Chen Ye took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, as if that gust of stale air were all the resentment from his previous life.
Once upon a time, the woman before him had been someone he pursued for a long time, someone he cherished like a treasure. Back then, he had been foolish enough to believe she had been coerced by Wang Qiang. Looking back now, his judgment had truly been poor.
On the day he was reborn, he had even considered taking revenge on this woman who had ruined his life. But after some thought, he realized there was no greater blow to her than ignoring her completely and growing into a success story she could never hope to reach. Besides, in this life, he didn't want to waste his limited time on such trivial matters. He had more important things to do: in his last life, he hadn't honored his parents, hadn't taken care of his sister, and hadn't discovered the "treasure girl" by his side early enough. If he wasted his life on a green tea bitch, his rebirth would have been for nothing.
"Get lost. I don't want to have anything to do with you. If you have any sense of shame left, you should remember what you told me. Didn't you already hook up with Wang Qiang? Huh? Were you just trying to mess with me?"
"Go to hell, and get out of my way."
Su Lili kept her hand stretched out, blocking the entrance to the stairwell so he couldn't get through. "Chen Ye, I—I was just saying those things out of anger. I lied to you. I—I didn't sleep with him. I was just jealous because you were being so good to that Luo Hongli. I just wanted to make you mad, that’s all. I’m willing to be your girlfriend now."
"You really take me for a fool, don't you? I wasn't even looking for you, and here you are, throwing yourself at me. Are you that desperate? I don’t want to waste any more breath on you. Get lost."
Seeing that Chen Ye was unmoved, Su Lili played her trump card: "I—I don't have to go home tonight."
Chen Ye sighed. Was this really the girl he had chased for over a year in his previous life? Chen Ye, you really were a massive idiot.
"Don't make me slap you a second time. I don't touch damaged goods."
At the mention of "damaged goods," the look in Su Lili’s eyes changed instantly, turning into pure resentment. "Chen Ye! You ruined me!"
"Pfft. Give me a break, lady, are you kidding me? Fine, you won't move? Let’s hear it then—did I touch you? What exactly did I do to you? Do I owe you something?" Chen Ye was truly flabbergasted; this Su Lili was even more outrageous than the degenerates he’d met in prison.
Su Lili took a deep breath and pointed at him, screaming, "The night we skipped study hall in the second semester of sophomore year, I said I didn't want to go home! Why couldn't you just stay with me? Huh?"
"Your family has two or three empty apartments, and I asked to stay at one for a few nights—why didn't you agree? Why! Because you dumped me at a hotel alone, I was, I was..."
Chen Ye sneered. "Go on, keep talking. What happened to you? My family's apartments have nothing to do with you. I spent money to help you with a place to stay, and you’re blaming me for it?"
Su Lili gritted her teeth. "I was drugged by Wang Qiang!"
"Then go report him! Why come to me? I don't believe for a second that Wang Qiang would dare break into a hotel room to drug you."
"I was bored so I went to an internet cafe! If you had stayed with me that night, none of this would have happened! My first time wouldn't have been... it wouldn't have been..."
Chen Ye waved his hand dismissively. "Don't bring that up. I’m not interested, and I’m afraid of being contaminated. I should be thanking Young Master Wang, actually. Besides, did I tell you to go to that internet cafe? Huh? Get lost, now."
Su Lili wiped her eyes quickly with her sleeve and said bitterly, "Don't regret this!"
"Regret my foot! I don't want to curse, but you're forcing my hand."
"Just you wait!"
Chen Ye watched Su Lili’s hips sway as she walked away quickly, wondering what her deal was. It seemed Wang Tianlong had told Wang Qiang that Wuxiang Studio now belonged to him, and Wang Qiang had passed that info to Su Lili. Was she blinded by greed? Did she think she could play him for a sucker?
Whatever. He’d deal with it when he got home. He had seen Chen Yue peeking through the window upstairs earlier—who knew how long she’d been eavesdropping? That girl had already tricked him once since his rebirth; if he didn't teach her a lesson, she wouldn't respect her big brother at all.
—
Shancheng, Longhu Villa.
Wang Qiang looked at Wang Tianlong with a stiff neck and red eyes. "Dad, did you send people to find Lili? She was just crying..."
