Feigned Pity - CH 18

Xia Yan’s expression froze for a second, “I’ll call her down immediately.”

When Tao Yi Xi followed Xia Yan into the dining room, her head was kept down so Gu Jing Yuan could not tell how she was doing.

“Good evening Uncle Gu.” Her voice sounded hoarse.

“Mmm,” Gu Mu Yang’s attitude was a little colder than before.

Xia Yan discreetly pinched her, “Mu Yang, I’ve already reprimanded Yi Xi and she has already deeply reflected on her actions.”

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Tao Yi Xi silently kept her head down, standing before them as a guilty party.

“Uncle Gu, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have let Ge-ge get into a fight and get hurt. There will not be a next time. Please forgive me.”

Gu Mu Yang’s expression was indifferent. She could not tell if he had accepted her apology.

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Qw fkdt Zwyd zywtble kd ydtla.

He had never seen eye to eye with Xia Yan. Previously, he thought that she was just a scheming woman. He did not expect that in order to please Gu Mu Yang, she would ditch her daughter completely.

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“So you guys only listened to one side of the story and forced her to bow her head to apologize?”

“It was obviously those people who came to seek trouble with me and was coincidentally witnessed by her. This situation occurred because of me, why are you putting the blame on a mere girl? Or did you expect her to protect me instead?” Speaking up to his point, his agitated voice momentarily paused.

In the end, it was indeed she who protected him.

“You’re really sick. And Tao Yi Xi, take back your apology.”

Tao Yi Xi lowered her head and said nothing, while Xia Yan was completely taken aback by what he just said.

She glanced at Tao Yi Xi. There was still a little redness staining her face because of her recent cry and her slender figure was delicate, inducing sympathy.

She was refuted when disciplining her own daughter. Hence, she stubbornly stood her ground, not admitting her wrongs.

“Even so, you did get hurt because of Yi Xi. So she should apologize.”

Seeing Xia Yan’s unwillingness to let the matter go, Gu Jing Yuan found it ridiculous and asked further.

“Are you really her mother?”

“Of course I am.”

“Can’t tell. I’ve never seen a mother who would indiscriminately make her child suffer.”

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“I…” Xia Yan’s face flushed in embarrassment.

Gu Jing Yuan was too lazy to continue arguing with her. He knew that only Gu Mu Yang had a say on this matter.

“Go investigate it yourself, it has nothing to do with her.”

During their spat, Gu Mu Yang kept silent.

He finally said, “I see. Let’s eat.”

Only then, did this matter come to an end. But the four seated at the dining table were lost in their individual thoughts.

**

Gu Mu Yang who rarely stepped into Gu Jing Yuan’s room looked at the gaming consoles surrounding him. The computer screen was full of games triggering his anger but was powerless to do anything about it.

“Are you planning to be like this forever? How many more times do you want to repeat a grade?”

Gu Jing Yuan lounged on his gaming chair. In the family, only he dared to use this unscrupulous attitude to treat Gu Mu Yang, even choosing not to answer him.

In fact, he, himself, did not know what kind of life he wanted to live. It seemed that he did not have any goals.

“Someone invited me to play esports professionally.”

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Gu Mu Yang’s eyes widened, “I forbid you to join! There’s no future in such a field! You can only some cash when you’re young and most of the youths there likely have a serious occupational disease. Working so tirelessly only to earn an annual income of a million. Is that even enough to cover your daily expenses?”

“Okay.”

Gu Jing Yuan swift agreement caused the rest of Gu Mu Yang’s words to get stuck in the back of his throat.

“That’s it?”

“Ya, just waiting to inherit your wealth.”

Gu Mu Yang’s veins bulged. Gu Jing Yuan was really capable! Every time they clashed, anger would cause blood to surge to his head.

“Fine! In the future, I’ll arrange a marriage for you and find a capable woman to run the corporation.”

Gu Jing Yuan was equally nonchalant, “Sure, everyone can play their own field. Aren’t you experienced in this? I’ll remember to learn from you.”

“You!”

And the conversation came to a halt again. The father and son could never peacefully communicate.

“People are looking for me to start a game. You know where’s the door, I wouldn’t see you out.”

Gu Mu Yang could not stand his lazy attitude and directly turned off his main processor.

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With the screen pitched black, it reflected the two similar faces.

Before Gu Jing Yuan could get angry, Gu Mu Yang continued, “Gu Jing Yuan, you stood up for Tao Yi Xi today.”

“I’m just being realistic and my mother once taught me to respect women. Although I may not like her, I haven’t fallen to the point of accusing her unjustly. I just didn’t expect Director Gu, who lived for so many years, to make things difficult for a little girl.”

Gu Mu Yang was not triggered by his words. Instead, he coldly explained.

“Her purpose of coming here is solely to aid you. If she can’t even do that, then there’s no value in her existence.”

Gu Jing Yuan stared as Gu Mu Yang mentioned Tao Yi Xi without a hint of warmth. He only treated her as an item.

“You’re really ruthless, as always.”

Gu Mu Yang did not refute, “If you don’t want me to make things difficult for her then you should stop doing these stupid things.”

