Forced into a romantic relationship.

She got up and placed the gift box on the table, which was now piled high with gift boxes, but she didn't open any of them, presumably planning to admire them slowly that evening.

Seeing Xiao Xiaoxiao's beaming face, Zhong Yin nudged Han Zhou's arm and asked in a low voice, "Did you prepare a gift for Xiaoxiao?"

"Of course," Han Zhou said confidently.

"Xiaoxiao is really looking forward to your gift, so please don't just give her a perfunctory one."

"I see."

Han Zhou plans to give Xiao Xiao a pair of earrings. The material is slightly different from before. This is the pinnacle of his current hand-carving skills. There is no doubt about his sincerity and quality. He believes Xiao Xiao will like them.

Just then, Xiao Xiaoxiao suddenly walked over and handed him the things she was holding in her arms: "Here, the New Year's money you were promised."

Han Zhou was taken aback. He saw that Xiao Xiaoxiao was holding an adorable little piggy bank, painted in gold and with the character "福" (fortune) written on it, making it look particularly festive.

It's worth mentioning that the piggy bank has faded in some places, indicating that it's quite old. However, Han Zhou is certain that Xiao Xiaoxiao didn't have this piggy bank until she returned from Teacher Ouyang's hometown. So where did it come from?

Could it be... that it was found in one's own home?

Han Zhou's heart skipped a beat. The mysterious brocade pouch had mentioned that his family was hiding some secrets, and perhaps this piggy bank was one of them.

He weighed the piggy bank in his hand and found it was heavier than he had expected. There was only a slight rattling sound inside, which meant that the piggy bank was almost full, containing both coins and banknotes. If he were to break it open, he would probably get quite a bit of money.

Seriously... When this guy works part-time at the cafeteria every day, doesn't he ever think about this money?

Seeing Xiao Xiaoxiao's smug and arrogant expression, Han Zhou was filled with mixed feelings. In the end, he simply raised his hand and gently patted the girl's head.

"Thank you."

Xiao Xiaoxiao clearly hadn't expected his reaction. Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she turned her head away awkwardly. To cover her embarrassment, she quickly held out her hand and said, "Where's my birthday present!"

Han Zhou smiled and took out a small gift box from his pocket. Compared to the guzheng gift box, it was tiny. But Xiao Xiaoxiao snatched it away and immediately opened it to check.

They were a pair of small and exquisite gemstone earrings. At first glance, they looked like two birds with outstretched wings, but upon closer inspection, they were more like the shape of a flower, with yellow and blue leaves and two blue gemstones adorning the "beaks," making them very delicate.

Everyone crowded around, exclaiming in amazement; clearly, they were all stunned by the earrings.

Xiao Xiaoxiao carefully examined the earrings in her hand, seemingly reluctant to put them down, but muttered to herself, "Why are there earrings again? I can hardly wear them all."

“Xiaoxiao, this isn’t an earring, it’s a hoop,” Ouyang Lianyu corrected.

"Is there any difference?" Xiao Xiaoxiao asked, feigning dissatisfaction.

Ouyang Lianyu didn't know what the difference was, so she could only look at Han Zhou.

The latter coughed lightly and said in a serious tone, "Of course there is a difference. Earrings are for children, while earrings are for adults. The two have completely different meanings."

"You're just talking nonsense..."

Xiao Xiaoxiao pouted, but did not refute. Instead, she asked curiously, "What kind of flower is this? I've never seen it before."

"Strelitzia reginae, also known as bird of paradise."

Mo Yixia, standing to the side, said calmly, "The flower's meaning is to love and stay together, and never forget to wait."

Seeing everyone's eyes fixed on him, their expressions incredibly strange, Han Zhou stiffened: "I just thought this flower was pretty and suitable for earring design, that's all..."

He didn't expect that Mo Yixia even knew about such a niche flower.

"Has anyone said you have ulterior motives?" Gu Zheng said irritably.

Amidst the laughter of the crowd, Xiao Xiaoxiao solemnly closed the gift box, a bright smile appearing on her face.

"Thank you, I like it very much."

Chapter 715 Roundtable Conference

The sixth day of the first lunar month is the Beginning of Spring.

