Chapter 21 “Misunderstanding?”

Li Cainv was somewhat dazed. She was a genius with computers, but not particularly skilled in other areas.

She had been discovered by the female lead herself. Xia Mi La had recognized her talent and encouraged her to pursue her passion. She took care of her daily needs and bought her the best computers.

After graduating from middle school and entering high school, Xia Mi La brought her into Tan Ming’s circle, providing her with a quiet space where she could focus entirely on her computers without worrying about anything else.

Li Cainv had been sitting there listening for a long time, then thinking for a while longer, and finally understood – it seemed her identity was causing trouble for Mira.

Her lowly status remaining in Azure Dragon Hall appeared to be making Mira vulnerable to attacks.

Well, she could leave.

Azure Dragon Hall… was nice. Everyone treated her well. But the person she truly wanted to follow had always been only Xia Mi La.

Her life had only started getting better after meeting Xia Mi La.

Since then, her mother no longer had to do the lowest forms of manual labor. Since then, she was no longer bullied at school. Since then, she and her mother no longer had to worry about having enough food or warm clothing.

So, she just needed to stay by Xia Mi La’s side.

She bent down, placed her badge on the ground, then walked out the door without any hesitation or attachment.

“Ah, this…” Everyone looked helplessly at Li Cainv’s retreating figure.

Jin He had said those words only to make Pei Duo Xing’s identity seem reasonable – in his heart, he hadn’t actually intended to drive anyone away.

But why should they accept his so-called reason?

No one had expected Li Cainv to be so decisive.

Xu Lian Yi felt a sense of vindication. She also reached up and removed the badge from her chest.

But compared to Li Cainv, she had more considerations to weigh.

“Mira?” she inquired, looking toward Xia Mi La.

Although she had made her stance clear, ultimately she would still respect Xia Mi La’s decision.

Xia Mi La took the badge from her hand and threw it backhand toward the coffee table.

The metal made a distinct sound as it hit the stone surface, and everyone in the room held their breath.

Jin He slowly exhaled, looking at Xia Mi La while suppressing his anger: “What are you trying to do?”

Xia Mi La had been questioned by Jin He several times before, always maintaining a calm, indifferent expression without much concern. But at this moment, although she remained composed, her eyes when she looked at him were exceptionally cold.

Her gaze was icy and resolute as she spoke clearly, word by word, in a tone everyone could hear: “Stay or come with me – everyone think carefully. I won’t blame those who decide to stay today.”

For herself, she could show weakness, endure, and wait for the best opportunity to seek maximum benefit. But she wouldn’t let those around her suffer such humiliation for her sake.

Jin He’s breath caught. He had never been looked at by Xia Mi La with such an expression before.

She had always been gentle and smiling, looking at him with admiring, loving eyes.

Before, just looking into her eyes would make him feel her affection.

But Jin He suddenly realized that such loving gazes had actually been absent for a long time.

When had they started disappearing? He couldn’t remember… In fact, being stared at like this by her now, he couldn’t think clearly at all.

So cold, like ice – that was her gaze.

Jin He had never imagined that one day Xia Mi La would look at him with eyes colder than those of a stranger.

*Thud.* Another person tore off their badge and threw it onto the coffee table.

Jin He turned his head and saw it was Song Ya-yun.

Song Ya-yun didn’t actually enjoy being in the spotlight like this.

She loved pretty things, adored anything sparkling, but she hated being the first to stand out.

Yet the moment she ripped off her badge and flung it away felt incredibly satisfying!

With her taking the lead, others quickly followed suit. One after another, they removed their badges and slammed them forcefully onto the coffee table.

They had long been fed up with Jin He and his pretentious attitude in front of them.

The badges clattered against the stone surface of the coffee table, producing a crisp, uneven rhythm of sounds.

This was the scene Cui Zhe walked into.

Xia Hong’s faction, at least, showed some loyalty and backbone. Almost all of them had removed their badges except for Bai You Na.

Bai You Na absolutely did not want to leave Azure Dragon Hall. She didn’t want to follow Xia Mi La, and even more, she didn’t want to leave Jin He.

Xia Mi La wasn’t surprised, nor did she care.

She led her people toward the exit.

“What’s going on?” Cui Zhe asked.

He had gone to fetch a change of clothes for Pei Duo Xing. Just a little late, and things had spiraled in the direction he least wanted.

“Mi La,” he stopped her, “where are you all going? Is there some misunderstanding?”

Xia Mi La laughed. “Misunderstanding?”

“Ah…” Cui Zhe found it hard to put into words.

Bringing Pei Duo Xing into the lounge was bound to cause conflict he just hadn’t expected the usually meek Xia Mi La to be so assertive this time.

“A He,” he turned to persuade Jin He instead, “you should explain things to Mi La quickly.”

There was still a chance to salvage the situation.

If only Jin He would take back his decision. If only he said Pei Duo Xing wasn’t joining Azure Dragon Hall that she was only there temporarily for shelter, to change clothes. If only he apologized to Xia Mi La and explained that his concern for Pei Duo Xing was merely out of pity.

But Jin He would never do that.

Was Xia Mi La completely blameless? Where had she placed him yesterday when she had dinner with Zhao Taihe?

