Chapter 43: She Had Absolutely No Need To…

“When will the news about you calling off the engagement with Jin He be announced?”

Zhao Taihe asked her this as soon as they got in the car.

“Probably before the news about the Dragon Mountain collaboration comes out,” Xia Mi La replied. “News that affects stock prices won’t be released casually.” She glanced at him, “Do you have stocks you need to handle? I can notify you in advance when the time comes?”

Zhao Taihe didn’t care about those stocks at all. He asked only because he wanted to know if there would be any changes to their engagement cancellation.

It seemed there wouldn’t be.

He grinned at her: “Are you sure? Won’t regret it?”

Xia Mi La didn’t know what there was to regret about this.

“No,” she said, sitting up straight and looking ahead.

“You,” Zhao Taihe continued asking, “don’t like Jin He anymore?”

“Hmm,” Xia Mi La’s reply remained straightforward, “don’t like him anymore.”

“Why?” Zhao Taihe had particularly many questions today. “You liked him so much before, why don’t you like him now? Is it because of that sponsored student?”

He was genuinely quite curious.

“Maybe I didn’t like him that much to begin with,” Xia Mi La answered. “It’s just that we got engaged early, so I developed some special filters when looking at him. That was just a manifestation of respecting the contract.”

“Meaning if you were engaged to someone else, you would have similarly liked that person?”

“Of course. A fiancé is definitely different from other boys.”

“…”

Thinking this way, Zhao Taihe thought to himself, if he had been the one engaged to her back then…

“So your way is actually better,” Xia Mi La said.

“Me?” Zhao Taihe snapped back to reality, “What about me?”

“We’re so young, the future is so long, Engagement can’t really determine anything, it only causes worry,” Xia Mi La said, “Your carpe diem approach is better.”

Zhao Taihe: “…”

He wasn’t so keen on carpe diem anymore now. He wanted to try getting engaged. He also wanted a fiancée completely devoted to him.

“So,” he thought for a moment, then asked Xia Mi La, “after you break off the engagement with Jin He this time, you won’t get engaged again?”

“Of course not,” Xia Mi La replied. “If I encounter another Jin He, wouldn’t I be utterly embarrassed?”

Zhao Taihe forced a dry laugh: “There aren’t many useless guys like him around.”

Xia Mi La shook her head, offering no comment.

She had absolutely no need to gamble on a fiancé’s character.

After these words, the two didn’t continue their conversation.

Zhao Taihe, who had many questions when he first got in the car, now fell completely silent.

It wasn’t until they reached the school gate, the car stopped, and Xia Mi La got out, walking with him into the campus, that she noticed his face looked sour, as if he wasn’t in a good mood.

It was strange – he had been all smiles and in a good mood when they were at her doorstep.

“Don’t tell me,” she asked him somewhat incredulously, “you’re upset because I said a few bad things about Jin He just now?”

Zhao Taihe’s face immediately darkened several shades: “What nonsense are you talking.”

“Ha,” Xia Mi La laughed, “just teasing you.”

As she spoke, she reached for her school bag.

Zhao Taihe moved the hand holding her bag away: “Let’s just walk like this.”

After taking two steps forward, he added, “I’m much more gentle and considerate than that guy Jin He.”

He just had to compare everything. Xia Mi La shook her head, thinking, That’s true, you certainly have more experience.

But she didn’t say it out loud, afraid Zhao Taihe might actually bite.

Behind them, Cui Zhe stood holding the car door, staring at their retreating backs as they slowly walked away.

“A-Zhe.” Pei Duo Xing called out to him.

Cui Zhe withdrew his gaze and saw that Pei Duo Xing and Jin He had somehow reached his side without him noticing.

“Spacing out so early in the morning,” Jin He said. “After over a year, is there still some scenery in this school that fascinates you so much?”

“No,” Cui Zhe smiled faintly. “I just saw Mira get out of Zhao Taihe’s car, and they went in together.” He paused. “Zhao Taihe even carried Mira’s backpack for her.”

Jin He and Pei Duo Xing had been in a fairly good mood this morning, but upon hearing this, they fell silent, their expressions turning somewhat unpleasant.

Damn Zhao Taihe, Jin He cursed inwardly.

Pei Duo Xing, meanwhile, looked at Cui Zhe: “You’re quite observant.”

“Yeah,” Cui Zhe nodded. “Because it’s the first time I’ve seen Zhao Taihe carry someone’s backpack.”

Not just him even Bian Junye and Ding Yuan, who hung out with Zhao Taihe all the time, had never seen it either. That guy usually couldn’t even be bothered to carry his own backpack.

So as soon as they reached the classroom, they started teasing him.

One said: “You didn’t even ride your bike just to pick up Xia Mi La?”

Another asked: “How does it feel carrying the queen’s backpack?”

Zhao Taihe scowled: “Get lost.”

Ding Yuan burst out laughing: “Looks like things aren’t going too smoothly.”

“Huh?” Bian Junye was completely clueless. “What progress?”

Zhao Taihe felt embarrassed and didn’t want to elaborate. He picked up a drink from the desk and threw it at Ding Yuan.

