Zhou Zhizhi saw that he did not understand, and reached out to tug at the corner of his suit jacket.
He still did not understand, but he had no interest in understanding either. He said coldly to her, "Let's go, to school."
Zhou Zhizhi: No need, I'll finish memorizing my vocabulary words first.
He couldn't understand and lacked the patience to look.
"Hurry up, I have to get to the company."
Qin Ming urged.
Zhou Zhizhi nodded, signaling him to wait for her for a moment. Then she went back inside to pack her schoolbag, grabbed it, and followed Qin Ming into the car.
It was already six o'clock by the time they reached the school. It was her first time arriving at school this early.
There was hardly anyone around.
When they reached the school gates, Qin Ming let Zhou Zhizhi out and spoke up: "We're here."
Zhou Zhizhi prepared to get out of the car, but pausing for a moment, she took out the breakfast she had prepared in her schoolbag and handed it to him.
Zhou Zhizhi: Skipping breakfast is bad for your health. My breakfast is for you, Eldest Brother.
It was the boiled egg she had set aside the night before.
Qin Ming looked at the egg and milk she placed in his palm, then watched her sign, but after looking for a long time, he still didn't understand.
He handed her his phone and told her to type.
Zhou Zhizhi repeated what she had just signed, typing it out on his phone.
Huh?
Her breakfast?
"You gave this to me, what are you going to eat?" Qin Ming's attitude softened slightly.
Zhou Zhizhi: The other classmates will bring me some.
The students in Class 17 were extremely affectionate; knowing she was going to participate in the competition, they had even taken responsibility for buying her breakfast.
Qin Ming didn't understand her sign language, nor did he have the time to watch her sign, but he could tell she was trying to win favor with him.
He said bluntly: "There is no need to win favor with me."
Zhou Zhizhi shook her head.
It wasn't to win favor; it was simply because he was her Eldest Brother.
"Zhou Zhizhi."
Qin Ming saw her classmates approaching. "I'm going to work."
He closed the car door and drove away.
Si Xue saw Zhou Zhizhi getting out of a luxury car and felt a twinge of jealousy.
This luxury car cost tens of millions and was a limited edition.
How could the Cheng Family be willing to drive such a nice car to drop her off? The Cheng Family lacked nothing, yet every time they sent her to school, the car was only worth a million.
Zhou Zhizhi looked over at her.
She wanted to know what kind of trouble Si Xue was trying to stir up again.
Si Xue disliked Zhou Zhizhi's attitude; a mere mute actually dared to look at her with that expression—so annoying.
"I heard the Eldest Young Master Qin has gone missing." She looked at Zhou Zhizhi and asked with a smile, "You still have the mood to go to school? Ever since you came to the Qin Family, Qin Yue lost the championship, and Eldest Young Master Qin has gone missing. Zhizhi, you really are a jinx."
Ever since Zhou Zhizhi found out that Si Xue could foresee the future, she understood why Si Xue had changed so drastically.
She gave Si Xue a cold look.
Ignoring her, she continued walking toward the school gates.
"Zhou Zhizhi, all these trials and tribulations in the Qin Family are because of you. If you don't want to get your Third Brother killed, along with the rest of the Qin Family, leave the Qin Family right now and go back to Red Star Village."
Si Xue paused. "If you don't leave the Qin Family, every single person in the Qin Family will be killed because of you."
"Zhou Zhizhi, do you really want to see everyone in the Qin Family meet a miserable end because of you?"
Seeing that Zhou Zhizhi was ignoring her, Si Xue grabbed her wrist with a hint of irritation. "Zhou Zhizhi, do you want to watch the people who care about you leave your side one by one? Even your beloved foster mother died protecting you..."
Zhou Zhizhi's eyes turned sinister.
Zhou Zhizhi: Died of what?
Si Xue had never seen Zhou Zhizhi look so terrifying—like an evil ghost crawling out of hell, staring fixedly at her.
If she dared to say one more word, Zhou Zhizhi would drag her down to hell without a moment's hesitation.
