Chapter Ninety-Eight: Hypocrisy

PS: Douya is here to ask for pink votes.

"Does your teacher have something to take care of? Do they need our help?" Moqi Yi asked. Over the past ten years, Xuan Xuan's teacher had never made a single demand of the Moqi family. Instead, she had unconditionally helped the Moqi, Zhan, and Kuang families.

Even someone as thick-skinned and stubborn as Moqi Yi felt a bit embarrassed by this.

Xuan Xuan shook her head, thought for a moment, and then said, "She has only gone traveling. But if there is anything you can't resolve, you can tell me, and I can contact her."

She was worried that if something happened, her father might dismiss her as too young and not believe she was capable of helping. Obviously, the excuse of her "teacher" was still useful, as her father and the others trusted her "teacher" much more.

Moqi Yi nodded. "You should show your teacher the utmost respect. She has done so much for the Moqi family, and even for the Zhan and Kuang families, yet we have done nothing for her in return."

Xuan Xuan did not care in the slightest. Was she supposed to thank herself?

However, Moqi Yi was not wrong about being truly grateful to her teacher, so Xuan Xuan nodded.

"Haohao and the others are going out to play today. You should go with them. Don't spend every day either staying at home or running off to that old man Kuang's place," Moqi Yi said, somewhat dissatisfied.

Xuan Xuan was spending more and more time in the Kuang family's mecha laboratory. Excluding school hours, she barely spent any time at home. He knew that old fogey from the Kuang family was trying to steal Xuan Xuan from him. He would rather Xuan Xuan go out to have fun than visit the Kuangs.

Moqi Lianhao remained silent. Although Kuang Shao was not at home, it was still better for her to visit less. Hadn't they said that Kuang Hongyi had nothing left to teach Xuan Xuan recently anyway?

Hearing that Kuang Shao and Zhan Yu were returning to the Imperial Capital, Moqi Lianhao felt he should adjust his work schedule. He needed to keep a close eye on Xuan Xuan lately now that the Kuang kid was coming back. Kuang Hongyi would surely have him visit often. That boy from the Zhan family was no good either. Although Xuan Xuan had grown up, there was no guarantee that Zhan Yu wouldn't shift his obsession from little girls to teenage girls.

Xuan Xuan smiled and nodded at Moqi Yi. Recently, Kuang Hongyi had been avoiding her again, so she might as well be kind and stop scaring him.

Walking back into the living room, she saw Tong Wan looking at her with a slightly aggrieved expression. Xuan Xuan, who hadn't really wanted to go out at first, quickly called out to Moqi Weihao and the others, "Where are you going? Take me with you."

Seeing Tong Wan's even more resentful gaze, Xuan Xuan hastily gave an excuse and made her escape.

She really did not want to watch those so-called soap operas with Tong Wan. In those shows, this person couldn't stand that person, and that person couldn't stand another. Xuan Xuan felt it would be much simpler to just poison them all with a single potion. And then there were the endless conflicts between mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law, or mothers-in-law and biological mothers.

Yet Tong Wan watched them with great interest and insisted on having someone watch with her. When Tong Wan reached a sad part, she would hug whoever was next to her and cry. Xuan Xuan felt this was truly beyond her capabilities.

She would much rather go out with Moqi Weihao and the others.

After all, it was rare to have such a long holiday, and they could actually go out to have fun.

Moqi Weihao and his brother had grown up quite a bit by now and could basically ensure their own safety. With a few bodyguards following them in the shadows, it was perfectly fine for them to go to relatively safe places.

Taking Xuan Xuan along, they headed straight for their destination. They had agreed with some friends to visit a newly opened amusement park.

Once they arrived, Xuan Xuan heard from Moqi Weihao that this was the very amusement park her grandfather had built for her, which she had then gifted to Moqi Weihan. Because there were too many construction projects and Xuan Xuan wasn't particularly enthusiastic about it, the construction had been dragged out for a long time, only opening now.

Xuan Xuan glanced at the sea of people crowding the amusement park, somewhat speechless. Why were amusement parks always so crowded, no matter the time?

Moqi Weihao also looked a bit worried as he glanced at Xuan Xuan, but she shook her head, showing she didn't mind. Moqi Weihao was mostly concerned about her safety.

Moqi Weihan, however, was very excited. "A crowd is what makes the atmosphere!"

Xuan Xuan nodded. The people inside did seem to be having a wonderful time.

However, hadn't Moqi Weihan promised to let her have the park to herself for a day?

Xuan Xuan glanced at Moqi Weihan, but he seemed to have forgotten. On second thought, she let it go. Even if she were allowed to play for a whole day, she wouldn't actually want to.

But while Xuan Xuan was willing to let it go, Moqi Weihao was not. "What about the day we agreed on?"

Moqi Weihan looked at his brother in confusion. "What day?"

"You said you would let Xuan Xuan and me play here alone for a day." Moqi Weihao hadn't known it was the grand opening today. He had initially thought the construction was just finished and Moqi Weihan had remembered his promise, which was why he called them over. He glanced at Xuan Xuan.

Xuan Xuan nodded.

Moqi Weihan looked at the two of them, only now remembering what he had promised back then.

His face flushed with embarrassment, and he stammered, "Next time?"

"Next time?" Moqi Weihao scoffed. Did he think they could just close the amusement park after it opened, just to let the two of them have it to themselves again?

Pressed by Moqi Weihao's counterquestion, Moqi Weihan grew even more embarrassed. "Then what should we do?"

Moqi Weihao ignored him and, slightly annoyed, pulled Xuan Xuan toward the entrance of the amusement park.

