Ning Xi sighed, “But back then, I had fallen in love with a man, and I needed an identity that could match up to his.”
The light in Lu Tingxiao’s eyes flickered, “That man was Su Yan?”
Ning Xi nodded, then she smiled, “Aren’t you curious how I was acquainted with a rich heir like Su Yan with my identity back then?”
To prevent Lu Tingxiao from guessing at it again, Ning Xi didn’t keep him in suspense and answered her own question, “Because Su Yan’s lungs were weak when he was young, he came to our town to recuperate. He lived right next to my house, and he stayed for seven years.”
“The first time we met, I just happened to bump into him when his illness was acting up, so I helped to carry him all the way home.”“Later on, we slowly got more familiar with each other. The more we got to know each other, the more we fell in love. Childhood sweethearts, innocent playmates; what beautiful words! Heh. However, later on, reality told me… that this wasn’t a Cinderella story, but a story about the Wolf of Zhongshan!”
“Don’t be upset, he’s not fit to match you.” Lu Tingxiao consoled her.
She hadn’t expected that she would unconsciously start talking about her ex-boyfriend with Lu Tingxiao. Ning Xi scratched her head and said in embarrassment, “We’re a little off topic, let’s continue talking about the Ning family… Because Ning Yaohua and Zhuang Lingyu couldn’t bear to let go of the daughter they had raised for 18 years, after demanding to have me back, they didn’t return Ning Xueluo to the Tang family. Ning Xueluo remained as their beloved daughter.”
“You should be able to imagine what happened next. The distance caused by a separation of 18 years wasn’t something that could be fixed in a single day. In front of Ning Xueluo, who had been raised under elite education for 18 years, I was an extremely unsophisticated little village girl.”
“I was too naive back then, and treated her as a friend from the start. She used my trust to trick me into thinking that the lemon water used to rinse hands was a drink, and sent me a counterfeit dress to wear at the banquet. Using these little tricks, she slowly pushed me away from the Ning family and away from upper-class society…”
“Those people were already used to mixing around with Ning Xueluo and were on her side. On the surface, they treated me as friends, but in private, they would mock me for being a village bumpkin. Even my biological parents hated my existence and felt that I was a stain on their reputations… After that, there was Su Yan…”
After Su Yan, the most important things for a girl were all trampled on and destroyed: her chastity, her reputation and her dignity.Bit by bit, Ning Xi started hugging her knees, “Today on set, something went wrong with the props. My sword hurt Ning Xueluo by accident. In the hospital, my mother… my biological mother slapped me without even asking about what had happened. My biological father only criticised and blamed me…”
Ning Xi gazed out the window at the inky black night. She continued with an airy tone, “Back then, for some reason, the tension I had been holding back for five years just snapped. I suddenly felt that there was no meaning in living, I felt that I was a failure in life. Was it because I just wasn’t good enough that everyone hated me? I had worked so hard for so long, but there was no meaning to it in the end…”
Right after she had just finished speaking, Lu Tingxiao suddenly pulled her shoulders towards him with some force, “Ning Xi, look at me. Not everyone hates you. They’re the ones who aren’t good enough. Understand?”
Ning Xi’s eyes turned slightly red.
Even if she had always been acting heartless, like she didn’t care, she was still a young lady who was only twenty or so.
Lu Tingxiao drew her into his embrace and kissed the top of her head gently…
Ning Xi felt something heavy press on the top of her head, but didn’t know what it was.
Lu Tingxiao stared at her with an extremely serious gaze, “Ning Xi, if you doubt yourself, then you should try to believe me. You’re great.”
There’s no one better than you in this world.
Ning Xi’s sadness turned into joy, “Of course I believe in Big Boss Lu’s words!”
Lu Tingxiao relaxed. That completely disheartened look in her eyes just now had caused him to panic badly for an instant.
After staying silent for a moment, Lu Tingxiao took the initiative to ask, “Ning Xi, can I ask you a question?”
TL Note:
The Wolf of Zhongshan is a story about creatures sticking to their true natures. In this case, a kind scholar saved a wolf that was being hunted. However, it tried to eat the scholar once the danger had passed. Here’s a longer version of the story on Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wolf_of_Zhongshan).
An English equivalent might be The Scorpion and the Frog (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scorpion_and_the_Frog).
