Shall we break up?

"Mm." Jiang Ci gave her a cold glance, feeling not the slightest bit hurt by the insults. "So? Saying all that, just to prove your existence in front of me?"

The girl hadn't expected Jiang Ci to be so unfazed. She had simply found her eyes sore and deliberately come to humiliate her, but right now, it felt like kicking a pile of cotton.

"The whole school knows your mother is a home-wrecker! If I were you, I wouldn't have the face to stay here!" The girl said angrily, picked up her tray of food, and walked off to eat somewhere else.

"Are you out of your mind?!" Yu Xijin was so furious she almost threw her dinner plate right into the girl's face.

"Jinjin, ignore them." Jiang Ci smiled at her. "I'm fine."

Yu Xijin swallowed her anger, glaring at the group of girls with a look that wished she could tear them to pieces.

Jiang Ci bit her lip, forcing a calm expression as she kept her head down and continued eating, saying nothing.

Seeing this, Yu Xijin was stunned for a long time, wanting to say something yet having no idea how to start.

Because of that bizarre little interlude earlier, quite a few people cast their gazes toward their table, looking at them with curious eyes.

Jiang Ci hated that kind of attention.

As soon as they finished eating, the two of them left the cafeteria.

On the way back to the classroom, Yu Xijin kept glancing at Jiang Ci with a hesitating, stop-and-go expression.

Jiang Ci naturally noticed. "Jinjin, if there's anything you want to ask, just ask."

"Cici, they..."

Jiang Ci looked up at the mild sunlight and confessed, "Mm, everything they said is true."

She said gently, "My mother is indeed a homewrecker who interfered in someone else's family."

Yu Xijin was taken aback. She knew Jiang Ci's character well, and she wasn't one of those mindless people. "That was your mother's fault, not yours, Cici."

Yu Xijin comforted her, "Don't take it to heart."

"Okay." Jiang Ci blinked and smiled faintly. "Thank you, Jinjin."

***

Zhang Heyu had gone to attend the early-admission exams for Beijing North University, so for the past two days, Jiang Ci had mostly been spending time with Yu Xijin.

She had thought this matter was just a minor, insignificant episode, but for some unknown reason, within a single day, the situation had escalated and turned much worse.

When Huo Chensi and Fan Mian found out about it, they hurriedly notified Zhang Heyu, who was still taking his exams.

Because he was in the middle of the examinations, Zhang Heyu couldn't respond to Huo Chensi's messages right away.

"Ci little sister, are you okay?"

The public opinion on the forum was too vicious, and Huo Chensi and the others worried that Jiang Ci wouldn't be able to handle it and would break down.

Jiang Ci nodded. "I'm fine, really. Don't worry too much about me."

Jiang Ci's state was much better than they had imagined, yet they all felt something was wrong.

All the public pressure originated from a single post.

The content ranged from "How Jiang Ci's mother used unscrupulous means to enter high society," "Knowing she was a mistress yet forcing the legal wife to her death," to "The homewrecker entering high society and bringing bad luck to the legal wife's son," eventually extending to attacks on Jiang Ci herself.

All of this hostility stemmed from Jiang Nanyan, yet all the public abuse and personal attacks had fallen squarely upon Jiang Ci.

The internet had a three-minute memory, and this matter would blow over in a few days—or so Jiang Ci thought.

Having finally managed to endure until the end of evening self-study, Jiang Ci returned to her empty home, mechanically poured a glass of water, and stood out on the balcony to catch the breeze.

She didn't know what Zhang Heyu would think if he found out about this.

Yet she didn't want to disturb him while he was taking his exams, so she hadn't told him anything, fearing it would affect his performance.

Zhang Heyu found out about the incident on the day his exams ended.

The young girl hadn't mentioned a single thing over the past two days, nor had she sent him messages or replied to his.

To say he wasn't angry would be a lie; he just couldn't figure out what was going on in her head for her to resort to cutting off contact like this.

On his way back, Zhang Heyu unusually opened the school forum and registered an account.

The forum was overwhelmingly flooded with abusive remarks directed at Jiang Ci, until Zhang Heyu spotted a pinned and highlighted anonymous post and its comments, causing his expression to darken.

