Chapter 23 Chapter 23 Showers.
The club's car followed behind, carrying Xia Mingzhou. In the back seat of the Maybach in front sat Ye Peixiu and Xia Qingwan.
Ye Peixiu seemed a little worried, so he gently grasped her shoulder through the armrest and turned her body around, "Were you scared?"
Xia Qingwan shook her head.
There was nothing we could do about it.
With Grandma not home, Xia Changping unreliable, and Lin Xiangyu and her boyfriend broken up, she's the only one left who can take care of things.
"...Thank you for making this trip."
She said.
Ye Peixiu chuckled, lifted his hand from her shoulder, and flicked the tip of her nose. "Still telling me this?"
It was the first time someone did this to her.
The way he spoke and his expression seemed to suggest that he would naturally look after her, without needing to say a word.
Xia Qingwan was a little stunned. His hand had been withdrawn for a while. She turned her head to look out the car window and couldn't help but raise her hand to touch the tip of her nose.
It seemed as if the warmth of his fingers still lingered there.
-
The cars drove to the gate one after the other. The club's car registered and reported at the checkpoint before driving to the front of the Xia family's old residence.
The club owner personally supported Xia Mingzhou, and several people took him into the living room of the main house.
When Grandma Xi saw Xia Mingzhou being carried in limply, she was so shocked that she almost fainted.
Xia Qingwan rushed over to help the elderly woman.
Xia Mingzhou was put into the bedroom on the first floor, where the club owner served him attentively, helping to take care of Xiao Xuan and making hangover soup.
After busily feeding Xia Mingzhou, the club owner shakily said goodbye.
After settling these things, Grandma Xi was busy greeting Ye Peixiu.
"Mr. Ye, thank you for your help."
"It's alright, please sit down, don't bother me."
"Grandma Xi, please sit down," Xia Qingwan said. "If I run around with my cane and accidentally fall, I'll have to take care of you, and I won't be able to manage it all."
Grandma Xi sat down with a smile, "Hey, hey."
He sighed again, "That kid Mingzhou is really something. He's such a grown-up, yet he still has no sense of proportion."
He was already dead drunk at the club before it even got dark.
Xia Qingwan went to the bedroom to check on Xia Mingzhou, then returned to the living room to get a footstool for Grandma Xi and helped her put her feet in place.
Ye Peixiu, sitting on the sofa, said, "Qingwan, go and rest for a while."
"Um?"
"Go and rest for a while."
"Oh, okay."
After he said that, Xia Qingwan remembered that she had been taking online classes. The live broadcast should have ended by now, so she had to quickly watch the replay to see what homework the professor had assigned.
Thinking of this, she said, "Then I'll go to the side hall to attend class. Grandma Xi, please call me if you need anything."
Xia Qingwan turned on her computer and put on her headphones at the long boxwood table in the side hall, which her grandmother often used.
After listening to the second half of the replay, she opened her notes app to write down her homework, carefully reviewed the questions, and quickly typed out the textbooks, references, and works that she might need to complete the assignment.
At that moment, she felt someone place a glass of water next to her.
She looked up.
Ye Peixiu raised his chin slightly and said, "Drink some water."
While Xia Qingwan was drinking water, he stood beside her, casually flipping through the books scattered on the desk.
As luck would have it, there was a copy of "Dream of the Red Chamber" lying open beside her, which she had picked up a few days ago while doing her homework.
Ye Peixiu picked up the book and walked to the sofa not far away and sat down.
There is a bookshelf in the side hall. The lower half is filled with various physics textbooks, while the upper half is Xia Qingwan's territory, filled with commonly used ancient books and materials.
While she was looking up information and doing her homework, Ye Peixiu sat on the sofa and read a book to keep her company.
I don't know how long it was before a sudden noise came from the living room.
Xia Qingwan thought that Xia Mingzhou had woken up, and was about to get up to check it out, when she saw a man walking towards the side hall from the living room.
"Studying late in the evening?"
