He Zhen was so angry he actually laughed.
He had thought Yao Tao's mind worked in strange ways, but now Fu Xin's seemed hundreds of times more warped than hers.
"Fu Xin." He Zhen stood up, his hand clenched so tightly that the edge of the hair clip dug into his skin. The sting kept him rational. "You said it yourself. We're just childhood friends."
Fu Xin had stressed that many times.
He Zhen remembered a great deal.
Fu Xin wanted him to look after her, yet she felt that too much attention left her without any space of her own.
He had always given Fu Xin whatever she wanted.
But had Fu Xin ever given him anything in return?
Love meant giving. He had always believed that giving was what you ought to do when you liked someone.
But he had been the only one giving all along.
If Yao Tao hadn't appeared, he would have kept giving.
To all his friends, He Zhen was practically Fu Xin's dog.
One call from Fu Xin, and he would drop everything to go to her.
He kept his distance from other girls, while Fu Xin's social life was positively vibrant.
Every girl at school knew He Zhen liked Fu Xin.
Yet Fu Xin still insisted that they were childhood friends.
He had confessed to Fu Xin three times, and each time she had casually brushed him off.
Was he really that much of a doormat?
Had Fu Xin decided her relationships with other people were too complicated and come running back to him for refuge?
What if she grew tired of peace and quiet again?
Yao Tao's inner voice had mentioned him ending up as the father of someone else's child.
Why should he raise another man's child for no reason?
Why the hell should he?
Just because Fu Xin had saved him when they were little?
Her family had only made it into the middle class thanks to the He family.
He should have repaid that debt long ago. Why should he keep throwing himself at Fu Xin?
He Zhen's head grew clearer and clearer.
The more he recalled, the more his memories resembled sharp steel needles, each one marking another time he had debased himself.
"You've fallen for Yao Tao!" Fu Xin demanded, biting her lower lip.
"You can like Qin Zhen, so why can't I like someone else?" He Zhen hadn't lost his reason to anger yet, and he turned the question back on her.
"Qin Zhen was the one who liked me!"
"He was the one who said he wanted to pursue me!"
"You're all the same!"
"The moment you find someone you like better, you can just abandon me!"
"Zhen, you've really disappointed me."
"At least, I thought you were different."
Fu Xin hurled her accusations at him.
Aunt Zhang couldn't stand listening anymore. "Miss Fu, affection has to be mutual. It's not about making a mess of your relationships. If you get to choose, why doesn't our young master?"
"Please be reasonable, Miss Fu."
Fu Xin looked at Aunt Zhang. "This is between Zhen and me. You're just a housekeeper. You shouldn't be whispering gossip into your employer's ear."
"In ancient times, you would have been beaten to death for this."
"Have you lost your mind?" He Zhen stared at Fu Xin in disbelief.
It was hard to imagine those words had actually come out of Fu Xin's mouth.
She should have understood ordinary people's lives better than anyone.
Aunt Zhang's lips shifted into a hollow smile, but she said nothing.
"I haven't." Fu Xin's pretty brows knitted tightly. "You've been acting strange ever since Yao Tao appeared. He Zhen, take a good look at yourself. Can someone lure you away with just a few words?"
"If that's the case, what have I done wrong? How can you be so heartless and treat me like this?"
"How long have you even known her?"
"And you brought her home."
"For an entire night."
Fu Xin grew increasingly furious. "The two of you have absolutely no shame!"
The supposedly shameless Yao Tao was basking in the sun with the elderly residents at the nursing home.
"Little Peach, Little Peach." A white-haired old lady beckoned to her. "Granny's sneaking you some fruit candy. Just for you, not anyone else!"
Yao Tao smiled at the little stone in her hand. "Okay, Granny. I'll sneak off and eat it all by myself later."
"Yes, yes! Our Little Peach can eat it in secret, all by herself. Don't let them snatch it away!" The old lady waved her arms and bounced with delight.
"The lady in bed seventeen has wandered out again!" A nurse hurried after her. Seeing Yao Tao, she smiled. "You're here too, Miss Yao."
"Old people are like little kids. It's good that she likes getting around." Yao Tao smiled at the old lady hiding behind her and clutching the hem of her clothes. "Granny, go take your nap. I have homework to do too."
As soon as she heard Yao Tao had homework, the old lady obediently let go. "Granny won't disturb Little Peach's homework. Our Little Peach is going to college. Granny's off to bed."
The nurse smiled too and thanked Yao Tao. "Thank you, Miss Yao. Without you, we wouldn't know what to do with these elderly people whose families have disappeared."
"I'm doing good deeds and building up good karma!" Yao Tao smiled. "This month's money has already come through. Sorry for all the trouble we give you day to day, too."
"It's our job." The nurse smiled. "We'll be going, then. Goodbye, Miss Yao."
There weren't many benefactors like Yao Tao, who paid on time and visited the nursing home every week.
The families of elderly people dumped here were all too likely to run off.
It was fine if they were still willing to pay, but some went so far as to disappear completely. When the police caught them, they simply claimed they had no money.
There were plenty who never got caught.
They certainly knew how to hide.
Running a nursing home wasn't easy either.
The nursing home was quiet during the afternoon nap.
The elderly residents slept obediently, just like children.
Yao Tao walked around the nursing home, stretched, and went back to work.
The video was short, but it still had some shots she could use.
She might as well make money off Qin Zhen!
Her productive day ended once she finished editing the screenshots from the video.
Yao Tao decided to offer them as a little perk.
The video was already everywhere, so she could show off her photo-editing skills while she was at it and draw in another batch of wealthy fangirls.
The moment Qin Zhen's solo stan account posted the pictures, the forum blew up again.
Unlike the gossip threads, everyone was there to look at Qin Zhen.
A picture of Qin Zhen crouching beside the river went viral. Yao Tao had edited Fu Xin out.
A flawless edit, with some extra retouching for good measure.
She had turned Qin Zhen into a boy by the water.
As soon as she posted the pictures, those who knew the drill were already pinging her in the group chat for high-resolution versions.
Yao Tao was very kind: one yuan per high-resolution picture.
She certainly wouldn't let anyone undermine her business, so she tallied the orders and sent out all the high-resolution pictures together.
Everyone in the group thought they had gotten a bargain.
When it came to photo editing, Yao Tao was the one to beat.
Anyone hoping to steal her business ought to consider whether they had what it took.
There were so many people who liked Qin Zhen that once the pictures appeared, nobody paid attention to the gossip anymore.
"Damn." The boy deleting posts and managing the comments clicked his tongue as he looked at the forum.
"What?" Qin Zhen raised an eyebrow, looking displeased as he kept obsessively checking his phone. His screen stayed on his chat with Fu Xin.
"Your solo stan posted more pictures."
"I'm serious, these editing skills..."
"She could go straight into a professional job."
"What does perfection look like?"
"This. This is perfection."
The boy by the water gazed at its surface, one hand braced against the ground and the other submerged in the water.
The lighting was just right, sunlight spilling across his back, the glow perfectly controlled.
Qin Zhen glanced at it impatiently. "Delete it."
"Why would I delete it? This is a good thing." The boy thought Qin Zhen was letting something wonderful go to waste. "She's already helped divert everyone's attention. Don't you get it? You really are blind."
Qin Zhen kicked him.
Before you continue