RGL – Chapter 175

“Alright, alright, there you go again with that stubborn temper of yours,” Liao Laidi said, curling her lips. “You haven’t graduated yet, so I’m not going to force you to leave. We’ll talk about this again once you graduate. The reason I came to meet you this time, first, was to persuade you to go down south, and second, to say goodbye. I’m heading back south tomorrow—the factory over there can’t do without me.”

Hearing that Liao Laidi was leaving, Liao Zhaodi suddenly felt a bit reluctant. But she also understood that they’d all grown up and had their own lives now—it wasn’t possible to stay together forever. “Second Sister, I’ll come visit you guys in the south in the future. And if you have time, come visit me too. Let’s not grow distant just because of the distance.”

“Of course,” Liao Laidi nodded heartily. Then she added, “Your brother-in-law doesn’t want to go back this time. At first, I didn’t agree with him staying, but then I thought—since you’re still here, if he stays, he can keep an eye on you too. So I agreed to let him try his luck here for a while. If you run into any trouble, go find him. He’s still living in the same neighborhood you visited before.”

“He’s not leaving? Why are you and your husband living so far apart?” Liao Zhaodi asked with some concern.

Liao Laidi laughed. “Look at how anxious you are. Your brother-in-law isn’t the irresponsible type—he’s very dependable. He wants to make his own way, and I can’t keep stopping him, can I? Let him suffer a bit on his own; maybe he’ll stop giving me grief later.”

“Oh,” Liao Zhaodi replied. Although she still felt uneasy, she didn’t want to say anything to dampen the mood.

The next day, Liao Zhaodi went with Zhou Wu to see Liao Laidi off at the train station for her trip south.

Once the train pulled away, Zhou Wu let out a sigh of relief. He exchanged a few casual words with Liao Zhaodi, then quickly left.

Watching his behavior, Liao Zhaodi couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

After nearly two months of hard work, Su Min finally finished the piece she was submitting for the competition.

Although Li Weisi hadn’t officially notified her yet, everything was basically confirmed. As soon as she completed her task, Su Min grabbed her materials and headed straight to find Li Weisi.

Just as she arrived at the Li Group headquarters, she saw a very familiar-looking car in the parking lot.

“Isn’t that Xue Mian’s car?”

Su Min was startled. But after thinking about it, she realized it was probably just a coincidence—there were plenty of cars of the same make. Maybe she was just being too jumpy. It had been so long since they’d seen each other… Maybe she missed him a little. Once she wrapped up this matter, she’d go to Minrui to visit him.

Everyone at Li Group knew Su Min. As soon as the receptionist saw her, she greeted her warmly, “President Su, President Li is currently in a meeting.”

“I’ll wait for him upstairs,” Su Min said with a smile and waved before heading up.

For the president of such a big company like Li Weisi, it would be strange if he didn’t have visitors. She didn’t think much of it.

Outside his office, Su Min didn’t go in directly. Instead, she found a small sofa nearby and sat down to wait. As she thought about the upcoming discussion, she couldn’t help feeling a little nervous.

Although her previous designs had done quite well, this time was different—it was for the Paris Fashion Show, an event only the top names in the global fashion industry could attend.

“Uncle, I’m counting on you for this.”

Suddenly, a very familiar voice came from not far away. Su Min’s heart skipped a beat. She looked up and saw Li Weisi and Xue Mian coming out of the office together, chatting and laughing warmly.

“Xue Mian?!”

Su Min stood up in shock.

Su Min never expected that Li Weisi was actually Xue Mian’s uncle.

Seeing them together at the same time felt like a thunderclap going off in her mind—she was stunned.

She wasn’t a fool.

She had always thought it odd how Li Weisi’s mother had coincidentally taken such a liking to Xiuse’s clothing and how the cooperation between the two companies had gone so smoothly. She couldn’t figure it out back then, so she let it go.

But now it all made sense—it was because of Xue Mian.

“Su Min.” Xue Mian’s face turned pale, his eyes filled with panic. He quickly took a few steps toward her.

Li Weisi stood by the door, looking at the two of them as if nothing had happened. After sweeping his gaze over them, he finally smiled and said, “Su Min, is there something you need from me?”

Su Min glanced at him, but found that she no longer had the heart to talk about what she had planned.

She had thought she’d gotten this far purely through her own abilities. She hadn’t expected that it was all thanks to nepotism.

In that moment, all her confidence vanished.

“I’m sorry, I just remembered I have something to take care of. I’ll come find you another time,” Su Min said, lowering her head and hurriedly leaving.

“Su Min.” Xue Mian was momentarily stunned, then quickly chased after her in a panic.

Watching the two leave one after the other, Li Weisi leaned casually against the doorframe, arms crossed, a faint and unreadable smile playing on his lips. “Ah, to be young,” he muttered.