The newcomer was Xia Changping, with a strangely gentle smile on his face. He seemed so familiar and friendly, as if he and Xia Qingwan had always been close uncle and nephew.
Passing the blind spot, Xia Changping saw Ye Peixiu on the sofa.
He froze in place for a moment, but that stunned expression quickly transformed into a smile of surprise. "Mr. Ye! Why are you here?"
As he spoke, he strode forward, raising both hands as if to shake hands firmly.
Ye Peixiu sat on the sofa without moving, and nodded slightly, "Mr. Xia."
Xia Changping acted as if nothing had happened, putting his hands behind his back, his smile barely moving. "It's a rare honor to have you grace us with your presence. My mother isn't home, so I apologize for any inconvenience caused."
As she was speaking, Grandma Xi, leaning on a cane, hurried over from the living room and explained, "Mingzhou drank too much at the club, and Mr. Ye happened to be there, so he sent someone to bring Mingzhou back."
“Is that so? My son is really useless. I’m so sorry to have troubled you so much,” Xia Changping said. “Once he sobers up, I will have him thank you in person.”
"It was just a small favor."
Ye Peixiu said politely.
"If you have any instructions in the future, just tell me. Even though my son is not very smart, it would be a blessing for him to run errands for you."
“No need,” Ye Peixiu said with a slight smile. “I don’t need any more manpower.”
Grandma Xi gave Xia Qingwan several looks.
Xia Qingwan was also a little nervous. Xia Changping hadn't been back to the old house for a long time, and she never expected him to suddenly show up today and run into Ye Peixiu.
All this happened unexpectedly.
After calming down and observing for a while, she immediately realized that Xia Changping's initial stunned and surprised reaction upon seeing Ye Peixiu was all an act.
In a place like Beiguanfang Hutong, Ye Peixiu abandoned the banquet in the main hall and had a rare outburst in the side hall. Such an action could not fail to alarm people. Xia Changping must have heard the news and knew that his son had been taken back to the Xia family's old house by Ye Peixiu, so he hurried over -
He had been trying to see Ye Peixiu for a long time without success, so how could he let go of such a legitimate opportunity to strike up a conversation?
She closed the book and said calmly, "Uncle, let me take you to see Brother Mingzhou."
Xia Changping had already sat down opposite Ye Peixiu and was about to take out a cigarette when he heard this. He paused, his smile deepening, and said, "Mr. Ye, please sit down. I'll go check on Mingzhou."
After getting up, she said to Grandma Xi, "Why didn't you serve Mr. Ye a cup of tea? With the old lady not home, is there no manners left in the house?"
As early as when Ye Peixiu arrived, Aunt Xiaoxuan had already brewed tea and brought it up, which remained on the coffee table in the living room without Ye Peixiu even glancing at it.
However, Grandma Xi was too lazy to explain these words to Xia Changping. She simply agreed and turned to get busy.
Xia Qingwan led Xia Changping to the bedroom on the first floor.
The person had already been brought there, and Xia Qingwan was about to turn away when she looked up and saw Xia Changping looking at her with a meaningful gaze.
Xia Qingwan remained expressionless and said, "Take a look at Brother Mingzhou."
After saying that, he turned to leave, but Xia Changping lowered his voice and said with a smile, "Does your grandma know?"
"...What do you know?"
"Your relationship with Mr. Ye."
Xia Changping was still smiling, with a confident and calm demeanor.
"What is my relationship with Mr. Ye?"
"No need to pretend with me," Xia Changping laughed. "It's all over the circle. It's said that Mr. Ye has a female college student. It happens to be Mingzhou's cousin."
"You're not the only cousin in Mingzhou?"
At this time, Xia Mingzhou muttered unclearly: Xiaoyu, Xiaoyu.
She murmured the name a few times, then started sobbing again.
Xia Changping glanced at the bed and sneered, "These young girls nowadays are really something. Your girlfriend in Mingzhou is currying favor with Mr. Sheng, and you've hooked up with Mr. Ye."
"Watch your mouth."
This little girl actually dared to scold him?