Ding Yuan caught it steadily, holding it in his hand, and laughed: “Perfect, I didn’t have breakfast. Thanks.”

Even in other classrooms, people were talking about it.

“Has Zhao Taihe been getting a bit too close to Xia Mi La lately? He didn’t even ride his bike this morning he drove her to school!”

“The enemy of my enemy is my friend. There’s nothing strange about them getting close.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if they ended up together. Seriously, if Xia Mi La and Jin He break up and she wants to get engaged again, who else in their circle is there besides Zhao Taihe? In terms of age and status, he’s the most suitable.”

“Zhao Taihe would never be that foolish. How could a playboy like him settle down so early?”

“Better a playboy than being devoted to some Sponsored student, right?”

Just as they said this, the Sponsored student they were referring to happened to walk in from outside.

Numerous disdainful glances swept over her.

Pei Duo Xing walked into the classroom amidst such gazes and took her seat.

Everyone withdrew their looks and continued discussing the earlier topic.

Someone turned to Bai You Na and asked: “Hey, Bai You Na, what do you think? Will Xia Mi La get engaged to Zhao Taihe? Do you have any insider information?”

Someone nearby sneered: “What insider information could she have? At best, she’s just a slave of the Vermilion Bird Hall.”

The news of their bet at the golf course had spread throughout the entire school overnight, and now everyone knew about the Azure Dragon Hall coming in last place.

Bai You Na was nominally Xia Mi La’s sister, but she remained with the Azure Dragon Hall and now had to face punishment alongside its members.

“Trying to dodge this is impossible,” the neutral faction gloated with amusement. “Ding Yuan already issued a warning in the group chat yesterday. No one from Azure Dragon Hall is allowed to request leave during Training Camp. Otherwise, they’ll face double the retaliation back at school.”

Damn it… Bai You Na cursed inwardly. She had originally planned to request leave to avoid this.

With that escape route cut off, she felt flustered and irritated, though her words remained defiant: “It’s not like I can’t join Vermilion Bird Hall whenever I want. I just don’t feel like going right now.”

Having said this, she stood up and walked out of the classroom, dragging a bag along with her.

The sarcastic remarks from the classroom followed her, with several phrases instantly reaching her ears: “Who does she think she’s fooling!” “If she can get into Vermilion Bird Hall, I might as well join the Blue House!”

Frowning, Bai You Na closed her eyes briefly and hurried to the small garden.

She waited by the pavilion for a while until the person she’d arranged to meet finally appeared, walking briskly toward her.

That person was Song Ya-yun.

Approaching Bai You Na, she wore a resistant expression and asked defensively, “What do you want from me?”

Bai You Na was Xia Mi La’s stepsister and usually treated her poorly. Song Ya-yun disliked her, and the two had never interacted much before.

But out of the blue today, Bai You Na had asked to meet, claiming she had something good to give her.

Song Ya-yun hadn’t wanted to come, but curiosity got the better of her she wanted to see what this “good thing” was.

Without wasting words, Bai You Na tossed the bag in her hands into Song Ya-yun’s arms.

Song Ya-yun caught it instinctively, opened the bag for a look, and found a Hermès Mini Kelly inside a pink bag with silver hardware, utterly adorable.

Her eyes widened, and she quickly pulled the bag out of the bag, examining it front and back, tugging at the strap, itching to wear it immediately.

For a moment, she forgot how much she had once disliked Bai You Na.

Oh, right this bag belonged to Bai You Na.

Suppressing the urge to snatch it and run, she stuffed the little pink treasure back into the bag.

“What are you doing?” she asked Bai You Na, feigning indifference. “Are you giving this to me?”

“Exactly,” Bai You Na nodded. “It’s for you.”

Song Ya-yun’s cold facade began to crack. She had to strain to keep the corners of her mouth from curling upward.

Noticing her expression, Bai You Na smiled. “Isn’t this what you’re after by sticking close to Xia Mi La? Jewelry, bags I can give you those too, and I’m more generous than she is. As long as you obey me from now on.”

“Obey you?” Song Ya-yun wasn’t quite sure what that meant or to what extent.

“Yes,” Bai You Na crossed her arms, looking down at her. “You can stay by Xia Mi La’s side as usual. But when I need you to do something, you must do it.”

So she wanted a spy.

Song Ya-yun nodded. “I understand.” She lifted the bag slightly. “So… is this mine now?”

Bai You Na knew Song Ya-yun was materialistic, but she never expected it to this extent. So straightforward with barely a few words, she had easily bought her off. The whole process went more smoothly than she could have imagined.

Hah, the people around Xia Mi La are nothing special.

“That’s right, it’s yours.” Bai You Na put on a generous front. “As long as you behave, there will be more benefits for you in the future.”

“Mm-hmm.” Song Ya-yun nodded happily while slinging the bag over her shoulder.

Bai You Na’s face showed disdain. “I’ll be going now. I’ll contact you whenever I need something.”

Seeing Song Ya-yun nod, she turned around.

As she walked toward the classroom, she cursed a few more times in her heart.

Damn, she really liked that bag too.

She had just gotten it and only used it once!

Damn…

———————–

Author’s Note: A-tae is unhappy~

You Na is unhappy~

Why is someone unhappy again~