125. Chapter 125: Her Answer (3)

"Oh, it's Qiao Xi. Why are you here so late?" asked Mrs. Nan.

"I brought a friend to see Zi Xi," Qiao Xi replied.

"Hello, ma'am," Ji Niansheng, standing behind Qiao Xi, greeted her politely.

"You must be one of Zi Xi's classmates as well, right?" Mrs. Nan asked.

Before Ji Niansheng could figure out how to respond, Mrs. Nan added, "Don't just stand at the door, come on in."

Qiao Xi nodded, and the two stepped inside.

Just then, Nan Zixi emerged from his room. Upon seeing Qiao Xi, he looked bewildered. "No way. Am I dreaming, or is the sun going to rise in the west tomorrow?"

"What kind of nonsense are you spouting? Can't you be serious for once?" Mrs. Nan sighed.

"Hey, you!" Nan Zixi finally noticed Ji Niansheng and immediately cried out, "Why are you..."

"What's wrong?" Seeing his son's intense reaction, Mrs. Nan asked with concern.

"It's nothing, Mom. Go back to what you were doing; they're here to see me about something."

"Alright then, you two go ahead and talk. I still have laundry to finish hanging."

As soon as his mother left, Nan Zixi demanded, "Hey, what are you doing here?"

Ji Niansheng had never expected such a coincidence. This guy clearly held some inexplicable hostility toward him, and the prospect of being allowed to stay seemed rather shaky.

"Do you two know each other?" Qiao Xi asked.

"We met about an hour ago," Nan Zixi said.

"That's right," Ji Niansheng added. "He was very helpful—he even took me to find Xin Meng."

"And you didn't get beaten up by Xin Meng?" Nan Zixi muttered, looking unsatisfied as he scanned Ji Niansheng for any signs of injury. He then turned to Qiao Xi and asked, "Why did you bring him here?"

"He doesn't have a place to stay, so..."

"So he's staying at my house?" Nan Zixi interrupted immediately.

Qiao Xi nodded.

Nan Zixi was naturally reluctant, but since Qiao Xi was the one who brought him, he couldn't very well refuse to give her face.

"No problem at all. We have spare rooms in the house."

"Then you stay here for the night," Qiao Xi said to Ji Niansheng, then turned to Nan Zixi. "I'm heading back."

"Don't worry, leave it to me," Nan Zixi promised.

But to Ji Niansheng, the situation felt rather ominous. Still, since he was already here, he had to make the best of it. Was he really going to be intimidated by this guy?

***

At the Qiao residence.

"Mom, Dad said my sister is back. Is that true?" Qiao Yi asked the moment he walked through the door.

"I haven't seen you all day, and the first thing you ask when you get home is about her? Do you even respect me as your mother anymore?" Zhou Huaiwei looked livid, but Qiao Yi, being her son, didn't pay her outburst the slightest bit of attention.

"Is my sister back or not?"

"She should be in her room."

"Then I'm going to find her."

"Why are you looking for her? I've taught you since you were little not to get too close to her. You never listen, and on top of that, you're always clinging to her."

"You're just biased against her because she isn't your biological daughter. I don't care; she's my sister." With that, Qiao Yi ran upstairs.

"That brat," Zhou Huaiwei fumed.

Reaching the top floor, Qiao Yi saw that the bedroom door was shut. He knocked. "Sister, are you in there?"

There was no response, so he knocked louder.

"Sister? Are you in there?"

After waiting a moment, there was still no reply.

"That's strange. Is she not here?" He muttered to himself. He reached out and turned the doorknob. It wasn't locked, so he called into the room, "Sister, I'm coming in."

He pushed the door open and stepped inside, but he didn't see her.

"She really isn't here. Mom clearly said she was in her room," he said. He glanced at her phone lying on the bed and walked over. As he picked it up, he mumbled, "She didn't even take her phone."