Forced into a romantic relationship

Chapter 54 What a coincidence

It has to be said that Mo Yixia is a really good person; she's truly there for everyone when something happens.

Can you imagine a girl who usually teases you suddenly changing her tune, calling you "brother" over and over again, and constantly defending you in front of others?

Han Zhou hadn't really expected Mo Yixia to be of any help, but now he had to admit that bringing her along was a wise decision.

He doesn't have to do anything now, he just has to watch Mo Yixia keep playing the victim and putting pressure on Zhong Yin. In just a few words, she has portrayed the two of them as a brother and sister who lost their mother at a young age and whose father disappeared a few years ago, leaving them to depend on each other for survival.

But when he heard this, he understood what was going on.

Aside from the fact that there is no sibling relationship, the other two points are consistent with his true situation. His mother died early, which can be found out at school, but not many people know that his father is missing. Therefore, Mo Yixia, or rather Jiang Baiqian, may have known about his family situation in detail.

Mo Yixia, being a psychology student, didn't seem to have made a whim by suddenly pretending to be his sister. Instead, it was a well-timed move. Her tragic background and the sibling relationship of relying on each other for survival struck Zhong Yin's weak spot, causing her attitude to gradually soften from its initial coldness.

Han Zhou didn't sit idly by either, and took the opportunity to quickly explain what happened that day—actually, there wasn't much to explain, he just shifted all the blame onto Lin Anyu.

He consulted Lin Anyu on this point, and the latter not only had no complaints, but also sighed with satisfaction: "Not bad, not bad. It is said that brothers are like hands and feet, and women are like clothes, but when necessary, brothers can be the hands and feet of a centipede, and women can be clothes for winter. Han Zhou, you have grown up."

Han Zhou easily understood his subtext. He guessed that this guy was up to something again and was giving him a heads-up. Maybe in a couple of days, he would make him a "centipede's limbs".

Zhong Yin listened to his explanation with a cold face and asked, "You mean, it was your friend who really wanted to flirt with my sister, and you yourself didn't have any intention of getting close to her?"

She was clearly skeptical, turning to look at Zhong Ling, who nodded slightly, indicating that the situation that day was indeed as described.

However, in reality, Han Zhou's behavior that day actually showed that he was deliberately trying to get close to her, such as pretending to go to the supermarket together to buy things. But Zhong Ling did not say these things, so as not to make her sister suddenly angry again and ruin the atmosphere that had just eased up.

This was never a big deal; there was no need to make such a fuss.

"Judging from this woman's reaction, she seems quite averse to anyone getting close to her sister..."

Han Zhou secretly observed Zhong Yin's expression, feeling somewhat troubled and unsure how to respond.

If he were to honestly answer that he had no thoughts at all, it would seem too fake, and he might get away with it.

If you answer that you're interested, this woman might throw a tantrum on the spot, and you'll end up losing the chance to continue your relationship with Zhong Ling.

In this difficult situation, the all-powerful younger sister, Mo Yixia, stepped in just in time.

Suddenly, she said with some anticipation, "I do have an idea. My brother said that he brought me here not only to apologize to you, but also to clear up the misunderstanding and become your friend."

Han Zhou would definitely not have said this; it would have sounded deliberate. But when Mo Yixia said it, it sounded much more natural. She was clearly a senior high school girl, but her tone of voice made her sound young and sincere. No one would suspect that she had ulterior motives.

Of course, there's nothing inherently wrong with the statement itself; the problem mainly depends on the speaker's identity.

As she spoke, Mo Yixia took out a tissue to wipe the sweat from her neck, frowning slightly as if she were very hot.

Zhong Yin did not respond to her words, but she noticed this. Seeing that everyone was covered in sweat, she hesitated for a moment and said, "It's too hot outside. Let's talk at our house."

After saying that, he didn't say anything more, turned around and left, with Zhong Ling quickly following after him.

Han Zhou was stunned. In just a few words, not only did the woman's attitude become less bad, but she even allowed them to go to her house. Mo Yixia was too amazing!
Seeing that the two sisters ahead didn't turn around, he secretly winked at Mo Yixia, which made the latter frown secretly.

Mo Yixia moved closer, her tone returning to its usual coldness, and whispered, "Do I look like a wife going to great lengths to help her husband cheat?"

Han Zhou ignored those words, but could roughly guess what the guy was thinking: "Do you still suspect that I have some kind of purpose for this girl, so you plan to help me 'hunt' and observe my 'hunting' process in order to deduce my purpose for approaching you?"

Mo Yixia's eyes remained calm, and she did not speak.

Han Zhou smiled and said, "But there's definitely more than one reason. You actually wanted to help me, right? Thank you, my dear sister."

