You're dumping me, huh? Fine, then I'll just pick up the school beauty and make her my wif

(This chapter has undergone some changes in its setting; please see the author's note in this chapter for details~)

This is what is called a wealthy family.

These are what parents are.

They treat their own daughter like merchandise, carefully packaging her up so that she can fetch a good price in the future.

No wonder Su Daqiang's family could be so ruthless. After all, even her parents treated her this way, so how could she expect her uncle Su Daqiang to treat her well?

It's likely that in the eyes of the Su family, Su Qinghe was never a relative, but simply a valuable commodity.

"Actually, I've always known."

As Su Qinghe spoke, tears streamed down her face. She cried and laughed at the same time, "They never loved me. There is no one in this world who loves me."

"Only you, Jiang Che, only you..."

She slowly tightened her grip on Jiang Che's hand, then met his gaze, tilted her tear-streaked face up, and gave him a faint smile, her eyes full of hope.

"You are the only person who is good to me, the only person who cares about me."

Su Qinghe could no longer suppress her emotions. She broke free from the boy's hand and threw herself into his arms, tightly wrapping her arms around his waist.

"I don't want to be a commodity, I want to be a person, a living, breathing human being."

"You're all I have left, Jiang Che. Take me home, don't abandon me, okay?"

Jiang Che thought of many words to comfort Su Qinghe, but the girl in his arms was crying so hard that she clearly couldn't listen to anything at this moment.

Helpless, he could only reach out and gently hug her, pulling her a little tighter into his arms.

After Su Qinghe calmed down a bit, Jiang Che held her shoulders and pushed her away slightly.

Then, he stared intently into her eyes and said, word by word, "From now on, no one will dare treat you like a commodity."

"From now on, I will protect you. You will not be harmed again unless I die."

Su Qinghe was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter through her tears, but it didn't last more than a few seconds before she started crying again in large drops.

She stammered to Jiang Che, "Thank you, Jiang Che, thank you for not abandoning me..."

Jiang Che took a tissue from her pocket, bent down, and carefully wiped away the tears on her cheeks. "What are you babbling about? You're my future wife, how could I possibly abandon you?"

Su Qinghe was stunned. She tilted her head back blankly and asked incredulously, "What...what did you just say?"

But at this moment, Jiang Che smiled without saying a word, which made the little girl anxious, tugging at his sleeve and shaking it, "Hurry up and tell me..."

"You really want to know?"

Suddenly, Jiang Che reached out and cupped Su Qinghe's head in his hands, then bent down and leaned closer, instantly closing the distance between them.

Su Qinghe could clearly feel Jiang Che's breathing. She subconsciously held her breath. Although she couldn't see him, she knew that they were very close to each other.

Unconsciously, my heart began to pound erratically.

At this moment, time seems to stand still.

The turn of events happened so fast that she felt like she was dreaming.

She was afraid that once she woke up from the dream, she would return to that dark and shabby little room, and there would be no one kind to her by her side anymore.

"think……"

After a long pause, Su Qinghe asked Jiang Che cautiously, her voice trembling, "I want to know, were you confessing your feelings to me just now?"

She asked very carefully, afraid that if she raised her voice even slightly, this beautiful dream would be shattered.

Looking at her small face so close to his own, Jiang Che could see a hint of anticipation and joy in her eyes.

Before uttering those four words, he had carefully examined his own conscience.

Although it only took two or three days from being dumped by Lin Wanwan to finding Su Qinghe and spending time with her.

Anyone would call him a scumbag for that speed; after all, it's a seamless transition, and to put it bluntly, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he was lustful at first sight.

But Jiang Che was very clear that he had fallen for Su Qinghe.

Call him a scumbag or say he was lustful.

Undeniably, he already felt an urge to protect Su Qinghe for the rest of his life.

But for now... they can't be together yet.

Jiang Che wasn't the kind of person who would be easily blinded by impulse. It was one thing for him to like Su Qinghe, but it was another thing to be together with her after they established a relationship.

One of the biggest reasons is that they are still high school students.

Although puppy love is not uncommon in today's society and the public is very tolerant, Su Qinghe is different.