“None of my business.”

Although he said that, Gu Mu Yang knew he would listen.

Gu Jing Yuan inherited his mother’s soft side; possessing a sharp tongue with a soft heart.

“Think about it.”

After Gu Mu Yang left, Gu Jing Yuan did not turn on the computer to resume his game.

Qi Yue called him, “Brother Yuan, why did you suddenly disconnect? Everyone is waiting for you!”

“You guys go ahead, I’m not in the mood now.”

Maybe he had some talent in gaming, hence he was pretty good at it and found it fun. But it was not the extent of being addicted. Compared to Ah Zhao and the rest, he did not possess their resolution in wanting to train diligently.

Gu Jing Yuan rested his hands behind his head, staring blanking at the ceiling not knowing what he wanted for his future.

He did not know how Tao Yi Xi was so motivated to study every day that she hardly had free time.

She was in an unfamiliar environment, her mother did not care for her, her stepfather was ruthless, and he was not good to her either. She seemed to have a really tough life.

Seems like he had implicated her again today. Tsk.

How many times has it been already? He went too overboard.

The next day, upon seeing her, he surprisingly did not show her his usual morning black face.

She greeted as per normal, “Good morning Ge-ge.”

“En.”

Tao Yi Xi was momentarily stunned. She did not expect him to respond to her greeting.

Once he left, she looked at his back and chuckled.

After this incident, it seemed that the thin barrier between the two broke. There was no longer a constant tension whenever they met.

Except for whenever she urged him to study.

When she once again asked him to wake up and pay attention in class, he stared at her gloomily, displeasure written all over his face.

“Ge-ge, I promised Uncle Gu to keep an eye on your studies. Besides, you’ve already lost.”

“Lost?”

“You did not surpass me in the monthly exams.”

Gu Jing Yuan licked his back teeth, “You’re making things difficult for me knowing I’m last in class. Other than Chen Ze, who else can surpass you?”

Tao Yi Xi replied with sincerity, “Everything is possible. If you never try, how would you know?”

Humph! Want to trick him into studying.

Gu Jing Yuan’s memory was not bad either, “I remembered we made two deals at that time, no?”

“We did,” Tao Yi Xi worriedly stated, “Ge-ge still wants to compete?”

“Of course.”

He could not understand what was being taught and studying was just too boring. Now, he must grab every opportunity to keep her quiet during class.

Tao Yi Xi reluctantly responded, “Alright, then what are the rules?”

“As long as you can kill me once, it will be considered your win.”

“I’ll win as long as I killed you once?”

“Yes.”

A flash of light entered Tao Yi Xi’s eyes, but on her face, she displayed a distressed smile.

“Ge-ge, you know that I never played before. So can I ask others for assistance?”

“Yes.”

He never thought of playing solo with her. Even torturing weak chickens was not done that way.

“What if Ge-ge loss this round too?”

Gu Jing Yuan leaned back wantonly, “Then I’ll listen to everything you say.”

He was just that confident.

“Okay, then see you in the evening. I won’t disturb you for the rest of this afternoon.”

Shall let you enjoy your last beautiful afternoon.

When the sun set, they went back to the previous Internet cafe.

The guy manning the counter immediately recognized Tao Yi Xi. A look at the boy behind her confirmed that he also looked familiar.

“Hey! He is your cheating boyfriend?”

Gu Jing Yuan had question marks written all over his face. What is he talking about?

“Ah, previously, it was just a misunderstanding.”

“I think so too. For as long as I’ve known him, I’ve never seen him with another girl before. His character isn’t bad.”

“En, en, thank you. I’ll cherish it.”

A bewildered Gu Jing Yuan: …Why can’t he understand what these two people were talking about?

“Brother, can you turn on two computers for me? We’re just playing one game. Please? Please~” She clasped her hands together under her chin, her big eyes twinkled and her soft tone melted people’s hearts.

“No problem, I’ll turn it on for you.”

“Thank you, brother!”

Seeing her skillful and familiar acting cute, Gu Jing Yuan felt displeasure swelling within.

“Why do you do this to everyone?”

“Huh? What’s wrong?”

Gu Jing Yuan pursed his lips thinly.

Tao Yi Xi was a discerning person, one look and she could tell what was up with him.

“Ge-ge doesn’t like me acting this way with others?”

He did not reply.

“Then… in the future, I’ll only talk to Ge-ge like this, okay?”

She grinned charmingly at him. The threads of sweetness coiling around him. He shook his head to gain clarity as his heart pounded faster. He hurriedly shifted his gaze away.

“Up to you.”

The guy at the counter turned on the respective computers, “Number 8 and 9 are yours, you can head over there.”

“Alright, thank you very much.” Tao Yi Xi nodded at the guy, the smile on her face was more restrained.

“Ge-ge, please wait a moment while I call for others.”

She quickly typed something on her phone and was soon ready for their match.

“We can start now. You can start free play, and I’ll pull people.”

Gu Jing Yuan glanced at her, she looked quite proficient.

She carefully selected four people to join her team. Whereas Gu Jing Yuan just randomly invited people from the list to make up for the numbers.