Reading the article, he recalled the photographs he had seen at Jiang Ci's house, the amusement park, and the man he had encountered in her apartment stairwell.

Zhang Heyu wasn't an idiot. He had investigated, and he had long since known what it was that Jiang Ci refused to speak of.

He simply didn't know what was in Jiang Ci's heart. He had thought he could hold back from asking further and wait until she was willing to speak up on her own.

Yet the reality was that Jiang Ci was completely unwilling to even mention it.

Nor did she intend to be honest and open with him.

He had simply wanted to hear it from her own lips.

Zhang Heyu frowned, feeling extremely annoyed. Privately, he had someone hack the post and track down who was responsible for spreading the information.

He arrived back in Nancheng a little past nine in the evening.

After getting off the plane, Zhang Heyu didn't tell Jiang Ci and instead went straight to wait outside the school gates.

The young man wore a simple black hoodie with the hood pulled up, standing under the streetlight directly opposite the school entrance. The yellowish light fell upon the crown of his head, shadowing half of his face in a relaxed posture.

Soon, the bell for the end of evening self-study rang, and before long, a multitude of students wearing identical uniforms poured out.

Jiang Ci emerged from the school at around ten-thirty-five.

Amidst the crowd, Zhang Heyu spotted Jiang Ci at a glance.

Only, quite a few people passing by her kept whispering and discussing her behind her back.

"Her mom's a mistress, I bet she's no good either."

"I bet her getting together with Zhang Heyu wasn't through clean means either!"

"..."

Hearing this, Zhang Heyu frowned, his expression cold as he cast a frigid glance toward that group of people.

That look was sharp enough to carve flesh.

It frightened the surrounding people into snapping their mouths shut, daring not say another word.

Jiang Ci hadn't even noticed, when suddenly a strong arm reached out and abruptly yanked her away from the crowd before she could react.

"Zhang Heyu." Jiang Ci let herself be pulled along, calling his name in a voice neither loud nor soft.

For some reason, Jiang Ci sensed an inexplicable blaze of anger radiating from him.

He led her to a secluded path where almost no one was around, and the whole way she didn't dare utter a sound.

Suddenly, Zhang Heyu pulled her hand to draw her forward, wrapped his other arm around her waist, and turned her so sharply that the hood on his head fell off.

Jiang Ci was startled. "Zhang..."

Before she had a chance to speak, the arm around her waist pulled her closer, forcing Jiang Ci onto her tiptoes.

The person before her lowered his head and fiercely captured her lips.

It could hardly be called a kiss; it felt more like he was biting her.

Jiang Ci felt a stinging pain from his kiss, and unable to bear it any longer, she used all her strength to push him away.

Both of their lips glistened with a wet sheen, and the devil-may-care vibe about Zhang Heyu right now was even stronger than usual.

"Hah."

He had actually been pushed away by his own A-Ci.

Jiang Ci hadn't expected that after a few days apart, their reunion would turn into this.

Noticing the dark circles under the girl's eyes and her haggard, wretched complexion, an inexplicable irritation flared within him.

Abruptly, Zhang Heyu saw Jiang Ci begin to sob quietly, and his anger instantly shattered, replaced by a wave of heartbreak that swept away most of his rage.

Zhang Heyu was almost driven to laugh at himself, yet his words remained sharp as ever. "You really have some nerve, crying first."

Jiang Ci remained silent.

"How did you promise me last time? Not replying to messages—Jiang Ci, do you really treat me as dispensable?"

Jiang Ci said, "I'm sorry..."

"Whatever happens, you keep it all locked inside and say nothing. Do you even regard me as your boyfriend? What am I in your heart?"

As if venting suppressed emotions, Zhang Heyu's expression remained cold.

An argument was an argument, but he couldn't bear it. Helplessly, he stepped closer to her, bent down, and reached out with his fingertips, using his thumb to gently wipe away her tears.

Enduring his anger, Jiang Ci felt an even greater wave of grievance well up inside her.

The young girl's voice was naturally delicate and soft, carrying a heavy sense of wrongness as she spoke. "You're bullying me..."

Knowing full well that his current attitude was poor, Zhang Heyu felt like a complete jerk upon hearing her words.

What could he do? He was the one who had made her cry, so he had to coax her back himself.

