His Addiction - Chapter 3

Xu Zhi was a well-behaved girl. As she grew up, she considered the most rebellious thing she had ever done was to be an accomplice to Liang Muzhi when they were younger.

When Liang Jinmo first came to the Liang family, besides being coldly treated by Aunt Liang, he was also ostracized by all his classmates at school. All of this was thanks to Liang Muzhi’s influence over the school’s social circle.

Liang Muzhi had always been well-liked by everyone around him. As a child, his words alone would prompt his group of followers to bully Liang Jinmo.

One time, Xu Zhi happened to witness it.

A group of people tore up Liang Jinmo’s textbooks and homework, with Liang Muzhi among them. The scene was suffocating. Xu Zhi wanted to run, but someone saw her and shoved a test paper from Liang Jinmo into her hands, asking her to tear it too.

Young Xu Zhi’s body stiffened.

“Tear it!” A little boy said. “He’s the child of a mistress, he deserves this. Destroying other people’s families and still daring to come to school.”

“Exactly! He deserves it!”

Children didn’t care about order or fairness. Liang Jinmo was an illegitimate child, and his mother was the mistress.

Xu Zhi’s heart raced. The crowd was cheering, everyone tearing the paper, some even whistling. She closed her eyes, steeled herself, and tore up the test paper in her hands.

Just like that, Xu Zhi safely became part of the group. When she lifted her gaze, she met Liang Jinmo’s eyes.

At the time, Liang Jinmo was ten years old, but his gaze was already deep and dark, with something in his eyes that Xu Zhi couldn’t understand.

Her heart was uneasy and guilty. She quickly turned her face away.

The next morning, Xu Zhi woke up from a dream, staring blankly at the small chandelier on the ceiling for a moment. She couldn’t understand why she was dreaming about something so long ago.

As she slowly regained her senses, everything from last night came flooding back. She remembered.

Liang Muzhi had gotten a girlfriend. He fought because of her, and they even went to a hotel.

She sat up, sighed deeply, rubbed her face, and got out of bed to wash up.

When she went out, she saw that Liang Jinmo was already up. He was sitting at the dining table, and when he heard her movement, he looked over.

“Um… good morning,” Xu Zhi awkwardly waved, unsure how to address him.

Liang Jinmo didn’t change his expression. He just said, “Finish washing up and come eat breakfast.”

There was even breakfast.

Xu Zhi was a bit surprised. As she washed up, she thought about last night’s dream and covered her face.

Though she later felt guilty and tried to make amends, that kind of hurt was probably hard to forget.

She, the one who inflicted the harm, couldn’t forget it, let alone Liang Jinmo.

She began to wonder why he had taken her in last night.

After coming out of the bathroom, Xu Zhi obediently went to the dining table and sat across from Liang Jinmo.

It was a simple Chinese breakfast: millet porridge, soup dumplings, and some simple side dishes.

Xu Zhi bit into a soup dumpling and her eyes lit up. “Is this from Xu Ji’s soup dumplings?”

Liang Jinmo didn’t raise his head, only saying, “Mm.”

Xu Ji’s soup dumplings were very famous in North City. Xu Zhi had always liked them, but after the store was discovered by a food blogger, it became a hot spot, and now it’s so popular that it’s almost impossible to get a serving without waiting in line for a long time in the morning. Xu Zhi didn’t like the hassle, so she hadn’t eaten it for some time.

She finished the meal happily and, wiping her mouth, said, “Thank you so much. Let me treat you to a meal sometime.”

Liang Jinmo paused his action of wiping his hands and said, “Okay.”

Xu Zhi had thought he would refuse. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to treat him; she just thought that Liang Jinmo probably wouldn’t want to have further interactions with her. She was surprised that he agreed so readily.

But she should thank him properly. She took out her phone, “Let me add you on WeChat, then we can arrange a time.”

Liang Jinmo handed her his phone, and she scanned the QR code to add him.

His WeChat profile picture was a dark night sky with a single star. It perfectly matched his gloomy personality, Xu Zhi thought.

Suddenly, her phone vibrated. Both of them glanced at it at the same time. It was a WeChat call from Liang Muzhi.

Xu Zhi frowned and stood up to answer.

As soon as the call connected, Liang Muzhi’s voice was anxious, “Xiao Zhi, where are you?”

Xu Zhi hesitated.

If Liang Muzhi found out she was with Liang Jinmo, he’d probably go crazy.

Although Liang Muzhi had matured as he got older and no longer called Liang Jinmo the child of a mistress, he still considered Liang Jinmo an intruder in his family.

He naturally thought that Xu Zhi was on his side.

Xu Zhi said, “I… I’m at the hotel.”

“Why didn’t you reply to my WeChat last night? I was scared to death…” Liang Muzhi seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. “I thought you hadn’t checked into the hotel. I came to school to look for you at six this morning.”

Xu Zhi remained unusually calm, thinking that if she had really spent the night outside, he would have only gone out at six in the morning to help with her body retrieval.

She didn’t speak. Liang Muzhi continued, “It’s good that you’re okay. By the way, I went to the police station… don’t tell anyone, especially my family. If my parents and grandfather find out, they’ll peel my skin off.”

Xu Zhi thought to herself. She had already told Liang Jinmo.

Just then, she happened to glance at Liang Jinmo, who had gotten up from the table and was now looking at her direction.

Their eyes met, and Xu Zhi felt a little awkward. She quickly looked away and said to Liang Muzhi, “Got it.”

“I have to go to the police station today to handle the follow-up,” Liang Muzhi said. “Once I’m done, I’ll treat you to a big meal as thanks.”

Xu Zhi absentmindedly responded.

After hanging up, she tried to clear her thoughts. She was in her final year of college, only six months away from graduation. Originally, she thought that after graduation, even if they didn’t get married or engaged, Liang Muzhi would at least show some sign of commitment, and their relationship would be defined.

Now, Liang Muzhi had shown something… He had a girlfriend.

She felt miserable, her chest tight, unable to think clearly. The man she had liked since she was young was someone she thought would return her feelings, but in the end, it turned out to be a one-sided crush.

No matter how Liang Muzhi handled things, she would have to tell her parents.

There was a knock on the door, and Liang Jinmo, who had come from the dining room, went directly to open it.

A moment later, he returned, holding a large paper bag and handed it to Xu Zhi, “It’s cold outside. Put this on before you go.”

Xu Zhi took it and opened it. Inside was a brand-new down jacket, one from the brand she usually wore.

She felt a little embarrassed to accept it but was afraid of the cold, so she asked, “How much was it? I’ll transfer the money to you.”

Liang Jinmo was silent for a few seconds before saying, “It’s fine. Consider it an early birthday gift for you.”

Xu Zhi’s birthday was next week, and she was surprised that Liang Jinmo remembered.

This gift felt strange. She had never received a gift from him before, and she had never asked him for anything on her birthday because Liang Muzhi was always around.

She hadn’t planned on asking him this time, either. It was awkward…

After racking her brain, she came up with a solution, “So, what do you want for your birthday? I’ll get you something.”

“No need,” Liang Jinmo said “My birthday has already passed, and besides… I don’t celebrate birthdays.”