Aunt Xiangzi, how did you manage to live?

A family drama... How did she even come up with a way to explain it?

Su Shi, unconcerned, abandoned her usual kind and gentle expression and instead looked at Chu Hua with sharp eyes.

"If there's nothing else, I'd like to take a short rest. Please go back, Chu Hua."

Nagasaki Motoyo bluntly told him to leave.

Chu Hua smiled slightly, as if she had been prepared for this.

Chapter Ninety-Seven: Soyo's Feast at Hongmen

big crisis.

How did things become like this?

He had initially thought that Su Shi had something important to discuss with him, but it turned out to be a complete trap.

What's even more perplexing is that Hatsuka unexpectedly joined the battle uninvited.

Some might say, "Xiao, aren't these your two aunts? What's there to be worried about?"

"If there's nothing important, I'd like to take an afternoon nap and rest. Chu Hua, please go back now."

Su Shi, who was standing guard at the entrance, politely gestured "please" towards the door.

"Don't say that, Su Shi. How have you been? I just wanted to visit you. Although we've never worked together, we still have some connection, don't we?"

Standing at the door, Chu Hua had no intention of going home; instead, she waved the various sizes of fresh fruit in her hands.

It seems that Triangle Chuhua did make thorough preparations to ensure the legitimacy of his visit.

"snort………"

Su Shi smiled with mixed feelings, but her expression was anything but pleasant.

The two girls looked at each other and smiled without saying a word, but it seemed that some invisible sparks ignited the moment their eyes met, and even the air in the entrance hallway became subtly stagnant.

Kazama, hiding in the bathroom, witnessed everything. Feeling like crying, he covered his eyes with his hands.

I dared not open my eyes, hoping it was just my imagination.

One second he had just revealed all his secrets to Su Shi, and the next second he was facing the ultimate battleground of two opposing female factions, Su Shi and Chu Hua—was his luck just too bad today?

He had considered showing up now to quickly control the situation, but based on his understanding of these two, he knew that once they clashed, the whole atmosphere would become uncontrollable.

Moreover, if he were to suddenly appear at Su Shi's home, where she lived alone, in front of Chu Hua, he would truly be in dire straits.

With no other option, Kazama reluctantly gave up on the idea of ​​mediating and instead began searching the bathroom for a way to escape.

In the hallway connecting the bathroom to the entrance hall, a "battle to protect the family" is still in full swing.

"The fruit you prepared for me... Thank you for your kindness, Chuhua. I just don't know when we became this kind of relationship where we visit each other and exchange gifts."

Adhering to the attitude of leaving room for future encounters, or perhaps simply being used to using a smile to be polite, Su Shi subtly expressed the kind of polite words that only intelligent people can understand with a forced smile.

"It doesn't need to be mutual. It was just my way of expressing my gratitude. After all, looking back now, Su Shi did help me a lot."

Unexpectedly, Chu Hua did not back down from the challenge. Instead, she deftly stepped back and easily circumvented the topic.

"Oh? What did I do to help you? I don't remember doing anything like that."

"Well... firstly, she stayed with Xiaoxiang while I was away, and then she took care of Xiaojun before Ave Mujica."

Chu Hua recounted the past events with great familiarity, then smiled brightly at Su Shi.

"Of course, I will take good care of him from now on. Su Shi doesn't need to worry about him anymore."

To assert sovereignty.

This person is not only asserting their sovereignty as an aunt, but also asserting that "she is the one who can completely support Xiao."

Su Shi, who had originally intended to speak frankly, grinned, but suddenly became a little angry.

"Oh? What about Xiangzi? Doesn't Chuhua plan to take care of her? Isn't that a bit of neglecting one thing for the other?"

"Xiao Xiang is my companion and my childhood sweetheart whom I lost and found again. I will treat her equally. But this does not mean that I will give Xiao Jun away because of this."

Chu Hua's response was reasonable and eloquent, as if she had long anticipated that Su Shi would raise this pointed question and had already made plans in her mind.

"Oh? I never realized that Chu Hua had such a deep obsession with Xiao Jun. I thought you were only so affectionate towards Xiang Zi."

Seeing that Chu Hua was still stubbornly trying to argue, Su Shi finally shed her seemingly gentle and kind facade, and the smile on her lips became much colder.

"I clearly distinguish between important friends and partners, and the unique individuals I should truly cherish. And I won't let these two independent positions interfere with my decisions."

Chu Hua smiled and retaliated in kind.

"Su Shi, have you decided whether Xiao Jun or Xiao Xiang is more important to you?"

No matter how far their rivalry has progressed, the girl who once captivated both of them—Toyokawa Shoko—has now completely become a figurehead they use to deflect attention from each other.

"Hmph... Thanks to someone, I've figured things out perfectly."

Su Shi smiled gently, still unwilling to willingly surrender to Chu Hua.

"Xiaojun and I share a secret that belongs only to us."

Chu Hua brought up this "secret" again, seemingly trying to make Su Shi back down.

Su Shi was somewhat moved when she vaguely mentioned this matter before.

This time, Su Shi shrugged as usual, not to be outdone.

What Chu Hua was talking about was nothing more than the true identity of Kazama Akira that she had only recently learned.

A few days ago, she would probably have felt guilty and avoided his sharp edge. But now…

"Is that so? He and I also have a secret we can't tell you. Are you curious, Chu Hua?"

"...?"

The blonde girl blinked, somewhat puzzled, while the boy, who was hiding in the bathroom waiting for his chance, also twitched the corners of his mouth, equally confused.

Secret...what secret?

A bad feeling suddenly formed in his mind, and Kazama swallowed hard again.