When she was at school, listening to those unbearable verbal attacks had already made Jiang Ci miserable, but now...

Even Zhang Heyu was bullying her.

Both of their emotions were running high at that moment. Zhang Heyu had intended to soothe her, only to hear the girl say: "So what?"

Jiang Ci raised her head, her eyelashes damp with tears. "Are we breaking up?"

Zhang Heyu was stunned as well.

He had never expected Jiang Ci to suggest a breakup.

"Jiang Ci, say that again!" Zhang Heyu was truly enraged, keeping his voice low to suppress his fury as he looked at her in disbelief.

Jiang Ci didn't avoid his gaze, attempting to speak in a calm tone. "Zhang Heyu, I'm not worthy of you."

Yet from Zhang Heyu's perspective, whenever trouble arose, Jiang Ci's only instinct was to push him away.

She never considered facing things together with him.

It seemed he was never within the scope of her choices.

"You're unbelievable." Zhang Heyu was choked with anger, throwing out those cold words before turning around and walking away without looking back.

Watching his receding silhouette, Jiang Ci's vision blurred with tears, and a sudden, sharp pain pierced her heart.

Until his figure vanished from sight, Jiang Ci belatedly thought of heading home.

On her walk back, the sky unexpectedly began to drizzle. Jiang Ci had no umbrella and practically walked home drenched in the rain.

When she finally reached home, she was soaked to the bone.

Yet she lacked the energy to do anything else, shuffling over to lie down on the sofa and raising an arm to cover her eyes.

She didn't know how long she had lain there when the phone inside her schoolbag suddenly rang. She clumsily rummaged through the bag and pulled out the phone.

"Are you home?" Jiang Nanyan asked coldly.

Hearing that familiar voice, Jiang Ci snapped back to alertness, her voice sounding somewhat hoarse. "What do you want this time?"

"The matriarch and I are at your front door." Jiang Nanyan glanced at the woman standing beside her. "Open the door."

Jiang Ci frowned. It was already very late; why would they suddenly show up at her doorstep?

After recovering slightly, she stood up and walked toward the entrance.

Opening the door, she indeed saw both the matriarch and Jiang Nanyan standing there.

Just as she was about to speak, she suddenly felt as though all the strength had been drained from her body. Her limbs went limp, completely unable to support her weight.

Before she had time to react in any way, she collapsed to the floor unceremoniously. Darkness fell over her eyes, her brain gradually growing hazy, and her consciousness began to fade.

"Jiang Ci!"

The shouts of the matriarch and Jiang Nanyan ringing in her ears also grew indistinct.

The next morning, Zhang Heyu returned to school early.

Thinking back to their quarrel the night before, Zhang Heyu had walked a distance and thought things through extensively. In the end, he had managed to coax himself out of his temper and retraced his steps to find Jiang Ci.

By then it had been raining, and he braved the rain to reach the spot where they had argued, only to find no one there.

He figured Jiang Ci must have gone home early.

He even ran down to the building where she lived, peering through the balcony and windows. The apartment was dark, with no lights on.

Given his attitude earlier, the young girl probably didn't want to forgive him anyway.

The classmates in his class arrived one after another, and even Huo Chensi, who was usually late, showed up.

Yet the only one missing was Jiang Ci.

"Yu bro, how come little sister Ci is so late today?" Huo Chensi asked, surprised. "Did she ask for leave?"

There was no emotion on Zhang Heyu's face as he replied coldly, "I don't know."

Fan Mian also sensed something was off. "Something's not right. Did you two fight?"

"No."

"I don't believe it." Huo Chensi saw right through him. "Is it because of what's been happening lately?"

Zhang Heyu pressed his thin lips into a straight line and gave a faint, affirmative sound.

"You were the one who had the post taken down, right?" Huo Chensi asked. "Did you find out who did it?"

"Not yet."

Zhang Heyu had repeatedly stared at those malicious comments last night, wondering how Jiang Ci had managed to endure it all.

After a moment's thought, he took out his phone and sent Jiang Ci a few messages.

Neither of them received a reply.

By afternoon dismissal, Zhang Heyu still hadn't seen her, nor had he received any response from Jiang Ci.

She seemed to have vanished off the face of the earth.

Just as he intended to skip evening self-study to go find her at home, he received a message on his phone.