"I'm not wrong, either. Your foster mother only left this world because of you. I'm just kindly reminding you; I don't want to see you abandoned by everyone."
Zhou Zhizhi let out a cold laugh.
"If you don't have money, I can lend you one hundred thousand yuan. That's enough for you to live in Red Star Village for the rest of your life."
Si Xue felt she had already done her absolute best for Zhou Zhizhi. If Zhou Zhizhi was still unappreciative, she shouldn't be blamed for being ruthless.
Zhou Zhizhi took out the black card Third Brother had given her: With that petty little cash of yours, stop waving it in front of my eyes.
Seeing Zhou Zhizhi's black card, the words stuck in Si Xue's throat.
The Qin Family actually hadn't taken back her black card yet?
Zhou Zhizhi calmly tucked the black card into her jacket pocket and calmly walked past her.
"Zhou Zhizhi, do you really not know that Eldest Young Master Qin's disappearance is because of you?"
Si Xue figured that Zhou Zhizhi was this calm probably because the Qin Family hadn't told her the news of his disappearance yet.
The distant luxury car came back again and stopped right in front of Zhou Zhizhi.
Si Xue was truly jealous; the Qin Family members were genuinely good to this foster daughter of theirs.
Since they were still treating Zhou Zhizhi so well, they surely hadn't found out yet that she was the Qin Family's jinx. Perhaps once the Second Young Master Qin ran into trouble too, they would finally believe that Zhou Zhizhi was a jinx.
She also guessed that Qin Yue might not have told the Qin Family members about Zhou Zhizhi being a jinx, which was why they hadn't pinned Qin Ming's disappearance on her.
The car door opened.
The eldest young master of the Qin Family, Qin Ming, stepped out of the car wearing a handsome and cold expression.
He had a breakfast bag hanging from his hand and beckoned to Zhou Zhizhi, "Come here."
His voice was very cold, without the slightest hint of pampering.
Seeing Qin Ming's face, Si Xue was momentarily stunned.
He possessed an extremely masculine aura; that stern and icy demeanor kept people a thousand miles away, yet it was inexplicably and strongly alluring.
If Cheng Du was a volcano, the man before her was an iceberg.
He and Cheng Du were two extremes.
When did the quality of the drivers the Qin Family found for Zhou Zhizhi get this good?
Having hung around Zhou Zhizhi in the past, Si Xue had seen plenty of men. She could tell their capabilities with a single glance and even deduce their family backgrounds.
The man before her had too good of a temperament—so good that Si Xue couldn't possibly ignore him.
How could such an outstanding man exist without her having any impression of him at all? Why?
"Zhizhi, who is he?"
Si Xue changed her expression, linking her arm through Zhou Zhizhi's. "Why did you never mention him to me?"
Knowing she loved putting on a facade, Zhou Zhizhi didn't expose her.
She walked toward Eldest Brother.
Qin Ming grabbed her schoolbag, unzipped it, and tossed the breakfast inside. "Breakfast."
Zhou Zhizhi was somewhat surprised. Judging by his attitude toward her earlier, she had assumed he didn't like her.
She asked: I thought you went to work.
Qin Ming zipped the schoolbag shut with a swift pull and let go of it.
The schoolbag was very heavy, like a package of explosives.
As the bag dropped, Zhou Zhizhi leaned back slightly.
Qin Ming said indifferently: "How can you study hard if you don't eat breakfast?"
Zhou Zhizhi: Thanks for the breakfast.
Qin Ming was never a meticulous person, let alone a patient one, and it was even less likely for him to be fond of young girls—he barely even bothered with Qin Yue.
He certainly wouldn't bother with this younger sister with whom he shared virtually no emotional bond.
If not for the sake of blood ties, he wouldn't have turned halfway back to deliver breakfast to her either.
Qin Ming said coldly: "Don't mention it. I just picked it up along the way."
It was just a much longer way around, that was all.
Si Xue looked at Qin Ming and put on a sweet smile. "Hello, I'm Zhizhi's friend. How are you related to Zhizhi?"
