After returning to her room, Ji Xixing treated her wounds while calling Jian Yao.
She had controlled her strength carefully, so although she had rolled down the stairs, she had only suffered superficial injuries.
As she recounted everything to Jian Yao, although Jian Yao couldn’t truly empathize with her experience, she remained silent for a long time before saying softly, “Xingxing, why don’t you move in with me? I have enough money to support you for the rest of your life.”
Ji Xixing laughed. “Darling, what are you saying? I’m not about to become some pretty boy living off a rich woman.”
“So what if you are?” Jian Yao retorted indignantly. “Move in with me, I’ve got your back. No one in my family would dare bully you, and you wouldn’t have to suffer all that nonsense.”
She sounded furious. “You should cut ties with your dad and those people right now. They’re absolutely horrible!”
Ji Xixing paused while applying medicine and forced a smile. Her voice remained calm and devoid of emotion.
“Darling, I’ve endured a lot and suffered through plenty of oppression. I’ve engraved it all into my bones.”
“One day, I’ll return everything to them.”
“Running away to your house won’t solve the root of the problem. Ji Lifeng isn’t planning to let me go, and Ji Chenhuan and Cheng Songjin are all waiting to laugh at me. What kind of play has actors abandoning the stage halfway through?”
“But Xingxing, you could live a happier life. Why insist on carrying all those heavy things?” Jian Yao couldn’t understand. “Getting revenge on them won’t mean anything.”
“And if you want revenge, I can help you.”
“You’d have a much easier time staying with me than facing all this alone.”
“Stop, stop, stop.” Ji Xixing interrupted her. “Don’t use the emotional route on me. I’m really not used to it.”
“Fine, fine. But remember, whenever you need help, tell me.”
After hanging up, Ji Xixing hugged a cushion and stared blankly at the bustling city outside.
The melancholy in her heart, combined with the lingering pain from her injuries, suddenly left her feeling somewhat down.
She had barely been wallowing in her emotions for three minutes when her phone rang at the worst possible moment.
Without looking at the caller ID, she answered irritably. Immediately, a nearly hysterical voice roared from the other end.
“Ji Xixing, have you completely stopped caring whether you graduate or not?”
Ji Xixing froze. What the hell?
Completely baffled, she asked honestly, “What do you mean?”
“What do I mean? You’re asking me what I mean?” The other party sounded even more exasperated. “Did you even look at the revision comments I gave you for your graduation project? Have you seen the thing you made? Do you seriously think it’s presentable?”
It was as though he had finally found an outlet for his frustration.
“You promised me ten days ago that you’d revise it properly. Ten days, Ji Xixing! Where’s your work?”
“And now you’re asking what I mean? Why don’t you just ask me who I am while you’re at it? Do you hear yourself? If our university didn’t have graduation quotas, I honestly wouldn’t bother with you anymore!”
Ji Xixing fell silent.
After listening to that barrage of complaints, even an idiot would understand.
No, rather, the original Ji Xixing had been a university student on the verge of graduation, and she hadn’t finished her graduation project.
Ji Xixing immediately apologized in a good-natured tone.
“Soon, soon! I’m sorry, Professor. I’ll revise it carefully and send it to you as soon as possible.”
“Fine, I’ll trust you one last time.”
After hanging up, Ji Xixing nearly burst into tears.
Life really was cruel.
Being transmigrated into a novel without becoming the heroine was one thing. Being hated by everyone was one thing.
But why did she still have to deal with a graduation project?
Relying on vague memories, Ji Xixing opened the dusty laptop and found the graduation project inside.
She stared at it once, then twice.
And felt darkness clouding her vision.
Although she had inherited the original owner’s memories, she genuinely had no idea what this graduation project was even trying to achieve.
Perhaps there was simply a huge difference between her thinking and that of a rich young lady.
The original Ji Xixing had been an art student.
She wasn’t.
Despite sharing the same name, in real life she had merely been an ordinary office worker surviving on a basic salary.
She had never touched any of these software programs.
Ji Xixing wanted to cry.
She had inherited some of the young miss’s excellent qualities, but not her artistic concepts for graduation.
In despair, she took out her phone. After three seconds of silence, she decided to ask her best friend for help.
The moment the call connected, noisy laughter and music drowned out Jian Yao’s voice.
“Darling, have you finally realized I’m your one true destination and regretted rejecting me earlier?”
“Get lost!” Ji Xixing cursed irritably.
“If there’s nothing important, I’ll hang up now and call you back later.”
“No, no, don’t hang up! This is serious, really serious!” Ji Xixing hurriedly stopped her.
“What serious matter?”
Jian Yao hated talking on the phone in noisy places. Hearing that it was important, she immediately stepped out of the private room and found somewhere quieter before listening attentively.
“Darling, I still haven’t finished my graduation project. Help me, please.” Ji Xixing sounded ready to cry.
Who could have imagined this?
Faced with countless difficulties and the misery of having a father who didn’t love her and a mother who had already passed away, she had never surrendered.
Yet a mere graduation project had truly pushed her into despair.
After all, it involved her graduation.
Jian Yao clicked her tongue dismissively.
“I thought it was something major. If you really can’t finish it, then don’t. Are they seriously going to stop you from graduating?”
“I suspect they actually might,” Ji Xixing muttered.
“Then forget about the diploma. Just go home after graduation and inherit the company,” Jian Yao suggested casually.
Halfway through, she suddenly remembered something and exclaimed, “Wait, I almost forgot. Your dad loves your sister more. The company probably won’t be yours anyway.”
Ji Xixing: “…”
That hurt.
“I know. I wasn’t planning on inheriting it.”
Not to mention that Ji Lifeng was still perfectly healthy. Besides, with her movements currently being monitored, she didn’t have the ability to fight for the company.
Even if she wanted to, now wasn’t the right time.
“Wait a minute.” Jian Yao thought for a moment. “Didn’t you tell me before that part of your family’s company shares belonged to your mom? You even said she left those shares to you.”
“Then why are you, a shareholder, living so miserably?”
Ji Xixing was stunned.
The word overjoyed perfectly described her current feelings, though the excitement only lasted briefly.
Very quickly, she calmed down.
“Ji Lifeng holds absolute power in the company. Even if I have shares, I don’t have much say. Taking over the company would still be very difficult.”
“And when my mom died, she didn’t leave a will. Those shares should still be in Ji Lifeng’s hands.” Ji Xixing sighed.
“Or maybe she did leave one, and someone destroyed it.”