Lin Xiyue’s jaw dropped in astonishment.
Had the male lead just rejected the female lead so bluntly?
Jin Yao clearly wasn’t used to being humiliated like this, and she was getting flustered.
“He Mingchu! Why do you have to be so cold-hearted!”
Showing no sympathy for the girl, He Mingchu replied indifferently, “I’m just telling the truth.”
Jin Yao: “I’ve never been rejected since I was a child!”
He Mingchu: “Well, you have now.”
Lin Xiyue covered her mouth. Oh my god, wasn’t the male lead supposed to have a gentle personality?
Wasn’t this a bit too harsh?
Anyone with a slightly stronger sense of self-esteem would definitely run away.
Sure enough, the next second, Jin Yao stamped her foot and ran off.
Bai Xiaomei hadn’t been able to get a word in earlier and was somewhat afraid of her strong-willed stepson. Now that the girl had run off, she grew concerned.
“Ming Chu, should… should you go check on her?”
He Mingchu’s tone softened. “No need, Aunt Mei. She’s not someone we need to worry about.”
With a chauffeur driving her around daily, she’d be the last person to encounter any danger.
Since her stepson had put it that way, Bai Xiaomei didn’t press further.
He Mingchu turned to enter the house.
Lin Xiyue quickly withdrew to her seat, sitting properly on the chair and resuming her homework.
“Haven’t you finished these problems yet?”
He Mingchu’s voice carried a chill.
Lin Xiyue’s scalp prickled, and she raised her hands in surrender.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I’ll do them right now!”
It was Bai Xiaomei’s first day at work. The privately-owned restaurant was quite busy, with a constant flow of customers.
She stayed in the back kitchen, washing dishes nonstop.
By evening, she finally found a moment to use the restroom.
On her way out, she overheard the restaurant servers gossiping.
“The boss found another sucker to wash dishes?”
“Yeah, that older sister. She looks so pitiful, I don’t know how the boss has the nerve to trick her!”
“Tch, that old beast. He scams them one by one. When she finishes a month, he’ll kick her out without paying a cent! He’ll even turn around and accuse her of failing hygiene standards!”
“Oh dear, what a sin! I can’t bear to watch!”
“Then go warn that older sister!”
“No way! If that old beast finds out, he’ll fire me too!”
…
Bai Xiaomei felt all her strength drain away. Her lips trembled, and tears began to fall again.
“What should I do now? I can’t keep this job either!”
She untied her apron, threw it into the restaurant’s back kitchen, and walked away without looking back.
A whole day of exhausting work—all for nothing!
Bai Xiaomei went home and collapsed onto the bed.
When He Jianguo, He Mingchu, and Lin Xiyue returned home, they found Bai Xiaomei with swollen eyes.
“What happened?”
He Jianguo didn’t even bother changing out of his work clothes before sitting down beside Bai Xiaomei.
Lin Xiyue also found it strange.
While Bai Xiaomei wasn’t particularly assertive, she’d never been bullied like this before!
“I… lost my job…”
After hearing Bai Xiaomei’s story, all three of them breathed a sigh of relief.
He Jianguo: “It’s alright, it’s just a temporary job loss. We’ll find another one!”
Lin Xiyue comforted her mother.
“Mom, think about it—you’re actually lucky! You found out the restaurant was unreliable on the very first day, so you only worked for free for one day!
“If you’d worked thirty days before learning there’d be no pay, wouldn’t that be a huge loss? And such a waste of time!”
Bai Xiaomei stopped crying.
She looked at her daughter pitifully.
“Moon Maiden, Mom has failed you…”
Lin Xiyue comforted her: “It’s alright, we’ll keep looking, keep looking…”
He Mingchu watched her with suppressed laughter.
When Monday arrived at school, He Mingchu noticed something off about the classroom atmosphere.
As soon as they sat down, Jin Yao’s deskmate Liu Qing sauntered over.
“He Mingchu, I heard Jin Yao invited you to the party yesterday too. Why didn’t you go?”
He Mingchu: “Need to study, no time!”
Even if he had time, he wouldn’t go. Might as well make something at home.
Liu Qing was taken aback: “You’re already this capable, and you still need to study?”
He Mingchu glanced at Lin Xiyue: “Tutoring her studies.”
Liu Qing curled his lip: “You have no idea – Jin Yao’s family is really wealthy! She likes you. If you get together with her, your future will be smooth sailing!”
By the end of his speech, Liu Qing’s eyes were shining.
If Jin Yao hadn’t taken a liking to He Mingchu, he’d definitely try to snatch the opportunity himself.
He Mingchu scoffed: “If you’re so fond of smooth sailing, why don’t you go talk to Jin Yao! Maybe she’ll grant your wish!”
Liu Qing’s face flushed red: “What nonsense are you talking! She likes you!”
He Mingchu: “Oh.”
He lowered his head and continued reading.
Liu Qing grew agitated: “What do you mean by that? Are you looking down on me?”
Lin Xiyue was stunned by his logic.
“Classmate, don’t be impulsive! He Mingchu didn’t mean it that way!”
Liu Qing: “Then what did he mean? He knows perfectly well Jin Yao likes him, yet he tells me to go talk to her? Isn’t that being hypocritical after getting the advantage?”
Lin Xiyue’s head ached from his shouting and she retreated two steps.
“Classmate Liu, if you like Jin Yao, just say it directly! Why care about who she likes? Everyone has the right to express their feelings.”
He Mingchu propped his chin on his hand and looked back at Lin Xiyue.
To have such awareness – he had underestimated his little pet.
Jin Yao chose that moment to enter the classroom.
Although He Mingchu had rejected her invitation, she still liked him. Hearing Lin Xiyue’s words, she decided to lay her cards on the table.
“He Mingchu, your sister is right. Everyone has the right to express their feelings.”
“Since that’s the case, let me tell you how I feel.”
She flipped her hair.
Lin Xiyue quietly moved aside to give Jin Yao the stage.
Although she knew Jin Yao’s confession would definitely be rejected this time, without these repeated confessions, He Mingchu wouldn’t discover his own feelings.
So this was necessary plot development that had to happen!
He Mingchu noticed Lin Xiyue quietly edging toward the wall and felt dissatisfied. He reached out and gripped Lin Xiyue’s arm, preventing her from retreating further.
Lin Xiyue looked down and wanted to struggle free, but worried that making too big a movement would attract others’ attention.
Just as Jin Yao was about to speak, she saw He Mingchu pulling Lin Xiyue’s arm.
“He Mingchu, are you and Lin Xiyue really siblings?”
He Mingchu grinned: “What’s your position to ask me that question?”
His words sounded provocative.
Lin Xiyue quickly explained: “Classmate Jin Yao, He Mingchu really is my brother!”
He Mingchu added fuel to the fire: “Not by blood.”
Lin Xiyue glared at him.
What nonsense was he spouting!
“My mom married his dad, we’re family!”
He Mingchu lowered his eyes, barely suppressing the irritation in his heart.
Why was she so eager to be siblings with him?
Why?
Why?
He couldn’t control the strength in his hand until he heard Lin Xiyue’s voice.
“Ah!”
He looked down and saw Lin Xiyue’s flushed face, her terrified expression as she tried to pull her hand back.
He Mingchu calmed down, loosening his grip slightly but still keeping her pinned beside him.
Jin Yao felt reassured—they were just siblings after all. She could start working on this “sister-in-law” first.
But for now, business came first.
She cleared her throat: “He Mingchu, I like you!”