Six days had passed since Lunar New Year's Eve, and only one day remained of the Spring Festival holiday. As the smoke from fireworks and firecrackers dissipated, the already dwindling festive atmosphere in Lincheng gradually faded away. Many unfortunate office workers boarded the high-speed trains for their return journey early, and who knows, they might be working like slaves at their companies right now.

Fortunately, Han Zhou was not one of them.

Although it was the beginning of spring, Han Zhou felt no signs of spring arriving. The weather was still cold, and the only change was that it stopped snowing, so he didn't have to go out to shovel snow every day.

Logically speaking, since he lives upstairs, there's no need for him to go downstairs to shovel snow every day. However, a small change in circumstances has led to him now living in Zhong Yin's house.

It wasn't that someone came to collect a debt during the Lunar New Year; rather, on the night of the third day of the Lunar New Year, a naughty child pointed fireworks at his window, causing it to shatter. Fortunately, no one was home at the time, so no one was injured.

Even so, he still found the parents of that bratty child and demanded that they compensate for the losses and apologize. Although the family was very stubborn, he only needed to use a little trickery to get the compensation smoothly. However, it was still during the Chinese New Year, and he couldn't find a worker who could repair windows, so he came to Zhong Yin's house to stay temporarily.

Despite having a very special relationship with the Jong-eun sisters, Han-joo felt bad about eating and living there for free, so he would help with some housework every day.

The reason he didn't go back to his rented house but came here instead was not only because there wasn't enough room in the house, but also because he wanted to work on the sisters' mindset.

Neither Zhong Yin nor Zhong Ling were oblivious; they had already vaguely sensed something during this time. Zhong Yin, in particular, had been subtly questioned by the other party about his plans after returning to the past.

This time, however, Han Zhou did not choose to hide it.

He knew very well that if he chose to keep it a secret, even if he eventually managed to save the two of them, once the truth came out, it would probably still haunt them for the rest of their lives.

So he confessed everything, and after two days of unsuccessful persuasion, he convened this "roundtable meeting" today.

Including Han Zhou himself, there were a total of eight people attending this meeting, who were all the people who participated in the last trip, except for Lin Anyu and Lin Youya.

As soon as everyone sat down, Han Zhou immediately explained the whole story and made his stance clear—he was determined to go back in time and save the Zhong sisters, no matter what.

The Zhong sisters also made their stance clear—they absolutely disagreed with Han Zhou taking the risk.

This led to a heated debate between the two sides. Han Zhou, representing the affirmative side, argued that he had to be responsible for everyone around him, regardless of the relationship between the three of them. Even if it was just to fulfill a promise to their parents, he had to be responsible for them to the end.

Zhong Yin, representing the opposing side, argued that even if Han Zhou did nothing, they might not be in any danger. On the contrary, once Han Zhou took action, he might disappear from the world completely, just as everyone had dreamed.

Han Zhou, representing the affirmative side, reiterated that this might be their only chance in their lives, and if successful, in addition to saving the Zhong sisters, they might also have the opportunity to bring their parents back.

Meanwhile, Zhong Ling, another representative from the opposing side, responded softly that if their parents were still alive, they would never allow Han Zhou to take such a risk.

With both sides sticking to their own arguments, the two sides reached a stalemate. Finally, after discussion, they decided to hold a vote.

Before the vote, Han Zhou said earnestly, "Sister Yin, senior, this is the fairest way. No matter the result, you must accept it."

Zhong Yin frowned: "The fact that you can say something like that means you already know the outcome, right?"

At this point, she swept her cold gaze across everyone present. "I hope everyone will consider this carefully. I don't think anyone wants to see the ending of their dream repeat itself, right?"

"But Sister Yin, if Han Zhou does nothing, his fate might be the same as yours and Senior's," Xiao Xiaoxiao couldn't help but remind her.

"No one can say for sure what will happen before it happens," Zhong Yin said, shaking his head.

"I agree with this view."

Mo Yixia rested her chin on her hand and said slowly, "But Han Zhou obviously doesn't think so, and you can't stop him."

"I may not be able to stop you, but you can."

Zhong Yin looked at Mo Yixia, her expression softening, her tone almost pleading, "Yixia, please, ask Han Zhou to give up. If Xiaoling and I really disappear, that's our fate, we accept it."

Mo Yixia remained silent.

