Three years after our breakup, you came back to China, and I'm just giving up. Why are you cryi

"Um... don't get so excited." Lu Hao looked embarrassed.

Zhou Mengmeng seemed not to hear. When she came to her senses, she naturally squatted down, picked up the half chicken leg that was covered in dust on the ground, blew on it gently, and took a big bite.

Then, she leisurely walked to a chair next to her, crossed her long legs, and said in a nonchalant tone, "So, tell me, which girl have you ruined?"

"You should know Xiao Xiyue."

"Who?"

Zhou Mengmeng paused for a moment, glanced at Lu Hao, her eyes revealing no emotion, but her chewing slowed down slightly.

"It's... that woman outside the bar last time."

"Oh..." Zhou Mengmeng nodded as if she suddenly understood, casually tossed the nearly gnawed chicken leg bone onto the table, and then stretched out her fair little hand, palm up.

Give me the money.

"What money?" Lu Hao's heart skipped a beat.

"Your girlfriend," Zhou Mengmeng said matter-of-factly, "kicked me last time, didn't she throw money at me? For medical expenses."

Lu Hao's brows furrowed instantly, a strong sense of unease welling up inside him.

The problem isn't the money, but the unequivocal meaning behind her words.

This doesn't look like debt collection; it looks more like a reckoning.

Settle the score between them after two and a half years of friendship.

It was as if once the money was paid, he and this "good friend" who occupied an important place in his life would go their separate ways and have no further connection.

Lu Hao suddenly felt a tightness in his chest, as if an invisible hand was choking him, and he couldn't breathe properly.

He stared at Zhou Mengmeng's calm face for a long time before finally opening his mouth with difficulty, his voice a little hoarse: "How much do you want?"

"I'll take whatever you give me," Zhou Mengmeng said, leaving no room for negotiation.

"Let's pay in installments. I'll transfer part to you first." After Lu Hao finished speaking, he immediately picked up his phone and transferred 10,000 yuan to Zhou Mengmeng.

The money Xiao Xiyue spilled on the ground last time was at least twenty or thirty thousand.

It's not that he can't afford it, but a voice deep inside him is frantically telling him that he can't give it all at once.

Once it's all given, it's truly over.

With a "ding", the transfer notification sound rang.

"Ten thousand? You're really generous." Zhou Mengmeng took out her phone, looked at Lu Hao's transfer information, and smiled.

"I'll transfer the rest to you in several installments later."

"No."

Zhou Mengmeng uttered three words and put her phone away.

She pulled out a tissue, wiped the oil stains off her hands, didn't even glance at Lu Hao, got up and walked to the living room, pulled her suitcase and turned to leave.

Seeing her action, Lu Hao was taken aback and quickly asked, "Where are you going? Aren't you going to eat?"

"I have no appetite."

Zhou Mengmeng didn't look back, leaving behind only a resolute back view and three cold words.

"Bang!"

The door closed, extinguishing the last glimmer of hope in Lu Hao's heart.

He stood frozen in place, his brow furrowed.

Even if you have no appetite, you don't have to take your suitcase with you, do you?

It seems she really intends to keep the promise they made back then.

Lu Hao leaned back weakly in his chair, his eyes somewhat vacant.

Even though I had mentally prepared myself, when the moment actually arrived, the feeling of suffocation still overwhelmed me.

He let out a long breath and wiped his face hard.

"Let's eat first, the food's getting cold." Ning Shu walked over with her rice bowl and said softly, "I'll talk to Mengmeng later."

Lu Hao looked up at her concerned eyes, nodded slightly, and said wearily, "Yes, try to persuade her not to be too sad."

Ning Shu didn't say anything more, but silently sat down next to him, picked up her chopsticks, and kept putting food into his bowl.

Lu Hao absentmindedly ate a few bites, then couldn't swallow any more. He put down his chopsticks and said softly, "I'm full."

