The air in the room seemed to freeze completely the moment Ju Zi finished speaking.
Even time itself seemed to come to a standstill.
Standing at the door, Wang Dong clenched her fists so tightly that her knuckles turned white. The disbelief on her face swiftly turned into a complicated mix of anger and hurt.
Xiao Xiao, Ning Tian, and Wu Feng also watched Huo Yuhao with inquisitive expressions. Aside from Xiao Xiao, the other two knew nothing about his circumstances and wanted to learn about Huo Yuhao's background.
Yet under everyone's gaze, Huo Yuhao's expression remained calm.
He showed no sign of panic, nor did he rush to explain himself. He merely nodded naturally.
Even Ju Zi was somewhat surprised by that.
She had originally thought that, surrounded by so many youthful and beautiful girls, Huo Yuhao would feel at least a little uncomfortable.
She had not expected him to admit it so frankly.
Huo Yuhao's gaze swept across the room before finally settling on Ning Tian and Wu Feng's clearly puzzled faces.
He knew that Xiao Xiao and Wang Dong were aware of Ju Zi's existence, but the others were not.
In a calm tone that was practically just stating a fact, he briefly said, "My background is simple."
"From the day I was born, I never saw my father. My mother passed away when I was very young."
"A broken family, and a homeless me."
There was not much sorrow in his voice. It was more as though he were recounting an old matter unrelated to himself, yet it was precisely that calmness that made the listeners feel the loneliness buried deep in his bones.
He turned his head to look at Ju Zi, whose cheek was still pressed against his shoulder. At last, a tenderness no