“His story… has to start after Grandma passed away…”
Once the girl sat down beside her, Qin Qingge’s gaze grew distant with memory, and she spoke softly, revealing everything she knew.
The story of a rebellious youth slowly unfolded—
After Grandma Qin passed away, and because the Qin family parents were busy with work at the time, the boy, who had been mostly cared for by his grandmother since childhood and was already not close to his parents, was finally brought to Tianbei City to attend junior high.
But lacking supervision, he gradually became a slacker, often hanging out in internet cafes with some classmates, and getting into fights with local troublemakers was a common occurrence.
However, due to the Qin family’s influence, the school leadership turned a blind eye.
Still, to prevent him from getting into serious trouble, they informed the Qin family.
The Qin family parents were furious upon hearing this news from the school leadership, but Qin Nanfeng was repeatedly unrepentant, often agreeing verbally but making no real change.
They couldn’t spare much time due to the company, and Qin Qingge was studying abroad at university at the time.
Entrusting him to others’ care mostly meant they didn’t dare to supervise him too strictly.
When he caused trouble, they could only clean up his mess afterwards…
That’s how rebellious the youth was back then. In Tianbei City’s business social circles, when talking about the younger generation, this Qin family “good-for-nothing” was inevitably mentioned.
This situation lasted a full three years, until his first year of high school.
Qin Nanfeng met his first love, his senior in her third year of high school, and slowly began to change, no longer stirring up trouble…
“So… Uncle forced them apart?”
Lin Xinyuan unconsciously clenched her small hands, unable to resist asking, but her heart already felt a bit sour.
It was the displeasure of learning Qin Nanfeng had genuinely liked another girl, mixed with jealousy and resentment towards that person.
“Yes… That person had issues, she came with an agenda…”
Qin Qingge nodded, her eyes filled with disgust: “A girl from a decent family, clearly doted on by her parents, yet still not satisfied… A gold-digging woman keeping ambiguous relationships with several guys. What do you think she wanted with Qin Nanfeng?”
“My poor, innocent little brother back then, he fell right into her trap…”
This was the first time Lin Xinyuan had heard the “Yellow-Haired Brat” described as innocent, and by Qin Nanfeng’s own sister at that. Her expression couldn’t help but become a bit strange.
But her thoughts involuntarily returned to the past, realizing Qin Nanfeng had also used that word to describe himself, though the young man’s smile and words at the time seemed like self-mockery…
So… Feng Ge was like that before…
At this point, her heart ached for him, and she eagerly asked for the rest: “Sis… what happened after that?”
Seeing the girl’s anxious little expression, Qin Qingge’s “claws” finally couldn’t resist.
She reached out and pinched the plump, fair, baby-soft cheeks a few times, causing Lin Xinyuan to whimper in dissatisfaction.
But her attention wasn’t on that, so she didn’t resist.
“Well… We told him about it, but he refused to believe it. Even when we showed him evidence, he wouldn’t look. He only believed what he wanted to see. It was incredibly naive…”
“But looking back now, it was probably because my parents were so busy and rarely paid attention to him before. When he hit that rebellious age, to get their attention, he liked doing the opposite…”
At this, Qin Qingge’s tone paused slightly. She shrugged, quite helpless: “So my dad forcibly separated them. But he couldn’t do anything illegal, so he could only meet that guy’s demands. He gave her a sum of money, and only then did she willingly leave him.”
Hearing this, Lin Xinyuan was furious. Just thinking about people who liked playing with others’ feelings to achieve their own goals made her heart feel stifled, her little face unconsciously puffing up slightly.
After that, the young man’s subsequent experiences were easy to guess.
The always self-assured Qin Nanfeng’s emotional world completely collapsed. While he didn’t hold any resentment towards his family, a rift formed with his father. The few times they met, conflicts erupted between them.
Even though he didn’t return to being a good-for-nothing like before and seemed to have calmed down, he began to vengefully date certain girls.
And they had to be that green tea slut type…
Until around New Year’s time, Qin Nanfeng suddenly… ran away from home… up until today…
After hearing the whole story, Lin Xinyuan’s delicate face froze for a moment, unsure whether to call Feng Ge childish or something else.
On the surface, it seemed Qin Nanfeng couldn’t handle the betrayal, and that’s why things turned out this way.
But in reality, it was still the conflict between parents and child that caused it. Of course… part of it was also the father and son’s mutual refusal to back down…
From Qin Qingge’s description, Qin Nanfeng’s rebellious behavior back then was actually to attract his parents’ attention.
His inner world was still pure, but such simple emotions, when one day eroded by someone who seemed kind and gentle but was actually using him as a stepping stone… the consequences were predictable…
The more Lin Xinyuan thought about it, the more her heart ached.
She seemed to understand and empathize with someone a little, because she herself used to be that kind of overlooked person, though the reasons were different.
But the young man’s running away from home was sudden and somewhat forced, yet the girl didn’t notice these minor, strange details… she was still immersed in the emotions.
Her pink lips bit down lightly. She really wanted to go back and contact Qin Nanfeng right now, to comfort her boyfriend.
Seeing the girl’s heartbroken expression, Qin Qingge nodded inwardly in agreement, but she was also quite speechless about the whole thing.
After all, her little brother and her dad, if nothing else, were really similar in personality—both as stubborn as mules, neither willing to give an inch…
It only made things harder and less rewarding…
Because of this, her mother had lost interest in the company these past few years, often wiping away tears at home, looking much more haggard.
She could only help her mother share the company workload.
And her father threw himself even more into work, also losing a lot of weight…
The couple had argued a lot over her little brother’s situation…
That’s why Qin Qingge so hoped Qin Nanfeng would come home.
And it wasn’t until recently that her mother’s spirits had inexplicably improved a bit, often asking her about news of Qin Nanfeng…
“Where did that person… go?”
Lin Xinyuan was still uneasy about the person who caused her Feng Ge to become like this. Hatred filled her eyes, but at the same time, her heart couldn’t help but wonder.
If it weren’t for that woman, would she ever have met Qin Nanfeng?
After all, based on Feng Ge’s family background and his own talents, he might not have necessarily stayed in the country.
He might have been sent abroad to study or even pursue advanced studies… The gap between their families… might have destined them never to be together…
He would have been like the blazing sun rising high, and she… probably just humble grass struggling in the mud, unable to break free…
But… no… Lin Xinyuan, how can you be so selfish…
Always thinking of yourself…
Her heart ached with an indescribable sourness. Two conflicting emotions warred within her: hoping Qin Nanfeng hadn’t gone through this, yet deep down feeling a sense of relief.
She clenched her hands tightly, nails digging into her palms, as if she couldn’t even feel the pain…
“She went abroad, I think?”
The girl’s emotions were well concealed, and Qin Qingge wasn’t paying close attention, so she didn’t notice anything amiss.
She took a sip of the now-cooled coffee, thought for a moment, and then slowly said: “I think she’s attending university in the Beautiful Country. Don’t know the specifics, and there’s no need to care. It’s best if she just never comes back…”
At the end, a chill entered Qin Qingge’s eyes.
“I see…”
Hearing this, Lin Xinyuan felt a bit more at ease, though not because she was afraid of that woman.
For one, Feng Ge was hers now, so there was no way that trash could steal him. Besides… if she ever saw the other person, she definitely wouldn’t let her off…
‘Better not let me see you…’
At this moment, a flash of stubbornness and full-blown possessiveness crossed the girl’s usually timid eyes.
Even a gentle person pushed to the edge will pick up a knife, let alone in her world, where she absolutely would not allow anyone else to touch her Feng Ge…