After being reborn, the school beauty's entire family knelt down to repent.

Zhao Rou thanked them and swayed her hips as she walked into the factory.

She kept asking around for Chen Ming's office, but her unease grew.

Chen Ming has really changed.

He used to want to tear his heart out of her when he saw her, but now he won't even look at her.

Finally, she found Chen Ming's office, took a deep breath, and gently knocked on the door.

"Come in," Chen Ming said without looking up, his tone revealing neither joy nor anger.

Zhao Rou gently pushed open the door and carefully walked in, her small heels making a crisp sound on the floor.

It stood out starkly in the quiet office.

Chen Ming was buried in a pile of parts, his brows furrowed, as if he had encountered some problem.

Hearing the door open, he instinctively looked up and saw that it was Zhao Rou who had entered.

A hint of surprise flashed in his deep eyes, but it was quickly replaced by indifference.

He put down the parts he was holding, leaned back slightly in his chair, and...

He calmly looked at Zhao Rou and asked, "What are you doing here?"

Zhao Rou was stung by his cold attitude; her eyes reddened slightly, and she looked at him pitifully.

With a hint of grievance in her eyes, she asked, "Chen Ming, you...you really don't want me anymore?"

She choked up, her voice trembling, and she was about to cry.

"What are you doing here?" Chen Ming asked again, his tone still icy.

Chen Ming impatiently threw the parts he was holding onto the table with a loud bang, then leaned back.

His long, slender fingers were crossed over his chest, and his sharp eyes were fixed on Zhao Rou.

"Chen Ming, let me explain. It's not what you think. Back then..."

"Enough!" Chen Ming interrupted her impatiently, his tone filled with disgust.

"I don't want to hear your nonsense! Go away, and don't come looking for me again!" His voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable firmness.

Zhao Rou bit her lip, her eyes reddening, and said softly, "Chen Ming, I know you're still angry with me, but..."

"Angry?" Chen Ming sneered. "Why would I be angry with you? Just leave!"

"Chen Ming, are you really this heartless?" Zhao Rou asked, her voice choked with sobs, tears welling in her eyes.

"Heartless?" Chen Ming retorted. "Who was truly heartless? Who abandoned me in the first place?"

Zhao Rou was speechless. She knew that her choice had hurt Chen Ming, but now she regretted it.

"Chen Ming, I know I was wrong now, I..."

"Wrong?" Chen Ming interrupted her again. "What's the use of saying all this now? It's too late!"

"Chen Ming, please give me another chance..." Zhao Rou pleaded, crying.

"An opportunity?" Chen Ming sneered. "I gave you an opportunity, but what did you do?"

Zhao Rou slumped into a chair, tears streaming down her face.

Chen Ming spoke coldly:

"Go away, I don't want to see you again!"

Zhao Rou bit her lip, tears welling up in her eyes.

Chen Ming is no longer the naive boy who obeyed her every word in his previous life.

She was unwilling to give up; she was determined to get Chen Ming back and get his money back!

"Chen Ming, I know you're still angry with me, but I really know I was wrong!!" Zhao Rou cried, tears streaming down her face.

Seeing that crying and making a fuss was useless, Zhao Rou's eyes lit up and a plan came to mind.

She stood up unsteadily and walked slowly to Chen Ming's side.

She reached out and, with an even more delicate expression, took Chen Ming's arm.

He tried to soften Chen Ming through physical contact.

"Chen Ming, I know I was wrong, please forgive me..."

Her delicate voice was tinged with tears, as if she had suffered a great injustice.

The pungent smell of cheap perfume filled Chen Ming's nostrils, making his stomach churn and almost causing him to vomit.

He used to find this flavor refreshing and delicate, but now, thinking back, it seems...

It felt like a huge irony.

He could no longer tolerate Zhao Rou's touch and abruptly flung her hand away.

Without any mercy, he roared with disgust, "Get out! Don't touch me!"

The sudden force caused the unsuspecting Zhao Rou to stagger and lose her balance.

The high heels she was wearing made it even harder for her to maintain her balance.

With a cry of "Ouch!", she twisted her slender ankle and fell to the ground in a disheveled state.

Her skirt flared out, revealing her fair legs.

She clutched her sprained ankle with one hand, bracing herself on the ground with the other, tears welling up in her eyes.

She cried so hard her face was streaked with tears, looking utterly pitiful.

She looked up at Chen Ming with accusing eyes, crying out, "Chen Ming, you've changed! You've become cold-blooded and heartless! You weren't like this before..."

Workers passing by the office stopped in their tracks, peering inside with curiosity and chattering amongst themselves.

She deliberately raised her voice, crying even more heartbrokenly.

Workers passing by outside the office stopped in their tracks upon hearing the cries and peered inside with curiosity.

They whispered among themselves, speculating about what had happened in the office.

"Oh dear, what's wrong? Why are you crying so sadly?"

A young female worker stopped and curiously peered into the office, her face full of gossipy excitement.

"It sounds like Zhao Rou's voice, doesn't it? She's Aunt Li's daughter from our side."

Another slightly older male worker also stopped, adjusted his glasses, and said somewhat uncertainly,

Why is she crying here?

"I don't know," Xiao Liang scratched his head, "It seems he had a fight with Director Chen."

He lowered his voice and said mysteriously, "I think I just saw that Director Chen's expression wasn't very good."

"No way? They're not..." One female worker covered her mouth, looking surprised, but before she could finish speaking, she was interrupted by another female worker.

"Shh! Keep your voice down, don't talk nonsense!" The female worker gave her a warning look, then continued to peer curiously into the office.

"Zhao Rou is crying so pitifully," Xiao Liang exclaimed. "Anyone who didn't know better would think that Director Chen had done something to her."

"Who knows?" Xiaoqiang shrugged.

“That’s right,” one of the female workers chimed in, “Let’s mind our own business and get back to work.”

Hearing the crowd's comments, Zhao Rou cried even harder.

She would steal glances at Chen Ming's reaction from time to time, hoping he would soften his heart and change his mind.

She deliberately amplified her crying, pretending to be weak and helpless, hoping to gain everyone's sympathy.

She sobbed, her cries broken and fragmented: "Chen Ming... how could you do this to me... I... I had such a sincere heart for you... how could you be so heartless..."

However, Chen Ming merely glanced at her coldly, his eyes filled with disgust.

He turned and left the office, ignoring the stares and whispers of the crowd.

Chen Ming's resolute figure disappeared through the office doorway. Zhao Rou scrambled to her feet.

Ignoring the lingering pain in his sprained ankle, he limped after her.

Zhao Rou stumbled and chased after Chen Ming into the corridor, where she stopped him again.

"Chen Ming! Wait for me!" she cried out, her voice hoarse.