Transmigrating into the Genius Cannon Fodder’s Aunt

Extra 2 Part 2 – His Little Cutie (II)

“I’m starving. The girls and I are going to eat first, so you guys go ahead and get busy.”

Xia Mian was about to say goodbye, but Ning Shaobai kept his arm around her waist and didn’t let go. His gaze subtly drifted toward Han Haoyan, his eyes signaling something.

Xia Mian found it amusing. That was ancient history—what kind of random jealousy was this?

Back then, Han Haoyan had always assumed that with Xia Mian’s grades, she would attend either Yan or Hua University. Even if they weren’t at the same university, at least they’d be across from each other.

But when he found out she had gone to Yanbei Normal University instead, he unexpectedly lost control of his emotions and ran straight to her campus to find her.

If their roommates hadn’t already met Ning Shaobai, perhaps they would have misunderstood.

Fortunately, Han Haoyan had always clung to his so-called playboy pride. In matters of the heart, he only accepted attention and never made the first move. He had only said a few ambiguous things like, “Was I not obvious enough? If I’d confessed earlier, would I have had a chance?”

Since he never made a proper confession, Xia Mian simply played dumb and glossed it over.

After she had a sweet, affectionate phone call with Ning Shaobai right in front of him, Han Haoyan never brought it up again. The next year, he even went abroad as an exchange student for a year and a half.

When he returned, he seemed completely at ease. Their relationship went back to how it had been in high school. Xia Mian had let out a huge sigh of relief. After all, as a friend, Han Haoyan really was impeccable.

But when she told Ning Shaobai about it, his reaction had been huge. She truly didn’t know what to say.

“Don’t you realize how outstanding you are? In what way does he compare to you? What are you being jealous for?”

Ning Shaobai was finally appeased, but still sighed. “I’m older than him. They say there’s a generation gap every three years. There are two between us. What if you young people see things differently…”

Xia Mian had rolled her eyes angrily. “Are you saying I have bad taste?”

And so the topic had somehow shifted into Ning Shaobai questioning her taste, which eventually turned into him coaxing her instead.

With so many people around and an important project discussion ahead, Xia Mian naturally wanted to give him face. So she stood on tiptoe and kissed his cheek. “Dr. Ning, work hard!”

Only then did Ning Shaobai let her go, satisfied.

Zheng Dong looked at him with open curiosity. “Does being in love really change a person that much?”

Rong Xin laughed. “Brother Dong, you’ll have to get used to it. Brother Bai isn’t the old Brother Bai anymore.” He sighed dramatically. “That cold, ruthless Brother Bai from back then has been completely melted by Xia Mian.”

“What are you even talking about?” Xia Mian said, half laughing, half exasperated. “We’re leaving!”

Han Haoyan suddenly turned to Han Haomin. “Brother, you go ahead and talk business. Zhao Cheng and I will join Xia Mian.”

Ning Shaobai: “…”

A miscalculation!

He looked at Xia Mian, clearly intending to drag her upstairs with him. Seeing that, she quickly grabbed Sun Yuexin. “Let’s go, let’s go. I’m starving!”

No way would she ditch her bridesmaids! That would be so rude!

After they walked away, Xia Mian shot Han Haoyan a glare. “Why are you bullying my Dr. Ning?”

Han Haoyan said speechlessly, “Even favoritism should have limits. Who exactly is bullying whom?”

Sun Yuexin, who knew the whole story, laughed. “Who told you to look like such a playboy? No wonder our Dr. Ning gets anxious.”

Zhao Cheng said in surprise, “No way. Dr. Ning’s worried Xia Mian might get seduced by Old Han?”

“No normal girl would choose Old Han anyway!”

Han Haoyan: “…” Some friends you are!

Everyone burst out laughing.

They found a private room, and Xia Mian declared generously, “This meal’s on me. Order whatever you want—don’t hold back!”

“Don’t worry, we won’t,” Zhao Cheng said. “I only just found out your Dr. Ning is that rich. I always thought he was just a doctor.”

