“Xi’er, do you still remember what I said? I’m no longer that knight who silently protects you.”
Jiang Xiao pressed down with his knees, his hands gripping the back of the chair tightly.
His voice was low and heavy. “If I want to do something, I’ll do it.”
“Ugh…”
Song Qiuyu’s heart hammered against her ribs.
She didn’t dare move.
They stared at each other in silence for a moment.
“My dear, you only ever respond when I chase you. But when I chase too hard, you push me away again.”
Jiang Xiao suddenly let out a soft chuckle. He deliberately leaned in close to her ear and whispered, “What if I stop chasing?”
Hearing this, Song Qiuyu froze.
If Jiang Xiao stopped chasing and let her go, both of them would probably return to normal.
They would be more like themselves.
Wouldn’t that be a good thing?
But Jiang Xiao probably couldn’t do it.
If even he could give up on these feelings, then what reason did she have…
She had to be more decisive in her withdrawal.
From now on, she would only exist as Song Qiuyu—Jiang Xiao’s classmate and Jiang Xiao’s roommate.
She would let the identity of Shen Xi be buried forever in the Summer of 3 Years Ago.
“So you really do think that way?”
Jiang Xiao’s voice dropped even lower.
“Jiang Xiao, this is my house. My parents are home. Don’t do anything reckless!”
Sensing danger, Song Qiuyu swallowed hard.
She immediately let go of the mouse and tried to push Jiang Xiao away.
Jiang Xiao suddenly grabbed her hand, squeezing it together with the mouse.
At the same time, he lowered his face, intent on kissing her.
Song Qiuyu quickly covered her mouth with her other small hand while the hand he held struggled to break free.
Seeing this, Jiang Xiao paused, his mind racing.
Among everyone who knew Song Qiuyu, no one else should know this side of her as Xi’er.
This was the version of Song Qiuyu that only he knew.
Whether she was acting spoiled, being shy and clingy, resisting with all her might, or acting like a pathetic little rogue.
To everyone else and in every other situation, she was always so capable and composed.
But in front of him, she was always flustered and helpless.
He had once seen a second person like this—himself, reflected in the Mirror.
‘Do you know, Xi’er?’
‘You aren’t the only one who feels insecure.’
Thinking of this, he tightened his grip on her small hand and deliberately pulled her toward him.
His Adam’s apple bobbed as he stared into her eyes.
“Xi’er, are you sure you want to use that hand to cover your mouth? You don’t have a third hand, you know.”
“Mph!”
Song Qiuyu was completely panicked.
She felt so tired, so helpless.
Why was loving someone so painful? If only she hadn’t fallen for Jiang Xiao.
If her heart hadn’t been moved at all, she wouldn’t be this passive.
She desperately wanted to call for help.
But she couldn’t.
In her frantic struggle, a video was clicked open on the Computer Screen.
The sounds of a girl being trained until she broke down in tears and begged for mercy began to fill her ears, bit by bit.
She subconsciously turned her face, looking at the images on the Screen in shock.
‘Why did it open!’
Opening this kind of video in this situation was beyond terrible!
‘I have to close it! Close it!!’
She squeezed the mouse, trying to move it. In the next second, Jiang Xiao let go of her hand.
Song Qiuyu blinked, caught off guard.
“As long as these videos are copied, it’s fine, right?”
Jiang Xiao turned his head to look at the Computer Screen as well.
His handsome face had returned to its usual calm and indifferent expression.
The images reflected in his eyes shifted from the face of the person beside him to scenes that couldn’t be described as pleasant—only cruel and predatory.
This was only the second time Jiang Xiao had seen such things.
The first time was at the Hot Spring Hotel, watching that couple.
However, back then, he could still feel the emotion called love.
In these videos, he couldn’t feel even a trace of it.
It was as if two animals were merely following instinct, performing movements that were hard to judge.
With a whoosh, Song Qiuyu hurriedly closed the video.
She panted heavily, her face flushed as she quickly copied and pasted the files, transferring all the resources into Jiang Yuan’s USB Drive.
“Here, it’s done!”
Song Qiuyu pulled out the USB Drive.
Jiang Xiao narrowed his eyes, taking one last look at the Screen which had returned to the desktop.
He glanced at the girl beside him, whose face was as red as a peach, and reached out to take the USB Drive.
“Yeah. Thanks.”
Song Qiuyu felt an inexplicable sense of embarrassment and unease.
She had a feeling that something very bad was about to happen.
This feeling was far worse than being bullied by Jiang Xiao or being relentlessly pursued.
“Xi’er, I have to go.”
