Chapter 11

During the second evening self-study period, Ruan Miao received a call. He stared at the contact name "That Woman" for a long time.

The calls had been coming since yesterday, but he either had been in class or in the office and hadn't picked up. It seemed important, but the contact name was strange. What woman would keep calling him?

After some hesitation, Ruan Miao decided to answer the call during the break. He stepped out to a quiet stairwell and answered the phone cautiously, "Hello?"

To his surprise, a gentle woman's voice came through. She sounded relatively young, possibly not even forty. She sighed softly before speaking, "Why haven't you been answering your phone? I thought you were upset again."

Ruan Miao almost stumbled down the stairs in shock. "M-mom?"

"Yes," the woman replied with some annoyance. "No matter how angry you are, you can't just ignore my calls. Do you know how worried I was? You're my only son. What am I supposed to do if you don't answer?"

The woman continued to talk, and Ruan Miao couldn't get a word in. Finally, she noticed something was off. "Why are you being so obedient today?"

"Huh?" Ruan Miao was confused.

"You usually hate it when I check on you. You'd hang up as soon as I started talking."

Ruan Miao rubbed his forehead and came up with an excuse, "Oh... I was just lost in thought."

"I knew it," the woman sighed in relief. "Anyway, as long as you don't act impulsively, I won't nag. You haven't forgotten what I told you, have you?"

Ruan Miao was completely baffled . He had no idea what the other person was referring to.

Seeing his silence, the person on the other end of the phone sounded dissatisfied and said, "Why are you so slow? How do you plan to take over the He family if you don't get rid of He Shangye?"

"You have to understand, it wasn't easy for me to get you in there. It's not for you to mess around. Think about it: by the time you're eighteen, they'll kick you out. You don't have anything to control the He family. What will you do with the rest of your life?"

The information in her words was overwhelming, leaving Ruan Miao unable to process it.

"Stop brushing me off. I know you've been associating with Yan Yang recently, but I don't think that's a good idea. Forget about what kind of family the Yan family is; even just Jian Fanyu isn't someone you can handle. There's no benefit in offending him."

"Besides, why do you have to be at odds with him? No matter what, he's a true phoenix, and there's no need for you to target him like this."

Ruan Miao found his voice after a long while, asking in disbelief, "So, you mean I should find a way to push He Shangye out of the He family?"

"Of course," the woman on the phone coughed lightly, sounding somewhat unwell. "Right now, He family is run by him. Your scoundrel father has already retired abroad. If you don't deal with He Shangye, how can you stand in the He family?"

Ruan Miao took a deep breath, running his hand through his hair. After calming down for a moment, he said, "I think you might have some misunderstanding about me."

"Even though you're my mom, you should know what kind of person I am, right? Can someone like me compare to He Shangye? He is a genuinely elite young master, raised with top-tier education from childhood, and the legitimate heir to the He family. What am I?"

"Not to mention how inscrutable He Shangye is, even if I somehow managed to deal with him, do you think a half-baked person like me can manage such a big family?"

The woman on the phone was a bit surprised, but she replied, "So what? I just want everyone in the He family to pay. Don't you remember what I told you before? Or are you finally unable to hide your feelings for He Shangye?"

Ruan Miao listened to the increasingly chilling words from the woman on the other end, feeling a cold shiver down his spine. He walked forward and sat on the steps, ignoring the sound of the school bell as he tried to figure out how to handle "Mom" on the other end of the line.

"What if I say I don't want to do this anymore? What do you think?"

The voice on the other end fell silent before rising sharply, echoing through the dim stairwell. 

"Did that little bastard He Shangye do something to you!? What happened between you two!?"

"The old bastard ruined me. Is his cherished little bastard going to ruin you too!?"

Ruan Miao's ears hurt from her sudden, piercing voice. He moved the phone away for a moment before trying to soothe her, "Calm down. There's nothing between me and He Shangye. Besides, he's my half-brother; we share blood. Don't overthink it."

"Him? Ha!" the woman on the phone sneered. "Did Liang Rui really think he could fool everyone? He Qingqing's infidelity has been known for a long time!"

Her words were like a bombshell. Ruan Miao covered the phone, checking his surroundings to ensure no one was around before letting the shock sink in.

