Chapter 12: The password to activate the "robot boyfriend" 02
Leou and Ximen settled down in the town. Leou quickly fell in love with my gang. He played games with me every day, even fought for me, and occasionally helped me set up a stall and deliver food. Although Ximen was as taciturn as always, his superb tea ceremony and flower art quickly won my mother's heart. She even left the snack stand to me and organized a street of aunties to learn tea ceremony and flower art from Ximen every day.
Another week passed like this, and Duanmu Jichu's coming-of-age ceremony was approaching.
I used to be looking forward to his coming-of-age ceremony, because after the ceremony, Duanmu Jichu would be able to take back everything that belonged to him, but now... this day has nothing to do with me anymore.
The closer that day got, the more I wanted to forget. I would get up before dawn every day to help my mother buy supplies, and would not go back to my room to sleep even after dark. I was so diligent that even my mother found it abnormal.
"You silly girl, can you please stop being silent? Go sleep in or hang out on the streets with your gang of gangster friends, but never work again!" My mom couldn't stand watching me working so hard like an avowed slave anymore, so she rushed over and pulled me away.
"Mom, I'll go play. Haha, I'll go out after the dishes are washed. Don't worry about me. I'm fine, very fine." I looked up at my mother and tried hard to laugh, but tears started to flow as soon as I blinked. "Oh, mom, you bought low-quality detergent to save money again? Look, it made me cry. Really! Really..."
I wiped my tears and squeezed back to the sink to continue washing dishes. My mother sighed softly behind me, then came over to wash with me: "Girl, if you feel uncomfortable, just cry freely."
"Crying? Why should I cry? Mom, you are so weird today..." I turned my head to look at my mother. I wanted to laugh, and wanted to laugh out loud, but I couldn't control it. Tears flowed down my face. Finally, I leaned on my mother , hugged her and cried.
These days Leou and Simon always like to come to my house.
"Xiao Ye, spring is coming soon." Le Ou was sitting in the yard of my house, watching me busying around, and suddenly said something.
"Yes, yes." I turned around and smiled at him, "The weather is finally getting warmer."
"But there are still many important days before spring comes, Xiaoye, you won't forget them, right?" Le Ou stood up from the small bench anxiously, his deep blue eyes clearer than the winter sky.
"Before spring comes? What important day is there? I just remember that the Spring Festival is coming." I made a face at Leo, pretended to be calm, hummed a tune and hid in the room.
But how could I forget? One day before the spring, Duanmu Jichu's most important coming-of-age ceremony...
Even if I remember, what does it matter? Leo, why do you have to remind me? Can't I just forget it?
Is it not good?
Simon always looked at me silently. Although his face was expressionless, I could see the worry in his dark eyes. Finally, on a sunny afternoon, he personally made a cup of tea and handed it to me, and asked softly, "Are you willing?"
I looked up at him. His beautiful face was surrounded by the aroma of tea and water vapor, exuding a hazy beauty.
"Giving up like this..." He frowned and tried to say a few more words, "Is it okay?"
Although I know that Le Ou and Ximen came to the town where I live and have never left, they must have come to persuade me to go back and attend Duanmu Jichu's coming-of-age ceremony, but can I really go?
In the name of what?
Ex-girlfriend?
That's ridiculous.
I didn't answer Simon's question. I held the cup of tea in my hand and smiled bitterly. I watched the clear liquid in the cup swaying in circles, and then I slowly closed my eyes and shed a tear.
The day for Duanmu Jichu's coming-of-age ceremony finally came.
Now he is engaged to Xuexi, he must have forgotten me...
Days passed, and Leo and Ximen still had no intention of returning to the Taro Flower Market. Until one evening, I unexpectedly saw Xuexi.
Xuexi was wearing a white dress that seemed to have not been changed for many days, and was covered with stains of varying depths. Her face was still beautiful, but very haggard, and had long lost its former radiance.
Seeing me, she was stunned at first, then burst into tears: "Ye Ye, please, I beg you! Help me find Ji Chu, help me find Ji Chu! I don't know where he went since he disappeared at the coming-of-age ceremony that day. I have looked everywhere, even some of the Duanmu family's properties abroad, but there is no trace of him... I can't find him anywhere! Ye Ye, everything is my fault. As long as you can find him, as long as Ji Chu can come back safely, I won't force anything... As long as Ji Chu can come back safely! Ji Chu once said that the most beautiful place in the world is only known by you two. Where is that place? You will definitely find him, right?"
"What did you say?" After listening to her intermittent narration, I finally figured out what was going on.
Duanmu Jichu disappeared at the coming-of-age ceremony and never returned?