Jiang Xiao tucked away the USB Drive and spoke after a moment of silence.
“Before I leave, I need to tell you something.”
Jiang Xiao turned his head and looked at her seriously.
Song Qiuyu tightened her grip on her hands, trying her best to keep her expression stable.
“Actually, I stopped liking you a long time ago. Everything I’m doing now is just for revenge.”
“Is that so…” ‘Do you even believe what you’re saying?’
“So, I’m going to have to disappoint you. You won’t get the chance to dump me a second time.”
Song Qiuyu’s breath hitched.
“This time, I’m dumping you.”
“Jiang Xiao…”
Song Qiuyu bit her lip, unable to stop herself from speaking. Her desire to push Jiang Xiao away had been noticed.
It made sense; after all, she had made it very obvious.
She bit her lip hard.
She felt like Jiang Xiao was just trying to steal the chance to be the “bad guy” from her, which was why he said something so cruel.
He was using the same double-edged sword she once used to pierce both of them at once.
“As you wish, I won’t chase you anymore. You lied to me once, and I lied to you once, so you don’t need to think about compensating me anymore.”
Hearing this, Song Qiuyu’s heart constricted.
How could she not understand what he meant? He was going to cut ties with her completely! He was even stripping away her chance to atone for the past and the present.
Looking at it from another angle, this was an absolutely great thing.
From now on, she would never have to put Jiang Xiao first or take care of him.
She was free.
She should be happy.
But… she couldn’t feel happy at all.
“Jiang Xiao, I…”
“Yeah, I know. You don’t have to say it.”
Jiang Xiao, lost in unknown thoughts, only let out a low, cold laugh.
He turned around decisively and walked toward the Room door.
“Jiang Xiao, wait!”
Song Qiuyu hesitated for only a second before surging up from her chair.
She rushed to catch up, but in her haste, her left foot tripped over her right.
She fell forward in a flat-out trip.
As she went down, her hands instinctively reached out to grab something.
She caught hold of Jiang Xiao’s leisure pants.
With a thump, she landed at Jiang Xiao’s feet, and the force dragged his pants all the way down.
Song Qiuyu looked up and felt like the sky was falling.
‘How is this any different from a little bunny hopping right in front of a hunter’s gun, performing a bunny dance, then setting up the pot, boiling the water, putting in the seasoning, and jumping in herself!’
Jiang Xiao said nothing. He simply clenched his fists and looked down at the leisure pants on the floor.
“Jiang Xiao… Jiang Xiao, let me explain! I really didn’t mean it this time!”
As she spoke, Song Qiuyu scrambled to pull Jiang Xiao’s pants back up.
‘Loose leisure pants are just too easy to pull off. If he were wearing jeans, this wouldn’t have happened! Dammit!’
‘Seriously, why didn’t Little Jiang Xiao do anything to help at a critical moment?’
‘Hook onto them or something!’
Little Jiang Xiao remained silent.
Jiang Xiao also remained silent, but he continued toward the door to open it.
“Jiang Xiao, it’s so late. Why don’t you just make do for tonight? Squeeze in with me and leave tomorrow morning!”
Song Qiuyu grabbed Jiang Xiao’s sleeve.
“Hmph…”
Jiang Xiao turned his head.
He saw a girl who was a head shorter than him, biting her lip and looking at him expectantly.
Her two small hands gripped the edge of his shirt.
Anyone could see the worry and the desire for him to stay in her eyes.
Just one look was enough to make a heart soften.
“You want me to stay?”
“Yes!”
“Then do you remember what we didn’t finish last night? Should we continue now?”
“Ugh…”
Song Qiuyu gritted her teeth. “Jiang Xiao, I’m seriously worried about you!”
“And I’m seriously just teasing you.”
Jiang Xiao raised an eyebrow, looking quite nonchalant.
He slowly pulled his sleeve away and opened the door.
“After we part today, I guess I’ll see you when school starts.”
“Uh-huh…”
“Don’t worry, I won’t pester you anymore, Song Qiuyu.”
With a creak, the door closed.
Song Qiuyu stared at the door blankly for a while before pulling it open again and chasing after him.
Jiang Xiao walked so fast.
The Luggage was gone, the Living Room was empty, and the hallway was empty. Even when she ran downstairs, there was no one.
The streetlights flickered, and a few specks of dust floated in the light.
Song Qiuyu stood alone in the brightness, gazing into the distance.
Then, she suddenly felt a chill and a stinging pain in her soles.
Looking down, she saw her two bare feet pressed tightly against the cold floor.
Her slippers had fallen off during that fall in the Bedroom.
