Seen Through

Recognizing how Tian Qisong's wicked and calculative mind works, the second reason could be a possibility to apply. Today was Rriday and it was lunch time where most of the guests would come to have lunch at the restaurant. FuGui was a hot spot for those who had a status in social standing and business top managers. This would meant , If she was going to act embarrassingly at this place, it could attract attention and gave bad impact towards her mother's image.

Even if Zheng Haozu at this age would not yet to have ideas like that, but Tian Qisong would. Her heart was clenched at the thought.

At this point, other than Bai Wenqin who was eating his meal while throwing few glances at the door, which somehow later gained his friends' attention towards him, Chen Ziyi's classmates who happen to just finish their meal also were wondering why was Chen Ziyi not coming back to them.

After Ren Linna told them Chen Ziyi would be a little late, Han Meirong could not help but unease for what if Chen Ziyi bumped into a person that she should never involved with. Now that Chen Ziyi was taking longer time than expected, Han Meirong could not help herself from being anxious. With how Chen Ziyi's cold temper was, she was really worried about that one friend of hers. Her eyes kept glanced at the door wishing that Chen Ziyi would enter the room.

Worried, she decided to go to look for Chen Ziyi. She took along her coat as she realized the temperature in the corridor. was quite chiller than in the room. That was when she caught up of what actually hold her friend from going back to them.

The corridor was not too spacious. It would only allow for size of three person. If it was in normal situation, the space was for one person each from opposite direction walked through the corridor with a reasonable gap distance between two people. So when Zheng Haozu and his friends were standing in a circle facing Chen Ziyi, the sight of the situation would obviously triggered any passerby's curiosity. Any person would stop and seek for the reason if they saw a group of people were blocking the corridor.

If other people looked at how Chen Ziyi and Zheng Haozu's friends were, to their eyes, it could dawned on them that Zheng Haozu's group was trying to bully a lone girl or A girl had offended someone from the group which later make the group defended that person against the lone girl. However, to Han Meirong and Ren Linna, who walked to outside of the room, with intention to look for Chen Ziyi, they would undoubtedly choose the first situation. They were Chen Ziyi's friends, they didn't know the other group.

Sensing something wrong with the scene, Han Meirong shook Ren Linna's shoulders to call for Lu Zixin to help them out. If Lu Zixin, a boy in the group could come out with them, they would at least be more secured to stand together with Chen Ziyi. Having at least a boy in a group was a need to show to others that the girls had someone that can protect them from harassment from opposite sex.

Meanwhile, Chen Ziyi was taking some time, contemplating, of what to response so she still kept herself silent from saying any words to them. First, she did not even want to talk or look toward Zheng Shuyu or Zheng Haozu. Second, she was not forgetful yet of what happen in the past and and to look towards Jin Zedong. Third, she did not want to act like coward so she tried to not turned back her gaze down to her shoes.

When her mouth opened, trying to say something, Tian Qisong and the group was also anticipating for something until a voice suddenly called out for Chen Ziyi. Although the tone was like investigating, it warmed her heart. It was a call from her friend. A call filled with worried and care towards her. Not a call with malicious intent to cause mischief.

"Ziyi? What are you doing here?" Han Meirong was calling her by 'Ziyi' only. Turned her eyes to Chen Ziyi after spared a glance towards the group in front of them, she asked while adjusted the coat she had already put on her when she was in the room.

"They had all finished their meal and are preparing to go back. Linna said you were going to report for a missing item. Have you found it?" Han Meirong casually talked to her like a friend should. Chen Ziyi was quiet for a some time, processing Han Meirong's question in her mind, before nodded with a faint smile.

"I found it already. The chain was broken but I can ask my mother to have it repair for me."

"Do you.... know this people?" Ren Linna who arrived with Lu Zixin later, asked. She had an expression like she was curious of their identity after realized there was a group with Chen Ziyi. Her eyes scanned every face present there with her curious stare before giving her small but noticeable smile. She tucked her hair behind her ears before gave them a nod. "Did our Ziyi offend you somehow while you were in the hallway? If so, we are very sorry. It should be me or this friend of mine to accompany Ziyi if she was going to walk around this place, but we just thought that Ziyi could talk to the manager by herself and immediately come back to us."

When a person or a friend apologized for another person's fault, it had been always an embarrassing thing for the person who were apologized for. It was like the person in the subject could not apologized by her or his own. Hence, people who saw that could question the character of such person. So when Ren Linna who seems like apologetic for Chen Ziyi, Zheng Haozu, Tian Qisong and others in the group were happy for the scene in front of them. They had smug smile on their face.

Initially, they were upset that there was intrusion to their plan once they saw three unknown people who seems like Chen Ziyi's friends came to them. However, when they saw another opportunity had appear, they immediately came up with a plan in their mind. They could just make Chen Ziyi's friends hate Chen Ziyi by making them embarrassed for having Chen Ziyi as their friend and of course they were excited for that!

Yet, what they did not expect that Ren Linna had already seen through them and did not even leave a chance for them to attempt for such method. She was the young lady of the Ren family and she had accustomed to few tricks and manipulating moves. "Ziyi, Are you familiar with them? Did you somehow offend them? or.. are they bullying you?!" Han Meirong intentionally emphasized the 'bullying' word and she did not even lower her voice when she questioned Chen Ziyi.

Sensing the earlier tense awkward scene, Han Meirong had already briefly discussed with Ren Linna on how to save their friend without causing too much commotion. Han Meirong at that time already squinted, staring hard at every face in front of them, from head to toes like she was studying them. Turned her head at Chen Ziyi with a worried expression then look at the group in front of her with a scared look, would obviously make any other person who looked at their scene, would assume that Zheng Haozu's group was bullying the younger ones.

"Young master Tian. Young master Jin. Do.. I call you the correct way? Although you are not yet promised yet to be the heir, I can't call you brother or your name right?- since we are not that close " Lu Zixin politely greeted both Tian Qisong and Jin Zedong, turned to his polite mode. He could not play his sunny side in front of such people, especially when the girls had asked him to be there to help them.

Lu Zixin's father wanted him to fix his easygoing and carefree personality, but his brother and mother wanted him to stay that way. Being the youngest one in the siblings, they didn't want to lose their lovable brother. That's when his sister suggested for his to train to adjust between his playful mode and his polite mode. He was still not expert to control the dual mode as he leaned more on his easygoing side. So at this time, he was trying his best to stand firmly with his tall slender body, facing a group of obviously older people than him.

Being greeted by a younger boy than them in such way, both Tian Qisong and Jin Zedong became alert that someone know them, and it was someone younger than them. Tian Qisong would often went to social meeting with his other cousin but he would not remember everyone as there were too much people to remember. So he only remember those who had direct relationship with either his friend, his family or his family's business.