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Xia Mian had never deliberately introduced Ning Shaobai’s family background to her friends, so they had all assumed he was simply a PhD doctor at Yan University Hospital. It wasn’t until the wedding invitations went out and they saw the venue that they realized he was actually wealthy.

And after spending the afternoon with him at the rehearsal, they had further realized that Dr. Ning wasn’t just ordinarily wealthy.

Huang Yanhong suddenly laughed. “I wonder if Zhu Yiqing would lose her mind if she found out.”

Sun Xiaoxue said, “Oh, definitely!”

Ma Yingying added, “Let’s not let her know. We’ve had a few peaceful days already.”

Ever since Xia Mian had driven off and left Zhu Yiqing choking in exhaust fumes, that girl had become even more ambitious. Skincare products and handbags were no longer enough to satisfy her.

In their third year, a rich second-generation heir had bought her an apartment near campus to make it easier to pursue her, and she moved out.

They’d thought the dorm would finally be quieter. But she remained obsessed with flaunting her wealth. Since she couldn’t show off much in class, she would frequently return to the dorm—especially when Xia Mian was there—and would always bring up how property values were rising and car prices depreciating.

It wasn’t until their last year in college, when she met an even wealthier guy and started juggling several men at once, that her schedule became packed. She “broadened her horizons” and began to think houses and cars weren’t even worth bragging about anymore. Seeing that Xia Mian was no longer in the same “league” as her, she adopted a lofty sense of superiority and stopped “competing” with her.

Zhao Cheng chimed in, “You mean the one who’s insanely pretty but super vain?”

Xia Mian had complained about Zhu Yiqing during their get-togethers before, so they all knew about her.

Li Lizhen said, “Yeah, and she’s very good at deceiving men. Way worse than Han Haoyan!”

Han Haoyan: “…”

“Talk about her if you want. Why drag me into it?”

“I’ve never accepted expensive gifts from anyone.”

“Right, right,” Li Lizhen said. “You just hook them with your face.”

Everyone burst into laughter again.

When old friends gathered like this, the atmosphere was relaxed and cheerful.

The private room door opened as a waiter brought in dishes. Xia Mian, who happened to look up, locked eyes with a beautiful young woman passing by the doorway.

She gave a low whistle. “Speak of the devil.”

Sitting beside her, Sun Yuexin and Li Lizhen followed her gaze and looked up, instantly stunned by the beauty.

Li Lizhen, a devoted admirer of good looks, said, “Oh my god! Even seeing her again, she’s still gorgeous. What a waste of that face.”

Zhao Cheng and Han Haoyan, made curious by their reactions, hurriedly leaned over to take a look, afraid she’d leave before they saw her.

Instead, Zhu Yiqing directly walked in, linking arms with a young man in his twenties. She greeted them with a smile. “Oh? Why are you all here?”

Her gaze swept across Han Haoyan, her eyes flickering slightly. She had come here with a clear goal—to hook a wealthy man. If he happened to be handsome too, even better.

Her date today, the “Young Master Zhu”, was indeed rich, but not only was he ordinary-looking, his character wasn’t great either. He was clearly a lecherous playboy.

She assumed Xia Mian and the others were here because Han Haoyan had brought them.

After all, even if Ning Shaobai earned tens of thousands a month, it would still be a stretch to come here. Membership at this hotel wasn’t cheap.

“You’ve got such a handsome friend, Xia Mian?” Zhu Yiqing asked with a bright smile, looking at Han Haoyan.

Ma Yingying and the others couldn’t help but marvel. If they didn’t know the backstory, they might have thought the Xia Mian and Zhu Yiqing were close!

Her date, meanhwile, lit up with delight upon seeing a room full of girls. His eyes first settle on Xia Mian, asking cheerfully, “Yiqing, these are…?”

Zhu Yiqing introduced them with a smile. “These are my college roommates. The others should be their respective friends.”

Noticing the way Zhu Jiarui was looking at Xia Mian, she felt a flicker of displeasure and deliberately added, “Come to think of it, Xia Mian, what are you doing here?”

“Don’t tell me that since you’re about to get married, you decided to indulge yourself and splurge a little?”

