Lu Ning remained extremely calm. She truly wanted to leave this home.
Lu Liu sneered, “Fine, get out now. I want to see if you can survive without the Lu family!”
Lu Nanfeng couldn’t bear it anymore. “Enough, Sixth Brother, what are you saying?”
“Second Brother, it was Lu Ning who said she wanted to leave this family first. She’s the one who doesn’t want us!”
Lu Liu’s eyes turned red with rage, his emotions intense. He had already lowered his head today, yet Lu Ning still wanted to leave the family. Did she really want him, her brother, to kneel and apologize before she’d be satisfied?
Qin Xiang quickly came to smooth things over. “Sixth Brother, don’t be angry. Sister Ning Ning was just joking. It’s fine if she doesn’t want to tutor me. I have the private tutor, and I’m already very grateful, really.”
Lu Liu glared fiercely at Lu Ning. “Look how sensible Xiang Xiang is, and then look at yourself, Lu Ning. Have you ever reflected on your behavior?”
“Sixth Brother, let’s forget it. Let’s go. I still have some gaming strategies to discuss with you.”
Qin Xiang looked back at Lu Nanfeng. “Second Brother, we’ll be going now.”
“Go ahead.”
Seeing how understanding Qin Xiang was, Lu Nanfeng softened again. Qin Xiang wasn’t originally part of the Lu family, yet for the sake of the team training, she had let her grades drop so much. She always managed to smooth over family conflicts at the right time. Compared to Lu Ning, Qin Xiang appeared much more mature.
Lu Nanfeng looked at Lu Ning with disappointment. “Don’t take your Sixth Brother’s words to heart. You’re still a member of the Lu family.”
Lu Ning replied calmly, “I still think it’s better if I move out.”
Lu Nanfeng’s face changed. “Ning Ning, what do you want exactly for us to live like before, as a happy family?”
Like before? Lu Ning’s gaze turned a little aged, feeling utterly exhausted. She didn’t even feel like replying anymore. All she felt was disappointment.
Lu Ning tugged at the corner of her lips. “Impossible.”
After answering coldly, she turned and walked straight toward her room upstairs. She would never again, like in her past life, give everything humbly, only to be thoroughly ignored and abandoned in the end. Never!
After this, Lu Ning and her brothers fell into a silent cold war. They didn’t speak for a long time. But she found it relaxing—finally no longer needing to deal with them.
Soon, the team’s resurrection match arrived, set for Saturday this week.
For several days, Qin Xiang had been absent from school, claiming she was sick. But Lu Ning knew she was actually preparing for the competition.
One day, Lu Nanfeng came over and placed a competition ticket beside her. “Go watch the match this afternoon. Consider it cheering for the family.”
Lu Ning replied indifferently, “Got it.”
Seeing that she didn’t even ask how the team preparations were going, showing such indifference compared to Qin Xiang, who even skipped school for training, Lu Nanfeng felt even more disappointed.
“Ning Ning, when you grow up, you’ll understand our good intentions.”
Lu Nanfeng didn’t say more and left the living room.
Lu Ning felt sickened by his words and lost her appetite. Her desire to move out became even stronger.
She picked up the competition ticket. She would go see it. She wanted to witness firsthand how Lu Liu’s team would fail without her effort.
Lu Ning took a picture of the ticket and sent it to Ji Chiqian. [I’m going to watch the competition this afternoon, so I won’t be gaming.]
They had originally planned to play games over the weekend.
Ji Chiqian replied instantly. [Okay.]
Just as he replied, someone sneaked over, trying to peek at the chat but still couldn’t see.
Gu Zifeng clutched his chest dramatically. “Come on, let me see. Why are you so stingy?”
Ji Chiqian lifted his eyelids. “Don’t want your eyes anymore?”
“Ahem, so serious? I mean, even if you feel guilty, you can just compensate her directly. Why are you always staying by her side? What are you planning?”
Ji Chiqian held his phone with slender fingers. After a long pause, he finally replied, “Accompany her as she grows, help her get through the low points, until she can live freely.”
Gu Zifeng couldn’t help but add, “Until she grows up, falls in love, gets married, and has children?”
Ji Chiqian frowned slightly. “Something like that.”
Her parents were gone, her brothers were biased and unreliable—she was struggling alone.
Ji Chiqian changed the subject. “Do you have tickets for this afternoon’s match?”
“The resurrection match? You’re interested? I thought your little brother already made it straight to the finals!”
Ji Chiqian looked at the sky outside. At least until she no longer needed him. If her parents were still around, she wouldn’t have to suffer like this.
Lu Ning went straight to the venue for the team match. She saw many fans outside holding support banners, including fans of the Lu Tian team and even Qin Xiang’s fans.
Lately, with the help of Fourth Brother’s entertainment company, Qin Xiang had become a somewhat famous streamer. Young, sweet-mouthed, and skilled at pretending to be innocent, this persona was very popular in the live-streaming world.
Lu Ning glanced at the banners in the fans’ hands. In the past, she too had bought many Lu Tian team merchandise, reposted countless team-related posts, and actively managed the fan group.
Expressionless, Lu Ning withdrew her gaze, holding the ticket as she walked inside.
After sitting down, she looked at the stage seats, momentarily dazed. In her past life, she sat right there, turned the tide, and won the resurrection match. It had been a hard-fought victory. That team had real strength and stable performance, unlike Lu Liu, who had skills but always lost control of the match rhythm. Not to mention his arrogance and pride, refusing to listen to advice.
Soon, the teams entered the stage. Fans on both sides screamed, competing to see whose voices were louder.
Lu Ning calmly sat in her seat, watching Lu Liu and Qin Xiang lead their team to the front, both wearing matching team uniforms, looking like a family. But she noticed Lu Liu’s expression was unpleasant.
She realized that neither Second Brother nor Fourth Brother was present. What was going on? Weren’t they supposed to be training and competing in the resurrection match together?
On stage, Lu Liu’s face was indeed bad. He hadn’t expected Second Brother and Fourth Brother to bail on him at the last minute, completely disrupting his plans.
Qin Xiang comforted him. “Sixth Brother, Second and Fourth Brothers’ companies had urgent matters to handle. They can’t come. After all, they’re company presidents, not professional players.”
“What do you know? We’ve trained together for so long, and they just say they can’t come? How are we supposed to compete like this?”
“Sixth Brother, our remaining team members are also excellent. We’ve trained together, and if we work well together, we won’t lose.”
Even though Lu Liu gave her the cold shoulder, Qin Xiang still patiently said nice things. Especially at a time like this, standing by Lu Liu’s side and never leaving would only make him more satisfied with her as a sister, gradually replacing Lu Ning’s position.
Even if Lu Liu was angry, there was nothing he could do now. Suddenly, he thought of Lu Ning and said subconsciously, “Xiang Xiang, do you think if Lu Ning were playing now, things might be better?”
Qin Xiang’s smile instantly froze, feeling annoyed inside. Why bring up Lu Ning again? Did all her efforts, even taking leave for training, still not compare to Lu Ning, who did nothing?
Out of the corner of her eye, Qin Xiang suddenly spotted a familiar figure in the audience. “Sixth Brother, Sister Ning Ning came to watch our match.”
Lu Ning noticed Qin Xiang looking over, and the fans beside her started screaming.
When Lu Liu saw Lu Ning at that moment, his eyes lit up. She still came.