Moqi Weihan had forgotten about his promise to invite Moqi Weihao and Xuan Xuan alone, but since it was the grand opening, he had invited many of his classmates. Having just started their holidays, everyone looked liberated and carefree.

Moqi Weihao frowned as he spotted one of them. *Why is he here?*

Xuan Xuan followed Moqi Weihao's gaze and saw Ai Zhe.

Xuan Xuan also found it strange. He hadn't joined their activities in a long time. Even though Xuan Xuan didn't pay much attention to political affairs, she knew the relationship between the Moqi family and the Zhan family was growing increasingly tense. For Ai Zhe to come to the Moqi family's amusement park at a time like this was highly unusual.

Furthermore, although Xuan Xuan thought of him as a bad-tempered young boy, he was generally not that immature. Why would he want to come here?

When Ai Zhe noticed Xuan Xuan looking over, his brow smoothed out a bit more than usual, and a hint of joy flickered in his eyes.

Ai Zhe was the quintessential model student. In everyone's eyes, he was the most hardworking of them all. Although he was somewhat cold and aloof, he was just as popular and sought-after in school as the Moqi brothers.

Ai Zhe had a delicate, refined appearance and wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses. Xuan Xuan hadn't even noticed when he had started wearing them. She didn't know if he was nearsighted—nearsightedness was extremely rare among citizens of the Federation—but after putting on the glasses, Ai Zhe had become even more quiet, hiding all his emotions behind the lenses.

He always seemed much more mature than his peers, showing no trace of childishness even among a group of students who were two years older than him.

Moqi Weihan curled his lip in displeasure and asked the person next to him, "Why did you invite him?"

The person beside him was clearly unaware of any issue and replied in confusion, "Didn't we say the whole class would come together?"

Moqi Weihan's face darkened. Even if they were coming together, they shouldn't have invited him.

For some reason, Moqi Weihan simply couldn't stand him. Who was he showing that stony face to all day long? Besides, he always looked so gloomy and sinister. Moqi Weihan felt certain he was up to no good. Furthermore, he was always staring at Xuan Xuan from behind. Did he think Moqi Weihan didn't notice just because he sat in front? Ai Zhe was constantly stealing glances at Xuan Xuan.

Moqi Weihan was convinced he had ulterior motives.

Although he didn't know the exact goal, the boy was definitely not a good person. None of the Ais were.

Despite his hostility toward Ai Zhe, Moqi Weihan didn't cause a scene. He merely snorted and gave him a cold shoulder.

Ai Zhe seemed completely oblivious, chatting with the classmates around him while occasionally keeping an eye on Xuan Xuan out of the corner of his eye.

Standing beside Xuan Xuan, Moqi Weihao couldn't help but frown as well. Ai Zhe's arrival was truly ill-timed, and it really didn't fit his usual style.

A sliver of vigilance arose in his heart. Though Moqi Weihao said nothing, he remained deeply wary of anyone from the Ai family.

Moqi Weihao was more composed than Moqi Weihan. Although he ignored Ai Zhe, he addressed the group, "Let's go in first. It will only get more crowded later."

"Wait a moment, someone else hasn't arrived yet," someone nearby quickly said.

Moqi Weihao scanned the surroundings and didn't notice anyone missing. "Who else?"

Before the person next to him could answer, Moqi Weihao saw someone walking over from the side.

Even from a distance, that person drew the gaze of most of the crowd. Clad in a white dress, she smiled gently with a hint of apology. "Sorry to keep everyone waiting. I was delayed by some matters."

Moqi Weihan's face darkened once more. He didn't even spare her a glance. What a thick-skinned person—who had invited her?

How could such a fine day be ruined by these people?

Xuan Guo, however, did not mind in the least. She hadn't felt well today and hadn't planned on coming out. Her focus now was not on the Moqi brothers, but on Ai Zhe.

Frowning slightly, she wondered why Ai Zhe had actually come to a place belonging to the Moqi family. She cast a puzzled look at him, feeling that she could never read his expressions.

Ai Zhe seemed not to see her at all, acting as if she didn't even exist.

Xuan Guo smiled beautifully, seemingly completely indifferent to the Moqi brothers' attitude toward her. Originally, she had wanted to take Xuan Xuan's place. But as she grew older, she realized it wasn't that simple. A much easier path was to make someone of even higher status than Xuan Xuan do everything for her.

Clearly, Ai Zhe was her target. Even if his gaze was fixed on Xuan Xuan, given the relationship between the Moqi and Ai families, it was impossible for them to ever be together.

Therefore, Ai Zhe could only be hers.

"Since I've made everyone wait so long, shall we head in?"

Xuan Guo's social skills were no joke; she was always the most popular girl in class.

"Guoguo, why are you here? Weren't you feeling unwell?" someone nearby asked quickly, seemingly worried about her health.

Xuan Guo appeared somewhat frail, her smile tinged with vulnerability. "Even if I'm not feeling well, we've just graduated. When everyone is gathering together, how could I let my condition spoil the mood?"

"Guoguo, you're far too considerate of us. Your health is what matters most."

Xuan Guo cast a shy, timid glance at Ai Zhe, and those around them smiled in sudden realization.

Everyone knew what was on Xuan Guo's mind, and they all felt sorry for her. Ai Zhe was truly far too oblivious to romance.

Moqi Weihan snorted again. *Her coming is what spoils the mood. She's so unlikable. It's not like she's made of paper. Besides, I'm the host, and when did I ever invite her? This woman is always so fake.*