At the time, why didn't she explain the situation?
Otherwise, she wouldn't have greedily eaten his portion.
Now, anything she said seemed too late.
"Come, eat."
Tang Xiaomin fed Tang Xu.
Tang Xu, still remembering the time she forcefully fed him, felt a lingering fear and hesitated, not daring to take a bite.
"This... the doctor said I can't eat spicy food right now. Can you not put chili?"
Tang Xu didn't eat spicy food and had been overwhelmed by the spiciness last time.
Upon hearing this, Tang Xiaomin almost lost control of her expression and chuckled.
"It's not spicy this time, eat without worry."
"Ah... really?"
Tang Xu appeared very fearful.
Seeing this, Tang Xiaomin couldn't be bothered to serve him anymore.
She took out a small foldable table, set it up, and placed the food and utensils in front of him.
"Eat it if you want, or I'll feed it to the dogs."
These words were too hurtful. In Tang Xu's opinion, he was no different from a dog in Tang Xiaomin's eyes.
With his right hand wrapped in thick bandages, he could only use the two exposed fingers of his left hand to clumsily pick up the utensils and struggle to feed himself.
Hesitantly, he tried a bite. Once the taste was normal, Tang Xu's anxious heart finally settled.
However...
After looking repeatedly, there were only a few leaves of green vegetables.
"This... are there any other dishes?"
"The doctor said you should eat something lighter. Green vegetables are perfect and nutritious. You're a doctor yourself, you should know that."
Knowing it was one thing, but whether it existed was another.
Tang Xu silently chewed the greens, feeling a deep sense of neglect from his mother.
After a long while, Zhang Meiyu finally returned from her phone call.
When she saw Tang Xu feeding himself with his left hand, she couldn't help but feel distressed.
"I was only out for a phone call, why didn't you wait for me?"
"It's alright, I can eat with my left hand."
"It's good that you're done. I'll clean up."
Zhang Meiyu quietly cleared the dishes. Seeing that all the green vegetables in the pot were eaten, not even the soup left, she casually explained to Tang Xu.
"The doctor said it's better for you to eat something light. Tell me what you want to eat, and I'll make it for you tomorrow. I know quite a few dishes now."
Tang Xu looked at his mother in disbelief, his face filled with skepticism.
His mother had previously been a wealthy lady who wouldn't even touch a drop of water, with all her daily needs attended to by others. Cooking was absolutely out of the question for her.
"Mom, stop joking."
"Really, I often cook for Xiaomin, and she has eaten it. You can ask her if you don't believe me."
Tang Xiaomin nodded beside him, vouching for Zhang Meiyu's cooking skills.
Memories resurfaced, and Tang Xiaomin finally recalled that she had been eating the meals made by Zhang Meiyu and Tang Yu for a long time.
At some point, she had come to enjoy their kindness as something she was entitled to, never truly appreciating it.
She had become accustomed to it without realizing it.
...
The next day, Tang Xiaomin, as usual, returned to school to study diligently and improve herself.
As soon as she walked into the classroom, she overheard Shu Ya whispering with a few other girls.
"Did you see? Zhang Guo'er is carrying the latest model from Chanel today, it's a hundred thousand."
"It must be from her rich boyfriend, he's really generous. He seems to have real substance."
"Zhang Guo'er's spending lately is completely different from before. Even her lunch is at a five-star hotel, she doesn't go to the cafeteria anymore."
"Her boyfriend is really powerful, I'm so envious. I wonder who he is."
...
Tang Xiaomin overheard this casually and simply smiled faintly.
"Her father wants to do some business with our company recently. Before, our family wouldn't even pay him any attention. Now that Zhang Guo'er has a powerful boyfriend, my father is already considering giving Zhang Guodong a chance."
"Now that Zhang Guo'er has backing, things are different. Even though we don't know who it is, my father said we shouldn't offend people carelessly, so let's give them a chance."
"Then if they approach me in the future, my family will also give them a chance, just like your family. It's better to believe it exists than not to believe it doesn't."
...
Tang Xiaomin couldn't stand listening any longer and muttered,
"I think she's just puffing herself up. Don't be fooled by such low-quality acting, it'll be more trouble than it's worth."
The few girls exchanged glances and retorted to Tang Xiaomin.
"Xiaomin, we know you and Zhang Guo'er don't get along. But we have our own concerns, you don't need to mislead us into rejecting cooperation with her family."
"Yes, if we refuse and offend her powerful boyfriend, we'll be the ones to suffer. You won't lose anything."
"Friendship is friendship, but everyone has their own stance. What we do is none of your business, right?"
...
Tang Xiaomin kindly advised them not to be deceived by Zhang Guo'er.
Unexpectedly, they thought she was petty and couldn't stand to see them cooperate with Zhang Guodong.
Her good intentions were taken for granted, what else could be said?
"If that's the case, then I'll just pretend I didn't say what I just said."
Under the disdainful gazes of the girls, Tang Xiaomin walked to her seat at the back and diligently reviewed her studies.
Shu Ya came to Tang Xiaomin's side.
"Xiaomin, don't blame them. Zhang Guo'er's mysterious boyfriend is very powerful now, it's only natural for them to have concerns."
"But don't worry, my company will definitely not give Zhang Guodong a chance. I've always been on your side."
Shu Ya, after learning that Zhang Guo'er had a powerful boyfriend, chose to reject Zhang Guo'er for the sake of friendship.
This gesture warmed Tang Xiaomin's heart.
Tang Xiaomin whispered a few words into Shu Ya's ear.
Shu Ya's mouth dropped open in astonishment, her eyes filled with intense envy.
"So, it was you?"
Tang Xiaomin made a shushing gesture.
"I didn't expect that incident to attract so much attention from the whole city. Who knew Zhang Guo'er would have such a thick skin."
Shu Ya patted Tang Xiaomin's shoulder forcefully, saying with a hint of reproach, "Are we still friends? You kept it from me for so long."
"When I eagerly went to see who the man was, were you laughing at me in your heart at the time?"
"Not at all. Besides, I also wanted to see who Zhang Guo'er's powerful suitor was, so I didn't stop you."
"You, you, what can I say about you."
...
After half an hour of gentle scolding, Shu Ya looked at the girls who hadn't listened to her advice, a mischievous smile playing on her lips.
"Xiaomin, Zhang Guo'er is flaunting around and deceiving people, and those girls have all fallen for it. Shall we go expose Zhang Guo'er right now and see how she can face anyone?"
Tang Xiaomin shook her head, deep in thought.
Shu Ya thought she wanted to let it go.
"Xiaomin, Zhang Guo'er is deceiving people like this, you're not going to just stand by and do nothing, are you?"
"Someone so vain and of such low character absolutely cannot be allowed to continue being so arrogant!"
Tang Xiaomin still shook her head.
"No, we can't just expose her like this."
"Why?"