He deliberately emphasized and prolonged the pronunciation of "sister," making it sound rather lewd.

"You're welcome, dear brother."

Mo Yixia followed suit and managed to pronounce "brother" in a slightly coquettish tone.

"..."

The air was briefly still.

“That’s disgusting,” Mo Yixia said.

"really."

"But you're still the more disgusting one."

"Don't be modest, I just got goosebumps."

"..."

The two of them lagged slightly behind the Zhong sisters and soon arrived in front of a large door.

Zhong Ling's house is located at the end of the alley. It is an old house with a small courtyard. The courtyard is not big. A stone path leads from the gate to the house. The rest of the ground is flat dirt. There is a piece of land that has been fenced off as a field, where plants seem to be growing.

Near the wall grows a sturdy tree with lush foliage. From its thick branches hangs a thin rope, which extends to the other side of the wall where freshly washed clothes are drying.

Han Zhou looked around, feeling as if he had stepped into a rural courtyard.

The living room was small and simply furnished. There was no sofa, but there were plenty of stools. Zhong Yin first brought over two stools, then brought out two electric fans from the room, plugged them in and turned them on, saying, "The air conditioner is only in the bedroom, so please make do with this."

A girl's bedroom is definitely not a place you can just walk into. Han Zhou didn't care, and Mo Yixia had no objection either.

To be honest, as the daughter of a wealthy family, Han Zhou has never seen any signs of being spoiled or pampered in Mo Yixia. You know, Lin Anyu is quite particular, for example, he only eats popsicles that cost more than five yuan, he never wears cheap clothes, and even his underwear has to be brand name. It's not that he's showing off, he just doesn't want to mistreat himself.

In contrast, Mo Yixia basically only wears her school uniform everywhere except for her expensive shoes. She takes the subway and taxis most of the time when she goes out, and she is not picky about food except for fish. If she didn't say it herself, probably no one would think she was rich.

Zhong Ling picked up the cup from the table, opened her mouth slightly as if to say something, but still made no sound. However, Mo Yixia seemed to hear her clearly and smiled, "Ice water is fine, thank you."

Zhong Ling paused for a moment, then quickly left with the cup in her hand.

Han Zhou was somewhat surprised and quickly lowered his voice to ask, "Can you hear what she's saying?"

Mo Yixia said calmly, "I can't hear clearly, but as long as we pay attention to her lips and combine that with the way she picked up the cup just now, we can roughly judge that she was asking us what kind of water we wanted to drink."

Han Zhou was greatly impressed and quickly wrote down the idea. He felt even more that bringing Mo Yixia along was a wise move. With a glint in his eye, he jokingly encouraged her, "Why don't you learn lip reading and become my translator in the future?"

Mo Yixia glanced at him: "I can accept having your wife help you seduce a mistress once, but do you expect me to watch you two do such filthy things every time?"

She still says surprising things, but Han Zhou is used to it.

Just then, Zhong Yin walked over, frowning, and said, "What are you talking about? Dogs?"

Han Zhou's heart tightened. Luckily, the guy hadn't heard him clearly, or he would have definitely gotten a wrench. He quickly smiled and said, "It's nothing. It's just that my sister thinks this yard is a good place to keep a dog. She really likes small animals."

Mo Yixia smiled sweetly and chimed in, "Yes, yes, our house is small, so we can't keep a dog. My brother has always slept at the door to guard the house." This guy... Han Zhou's lips twitched.

Zhong Yin said, "I'm not good at raising animals. Xiao Ling has to go to school and doesn't have time to raise these things. Besides, there's nothing to steal from our house, so we don't need a dog to guard the house."

After pondering for a moment, Mo Yixia actually took the initiative to inquire about information: "Is Sister Ling in college?"

"Hmm." Zhong Yin seemed a little proud as he said this, a hint of tenderness flashing in his eyes. "Xiao Ling is studying at Lincheng University. She'll be a sophomore when school starts."

Lincheng University is a top-tier university in the country, so it's normal for her to feel proud.

Han Zhou was taken aback: "Lincheng University?"

Zhong Yin looked at him, her gaze no longer as polite as when she looked at Mo Yixia, and said indifferently, "What, never heard of it?"

"I just got into Lincheng University, and I'm a freshman this semester..."

Han Zhou was overjoyed. Zhong Ling was actually studying at Lincheng University. Didn't that mean that once he established a good relationship with her, he wouldn't have to worry about getting points during his studies?
Zhong Ling walked over quickly with a water glass in her hand, just in time to hear what she said. Her mouth opened slightly, and her expression seemed a little surprised.

Zhong Yin frowned slightly, and his inner thoughts blurted out: "You?"

What do you mean by "just me"? Han Zhou thought to himself, "I'm not just that. He chose the school because of Gu Zheng. Otherwise, with his grades, he could have considered a better university."