Xia Changping felt a surge of anger, his lips parted into a ferocious arc, but he forced it back and laughed, "You don't need to get angry with me," he deliberately paused, "...If you don't want to, I can keep it from your grandmother, and if necessary, I can help you keep it a secret."
"Don't flatter yourself. Mr. Ye and I have nothing to hide."
"Is that so?" Xia Changping seemed to have already obtained enough information, and smiled calmly, "Do you dare to say that your grandmother knew about all your interactions with Mr. Ye?"
"If your grandmother knew you were sleeping with a man eight years older than you, she would probably be the first one to break your legs."
His words were so certain that they sounded more like a threat than a warning.
Xia Qingwan laughed in anger and said, "You're probably the first person in the Xia family to spread rumors about your own niece outside."
Xia Changping ignored her, turned around and lit a cigarette.
Xia Qingwan looked at his back and said with a smile, "Besides, judging from your posture, you would rather climb into Mr. Ye's bed than me, but it's a pity——"
Xia Changping flew into a rage, threw the cigarette he had just lit on the ground, and rushed around the bed to hit her.
Xia Qingwan raised her head and asked, "What? Are you going to hit me?"
That cold yet stubborn expression was just like Xia Xili when she was a child.
Xia Changping braked abruptly, lowered his raised hand, and sneered, "You're so brave! Now that you have Mr. Ye's support, you even dare to scold me."
Xia Qingwan slowly lowered his clenched fist, his whole body trembling, trying to steady his breathing. He said, "I advise you to take care of yourself and not to have any more ideas about grandma. She needs—"
Before he could finish his words, he was interrupted by Xia Changping, who leisurely lit another cigarette and said with a smile, "You want to protect your grandmother?"
"Have you ever considered that she is my biological mother? In this family, I am the first-in-line heir. Your father died a long time ago, so you are an outsider." At this point, Xia Changping couldn't help laughing, and even felt a sense of pleasure in revenge. "Little girl, do you understand your place?"
Xia Qingwan turned around and heard Xia Changping say behind her, "Cooperate with me, and you will have a way out. Think about it carefully."
Without looking back, she left the first-floor bedroom and went straight up the stairs.
Returning to her bedroom, she calmly tidied up her desk, rearranging the already tidy surface into an orderly manner.
After tidying up the desk, I went to tidy up the bathroom.
Clean the sink and wipe the mirror.
She didn't feel sad or upset.
Of course she knew all along that the moment her parents left, she no longer had a home.
Xia Changping is indeed the first in line to inherit the Xia family. In this family, Xia Huiqing and Grandma Xi are her only two relatives. In fact, she is no different now than when she was fostered by her teacher in Shaoping City, who was not related to her when she was a child.
It is perfectly normal for anyone except Xia Huiqing and Grandma Xi to be malicious and hostile towards her.
As long as she follows her own path, studies hard, and works diligently, she will be able to establish her own home after graduation and finding a job.
This was something she had thought through a long, long time ago.
There is no need to be sad or upset.
All the disappointments in life are just a passing shower.
It's just that she is getting wet in the rain at the moment, it's no big deal.
At this time, someone knocked on the door.
She had no idea that she hadn't turned on the main light since returning to her bedroom.
Xia Qingwan walked through the dim bedroom, went over and turned the handle.
She looked up.
Standing outside the door was Ye Peixiu, whose tall figure blocked out the light in the corridor, making her suddenly realize that she was in the dark.
This darkness, however, inexplicably made people feel safe and warm.
Her usually aloof and detached face now revealed a hint of vulnerability that showed no signs of defense.
Two streams of tears flowed down without warning.
There was a stormy look in Ye Peixiu's deep eyes.
He raised his hand and gently wiped away her silent tears with the back of his fingers.
Xia Qingwan took a breath and called out in an almost imperceptible voice, "...Mr. Ye."
Ye Peixiu took two steps closer, walked into her bedroom, and closed the door behind him.
In her drowsy bedroom, he grabbed the back of her head and pressed her into his arms.
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