And now she was letting her people openly defy him… all to protect the Sponsored students under her wing? Lately, she had been acting far too willful.

Jin He couldn’t back down in this situation. Hearing Cui Zhe’s words only fueled his anger further.

“Explain what?” he retorted impatiently. “If she wants to leave, let her. The world doesn’t stop turning just because someone walks away.”

Xia Mi La had pretty much anticipated his reaction and held no expectations.

In fact, even if Jin He had apologized, they were determined to leave today regardless.

So without even looking back, she continued walking out the door.

As for something like a split in Azure Dragon Hall, adhering to the principle of not airing dirty laundry in public, naturally no one would spread the news right after it happened.

But Park Young-hyun had his connections.

“Da Fa,” he glanced at his phone as if he’d struck gold, eagerly telling Jin Can, “Xia Mi La and Jin He have broken ties.”

They were playing basketball in the gym.

Jin Can didn’t have a lounge to retreat to; over the past few days, he’d ended up hanging out with the neutral faction.

People quite liked him. Despite his top-tier background, Jin Can had grown up through hardship and carried no airs at all.
Although it was a bit cold, he wasn’t pretentious or arrogant, just like an ordinary high school boy, quickly blending in with everyone.

Park Young-hyun said this while jumping up to shoot a basket. A perfect swish a great shot that drew excited screams from a few girls nearby.

But Jin Can didn’t continue playing.

He looked toward Park Young-hyun: “What?”

“It seems Jin He brought Pei Duo Xing into the Azure Dragon Hall, which upset the Xia Hong Faction. In the end, I’m not sure what happened, but Xia Mi La left the Azure Dragon Hall with Xia Hong’s people.” Park Young-hyun only knew the general details.

“Smack!” The basketball was passed back to Jin Can.

Jin Can casually passed the ball to Park Young-hyun: “You guys play first.”

“What are you doing?” Park Young-hyun asked.

“I’m going to make a phone call,” Jin Can replied.

He walked to the sidelines, took out his phone, and dialed Xia Mi La’s number.

The call connected quickly, and a gentle, calm voice came from the other end: “Hello?”

“I’m at the indoor basketball court,” Jin Can said. “Do you want to come watch me play basketball?”

Xia Mi La, holding her phone, found the invitation rather abrupt at first. But upon careful thought, she began to understand.

Perhaps he had learned about what happened in the lounge and felt sorry for her having nowhere to go, hence the invitation.

She curved her lips into a slight smile: “You know about what happened at the Azure Dragon Hall?”

Sure enough, Jin Can fell silent for two seconds before replying with a quiet “Mm.”

Xia Mi La’s smile widened.

She had already arranged everything she needed to do next and currently had nothing going on.

“Alright,” she agreed. “I’ll come find you.”

After hanging up, Jin Can glanced down at his phone, pausing for a few seconds before putting it back in his pocket and returning to the court.

“Done already?” Park Young-hyun asked. “Who did you call?”

“Xia Mi La,” Jin Can replied.

“Huh?” Park Young-hyun couldn’t help but think to himself, *You and your future sister-in-law really do have a good relationship.*

Soon after, he saw Xia Mi La appear on the court.

The incident in the lounge must have been quite unpleasant, but nothing unusual could be detected on Xia Mi La’s face at the moment.

She was wearing her school uniform, her hair tied into a high ponytail, and she carried a sports drink as she slowly walked toward them. Judging by her expression, she didn’t seem sad or dejected at all in fact, she appeared to be in a rather good mood.

The young lady usually spent her lunch breaks in the lounge and never came to the basketball court unless Jin He was playing, making her quite the rare guest.

The others hadn’t overheard the conversation between Jin Can and Park Young-hyun, so they had no idea why the young lady had come to the court.

Even though they didn’t know, under her subtle yet noticeable gaze, they couldn’t help but straighten their backs, wanting to perform better.

A casual, leisurely game suddenly became intense and serious.

Amid this atmosphere, Jin Can still stood out.

He wore his school uniform’s athletic pants with a simple black T-shirt on top. The muscles in his arms were well-defined, and his long legs and broad shoulders exuded masculine energy. His semi-long black hair bounced with every movement.

The girls around couldn’t take their eyes off him.

Jin He’s face was quite deceptive. Now, Jin Can not only had the same face but also carried more youthful charm than his older brother.

He was like a campus manga protagonist who had broken through the dimensional wall every move he made on the court was so handsome it made people want to scream.

“Ah, this guy really.” Park Young-hyun certainly knew Jin Can wasn’t intentionally trying to show off.

It could only be said that comparisons are odious – with a face like Jin Can’s and such natural charisma, he was born to be the center of attention in any crowd.

The final round ended, and everyone walked off the court chatting and laughing.

The girls’ gazes remained fixed on Jin Can.

He expressionlessly shook his hair, still maintaining that unapproachable, aloof demeanor.

Appearing too lazy to bother with anyone, he walked directly up to Xia Mi La.

Xia Mi La looked at him and showed a faint smile, handing him the drink she was holding.

Jin Can took the drink, twisted open the cap, tilted his head back and took several gulps.

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Author’s note: Mira: Watching a handsome guy puts me in a good mood~[throws confetti]