Living Only For Myself: Make Those Who Hate Me Regret It-Chapter 133: Give Me a New Year’s Gift

Zhou Mochen mulled it over for a moment before choosing to answer directly: "I’d destroy her. Whatever she used to force me, I’d make her lose it."

"Power and influence?" He scoffed. "Then I’d strip her of her power and influence."

Xu Su: "..."

’It’s true what they say—it doesn’t hurt when the whip doesn’t land on you.’ Young Master Zhou was such a proud person. Being forced to be with someone would be the greatest humiliation for him.

So... Xu Su asked, "Do you understand the principle of ’don’t do to others what you don’t want done to you’? Zhou Mochen, you were born into a life of privilege, you’re proud, and you see something like this as the ultimate disgrace. But I’m also a person with my own thoughts and a strong sense of self-respect. Why would you think I’d gladly accept your threats and coercion?"

’...do you understand the principle of ’don’t do to others what you don’t want done to you’?’

Her question left Zhou Mochen speechless.

Only then did he realize what he had done wrong...

Before, he’d had a vague sense that he was in the wrong, but he hadn’t understood what mattered most to Xu Su.

Zhou Mochen was silent for a long time. He reached out and took Xu Su’s hand, lacing their fingers together. Then, he spoke softly, "I understand what you mean."

He grew wary. "You want me to give you the right to choose, don’t you? Have you thought of another way to piss me off?"

Xu Su pulled her hand away and pursed her lips in resignation. "I’ve said all I have to say. Whether you can change or not is up to you."

’A leopard can’t change its spots.’ Xu Su didn’t believe for a second that he could change anything.

’The only reason he can sit here and talk so calmly is because he doesn’t know about Xi Zirong.’

’The moment he finds out I already have someone I like, all this talk about the right to choose, an independent personality, seeing things from my perspective... it will all be bullshit.’

That was Zhou Mochen’s bottom line. No matter how eloquently Xu Su argued, he would never be able to calmly accept her choosing someone else.

But Xu Su hadn’t said all this just to waste her breath. She mainly wanted to see if she could get him to change, even just a little.

She also hoped he wouldn’t watch her so closely, that he’d at least let her get through the rest of high school in peace.

Having talked the topic to this point, they had both laid their thoughts bare.

Zhou Mochen’s bottom line was that Xu Su couldn’t leave him and couldn’t ignore him.

As for Xu Su, she wanted the freedom to choose, and she refused to be threatened or coerced.

For the time being, they couldn’t reach a complete consensus.

Finally, Zhou Mochen pulled her to her feet and smiled at her. "I’m heading back to Beijing this afternoon. Do you want to come with me?"

"...?" Xu Su’s eyes widened. "What would I do in Beijing with you?"

"I’ll take you to have some fun for a few days. I heard from Huang Chao that his sister was thrilled when she went to Beijing over the summer and saw the flag-raising ceremony. Want to go see it? There are lots of fun places in Beijing. Come with me for a few days. I’ll bring you back on the third day of the New Year, so it won’t affect your school start date."

Zhou Mochen said it with a completely straight face, as if totally unaware of how ridiculous his invitation was.

Xu Su shook her head vehemently. "No way, absolutely not! I’m not crazy. Following you to Beijing during the New Year holiday... Zhou Mochen, do you have some kind of misunderstanding about our relationship?"

He was acting like they were a couple madly in love. Xu Su was practically scared stiff.

Fortunately, Zhou Mochen hadn’t held out much hope. He just nodded, his expression unchanging at her rejection.

Then he changed the subject. "Give me a New Year’s gift."

Before Xu Su could react, he pulled her into his arms.

As if afraid of making her angry again, Zhou Mochen was extremely restrained. The hug was so brief and light that she was released before she even had time to struggle.

Zhou Mochen smiled, coaxing her, "A hug for a New Year’s gift. You can’t get angry over that, can you, Susu? When I get back from Beijing, I’ll give you a gift in return, okay?"

He was genuinely handsome, and even more so when he smiled to coax someone.

His usual disposition was cool and indifferent, but right now he looked as gentle as jade. Unlike the superficial warmth he showed others, Zhou Mochen’s good temper in front of Xu Su was always genuine.

Xu Su pressed her lips together, averted her gaze, and took two steps to the side to put some distance between them, constantly reminding herself that she had a boyfriend.

’If Xi Zirong found out someone else had held her hand and hugged her, he would be so upset.’

Her thoughts began to wander uncontrollably.

Xu Su thought to herself, ’Zhou Mochen and Xi Zirong seem to have completely opposite temperaments, but deep down, they’re both very rational and cold people.’

’Maybe all outstanding people are like that...’

’It’s just that both of them are quite possessive.’

However reluctant he was, Zhou Mochen still took Xu Su home before boarding his flight back to Beijing.

This year on New Year’s Eve, Xu Weiping once again took his wife and daughter to the old family home to celebrate.

However, compared to last year, when Xu Su had to help wash vegetables, serve dishes, and bustle about with chores, her treatment this year was much better.

Perhaps Xu Weiping and his wife had dropped a few hints, because all the Xu Family relatives, including Grandpa Xu, were much more polite and considerate toward Xu Su.

Like the men of the family, all she had to do was wait by the stove for the meal to be served.

Xu Su was happy to have the free time. She was more than glad to avoid washing vegetables in cold water in such chilly weather.

As for the 180-degree change in the other Xu Family members’ attitudes, Xu Su did her best to pretend she didn’t notice.

This continued until a vibration came from her pocket. When Xu Su pulled out the new phone Xi Zirong had given her, the eyes of Xu Hao and the others next to her lit up.

Xu Hao was in middle school and was obsessed with phones. Seeing that his country cousin, whom he’d always looked down on, now had a phone, he immediately tugged on his father’s arm. "Dad, look! We’re both students, and Xu Su has a phone. Why won’t you buy one for me? I want a phone too."

Xu Weiguo was getting exasperated with his pestering son. He didn’t even have a phone himself! Their family wasn’t that well-off; a phone wasn’t something you could just buy whenever you wanted.

He turned to look at his older brother, his eyes full of questions. "Second Brother, how much did you spend on that phone for Susu? Don’t you not even have one yourself?"

Xu Weiguo simply couldn’t believe his brother was the type of father to dote on his daughter so much that he would buy her a phone before getting one for himself...

Then he recalled his brother’s recent promotion and the special instruction he’d given the family to treat his daughter better...

Thinking about this, and looking at how his grown-up niece had blossomed into a graceful young woman, Xu Weiguo seemed to understand something...

It was also the first time Xu Weiping learned that Xu Su actually had a phone. He frowned, trying to muster some fatherly authority as he asked in a deep voice, "Susu, when did you get a phone? How come I didn’t know?"

Xu Su hadn’t planned on hiding the phone from the Xu Family. After all, they already knew about Zhou Mochen, so having a phone didn’t seem like a big deal. Still, she couldn’t just casually say it was a gift...

Seeing the adults’ questioning gazes, Xu Su told a lie. "I bought it myself. The scholarship from First High School is pretty generous. I liked this phone, so I decided to buy it."

’I liked this phone, so I decided to buy it...’

Xu Weiping knew how high the scholarship at First High School was, so he didn’t really doubt her words. Besides, even if it had been a gift from someone else, he didn’t want to get too involved.