CHAPTER 103: CHAPTER 103: WHEN THREE WALK TOGETHER, THERE MUST BE A GREEN TEA AMONG THEM

Lu Nianying looked disdainfully at Xu Manman, "She doesn’t even want you to call her sister, and yet you’re shamelessly doing so, for what?"

"It’s none of your business!"

Perhaps because they were destined rivals, from the first glance, Lu Nianying and Xu Manman loathed each other.

Kong Lijuan said softly, "How can she degrade herself to live in our shabby educated youth dorm? She’s staying in a house of a big landlord in the village, a separate and sizeable place, at least one room per person, enjoying all sorts of comforts."

Kong Lijuan had never been to Xu Qinghuan’s house, but she could guess that such a big house must have more than three rooms.

Xu Manman was stunned and blurted out, "Where did she get the money?"

As far as she knew, the family hadn’t given Xu Qinghuan a single cent.

Kong Lijuan sneered, "How could she possibly not have money? Didn’t she give up her job at the lighting factory? Do you think she did it for free? And, when she broke off the engagement with her ex-fiancé, didn’t they compensate her with five hundred yuan? She has plenty of money."

Kong Lijuan was trying hard to sow discord, "She even extorted a hundred yuan from me, so how could she not have money to rent a house? She could build a brick and tile house with that money."

Xu Manman was so envious she was about to lose her mind. When she and Xu Hongtu went to the countryside, her mom only gave each of them a hundred yuan, yet Xu Qinghuan, who had been fostered by their family for years, actually had so much money.

Why is it that all the good things belong to Xu Qinghuan? A privileged background, a handsome and passionate fiancé, and even someone to look after her in the countryside, and the house she lives in is better than anyone else’s.

Even breaking off an engagement gets her five hundred yuan more than others.

Why!

While taking a bath, Xu Manman moved the water to the side room, she was afraid of the dark, so she turned on a flashlight to illuminate the place, which she brought from Shen City, originally for her and Xu Qinghuan to share.

Distracted by thoughts, her mind was elsewhere.

Suddenly, she felt a creepy sensation as if being watched by something. When she looked over, she saw a lecherous eye peering through a hole the size of a baby’s fist.

"Ah!" Xu Manman screamed in terror and shame, quickly moved to cover herself with a towel, then turned off the flashlight.

The commotion alarmed the educated youths, who rushed over to see what was happening.

Duan Qingmei scoffed, "Xu, it seems you have a nice figure, being ogled on your very first day?"

Xu Manman got dressed and came out, angrily saying, "What nonsense are you talking about?"

By this time, she had calmed down and urgently explained to Jiang Chengxu, who had a dark and unclear expression, "Chengxu ge, the rats here are huge!"

But when she mentioned the rats, her expression didn’t match the disgust one would expect, making it suspicious.

Jiang Chengxu looked at her deeply, then turned and walked away. Xu Manman hurried to catch up, "Chengxu ge, my sister rented a house outside, it’s very big, a brick and tile house too, let’s move there to live together!"

Xu Hongtu inquired, "She’s not living here?"

The three had just arrived not long ago, and hadn’t had time to focus on Xu Qinghuan, so they were all surprised to hear this.

"Yes, my sister thinks there are too many people here and it’s inconvenient, so she rented a house from the former landlord, and Qiao and Yu, two educated youths, are staying with her. Before we got here, she had them for company, but now that we’re here, older brother, and Chengxu ge, the four of us living together can look out for each other." Xu Manman, remembering that obscene eye, didn’t want to stay here for another moment.

She might even have nightmares at night.

No wonder Xu Qinghuan wanted to move out, maybe she was seen too?

Jiang Chengxu was obviously tempted, he had to win back Qinghuan’s heart, and could only do so by living under the same roof.

Before coming to the countryside, Jiang’s family had instructed him that if he could marry Xu Qinghuan, they would find a way to bring both of them back to the city, and to Yan City, specifically.

Whether for returning to the Yan City family home, or for the future when Xu Qinghuan becomes a female tycoon, he couldn’t afford to lose her.

Since Qinghuan didn’t like him mingling with Xu Manman, he would keep his distance from her as much as possible.

Lu Nianying followed Jiang Chengxu with an unwavering gaze, recalling how, as a child, he had helped her when Lu Mingqiu was bullying her, leaving a deep impression.

She had never dreamed she would one day see him again.

Lu Nianying wished she could push the clingy Xu Manman away from Jiang Chengxu, but she couldn’t act impulsively.

"Hello!" Lu Nianying gracefully approached. Standing before Jiang Chengxu, she said, "Hello, I’m Lu Nianying. If I’m not mistaken, didn’t you visit the Jiang Family when you were young? We’ve met before!"

Jiang Chengxu didn’t recognize Lu Nianying at this moment, even though they were married when they were both over thirty. But having been husband and wife, when he heard her name, he instantly recognized Lu Nianying.

His emotions were complex, like a tidal wave.

They had once conceived a child together.

Seeing Lu Nianying inevitably reminded him of the son he once loved dearly.

That child was spoiled by Lu Nianying and later went astray, but he was still his only son.

"Nianying, it’s you!" Jiang Chengxu almost blurted out, but quickly realized his mistake, hurriedly saying, "Ah, I remember, Lu Family’s Lu Nianying, we’ve met before."

He didn’t remember when they had met.

Xu Manman quickly sensed a crisis, glaring resentfully at Lu Nianying, "Chengxu ge, how could you have met her?"

Lu Nianying smiled a bit, "Xu Manman, I’m from the Lu Family in Yan City. Chengxu ge, when he was young, came with the Jiang family to attend my grandfather’s birthday banquet. Is it strange that we’ve met?"

Xu Manman bit her lip, feeling indignant.

She managed to have Xu Qinghuan break off the engagement with Chengxu ge, only to find another clingy person now on the scene.

No matter what, she had to move into Xu Qinghuan’s house. Otherwise, living in the educated youth dorm, Lu Nianying would be the biggest threat. She and Jiang Chengxu were well-matched in terms of family status, which meant she had no chance at all.

"Why would I think it’s strange? Chengxu ge, don’t get me wrong, I didn’t mean it that way. I’m just afraid that if you and Lu Zhiqing get too... too close, my sister might misunderstand." Xu Manman acted as if she was thinking entirely for Jiang Chengxu’s sake.

Jiang Chengxu indeed stepped back, distancing himself from Lu Nianying, "Lu Zhiqing, it’s getting late; you should probably get some rest since you have work tomorrow, right?"

Lu Nianying sneered coldly, "Xu Manman, maybe you’ve forgotten what your sister said. She’s already broken off the engagement with Jiang Chengxu, are you still looking to get slapped by her twice more?"

Although Lu Nianying had good feelings for Jiang Chengxu, it wasn’t to the point of being unable to marry anyone else, nor was she someone who would take a loss easily.

"Could it be that Xu Qinghuan breaking off the engagement with Jiang Chengxu was your doing?" Lu Nianying laughed, "Are all men dead for you to be stealing your sister’s fiancé, where is your shame?"

Xu Manman covered her face and started to cry, "How can you slander me like this? Lu Zhiqing, you can slander me all you want, but Chengxu ge isn’t like that. You’re just trying to throw dirt on him!"

Xu Hongtu tried to slap Lu Nianying, but she was startled, a hand suddenly reached out and clasped Xu Hongtu’s wrist. Dai Yifeng sneered, "Matters between women are best left alone by men, and we don’t condone hitting women here. Don’t let me see this happen again!"