Chapter 289: Chapter 289: Particularly Spectacular

Zhaodi saw the situation and did not speak out to interrupt, staring at the stationery box Jiang Mianmian placed on the table and the full box of pencils and fountain pens.

Then he thought of the lone pencil in his old backpack and inevitably felt a surge of jealousy and dissatisfaction.

Does San Ya really need so many with just one pair of hands?

“Jiang Mianmian, what are you doing?”

At that moment, Su Wanyu suddenly appeared at the classroom door. She wanted to give Jiang Mianmian a surprise, so she deliberately waited to speak until she was at the door.

“Mom, why are you here?” Jiang Mianmian was very surprised to see her mother.

“Mom’s here to pick you up.”

Behind the sweet and gently smiling face of Su Wanyu when she saw her daughter was a momentary stiffness as her eyes met Zhaodi, but it quickly returned to normal: “Zhaodi, you’re here too.”

“Auntie,” Zhaodi called out obediently.

“Mhm.”

With a nod, Su Wanyu gently said, “I’m here to take Mianmian to town. You should head home first. If it gets too late, you’ll miss dinner. Oh, and when you get home, tell your grandma that we’re going to eat at your uncle’s cafeteria and won’t be coming back for dinner.”

Zhaodi realized they did not intend to take him with them and, although he felt somewhat unhappy, obediently nodded: “I understand, Auntie.”

He then put on his own backpack and walked out alone, a solitary figure.

It was clear that Uncle’s family did not regard him as one of their own; they did not even mention taking him to eat at the cafeteria, and he, a young girl, didn’t eat much anyway.

After she left, Su Wanyu casually asked, “Mianmian, what were you and Zhaodi doing just now?”

Jiang Mianmian innocently replied, “Nothing much, Zhaodi came to find me to walk home together, but I told her to go ahead with brother and the others. She said she wanted to wait for me.”

In her heart, however, she was aware that the reborn Zhaodi was deliberately trying to curry favor with her.

If the other party simply wanted some food and clothing, she wouldn’t be stingy with these things, after all, the girls from the second branch were truly pitiable.

But Zhaodi’s intentions were clearly not so innocent; he was looking to gain immense benefits from her or to snatch away some opportunities.

This was something Jiang Mianmian could not tolerate, as she owed Zhaodi nothing!

However, Jiang Mianmian, a beautiful girl with a kind heart, had no intentions of turning against Zhaodi abruptly and thought of gradually distancing herself, hoping both sides could mind their own business.

But if Zhaodi had any thoughts of harming her parents, a sharp glint flashed in Jiang Mianmian’s eyes–

“Oh, then let’s go too,” Su Wanyu said, her expression unchanged, but her heart began to feel somewhat anxious.

Why was Zhaodi always sticking so close to Mianmian?

Ever since Brother Hai remarked on Zhaodi’s abnormal behavior, she also made a special effort to closely observe Zhaodi, and to her horror, she discovered that he indeed occasionally showed hostility and hatred towards the old couple and the third branch.

Although he acted relatively normally towards their own main branch, she still felt uneasy about Zhaodi being around her daughter – who knew if he might suddenly go crazy!

With this possibility in mind, fear crept into her heart.

She would have to discuss with Brother Hai about moving Mianmian to a primary school in town, to keep as far away as possible from the slightly sinister Zhaodi!

*

Feeling moody, Zhaodi walked towards home. Seeing Zhiwen and Zhiwu, two boys on the road, he did not greet them but kept walking straight ahead.

After walking a bit further, he spotted Shen Qingming from the neighboring village, who was in the third grade, from afar. A thought struck him, and he quickly caught up.

“Brother Shen, let’s go home together,” Zhaodi said, flashing a sweet smile at him.