Didn’t you say you were just using me as a substitute?

Kitahara Tsutomu unscrewed the bottle cap and drank it in big gulps. The water droplets rolled in his throat, making "gurgling" and "gurgling" sounds.

Hayasaka Ai stared at Kitahara Takashi's Adam's apple rolling up and down, and for some reason, she suddenly wanted to take a bite.

"Phew, feel good."

Kitahara Takashi drank half a bottle of water in one breath, then turned his head to look at Hayasaka Ai: "Miss, what's your name?"

"My name is Smithy A. Hasaka."

You definitely can't use your real name.

Hayasaka Ai simply made one up on the spot.

Anyway, she is mixed-race, one-quarter Irish.

"I'll just call you Smithy, and my name is Kitahara Takashi."

Kitahara Takashi curled his lips slightly, looked at Hayasaka Ai with a smile but did not expose her.

If you want to play, I will play with you slowly.

"Did Miss Smithy come to the island country for a tour?"

"No, I grew up on an island country and currently study at Ferris Girls' Academy. Kitahara-kun, how about you?"

"Shuchiin."

Hayasaka Ai's face froze.

She didn't understand why Kitahara Takashi mentioned Shuchiin.

Could it be that he saw through himself?

No, he and I should have never met.

"The famous Qingye Reading."

Hayasaka Ai finally relaxed: "Is this so?"

Kitahara Takashi looked at Hayasaka Ai, who was nervous at times and relaxed at others, and roughly judged the level of this opponent.

Vulnerable type.

If he were faced with this situation, he would say "Oh, really?" without batting an eyelid.

No matter what, we must not lose our composure.

This is the composure of a man who has experienced countless Shuras.

"Miss Smithy, do you like baseball? I see you seem to know a lot about it."

"Yes, my dream since I was a child has been to marry a professional baseball player."

Hayasaka Ai crossed her fingers and acted as if she was praying, acting like it was real.

She actually likes the shit out of baseball.

Whenever she was unhappy, she would appear here.

'She absolutely hates baseball.'

Kitahara Takashi judged this almost immediately.

From the moment Hayasaka Ai suddenly approached him, he knew that this woman definitely approached him with a purpose.

She started lying about her name and Kitahara Takashi didn't believe anything she said.

"She must have been sent by Kaguya Shinomiya."

Kitahara Takashi didn't know the relationship between Hayasaka Ai and Shinomiya Kaguya, but he had a good guess. They were both from Shuchiin, and the only one he had a grudge against was Shinomiya Kaguya.

"I came here to vent."

Kitahara Takashi leaned back in his chair and looked up at the sky.

"vent……"

Hayasaka Ai was stunned and thought, 'What a coincidence'.

"Kitahara-kun, do you have any worries even though you look like this?"

"Ms. Smithy, don't look at me like this, I'm actually a scumbag."

Kitahara Takashi began to self-destruct.

The other party must have known that he is a scumbag, so it is necessary for him to whitewash his image.

Hayasaka Ai was stunned again.

Why doesn't he play by the rules?

"I don't think Kitahara-kun is that kind of person!"

Hayasaka Ai comforted her.

"Don't be deceived by appearances. A scumbag won't have it written all over his face."

Beiyuan Zun tilted her head, looked at me and smiled: "What if I really am the kind of person you think I am?"

"I trust my instincts."

Hayasaka Ai's clear blue eyes looked directly at Kitahara Takashi, her eyes full of trust in him.

"Well, even if you are really a scumbag, Kitahara-kun, you must have some unspeakable secrets."

"It's not that I have a secret, it's just that my parents passed away early and didn't leave me any property. I became a scumbag because I was short of money."

The slanting light of the setting sun passed through the shade of the trees and shone through the window onto the boy's handsome face, making it appear slightly yellow.

"How else can I study? How can I survive in Tokyo?"

Kitahara Takashi said he didn't care at all, but Hayasaka Ai felt a little bit of heartache for him for no reason.

Yes.

He has no one to rely on.

He has to support his own talent.

"Miss Smithy, do you know that before I came to Tokyo, there was a girl in my hometown in Hokkaido who was going to be my girlfriend?"

"We were neighbors, childhood sweethearts, and even agreed to get married after graduating from high school."

"It was only because of something that happened to my parents that I started to distance myself from her. I was so self-conscious at the time. How could I give her the future she wanted when I couldn't even support myself?"