Liang Rui was the father of He Shangye and his siblings, known to be a live-in son-in-law. He had married the He family's only daughter to climb the social ladder, a story that had been gossip for years. Ruan Miao hadn't paid much attention to the He family drama while reading the novel but remembered vaguely that the He family's internal strife was intense. He never expected to hear such a revelation.

This implied that He Shangye might not be Liang Rui's son, but a love child from He Qingqing's affair.

Ruan Miao felt like a bystander standing in a vast melon field, discovering one big secret after another. No wonder the original Ruan Miao dared to flirt with his elder brother, knowing they weren't biologically related.

If this were true, the He family was indeed ruthless, with both spouses engaging in extramarital affairs. Impressive.

He remained silent for a long time, and the woman on the phone continued, "Don't be deceived by He Shangye. He's shrewd, ambitious. Even if he said something to you, it's just a charade. As long as we get evidence of his illegitimacy, we can still unseat him..."

Ruan Miao finally interrupted her, "Honestly, even if we have evidence, what then? He's still a He family member. He has He family blood. Liang Rui, I mean, Dad, is the outsider. If anything, I'm the one without any connection to the He family."

"Honestly, I'm surprised Big Brother hasn't kicked me out yet. He's been rather magnanimous. Do you really think exposing his true identity will change his standing in the He family? You've underestimated these rich family dramas; even TV shows wouldn't dare portray this."

"And I'm not interested in their family feuds or Yan Yang. If there's nothing else, I'll hang up now." Ruan Miao didn't want to continue the conversation and hung up the phone.

He sat on the steps, resting his chin on his hand, wondering why there were such mothers in the world. In his seventeen years of life, he had never lacked maternal love. As the youngest in the family, he was pampered, and his parents adored him.

To him, his mother had always been synonymous with warmth. Whenever he felt down, she would give him hugs and encouragement. Even when he complained due to his illness, she would hold his hand and guide him through the darkness. She was a frail yet strong woman who had accompanied him through seventeen years, ensuring he left the world without regrets.

Therefore, Ruan Miao couldn't understand the actions of the other "Ruan Miao's" mother. She had sent her child to a hostile He family, then pressured him to harm his brother, disregarding his feelings or well-being. Her only goal seemed to be toppling the He family.

How could there be such a mother in this world? What does a child mean to her? A tool that can be leveraged?

Ruan Miao has never seen such a mother. Maybe he has little knowledge, but he is not the original Ruan Miao and does not want to follow her wishes. He thinks that even if the real Ruan Miao is here, maybe he is not willing to live like this. Life.

He stood up from the steps, shook his numb legs and wanted to go back to the classroom, but after taking a few steps, he saw Jian Fanyu leaning in front of the railing.

Jian Fanyou stood there quietly, silently, as if perfectly blending into the night behind him. Ruan Miao was startled at first, but was relieved after seeing the person clearly: "It turns out It is you."

Jian Fanyu didn't know how long he had been here. He crossed his arms and stared at Ruan Miao quietly, as if he was looking at him, but he didn't seem to be. Ruan Miao couldn't see his face clearly, but he felt that he and Jian Fanyu had nothing to say. After all, he had not forgotten the look in the man's eyes that wanted to kill him behind the glass window that day. 

"Well, I'll go back first."

 Jian Fanyu didn't respond, and Ruan Miao was about to leave without waiting for him to speak. When he turned around and heard Jian Fanyu finally speak, with a calm tone that sounded calm. 

"Ruan Miao, do you still keep the ring that Yan Yang gave you?" 

Ruan Miao thought he was here to trouble him, so he shook his head and said, "I lost it! I didn't keep it!" 

"Oh..." Jian Fanyu nodded softly, waved his hand and said, "Go ahead." 

For some reason, Ruan Miao always felt that Jian Fanyu's words were vaguely brisk, and he even had the illusion that he was a puppy. But now he looked at Jian Fanyu and felt that he was not mentally normal, so he ran away quickly.

However, it is strange to say that Yan Yang has ever given a ring to him? 

Ruan Miao was very confused, but he didn't know whether he had given it to him or not. After all, the plot had already started when he came here. Maybe he had really given it? Anyway, he already said he had thrown it away, so Jian Fanyu probably wouldn't pursue it. 

But the book seems to have written about it once. In the middle of the plot, Yan Yang did give a ring to Ruan Miao in the original work, to commemorate some date. 

What a scumbag.