263: Weakness

Weakness

I looked at the photo. "She should have felt better, right?"1

Mai Qi shook her head. "I don't know. If I were her, I would be trapped in the trauma for life."

I thought for a moment. "Mai Qi, in your eyes, everything is black or white, everything has to be put on the table. But in reality, many situations are grey in color. It's not easy for Lu Yan to survive until now. We should try to help her whenever we can, but without hurting her pride."

Mai Qi smiled, "Nanxing, do you know what your biggest weakness is?"

I looked at her somewhat speechlessly.

Mai Qi's smile was nice but her eyes were hard. "Nanxing, you're too kind. I've seen my shares of evil people. I'd advise you to channel your kindness to the right place. I have no objection if you want to help her and her brothers but you shouldn't let your guard down because of it. It is wonderful that you are a kind person but do you think everyone is born with a kind heart? Lu Yan's whole life is basically ruined by Ye Qian. She is a student at M University now but we don't know how she managed to claw her way through all those years in the past. Do you understand what I mean?"

I felt ashamed. Mai Qi was right. I had put my guard down. I thought about it. It was because I had my little uncle and Jing Tian's protection that I became so gullible. Mai Qi's words were a splash of water to my face.

...

Just as I was trying to reassess my situation, Ye Qian came to find me. We decided to meet at a cafe. I thought she was there to lobby for Mrs. Mai, but once she entered the door, she said, "Nanxing, Mrs. Mai is very angry with you. You need to be careful. You better tell Jing Tian and have him protect you."

I was quite surprised. "Miss Ye, I'm confused. Aren't you supposed to be helping Mrs. Mai? Why are you telling me this?"

Ye Qian smiled wryly. "Nanxing, you must have heard about my family background, right?"

Is this a test? I shook my head.

Ye Qian sighed. "You'll hear about it sooner or later. Rather than hearing it through the grapevine, why not hear it from the horse's mouth?"

I nodded, willing to listen.

"I'm an orphan!" She cut straight to the point. Her eyes were fixed on me. I knew that she was reading my expression to see if I had found out anything from Lu Yan.

I smiled. "Then we're the same. I'm also an orphan."

Ye Qian shook her head. "No, we're different. You at least have your uncle and aunt to take you in but I grew up in an orphanage."

I nodded. "Tomahto, tomayto. You're familiar with Nanyang, do you think it was much better to survive under her claws than being at an orphanage?"

Nanyang's name caused Ye Qian to lose her focus for a moment.

She nodded. "That's true. Nanyang is good at killing without drawing blood. However, men are drawn to girls like her. I guess your life must be difficult at the Nan Family."

I nodded. "You're right. When I was small, Nanyang and her friends would scare me by threatening to send me to an orphanage if I didn't listen to them. It sounds like life at an orphanage is harder than mine." I gave her a way out.

Ye Qian stirred her coffee with a spoon. "I can't even remember when I was dropped off at the orphanage. I was there for as long as I could remember. Because I was there early and knew the place well so the younger kids listened to me. That way, they wouldn't be scolded that often. That's why I knew how to take care of others. The role of the protective big sister fell on me." She sighed softly.

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