When Su Meng hurried back to school, the canteen had already closed. Just as Su Meng was about to buy instant noodles to satisfy her hunger, Ji Yun handed her the boxed meal.

"Thank you, Miss Ji."

Su Meng shed tears of gratitude. She excitedly took the boxed meal and bowed to express her gratitude.

"Not me. Jiang Ning bought it for you."

Was he so kind-hearted?

Su Meng was in disbelief and muttered in her heart. She only felt that Jiang Ning was temperamental and unpredictable. His handsome appearance seemed squandered.

In the past two days, she just met him several times, but each encounter seemed to be filled with confrontation. She didn't know what she had done to offend him.

"Where is he? I'll transfer the money for the meal to him."

"He had something urgent to do, so he took half a day off. Don't transfer the money to him. A mere dozen or twenty yuan holds little significance to someone as affluent as Mr. Jiang!"

Su Meng bit her lip subconsciously. An innate sense of inferiority welled up in her heart.

She nodded mechanically and did not say anything more.

In the summer afternoon, a torrential rain cascaded over Pengcheng city, instantly washing away the gloom that had enveloped its inhabitants.

Jiang Ning finished typing the last line of code, and the entire program ran smoothly.

A ray of sunlight broke through the dark clouds and shone into the office through the huge French window.

Jiang Ning paused for a moment with a slightly worried expression on his face.

"Mr. Jiang, here you are!"

Jiang Ning naturally took the coffee from Chen Ruichu but, out of habit, set it aside without taking a sip.

"The bug has been fixed. I still have something to do, so I'll leave first."

"Hey. Mr. Jiang,I have two tickets for an art exhibition. Are you interested in going with me?"

Chen Ruichu held Jiang Ning in her arms and playfully swayed her body.

"No, thank you. I have prior commitments."

"Please. I heard from He Yuan that you went to No. 24 Middle School to be an external teacher. The artist I'd like to invite you to his exhibition is also a former student of No. 24 Middle School. His name is Zhou Shaoyang. Do you know him?"

Jiang Ning stopped and took the ticket from Chen Ruichu.

Upon seeing Jiang Ning's serious expression as he stared at the tickets, Chen Ruichu felt confident in her way to approach him and was filled with joy.

What she was unaware of was that when Jiang Ning caught sight of the indistinct painting positioned behind Zhou Shaoyang, despite maintaining a poker face, his heart was already in a state of upheaval.

Although the paintings appeared slightly blurred, the hues and shades greatly resembled those of Su Meng.

If the two were just copying each other's painting style, it might be understandable. But Su Meng's one in the morning was a watercolor sketch. Their artworks resembled twin creations.

"When is the date of the exhibition?"

"Three days later, on the 15th of this month! Shall we go together?"

"Sure."

After returning the ticket to Chen Ruichu, Jiang Ning quickly left the building.

[Su Meng; Zhou Shaoyang. Su Meng and Zhou Shaoyang...]

Jiang Ning thought of their names again and again, forcing him to park the motorcycle on the side of the road and drink a glass of ice water to calm himself down.

[So, Su Meng really doesn't remember me?]

After silently affirming this idea, Jiang Ning immediately threw the empty bottle into the trash can. The thunderous rumble of his motorcycle reverberated through the air.

Su Meng thought that Jiang Ning would not return after taking a half-day leave, which put her in a cheerful state.

Su Meng got acquainted with the other two official external teachers and assisted several students in refining their artwork. Afterward, she comfortably arranged her art supplies on the sidelines, contemplating whether to put on her headphones and enjoy some music.

When Jiang Ning entered the classroom, despite his efforts to move quietly and not attract attention, his somber expression instilled fear in everyone.

Su Meng was completely unaware of Jiang Ning's entrance. It wasn't until she sensed a sudden chill behind her that she became aware that something was amiss. The external teachers, who had been standing by her side and talking to her in a low voice, intentionally distanced themselves by a few steps.

When she raised her head, Jiang Ning yanked her out of the door regardless of her astonishment.

"Su Meng, I have just one question for you! Have you truly forgotten about me?"

Su Meng was confused, but she didn't dare to say anything when she saw Jiang Ning was angry.

"What? You want me to make amends?"

"Make amends? Alright, what will you do to make amends?"

"It's merely a boxed meal. Why are you so angry?"

"Well... I'll pay for your boxed meal. Do you need it?"

"What?!"

Now it was Jiang Ning's turn to be confused. The only thing Jiang Ning could be sure of was that the woman in front of him seemed to be discussing something completely different from what he had said!

Su Meng was feeling quite confused well. She had initially intended to reimburse the payment for the boxed meal, but Ji Yun assured her that Jiang Ning wouldn't be bothered about the money. So she completely forgot about the whole issue.

Sure enough, the richer a person is the more he tends to count money. Also, his words were vague, leaving her in a state of uncertainty.

"Did I not make myself clear enough? Why don't you open your WeChat on your cell phone, add me as your friend. I'll send you a red packet."

Seeing that Jiang Ning stood rooted to the spot, Su Meng thought that he must be embarrassed.

She took his phone and added herself as his WeChat friend, then sent him a 20 yuan red packet.

"Done! There's nothing to be embarrassed about. You bought me the meal, and I should pay you the money. I'll leave now, bye."

Then she waved at Jiang Ning and entered the studio.

Jiang Ning didn't say a word. He looked at the 20 yuan red packet on his phone and shook her his with a helpless smile.

[She gotta be kidding me!]

The bell rang. The students picked up their schoolbags excitedly and rushed out of the classroom.

In the past, Su Meng could always stay in the studio as long as she pleased. However, she now resided with her uncle and aunty. As she was an outsider, the longer she remained in the studio, the more indebted she felt towards them.

But today was different. She knew that Su Na was in a relationship, and the latter would advise her aunty not to allow her to take care of herself.

With any luck, she would be able to have some uninterrupted solitude for several months afterwards. Perhaps Aunty, in a moment of clemency, would even allow herself to rent a room.

By doing so, she would gain freedom. It would prevent her from facing criticism for the unpleasant smell while painting, and she would not be scolded for tarnishing her garments while cleaning the drawing board. If this scenario were indeed achievable, she would gladly contribute additional funds to her aunty and uncle on a monthly basis!

With this in mind, Su Meng couldn't even focus on packing up and quickly said goodbye to the teachers before riding her bike back to her aunty and uncle's house.

Pushing open the gate, Su Meng immediately sensed something unusual. Her usually heavy-drinking uncle, Su Kanghui, was sitting in the middle of the yard, blowing smoke from his mouth, with a serious expression on his face.

Aunty cradled Su Na in her arms who was sobbing uncontrollably, giving Su Meng a spiteful glare.

This scene had been distant in Su Meng's memory for a long time.

The last scene resembling this had occurred when she was merely twelve years old. During that time, Su Na snatched the necklace her mother had presented her, which provoked Su Meng to forcefully push her to the ground. Su Na hit her head, leading aunty to react similarly.

She had been beaten badly and starved for a day and a night. From then on, Su Meng no longer dared to compete with Su Na for anything.

"What's wrong, aunty?"

Just as Su Meng was about to speak, her aunty hurriedly stepped forward and delivered a harsh slap on her face, causing her ears to ring.