Hayasaka Ai stared at Kitahara Takashi in a trance, as if she saw the real him behind the cold information.

She asked softly, "What happened next?"

"Later, when I saw her again, she was with another boy. From then on, I knew that she no longer belonged to me."

“I’m a rather insecure person.”

"I'm most afraid of running out of money."

"Without money, I dare not even speak loudly."

"For me, money is my sense of security and my greatest confidence."

"With money, I can continue my studies, hang out with a few friends, and change myself."

"My biggest dream is to become rich so I can confront anyone and stop trying to please those I don't like. I can just show my displeasure."

"Let me once again express my feelings loudly to the person I like."

177

Chapter 177 He is not that kind of person.

Late at night, in the master bedroom of the Shigong mansion.

Shinomiya Kaguya, who had just finished her bath and changed into thin, soft pajamas, waited for Hayasaka Ai to finish blow-drying her hair before saying, "How was your time with him today?"

Hayasaka Ai naturally knew who Shinomiya Kaguya was referring to. After thinking for a moment, she said, "It feels good. He's not what I imagined."

"A parasite that will die without a woman's support, what's the difference?"

Flipping through "The Flower of Hell", Shinomiya Kaguya spoke casually.

"Miss Kaguya, please don't say that about him."

Hayasaka Ai felt a little uncomfortable after hearing what Shinomiya Kaguya said.

"He's not the kind of person you think he is."

Shinomiya Kaguya: "?"

"Miss Kaguya, do you know how difficult it is for a high school student with no one to rely on to survive in a big city like Tokyo?"

If she hadn't tried to understand Kitahara Takashi, perhaps she would have had the same idea as Shinomiya Kaguya.

But after knowing what Kitahara Takashi had experienced, she could no longer look at him with the same eyes as before.

Hayasaka Ai felt a little sorry for this big boy.

As high school students, while other children were still spending their parents' money to enjoy a happy high school life, he had already started to fight against life.

When people mention Tokyo, the first thing that comes to mind is its bright lights, wine and women, and extravagance.

But hidden beneath the bright and prosperous lights is suffocating high pressure.

Ordinary people have to use all their skills just to survive in Tokyo, not to mention that Kitahara Takashi has to balance his studies while making money.

Hayasaka Ai couldn't understand how he managed to hold on.

If it were her, she would most likely not be able to hold on.

Although the Shinomiya family has many rules, they also give a lot.

It is almost impossible for high school students to survive in Tokyo by working part-time without relying on their parents.

Now it seems that it is not difficult to understand why Kitahara Tsutomu serves as a gigolo for the young ladies. It can even be said to be the only way out.

"Hayasaka, you're my man, and you're actually speaking for Kitahara Takashi? Whose side are you on?"

Shinomiya Kaguya was displeased when she saw Hayasaka Ai actually speaking up for Kitahara Takashi.

No, you still protected it?

You've only been with Kitahara Tsutomu for less than a day, and you're already protecting him?

If I let you stay with him for a few more days, won't you stab me in the back like some Ma Po?

Shinomiya Kaguya couldn't understand what kind of magic this Kitahara Tsutomu had that made everyone willing to spend money to support him and protect him.

"I'm on your side. You can't judge a person by appearance alone. Don't jump to conclusions before you get to know them."

Hayasaka Ai spoke in a neither humble nor arrogant tone.

"enough."

Today, she was offended by Kitahara Takashi and warned by Yozakura Hitomi. She was very unhappy about the insults she received from him.

Now even Hayasaka Ai is speaking up for him.

One can imagine how bad Shinomiya Kaguya's mood is right now.

"You go down first, I want to sleep."

"Yes."

Hayasaka Ai knew that it was useless for her to just talk, and only by letting Shinomiya Kaguya personally contact Kitahara Takashi would she know who the other person was.

"Good night, Miss Kaguya."

Hayasaka Ai closed the door gently, walked through the quiet, tidy, spotless corridor, and returned to her own room.

After locking the door, Hayasaka Ai did not feel relaxed physically or mentally after returning to her room. Instead, she felt even worse.

Because she had to report in detail to her family about Kaguya Shinomiya's every word and action.

"Oh? So you're in contact with Kitahara Takashi now?"

Shigong Huangguang's voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Yes."