Gu Zheng has been striving to be number one and has been working hard to be the top scorer. In order to keep up with her pace, Han Zhou has also been working extra hard. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been stuck in the second place for so long.

Even without relying on the status bar, he is a genuine academic genius. Now that he has the "photographic memory" skill, his path to academic excellence will only be more solid, and surpassing Guzheng is not impossible.

Mo Yixia frowned slightly and quickly became the good sister who defended her brother, saying, "Don't look at my brother as dull-witted, he is actually very good at studying, otherwise he wouldn't be tutoring that smart and beautiful sister."

Han Zhou laughed in exasperation. This guy not only wanted to insult him all the time, but also had to elevate himself.

Seeing that Mo Yixia seemed somewhat dissatisfied, Zhong Yin's expression softened slightly, and he explained, "I didn't mean anything by it, I was just a little surprised..."

Suddenly, she frowned, stared at Han Zhou, and asked coldly, "Why are you staring at my sister's face?"

Han Zhou quickly looked away, of course not telling her that he was looking at her sister's lips.

Zhong Yin was silent for a moment, then picked up the wrench on the table and said, "Come with me for a moment."

Han Zhou hesitated before getting up, and tentatively asked, "I can go with you, but why did you bring a wrench?"

"Because I have to work."

Zhong Yin pushed open the door at the back of the house, and the scene behind the door stunned Han Zhou. The back of the house was actually a repair shop, facing a wide road with vehicles coming and going from time to time.

Han Zhou was somewhat surprised: "Does your family own a repair shop?"

"Well, business is slow."

Zhong Yin seemed unwilling to say more. He put on a pair of gloves and said, "Take off your sunglasses and let me see."

Han Zhou took off his sunglasses, revealing a bruise around his left eye.

Zhong Yin examined him for a moment and said, "I originally planned to give you a thousand yuan as compensation, but now I don't want to. So you can punch me too, as if I'm giving you the thousand yuan. But don't hit my face, I'm afraid Xiao Ling will see it."

Han Zhou frowned slightly: "You called me here just because of this?"

"Correct."

"Why should I hit you?"

"Because I won't give you money."

"Just because you don't give me money, I should hit you?" Han Zhou wondered what kind of logic that was. "Besides, I never said I wanted you to give me money."

"That's perfect. If you don't want to fight, that's fine too. Just consider it as me giving you a thousand yuan. If Xiaoling asks, just say that and don't let it slip."

Zhong Yin squatted down and continued repairing the motorcycle that was still not fixed.

Her attitude seemed very indifferent.

Han Zhou hesitated for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Is that thing in your ear... a hearing aid?"

He had noticed something in the other person's ear earlier and thought it was an earphone, but he gradually realized that this thing was not quite the same as an earphone, and that no one would wear earphones around all the time in this kind of weather.

Zhong Yin didn't even look up, and calmly said, "My hearing is very poor."

"So that's why you were so angry that day?"

Zhong Yin remained noncommittal, saying, "You can't be Xiaoling's friends. After we leave today, we'll have no relationship anymore. So if you don't retaliate with a punch now, you won't have another chance."

"Why would you be like that..."

Just as Han Zhou was about to ask a question, a truck turned around and drove into the repair shop from the highway. From the driver's seat, a voice shouted, "Boss, can you change the tire?"

Han Zhou's expression gradually became strange, and he felt that the voice sounded inexplicably familiar.

bang.

The train door opened, and a short, stocky figure jumped off, scratching his head as he said, "I wonder if the tires on this train are flat. Can you check them for me?"

He stopped mid-sentence, his gaze immediately falling on Han Zhou beside Zhong Yin, and his eyes glazed over.

Han Zhou's expression was also quite subtle. The two had only met last night, and he didn't expect to see each other again today. However, he seemed to have told his wife that he was working at a construction site during the day, so how come he's driving a truck again now...

The short man also had mixed feelings. Looking at the bruise on the young man's left eye, he sighed inwardly. This young man should be of school age, but now he has come to the auto repair shop as an apprentice in order to make a living. The thought that the young man was suffering from a terminal illness made him feel uneasy.

The two hesitated, looking awkward. Zhong Yin's expression gradually became strange, and she almost thought they were a couple who had just broken up and met again.

"What a...what a coincidence," the shorter man said with a dry laugh.

Han Zhou chuckled twice, offering the same sentiment as last night: "You seem to be quite busy with work..."

The shorter man sighed in agreement, "You've really had a tough time..."

"Hehe, hehe."

"Hehe, hehe."

"..."

Zhong Yin suppressed the urge to throw the wrench at Han Zhou's face and said coldly, "Don't disturb my business!"

(End of this chapter)