How is this possible? Wasn't he looking forward to his coming-of-age ceremony and couldn't wait to get engaged to Xuexi?
I helped Xuexi, who was about to faint from crying, up and asked curiously, "Duanmu Jichu is missing? How is that possible? Wasn't he...wasn't he looking forward to your engagement ceremony? You were sitting on the swing that day...I heard everything..."
"The person you saw that day was me."
Suddenly, another familiar voice sounded at the door, and then Duanmu Jimo and Bai Yuanyuan, who also looked tired, appeared in front of me. Duanmu Jimo held Bai Yuanyuan's hand and walked to me with guilt: "I'm sorry, classmate Nian Gao, that's not my brother. Including the day when I arranged for you to work as my brother's secretary in AURORA Group, the person you saw talking and kissing Xuexi was not my brother, but me. I found an excuse to send my brother away..."
Is it Duanmu Jimo?
Those scenes that make me sad, the protagonists of them are all Duanmu Jimo?
But why?
I stared at Duanmu Jimo in a daze and shook my head vigorously: "How is it possible? Although you and Duanmu Jichu are twins and look exactly the same, your hair color is different. I am not mistaken. Duanmu Jichu's hair is chocolate brown..."
"I dyed my hair... In order to deceive you, I dyed my hair on purpose, and you didn't notice it at all that day..." Duanmu Jimu didn't dare to look at me, his voice became smaller and smaller, and he completely lost his previous smug look.
Did he really want me to leave Duanmu Jichu by dyeing my hair just to trick me? Why didn't I notice it at all?
"But... why?" I could hardly believe my ears. "Why?"
"It's all because of me, Xiaoye. We are sorry for you. Master Ji Mo did this because of me... I was too stupid. I easily believed what others said, and ended up being kidnapped..."
Bai Yuanyuan, who had been hiding behind Duanmu Jimo, suddenly threw herself into my arms and cried, “I’m sorry, Xiaoye, it’s my fault that I hurt you. It’s my fault that Master Jimo was blackmailed… It’s all because of me, wuwuwu… You broke up with Master Jichu… Wuwuwu, Master Jichu disappeared… It’s all because of me… Xiaoye, just scold me, wuwuwuwu… Don’t ever blame Master Jimo…”
"You idiot!" Duanmu Jimu came over and hugged Bai Yuanyuan in his arms, his face full of tenderness, "I did it willingly, don't blame yourself for everything, I was the one who did the bad thing, it has nothing to do with you, you are also a victim! Don't cry, idiot, don't cry!"
I looked at Bai Yuanyuan crying, Duanmu Jimo looking guilty, and Xuexi looking haggard, and the more I listened, the more confused I became. What was going on? How could Bai Yuanyuan be kidnapped? How could Duanmu Jimo be threatened?
Could it be that those scenes that made me so sad, and those reasons that forced me to leave Duanmu Jichu, were all a conspiracy?
In the end, it was Leo who explained everything.
It turns out that the reason why Duanmu Jichu's uncle adopted Xuexi, spent a lot of money to train her into a lady, and then brought her back was to use Duanmu Jichu's guilt towards Xuexi to control Duanmu Jichu. Because after Duanmu Jichu's coming-of-age ceremony, he would have to hand over all the financial power of the AURORA Group and become a small director without real power. So he kidnapped Bai Yuanyuan, threatened Duanmu Jimo, and asked Duanmu Jimo and Xuexi to act out a play to force me away. Duanmu Jichu, who was kept in the dark, had been working hard for his coming-of-age ceremony until he found the breakup text message I sent him...
"He was very busy during that period and had a lot of things to deal with, so I was keeping his phone, and I had deleted your text message a long time ago. But on the day before the coming-of-age ceremony, Ji Chu restored all the data in his phone in order to retrieve some accidentally deleted files, and then saw your text message..." Xuexi slowly told me the things I had never known before, "Then he went looking for you like crazy, but you had already moved away and dropped out of school. I thought he would give up, but I didn't expect that he would disappear at the coming-of-age ceremony the next day... Ye Ye, I'm sorry, I liked Ji Chu too much, so I agreed to let my godfather treat you like that. It's my fault. Please help me find Ji Chu, please..."
Xuexi grabbed my hand and shook it hard, but I pushed her away and rushed out of the house like a flash.
Duanmu Jichu...
It turns out it was all a misunderstanding.
I understand everything, about your anger, your helplessness, your pain...
Is it too late now?
Duanmu Jichu, you are such a directionally challenged person, and you have been out alone for so many days, please don't get into trouble! Please, Duanmu Jichu, if you get lost, please stay somewhere safe and wait for me to find you...
No matter where that place is, I will find you.
Because, I like you so much.