Xue Mian didn’t manage to catch up to Su Min until she had walked all the way outside the building.

“Su Min, listen to me. Please, listen. It’s not what you think,” he said hurriedly, his words tumbling out in a rush.

He really hadn’t expected to run into Su Min like this. He usually avoided visiting his uncle precisely because he didn’t want to run into her. Today, he had only happened to be passing by and heard something about the Paris Fashion Week, and couldn’t resist coming in to ask about it. Who would’ve thought things would turn out like this?

Seeing Su Min’s cold expression, Xue Mian felt a chill spread through his chest, even breaking out in a cold sweat. “Su Min, don’t be like this. Let me explain, please?”

There was a trace of pleading in his voice.

He didn’t want the relationship they’d worked so hard to confirm to fall apart just like that.

Su Min’s heart was in turmoil, and the last person she wanted to see right now was him.

“I want to be alone. Just let me calm down for a bit, okay?”

“No.” Xue Mian firmly grabbed her arm. “I know if you think it through on your own, you’ll definitely leave me.”

Hearing the hint of grievance in his voice, Su Min couldn’t help but let out a bitter laugh. “If you knew that, why would you do something like this? Do you really think I’m the kind of person who likes to ride on other people’s coattails?”

“I’ve never thought that,” Xue Mian shook his head. “I didn’t ask my uncle to do anything for you. I just… I just knew he had some connections in the fashion world, and I hoped he could give you a bit of a boost, that’s all.”

“Oh, it was quite a boost,” Su Min said coldly, feeling more and more disheartened. The accomplishments she had once been so proud of now seemed like nothing more than a beautifully packaged lie.

And the one who had created that lie… was the man she was closest to.

Thinking back to how she used to share her dreams and struggles with Xue Mian, Su Min felt humiliated imagining what he must’ve been thinking all along.

“You two treated me like a fool. You and Li Weisi both knew the truth, and just stood by while I chased my delusions—amused, weren’t you? I have my pride too. Being manipulated like this, do you think I’d be okay with it?”

The more she spoke, the more agitated she became.

“No, I never meant to deceive you.” Xue Mian reached out and pulled her into his arms, ignoring her struggles as he tried to explain, “Everything you’ve achieved today is because of your own hard work. I didn’t interfere. My uncle just gave you an opportunity, that’s all. Su Min, don’t be upset. Don’t blame me.”

“Let go of me!” Su Min suddenly broke free from his arms with all her strength. When she saw he was about to grab her again, she quickly took two steps back, glaring at him. “I must’ve been blind. So full of myself.” With that, she turned and ran.

Xue Mian stood frozen on the spot, her look of disgust and rejection replaying in his mind. He felt so weak, he couldn’t even lift his feet.

After running off, Su Min hailed a taxi and went straight home.

Liao Zhaodi wasn’t back yet, and the house was quiet.

Without even bothering to take off her shoes, she rushed into her room and threw herself onto the bed, sobbing.

Su Min knew she shouldn’t cry. Tears were for the weak, and she had never wanted to be a weak person. She had dreams and was willing to endure any hardship to achieve them.

But today, she found that besides crying, there was nothing else she could do.

Xue Mian wouldn’t understand how she felt.

Because of her complete failure in her previous life, she had placed high hopes on this one. From bringing her family to the city and starting a successful business, to getting into a good university through her own efforts, and even earning her first bucket of gold through hard work—founding Xiuse—all of it had gone smoothly.

Every step along the way had been successful. It gave her immense confidence, making her believe that she was destined for greatness in this life. She believed she had the ability to create her own brilliance.

And now, that dream was about to come true—she had secured the opportunity to attend Paris Fashion Week.

But what happened today with Xue Mian felt like a hard slap in the face, waking her up completely. The once unshakable confidence she had was now utterly shattered.

Su Min climbed off the bed and looked at herself in the mirror on the dressing table. Seeing her disheveled reflection, she couldn’t help but let out a bitter laugh.

“What’s so great about you anyway? You’re just someone who knows how to pull strings.”

She laughed at herself mockingly.

When Liao Zhaodi came home from the company, it was already quite late.

She figured Su Min hadn’t returned to work today, probably out on a date. Who knew when she would be back? Liao Zhaodi had actually wanted to ask her about the fashion show designs.

But just as she reached the entrance of their residential complex, she was stunned to see someone standing at the gate.

“Xue Mian? What are you doing here?”

Xue Mian was wearing a dark blue shirt and holding a jacket in his hand. Though he still looked clean-cut and handsome, his face was clearly haggard. When he saw Liao Zhaodi approaching, his eyes lit up as if he had just seen hope. He walked toward her.

“Zhaodi.”

