Lin Jicheng listened, his brows furrowed more and more, but Qiao Lingyuan continued speaking:
"I've cried, I've made a scene, I've fiercely resisted, but I've never been able to change my parents' minds!"
"With their tacit approval, my objections seem so insignificant... They even condoned Huang Tianci harassing and stalking me, I really can't take it anymore...!"
No wonder... no wonder...!
Lin Jicheng frowned; everything from the past seemed to make sense now.
"yes……"
Qiao Lingyuan covered her eyes with her hands:
"I thought that by keeping a low profile and going to university, I could avoid their attention, but I never expected..."
"It was actually my parents who encouraged Huang Tianci to harass me!"
"Are they really that desperate for money? Are they in such a hurry to sell me off?!"
Qiao Lingyuan broke down, and the three of them sighed and comforted her. An Xinmeng let out a long sigh:
"Alright, alright... Whether you're rich or poor, everyone has their own difficulties..."
"Never mind, it's fine for an ordinary family like mine..."
An Xinmeng let out a long sigh. She casually picked up her phone and scrolled through it, but unexpectedly froze on the spot. At the same time, the system in Lin Jicheng's mind started frantically sounding alarms—
[Warning! An event endangering the host has occurred!]
A look of shock and disbelief flashed across An Xinmeng's eyes. She quickly scrolled through the messages displayed on her phone, her eyes and mouth forming an "O" shape.
"What's wrong? What happened?"
Xu Qingning looked at An Xinmeng with a puzzled expression. An Xinmeng finally managed to shut her mouth, then solemnly handed her phone to Lin Jicheng.
"Ji Cheng, I think you should take a look at this news—"
Lin Jicheng glanced at his phone and saw several red "hot" trending topics popping up.
"#A Deep Dive into Huang Tianci, the Eldest Son of the Huang Family, and His Gold-Digging Women!#"
"#The identity of the beautiful freshman at Jinghua University is actually...!#"
Titles like these made Lin Jicheng frown. She clicked on one and saw a video posted by Huang Tianci, a popular influencer with millions of followers on the Douyin platform—
The video was filmed today, at the familiar gate of Jinghua University. Huang Tianci, driving his signature sports car, was righteously and vehemently cursing at the campus gate—
"The world is going to the dogs, and people's hearts are no longer what they used to be! How can someone who makes money by selling their body get into the nation's top university?"
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
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