It turned out that the Shi family had come to their door. From the alarmed reactions of the butler and others, it was clear that Shi Li's background was quite extraordinary.
Qiao Shan stood quietly at the corner of the second floor, listening to the argument in the living room below.
From Shi Li's aunt's words, he keenly discerned that Liang Rongrong was not the family's biological daughter, but an adopted one.
This wouldn't do at all. No matter what kind of family it was, they wouldn't leave their assets to an adopted daughter. Even if the adoptive parents were kind-hearted and willing to give Liang Rongrong a share of the family property, the amount she'd ultimately receive would be limited and couldn't compare to that of a biological only child.
In that instant, Qiao Shan made up his mind to change his target.
No longer planning to pursue Liang Rongrong, Qiao Shan began to distance himself from her gradually.
Liang Rongrong was quite naive and didn't notice his withdrawal, still thinking he was genuinely too busy to tutor her.
After parting ways with Liang Rongrong, Qiao Shan's luck exploded, immediately landing him a big fish.
However, this big fish, Gao Yun, had recently shown signs of slipping out of control, which irritated him slightly.
Finally escaping that suffocating scene, Gao Yun said to Shi Qiuyu's family driver, "Uncle Zhou, please take me home."
She then called her own driver who was waiting in the parking lot, "I'm taking Qiuyu's car home today. You can head back first."
Gao Yun still had to go home to do her homework and didn't have time to hang out with Shi Qiuyu and Shi Li.
Shi Li, like Gao Yun, asked Shi Qiuyu's family driver to take her home as well.
Fortunately, Shi Li and Gao Yun's homes were in the same direction, so the driver didn't have to make an extra trip.
Shi Li's parents were abroad on business and pleasure, and based on their recent conversation, they weren't expected to return home for about another half month.
Therefore, Shi Li didn't expect to see her mother when she got home.
Mrs. Huang Jie had just gotten off the plane and looked a bit travel-worn, but it didn't diminish her beauty at all.
"Mom, why are you home early?"
Huang Jie gave her daughter a sidelong glance, "I missed you and came back early to see you. Is that not allowed?"
"Of course it's allowed. But you came back early without telling me, so I could have been prepared."
Huang Jie had a flair for dramatic statements. She said, "What good would telling you in advance do? Could you fly a plane to bring me back, or skip class to pick me up at the airport?"
Obviously, Shi Li couldn't do either.
Shi Li heard her mother continue, "Why are you so nervous about me coming home early? Did you hide a lover in the villa?"
Shi Li coyly replied to her mother, "I'm not nervous at all. I'm overjoyed to see you."
This response pleased Huang Jie, who left a fragrant kiss on Shi Li's cheek.
Looking at Shi Li's face, Mrs. Huang's eyes involuntarily reddened, "Seeing that you're alright puts my mind at ease."
In fact, when Shi Li saw her mother sitting on the living room sofa, she knew that her early return must have been because her uncle had told her parents about the incident that night, and her mother came back early out of concern.
Shi Li smiled and hugged her mother's waist, "Oh, I'm fine. You know who I am, right? Remember, the master said I'm blessed with good fortune and will have a smooth life. This little incident is nothing."
"I'm glad you're okay. But in the future, you still need to take your bodyguards with you when you go out."
Shi Li nodded in agreement while nestled in her mother's arms.
"Your uncle said that the Fu boy helped you. Did you thank him? When your father gets back in a few days, the three of us should go and express our gratitude in person."
When Shi Li's uncle spoke to his brother, he only mentioned the important matters, conveniently overlooking the fact that his niece had already made a banner and a gold medal to thank her savior.
"I did thank him, but wouldn't it show more sincerity if the three of us went to thank him in person?"
Recently, during a school assembly, the principal had called Fu Huixing out to commend him and even gave him a certificate of merit.
Shi Li, sitting far away in the audience, had vaguely seen that Fu Huixing didn't seem very happy about it.
Huang Jie didn't ask her daughter how she had thanked her classmate, but agreed, "Alright, but your father won't be back for a while."
"Then we'll wait for dad to come home and go together."
Huang Jie had been on a long-haul flight for nearly twenty hours and was visibly exhausted. Shi Li wanted her to get to bed soon.
"Mom, I'm going to do my homework now. You should eat something and rest."
It seemed that with her mother at home, the villa wasn't just a house anymore, but had become a home.
Even though Mrs. Huang Jie was still sleeping upstairs when Shi Li left for school the next day, and she ate breakfast alone, for Shi Li, the feeling was different.
Everyone thought that after Gao Yun ignored Qiao Shan yesterday, he would know to give up. Who could have imagined that he still wouldn't take the hint?
Today was even worse; he directly cornered Gao Yun and the entire class in the classroom.
"Excuse me, I'm looking for Gao Yun."
Gao Yun didn't want to embarrass herself in front of the whole school. After all, her classmates were already well-acquainted with each other's personal affairs.
"If you have something to say, come in and say it."
Going outside was out of the question, now and forever.
Faced with over thirty pairs of keen eyes, Qiao Shan felt slightly uncomfortable.
These people's gazes were like wolves', seemingly glowing green.
Especially when Qiao Shan glanced down inadvertently, he saw the male students in the restroom staring at him fiercely.
This instantly sent chills down his spine, as if he had walked into a wolf den.
"Why do you keep looking for me? I've told you we're not compatible, so I decided to break up. Please stop disturbing my normal school life."
Qiao Shan tried hard to shake off the feeling of being watched by wolves. He looked at Gao Yun with deep affection.
"Yun Yun, I know you only want to break up with me because you've listened to malicious gossip."
"Was it Shi Li who told you? Did she speak ill of me to you, trying to drive a wedge between us?"
This realization had come to him after his conversation with Liang Rongrong in the parking lot after school yesterday.
Especially after he called that thug he had hired before, Brother Song, who, being untrustworthy, had spilled everything.
As for why Gao Yun had started to grow cold towards him after seeing her best friend at the mall,
he conveniently overlooked the logical issues in this chain of events.
"Let me tell you, Shi Li has a secret crush on me," Qiao Shan declared. "When you weren't around, she tried to seduce me, but I firmly rejected her. I told her that you're the only one in my heart. She's holding a grudge because I turned her down, so she made up this false story to drive a wedge between us."
After delivering this speech, Qiao Shan felt extremely pleased with himself.
His move had effectively smeared Shi Li's reputation, putting her in a difficult position to defend herself.
What's more clever was how he contrasted Shi Li with Gao Yun, portraying himself as having chosen Gao Yun over the more physically attractive Shi Li.
This was sure to boost Gao Yun's self-esteem.
"Being friends with such a beautiful girl, people must often compare the two of you, praising Shi Li but not you," he implied. "But I'm different from them. I'll always choose you without hesitation."
This maneuver could also sour the friendship between Shi Li and Gao Yun. After all, no woman wants to be friends with someone who tries to seduce her boyfriend.
Qiao Shan had already offended Shi Li, and he reasoned that having such a person as his girlfriend's best friend would only cause trouble in their relationship. It would be better to break them up as soon as possible.
Even if Gao Yun trusted Shi Li, being falsely accused by her best friend's boyfriend would make Shi Li feel uncomfortable and distance herself from Gao Yun.
It was a win-win strategy for Qiao Shan. As long as one of them believed his story, he would come out on top.
"Shi Li, you're no match for me," he thought smugly.
Just as he was relishing his scheme, the focus suddenly shifted to an unexpected target.
The crowd exclaimed, "What? Shi Li has a crush on you? Then what about Feng Yunhe?"
