Nan Qiao followed Grandpa Bai and Granny Bai to visit Old Lu.
Old Lu could only walk a short distance each day before needing to rest; he couldn’t move too frequently.
He was getting old, and his metabolism had slowed, resulting in toxins being expelled from his body more slowly.
Old Lu said, "Qiaoqiao, tomorrow my family is hosting a dance party. It’s also an opportunity to share some matters about our family with outsiders. I’ve already kicked Lu Tianlei out, and I don’t want him using the family name for any of his schemes. Come tomorrow if you can."
Nan Qiao replied, "Grandpa Lu, my family hasn’t publicly revealed my identity yet. It wouldn’t be appropriate for me to meet so many people. Besides, I have a school competition tomorrow. I’m sorry."
Old Lu still hoped Nan Qiao would attend the party, but since she didn’t want to, he didn’t push her.
"Qiaoqiao, I know you’re busy. If you don’t have time this time, we’ll catch up next time."
Grandpa Bai added, "Our family won’t be able to come either. Qiaoqiao has her competition tomorrow, and all of us will be there to cheer her on."
If even the Bai Family isn’t coming, what’s the point of holding the dance party?
In that case, it’s better to cancel.
"Since your family won’t be there, let’s postpone it to another time. I’ll inform my family to change the schedule."
Nan Qiao asked, "Grandpa Lu, do you know how Ren Yongshi and Uncle Lu met?"
Old Lu replied, "I heard it was while traveling. Through my investigation, that seems to be true. After Lu Tianlei returned, he wanted to divorce my daughter-in-law Liu Yun. I didn’t agree, and neither did Liu Yun. They had a big argument. Later, that ungrateful son moved out and never returned. I didn’t expect to end up disabled because of him. If I had known, I would’ve severed our father-son relationship much earlier."
Nan Qiao recalled how Li Tianhong and Jiang Linyu also met while traveling.
Same formula, same process.
Old Lu asked, "Qiaoqiao, do you know something?"
Nan Qiao replied, "I suspect Ren Yongshi has a hidden mastermind guiding her. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have targeted Uncle Lu."
Old Lu said, "Back then, I had people investigate, but they didn’t find any clues."
Otherwise, Old Lu wouldn’t have been betrayed so severely.
Nan Qiao said, "Grandpa Lu, now that you’ve kicked them out, I believe Ren Yongshi will soon reveal her true nature. Someone who’s used to a luxurious lifestyle won’t be able to take a single step without money."
Old Lu nodded in agreement, "Qiaoqiao, you’re such a clever child. You’ve spoken straight to my heart. Brother Bai, I truly envy you for having such a smart and sensible granddaughter."
Grandpa Bai and Granny Bai felt both proud and delighted.
Grandpa Bai said, "My granddaughter really is smart and sensible. To have her is truly my blessing."
Granny Bai said, "Our Qiaoqiao really is excellent."
Nan Qiao was a little shy from all the compliments and smiled without saying anything.
After helping Old Lu complete his checkup, Nan Qiao went to the school laboratory to prepare for tomorrow’s competition.
In the lab today, Nan Qiao saw Li Xia.
Li Xia had formed a team to participate in tomorrow’s competition.
Walking gracefully, Li Xia dressed youthfully and vibrantly. Upon seeing Nan Qiao enter, she approached her.
Li Xia wore a black, fitted short dress, with flawless makeup—even the layers of her hair were impeccably styled.
Nan Qiao glanced at the confident, sense-of-superiority-filled Li Xia and laughed.
"What are you laughing at?" Li Xia said displeased.
"I’m laughing at your delusion of winning, while flaunting yourself here. Not even ashamed?"
She hadn’t expected Nan Qiao to be so confident.
Her mentor had arrived in Jing City. Although her last attempt at provoking Nan Qiao failed, this time, she was determined not to let Nan Qiao win the competition.
There were five teams participating in the school competition, including Nan Qiao and Li Xia.
Li Xia was confident that she would secure first place.
As for Nan Qiao, Li Xia didn’t consider her a serious contender.
"Nan Qiao, you seem awfully confident. Let’s hope your confidence lasts."
At this moment, Dong Qingqing arrived.
Dong Qingqing walked up to Li Xia and greeted her with a smile, "Senior, I’m not late, am I?"
Dong Qingqing called Li Xia "senior"?
This was unexpected to Nan Qiao; she hadn’t imagined Dong Qingqing and Li Xia were acquainted.
Dong Qingqing noticed Nan Qiao standing opposite Li Xia and exuded arrogance and coldness.
"Qingqing, isn’t she one of the girls in your dormitory? Why aren’t you greeting her?"
Dong Qingqing dismissed her indifferently, "Although we’re in the same dormitory, our relationship isn’t great. I can’t be friends with Nan Qiao. After all, she’s picky about the friends she makes. Who’d dare be friends with her?"
Li Xia laughed, "Nan Qiao, I didn’t know you were so selective about making friends."
"Selective? What, should I befriend any trash I come across? Unlike you, taking in everything, swallowing it all—you’re worse than a trash can."
Dong Qingqing couldn’t fathom how Nan Qiao dared offend Li Xia.
Li Xia’s family background and status were far superior to hers!
Dong Qingqing said angrily, "Nan Qiao, apologize to Senior now! How dare you speak to her this way! Do you even know who she is?"
Nan Qiao replied, "Who is she? Is she not a human like you?"
Nan Qiao’s sharp tongue was unmatched.
Nan Qiao said, "A good dog doesn’t block the way. Wasting words on you two is just a waste of my time."
Nan Qiao went to her own workstation to continue the experiment with Lv Cancan and Huang Xue.
Lv Cancan gritted her teeth, furiously saying, "I never imagined she would turn out ! Others have four people in their teams, yet we’re left with just three."
Huang Xue said, "I warned you earlier that she wasn’t trustworthy, but you didn’t believe me. Now you’ve seen her true colors—do you believe me now?"
Lv Cancan nodded, "I’ve seen her true colors now! Chasing after Li Xia, let’s see whether she can truly become close friends with her!"
Angrier by the second, Lv Cancan said, "Qiaoqiao, I’ll find someone else to join our team!"
Nan Qiao shook her head, "No need. With three of us working together, we can be just as good as a four-person team. Three heads are better than one."
Lv Cancan and Huang Xue didn’t argue against Nan Qiao’s suggestion; they trusted her completely.
Knowing Nan Qiao’s grades and abilities, they were confident in her leadership.
As they continued working on their experiments, Nan Qiao said, "We need to modify our experiment. If Dong Qingqing goes over to them, she’ll definitely give away what we’ve done. If we don’t change it, we’ll be wiped out."
The reason Nan Qiao had previously involved Dong Qingqing in their experiments was for this moment of preparation.
The experiments they’d conducted earlier were minor trial runs; she hadn’t viewed them as significant.
But now things were different—Dong Qingqing was in cahoots with Li Xia, and precaution was necessary.
Lv Cancan grew so anxious her face turned pale, "We’ve worked on this for so long, only to have others take advantage of it! How can Dong Qingqing be ? I’m going to confront her!"
Nan Qiao stopped her, "Don’t go—it’s not worth it to argue with someone like her."
Huang Xue also said to her, "Cancan, if you go to confront her, she’ll just twist things around and make herself the victim. Let it go, and let’s figure out a new plan."
Lv Cancan grumbled, "So she gets away with it just like that?"