Within the chatbox, there was a bombardment of admiration.

[Ah ah ah! I never thought that I would be able to get invited to play by Boss in my lifetime.]

[Is this some pinnacle match? Boss, you’re AD? Can I be your support? Don’t wanna miss this epic battle!]

[Whisper Bibi: I want to too!]

[Is Boss still there? Why so silent? Boss is so aloof, I like it!]

[Person upstairs, you’re very M1.]

[I’m only Boss’s little M.]

[I’m convinced, you win.]

Entering the champion selection interface, when a Teemo2 appeared on the opposite party, the chatbox exploded in jeers.

[Opposite side chose Teemo?]

[Fuck, the most dog champion, the only one!]

[It’s time to post the classic quote ‘We might lose the team battle, but the Teemo must die!’ Brothers and sisters, let’s go!]

Gu Jing Yuan: [Not allowed to kill the opposite’s Teemo.]

The chatbox suddenly went silent. The four unacquainted teammates thought of the same thing.

‘It is difficult to deal with this Teemo?’

Entering the map, the Teemo took on a supporting role and hid in the jungle right from the beginning. She was hardly spotted throughout the whole game making people suspect that she had disconnected.

From time to time, she would pop up to attack them, making others find it difficult to bear.

Teemo was as rumored; really making others desperate to kill it! Ah ah ah!…3

But Boss has spoken, and they dare not attack Teemo.

Gu Jing Yuan was skillful maneuvering his mouse and keyboard when he encountered the opposite’s AD. A sense of familiarity suddenly washed over him.

He faintly narrowed his eyes as he tilted his head in her direction, “You recruited Ah Zhao?”

“Yes, they said that Ah Zhao is the best at this, so I asked him to teach me. He was very meticulous in his lessons.” He even chose such a powerful champion for her.

There was subtle admiration in her words.

He raised his chin, “Heh.”

Gu Jing Yuan gradually sat straighter and his eyes became more focused as his fingers flew across the keyboard. One click, one flat A4. There was no way his opponent could avoid it, only a dead end.

Ah Zhao wanted to cry. Brother Yuan was too fierce! It was obviously not like this just now. Across the screen, he could feel that Brother Yuan was starting to get serious. Ah Zhao did not dare to slack off anymore as he took the Teemo to level up quickly.

Tao Yi Xi took advantage of her AD’s experience and steadily rose to level six before starting to plant mushrooms5 along their path.

Teemo’s mushrooms could also be invisible.

The other team’s inventory was full of Real Eyes6, but its range was limited and this damned Teemo was especially good at planting. When they step on one, although the lethality was not detrimental, the deceleration in their movement was still annoying.

Gu Jing Yuan rarely encountered such a treacherous champion.

Compared to the experienced players in Ah Zhao’s party, the people he pulled were obviously not skilled enough to fight against them. Rendering his four members unable to counterattack, leaving him by himself; one against four.

The sacrificed teammates continued chatting like it was no big deal.

[Wow! 1v3!]

[Counter killed one of them! So awesome!]

[Second one already! Daddy is daddy after all!]

[Fuck! Boss dodged A so brilliantly, such accurate calculations.]

[Big brother, is my kneeling posture up to standard?]

Ah Zhao gritted his teeth and continued to hold on. He was the last to fall, and Gu Jing Yuan still had residual blood7.

One against four, a perfect counter-kill.

Gu Jing Yuan leaned back leisurely and was ready to go home when a Teemo suddenly appeared behind him.

With a Q8, it sent him back to base with a black screen.

The robotic female voice of the system echoed in his ear, “You have slain an enemy.”

<Your champion was killed.>

Gu Jing Yuan, “…”

This was a very embarrassing death.

“Ge-ge, your champion died.”

She turned around and with a radiant smile, informed him of this hard-to-swallow reality.

“Ge-ge, does this mean that I won?”

Gu Jing Yuan opened his thin lips, and coldly spat out a word, “Yes.”

“Then Ge-ge will fulfill your end of the deal, yes?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll also not make things difficult for Ge-ge. Let’s start from now, up till Ge-ge enters Third Grade.”

“Okay.”

He was conceited hence, he deserved it; since he agreed to the bet, he was willing to accept his loss.

His reluctant and embarrassed appearance was really cute. She really wanted to tease him and pat his short but thick black hair.

She pressed her lips tightly together, trying to restrain the urge to do so. Instead, she patted him on the shoulder.

“Don’t worry Ge-ge, I’ll help you. Shall we leave? Let’s go home.”

He took a deep breath before leaving with her.

Before Gu Jing Yuan left, the guy at the counter called out to him.

“Bro, your account is running low on funds, do you want to top up? Recently, we’re having a promotion so it’s a really good deal.”

Tao Yi Xi grinned happily and replied for him, “Nope, he probably won’t come back here in a long while.”

“You’re quite strict. Hahaha, goodbye bro.”

Gu Jing Yuan waved his hands helplessly, also bidding this messy lifestyle goodbye.

And thus, ushering in the biggest calamity of his life.