Chapter 8 If He Wasn't So Proud, He Wouldn't Be the Demon King 3
I forgot how I left under everyone's contemptuous gaze. All that remained in my heart was the cold look Xia Sen gave me. The last words he said to me kept replaying in my mind and could not be shaken off.
I took my luggage and got into a taxi in a daze.
Along the way, the driver was frightened by my extremely pale face and asked me several times if I needed to go to the hospital.
What I admire about myself is that in such a situation, I can still force a smile and say it's okay. Is it possible that being extremely sad will lead to numbness?
When I got home, I saw that the furnishings in my house were still the same as when I left two months ago, and the number on the calendar was still July 1. It was then that an idea struck me: I have actually been in Hanamachi Research Institute for two months.
Time flies so fast. I have been with Xia Senshi for such a long time.
The furnishings in my house that were very familiar to me before but now seem a little strange are standing quietly, and they are the only ones still waiting for me to come back loyally. On my little bed, the big furry bear tilted its head and stared at me blankly.
"I'm so tired... What happened today? He was fine this morning. I thought Xia Senshi and I were good friends. How could he believe Ji Feibai's words..."
The big bear's belly is soft and it accepts my hug gently.
How did Ji Feibai become so scary? Is he really the Ji Feibai I know? I still remember that on the first day at Hanamachi Research Institute, we talked a lot, and I thought he really liked comics as much as I did...
Huh? Comics?
A sudden thought struck me like lightning, and several fragmented images flashed through my mind quickly. I actually found the clues in it accurately.
Comics, "Firefly Forest", Ji Feibai, the computer that was fired on me that day, Yu Li's entry that disappeared a year ago...
I finally understood how Ji Feibai knew that Xia Senshi was the "Firefly Forest". That's right, there was nothing valuable in my computer except comics, but if he had sneaked a peek at my computer that day, he would have found out that I was not the "Firefly Forest" at all. Because all that was stored in my computer were the drawings that Xia Senshi had helped me modify, and his name was written on every one of them...
Ji Feibai deliberately wanted to bring down Xia Senshi, so he plagiarized his work and made him look foolish at the press conference of Hanamachi Research Institute this year .
I jumped up suddenly, Yu Li's name flashing in my mind like a warning light. Although I couldn't make sense of my thoughts, Ji Feibai's words against Yu Li that day jumped out clearly again. Now it seems that he is slandering Yu Li?
Thinking of Yu Li's disappointed and helpless look, my heart seemed to be flooded with a torrent. Oh my God, what have I done?
I grabbed my phone and wallet and rushed out the door in my flip-flops.
It was already eight o'clock in the evening, and Yu Li was still working in the bookstore in the mall. Under the gorgeous lights of the mall, his back looked particularly lonely and thin as he walked between the bookshelves. I grabbed my phone, took a deep breath, and walked towards him.
I ran into the Giant Elephant Bookstore, ignoring the greeting from the waitress at the door who said "Welcome". She was startled by me and said, "Excuse me..."
"Sorry, I have something urgent to discuss with Yu Li!"
When Yu Li heard his name, he looked up from a pile of new books that needed to be put on the bookshelf, his hair was messy and his face was confused. He was very surprised to see me, probably because he didn't expect me to appear in such a crazy state, and in such a hurry.
I ran out of breath, holding on to the bookcase, and paused for several seconds before I could utter a coherent sentence: "Yu Li, I know, I know everything! You were not selected for the Hanamachi Research Institute last year, I think I know why!"
Yu Li's expression was shocked. His mouth moved but he didn't say anything. Some emotion was surging in his black eyes.
He frowned slightly and asked me: "What did you know?"
I thought Yu Li would be very excited, but I didn't expect his tone to be so calm.
I swallowed and said, "I've seen Xia Senshi's design, and it's exactly the same as the robot released by Ji Feibai. Besides, apart from Xia Senshi, I can't think of anyone else who would make a robot in the shape of a lizard!"
He lowered his head, as if thinking about something else.
I was a little anxious, and said, "Yu Li , listen carefully! I think there must be another reason why your work was not selected last year! Didn't you say that Xia Senshi didn't even see the work you submitted? I think..."
Yu Li finally raised his head and looked at me seriously, and said, "Yes, Xia Senshi said that he didn't receive my work, but it's not that he didn't receive it. It's that the work is not signed by me at all, but by Ji Feibai!"
"Yes, it's Ji Feibai!" I nodded vigorously, and then I felt something was wrong, "How did you know? I haven't finished yet..."
He took a deep breath, and a surge of emotions flashed across his eyes.
"The last time I met him outside the Hanamachi Research Institute, he looked a lot different from before. I didn't recognize him at first, but then I remembered his name - Ji Feibai," Yu Li recalled.
I clenched my fists silently, and cold sweat broke out on my palms.
"That's Ji Feibai. I actually forgot about him. Maybe it's because he only appeared by my side for a short time."
I asked curiously, "When?"
"Last year, Hanamachi Research Institute held an open recruitment for researchers, and all applicants worked very hard, locking themselves in their rooms to work hard. That was when I met Ji Feibai. We were very similar at the time. His family was also in financial difficulty, and he also worked two jobs a week in addition to studying. And the most coincidental thing was that he was actually preparing for the recruitment competition at the time. We sometimes talked together. It's true that he was very hardworking, and it was because of his hard work that he was qualified to participate in the recruitment competition. But I did feel at the time that he had no innovation in invention. Although his theoretical knowledge was very impressive, he didn't have his own ideas."
"So, you two knew each other at that time..."
"Yes, I met him at the restaurant where I worked part-time. He also worked there at the time."
"Is Ji Feibai also working in a restaurant?" I blurted out in surprise. I felt something was wrong after I said it. "Well, I'm sorry, I just feel weird. I thought Ji Feibai wouldn't work there because he looks... well, like a nobleman!"
Yu Li smiled knowingly and said, "Seeing him now, you are right to think so. This is also the reason why I didn't recognize him immediately that day. That's because Hanamachi Research Institute provides a large amount of funds every year to support talented teenagers. This is the significance of its selection of talents."
I suddenly realized: "You mean, Ji Feibai plagiarized your work last year, was selected, and got funding, so it looks so glamorous now?"
"It's better to say that his heart always desires to be glamorous. So for this wish, he can do anything despicable. And now, he has probably finally achieved his goal."
There was a brief silence between us both.
All I kept thinking about was the arrogant and unbridled look on Ji Feibai's face when he and Xia Sen looked at each other, and the terrible fire burning in his eyes.
"Now Ji Feibai has stolen Xia Senshi's work again?" Yu Li said sadly while sorting the books in his hands, "If he insists that it is his invention, Xia Senshi will have no way to deal with it, because the order of publication is indeed very important is that when I still regarded Ji Feibai as a friend and asked him about the selection situation, he actually lied to me and said that Xia Senshi didn't accept me because he looked down on my invention. Because of this dirty accusation, I resented Xia Senshi for a whole year."
Yu Li's face turned a little red, as if he was ashamed of the mistakes he had made before.
I patted his shoulder and said, "Xia Senshi won't blame you."
Yu Li snorted and said, "If I was victimized because I was too credulous, then Xia Senshi underestimated his enemy. If Xia Senshi wasn't so proud and confident, he wouldn't have been taken advantage of by a villain like Ji Feibai."
I blankly stroked the spine of a book in front of me, and Xia Senshi's eyes with an unwavering look appeared in front of me.
"But if he wasn't so proud, he wouldn't be Xia Senshi..."
