Chapter 655: A Million Times for You (17)Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
An Xiaoning stared out of the window to see that there were more than ten of Jin Qingyan’s bodyguards standing outside while the people who were shadowing her were no longer in sight.
She looked away and stared at Jin Qingyan. “Why are you here?”
“I happened to pa.s.s by.”
“Thanks for that. You may stop at the entrance of your place in Wei Ni Estate, I’ll drive home myself afterwards,” said An Xiaoning.
“I don’t need a woman to send me home,” he said, holding onto the steering wheel.
“Suit yourself then.”
A silence filled the air in the car. He then turned on the stereo to play some music.
The song that came on was “Pian Pian Xi Huan Ni” 1
An Xiaoning felt a strange sense of awkwardness the moment the song began playing. “Your taste in music is still the same,” he remarked in amus.e.m.e.nt.
“My taste can’t be compared to yours, Mr. Jin. I just prefer listening to old school music. I’ll never get sick of them.”
“Can’t you tell that I was praising you?”
“Sorry, I’m dense, I couldn’t.”
Jin Qingyan stepped on the brakes abruptly, causing An Xiaoning to fall forward and knock her head against the seat in front, giving her a dizzy spell.
By the time she’d sat up straight again, he’d opened the door of the backseat and was standing closely in front of her.
An Xiaoning thought that he was going to say something. To her surprise, he remained quiet and reached into his pocket to take out a cardigan, which he then draped across her shoulders before walking away.
She got out of the backseat and watched as he hopped inside his car, which was parked just nearby.
She then got into the driver’s seat of her car and drove away.
Upon arriving at the Gu family mansion, she switched on the lights in the car and removed the cardigan to finally take a good look at it.
It happened to be one of the cardigans that had caught her attention when she was shopping along the streets.
It was a red-colored, rose-patterned cardigan, which was extremely exquisite.
An Xiaoning then realized that he had been tailing her since long ago. Otherwise, there couldn’t have been such a coincidence.
She brushed her fingers across the smooth and soft fabric and brought it with her when she alighted from the car.
The family of four was waiting for her.
Upon the sight of them, An Xiaoning smiled and made sure not to mention a word about b.u.mping into Jin Qingyan.
“Xiaoning, have you asked your mentor?”
“Yes. Teacher said that there’s no effective solution to stop it. I agree with her,” said An Xiaoning as she took a seat.
“Since there’s no feasible solution, let’s forget it then. We’ll just be more cautious from now on.”
An Xiaoning looked at Lin Mingxi and asked, “Did you manage to get anything out of your trip back to your parents’ place?”
“My parents didn’t believe that my sister would harm me. They think that she wouldn’t be so ruthless to me since we’re still sisters at the end of the day. However, Beicheng’s subordinates have already found out that my sister had met with some gangsters a while ago. They even met more than once. Doesn’t that already say something?” Lin Mingxi explained with a mirthless chuckle.
“You mean, Gu Dongcheng and Lin Mingyuan have gotten into cahoots with each other? That’s terrible,” An Xiaoning said with a frown.
“I’ve already moved all my belongings out of my parents’ home. Xiaoning, what do you think we should do if they attempt to harm me again?” Lin Mingxi asked worriedly, clearly extremely tensed up.
An Xiaoning could entirely empathize with her feelings of anxiety. “Although we don’t have a good solution for now, it doesn’t mean you’ll be susceptible to hexes and black magic just because those people have your birth characters. I’ll give each of you an amulet later. Keep it with you at all times, it’ll help ward off evil,” said An Xiaoning.
Lin Mingxi hugged An Xiaoning and exclaimed, “How am I supposed to thank you?”
“Devote yourself to me? Ditch Beicheng,” An Xiaoning jested.
“Sure.”
Mr. and Mrs. Gu burst into laughter, lifting the somber mood in the air.
An Xiaoning headed upstairs to scribble on the amulets before chanting a spell. She then gave her family members one amulet each and instructed, “Remember not to let the amulet get wet. It’ll become impotent once it touches water. This will help keep the situation under control for a certain amount of time.”
Everyone kept their amulets, after which Mr. and Mrs. Gu headed downstairs to get some rest.
Gu Beicheng entered with a tray in his hands, on which there were three gla.s.ses of milk.
One for each of them.
An Xiaoning picked up a gla.s.s of milk and began sipping on it slowly.
“Gu Dongcheng and Lin Mingyuan have ganged up against you two. Have you guys thought of a strategy to retaliate?”
“We’ll deal accordingly with whatever comes our way. Besides… I’ve already laid a trap long ago, I’m just waiting for Brother to fall into it. No hurry. An eye for an eye,” said Gu Beicheng, his eyes glistening.
“People always say that you ought to have mercy whenever possible. However, showing mercy to those who try to harm you time and time again is only being cruel to yourself.” An Xiaoning finished her milk to the very last drop and put the gla.s.s down before standing up. “I’ve always known that I am no saint. I’d treat those who have been gracious to me with equal kindness. At the same time, I won’t forgive nor forget anyone who tries to harm me,” she continued.
“Xu Youran tried to harm you to such a great extent in the past. You can’t be bothered to deal with her now, can you?”
“Of course not. I just haven’t had the time to think about her recently. I’m going back to my room to sleep,” said An Xiaoning.
An Xiaoning lay down in bed and tucked herself beneath the duvet before s.h.i.+fting her gaze to the cardigan on the hanger.
Images of the event that took place that night flashed in her mind.
When he s.n.a.t.c.hed her car keys away from her hands, Jin Qingyan was dressed in a blue suit with a blue fur scarf around his neck.
She closed her eyes and began recalling the memories they had — the good, the bad, and the ugly. He was the only man whom she had ever loved so deeply in her life…
The more she thought about it, the more upset she felt.
Thus, she decided not to sleep altogether.
Instead, she reached into her bag for the small journal her mentor had given her and began reading it from the first page with all her attention.
——
“Nick!” Bu Xianxian exclaimed upon the sight of Jin Qingyan alighting from his car.
“Why haven’t you gone to bed yet?”
“I was waiting for you. My parents wanted me to tell you to come over to our place for a while if you’re free. They’d like to talk to you about something,” said Bu Xianxian.
Jin Qingyan took a look at the time on his watch and followed her to meet Mr. and Mrs. Bu.
Upon the sight of his arrival, Mrs. Gu said, “So sorry to have troubled you to come over at such a late hour.”
“It’s alright, it’s not that late yet. Auntie, feel free to speak your mind.”
“The three of us have been getting on rather well ever since we came back here with you. It’s just, Xianxian has been pestering us to let her go out to work and make some friends. Now that we’ve managed to pick up the native language of S Nation and communicate in it fluently, do you think you can allow her to leave and enter Wei Ni Estate whenever she pleases?” Mrs. Bu asked.
“Sure, she’s already in her twenties and no longer a child. I can help you look for a job that you’re interested in,” said Jin Qingyan, staring at Bu Xianxian calmly. Putting the fact that she was carrying a torch for him, Jin Qingyan did not forget that she was also his life savior.
“I don’t need your help, I can find a job on my own,” Bu Xianxian refused.
“Okay. It’s a dangerous world out there, you must learn how to protect yourself, especially since you’re a girl. Do you need me to send a few bodyguards to escort you around?”
“No.” Bu Xianxian obviously would not want a bodyguard to follow her around since that would get in the way of her freedom.
Jin Qingyan cautioned, “Be careful when you’re on your own, then. Is there anything else I can help you with?”
Mrs. Bu waved her hand and said, “No, there’s nothing else.”