She had to make this exceptionally outstanding man work for her.
Perhaps she hadn't paid much attention to him in her past life, which was why she had no impression of this man.
Zhou Zhizhi's friend?
Qin Ming glanced at her. Having seen all sorts of people in the business world, he could see right through such shoddy acting.
"Oh," Qin Ming replied flatly.
Qin Ming's shrewdness wasn't ordinary shrewdness; it was the kind of merchant's shrewdness where only profit existed in his eyes.
Si Xue walked up to Qin Ming and continued smiling as she spoke to him: "Zhizhi and I are good friends, and I'll take good care of her."
Pausing for a moment, she went on: "Zhizhi and I grew up together since we were kids. Back in the village, everyone used to say Zhizhi was a jinx who caused the deaths of her foster mother and foster father, and no one was willing to play with her. But I still continued to be friends with Zhizhi. We were so lucky to leave Red Star Village, and to think we ended up at the same school."
"I'll continue to protect Zhizhi in the future and won't let anyone bully her."
Explicitly and implicitly, Si Xue kept implying that Zhou Zhizhi was a jinx.
"She just arrived at the Qin Family, and Qin Yue lost the championship, while Eldest Young Master Qin has gone missing. I'm worried the Qin Family members might hold resentment toward Zhizhi and believe the claim that she's a jinx. Since you're a member of the Qin Family, could you please put in a good word for her?"
She looked at Qin Ming with the sincere gaze characteristic of an eighteen- or nineteen-year-old girl; anyone who saw it would believe her words.
They would think she was an exceptionally kind-hearted young girl.
Qin Ming, however, caught the oddness in her words.
He looked at Zhou Zhizhi: "What kind of friends do you make?"
So terrible.
Si Xue was momentarily stunned.
Zhou Zhizhi: I'm mute, not stupid.
She felt somewhat helpless.
Qin Ming didn't understand the gesture: "Can't understand. Type it."
Just as Zhou Zhizhi was about to type, Si Xue beat her to it and said to Qin Ming, "Zhizhi said she isn't a jinx, and she hopes the Qin Family will continue to let her stay."
Qin Ming didn't understand sign language, but that didn't mean he couldn't read other people's facial expressions.
He let out a cold chuckle. "Who told you that Eldest Young Master Qin is missing?"
"Zhizhi told me," Si Xue looked at him with an innocent expression, her eyes as pure as a child's.
"Is she stupid?" Qin Ming's smile grew colder. "I'm standing right in front of you, yet she told you I'm missing?"
Qin Ming's words struck like a thunderbolt.
"You're Zhizhi's Eldest Brother? Qin Ming?"
Wasn't Qin Ming missing?
Moreover, before her rebirth, she had already heard the news that Qin Ming had died abroad.
Even if he could return alive later, he shouldn't be appearing at this exact time!
Where on earth had gone wrong?
"What? You sound surprised," Qin Ming looked at her. "Aren't you friends with Zhizhi? Seeing that I'm alive, aren't you happy for her?"
Qin Ming always spoke with an icy chill and a tough attitude; there wasn't a shred of the gentleness a girl should be shown.
Fake!
It had to be fake!
Impossible, absolutely impossible.
In her past life, she had never once met Eldest Young Master Qin.
Qin Ming had no interest in wasting time arguing with such a young girl. "I'm going to work. I'll pick you up after get-off work."
Zhou Zhizhi nodded: Thanks, Eldest Brother.
Eldest Brother?
He really was the eldest young master of the Qin Family.
Si Xue sank into deep thought. Her predictions regarding Qin Yue hadn't had a single flaw, so why had things gone wrong when it came to Qin Ming?
There had to be something fishy about this, and she must find out the truth.
Qin Ming added coldly: "Don't mention it. If Third Brother hadn't given instructions, I wouldn't be wasting my time."
Closing the car door, he drove away.
Zhou Zhizhi let out a scoff.
Si Xue's heart skipped a beat. "You can make sounds?"
