Chapter 978 - 583: Forced Kiss, Then Kicked Out? (3rd Update)

Chapter 978: Chapter 583: Forced Kiss, Then Kicked Out? (3rd Update)

Ruan Mengxi lowered her head to help him pack, clenching her jaw.

So what if you got rejected? What’s the big deal? You always don’t want him to look down on you, as if the world will crumble without his love.

She finished packing and threw the stuff at his feet, "It’s done."

"..."

Qi Zeyan was startled by her expression, his heart skipped a beat.

"Honestly, you don’t need to feel burdened by rejecting me. If seeing me makes you uncomfortable, you can transfer me to the assistant position. Love is a matter of mutual consent. I like you, and that’s my issue; you don’t have to like me back."

"When you liked Wanwan, you should have boldly pursued her instead of transferring me to your side to try to get close to her through me."

"In this regard, you’re really not as good as Xiaowu. You’re really a coward!"

"That’s why you couldn’t win Wanwan’s heart."

Qi Zeyan frowned, then looked down, staring at her intensely. Her eyes were still bright, as if they were on fire.

She looked like she wanted to eat him up.

He had long lost feelings for Tang Wan, but being criticized like this unavoidably made him feel a bit strange inside.

"Actually, you can tell, I’ve done a lot for you, including our encounters at the gym, preparing lunch for you; none of it was accidental. Most coincidences in this world are premeditated."

"But you don’t need to feel guilty towards me either. Before, when you drank too much at my place, I secretly kissed you..."

"So, I’m not a good person either."

Qi Zeyan caught an important detail, "What did you just say? You kissed me?"

His eyes were a deep, intense black, seemingly unable to fathom that his assistant would do such a thing to him.

This damn...

But it was his first kiss!

Was it unknowingly taken away?

"You really don’t remember?" Ruan Mengxi had always felt that after that night, Qi Zeyan’s gaze on her was a bit strange. She thought he had a feeling for her.

Actually, Qi Zeyan had just had an embarrassing dream.

Qi Zeyan wasn’t particularly sentimental about his first kiss, but having it snatched away inexplicably made him stare at her, marveling at her audacity, yet struggling to restrain himself.

"Ruan Mengxi, you..." He was still a bit angry inside.

The last thing he expected was for Ruan Mengxi to suddenly crash into him and accurately kiss him.

He was backed against the wall, with nowhere to retreat. It happened too suddenly, and his whole body stiffened for a moment.

She advanced fiercely, even with some urgency, it wasn’t gentle, almost like a collision, with a hint of pain.

It made his heart skip a beat.

At such a close distance, he could even clearly see her slightly trembling eyelashes. His throat tightened, and he grabbed her upper arms, pulling her entire body away from him.

Their eyes met...

One was shocked and bewildered, with a complex expression; the other was completely calm and collected.

"You’ve been staying here so long, consider it as rent money."

"You... rent money? What do you take me for?" One kiss for rent?

"Since you don’t agree, I’ll calculate the rent later and send it to your phone so you can transfer the money to me."

"..."

Ruan Mengxi pointed to the ground, "Qi Grandpa is still downstairs, hurry up and take your stuff and leave."

Qi Zeyan’s heart tightened intensely, not knowing what to say.

"Trying on clothes today was tiring; I won’t see you off, goodbye!"

Qi Zeyan was "kicked out" of the apartment, still a bit dazed, until he heard the door closing behind him, with his haphazardly packed luggage getting "thrown" out with him.

He stood at the doorway, initially thinking that clearing things up would make him feel relieved, but he felt even more agitated than before.

This woman is really...

When things were good, she’d call him "boss" at every turn, wishing to hold him up to the sky, and now she directly "kicked" him out? The Sichuan opera face-change isn’t this fast.

He took a deep breath, feeling extremely frustrated and helpless.

Until he went downstairs and got in the car, Old Man Qi saw his furrowed brow but didn’t ask much. When his phone vibrated, Ruan Mengxi sent a message over.

Daily rent, meal cost, water bill, electricity bill, and even her service fee...

Calculated meticulously, even charging for the half-can of spicy kimchi he ate.

At the end, she added: [Since we’re acquaintances, I won’t count the small change.]

Old Man Qi, noticing something was off with his expression, leaned over for a look, "Wow, this girl is quite clever, even counting the watermelons you ate."

"..."

