Chapter 526 - Chapter 526: Chapter 526: Yang Lao Sans Final Guess (1/2)

Chapter 526: Chapter 526: Yang Lao San’s Final Guess

Yang Zhen’er slapped Tang Baona’s shoulder, saying: “It’s Old Xia!”

“What’s wrong with Old Xia?” Tang Baona was a bit confused, “Apart from being smarter and having a higher IQ than most people, what else is special about Old Xia?”

“That’s why we say ‘the lamp overlooks its own base’, because we are too familiar with Old Xia, especially me. I practically watched her grow up and her ‘specialness’ has become a norm.” Yang Zhen’er said confidently.

Tang Baona laughed, “Didn’t you used to bring Old Xia around your classmates? They don’t know her that well. Did they notice anything ‘extraordinary’ about her?”

“It’s different. They’re too ‘unfamiliar’ with her. You know as well as I do, when Old Xia meets someone for the first time, she will silently observe them from the sidelines, never seeking attention and rarely speaking. My friends have only met her once or twice because whenever I invite her out to play, she won’t come. So in their eyes, my cousin is a beautiful, yet introverted, and even somewhat aloof beauty. Apart from you, I don’t have many friends who can accurately say they understand Old Xia.” Yang Zhen’er explained.

Recalling what had been said, Tang Baona nodded, “That seems to be the case … The reason I am an exception is probably because we were neighbors when we were little and now we live together. Whenever you wanted to hang out with Old Xia, I was there. Huh … wait, the real exception is Xiang Kun!”

“That’s right! Brother Xiang is the exception!” Yang Zhen’er said mysteriously with her arm wrapped around her friend’s shoulder, “Do you remember when we were talking about Xiang Kun’s university days with Old Liu and Brother Bin? They all said that he changed a lot this year … no, last year. We originally thought it was a change caused by his company going bankrupt and him becoming unemployed, but now it seems, I guess … the reason for Xiang Kun’s change could possibly have been meeting Old Xia!”

At first, Tang Baona was listening attentively, but by the end, she couldn’t help laughing: “You’re making wild guesses again. Didn’t Brother Bin and the others tell us what the main changes in Xiang Kun were? He got bulkier, and he went bald. But he was already a burly bald man when he met us!”

However, Yang Zhen’er replied seriously, “We were misled by his baldness the whole time! Didn’t you notice that Brother Xiang has undergone a huge change compared to when we first met him? When we first met him, he was just starting to learn how to cook. Now, he can even open a restaurant. You know how his dishes taste, right? And how long has it been? There’s plenty more changes, I can’t list them all right now but it’s drastically different compared to when we first met him!”

Tang Baona was still a bit amused, “So your theory has shifted from ‘a secret organization recruited Xiang Kun’ to ‘the mysterious Old Xia transformed Xiang Kun’?”

“On second thought, Old Xia has been far from ordinary since she was a kid. Let me tell you a story. When Old Xia was in elementary school, probably around second or third grade, my aunt and uncle had to travel abroad. The aunt that usually took care of Old Xia suddenly fell ill and was hospitalized, so Old Xia temporarily moved in with us. One day, I was watching TV at home and Old Xia came over and calmly asked me if I had any alcohol and cotton swabs. I was absorbed in watching TV at that time, so I told her to look for them in my dad’s study. After I finished watching TV, I turned around and saw Old Xia treating a large scrape on her arm and knee herself! I was utterly shocked, but Old Xia treated her own wounds, rinsing them with hydrogen peroxide without even frowning. I innocently asked her if it hurt, she said it did, and then she even described to me in detail how the pain feels, comparing it to other types of injuries…”

Yang Zhen’er spoke with a gloomy expression, Tang Baona winced as well, almost as if recalling her own childhood experiences of falling off a bike and scraping up her knees, “That does sound like Old Xia.”

“But the problem is, Old Xia was only in elementary school at the time! She was only seven or eight years old. How could she stand the pain of such injuries, and how could she calmly treat her own wounds? Back then, other than feeling sorry for Old Xia’s fall, I didn’t think much of it. Now that I think back, I realize that Old Xia has exhibited many extraordinary behaviors since she was young!”

Yang Zhen’er continued, “Do you remember when Old Xia started junior high, and I called you and a few other friends to go to Old Xia’s school?”

Tang Baona laughed, “Of course I remember. You heard from someone’s sister that a few girls at Old Xia’s school disliked her and wanted to teach her a lesson, right? So you called all of us to go stand up for her. But when we confronted the girl who seemed to be the ringleader at the school gate, as soon as we mentioned that we were Xia Libing’s sisters, she immediately greeted us warmly, saying ‘if you’re Bing’s sisters, then you’re my sisters’. Her quick response was honestly unmatched!”

“Right, that day we assumed that the girl was just scared of our numbers and so she reacted quickly. But I later found out from my friend’s sister that those girls started calling Old Xia ‘Sister Bing’ in school before we went there, although I don’t know exactly what happened, they must have submitted to Old Xia.”

“So were they beaten up by Old Xia?” Tang Baona asked in confusion, “But apart from the time she beat up the trafficker, I don’t seem to have seen Old Xia get physical.”

“I don’t know how she did it, but from a young age, Old Xia has always been a loner and apart from the times where I forcibly keep her by my side, she basically never plays or meets with other people. But from a young age, regardless of which school she is in, it feels like she has not a single friend, and yet it also feels like everyone is her friend. Very bizarre. Nana, tell me, besides Old Xia, have you seen anyone else like this?” said Yang Zhen’er.

“Uh, you’re right … Old Xia is rather unique in that regard.”

“Why retain a distance from everyone when she could be well-liked? Why be a loner when she could make many friends?” Yang Zhen’er mysteriously pointed out, “This means Old Xia has a secret! She doesn’t want to get too close to people for fear of her secret being discovered.”

An exasperated Tang Baona asked, “Are you suggesting that Old Xia has had a secret since grade school?”