Zhou Zhizhi rolled her eyes at her and turned to leave.
Seeing that Zhou Zhizhi didn't speak another word, Si Xue figured she must have been overthinking it.
Zhou Zhizhi had been mute for so many years; how could she suddenly start speaking?
There had been too many things happening lately, causing her to let her imagination run wild.
"Good luck with the math competition preliminary rounds this morning," Si Xue said to Zhou Zhizhi.
Before Zhou Zhizhi even reached the classroom door, Liu Xizhi had already prepared her pens and all sorts of stationery, then patted her shoulder. "Good luck. It doesn't matter even if you don't test well."
"Boss Zhou, I believe in you! Even if you get last place, it doesn't matter—Class 17 will always be your backup."
Liu Xizhi's lackey didn't hold any hopes for Zhou Zhizhi; she was just going to look at the test questions and tag along for the ride anyway.
Still, since Boss Liu valued her so much, he would pretend to value her too.
Once Zhou Zhizhi returned in defeat, he wouldn't have to take over her turn for classroom chores.
Standing at the door, Qingya glanced at Zhou Zhizhi. "Si Xue is a genius; mortals shouldn't delusionally try to compare themselves to a genius."
Master had also said that the junior sister was the one and only genius he had ever taught. If not for the fact that he could barely protect himself back then, he would have brought the junior sister up the mountain long ago.
Although the junior sister lacked manners and had a bad temper, there was no denying that she was indeed a rare genius encountered once in a blue moon.
He hadn't witnessed Si Xue's talent as a talisman master yet, but her talent in other areas was indeed hard to find an opponent against.
Liu Xizhi wrapped an arm around Zhou Zhizhi's shoulder. "So what if she's a genius? So what if she's a fool? My Zhizhi worked hard."
Tch!
"Hard work is worthless in front of genius."
As soon as he finished speaking, the people nearby burst into laughter.
"Boss, did you say that backward?"
The lackey reminded his boss: Although our studies aren't good, let's not say embarrassing things.
The others wanted to laugh, but didn't dare.
Zhou Zhizhi's phone vibrated; it was a message sent by Qiang Wei.
Qiang Wei: Half an hour, I'll come pick you up.
Zhou Zhizhi calmly took out her phone and replied to his message.
Half an hour?
She probably wouldn't finish all the questions, but she should be able to qualify.
Liu Xizhi escorted Zhou Zhizhi to the examination room. Other people assumed Zhou Zhizhi had been threatened by Liu Xizhi and didn't dare speak to her at all, terrified of offending him.
Zhou Zhizhi must have been threatened by Liu Xizhi, which was why they needed to isolate her so as not to offend him.
Just as they were thinking that, Liu Xizhi took off the school uniform tied around his waist and wiped clean Zhou Zhizhi's desk.
He placed her stationery neatly on it. "Little Mute, do as many as you can. For three long and one short, choose the short; for three short and one long, choose the long; if they're all the same length, choose C. Bro is passing all his life experience on to you."
What?
Those people who had planned to isolate Zhou Zhizhi were utterly flabbergasted.
The delinquent youth Liu Xizhi was actually passing on his experience to the little mute?
And he even wiped her desk for her in person!
How did she pull that off?
After finishing all this, Liu Xizhi walked out of the exam room.
Seeing Liu Xizhi come out, Si Xue reminded him, "You're a favored son of the heavens, why bother entangling yourself with a mute like her?"
"So what if she's a mute? When God closes a door for her, He will definitely open a window for her."
Liu Xizhi looked utterly disdainful. "Maybe this competition will crush you flat instead."
She felt that Liu Xizhi's eyesight was truly terrible to actually think Zhou Zhizhi could win against her.
What a joke.
"Young Master Liu, then we shall wait and see."
Si Xue was going to smash his face in and let him know he had backed the wrong person, and that following Zhou Zhizhi would lead nowhere.
As for Liu Xizhi, he still had some use. If she wanted to join his father's research institute in the future, she would still need him to pave the way.