"Oh dear, we've made our guest stand at our doorstep for so long. Since you're already here, we can't let you come all this way for nothing."

Instead of adopting a smiling and gentle demeanor, Su Shi bowed slightly and gestured "please" to the blonde girl carrying bags of fruit.

Sure enough, Su Shi had no good intentions at all…! She didn’t want Chu Hua to come into the house at all!

"...Then I'll take my leave."

Chu Hua also noticed this unusual thing, but after a moment of thought, she nodded slightly to Su Shi, who was smiling faintly.

Kazama quickly held his breath, turned around, and stopped looking. Instead, he leaned against the wall, holding his breath and concentrating.

The next second, as Su Shi walked into the house, Chu Hua inevitably noticed more unusual things.

The first thing that catches the eye is a fruit platter on the table, only half-eaten.

Chapter Ninety-Eight: Chu Hua's Story of Catching Adulterers

As soon as she stepped into the upscale apartment of the Sue family in Nagasaki, Mikasa couldn't help but take a closer look at her surroundings.

The entryway is made of cool white marble, so clean it looks like no one has ever stepped on it. The expensive sofa and large-screen TV in the living room are carefully arranged furniture and appliances. The paintings on the walls seem to have artistic meaning, but they look more like random decorations chosen to fill the blank space.

Every inch of this space exudes an air of exclusivity, yet there's not a trace of "life" about it, like a house whose owner rarely returns.

—But even in this house that feels so uninhabitable, the dining table used to entertain guests is set with things that are completely out of place with everything around it.

The fruit platter, filled with various fruit strips such as cantaloupe and watermelon, had two toothpicks stuck in it. These weren't just snacks left for the girl living alone; they were definite signs that the girl had entertained others.

Chu Hua stared at the fruit plate, her heart tightening slightly.

"........."

Although she did not raise any objections, she cleverly gleaned a hidden message from the fruit platter.

In this house, Nagasaki Motoyo had just been entertaining other people.

Could it be Xiao?

In fact, Chu Hua couldn't make a decision right away, but when she turned around and met Su Shi's gaze, she realized that this was actually the result Su Shi wanted her to see.

"Since you're already here, please sit for a while as if you were a guest, Chu Hua."

Su Shi smiled warmly, and then, in accordance with the proper etiquette of the head of the Nagasaki family, set out a teacup filled with fragrant black tea for her.

...I have a feeling that this guy intentionally let me find out that she was just entertaining someone else.

"...Thank you for your hospitality, Su Shi."

Even so, Chu Hua, still not letting her guard down, obediently sat down at the long table, picked up her teacup, and took a small sip.

Come to think of it, she always felt that there was another gaze watching her from inside the house.

But when she looked around the luxury apartment with her sharp eyes, she couldn't find the source of that gaze.

"Why are you looking around like that, Chu Hua?"

Su Shi's silvery laughter drew Chu Hua's attention back. She then sat down at the table and smiled faintly at the absent-minded Chu Hua.

"You seem quite interested in my home. However, I'm afraid I cannot grant your request to take anything back with you."

"Before me, did Su Shi entertain any other guests?"

Chu Hua ignored Su Shi's intriguing teasing, her intuition telling her that the person she was looking for was still in this house.

Rather, even without intuition, she had already gleaned some information from the fruit plate on the table.

"If it really exists, so what?"

Su Shi's previously composed expression seemed to be broken by Chu Hua's question. She paused slightly, then smiled and threw the question back at Chu Hua.

"Who does Chu Hua hope to see in my room? If you actually see someone here, wouldn't that make things even more interesting?"

She smiled and pointed to herself, seemingly quite pleased with Chu Hua's current expression.

"After all, if your guess is true, then the other person was alone with me in a room right before you rang the doorbell."

What is this guy saying? yi柒溜1氵貳②⑨②……！

Hiding in the bathroom, Kazama covered his face with his hands after hearing Su Shi say such things. His expression was more than just wanting to cry.

Can you really expect a man and a woman to be alone together in a room? Especially since Su Shi desperately wants their relationship to be back to normal.

Or is it that this guy is willing to say anything to provoke Chu Hua?

In any case, this is no longer a confrontation or war between him and Su Shi or his Chu Hua.

It's a war between these two women.

"After all, this is my own home. I can entertain whoever I want here, or have heart-to-heart talks with whoever I want... It's not up to others to criticize me."

Su Shi still had a smile on her face. She casually picked up the toothpick that was still stuck in the cantaloupe in the fruit plate and brazenly put the piece of fruit into her mouth in front of Chu Hua.

Her attitude was already very clear; she was practically saying, "Don't you dare meddle in other people's business."

“…伊? 溜亿〦〗漆泗V_jiu⑷疚V】III…”

Chu Hua did not respond immediately, as her gaze was entirely focused on the toothpick.

"Thank you for your kind gesture, Chuhua. Is there anything else?"

Su Shi's gentle gaze lingered on the fruit Chu Hua had brought in, and she made full use of her home-field advantage—she now had complete control over the rhythm of their conversation.

Even if Chu Hua discovers clues that someone else has been here, it will be of no use. Xiao is hiding in the bathroom and will not show herself. So, Chu Hua will be consumed by her own suspicions and doubts without her having to do anything.

Now, Chu Hua should finally taste the bitterness of defeat and obediently slink away from his home.

Su Shi secretly rejoiced in his heart.

Unfortunately, things never go as she expects—or rather, she doesn't have the upper hand she thought she would.

"I'm very curious about the secret that Su Shi was talking about."

Chu Hua completely ignored her order to leave and instead changed the subject.