"Yun Huai, calm down first. There must be some misunderstanding."
Hearing Ji Yunhuai question Cui Anhe like that, Cui Anze frowned and drew her protectively to his side, trying to step in and smooth things over.
But the moment he moved, Cui Anhe forcefully slapped his hand away.
Cui Anze froze. He turned to her in surprise and saw that her eyes were already brimming with tears.
She offered no further explanation. She simply stood there, as though all thought had been drained out of her, and soon those tears gathered into heavy drops that pattered onto the floor in front of her.
Cui Anhe rarely cried so quietly.
Usually, even when she felt wronged enough to cry, she would let out a loud wail, as though afraid her feelings might go unnoticed.
Seeing her cry like this gave even Lu Xiaoxiao a jolt, let alone Cui Anze, her older brother who knew her so well. Forgetting the fright she had just suffered when the gun burst, Lu Xiaoxiao hurriedly pushed past Ji Yunhuai and stepped forward to ease the tension. "It's okay, it's okay! Um, I think this must be a misunderstanding too. I believe..."
Before she could finish, however, Cui Anhe raised a hand, roughly wiped her face, and shouted at Ji Yunhuai, "I hate you!!!!!"
After screaming those words at the top of her lungs, she no longer stayed where she was. She turned and ran out, crying.
"An He!"
Cui Anze's expression changed, his distress for his sister plain to see. He instinctively moved to chase her, but after taking one step, he remembered that Ji Yunhuai and Lu Xiaoxiao were still standing beside him. With an effort, he restrained his emotions and turned back to them.
He took a deep breath, his gaze finally settling