After all, he was the son of the research institute's director; even if he was a good-for-nothing, he was still the director's son, and she didn't want to fall out with Liu Xizhi.
The competition began.
Half an hour later, Zhou Zhizhi handed in her test paper.
When Si Xue saw Zhou Zhizhi walking up with her paper, she caught a glimpse of the back of her second test sheet—it was completely blank.
She sneered derisively; it seemed she had still overestimated Zhou Zhizhi.
The Zhou Zhizhi of this lifetime had already been left far behind by her.
——
Qiang Wei had come to find Zhou Zhizhi privately, which was why he drove his own car, successfully avoiding attracting anyone's attention.
Qiang Wei handed her the name list. "How many of these names do you still remember?"
Zhou Zhizhi searched for the names on the list, but didn't find her foster mother's name.
However, she wasn't disappointed; at least she spotted the name of an acquaintance, and then pointed at it.
Chen Hui.
Auntie Chen.
Qiang Wei checked off the name and hid the list away. "How much more do you know?"
Zhou Zhizhi wrote down: Foster mother, Liu Hui. She is also one of the victims. Regarding this, Zhou Zhizhi was certain.
"We don't have enough evidence yet, we haven't found Liu Hui's family, and even less can we confirm whether she is a victim."
Zhou Zhizhi nodded.
Understood.
If it were that easy to find them, she wouldn't have been trapped in Red Star Village for so many years.
"Alright, I'll send you back." Qiang Wei put on his cap and went outside with Zhou Zhizhi.
"Captain Qiang."
A familiar male voice rang out.
It was somewhat unyielding, yet also somewhat cold.
Seeing Cheng Du, Qiang Wei's guard went up, terrified that Cheng Du might suspect Zhou Zhizhi.
Subconsciously, he shielded Zhou Zhizhi behind him, afraid Cheng Du would discover her.
Cheng Du had spotted Zhou Zhizhi long ago. He cast a cold glance at the person Qiang Wei was protecting and ordered, "Get over to my side."
Zhou Zhizhi didn't budge.
He told her to go to his side, so she was just supposed to go?
Tch, she wasn't going to listen.
Cheng Du noticed that Zhou Zhizhi was actually raising her eyebrows at him, her meaning glaringly obvious.
Not going.
Tsk!
Her temper had hardened; she actually dared to say no to him.
"Zhou Zhizhi, I am your fiancé. Get over to my side."
This pride was something Cheng Du had to fight for, especially since Qiang Wei wouldn't let him find the moonlight in his heart.
Aside from this thought, there was no other.
She's your fiancée? Then who was the woman before?"
Qiang Wei looked at Zhou Zhizhi in astonishment. So Cheng Du had been searching around for half a day only to find his own fiancée?
Hahaha, suddenly this felt rather interesting.
Zhou Zhizhi was crucial to their mission this time and could not afford a single mistake. Even after the mission was completed, Zhou Zhizhi's identity could not be allowed to be known by anyone.
They had signed an agreement with Zhou Zhizhi to protect her identity, which was also meant to safeguard her personal safety.
"That's right, so stay away from my fiancée." Cheng Du yanked Zhou Zhizhi over, pulling her behind his own back.
She wanted to explain, but Cheng Du lowered his head and cast a cold look at her, signaling her to shut up. "I'll settle accounts with you later for running out on a date with a man behind my back."
He meant for the little mute to behave herself.
Fine then.
Zhou Zhizhi would listen to him; if behaving herself was what he wanted, she'd behave.
Qiang Wei let out an "oh?" sound. "Young Master Cheng, why are you still running around looking for women when you already have a fiancée?"
He snapped back at Cheng Du, having found this fellow an eyesore for a long time.
"What business is it of yours?" Cheng Du let out a scoff and warned Qiang Wei, "The little mute is under my protection in Liang City, so don't you dare harbor any crooked ideas about her."
Qiang Wei was a SWAT officer and never had time to go home. Even if the little mute married him in the future, she would only end up living as a widow in all but name.
He was saving the little mute.