“Well, that makes sense. Once a woman gets married, she won’t be as free as when she’s dating. I doubt Dr. Ning will keep spoiling you like before.”

Here it comes, here it comes! Zhu Yiqing’s signature belittling tone!

Hearing that Xia Mian was about to get married, Zhu Jiarui looked regretful. “You’re so young, and you’re getting married already? Girls from Yanbei Normal don’t have trouble finding husbands.”

Zhu Yiqing laughed. “Her boyfriend is much older than her. Of course he can’t wait.”

“I just didn’t expect Dr. Ning to look so refined but be so impatient,” she said, glancing at Xia Mian with faint disdain at the corner of her eyes. “Graduation ceremony tomorrow, wedding the day after. Why such a rush?”

“Oh my, don’t tell me it’s a shotgun wedding?”

Xia Mian was so angry she almost laughed. And yet she stayed silent on purpose—only if Zhu Yiqing kept blabbering her mouth could she deliver the perfect comeback.

Still, she was quite amazed. To think that this girl hadn’t just broadened her horizons, but had picked up quite a few dirty tricks too!

“Calm down,” she said, smiling as she held back the furious Sun Yuexin. “It’s not entirely her fault for thinking that way.”

“This princess here only associates with rich men, and rich men don’t treat her with proper respect. They certainly doesn’t see her as a wife prospect, so maybe she’s seen too much and assumes marriage always requires getting pregnant to secure a position.”

“However…” Xia Mian mimicked Zhu Yiqing’s earlier tone, her gaze sweeping disdainfully over her stomach, “Princess, you might not know this, but wealthy men don’t easily let women without status get pregnant. After all, who knows if the child is even theirs?”

“If you want to marry into a rich family, you’d better clarify the relationship first. Stop calling them ‘friend,’ ‘brother,’ or ‘godfather.’ Otherwise, you might end up pregnant in some messy situation and still not be able to marry.”

Think you can out-sarcasm me? Go ahead and try.

Zhu Yiqing’s face turned ashen. “What do you mean?!”

Xia Mian smiled generously. “Nothing much. I just think it’s problematic to assume every bride is marrying because she’s pregnant. Girls who grew up in a proper family don’t think that way.”

“Hey, miss, that’s going a bit too far,” Zhu Jiarui said, seeing Zhu Yiqing unable to fight back. After all, she’d come with him; he couldn’t just ignore it. “Yiqing was just joking. Why are you taking it so seriously?”

Xia Mian smiled. “I’m joking too. Why is Princess taking it so seriously?”

Zhu Yiqing couldn’t win verbally, but she clearly had her own methods. Grabbing Zhu Jiarui’s arm, she said pitifully, “Forget it. She’s always had a sharp tongue. It’s not the first or second time she’s mocked me for having many friends.”

“Maybe she’s unhappy with her own life and just venting. I won’t provoke her anymore.”

Based on what Zhu Yiqing had said earlier, Zhu Jiarui instantly imagined a dramatic scenario: Xia Mian marrying an older, balding doctor, sneaking out to meet friends before the wedding, accidentally having her sore spot poked by Zhu Yiqing, and lashing out in anger.

Zhu Yiqing sighed. “Let’s just forget it.”

Zhu Jiarui didn’t particularly want to argue with women either and went along with it. “Fine. I’ll listen to you.”

By retreating to advance, Zhu Yiqing barely salvaged her dignity and prepared to leave. Before walking out, she turned back and sighed. “Oh, right. I should apologize in advance—I probably won’t be able to attend your wedding.”

Glancing at Zhu Jiarui, her tone full of flattery, she said, “I’ll be accompanying Young Master Zhu to attend Mohe investor’s wedding. What a coincidence! It’s actually on the same day as yours.”

She sighed again. “I heard Young Master Ning is famously devoted to his fiancée. Just the wedding alone costs several million. I wonder who the bride is! Truly, fate treats people differently.”

Anyone could tell Zhu Yiqing was deliberately trying to annoy Xia Mian. But this time, Ma Yingying and Sun Yuexin were not furious. Already anticipating the pleasure of watching Xia Mian strike back, they struggled to contain their laughters.

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