Chapter 196 - Meng Renshu's Crazy Idea (1)

Li Caiyi looked up at the old building in front of her with her jaw hanging open. From its looks, the four-story building appeared like it used to be a three-star hotel before they abandoned it and were about to be demolished. However, that wasn't the part that astonished her.

This building was located in the same spot as the abandoned building in her previous life!

Li Caiyi didn't know that the area used for that abandoned building was once a hotel. The land used for this hotel was pretty spacious, so it should earn a considerable profit at its peak times. She wondered why this hotel was abandoned.

"What's wrong? Why do you look so surprised?" Meng Renshu asked after noticing she only stood in her place while staring blankly at the building.

"Brother Renshu, are you sure this is the place where Zhiqiang works?"

"Well, my source said that this place would be demolished soon, but they didn't find any proof that this place will be reconstructed or built into something else."

"So, you mean there was never any construction site here?"

"Not necessarily. There is a rumor about such a plan circulating around, but there is no clear evidence. It meant that there would probably be some construction plans in the future, but Dai Zhiqiang most likely isn't a worker here. How can someone work for a plan that doesn't exist?"

Li Caiyi stared at Meng Renshu in disbelief. "So you want to say that Zhiqiang is lying to us? But why would he lie about it?"

Meng Renshu sighed helplessly. "The building is still here, without a doubt. If he isn't lying, what kind of explanation would there be? We already made sure we didn't come to the wrong place, and there was no construction work here. Accept that fact."

His words were reasonable but sounded cold in her ears. Li Caiyi suddenly felt déjà vu. She felt the exact same feeling at the thought of Shen Qiang lying to her. This one was the most unexpected and ironic among all the similarities between Dai Zhiqiang and Shen Qiang. She didn't know what to feel about this new discovery. 

Meng Renshu studied Li Caiyi's crestfallen look closely, and irritation rose inside him. "Why would you think he would tell you the truth, anyway? If there is a reason he tries to hide his actual job from everyone, then isn't it clear that his job is anything but proper? There is no reason for him to hide it unless his job is not something he can tell you and his brother."

Li Caiyi bit her lips. She knew Dai Zhiqiang had no obligation to tell everything about himself to her. Still, there was a part of her that felt disappointed. It seemed she was the only one who thought there was some kind of connection between them. 

Apparently, she was the only one excited, while Dai Zhiqiang really didn't think of her that way. 

"I'm sure Zhiqiang has his own reasons. He is a person who cares for his family. There must be unavoidable circumstances if he even goes so far to hide it from his family."

Meng Renshu sneered. "What an admirable trust you have for him. I'm curious to know what that guy did to you to make you trust him so much?"

Li Caiyi sensed the animosity in Meng Renshu's tone, and she was confused as much as she didn't like it. What the hell was his problem now?

"At the very least, he never treated me like I'm just an additional person," Li Caiyi spat out harshly.

"Additional person?" Meng Renshu echoed her sentence in puzzlement.

"Yes. He treats me properly like a person who has will and emotions. Not some kind of spare or someone to be controlled."

Meng Renshu's face darkened when he heard that. His tone dropped to a dangerously chilling tone as he said, "Are you saying I'm treating you like that? Is it because I used to treat you the same as Xiaohua?"

Li Caiyi turned her face away, feeling stupid for venting her frustration to the current Meng Renshu. Any grievances she had been through in her previous life had no relation to the current him. She was aware of that, yet she really couldn't forget it. 

Those years of despair were not something she could easily brush away completely. 

"Answer me. Is that how you see me all this time? Even when I tried my best to fix my mistake, you still see me this way?" 

"Let's not talk about this. We have more important things in our hands, don't we?"

Meng Renshu scoffed mockingly. "Ha. You don't even want to talk to me because you worry so much about that guy."

"What are you talking about? We came here for that purpose, so this isn't the time to be talking about this."

"This conversation might not be important to you, but it is for me. Just what can I do to make you change your mind? I tried, you know. Several times. Although the method I use is not the best, I tried in my own way to understand you and to treat you better."

Li Caiyi was stunned to see hurt and hopelessness in his eyes. She couldn't understand why he was so fixated on her it could make him wear that expression.

"I have read your work."

"Huh?"

Meng Renshu smiled sadly. "Me, Xiaohua, and Junjie. We all read your first work. The one you submitted for the contest."

Li Caiyi blinked her eyes several times, clearly unprepared by the sudden change in the topic. "Why are you bringing this up now?"

"Xiaohua is the one who recommended us to read it. She said that we could probably understand you better after reading your story, so I read it. Every word you put into it amazed me. It was short but left a long-lasting impression on me. When I read it, I feel like I am finally a step closer to you."

Li Caiyi waited for him to finish his explanation. Meng Renshu stared at her sincerely before he said, "There were times when I felt I didn't know you, Xiaoyi. I guess Xiaohua and Junjie also vaguely noticed that. That feeling amplified after I read your story. I even came up with a crazy idea."

"What is it?"

"The concept of past and future in your story, do you think it relates somehow to my dreams?"

Li Caiyi: "!!!"