The warmth of her body, the curve of her waist against his arm, the sensation of her soaked hair brushing against his wrist…
It felt as though this scene had happened before, as though he had held her like this many times.
Even the slap she had given him felt strangely familiar, stirring a tingling tremor throughout his body.
Lu Shiyu lowered his head and looked at his hand. The delicate sensation of the girl’s skin still lingered there.
Water droplets slowly slipped between his fingers.
His heart seemed to have been lightly tapped by something, leaving behind an echo whose origin he could not identify.
Su Tao ran for a few steps before she could go no farther. Like a walking corpse, she wandered aimlessly through the Shen family’s courtyard.
Seeing how distracted she was, Facái assumed she was still upset by the comments from those people and comforted her:
【Host, don’t be sad. Those are only character settings. They aren’t judgments about you personally.】
【Once you return to the wealthy family, you’ll be able to slap the faces of all those snobs who look down on others.】
Su Tao did not respond and simply continued walking forward.
Facái was about to comfort her again when Su Tao suddenly stopped beside a long table covered with a white tablecloth in the corner. Her eyes immediately lit up.
Following her gaze, Facái saw that the table was covered with fruit tarts, macarons, and a three-layer cream cake that no one had touched.
Since yesterday, Su Tao had been locked in the dark room by Lu Shiyu and put through one ordeal after another. Then she had nearly drowned. Her stomach had been sustained by nothing more than a bowl of Seafood Porridge, and her body was already completely exhausted.
Now that she knew the Time Reversal Program had succeeded, the tightly wound string inside her finally snapped. Hunger and exhaustion surged over her at once.
She grabbed a cream puff and stuffed it into her mouth.
The cream squeezed out of the flaky pastry. It was soft, sweet, and melted in her mouth.
She was so moved that tears nearly fell from her eyes. She did not even notice the cream smeared at the corner of her lips.
【Being part of a wealthy family is great. Such a huge house, such delicious cakes. Facái, when can I return to the wealthy family?】
Facái replied:
【Your biological father, Shen Zhengqing, has already investigated your background and confirmed that you are the biological daughter of the Shen family who was lost years ago.】
【Shen Dai invited you to her birthday banquet today because Shen Zhengqing wanted you to come. The purpose is to have you acknowledge your family today.】
【If everything goes smoothly, we’ll be returning to the wealthy family today!】
Su Tao could not help beaming with joy, and her appetite improved even more. Just as she was happily devouring the cake, Facái suddenly said anxiously:
【Host, the male lead is coming toward you. Hide quickly.】
Su Tao’s mouth was stuffed with cake, so she answered indistinctly:
【Why do I have to hide? He’s a live-in son-in-law. Shouldn’t he be afraid of me instead?】
【Facái: There’s no time to explain. Just run!】
Although Su Tao could not understand why she needed to hide from a live-in son-in-law, she trusted Facái’s professional judgment. She quickly piled five pieces of cake onto a plate and took off running.
Su Tao carried the plate of cake across the lawn and slipped into a quiet corridor. Panting heavily, she crouched down in a corner. After making sure no one had followed her, she happily continued eating.
【Facái, why did I run?】
Facái was exasperated by her lack of understanding.
【Use your brain! You haven’t acknowledged your family yet. And you just pushed the campus belle, Shen Dai, into the water. So in Qiao Ran’s eyes, you’re not the Shen family’s daughter he’s supposed to marry. You’re just an outsider who bullied Shen Zhengqing’s daughter.】
【He’s someone who was willing to become a live-in son-in-law just to stay in the Shen family and seek revenge. In order to win Shen Zhengqing’s favor, what do you think he’ll do now?】
Su Tao held her fork in her mouth, completely confused.
【Su Tao: What will he do?】
【Facái: Of course he’ll prove his loyalty to Shen Zhengqing by standing up for his daughter, Shen Dai. This is also a scene from the original novel. But since it isn’t a key plot point, we can simply avoid it and lie low until you acknowledge your family.】
Su Tao nodded and continued eating her cake without a care.
[My daily routine is doing housework and studying, and also with a strange uncle……]
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Just then, a hand reached out from behind her and suddenly grabbed her wrist.
“Miss Su, wait.”
Su Tao turned around and saw Qiao Ran.
She was startled and instinctively swung her hand. The plate she was holding slammed directly into him.
Chocolate cake, strawberry mousse, and cream puffs smeared all over Qiao Ran.
The white shirt he had just changed into was now covered in cake crumbs and cream stains. It was a complete mess.
Qiao Ran lowered his head and looked at his shirt, then raised his eyes to her. His gaze was cold, like a blade sliding against her skin.
Su Tao held the empty plate, so embarrassed that she wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
“I… I’m sorry.”
Facái was as frantic as an ant on a hot pan.
【We’re doomed, we’re doomed, we’re doomed. He’s going to make things even harder for you now.】
The moment she heard that, Su Tao put the plate aside and turned around to slip away.
Qiao Ran stepped forward and blocked her path. Su Tao nearly collided with the patch of cream on his chest.
“Miss Su.” His dark eyes fixed directly on her face. “You can’t leave yet. You need to explain why you pushed Dai Dai into the water just now.”
Su Tao’s heart sank.
Help! That stupid, spiteful thing may have been done by her, but it really wasn’t done by her!
She wasn’t the original Su Tao. She had merely been thrown into this world by the Time Reversal Program. Why was she the one being held responsible?
【Facái: Host, make something up!】
Su Tao forced herself to speak.
“Y-you listen to me explain…”
Facái covered its face in despair.
Good grief. Its host was so hopeless.
Qiao Ran raised an eyebrow. The corners of his thin lips curved slightly, but there was no warmth in his smile.
“Fine. I’ll listen to your explanation.”
Su Tao stammered, “I… I accidentally tripped and accidentally bumped into Miss Shen, so… so I accidentally pushed her into the water…”
“But what are we going to do about this?” Qiao Ran refused to let her off. His dark eyes stared heavily at her. “Someone witnessed what happened. You didn’t trip. You deliberately pushed her.”
Su Tao opened and closed her mouth awkwardly, her mind racing as she tried to think of an explanation. In the end, only three words came out.
“I didn’t.”
Qiao Ran narrowed his eyes slightly and took one step forward.
The sharp, cool scent lingering on his body mixed with the sweetness of the cream and forcefully entered Su Tao’s nose.
His tall figure blocked most of the sunlight, completely enveloping her in shadow.
The surrounding guests had already noticed the commotion and gathered around. They had heard most of the conversation between the two.
Excitement flashed across their faces as they watched the spectacle. They surrounded them layer after layer, waiting to see Su Tao publicly humiliated.
A pink-haired young man pushed his way out of the crowd and pointed at Su Tao, his voice loud and clear.
“I saw it with my own eyes! Su Tao deliberately dragged Shen Dai into the water!”
Su Tao looked at him, and memories surged into her mind.
This pink-haired guy had confessed to her before. After she rejected him, he had held a grudge and spread malicious rumors about her everywhere, claiming that her private life was promiscuous.
Someone like him naturally would not pass up an opportunity to humiliate her.
After hearing the pink-haired man’s accusation, the surrounding crowd broke into a chorus of jeers.