This chapter is brought to you by Peach, thanks for the ko-fi! ♡ ～(‘▽^人)
Chapter 18 – Does she think he is very old? (Part 1)
Zhou Wenyuan didn’t gain any advantage this time; instead, he was bluntly mocked by Lu Xi. He maintained a calm expression, but his whole body was trembling with anger.
If this woman was acting, then her skills were astonishing!
Even he almost believed she was a rare, one-in-a-million good stepmother.
But who would buy that?
After receiving the system prompt, he knew he had failed again tonight. Staying any longer might only lead to more humiliation.
He was furious and knew the route through Xie Heng’s stepmother was a dead end.
But did he dare to turn against her?
For the chance to approach Xie Heng again in the future, he had to endure this, no matter how humiliating.
Fortunately, there was still Xie Heng’s father to consider.
As the chairman of a publicly listed corporation, well-known on the wealth rankings, even if he spent a fortune sending Xie Heng overseas to earn a flashy degree, Xie Yizhao would surely still feel ashamed of having such a useless son.
Given the opportunity, if Zhou Wenyuan offered to tutor Xie Heng as a favor, Xie Yizhao would most likely agree.
This would also leave a good impression, and befriending someone of such stature could only be beneficial.
Zhou Wenyuan got up and went to the restroom. After splashing his face with cold water, he forced himself to calm down.
He couldn’t help but think about what the system had said.
What exactly was the punishment? It had never mentioned it before!
[Apologies, host. The punishment is random, and this system cannot reveal it.]
[Additionally, the host should understand that you originally had no chance of obtaining these benefits. This system chose you and can just as easily choose someone else. There is no such thing as a free lunch. Of course, taking what isn’t yours comes with consequences.]
Zhou Wenyuan : “…”
What choice did he have? As long as he didn’t have to give back what he’d gained, he feared nothing else.
After roasting Zhou Wenyuan, Lu Xi felt refreshed, as if she had just shooed away a pesky fly.
Ever since Zhou Wenyuan had left, Xie Heng seemed distracted, staring blankly at the stage without really seeing anything.
His mind was swirling with her words from earlier.
He was almost dizzy from it.
Xie Heng had never heard anyone speak up for him that way, and it made him feel warm inside, as if he were soaking in a hot spring.
Embarrassed, he scratched his head several times, flattening parts of his unruly blue hair and looking somewhat foolish. His expression was less fierce than usual, and he seemed more subdued.
After a moment, he spoke quietly, “Were you serious about what you said earlier?”
Lu Xi tossed a chip into her mouth. “Yes.”
The boy, pleased with the response, smirked slightly, sounding haughty. “I didn’t expect you to have that much confidence in me.”
She glanced at him. He looked… well, how could a boy his age be so easy to please?
Unable to resist, she reached out with a blank expression to pat his blue hair. “Don’t get carried away. A few compliments and your tail’s already up in the air. Haven’t you ever been praised before?”
A perfectly handsome guy, yet so unreserved.
Xie Heng, uncharacteristically, didn’t resist or complain this time. He simply muttered, “No.”
Lu Xi was stunned for a moment.
So that was it… She understood now.
The young master of her family had always been denied and ignored. Now that he suddenly received attention, he was at a loss.
Lu Xi felt an inexplicable pang in her heart, a subtle and dense ache. Her movements unconsciously softened as she smoothed down his drooping cowlick.
“That’s your Dad’s fault. When we get back, I’ll scold him.”
Xie Heng blinked, his eyes pausing for a moment.
Seriously? Was Ms. Lu really that formidable? She even dared to criticize his Dad? He found it a bit hard to believe…
Even though he wasn’t close to Xie Yizhao, in his mind, Xie Yizhao was an impressive figure in all aspects. He had once seen his Dad conduct a video conference with an unshakeable calm, reprimanding the elite executives of the corporation without raising voice, leaving them speechless.
He thought his Dad was quite proud and controlling—he could reprimand others, but who would dare criticize him?
“But—” Lu Xi’s words paused, and she flicked his head lightly. “Don’t get too smug. I only said that to save face in front of others.”
“…Oh.” Xie Heng rubbed his head, his expression showing no displeasure.
Lu Xi continued, “Education levels aside, pursuing your dreams still requires wisdom and hard work. Lacking common sense won’t do—unless you plan on living off your looks in the future.”
Xie Heng frowned.
Was that an insult or a compliment?
The host on stage announced the next performance. The lights dimmed and then gradually brightened as the next act began.
A boy in a white T-shirt and black sweatpants stepped onto the stage with a guitar on his back. He sat on a high stool and played while singing. His deep, pleasant voice paired with the simple yet melodious guitar music captured Lu Xi’s attention.
There was a commotion in the audience, accompanied by applause and exclamations.
“Xu Jiaming is so handsome!”
