Chapter 1646: Past Lives and Present Fate 82

I don’t know why.

Despite Shih Wanxin’s tearful confession of her sins, apologizing with snot and tears.

She remained unmoved.

She’s beginning to doubt herself; when did her heart become so hard?

If it were a stranger crying like this in front of her, she wouldn’t be so cold-hearted, right?

Strange!

“What? You still don’t forgive me?”

Seeing the other party remain indifferent, Shih Wanxin became a bit anxious, her tone heavier than before.

Xia Ruqing’s heart suddenly skipped a beat, shocked, with a chill spreading inside her.

‘What’s going on with this?’

After being in a daze for a while, a subtle, enigmatic smile appeared on her face.

“Forgive!”

“You’ve apologized to me face to face, how could I not forgive you?”

“Actually, you didn’t really hurt me after all!”

Shih Wanxin was overjoyed to tears.

“Really? Is that really what you think?”

“Then… you’ve forgiven me!”

“Can we be friends from now on?”

In her excitement, she blurted out her true intentions without thinking.

Xia Ruqing was initially taken aback, then pretended to hesitate.

“After all, our identities are special; it’s fine if we don’t owe each other anything, but becoming friends just seems…”

She is, after all, my boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend; it’s too awkward, isn’t it?

What exactly does this woman want to do?

As expected, Shih Wanxin seemed disappointed for a moment, her eyes filled with pitiful sorrow again.

“If you marry into the Zhao Family in the future, we’ll be considered relatives!”

“It’s not good not to know each other!”

“I really want to be friends with you!”

“I…” She couldn’t make up anything else.

Shih Wanxin gulped down a large mouthful of red wine, her eyes reddening.

Before Xia Ruqing could speak, she continued.

“You probably won’t believe it even if I tell you!”

“Those girlfriends around me, those pretty girls, they’re all fake!”

“On the surface, they’re all sweet and warm, but behind my back, it’s a chorus of curses!”

“We’re nothing more than mutually beneficial relationships!”

“We don’t have any genuine affection for each other! It’s all just a mirage, but I feel you’re different!”

Xia Ruqing felt a jolt in her heart at these words, almost amused.

Different? How is it different?

Even if it is indeed different, how would she know? They’ve only interacted a few times, right?

Last time it was life and death, this time it’s different?

“Oh?” She maintained a brave front outwardly.

“How is it different? From my perspective, everyone’s the same!”

Shih Wanxin shook her head quickly.

“No!”

“You don’t know!”

She was tipsy, blurting out a few secrets from her years in the circle of girlfriends without holding back.

She even revealed family tensions of being overlooked by her parents ever since she was a child.

Partly out of genuine dissatisfaction, and partly because she couldn’t control her tongue, fueled by alcohol!

All in all, by the end, her words, brimming with tears and trembling voice, did touch Xia Ruqing somewhat.

It made her thoughts from before reconfirmed in her heart.

She’s truly pitiful.

In the end, Xia Ruqing finally acquiesced to her absurd demand to ‘be friends’ like a duck driven onto a perch.

She had no choice but to agree.

If she didn’t, the other party might babble on and on.

After pondering, she decided to let the night pass and deal with it later.

…

Leaving the restaurant, Xia Ruqing returned to the apartment.

She washed up and lay down on the bed, unable to sleep.

Her mind was in chaos; too many things had happened in the past two days.

So much that she didn’t know how to process it.

In the end, half asleep and half awake, she suddenly jolted awake.

“Someone like Shih Wanxin, she herself said that befriending someone is just for mutual benefit!”

She can use others; she can also use her.

Why should she believe she’s sincere?

But right now, she’s just an assistant, nothing more.

What could she possibly be used for?

No matter how hard she thought, she couldn’t figure it out, and finally fell asleep in a daze.

…

The next day, she went to work with two dark circles under her eyes.

Zhao Junyao was startled at first sight.

“What happened? What’s wrong with you?”

“Are you feeling unwell anywhere?”

Xia Ruqing shook her head wearily.

“No!”

Zhao Junyao returned to his desk half-believingly.

By the end of a busy day, Xia Ruqing was so exhausted her face turned green, feeling like dying from fatigue.

Zhao Junyao gloomily dragged her away after work.

“What’s wrong?”

“I barely gave you any tasks today; why work yourself to exhaustion?”

Xia Ruqing was out of energy.

“My mind’s in chaos, so I wanted to keep myself busy!”

Zhao Junyao: “…”

“Where did you go after work yesterday? Why was your phone turned off?”

Xia Ruqing slumped in her seat, her head buried against the car window glass.

“Nowhere? I’ll tell you when I have the chance!”

Zhao Junyao didn’t ask further, face still darkened, and instructed the driver to drive.

He personally escorted Xia Ruqing back, carrying her up to her soft bed.

Looking at Xia Ruqing’s already sound asleep face, he felt a pang of heartache.

“Sigh!”

“Even though I don’t know what happened to you, I still wish to see you happy!”

Xia Ruqing furrowed her brows uneasily, instinctively scooting closer to him, seeking warmth.

Zhao Junyao’s heart melted at the sight.

Smoothing the strands of hair by her ear, he sat on the small stool by the bed.

His eyes shifted to a blurred photo on the table, puzzled.

Wasn’t this the photo Lady Xu gave her? Why did Qingqing bring it home?

Was she posting it online to find someone, and stayed up so late?

Wait, something’s not right!

He flipped the photo and saw the mold stains on the back and the watermarks from the photo being exposed to humid air for years.

He slowly froze, his mind racing.

“Did Qingqing accidentally get the photo wet? No, getting it wet might make the colors run!”

“Was it too humid in the house and got moldy? That’s unlikely either!”

“Then maybe it’s that…”

He reached out and carefully pulled out a stack of photo albums from the desk.

Flipping it open slowly, he found it filled with photos stained with mold and moisture.

Turning page after page, although the faces weren’t clear, he could at least determine.

The photo with the mold spots just now existed in this album.

So, was that photo actually Xia Ruqing’s own???

What about Lady Xu then…??

By this point, even an idiot should know the truth.

Not to mention someone as smart as Zhao Junyao.

Suppressing his shock, he stared at Xia Ruqing dumbfoundedly.

How hadn’t he noticed that, upon closer inspection, she really does resemble Lady Xu.

The same face shape, the same eyes.

Turns out, she is the daughter Lady Xu had been searching for all along.

This really is… so close yet so far!

He looked at the worn-out girl who’d fallen asleep, feeling pained deep down.

“She probably didn’t sleep well last night!”

“She must have found out the truth by now!”

“This girl, keeping such a huge thing to herself!”

“But right now there’s still one question, where exactly did she go last night?”

As he wondered, he heard a ding from Xia Ruqing’s phone, a message appearing on the screen.

‘Last night was fun, hope we can get together again next time!’

From Shih Wanxin?

Zhao Junyao’s handsome brows furrowed together.