The next morning, the temperature dropped sharply.

The Qu family’s entire villa was shrouded in a cold mist. In the garden courtyard, Yang Mei was dressed particularly demurely. There was an expectant smile on her lips as if she was waiting for someone to arrive. She gazed eagerly at the intersection, from time to time, she would lower her head to look at the time.

When Qu Xiao arrived at the Qu family’s house, she unexpectedly met Yang Mei’s gaze for a moment. Both of them were somewhat stunned.

Yang Mei stared at her with a disgusted expression and asked, “Why are you here?”

Qu Xiao was about to answer when Yang Mei suddenly walked behind her with a bright smile as she said, “Miss Zhang, thank you for specially coming here to visit us! I’ve already asked the nanny to prepare snacks and tea. Let’s go in and chat!” Yang Mei’s warm attitude made Miss Zhang feel a little awkward. She pushed her black-rimmed glasses gently with her hand and noticed Qu Xiao beside her. She introduced herself and said, “I’m Qu Qi’s teacher. May I ask who are you…?”

Qu Xiao pursed her lips. “I’m Qu Xiao.” Yang Mei frowned and hurriedly interrupted Qu Xiao. “She’s not important. Don’t worry about her.” She used her body to block Miss Zhang and Qu Xiao and invited Miss Zhang to the living room to sit.

Qu Xiao followed behind them and entered. When Mr. Qu stood up to welcome Miss Zhang, he saw Qu Xiao and immediately looked unhappy. However, in Miss Zhang’s presence, he could only suppress his emotions and gesture for the butler to pour a cup of tea for Qu Xiao. He warned Qu Xiao through his eyes not to create any trouble.

Miss Zhang took out a report card from her briefcase. She said seriously, “I’m here for a home visit today because Qu Qi’s grades have been dropping rapidly recently. I’d like to know how is her studying at home. Is it because of family factors that she can’t concentrate on her studies?”

Yang Mei’s face stiffened for a moment. She clutched the report card and forced out an ugly smile.

Qu Xiao sipped on her cup of tea slowly. Yang Mei saw her smirk and immediately mocked her, “Miss Zhang, you probably don’t know about our family’s situation. Qu Qi’s sister just returned from abroad and Qu Xiao has already made her sick from anger!”

“Qu Qi has been on good terms with her sister since she was young. Recently, she has been very worried about her sister’s health and only go to sleep very late. This may have affected her studies.”

Yang Mei deliberately pushed the blame onto Qu Xiao. “Qu Xiao is an undergrad who doesn’t study hard. She is extreme and selfish. Qu Qi is always getting negatively influenced by her!”

Miss Zhang quietly sized up Qu Xiao. It was as if she believed in Yang Mei’s fabrications and saw her as a problematic student.

Qu Xiao sneered and gently put down the teacup. She lowered her eyes and said softly, “Auntie Yang, you can say that I’m extreme and selfish, but Qu Qi’s decline in her academic results has nothing to do with me.”

“When father brought me home, I knew that I was an outsider. I never dared to hope that you would be able to accept me. I just wanted a family! But Qu Qi often bullied me, pointed at me and scolded me, saying that I was a bastard raised by father outside.”

Qu Xiao explained with a sobbing tone. Yang Mei and Mr. Qu’s faces became more and more embarrassed.

Miss Zhang looked at Qu Xiao’s reddened eyes in a daze. She did not doubt her words at all, and even felt a little sympathy for her.

“Recently, Qu Qi has been busy eating and drinking at clubs with all sorts of friends. Last weekend, she invited Qu Zhen to the clubhouse, saying that she was celebrating her return to China. In the end, Qu Qi accidentally implicated Qu Zhen’s boyfriend, causing her to fall ill.”

“I once advised Qu Qi not to hang out with that group of rich heirs, but she would not listen to me.”

Qu Xiao wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. Miss Zhang took out two tissues from her pocket and handed them to her. She patted her shoulder softly to comfort her, “Don’t cry. You haven’t done anything wrong. Your background isn’t something you can choose, but your future path is something you can decide through hard work.”

“Mr. Qu, when Qu Qi returns, you must educate her properly. Otherwise, she will go down the wrong path!”

Mr. Qu nodded his head awkwardly. Looking at Qu Xiao’s teasing eyes, anger surged in his heart, but he couldn’t explode on the spot. He could only force a loving smile on his face. “Xiao, let us chat with Miss Zhang. You should return to your room for a while!”

Mr. Qu’s eyes were filled with threat. Qu Xiao shrugged her shoulders but didn’t refute him. She stood up and walked to the second floor.

“Miss Zhang, you can chat with Auntie Yang. I’ll go to the study to read…”

Qu Xiao intentionally stopped and turned around to speak. As expected, Miss Zhang’s gaze towards her became gentler and kinder. On the other hand, Yang Mei clenched her fists as though she wanted to tear her apart as she stared at her back.