Tang Xiaomin's backing vanished as quickly as it appeared.
Just as Zhang Guo'er was triumphantly believing she had regained the upper hand, Tang Ye stepped out of the car and walked directly towards her. He had clearly heard Zhang Guo'er's words and, to be frank, he was displeased.
"Zhang Guo'er, I advise you not to have such thoughts."
Tang Ye's appearance caused Zhang Guo'er's expression to change.
"Oh, it's Cousin. You've come at the perfect time. Persuade Tang Xiaomin to understand her situation and keep a lower profile from now on."
Tang Ye looked at Zhang Guo'er with disdain. If she weren't a woman, he would have wanted to hit her for speaking such domineering words just now.
"Zhang Guo'er, do you think I, Tang Ye, am dead?"
"What do you mean?" Zhang Guo'er asked, utterly incredulous.
"I can responsibly tell you, even if Xiaomin breaks up with her boyfriend, no matter what happens to her in the future, I, Tang Ye, will stand up for her."
"If you don't believe me, or if your skin is itching, you can try."
Tang Ye's words clearly showed his support for Tang Xiaomin; anyone could tell.
Zhang Guo'er, however, did not understand.
"Cousin Tang Ye, I remember you used to look down on Tang Xiaomin greatly. It's said she even caused a lot of trouble for the Tang family. Why are you suddenly defending her?"
"It's said?"
Tang Ye asked her with a cold smile, "Who told you that?"
"I..."
Zhang Guo'er had only heard rumors and pieced together information from what she could gather.
"Tang Xiaomin used to be treated like a servant by you all. My father personally witnessed it. Do you dare say your entire family never did that?"
"Tang Yiyi also told me that you would never acknowledge Tang Xiaomin as your sister, nor would you admit she was part of the Tang family. Could it be that everything Tang Yiyi said was a lie?"
Upon mentioning Tang Yiyi, many of the girls around Tang Xiaomin who were once familiar with her started whispering.
"What Zhang Guo'er said is true. Tang Yiyi did say those things before."
"Tang Yiyi was adopted, but at the school anniversary event, Tang Ye only appeared on stage with Tang Yiyi, not Tang Xiaomin. It was clearly favoritism."
"Yes, Tang Yiyi grew up in the Tang family. Anything Tang Ye said, she would hear and then tell us. It seems to be true."
...
The conversation shifted, and the way everyone looked at Tang Ye changed.
As for Tang Ye himself, his face immediately turned ashen. He had indeed said those things, and more than once. The guilt, regret, and shame he felt at that moment were indescribable. He didn't even have the courage to deny it. He could deceive others, but he couldn't deceive himself, nor Tang Xiaomin.
Seeing this, Zhang Guo'er became even more triumphant.
"If you're not speaking, it means you did say those things. In that case, don't pretend to be a good older brother in front of everyone now and deceive their feelings."
Tang Ye had treated Tang Xiaomin so harshly before? At this moment, the group of young fans who followed Tang Xiaomin felt a sense of betrayal. What did they admire about Tang Ye? They admired his tall and handsome appearance, his pleasant voice, and his daily warm and attentive act of picking up and dropping off Tang Xiaomin to school. But now, it all seemed to be fake!
Tang Ye's face was ashen.
"Xiaomin... I was..."
"No need to say more. There isn't a single word I want to hear," Tang Xiaomin interrupted him unhappily. What was said was said; any explanation seemed pale and weak.
Zhang Guo'er continued to gloat, looking at Tang Xiaomin with the condescending gaze of someone who had achieved a petty victory.
"Tang Xiaomin, your boyfriend doesn't want you, and even your brother and your family don't love you. How does that feel?"
"Is it more painful than a thousand arrows piercing your heart? If it hurts, cry it out. Don't hold it in, or you'll get sick, hahaha..."
"You... Shut up!"
Tang Ye was furious, clenching his fists and lunging towards Zhang Guo'er. Only through violence could he vent his helplessness and anger.
Suddenly, a strong force from behind stopped Tang Ye's impulsive action.
"I want to go home," she said, her voice a little weary.
Tang Ye suppressed his rage. Under Zhang Guo'er's taunting smile, and amidst the suspicious and disappointed gazes of the surrounding girls, he reluctantly, and as usual, opened the car door for Tang Xiaomin and waited for her to get in before getting into the driver's seat.
"Without Yan Jue, Tang Xiaomin is nothing. Even her own family dislikes her," Zhang Guo'er reminded the group of girls unapologetically. Without bothering to see if anyone was listening, she turned and left.
...
On the way back, Tang Xiaomin looked through her phone at the news about the suburban areas. The localized typhoon in the suburbs was intensifying, and relevant authorities had arranged for evacuations. The situation was gradually becoming more serious.
Even though they had broken up, a call to check on him shouldn't be too much of an intrusion, right? She couldn't help but call Yan Jue, but unfortunately, it didn't connect, likely due to the severe weather.
"Xiaomin, I was indeed a scumbag before, I admit it."
"I am truly remorseful now. The things I said earlier came from the bottom of my heart, and I am doing my best to compensate you."
"Zhang Guo'er deliberately said those things to provoke you, don't fall for her trap."
...
"Xiaomin, are you listening to me?"
...
At this moment, Tang Xiaomin's heart had drifted to the suburbs. Tang Ye realized he was talking to himself and sighed helplessly. Anyone could see that Tang Xiaomin truly loved Yan Jue. In the past few days, her mood had been visibly low. Take the provocation from Zhang Guo'er just now for example; normally, Tang Xiaomin would have slapped Zhang Guo'er a few times or beaten her into silence. Instead, she did nothing, said nothing, and left dejectedly.
Meanwhile.
In the central area of Shanghai's suburbs, dark clouds churned, as if brewing something, waiting for the opportune moment to erupt. To avoid impacting Xianfu Group, Yan Jue had relocated to the Forest Castle, a castle he had built for Tang Xiaomin.
"I once watched the stars with her here, and slept in each other's arms. If I had to choose a place as my tomb, this would be my best resting place," Yan Jue murmured, looking up at the sky. Zhong Li and Lu Xing, standing beside him, looked worried but helpless.
"Mr. Yan, you will be fine. If you can get through this, you will be the rightful Lord of the Underworld, the master of this realm," Lu Xing said. Hearing this, Yan Jue simply smiled faintly.
"If I hadn't met Minmin, I probably would never have rebelled."
"It's for her that I have the heart to pick up my weapons again and fight for that empire for her."
"Mr. Yan, you've done so much. At this time, you should let her know everything you've done," Lu Xing said.
"At this moment, at least let her stay by your side. It wouldn't be so lonely."
With the great tribulation approaching, Lu Xing and Zhong Li also had to withdraw, or they would be affected.