“What’s going on?” she asked, full of surprise. “Where’s Su Min?”

“Zhaodi, could you help explain things to Su Min for me? She… she doesn’t want to see me.”

By the end of his sentence, his voice had turned hoarse.

How long had they even been together? Already having problems?

Once Liao Zhaodi got the full picture and returned home, she found Su Min sitting on the sofa watching TV. Though her eyes were fixed on the screen, her gaze was empty—there was no energy in her at all.

Zhaodi sighed quietly to herself.

She had been friends with Su Min for so many years—they were classmates, colleagues. She knew her personality all too well.

Put nicely, she was confident. Put bluntly, she was stubborn and overly strong-willed.

She always dared to dream, dared to try. Once she set a goal, she would pursue it with relentless determination. Just like when she once said she wanted to get into a key city high school—she’d studied day and night without rest. And when it came to getting into a university in City B, she’d nearly devoured her textbooks.

Let alone this time—for the fashion show, she hadn’t stepped out the door for a month or two.

She had finally finished her designs and believed she stood a good chance. Then she discovered what Xue Mian had done.

Naturally, her confidence collapsed, replaced by anger.

To be fair, Xue Mian had truly messed up.

But even so, Zhaodi didn’t think this incident warranted a breakup. Yes, what he did was wrong, but his intentions were good. Breaking up over this felt like a waste.

And she really didn’t want Su Min to lose heart because of it.

With all that in mind, Liao Zhaodi quietly sat down next to Su Min on the sofa. “You look like you’ve got a lot on your mind. Want to talk about it?”

Su Min didn’t turn her head. She kept staring at the TV for a long time without responding.

“I just saw Xue Mian. Right at the entrance to the complex.”

At those words, Su Min’s gaze flickered. “Don’t mention him.”

“I wouldn’t, but I think we need to get to the bottom of this, don’t you?” Zhaodi continued smoothly. “He told me he only mentioned your name to Li Weisi, that he never asked him to help you in your career. I think he’s being sincere. Think about it—Alice chose you for the magazine cover. That couldn’t have been because of Li Weisi, right? Xiuse took off because of the Fashion Weekly feature, and that was all your own doing. Don’t tell me you’ve stopped believing in yourself?”

Su Min lowered her eyelids and was quiet for a while before saying, “Honestly, I don’t know if Alice chose me because of Li Weisi.” She hung her head. “Zhaodi, my mind is a mess right now. I don’t know which part of what he said is true anymore. I don’t even know if my previous achievements had anything to do with Xue Mian’s involvement.”

And during today’s meeting with Li Weisi, she had clearly overheard Xue Mian asking him for some kind of favor.

Su Min didn’t even dare to think about it anymore.

“Zhaodi, you know I’ve always wanted to build a career by myself. Even if I didn’t succeed, at least it would be through my own efforts. But now I realize—I’ve relied on Xue Mian.”

“You two are in a relationship—do you really have to draw the line so clearly?” Zhaodi tried to reason with her.

“It’s because we’re in a relationship that I can’t accept it,” Su Min said, covering her face. “A romantic relationship should be equal. But now, my entire career only exists because of his connections. How can we still be equals? Every time I look at him now, I’ll be reminded that everything I have came through that man.”

Inside the lounge area of Li Weisi’s office, Xue Mian was clutching a bottle of liquor, gulping down a few mouthfuls. He coughed several times, then couldn’t drink anymore.

Li Weisi, holding a cup of coffee, watched him like he was watching a joke unfold.

Seeing the defeated look on Xue Mian’s face, he couldn’t help but laugh. “So even you know when you’ve lost, huh? What, it’s really over between you two?”

Li Weisi knew all about what had been going on between Su Min and Xue Mian. When his nephew went abroad years ago, he already knew there was a girl on the boy’s mind. What surprised him was how long that feeling had lasted. Even after returning to China, she was still on his mind.

Li Weisi hadn’t needed to dig to learn about the girl.

So when he first met Su Min in Paris, he instantly knew this was the girl his nephew couldn’t forget. To be honest, his first impression was that she wasn’t suitable for Xue Mian. Xue Mian was cold on the outside but warm inside, with a simple heart. He was capable, but emotionally a bit clueless. Su Min, on the other hand, was clearly different. On the surface, she was sociable and pleasant, but deep down, she was independent and intensely strong-willed.

To put it bluntly, she had a bit of a hard, cold edge to her.

If Xue Mian stayed with her, he’d likely never be the one in control. He’d probably end up being the one suppressed. And for someone like Li Weisi, who liked being in charge, the idea of his nephew being “under a woman’s thumb” was naturally unappealing.

But judging from his nephew’s current state of mind, it seemed he was more than willing to be crushed by Su Min.