*Smash!*
Wang Tianlong threw the teacup in his hand, shattering it across the floor. "That Su Lili—don't let her age fool you, she has massive ambition. With your pig-headedness, do you really think you can control someone like that? How did I end up with a useless son like you? I didn't care when you played around before, but now you're telling me you want to marry her?"
"I just want to marry her, so what! She’s the only one who understands me. Dad, as long as you agree, I promise I’ll never go out and mess around again. I’ll stop taking drugs. I—I’ll be a good boy, I’ll go to the company, I’ll work, I..."
"Get that out of your head. I've already sent people to warn her."
Wang Qiang seemed devastated and stumbled back two steps. "Wang Tianlong! I can't control her, but you can? You found yourself a mistress three days after my mom died! I like Lili, and I am going to marry her!"
Wang Tianlong clutched his chest, pointing a trembling finger at him, and roared, "Get out! Get out! And if you ever dare to bother Chen Ye again, I’ll kill you myself!"
Early the next morning, just as the sky was turning bright, Chen Ye was dragged out of bed by his mother.
"Xiao Ye, stop sleeping. Get up for morning study."
"Mom, five more minutes. Just five minutes..."
In the living room, Chen Jianguo rubbed his temples and looked at Chen Yue. "Why are you up so early? What time did your brother get home last night?"
Chen Yue thought of how Chen Ye had wrapped her in the blanket the night before, leaving only her head exposed to bully her, and she wanted to tattle. But the words died in her throat; Chen Ye was standing at the bedroom door, staring straight at her.
*Didn't he say five more minutes? What a liar!*
"I—my brother came home right after school."
"Really?" Chen Jianguo was skeptical, and Ye Shuangrong didn't quite believe it either. Had their son really turned over a new leaf?
Seeing his parents staring at him, Chen Ye immediately patted his chest. "Father, Mother, I’ve decided to study hard, get into a good university, and earn money to honor you both in the future."
Chen Jianguo: "So? How much money do you need this time?"
Chen Ye put on a look of deep injustice. "Old man, you’re looking at me through the crack of a door! You’re looking down on your own son! Well... the more the better. I—I found a tutor. I’m prepared to pay for knowledge."
"A tutor?" Ye Shuangrong and Chen Yue said in unison. Clearly, Chen Ye’s credibility at home was near zero.
"Mom, really. It’s the top student in my class. I asked her to help me with my studies, and I can't let her help for free, right? Plus, you don't know—her mother has uremia, and she’s, well, she’s barely holding on. Her family situation is tough. This way, I help her earn some money, and I get some know...ledge... No, why are you all looking at me like that? I’m getting nervous."
Chen Yue shuffled over in her slippers, stood on tiptoe, and touched his forehead. "My brother doesn't have a fever."
"Go away!" Chen Ye slapped her hand away. "Dad, Mom, do we really have zero basic trust between family members? If you don't believe me, I’ll bring her home tomorrow to tutor me. I’ll show you. That should work, right?"
Without a word, Chen Jianguo pulled five hundred-yuan notes from his wallet. "Bring your classmate home for dinner after school tomorrow. Consider this our family helping out a bit. It’s not much, but don’t give it to her directly. Save her face—tell her it's a donation from a kind-hearted person and that you're just handing it over."
"My dad is so generous! Mom, aren't you going to show some support..."
The family watched as Chen Ye happily grabbed his backpack and headed out. They all felt like they were seeing a ghost—how could his personality have changed so much?
"Old Chen, what kind of trick is Xiao Ye pulling?"
"One thousand yuan—I can still afford that. Let’s observe him for a couple of days and see what he’s actually up to. As long as he doesn't start taking drugs like those other brats, a little money is fine. It’s only trouble if he makes a huge mistake. Yueyue, keep a close watch on your brother. Don't cover for him."
...
After arriving at school, before Luo Hongli could even get settled in her seat, Chen Ye walked up to the front row.
"Come to my house tonight. My parents want to see you."
"Huh?"
"Oh, and tell the teacher later that you don't want to sit in the front anymore. You want to sit with me."
"Ah? This... (O_O)?"