Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

  By the time Qiao Nan realized what was happening, her legs were numb.

  Qiao Nan dared not let Zhai Sheng know that her legs were numb. She pretended to be calm and walked out of his house. By the time she reached the front door, her legs gave way and she could only lean on to the wall, the numbness and ache spreading through her body.

  Qiao Nan’s feet were still numb with pain on her way back home.

  “Nan Nan, though studies are important, you must take care of yourself as well. It would not be good to sit for long periods of time. You should stand up and move about after sitting down for half an hour. Don’t do this next time, understand?”

  “Dad, don’t worry. I will not do it again.”

  This time round it was Brother Zhai who pulled the chair for her. She was overwhelmed by the special favor and without thinking she just sat down on the chair.

  Next time round, she would pull the chair to a more comfortable position before sitting down. In that case, there would be no such problems any more.

  “Alright, remember your words. No, it won’t do. From tomorrow onwards, After waking up run two laps around the quad before doing your reading. You would faint easily during the exams if you are not strong enough.” Qiao Dongliang wanted Qiao Nan to prepare herself for the middle school exams that would come in a few months’ time.

  “Dad, don’t worry. I will take note of all these. I would never allow myself to make such mistakes.” Qiao Nan smiled at the genuine concern that her father rarely displayed.

  “Hmph.” Ding Jiayi was annoyed at the show of affection between Qiao Dongliang and Qiao Nan at the doorstep. Such a moving scene between a loving father and a filial daughter.

  “Mom, let them be.” Qiao Zijin had her sights set on securing a good job on account of the relationship Qiao Nan had with the Lee family and the Zhu family. She had kept a check on her temper recently. Not only did she not create troubles for Qiao Nan, she even persuaded Ding Jiayi to rein in on her temper, and to stop picking on Qiao Nan.

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  At Qiao Zijin’s words, no matter how annoyed Ding Jiayi was, she could only curb her temper and went to prepare for reunion dinner.

  At the dining table, Qiao Dongliang kept on giving meat and fish dishes to Qiao Nan. “Nan Nan have more of this, you must take care of yourself. Always bear this in mind, good health is a prerequisite for work.”

  Qiao Dongliang still remembered what the doctor said when he took Qiao Nan to the hospital half a year ago.

  In the past half year, Qiao Dongliang tried very hard to build up her immune system and to give her more nutritious food. There was once when he asked an aunt to buy a laying hen who was bred in the countryside and prepared chicken stew for Nan Nan.

  Qiao Nan had all the chicken by herself, apart from Qiao Zijin who had two of the drumsticks, Qiao Nan drank all the soup and ate all the meat. Ding Jiayi was not allowed any either.

  So in half a year’s time, Qiao Nan was no longer skinny and thin as before, she was now a young lady with delicate curves and full features.

  But Qiao Nan would be sixteen years old after the Lunar New Year, she had yet to have her first period.

  Qiao Dongliang was worried that her malnourished condition led to her stunted growth.

  As a father, Qiao Dongliang could only show his concern for Qiao Nan, he could not possibly ask her about her first period. But from his observation of her daily life, he was sure that till now Qiao Nan had yet to ask for sanitary products from Ding Jiayi.

  Qiao Dongliang was all the more worried at Qiao Nan’s delayed growth. As a result he ended up like Ding Jiayi, he would now give most of the meat and fish dishes to Qiao Nan, not stopping before he was assured that she had her share.

  Qiao Nan laughed and dug into the heaps of meat on her bowl.

  Ding Jiayi and Qiao Zijin stiffened. Ding Jiayi could not contain her anger anymore and was just about to explode when Qiao Zijin stopped her. “Dad is right, Nan Nan is too skinny. Nan Nan, we shouldn’t be affected by others and believe that a skinny person would look nice. Good health is most important. You should eat more and be healthy. In that case, Dad would not be worried over you.”

  Qiao Nan had wondered why Qiao Zijin and her mother kept their silence at her father’s actions. But Qiao Zijin’s words had given her away.

  In the past she was very skinny, but everyone knew the reason behind it, whether she starved herself to look pretty or whether it was her mother who controlled what she ate.

  Qiao Nan was still thinking to herself that according to her experience in the previous life, whenever her mother and Qiao Zijin stopped picking on her, they must be cooking up something and she had to be wary of them.

  But now that Qiao Zijin spoke ill of her, she felt relieved.

  Qiao Zijin had no idea of what was going through Qiao Nan’s mind. She was just used to badmouthing Qiao Nan and she did not know that her words would have such an effect.

  Since ancient times, it was difficult to be on one’s guard at all times.

  If Ding Jiayi and Qiao Zijin wanted to plot against Qiao Nan, even if she was very careful, there was no way that she could prevent it.

  Today Qiao Nan was studying at Zhai family residence. All of a sudden she felt a sharp pain in her stomach and frowned deeply.

  “What’s wrong?” Zhai Sheng who was usually there reading his book with Qiao Nan noticed her discomfort immediately.

  “Brother Zhai, I have a stomach ache, can I use the toilet?” Maybe she ate the wrong food and had an upset stomach? But this pain did not seem like an upset stomach.

  “Go ahead, do you know the way?”

  “Yes.” Upon the owner’s approval, Qiao Nan stood up immediately and rushed towards the toilet at Zhai family residence.

  If she really had an upset stomach and had to use the toilet, there was a high chance that she would be farting as well.

  Qiao Nan wanted to die when the thought that she might fart in front of the future Chief and her Prince Charming crossed her mind.

  In order to prevent such embarrassing and humiliating things from happening, Qiao Nan looked as if she was about to do a hundred meter dash to the toilet, to end things quickly.

  “Hold on.” Qiao Nan might be fast, but Zhai Sheng was faster than her. He pulled her hand and stopped her with a strange look on his face. “You, you go to the toilet first, I will bring you some stuff.”

  Qiao Nan who tried her best to hold it in was puzzled. She stared foolishly at Zhai Sheng who left the storeroom before her.

  By the time she sat on the toilet bowl and spotted the red spots on her pants, she flushed red in embarrassment, her face scalding hot as the boiling kettle. “Brother, Brother Zhai, could he have seen it?” Brother Zhai was a soldier, he had good eyesight. He must have seen it!

  But Brother Zhai was a man, he probably, possibly, likely did not know what it meant.

  Qiao Nan tried means and ways to console herself. But all those thoughts disappeared when she saw the stuff that Zhai Sheng passed into her toilet cubicle!