Chapter 49 Chapter 49: Red Rose (4)
“Don’t scare her.” Seeing how excited Zheng Wenxuan looked, He Xiaohan’s tone turned a bit helpless. “That girl isn’t having it easy either. She only has a thousand yuan a month for living expenses. She comes out to work just to make a little extra to get by.”
After hearing He Xiaohan say that, a trace of sympathy immediately appeared on Zheng Wenxuan’s face.
“Yeah… that does sound pretty tough.”
Listening to He Xiaohan’s words, Xu Yecheng instead felt a bit of irony. Putting on such a refined, gentlemanly front in front of others—he was genuinely disgusted. He didn’t believe for a second that that hundred-yuan tip was given out of some sudden attack of conscience.
All an act. Just an act.
“Mm, after all, the spending level in places like that isn’t low,” He Xiaohan continued. “Being able to find a job like this isn’t bad. At least she doesn’t have to trade her dignity for money.”
As soon as he finished speaking, a hint of melancholy flashed through his eyes, but it was quickly concealed, and that gentle smile returned to his face.
“Xuan, why don’t you go help her out a bit?” He Xiaohan said with a teasing tone.
“Tsk, who knows, maybe she already has a boyfriend. A girl this pretty probably isn’t single,” Zheng Wenxuan replied.
He Xiaohan waved his hand. “That has nothing to do with whether she has a boyfriend.”
Zheng Wenxuan’s smile immediately took on a slightly lewd edge.
“Hey, if that girl were my girlfriend, I’d get up at five in the morning to collect bottles just to make sure she lived well.”
Hearing their conversation made Xu Yecheng feel more and more uncomfortable, but Zheng Wenxuan’s words still managed to make him feel both disgusted and a little touched.
He was touched by Zheng Wenxuan’s attitude toward girls—but he didn’t like being fantasized about as someone’s girlfriend.
“What if she turns around and ends up with another man?” He Xiaohan suddenly said.
He looked at Zheng Wenxuan as if his words had hit a funny spot, smiling with evident interest.
Zheng Wenxuan’s face stiffened, and his expression immediately turned indignant.
“Holy crap, get that NTR crap out of here,” Zheng Wenxuan grimaced. “What kind of dog-blooded plot is that?”
He Xiaohan spread his hands helplessly, his gaze sweeping past Xu Yecheng’s back. “Reality is far more absurd than you imagine.”
Zheng Wenxuan’s expression instantly became complicated, but the next second he quickly looked pitiful again.
“No way. That girl is so cute—she definitely wouldn’t cuckold me.”
“Looks are her capital. If you have capital, you can naturally be with better people. Do you think a high-looks girl like that would prefer an average-looking guy, or someone handsome and rich?”
Zheng Wenxuan sighed helplessly. “Obviously she’d like someone handsome. She’s so pretty—no reason to like a loser like me.”
He took a deep breath. “I know reality is harsh, but it’s not too much if I just fantasize about it in my head, right?”
He Xiaohan stood up, took a cigarette out of his pocket, and reached out to pat Zheng Wenxuan on the shoulder.
“Keep it up, Xuan. I wish you an early harvest of love,” He Xiaohan said earnestly.
Zheng Wenxuan looked surprised.
“He Lao, were you hurt in love too? You feel kind of strange today,” he said, watching He Xiaohan walk onto the balcony and light a cigarette.
“Is that so?” He Xiaohan smiled. “Maybe it’s your mindset that’s changed, Xuan.”
“Maybe…” Zheng Wenxuan’s voice dropped several notches.
Listening to their conversation, Xu Yecheng still felt deeply hurt.
Yeah. Why would Ji Qingying like someone like him?
Xu Yecheng felt thoroughly mocked.
Face reality—he was the kind of person Ji Qingying wouldn’t even look at.
He sighed helplessly and stood up from his chair. Whenever he was in a bad mood, Xu Yecheng had to rely on exercise to cope.
Out of spite, he ran an extra thousand meters, until there wasn’t a shred of strength left in his body.
Of course he wanted to give up…
He was exhausted, and he also knew that this situation had absolutely no hope.
Maybe what he liked wasn’t Ji Qingying herself, but that feeling of having a goal every day. When Ji Qingying maintained that so-called boyfriend–girlfriend relationship with him, Xu Yecheng really did feel like he was getting better every day.
Of course, Ji Qingying had also given him a few rare moments of affirmation and recognition from another person.
But now, he was back to that state of thinking he was utterly worthless.
His thoughts grew more and more chaotic. He felt all the strength in his body had been drained away. Even though the track field had powerful floodlights, once he stepped toward the edge, everything around him still grew dark.
The moment his weak, aching limbs stepped into the darkness, Xu Yecheng’s vision instantly blurred.
The gentleness of the night concealed everything before his eyes. Although there were noisy voices on the field, the darkness ahead seemed to cover up some part of his heart that had collapsed inward.
He suddenly felt extremely wronged.
His heart felt tightly twisted together. The exhaustion throughout his body seemed to run through all his thoughts.
Everything felt like it was just his own wishful thinking—something no one knew about, something no one ever asked about—yet he alone silently became the one who got hurt.
He let out a long breath and slowly slowed his pace. Sweat kept dripping from his cheeks, and the surging sense of grievance made the tip of his nose start to sting.
So useless…
Xu Yecheng wiped the sweat away. A faint salty taste spread across his tongue as sweat slid down the corners of his eyes. His eye sockets suddenly grew hot, and everything before him began to distort.
“Brother Cheng.” A clear, cool voice suddenly came from behind him.
Xu Yecheng froze slightly and turned to look at He Xiaohan behind him. He was still panting, but in the next second it felt as if something had seized his throat.
Xu Yecheng’s mind went blank. Running into He Xiaohan in such a sorry state instantly filled him with a mix of shame and inferiority.
He was a little panicked.
“What is it?” Xu Yecheng replied, sounding calm enough, but the moment he spoke, that grievance in his heart surged up again.
He Xiaohan was silent for a moment. Xu Yecheng heard him let out a soft sigh.
“Ji Qingying isn’t as good as you think. Don’t get so tangled up over her.”
His gaze fell on Xu Yecheng’s face. In the dim environment, He Xiaohan still saw something in Xu Yecheng’s eyes—something shimmering faintly.
Xu Yecheng froze.
“You knew all along?”
His voice was hoarse, the ending trembling slightly.
“Yeah. Ji Qingying’s initial target was me. You were just a stepping stone for her,” He Xiaohan said, not bothering to beat around the bush.
His gaze lowered slightly, and then he heard a strange sound come from Xu Yecheng’s throat.
———
Tomorrow’s update will still be a bit late; I’ll be out during the day.
No comments yet
Be the first to share your thoughts!