Qi Zeyan reached up and tugged at his hair, utterly frustrated.

**

At this moment, Ruan Mengxi was sitting on the sofa. The TV was playing a campus drama where the female lead was rejected by the male lead, feeling heartbroken and in pain. She sniffed, and tears fell down her cheeks.

Soon, her phone vibrated, notifying her that a sum of money had been deposited into her bank account.

Qi Zeyan not only transferred the amount he promised her, but he also added some extra.

The phone vibrated again. Her dad sent a message, knowing she tried on a bridesmaid dress today, asking her to send photos and mentioning that he had prepared several jars of kimchi for her, which he wanted to send over.

She bit her lip and replied: [Dad, you don’t need to send it. I’m on vacation now, and I want to go home tomorrow.]

Her father was so delighted that he called her. She didn’t dare to answer, and after hanging up, she simply said she was busy and couldn’t take the call.

[Are you sure you want to come home?]

[Yes.]

[I’ll book you a plane ticket, and I’ll pick you up at the airport. Tell me what you want to eat...]

People are like this; when vulnerable, they instinctively retreat to a place they deem safest.

So she went home without informing anyone.

Qi Zeyan returned home, feeling agitated for a long time. As he was about to take a shower, he realized that the key to Ruan Mengxi’s house was still in his pocket.

He sent a message asking her what to do with the key.

This was a key Ruan Mengxi had made for him after he moved in.

The reply came back: [No need, just throw it away.]

Not even a punctuation mark.

He was irritable the entire night, barely slept, and felt so restless that he went out to buy a pack of cigarettes at midnight.

Normally, he didn’t smoke. He only tried it a few times during his teenage years until his grandfather found out and he almost got his legs broken. After that, he never touched it again.

The smoke made him cough violently, tears almost falling, and he had a few mosquito bites on his legs, leaving them scratched and bloody.

The result of not sleeping all night was that the next day, he appeared at the breakfast table with his head hanging low, looking listless.

The elder gave him a slight glance:

"You’re the one who rejected someone, but you act like you’re the one heartbroken. I have no idea how that kid Xiaoruan is doing, but you, you..."

"What a troublemaker."

"She must’ve cried all night. Just ask Xiaowu’s wife to console her since they’re best friends."

Qi Zeyan stayed silent, just took out his phone and, as usual, checked his friends’ circle in the morning.

Unexpectedly, he saw an update from Ruan Mengxi.

She posted three photos: one of her suitcase, one scenery shot from the car window, and a selfie.

[On vacation, going home, happy~]

Qi Zeyan was dumbfounded. He hadn’t slept all night, while she looked so full of spirit and ran back home?

**

Tang Wan saw her post and called to ask what was going on.

"Nothing much, I just felt like going home," Ruan Mengxi laughed.

"Isn’t Qi Zeyan still living at your place?"

"He went back."

"Is there something between you two..." Tang Wan asked cautiously.

"I’m over him. You said I’m not bad looking, my family condition is good, I even have a house in Beijing. I can’t compare to someone like you, a fair, wealthy beauty, but I’m not bad."

"Him rejecting me, that’s his loss. Can’t I find someone who likes me?"

"Qi Zeyan is nothing."

Tang Wan was still bewildered even after the call ended...

Ruan Mengxi, too, hadn’t slept all night. It was just that she put on makeup in the morning to look spirited, but after hanging up the call, she leaned her head on the car window, and tears began to fall.

Early in the morning, she hailed a taxi to the airport. The driver kept looking at her, seeing her crying, and couldn’t help but sigh.

"Such a pretty girl, just how blind or demanding must a man be to not appreciate her?"

"Miss, don’t cry." The driver handed her tissues from the box in the car.

"Thank you."

When people are weak, even a little bit of care, even from strangers, can make their emotions collapse instantly.

Ruan Mengxi cried the whole way in the taxi, using half the box of tissues.

When she got off, the driver helped her with her luggage and consoled her: "Young lady, don’t be sad. There are plenty more men out there."

"I know." By the time Ruan Mengxi got out of the car, she had already wiped away her tears, put on her sunglasses, grabbed her suitcase, and went straight into the airport.

She walked with big strides, her stubborn silhouette almost saying:

I don’t need a man!

Just moments ago in the car, she was sobbing, but her aura changed sharply; she was cool and dashing, leaving the driver momentarily stunned.