Zhong Yin had no choice but to look at Gu Zheng again: "Gu Zheng, Han Zhou will definitely listen to you. Can you persuade him? Don't you want him to belong to you alone? I like him too. If I disappear, you'll have one less competitor, won't you?"

Gu Zheng remained silent, her gaze fixed on Han Zhou, lost in thought.

"And you, Xiaoya, do you still firmly believe that Han Zhou is omnipotent?"

Zhong Yin then looked at Wang Lengqiu. In order to bring the other party to her senses, she deliberately used the name "Xiaoya" to remind her not to treat her like an innocent and ignorant child anymore.

But this seemed to have the opposite effect. Wang Lengqiu tilted her head and after a while said softly, "Sister Zhongyin, I don't want you and Xiaoling to disappear."

Zhong Yin sighed, and finally looked at Xiao Xiaoxiao and Ouyang Lianyu: "Teacher Ouyang, Xiaoxiao, what about you?"

"I-I don't know..."

Before this, Ouyang Lianyu was unaware of the consequences of Han Zhou's failure, but she also did not want to see the Zhong sisters disappear, and was caught in a dilemma.

Xiao Xiaoxiao's answer made Zhong Yin's eyes light up: "I disagree!"

The girl, who had grown two centimeters taller, crossed her arms and pouted, saying, "Han Zhou is clumsy and will definitely make a mess of things. He might even make all three of you disappear. It's better not to do anything at all."

"I'm not going to do anything, and then you're going to do it all?"

Han Zhou glared at her. "We'll talk about your business later. Now, behave yourself and don't interrupt."

Xiao Xiaoxiao was stunned for a moment: "How could you... wait! You were the one who said everyone should vote, why won't you let me speak?"

She looked around nervously.

Han Zhou pressed his temples: "If you're going to speak, then speak properly. Don't just rely on subjective assumptions."

"Um...can I interrupt for a moment?"

Zhong Ling spoke weakly, her gaze cautiously sweeping around before finally giving Han Zhou an apologetic look. Only then did she muster the courage to say, "My junior and I saw a glimpse of the future recently. Xiao Xiao wasn't in that future. I guess she willingly accepted the fate that originally belonged to my junior, being forgotten by the whole world."

Seeing everyone looking at her, Xiao Xiaoxiao looked uncomfortable. Zhong Ling was a little nervous and subconsciously tugged at the small cloth bag at her waist, but she composed herself and continued, "In that future, I was the only one who was very happy. Everyone else, including my junior, was very unhappy..."

"What I mean is, the past cannot be changed. If we want to save my sister and me, it might mean that someone has to sacrifice themselves. That person is either Xiaoxiao or my junior, so he will definitely fail!"

Gu Zheng glared at Han Zhou, giving him a look that said, "You'd better explain this to me later." Then she shook her head and said, "No, if the past couldn't be changed, there wouldn't have been an ending where only you were happy after Xiao Xiao disappeared."

“What Xiaopingxiong said makes sense.” Mo Yixia nodded.

Gu Zheng ignored her and turned to Xiao Xiaoxiao, who was trying to crawl under the table: "Xiaoxiao, is there anything you want to say?"

Xiao Xiaoxiao froze, and said with difficulty, "I don't know anything. I don't understand anything you're talking about regarding the future and dreams."

“Xiaoxiao, even without mind-reading abilities, I can tell you’re lying.” Ouyang Lianyu said helplessly.

She was truly helpless. She had thought it was just a matter between Han Zhou and the Zhong sisters, but she hadn't expected that Xiao Xiaoxiao would also get involved, and both of them were her students.

"To be precise, only the first sentence was a lie," Mo Yixia said calmly.

"It's a trivial matter and has nothing to do with this discussion."

Han Zhou said, "Gu Zheng, you keep an eye on her for me."

"How do we keep an eye on them?" Guzheng asked.

"Keep an eye on her the same way you've been watching me lately."

Although Guzheng was dissatisfied, she still nodded to indicate that she understood.

"What do you mean by 'when the time comes'?" Zhong Yin frowned. "The voting hasn't even started yet, so why are you acting like you've already got the victory in the bag?"

Faced with her cold look, Han Zhou simply smiled and said, "Sister Yin, you know I won't change my mind."

After another heated debate, everyone began to vote. In the end, Han Zhou won with a vote of five to three. Ouyang Lianyu was still somewhat undecided, but in the end she chose to support his decision.