Zhan Jingchun also thought she was hallucinating, her mind buzzing.
She closed her eyes in disbelief, blinked hard, and opened them again.
Peng Fei was still there.
He was like a ghost, not only entangled with her in her dreams but actually chasing her down!
When did he find her?
When did he sneak in here?
What did he want?
Did he want to take her back?
In a few short seconds, countless thoughts raced through Zhan Jingchun's mind.
Then, an involuntary chill spread through her, and she began to tremble.
She looked at Peng Fei with a face full of terror, as if she had seen a ghost in broad daylight, and retreated step by step.
"This is impossible, this is impossible..."
The housekeeper and nanny, seeing Xiang Siyuan tied up on the ground, were also startled.
Thinking Peng Fei was some kind of villain who had broken in and tied up Young Master Xiang, they quickly pulled Zhan Jingchun behind them, protecting her like a mother hen with her chick.
"Who are you? How did you get here? What happened to Young Master Xiang? What do you want?"
"In broad daylight, you dare to set fire and tie people up? We're calling the police!"
The children, seeing their saviors, ran towards the nanny and housekeeper.
"Help, help! This person is crazy, a pervert! He's going to beat us to death! Let us out, we want to go home! Help!"
Peng Fei's attention was entirely on Zhan Jingchun's face.
He saw her fear and rejection, and his heart felt like it was pierced by countless holes. He was so dejected, so miserable.
Ever since Zhan Jingchun left, he had been looking forward to this day for almost four months.
Such a rare reunion, and it was ruined before a single word was spoken.
He felt so miserable that he didn't know how to start speaking with all the things he wanted to say.
A group of people stared at him as if he were a flood monster.
Seeing Zhan Jingchun hiding behind others, he felt as if he saw their future. His strength drained away, and he slumped to the ground, supporting his head with his fist.
Xiang Siyuan, seeing this, wriggled like a silkworm cocoon and shouted at Zhan Jingchun.
"Quick, save me! Sister Chun! This guy is bullying me! He actually hit me! I'm not done with him! Call my mom quickly, fire him immediately! Save me!"
Zhan Jingchun heard another meaning in his words.
Fire him?
What did that mean?
Could it be that Peng Fei was an employee hired by their family?
After all, the house had just caught fire. Even if they called, they had to figure out the situation first.
Zhan Jingchun grabbed a boy next to her and asked what was going on. The boy stammered out the story.
Although he described Peng Fei as a devil in his words, Zhan Jingchun was not someone who couldn't distinguish right from wrong.
"To get rid of him, you actually set fire to the house?"
"Xiang Siyuan, it's one thing for you to act out and throw tantrums at home. You're 18 years old, about to be a college student, and you're still this childish?"
"No, calling you childish is too kind; you should be called foolish! Don't you think you're ridiculous?"
"Even if he's wrong, have you considered the consequences of doing this? If it had affected the neighbors, hurt someone's life, you would have ruined your mother's career, ruined your father's reputation. Have you thought about these things?"
Chen Jiaojiao was close to Jiang Nanfang, and Xiang Siyuan was similar in age to Zhan Jingchun. They often played together when they were young.
So, being scolded by her, he was convinced.
"Sister Chun, I know I was wrong. If he hadn't pushed me so hard, I wouldn't have done it!"
"Let me up first. We can talk later, my arm is going to break!"
Zhan Jingchun was afraid the children would run away in the chaos, causing her trouble. She had the housekeeper lock the door before stepping out from behind the nanny.
Mustering her courage, she looked at Peng Fei and said, "Let him go first."
She saw that the look in his eyes was finally gone.
Moreover, seeing that she had caused such a big problem, instead of mocking her, she actually spoke up for him?
Peng Fei's dejected heart instantly reignited, and he stood up obediently.
Xiang Siyuan, now free, rubbed his sore arm and leg before running to Zhan Jingchun.
The nearly 1.9-meter-tall man hugged her and cried on her shoulder, as she was only a little over 1.6 meters.
"I'm so wronged, Sister Chun. Who did I offend? This guy didn't give me food, kept me locked in the room, and hit me. These past two days, I've been worse than a prisoner!"
"He's a pervert, twisted in the mind, sob! You have to testify for me, you must make my mom fire him, Sister Chun!"
"I promise to be obedient from now on and never talk back to my dad again. Hurry and call my mom!"
Zhan Jingchun's fifth brother, Zhan Jingchen, was also a spoiled and arrogant little bully since childhood, full of mischievous ideas and pranks.
She had seen her brother's tricks and knew Xiang Siyuan was the same type of person, unlikely to admit his mistakes so easily, so she didn't believe his crocodile tears.
After he finished crying, she gently pushed him away and said.
"You guys go to my house first, wash off the dirt, calm down, and don't run around. I'll talk to him."
"What do you have to talk about with him? He's so dangerous, what if he hurts you? Listen to me, call my mom quickly!"
Zhan Jingchun became impatient. "You're not leaving? Fine, I'll leave, you deal with it yourself."
Xiang Siyuan had no choice but to obey and took the children with the nanny and housekeeper to Zhan Jingchun's house.
Before leaving, the housekeeper was still worried.
"Jingchun, you don't know him. What if..."
Zhan Jingchun said, "I trust Aunt Jiaojiao's judgment. Since she personally chose him and dared to leave seven children here, nothing will go wrong."
The housekeeper was persuaded by her words and left, looking back repeatedly.
Finally, only the two of them remained. Peng Fei was overjoyed but didn't dare to approach her.
He looked down at his toes. His shoes were as black as if he had just crawled out of a coal mine. Looking at his arms and hands, they were terrifyingly black.
He guessed his face was the same, and in his shame, he buried his head deep, wishing he could sink into the ground.
Seeing that he was still the old Peng Fei, always non-aggressive towards her, Zhan Jingchun's worries subsided.
After standing there for a few seconds, she walked towards him.
"Why are you here? Are you perhaps looking for me?"
Finally being able to speak to her again, her voice was so pleasant. Peng Fei felt a tingling sensation all over, filled with satisfaction.
But at the same time, he felt even more inferior. Why was she so perfect, so good?
He didn't dare to lie to her and told the truth.
"The reason I came to Nancheng was indeed for you. I want to apologize to you."
"But I didn't know where to find you, so I looked for work first. I didn't expect to meet you here, and I certainly didn't intend to disturb you or ask you to come back with me. Please don't be afraid."
"I know I've wronged you greatly in the past, and so has my mother. We made serious mistakes, I..."