Judging from Su Qinghe's behavior these past two days, she's definitely a hopeless romantic.

If they were to become a couple, Jiang Che was genuinely worried that the girl would neglect her studies because of her relationship, causing her grades to drop and ultimately preventing her from getting into a top university.

"Hmm... I might have to disappoint you. Although it's a confession, we can't be together right now."

Their foreheads parted, and Jiang Che looked at Su Qinghe's bewildered expression and couldn't help but smile. "Of course, the reason I'm rejecting you isn't because I don't like you, but precisely because I like you, so I have to reject you."

"Call me old-fashioned or conservative, but my point is very clear: we cannot officially establish a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship before the college entrance examination is over."

Su Qinghe clearly didn't understand Jiang Che's reason for doing this, "Why...?"

"Well……"

Jiang Che scratched his head. If he were to seriously answer why, he really wouldn't be able to.

Because I always feel that no matter what he says, it's like he's stringing people along and making empty promises.

He could only roughly organize his thoughts, "In short, if we get together now, it will have a negative impact on both you and me."

"But I can promise you, as soon as the college entrance exam is over, we'll be together immediately, okay?"

A hint of disappointment flashed across Su Qinghe's pretty face. She pouted slightly, and the hope in her eyes gradually dimmed.

But thinking of Jiang Che's last promise, the girl's hope was rekindled; she felt that Jiang Che wouldn't lie to her.

So, Su Qinghe raised her small face again, gave Jiang Che a slight smile, and said, "Okay~"

Seeing this obedient appearance, Jiang Che was immediately filled with guilt, feeling that he was a terrible person.

The two remained silent for a while before Jiang Che finally spoke again.

"You might not believe it, but I've actually stopped liking Lin Wanwan a long time ago."

This wasn't meant to comfort Su Qinghe or deceive her. After thinking about it for the past few days, Jiang Che was certain that he had long since lost feelings for Lin Wanwan.

That feeling called "heartbeat".

Every moment he was with Su Qinghe, his heart would involuntarily race and pound uncontrollably.

But not when he was with Lin Wanwan.

To be precise, it never happened. Jiang Che didn't know why he had pursued Lin Wanwan so intensely back then.

Maybe he's just missing a screw in his head.

Jiang Che chuckled self-deprecatingly, "Right now, I look no different from a scumbag, do I?"

Su Qinghe didn't answer him. She was still immersed in Jiang Che's words of rejection of her confession and couldn't pull herself out of it for a long time.

In fact, she was fully prepared for Jiang Che to brush her off with words like "just kidding" or "to comfort you."

Although he rejected her, he promised to be with her after the college entrance exam...

Su Qinghe was at a loss for what to do.

Her experiences over the past eighteen years have shaped her into an extremely sensitive and insecure person.

She was used to being ignored, disliked, and treated as a burden.

Suddenly, someone cupped her face and said he liked her, promising to establish a relationship with her later.

This feeling is so unreal...

Is he serious about this? Or is it just a passing fancy, or...?

Su Qinghe bit her lip, her eyes gradually becoming somewhat obsessive.

No, she didn't care whether Jiang Che was serious or just playing around.

No, we absolutely cannot let him get away.

Since he has chosen to be bound to her, then absolutely, absolutely, we cannot let him go.

He belongs to her, and can only belong to her.

Su Qinghe took a deep breath, and the thought of wanting to meld the person in front of her into her very bones and completely possess her grew wildly in her heart like weeds.

Even if it's a lie, it's fine.

Even just a few days would be fine.

She wanted to hold on tight.

"He's not a jerk..."

Su Qinghe reached out with trembling hands and groped her way to hug Jiang Che's waist.

Let's get people under control first.

Whether it's a delaying tactic or you genuinely have a reason for not being able to be with me for the time being, I like you, I like you a lot.

She buried her face in Jiang Che's chest, greedily inhaling his pleasant scent.

After spending a few days together, Jiang Che had already absorbed her scent.

He belongs to her alone.

Even if it means feigning helplessness, using one's body, or employing every possible means.

She also wanted to keep this man by her side.