Mu Jingzhe was so busy that she forgot all about the worrisome Tang Moling, making the latter quite anxious.

  Tang Moling went to look for Mu Jingzhe twice in succession, wanting to prove his feelings to her, but Mu Jingzhe always said, “What do you want to prove? Don’t be rash.”

  Perhaps it was because he had committed too many misdeeds in the past, but Mu Jingzhe didn’t believe that he was sincere about her. She was only wary of him and remained firm and resolute in her belief that he loved Mu Xue wholeheartedly.

  Tang Moling was furious, but there was nothing he could do about it. After all, Mu Jingzhe didn’t seem to be lying. It appeared that she really thought so. She only said that it was impossible between them and then started to hide from him.

  Tang Moling felt like he was about to have a heart attack. After taking two days to calm down, he finally managed to meet Mu Jingzhe again.

  “Mu Jingzhe, how long are you planning to hide from me? Are you planning to hide from me forever?”

  Mu Jingzhe felt a headache coming the minute she saw him. “Yes, I’ll say it again. Tang Moling, it’s impossible for anything to happen between us. Stop looking for me.”

  Tang Moling suppressed his anger. Now that he had seen how Mu Jingzhe was avoiding him, his heart turned cold. He had to admit that Mu Jingzhe really didn’t like him. It was impossible for anything to happen between them.

  He was overwhelmed by disappointment and despair. “You really don’t like me at all? What exactly is it about me that you’re unsatisfied with?”

  “I don’t like you at all. It’s impossible for anything to happen between us. Tang Moling, stop looking for me. I’m begging you.”

  One shouldn’t do anything more than three times, but he had done it more than thrice. Upon hearing the word ‘begging’, Tang Moling lost his composure. “Begging? You’re begging me not to look for you again? Do you know how many women beg me to look for them?”

  “Then go look for them!”

  “Mu Jingzhe!” Seeing her attitude, Tang Moling flew into a rage out of humiliation. “Do you really think I won’t do that? Or do you think you can do whatever you want just because I like you?

  “I can tell you with certainty that you won’t be able to find a better man than me. If you let me slip by, you’ll be destined to be mediocre for the rest of your life. Do you know who I am? How dare you reject me like this! If I really go find them, you’ll regret it!”

  Mu Jingzhe: “…”

  Seeing that Mu Jingzhe was silent, Tang Moling exhaled to calm himself down. “Let me put it this way, Mu Jingzhe: As long as you find someone better than me, I’ll give up on you. As long as you find someone better.”

  \r \r \r

  “No, Tang Moling. This isn’t decided by status or money. Be rational.”

  “I can’t be rational.” Tang Moling was stubborn. “Find that someone, or you won’t be able to reject me.”

  Mu Jingzhe was getting impatient as well. “Tang Moling, that’s enough. Don’t force me to say something unpleasant.”

  She couldn’t be bothered to speak with him any longer and thus turned to leave. However, Tang Moling stopped her. “Are you angry? You can’t find someone who’s better than me, right?”

  There was a flash of triumph in his eyes, and a second later, he heard someone cry out, “Jingzhe!”

  Tang Moling frowned and looked in the direction of the voice. His smug expression changed. “Uncle?”

  Why was Uncle here? Wasn’t Uncle in a coma? Hadn’t the doctor said that he couldn’t possibly wake up?

  Thinking he was seeing things, Tang Moling rubbed his eyes and looked again.

  This time, he could clearly see that it was really his uncle.

  Tang Moling watched as his uncle walked up to him, raised an eyebrow, and pulled his hand away.

  “Tang Moling, you’ve grown up. You’ve already learned how to get physical with a girl? You’re really rough too.”

  Tang Moling felt as though his wrist was about to be crushed and froze. The pain told him that everything was real.

  He stared at Ji Buwang and was momentarily left speechless.

  “Ji Buwang, what are you doing here?” Mu Jingzhe thought she had heard Tang Moling call him ‘Uncle’ but she wasn’t sure. After asking, she gave them a strange look.

  “I came over as soon as I saw you.” Ji Buwang had naturally come over upon seeing a man tug at Mu Jingzhe. Based on his voice and physique, he could confirm that this man was Tang Moling.

  Ji Buwang glanced at Tang Moling. “Why are you here? Do you know each other?”

  It had been four years since they’d last met, and this nephew of his had changed quite a bit. If they’d met on the street, he might not have been able to recognize him if he didn’t speak.

  Ji Buwang’s tone was calm, but Tang Moling’s expression changed drastically, and he finally found his voice.

  “Uncle, when did you wake up? Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Oh, I woke up earlier. I heard that you were busy wooing a young lady and getting engaged, so I didn’t inform you.” After saying that, Ji Buwang didn’t look at Tang Moling. Instead, he looked at Mu Jingzhe’s hand, which had been held by Tang Moling just now. “Luckily, it’s not red. Little Ling, you shouldn’t be so rough with girls. Apologize to Jingzhe quickly.”

  Tang Moling’s mind was a mess. He apologized in a muffled tone and then asked, “Uncle, how did you two meet?”

  “Us? We’ve known each other for a long time.” Ji Buwang asked in turn, “How did you two meet?”

  “He’s my cousin-in-law.” Tang Moling didn’t know what to say, so Mu Jingzhe answered.

  Tang Moling immediately retorted, “We’ve already broken off our engagement.” How could she say this when he had already confessed his feelings to her?

  Mu Jingzhe choked, and Ji Buwang frowned. “Why are you speaking like this? You have no manners.”

  This time, it was Tang Moling’s turn to choke. The way Ji Buwang was lecturing him made it seem like he was trying to distinguish the difference in seniority between him and Mu Jingzhe. However, he didn’t dare retort. After all, this wasn’t just anyone else. It was his uncle.

  He was only a few years older than him, but he was indeed his young uncle, who was like an older brother and father to him.

  Looking at Tang Moling’s choked expression, Mu Jingzhe finally asked to confirm it, “He’s your biological uncle?” Why is the world so small?”

  “Mm, this is the child my older sister left behind. He’s my biological nephew.” Ji Buwang nodded suggestively. “You can call him Little Ling from now on. If he’s as rude as he was just now, tell me and I’ll teach him a lesson.”

  Mu Jingzhe: “Uh, okay.”

  Their relationship was very surprising, and she felt like she needed time to digest it.

  Tang Moling was even more shocked than Mu Jingzhe. He was in a daze. At that moment, Tang Moling recalled the familiar figure he had occasionally seen when he’d taken Mu Jingzhe and the kids to art school. At the time, he had thought that his eyes were playing tricks on him. He had even thought that his uncle was still unconscious and couldn’t possibly be there.

  Looking at the situation now, that was Uncle, right?

  “Uncle, when did you get here?”

  “Me? A long time ago. I’m taking advantage of my break to be a teacher at the art school.”

  “So that figure really was you…” Tang Moling muttered.

  Ji Buwang also remembered something. “Oh, you’re talking about seeing me previously? I remember seeing a familiar shadow before. So that was you. You brought her to school?”

  Ji Buwang narrowed his eyes dangerously, and Tang Moling felt choked up when he saw it.

  Every time his uncle acted like this, it meant danger. His butt hurt out of reflex. “Uncle, don’t look at me like that…”

  Ji Buwang retracted his gaze and told Mu Jingzhe, “This child is immature. He still behaves like a kid.”