"I… I don't know what you're talking about."
"I just happened to be passing by. I really don't know the specifics of what happened."
Xia Wanqing's eyes were filled with fear, but Nangong Jin's predatory gaze was fixed on her, waiting for her to speak. She took a deep breath before daring to say, "Xu Ruowei grabbed my hand and told me I absolutely had to side with her."
"She's my good friend, and I was just confused for a moment, so I stood by her words."
Nangong Jin let out a cold snort. Looking at the pitiful Xia Wanqing, he showed no mercy and said coldly, "Apologize."
Xia Wanqing didn't want to apologize to An Nuan. She looked at Ji Wenyun beside her, thinking he would stand up for her.
However, what Ji Wenyun said next shocked, stunned, and embarrassed her.
She had never imagined that Ji Wenyun would say something so mortifying.
"I…"
Ji Wenyun's face was calm, his thoughts unreadable. He looked at Xia Wanqing and said placidly, "Apologize to An Nuan. This is your fault. Your mistake was blindly believing Xu Ruowei because she's your friend, without understanding the truth of the matter."
"If Nangong Jin hadn't insisted on seeking justice for An Nuan, An Nuan would have had to bear such a stigma again."
"This is unfair to her."
Xia Wanqing's eyes widened in disbelief as she looked at Ji Wenyun, her face a mask of disbelief. She shook her head, completely resistant. "No, I won't apologize."
"Even… even if I was wrong in this matter, I was still deceived by Xu Ruowei."
"The one who should apologize the most is Xu Ruowei. I was deceived too. Shouldn't Xu Ruowei be apologizing to me?"
Xu Ruowei glared at Xia Wanqing with bloodshot eyes. At this moment, she was adding insult to injury.
She secretly glanced at Shen Xizhou, thinking he might stand up for her.
But she realized that Shen Xizhou had not spoken a word from beginning to end; all his attention was on An Nuan.
This scene infuriated her.
Shen Xizhou still cared about An Nuan; if he didn't, he wouldn't have that expression now.
She forcefully tugged at Shen Xizhou's hand, hoping to draw his attention to her, but she soon realized it was useless.
Shen Xizhou didn't even spare her a glance.
After Nangong Jin's words, the matter was clear to anyone with eyes. The situation was obvious, and An Nuan no longer wished to prolong it.
There was no need.
Besides, even if Xu Ruowei admitted it and apologized, what then? Nothing would change. Therefore, she remained silent, doing nothing.
However, Nangong Jin's serious expression suggested he had no intention of letting it go.
An Nuan reached out and gently tugged at Nangong Jin's arm.
Nangong Jin looked at An Nuan with confusion.
He understood what An Nuan wanted to say. An Nuan was kind and wanted to let them go, but he didn't want to.
"Nangong Jin, can we just leave this matter here?" An Nuan's voice carried a hint of pleading.
Nangong Jin, who had been resolute, instantly wavered.
An Nuan's direct gaze left him defenseless.
He sighed helplessly; An Nuan knew very well that he had always been powerless against her.
"Alright." In the end, Nangong Jin could only compromise.
While he compromised now, it didn't mean he would let the Xu family and Xu Ruowei off the hook.
Letting her go now didn't mean he would forget about her later. There would be plenty of opportunities to deal with her.
He let her go now not wanting to make An Nuan difficult, and certainly not wanting to argue with An Nuan over someone like her.
Several pairs of eyes were fixed on An Nuan, waiting for her next words. An Nuan was the key to this matter.
As long as An Nuan didn't pursue it, there would be no more trouble.
They saw An Nuan tugging at Nangong Jin's hand, whispering something. Initially, Nangong Jin's expression was very grim, but after An Nuan said something, his expression softened, and he even seemed to smile slightly.
Seeing this, Xu Ruowei was consumed by jealousy. What a seductress.
Seeing Xu Ruowei's gaze fall on her, An Nuan did not flinch. Instead, she met her gaze and said coldly, "Xu Ruowei, I don't need your apology. Those hypocritical apologies are not what I need."
"I know you must hate me now, but even so, it doesn't erase what you've done."
"An Nuan, I was confused and made this mistake because I care too much about Xizhou. You should understand me."
"Besides, you're standing here perfectly fine now. Nothing has happened."
"An Nuan, if you had been injured, I would have admitted everything," Xu Ruowei said pitifully, yet her words were utterly shameless.
"Xu Ruowei, get out of my sight immediately. I'm afraid it will taint my eyes," An Nuan said coldly.
"An Nuan, you're too humiliating. Even though I made a mistake, you have no right to speak to me like this," Xu Ruowei said, wiping her tears and staring intently at An Nuan.
"I know Nangong Jin is here now, so you're confident I won't confront you. After all, who isn't afraid of Nangong Jin?"
Listening to her, An Nuan felt that Xu Ruowei was being utterly unreasonable. Did she only feel satisfied if she pinned the blame on her?
Seeing An Nuan remain silent, Xu Ruowei spoke again, "An Nuan, I know you're very pleased because so many people care about you."
"But, An Nuan, have you ever considered that those connected to you ultimately meet bad ends?"
"What about you? Have you thought about it? Perhaps, you are a jinx?" She walked up to An Nuan and whispered in her ear.
"Oh, right. I won't lay a hand on you now, but I'll have plenty of opportunities later."
"Besides, Nangong Jin can't be by your side guarding you all the time."
"I will find a chance," Xu Ruowei said triumphantly in An Nuan's ear.
After speaking, Xu Ruowei acted as if she had been threatened.
Xia Wanqing couldn't stand it any longer. She couldn't understand how Xu Ruowei could be so submissive.
She just couldn't stand seeing An Nuan looking so high and mighty.
But ultimately, she couldn't hold back.
Because Nangong Jin was present, An Nuan was not someone easily harmed.
She turned her gaze to Ji Wenyun and asked somewhat ingratiatingly, "Wenyun, do you believe An Nuan? Do you really think I would harm her?"
She just wanted to know what Ji Wenyun was thinking of her now.
As for the rest, she would deal with it later.
She waited for Ji Wenyun's answer. This answer was extremely important to her.
She waited and waited, but the answer she longed to hear never came.