"No way." Ning Shu refused outright, picking up another piece of pork rib with her chopsticks and putting it into his bowl. "You usually eat two bowls of rice, but you didn't even finish half of it today. You have to finish this bowl."

"No, why do you care so much?" Lu Hao was annoyed by her tough attitude. He sat up straight and looked at her incredulously.

Ning Shu met his gaze defiantly, puffing out her small chest with an air of self-righteousness: "I'm your nutritionist, you have to listen to me when it comes to food!"

"You... I'm not eating today!" Lu Hao's temper flared up, and he crossed his arms, looking like a rogue who said, "What can you do about it?"

Ning Shu didn't waste any words with him. She took out her phone and dialed a number right in front of him.

"Who are you calling?" Lu Hao's ominous premonition resurfaced.

Ning Shuchong shook his phone screen, and the three words "Sister Xiyue" on it were particularly eye-catching.

"Don't!"

As soon as Lu Hao finished speaking, the call was connected, and Ning Shu deliberately pressed speakerphone.

"Hello, Ning Shu, what's wrong?" Xiao Xiyue's cool yet concerned voice came through the receiver.

"Sister Xiyue..." Ning Shu's tone changed 180 degrees, sounding aggrieved, "Lu Hao doesn't eat, and he's even stern with me."

"puff--"

Lu Hao almost spat out a mouthful of blood, his eyes wide open like copper bells, his face full of disbelief.

Goodness, with acting skills like that, it's a waste that she's not in the entertainment industry with Zhou Mengmeng!

"Let him answer the phone." Xiao Xiyue's voice was devoid of emotion.

Lu Hao looked down at the phone Ning Shu handed him, his bright eyes filled with smugness, a far cry from his previous pitiful expression.

He silently gave Ning Shu a thumbs up and mouthed, "You're awesome."

Then, resignedly, he took the phone, switching his voice to a gentle tone: "Xi Yue, I wasn't being mean to Ning Shu, it's just... I don't have much of an appetite."

"Where do you feel unwell?" Xiao Xiyue's voice softened.

"I don't feel unwell, I just don't really want to eat."

"Alright, if you don't want to eat, then don't. Don't force yourself. Get some rest and don't overwork yourself."

After hanging up the phone, Lu Hao breathed a sigh of relief, then looked at Ning Shu with amusement and said, "Ning Shu, you've really gotten to know how to tattle."

Ning Shu blushed, snatched the phone back from his hand, shrank back, and said in a soft voice, "Who...who told you to be disobedient?"

Seeing her cowardly yet smug expression, Lu Hao stopped teasing her, picked up his chopsticks again, and silently began to eat.

After chatting with Xiao Xiyue for a few minutes and hearing her voice, Lu Hao felt his previous gloomy mood vanish instantly.

Yes, now that I'm taken, why would I still be thinking about flirting with other women?

The promise she made with Zhou Mengmeng was prepared for this day; she was simply fulfilling her promise.

He had promised Xiao Xiyue that he would completely sever ties with those ambiguous relationships from the past.

Thinking about it this way, the gloom in my heart seemed to dissipate.

After finishing their meal, Lu Hao helped Ning Shu wash the dishes, subconsciously reminding her to lock the doors and windows before turning around and leaving the rented room.

He leaned against the door, but the image of Zhou Mengmeng pulling her suitcase and leaving flashed through his mind—that resolute figure.

Lu Hao took out his phone, tapped on that familiar profile picture, and found that the chat history was still from a month ago.

He hesitated for a moment, but ultimately didn't send anything. Just as he was about to lock his phone, he discovered that Zhou Mengmeng had returned the 10,000 yuan transfer.

Lu Hao was taken aback and quickly sent a message to ask what was going on.

What I got in return was a red exclamation mark!

I've been blocked.

Lu Hao gave a bitter laugh, helplessly put away his phone, then took out a cigarette, lit it, and walked downstairs in a daze.

That's fine, let it be.