Chapter 132
Xu Shuangrong’s apology still left herself a little leeway.
But that was enough.
Xie Mi turned to look at Lai Bingxuan.
The usually prickly, easily-triggered, spoiled young lady now had tears blurring her vision.
At the moment Xu Shuangrong apologized, she suddenly burst into a childlike cry, heart-wrenching and hysterical.
Everyone was caught completely off guard. Even Qiu Chengye instinctively grabbed a tissue and handed it to her.
Lai Bingxuan slapped his hand away and continued sobbing on the floor.
Years of grievances were cleared in that instant. The pent-up injustice surged from her heart, and she finally allowed herself to cry without restraint.
The audience couldn’t help but be moved.
[Wuwuwu, my eyes suddenly started crying]
[Why do I want to cry too? Sister Lai’s tears are so contagious wuwuwu]
[This is the real reaction of someone clearing their name. You can see how much suffering she endured all these years]
[Poor baby, don’t cry, we’ll be here with you]
[Xu Shuangrong is terrible! I used to think she was nice, guess I was blind]
[But Xu Shuangrong was also threatened, she probably didn’t want this either. In the end, it’s still the bully’s fault—they’re both victims…]
[Forget it, stop whitewashing, with this alone Xu Shuangrong’s reputation is ruined for life]
[No one praise Sister Xie? Sister Xie is amazing! Like a true hero!]
[Already dazed by Sister Xie’s coolness. Usually she’s just wild, but in key moments she’s reliable]
[You know, after watching Xie teach crazy stuff so much, suddenly seeing her look handsome feels weird!]
Everyone was helpless at Lai Bingxuan’s crying, even the staff couldn’t console her.
Xie Mi crouched nearby with a mischievous glint in her eyes. The moment Lai Bingxuan opened her mouth mid-cry, she quickly stuffed a dried fruit into her mouth.
Lai Bingxuan: “Wuwu wah wah wah (chew chew chew)”
Lai Bingxuan: “?”
Something felt off; her crying paused.
She lifted her head, and before her was a colorful face, with eyes so clear they seemed to sparkle in the sunlight.
The face broke into a smile, eyes curved into crescent moons, warm and gentle.
“See? I told you food works.”
“This will stop the crying.”
Xie Mi happily popped another dried fruit into her own mouth.
“It’s sweet~”
Lai Bingxuan’s tears blurred her vision, but the sweetness of the fruit softened the sourness in her heart.
She stared at Xie Mi for a moment, and then, realizing herself, lifted her chin, closed her eyes, and hummed lightly.
“Just… moderately sweet, I guess.”
[It’s over, Sister Lai will only ever love Sister Xie from now on]
[Not Sister Xie? There are so many other Xie bros, and you’re still flirting outside, huh?]
[Sister Liu: so?]
[Can’t help it, this move from Sister Xie is kinda cool]
[And you still don’t ship them? Are you special forces or what?]
Lai Bingxuan stopped crying, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The atmosphere returned to cheerful and harmonious.
Meanwhile, Xu Shuangrong’s position became extremely awkward.
She sat quietly with her head down, saying nothing, and the fans couldn’t help but feel sorry for her.
[System: This round is a complete loss to Xie Mi.]
[System: What’s your next plan?]
[Xu Shuangrong: You’re asking me?]
[Xu Shuangrong: You’re the system—can’t you provide any real help?]
[System: Do I really need to repeat myself?]
[System: Don’t assume I’m smart just because I’m a system.]
[Xu Shuangrong: Then what use are you?]
[System: …]
[System: You want me to admit I’m an idiot to make you happy, right?]
[System: Fine, I’m an idiot. Happy now?]
[Xu Shuangrong: …]
[System: So now what do we do?]
As a useless system, in times of crisis it should bravely question the host.
Xu Shuangrong closed her eyes and took a deep breath, almost losing composure.
[Xu Shuangrong: The best approach now is to do nothing.]
[Xu Shuangrong: The more you try to show off, the more it irritates netizens. I still have the identity of a bullying victim—if I stay quiet and lower my presence, netizens will slowly begin to pity me.]
Listening to Xu Shuangrong converse with the system, Xie Mi, chewing on nuts, couldn’t help but nod and murmur in approval.
Xu Shuangrong was indeed smart.
It was a pity her intelligence wasn’t being used for the right path… too bad. But… hey, who took the macadamia nut cracker?
Xie Mi’s attention, only briefly on the right path, was immediately drawn to the nuts. Her eyes swept the table like lasers.
Until a slender hand placed the cracker in front of her.
Satisfied, she used it to crack open a macadamia and popped the nut into her mouth with a crunch.
But she felt a burning gaze.
Turning, she saw Shen Yiqing smiling at her, his dark eyes full of thoughts she couldn’t read.
“…”
Xie Mi hesitated, offering him a cracked macadamia.
“Do you want one?”
“Pfft—”
Shen Yiqing chuckled, his peach-blossom-shaped eyes curving like crescents, reflections of her face shimmering in his gaze.
“Teacher Xie, do you know what you just did?”
“What?”
Xie Mi suddenly got serious, glancing at the now empty plates on the table and swallowing.
She admitted she had eaten all the nuts while everyone was focused on listening to her.
But that hardly seemed punishable…
She felt a little guilty.
Shen Yiqing followed her gaze to the empty plates, his smile deepening.
“Not that.”
“Then what?”
“It’s…” Shen Yiqing’s eyes drifted toward Lai Bingxuan nearby, a slight raise of his brows.
“You’ve inadvertently captured someone’s heart.”
“Ah?”
Xie Mi looked over, scratching her head in confusion.
She vaguely heard a soft murmur beside her.
“Even though this isn’t the first time you’ve done something like this.”
“What did you say?” Xie Mi immediately turned to Shen Yiqing. “Speak up!”
“I said…”
Shen Yiqing smiled, indulgent and helpless.
“You haven’t changed at all.”
“…”
That phrase again—so where exactly hadn’t she changed? And when had he first met her?
“Have we met before? You look familiar,” Xie Mi started probing again.
Shen Yiqing picked up a mung bean cake.
“This mung bean cake is good. Teacher Xie, want to try?”
“Don’t change the subject!!”
