Chapter 10: Miss Jian, Won’t You Come In and Sit?

Beijing No. 3 Middle School.

After the lights were turned off in the boys’ dormitory, Jian Xu hunched over, leaning against the wall of the stairwell. He lowered his head, his bangs covering his eyes. The boy who should have been clear and bright was now shrouded in gloom.

He stood motionless in the dim stairwell.

At this moment, footsteps and voices came from downstairs, echoing in the hallway.

“The only spot in the school’s cybersecurity competition was given to a bastard. I don’t know what your uncle, the principal, was thinking.”

The person who said this was in the same class as Jian Xu, a small-time hoodlum who often mocked Jian Xu, calling him a bastard.

Then another voice came. “Stop complaining. How many people in our school know cybersecurity? The spot was given to him because he has the skills.”

“Also, he has a name. Don’t keep calling him a bastard. If people could choose their origins, who would want to be a bastard?”

“I’ll remind you, don’t go around provoking Jian Xu. My uncle told me today that Jian Xu has someone backing him. His background is powerful beyond imagination. He’s practically running the capital.”

In the darkness, Jian Xu’s eyes narrowed slightly, his expression complex. The footsteps got closer, and he turned back to the dormitory.

——

For the next two days, Jian Ruo Ci stayed at home, designing drafts, and basically stayed indoors all day. Xie Qingyun came to help her with her medicine every day.

To show her gratitude, Jian Ruo Ci would buy groceries in advance and cook extra dishes for lunch, inviting her to stay.

It had been a few days since she was injured, and her back wound was almost healed. She didn’t need Xie Qingyun’s help anymore.

She added some juice to Xie Qingyun’s glass. “Qingyun, thank you for these past few days. My wound is almost healed. I can’t trouble you anymore.”

Xie Qingyun didn’t even think twice before rejecting her. “No way. My brother said a week is a week.”

She saw Jian Ruo Ci’s lips move, about to speak, and she knew what she was going to say.

Xie Qingyun put down her chopsticks and looked at her seriously. “Ruo Ci, don’t say anything about trouble or no trouble. I’m not just mooching off you at your house every day.”

“Besides, that Pei Yan Zhou is a real jerk. If I don’t listen to him, he won’t help me chase guys.”

“Those are all secondary. The most important two points are: first, you’re an amazing cook, and second, I like you. I grew up abroad and don’t have many friends. You’re my first friend since I came back. There’s no such thing as trouble or no trouble between friends.”

Jian Ruo Ci was touched by her words. Besides Yan Xi, this was the first person to say these things to her. All these years, she had no friends. Besides Yan Xi and Jian Xu, no one had treated her sincerely.

“Qingyun, thank you.”

“Don’t be so polite.” Xie Qingyun laughed and waved her hand casually. “Your back wound is a bit deep. If you’re not careful, it will leave a scar. You won’t be able to wear any backless dresses.”

“Be good and listen to me. It’s so ugly for girls to have scars.”

Jian Ruo Ci nodded, no longer refusing. A faint smile curved her lips. The girl in front of her and Pei Yan Zhou were polar opposites in personality. One was warm and enthusiastic like a little sun, the other was cold, dark, and serious.

Jian Ruo Ci: “Qingyun’s personality is really…”

Xie Qingyun thought for a moment. “I wasn’t always like this. I used to be insecure and dark.”

That was all in the past. Later, she met a few people who helped her out of the darkness.

“Ruo Ci, at the banquet that day, I saw it. Your family doesn’t care about you at all, right?” She saw it with her own eyes. After she was injured, her father didn’t take her to the hospital. Instead, he kept up appearances and even showed obvious disgust in his eyes.

When she saw Jian Ruo Ci take a few steps and couldn’t hold herself up, she couldn’t bear to watch. She was about to step forward when Pei Yan Zhou arrived.

Jian Ruo Ci pursed her lips, not saying anything, which was tantamount to tacit agreement.

Xie Qingyun: “Don’t let them make you deny yourself. If no one loves you, you should live beautifully. You’re not wrong. They gave you life but couldn’t love you properly. That’s their fault.”

Some people won’t love you just because you have an inseparable blood relationship with them.

Jian Ruo Ci’s eyelashes fluttered slightly. Yan Xi once said she was insightful, but that wasn’t true. She often negated herself, reflecting on whether she hadn’t done something well enough. She wasn’t as insightful as the girl in front of her.

She looked at Xie Qingyun and smiled. “I understand.”

“Thank…”

“Stop.” Xie Qingyun said helplessly. “Don’t thank me anymore. The most common word I’ve heard these past few days is ‘thank you’.”

It was undeniable. Jian Ruo Ci swallowed the words of gratitude. “Then, Qingyun, you just came back to the capital. If you’re not familiar with the city or want to go out and play, you can ask me. I’ll be your tour guide. There are many fun places in the capital. Don’t be polite to me.”

“Okay, that’s settled then.”

After Xie Qingyun left, Jian Ruo Ci received a call from the dry cleaner. The suit she had sent was ready.

She went to the dry cleaner to pick up the suit, then took a short nap. At four in the afternoon, she went out with the paper bag.

She went to the entrance of the community and hailed a taxi to Wanjiang Mansion.

The drive took twenty minutes, and then it took another half an hour to get there because of traffic.

She arrived at a villa according to the location Pei Yan Zhou had given her. The villa was three stories high, modern and simple yet luxurious. Through the black, openwork gate, she could see the stone path in the courtyard.

It was truly the place where a capitalist would live, grand and imposing. But although the house was large, it was devoid of any human presence, empty.

There was a doorbell on the right side of the black gate. She stared at the doorbell for a few seconds, feeling a little nervous. They had only met twice, once when she was drunk and flirting with him, and once when she was injured. Neither time was normal.

Besides, she wasn’t sure if Pei Yan Zhou would hold her flirting with him against her.

She came back to her senses, took a deep breath, and pressed the doorbell.

A few seconds later, the person who came out of the house wasn’t Pei Yan Zhou, but a middle-aged man in his fifties. Judging by the clothes he was wearing, he must be a butler or something similar.

The middle-aged man opened the door and looked at her. “Hello.”

Jian Ruo Ci politely nodded at him. “Hello. Is Pei Yan Zhou here?”

“He’s not here right now.” The middle-aged man continued. “He should be back soon. Would you like to wait in the living room, Miss?”

Not being there was actually better. She didn’t want to see Pei Yan Zhou. She smiled slightly, looked at the middle-aged man, and handed him the paper bag. “I won’t bother you. This is his suit. Please give it back to him. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

The middle-aged man reached out to take the paper bag from her hand, but a voice interrupted him.

“Miss Jian, won’t you come in and sit?”

Hearing the voice, Jian Ruo Ci turned her head and saw Pei Yan Zhou standing two meters away from her, his hands in his pockets, his gaze fixed on her. The hand holding the paper bag froze. She was afraid of what she was afraid of.

The middle-aged man withdrew his hand and looked respectfully at Pei Yan Zhou. “Go ahead.”

Pei Yan Zhou’s brow furrowed slightly in indifference. “Uncle He, you go ahead.”