CHAPTER 123: CHAPTER 123: SLAPPING THE FAKE RICH GIRL 24

Xiao Yuan remained silent for a long time.

After waiting for a long while, just when Anning thought he had gone offline, he suddenly asked her, "Should one protect their own family members? What if someone snatches them away?"

Anning frowned.

She actually didn’t know the situation in Xiao Yuan’s house, but from the few sentences that Xiao Yuan had said, Anning could guess roughly what it was about.

"Then try to snatch them back."

Anning sent a message to Xiao Yuan: "Never think about giving up easily. Once you give up and want to reclaim, it becomes much harder."

Xiao Yuan: He doesn’t like me.

Anning: Strive to strengthen yourself. When you are strong enough, you won’t care whether he likes you or not. If he doesn’t like you, it’s his loss.

Within a villa in the Capital, Xiao Yuan sat on the sofa, staring at the text on his phone screen, unable to speak for a long time.

He felt that he might have been mistaken.

He thought that since that person didn’t like him, he would just act out, doing all sorts of things that the person would hate, thinking that infuriating him was the best form of revenge.

Every time he saw that person incredibly angry but unable to do anything to him, he would feel secretly thrilled.

He thought about competing with that person for a lifetime, always provoking him.

But now, he thinks it was indeed very childish.

What does making that person angry again accomplish? Does it benefit him in any way?

It merely angered others, but it was enough to destroy himself.

Xiao Yuan then thought about Anning’s top achievements in the school, and his heart trembled.

He didn’t lack food or pocket money. He hadn’t been scolded harshly, let alone beaten, from childhood, yet he always felt extremely aggrieved.

But what about Anning?

From the moment she was born, she was switched at birth and endured severe mistreatment in the Liu Family; she was never well-fed or warmly dressed and was beaten and scolded every day.

However, Anning never indulged in self-pity.

Despite the psychological issues, she still worked hard to overcome them, studied seriously, led a disciplined life, and didn’t hold any resentment towards society despite the maltreatment she endured, but instead, treated the people and things around her with the utmost kindness.

Thinking of these, Xiao Yuan felt that he was indeed too fragile.

Being a man, he couldn’t even compare to a woman, which was quite cowardly.

"How can I strengthen myself?"

Xiao Yuan asked.

Anning: Depending on the situation, focus on studying at this stage. Only when your studies are good will you have a say.

Xiao Yuan: I’m afraid I can’t learn.

Anning: How do you know if you haven’t tried? Or are you just being a coward?

Xiao Yuan: It’s the dog that’s being a coward, fine, from tomorrow I’ll study with you, whoever doesn’t study is a loser.

Anning: Loser...

Xiao Yuan sent an emoticon of jumping out of anger.

Anning: Coward...

Xiao Yuan logged off immediately.

He logged off Flying Messenger still fuming, but reluctant to scold Anning, so he called Zhang Ke instead.

Zhang Ke was at home being nagged by his mom, who incessantly talked about how other kids were better, listing his shortcomings, and concluded by saying that she shouldn’t have given birth to him at all, and giving birth to a piece of barbecued pork would have been better than him.

Zhang Ke’s ears were almost calloused from listening, just thinking about what he could use to escape his mom’s nagging when his phone rang.

He hurriedly picked up the phone: "Hello, what’s up?"

Zhang Ke’s mom glared at Zhang Ke: "It’s Xiao Yuan calling again, isn’t it? I’m telling you, play less with him. Look at him, always dyeing his hair red or green, what kind of impression is that? The other day I saw him, gee, I thought it was a feather duster that came to life. Scared the life out of me..."

Zhang Ke was so scared that he immediately took his cell phone and ran far away.

"Bro, what do you need me for, are we going somewhere fun again?"

Xiao Yuan: "It’s not for fun, I’ve got something to tell you, I plan to study hard and improve every day. We share our fortunes and our miseries together, you’ll stick with me, right?"

"What?"

Zhang Ke shuddered and almost threw his phone away: "Dude, did you take the wrong pills or something? Are you really Xiao Yuan?"

"Absolutely."

Xiao Yuan rolled his eyes: "Can’t even recognize my voice anymore? Shame on you, my best bro."

"Best bro, what freaked you out?"

Zhang Ke suddenly thought of a possibility: "Did Anning tell you that you have to study well if you want to be her boyfriend?"

"Bullshit." Xiao Yuan cursed: "Anning would never say that, she just..."

Thinking of the ’dog grandson’ Anning had called him, Xiao Yuan felt utterly ashamed and was determined to study hard so Anning would never call him ’dog grandson’ again.

"What is it?"

Zhang Ke pressed.

Xiao Yuan didn’t answer, but pressed Zhang Ke: "Just tell me, will you study with me? If you remember the friendship we’ve had from the days we wore split pants till now, then you’ll agree, otherwise, we are done."

"Ok, ok."

Zhang Ke felt threatened and hastily nodded: "It’s just studying, isn’t it? Who doesn’t know how to? Let me tell you, if I really start studying seriously, even I myself would be scared. And when I get the top spot in the whole school, don’t you cry."

Xiao Yuan: "Don’t worry, you won’t be number one in the school; that spot will either be Anning’s or mine, so you might as well step aside."

"Can you say that without blushing?"

Zhang Ke laughed: "You, the very last in the school, saying this to me, does your conscience not hurt?"

"Alright, it’s settled then."

Xiao Yuan quickly hung up.

Then, he called Gao Nana, the second last in the whole school.

"Miss Gao, I’m planning to study hard and improve every day starting tomorrow, do you want to join? If you don’t study, you might end up being the very last."

Gao Nana was baffled: "Bro, what do you mean?"

Before Gao Nana could grasp the meaning, Xiao Yuan hung up and called Yue Xiaofei, who ranked third last: "Yue Xiaofei, both Gao Nana and I are going to study hard. If you don’t want to drop from third last to the absolute last, you better buckle down, or you’ll regret it."

Xiao Yuan made calls until midnight.

He called every single student in his class.

The students of Class Twelve have long occupied the last few places in the whole school’s rankings.

Xiao Yuan threatened them one by one. If they didn’t study, it would be their turn to be last.

This completely terrified all the classmates.

They all thought Xiao Yuan must have undergone some immense shock.

So, the classmates started messaging Anning.

Gao Nana: Sis, did you say something to Xiao Yuan?

Dong Xue: Anning, have a serious talk with Xiao Yuan. He actually told me to study hard. I was so scared I almost lost my soul. Since when is studying his thing?

Zhang Ke: Anning, tell me the truth, what’s really going on?

Anning didn’t know what Xiao Yuan had done. After thinking for a while, she replied one by one.

Anning: I really don’t know what’s going on. You guys ask him tomorrow.

After turning off her cell phone, Anning slept well.

But the other students of Class Twelve couldn’t sleep at all.