She had been barefoot this whole way without even noticing!
Song Qiuyu stayed silent for a while.
She sniffled and quietly turned around to go home.
Then, Jiang Xiao’s figure appeared before her without warning.
It was as if he hadn’t gone far at all and had been nearby the whole time.
Jiang Xiao looked at her with an exasperated expression and walked over quickly.
Seeing this, Song Qiuyu stepped forward without thinking.
Before she could get half a word out, her vision suddenly flipped.
Jiang Xiao had picked her up and slung her over his shoulder!
“Jiang… Jiang Xiao, what are you doing?”
Song Qiuyu was terrified.
Her feet struggled and flailed instinctively, her toes and arches repeatedly thumping against Jiang Xiao’s back.
Jiang Xiao didn’t reply.
He quickly walked back up the stairs, opened the door, and entered her Bedroom.
With a thump, he threw her back onto the Bed.
“Oof…”
Song Qiuyu closed her eyes by reflex and shrugged her shoulders.
Losing her balance, she fell back, her legs splaying into an embarrassing M-shape.
She seemed completely oblivious to this.
When she opened her eyes, she saw Jiang Xiao was about to leave again.
She scrambled to sit up.
“Jiang Xiao!” The girl’s voice was sweet, but now it was laced with obvious anxiety and pleading.
“Don’t chase after me again,” Jiang Xiao said coldly, deliberately hardening his face.
Song Qiuyu heard a different meaning behind his words.
It seemed that as long as she kept chasing him, Jiang Xiao would keep carrying her back and throwing her onto the Bed.
Her eyes, which had been somewhat dull, suddenly lit up.
Under Song Qiuyu’s excited gaze, Jiang Xiao frowned and squeezed his hand.
It was truly hard not to be moved by her like this, but he had to stay firm.
Xi’er might cry alone after this, and he wouldn’t be able to rush to her side to comfort her immediately.
However, there were some things Jiang Xiao could never help Xi’er with. Only Xi’er could save herself.
But Jiang Xiao had already received his punishment for lying to and bullying Xi’er today.
He was currently in a state of great torment and pain.
‘I really want to hug Xi’er.’
With a creak, the door closed again.
The person who had been thrown onto the Bed clenched her fists and prepared to get up once more.
When the door opened, the first things that entered her field of vision were two confused and worried faces.
These two faces could only belong to her Mom and Father.
“Mom, Dad… why are you at my door?”
Song Qiuyu was startled.
After speaking, she saw her parents looking suspicious, which immediately made her nervous.
“Little treasure, why are you running around on the floor without your slippers?”
Su Luo glanced at the plush slippers scattered across the floor inside the room and frowned.
She turned her head toward the entrance, sounding hesitant. “Also, did you and Little Jiang… have a fight?”
Song Qiuyu bit her lip guiltily and licked her lips.
Fortunately, based on her Mom’s words, they hadn’t heard much!
“Put your slippers on first. Cold starts from the feet; don’t get sick!” Song Zhao Ye said hurriedly.
“Okay, Dad!”
Song Qiuyu couldn’t worry about chasing Jiang Xiao anymore.
She had to turn around and pick up her slippers.
When she lifted her small feet, revealing her dirty soles, the expressions on the two people at the door became even stranger.
“Honey, do you think they…” Song Zhao Ye narrowed his eyes.
“But is it really possible?” Su Luo sighed.
“Maybe it’s time to tell the child certain things!” Song Zhao Ye sighed as well.
During their conversation, Song Qiuyu had finished putting on her slippers.
With a bit of bashfulness and restraint, she walked obediently back to them.
Seeing his son like this, Su Luo looked at her husband beside her and let out a helpless sigh.
“Alright then. He has to be told sooner or later anyway.”
‘Huh?’
‘What exactly are Mom and Dad talking about?’
Song Qiuyu was stunned.
“Little treasure, go sit in the living room first. Mom and Dad have something to tell you in a bit.”
Su Luo took a half-step forward and patted her son’s fluffy head.
“Okay.”
Song Qiuyu nodded and obediently walked to the Living Room, sitting on the Sofa.
While waiting, she couldn’t help but look toward the door.
She wondered what Jiang Xiao was doing now and if he had really left.
She pulled her Phone out of her pocket and opened Mobile QQ. her finger hovered over Jiang Xiao’s Chat Window.
Just as she summoned the courage to open it, Su Luo and Song Zhao Ye walked back with a thick Photo Album.
They sat down on the Sofa with her, causing Song Qiuyu to hurriedly shove her Phone back into her pocket, her heart skipping several beats.
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