Xiang Yang’s heart flared in anger. He forcefully grabbed the man’s wrist and twisted it down. Taking advantage of the man’s pain, he yanked Chen Jiaojiao’s hand away.
He pushed Chen Jiaojiao behind him.
“Don’t think that just because we were classmates for two years and lived in the same dorm for two years, I won’t dare to hit you when you act out!”
“To be so rude to a girl in public, who knows how rampant you are in private! You scumbag, stay away from us from now on!”
“Heh, so you two know each other? What’s up, did she come with you?”
“Not bad, Xiang Yang. You usually seem timid and honest, but you’re actually hanging out with this kind of woman…”
Xiang Yang pointed his index finger at the man’s nose. “Watch your mouth. What do you mean by ‘this kind of woman’?”
Li Pengcheng looked at his hand without any restraint. “Brother, I think you’re just too honest. You don’t even know when you’re being played.”
“You think she’s pure and innocent just because she’s a bit pretty? Let me tell you, her reputation in Jincheng is in the mud.”
Chen Jiaojiao was so angry she wanted to rush forward and tear his mouth open. “What did I do to you for my reputation to be in the mud? You bastard…”
Xiang Yang reached out and stopped her. “There’s no reasoning with this kind of scum. You go first, I’ll handle this.”
“Go? If she leaves, won’t anyone know what she did? Listen, Xiang Yang, don’t be foolish. It’s not worth sticking up for a woman like this!”
Li Pengcheng continued his unrestrained rant.
“You didn’t know she has a boyfriend, did you? Back when her dad wasn’t in trouble, she was openly going in and out of hotels with an old man. I saw her. Who knows how many abortions she’s had. And you’re still defending her…”
“Li Pengcheng, you better watch your mouth! Say one more word and I’ll run you over with my car!”
“Oh, hit a nerve, have you? Embarrassed and angry? Speaking of which, why doesn’t your boyfriend want you anymore? Got tired of you, and now you have to find someone younger?”
Before Chen Jiaojiao could rush forward and tear his mouth, Xiang Yang’s patience ran out. He took a sudden step forward, grabbed the man by the neck, and slammed him to the ground, raining punches down on him.
What was supposed to be a pleasant class reunion ended with a trip to the hospital.
Classmates pulled the two apart and reasoned with them. Li Pengcheng didn’t call the police on the spot.
However, he went to the hospital to get his injuries examined and took photos, vowing not to let Xiang Yang off the hook and telling him to wait.
Xiang Yang had injuries on his face and some scrapes on his hands. Chen Jiaojiao took him to the hospital for a simple bandaging.
After leaving the hospital and getting into the car, Chen Jiaojiao was extremely annoyed. She skillfully fished another cigarette out of the storage compartment and lit it.
But before she could take a puff, Xiang Yang pulled it away.
“Try to smoke less. You’re young, why learn something like this?”
Chen Jiaojiao was already feeling annoyed and scoffed when she heard Xiang Yang’s lecturing tone, deliberately raising her eyebrows in a defiant manner.
“You don’t like me anymore? You heard about my past, and now you see we’re not from the same world, so everything I do bothers you?”
Xiang Yang looked at her self-mocking expression, his heart aching. He paused for a few seconds before crushing the cigarette in the ashtray.
“You know that’s not what I meant.”
Chen Jiaojiao rolled up the car window, started the engine, and drove him back with a cold expression.
“Regardless, Li Pengcheng was right about one thing.”
“Before you get involved with a girl, you need to understand her thoroughly before you fall for her, or you’ll suffer greatly.”
“Don’t get into fights so easily in the future, especially for me. It’s not worth it.”
At a time like this, she was still quoting Li Pengcheng to demean herself. Xiang Yang was almost amused to the point of anger.
“He said that about you, and you’re not even angry?”
“Not angry. What he said is true. Even if it’s false, so what? Talking about it doesn’t make it stick to you.”
Chen Jiaojiao educated Xiang Yang like someone who had experienced many storms.
“You’re going to be a star, and there will be many anti-fans cursing you. According to your logic, should you hit them all back?”
Xiang Yang knew that what Li Pengcheng said wasn’t true, or at least not entirely true.
Although he hadn’t interacted with Chen Jiaojiao much, he could sense that she wasn’t that kind of person.
After being slandered like this by a man, she could still remain so calm. He realized she was quite similar to Xiang Wan.
Very mature and very forbearing.
Since she was a classmate of Li Pengcheng, Chen Jiaojiao must be very young. What had she experienced that made her like this?
Xiang Yang couldn’t help but be curious. “Can you tell me the truth? How old are you, really?”
Hearing his implication that she usually appeared older, Chen Jiaojiao glanced at him sideways.
“How old do you think I am?”
“I can’t tell. Really. My intuition tells me you’re very young, but your dressing and your way of doing things… I’m sorry, I’m just telling you the truth.”
“It’s okay. What you said is the truth.”
Even though the truth was unpleasant, it was at least not hypocritical. Chen Jiaojiao hated hypocrisy.
“My ID is in the drawer in front of you. Look for yourself.”
Xiang Yang found her ID in the wallet inside the storage compartment.
She was a month younger than him.
“You always acted like a big sister, and I thought… I thought I was your younger brother.”
Brother?
Chen Jiaojiao couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
“I’m involved in society and deal with middle-aged people all day. And you want me to acknowledge you, a young kid, as my brother? I can call you that, but would you dare to accept it?”
Xiang Yang looked at her. “Why wouldn’t I dare? Don’t always look down on me. It’s just because I’m still studying, you always look down on people.”
It was at this moment that Xiang Yang finally fully understood a saying he had seen online before.
When does a man suddenly grow up and realize his own inadequacy?
It’s when he falls in love with a woman and realizes he can’t give her a better life.
Chen Jiaojiao looked back at him. Fearing he might be hurt in his pride, she joked.
“If you want to be my brother, you have to treat me to a meal. I knew I shouldn’t have gone out today if I knew I’d encounter a mad dog. Now I’m starving.”
“I’m sorry, it’s all my fault.”
“What does it have to do with you? You didn’t raise the mad dog.”
Xiang Yang sincerely apologized to her. “I’ll treat you to a meal. Tell me, what do you want to eat?”
Chen Jiaojiao felt pity for his wallet but didn’t want to refuse him. She spotted a noodle restaurant by the roadside.
“Let’s go get a bowl of noodles.”
Every time she went out, she was dressed very elaborately. Sitting in a humble noodle restaurant, she looked like a radiant beacon.
Many people cast their gazes her way.
Chen Jiaojiao was clearly used to being looked at and paid no mind. Xiang Yang, however, felt a pang of possessiveness and dissatisfaction.
“Can I ask you a question?”
Chen Jiaojiao waved her hand generously. “I’ll let you ask fifty questions. Ask all the questions you have in your heart at once.”
As a grown man, he kept hesitating to speak in front of her, which was annoying.
Since he was so straightforward, Xiang Yang didn’t want to hold back anymore. He asked several questions in a row.
Chen Jiaojiao spoke truthfully to him from the beginning.
“My grandfather was sent down to the countryside and returned to the city during a good policy period. He went into business and acquired two mines in Jincheng. The family fortune was revived from then on.”