“He’s good-looking, smart, plays guitar, sings well—how perfect is that?”
“Let’s go backstage for his WeChat later. Who’s coming with me?”
…
Lu Xi was so enchanted that she shook her head in admiration. “Classmate Xu is really handsome.”
Xie Heng lowered his head, lost in thought because of Lu Xi’s earlier words, a twinge of guilt in the heart of the underachiever.
Suddenly, he looked up sharply at Xu Jiaming on stage.
Excuse me?
Who just said he could live off his looks in the future, and now praised someone else’s son for being handsome in front of her own child? Was he the product of a buy-one-get-one-free deal at a milk tea shop?
Xie Heng’s face darkened. He stretched out his long legs and idly twisted his neck. “When are we leaving? Haven’t you seen enough?”
Lu Xi leaned forward, chin in hand, completely absorbed. “After this song. Be quiet and don’t interrupt me.”
“…”
No more wagging his tail.
He strongly felt that his Dad should be the one scolding her. Was Old Xie not handsome enough, or was Little Xie not handsome enough?
Lu Xi really did leave right after Xu Jiaming’s performance.
It was already 8:30 p.m. She planned to take a shower and watch a bit of a drama before going to bed.
Five acts after Xu Jiaming was Ruan Tian.
She was backstage, and by lifting the curtain, she could see the front row of the audience. She watched helplessly as Xie Heng and Lu Xi left, and the seats were also cleared.
Ruan Tian chased to the entrance of the auditorium but found that they had already gotten into their car and left.
“…”
She bit her lip tightly.
Why did they leave so early? Her performance hasn’t even started yet.
She had noticed that Xie Heng seemed unhappy earlier. Could it be that his stepmother took him away? How unfair.
Girls can be sensitive and overthink things. She had offended his stepmother last time, so maybe his stepmother was holding a grudge and deliberately made sure Xie Heng didn’t stay to watch her performance.
Ruan Tian was completely disheartened.
If Xie Heng hadn’t come today, that would have been fine, but he came and left, which left her with a huge sense of disappointment. Slowly walking back to the backstage, she barely managed to hold back the urge to cry.
The program reached its intermission, where an excellent student award ceremony was held.
By this point, Zhou Wenyuan’s mood had improved a little.
He was one of the excellent students, and after changing into his school uniform, he confidently walked onto the stage. He had seen the list beforehand, and Ruan Tian was the one who would present him with the certificate.
He had liked her for a long time.
Although she could be a little shallow and just liked chasing after Xie Heng, once he earned more points, she would eventually notice him.
As for Xie Heng…
No matter how impressive his words were, it didn’t matter. The one standing on stage receiving the award was him, Zhou Wenyuan. Xie Heng wasn’t part of this, and this was something money couldn’t buy.
He wondered what they would think when they saw this…
Zhou Wenyuan smiled and looked toward the audience, but then his smile froze.
They had already left?!
For a brief moment of shock, all the excellent students had taken their place on stage, and the award presenters were also walking up.
Ruan Tian walked in front of Zhou Wenyuan and smiled at him.
Looking at the girl’s sweet face, he couldn’t help but feel his heart race, as if he were walking on clouds.
He smiled back at her.
Ruan Tian looked at him but suddenly noticed something. She frowned in disgust.
It wasn’t just her—someone in the front row below also noticed and started whispering, laughing at Zhou Wenyuan.
He was confused but also had a vague sense that something was wrong.
Then, someone from the audience suddenly shouted, “Zhou Wenyuan, your zipper is down!”
“Pffhahahaha!”
Loud laughter echoed throughout the auditorium.
Zhou Wenyuan froze for a moment, quickly looked down, and realized that his zipper was indeed open!
He broke into a cold sweat and his mind went blank. How could this happen? It must have been when he went to the bathroom earlier and got distracted talking to the system!
What should he do now? He was stuck in a dilemma. He couldn’t zip it up in front of everyone!
But leaving it open was just as embarrassing!
He panicked and his face turned bright red with embarrassment. He couldn’t think about anything else except getting off the stage as quickly as possible.
A row of people stood in front of him, and as Zhou Wenyuan tried to squeeze through the middle, he accidentally twisted his ankle. Not only did he fall himself, but he also knocked Ruan Tian onto the stage.
“Ah!!” Ruan Tian screamed and pushed him away.
The laughter from the audience grew louder, and even the teacher who came up to stop it with a microphone couldn’t do anything.
To the students, this kind of farce was much more entertaining than the actual performance.
Ruan Tian was helped up, glaring at him angrily. “What are you doing! Are you sick or something?!”
Zhou Wenyuan felt as though he had been splashed with a bucket of ice water when he saw her disgusted look, feeling both embarrassed and regretful.
Is this the punishment the system spoke of?
Damn it, now Ruan Tian absolutely hates him. How much luck does he need to earn to make her like him?