Chapter 193

When Qiao Suisui woke up again, it was already pitch black outside the window.

Before closing her eyes, she had silently made a wish, hoping that the moment she opened them, she would be back at the Huangting. But as she sat on the bed, staring blankly at the familiar layout of the room, reality told her that it had all been a grand dream. What remained was only a sudden, endless sense of loneliness.

She opened the bedroom door and walked into the bathroom, splashing cold water on her face in an attempt to sober herself up.

Looking at her bare face in the mirror—the skin delicate and fair, the features exquisite—everything was unchanged, yet the expression in her eyes and her temperament were completely different from the person she once was.

The timid, cautious Qiao Suisui of before seemed to have grown up in an instant; her gaze was bright and resolute, her brow relaxed and confident, and her expression no longer carried a need to please, but rather the indifference of one who has seen it all.

She wiped her face with a towel and returned to the room to pick up her phone, only to find thirteen missed calls.

Ten of them were from Mother Qiao, presumably calling to berate her. She had intentionally not mentioned that she had already canceled the dinner with Guan Weizhi, leaving them to show up for nothing; right now, the family of three was likely grumbling on their way back.

Another call was from Qiao Jiming, which she chose to ignore directly.

There were also two calls from Guan Weizhi.

She opened WeChat and saw that Guan Weizhi had replied to her about half an hour ago.

【Just finished class.】

【Are you at school or in the dormitory? Do you need to go to the hospital?】

She replied that she was fine, and just as she was about to put the phone down, it rang immediately.

"Hello, Teacher Guan?"

"Are you sick?"

Guan Weizhi's voice was very cold and detached, lacking any particular tone, giving one a sense of absolute rationality.

Qiao Suisui was silent for two seconds. In the past, she would have racked her brains to come up with various excuses and then used clumsy acting to cover her lies, but now, she only considered it for a moment before choosing to be straightforward and get straight to the point.

"My father's company is facing some difficulties. They found out I was going to have dinner with you, so they wanted to use the opportunity to win you over and have your brother invest in his company."

There was silence on the other end for a long while—so long that Qiao Suisui thought he was angry—before Guan Weizhi finally spoke. But the first thing he asked was: "What industry, and what is the company's name?"

Qiao Suisui was startled, not expecting him to actually ask. She said, "That's not what I meant, Teacher Guan. I don't want my family to trouble you, which is why I canceled tonight's dinner. My original intention for this meal was to thank you for helping me secure the internship spot."

"Mm, I know. Keep that meal for later." Guan Weizhi's voice was low and cold, every word spoken with a great sense of propriety; it was clear he was very well-bred. "Send me the name of your father's company. You all think a bit too highly of me; I may not necessarily be able to help."

Qiao Suisui thanked him, and Guan Weizhi asked about her internship and school arrangements for the coming week, all of which she answered honestly.

"Alright, then see you at school. Thank you, Teacher Guan."

She was waiting for him to hang up, but she didn't hear the sound of the call ending for a long time. Instead, she heard Guan Weizhi suddenly call her by her full name.

"Qiao Suisui."

"Ah?" She felt a bit nervous out of reflex.

"I said it last time: do not use honorific pronouns with me."

Qiao Suisui froze, said "oh" twice, and just as she wanted to say something polite, he hung up decisively. She stared at the phone, completely bewildered.

At nine in the evening, the family of three drove back from the city center. Mother Qiao entered the door and rushed to Qiao Suisui's bedroom, pounding loudly on the door with a "thwack-thwack." Qiao Jiming followed, wanting to stop her, but was glared at. Father Qiao sighed, shook his head, and went back to his room.

"Did you do this on purpose? Are you happy now that you've torn this family apart? Your Uncle Qiao may not be capable, but he's still a thousand times better than your biological father. Since you took the surname Qiao, he is your father. You're secretly happy inside watching his company go under, aren't you? How can you be such a selfish person?"

Mother Qiao was about to pound again, but the door opened from the inside.

Qiao Suisui looked calmly at the woman in front of her. She had called her "Mom" for so many years that sometimes she really wanted to ask if she was actually her biological mother. Her childhood memories were blurry, but she roughly knew what the situation was.

Her biological father had disappeared without a trace. This woman had raised two children alone, then later married Father Qiao, changed their surnames, and registered them so they could go to school.

Their marriage had been a "make-do" affair for many years. Father Qiao was basically invisible; he never participated in family conflicts. If he could pay for things, he'd say "Amitabha," but as for providing personal support? Impossible, let alone providing any emotional value.

He didn't look like a father, nor a husband, and certainly not the pillar of this family.

Qiao Suisui didn't even know how to address him, so she rarely spoke to him. This man, seemingly honest but actually shrewd, never spread much fatherly love. Aside from the beginning, when he acted a bit in front of Mother Qiao and bought Qiao Suisui and Qiao Jiming each a set of clothes and a toy, there was no other care.

So, on no level would Qiao Suisui ever trouble Guan Weizhi for his sake. Because it wasn't worth it. That was why she hadn't sent the company name after hanging up.

Qiao Suisui watched as Mother Qiao continued to ramble on, blaming all the problems on her, and simply interrupted her calmly with one question: "Before today, you didn't know I knew Guan Weizhi. Could this company have stayed open then?"

Mother Qiao was choked into silence.

She continued: "If you truly believe Guan Weizhi is the hope for saving your company, then it was I who gave you that hope. But I don't understand—now that just one meal didn't happen, it's as if the company collapsing is my fault. With your kind of mindset, you really shouldn't be doing business."

"You! How dare you talk back?" Mother Qiao's face flushed red. She pointed at Qiao Suisui's nose; usually eloquent, she was now so angry she couldn't speak for a long time.

Qiao Jiming stood to the side, surprise appearing in his eyes.

Qiao Suisui sneered: "If you want to invite Guan Weizhi out, go invite him yourself. Mom, since you look down on me so much, don't count on me."

Before she turned to close the door, she said coldly: "I will apply to live on campus tomorrow. After that, everyone can have some peace."

*Bang—*

The bedroom door was tightly shut.

Mother Qiao's face turned from red to black, and then from black to white.

She was shaking all over with anger, her lower lip trembling, gasping for breath.

Qiao Jiming held her steady and sat her on the sofa to calm down, whispering: "I'll try to persuade her tomorrow. The conditions at school aren't as good as at home, she still..."

"Persuade what? Let her get out!" Mother Qiao caught her breath, pointed at Qiao Suisui's bedroom door, and shouted: "She thinks her wings have grown hard? Who paid for her university? If she has the ability, she should never come back!"

Qiao Jiming frowned, not arguing with Mother Qiao. He turned to look at the tightly closed door, a deep sense of doubt flashing in his eyes.

Readers who have been paying close attention must have realized that the foreshadowing for Qiao Jiming, including the real-world plot, was laid out long ago, and that the men from the game world will return. Give me some votes. I won't be able to accompany you for much longer.

(End of chapter)