Chapter 56
Chapter 56 Be A Little More Open-minded "I did not..." Bianca’s first reaction was to deny it.
'You dare lie to my face? If you didn’t, who was the person lurking behind the walls whenever she had a free period looking out at the playground of the high school next door foolishly?” Claudia talked about the past without restraint.
Bianca still remembered her high school experience.
She had always stared foolishly at beautiful sceneries and people for long periods. When she was in middle school, the person she had stared at the most was upperclassman Crawford from the high school next door.
Claudia assumed that Bianca was perhaps embarrassed now, so she continued, "He was finer than a frog's hair! And cute as a bug! Who wouldn't have a crush on him? Is there anything to be embarrassed about?”
Bianca coughed, and her face started to burn up.
Subconsciously, upperclassman Crawford's face in her mind had morphed into Luke Crawford's.
It was said that Luke also had a brother named Louis, and the two brothers had similarities in terms of appearance. Bianca had never seen Louis in person, though.
If Louis was perhaps the upperclassman Crawford but Luke was the one continually lingering in her mind, it would be the most significant misunderstanding...
Bianca stubbornly retorted, "What are you saying, what crush? I was only 14 years old..."
"So what if you're 14, be a little more open-minded. Didn't you know that there were people that got into relationships early in our school? These things were everywhere, okay? A Year 1 Senior even had an
abortion. My mother's a teacher, so I hear a lot of these things at home..." Claudia said affirmatively. "It was your first real crush, and you were just too shy to notice it."
Bianca was utterly speechless.
'The address of the party had changed, so I’ll send the address to you later. Got to go now. I still have to notify the others!" Claudia finished her sentences and hung up.
Bianca put her phone down, and her whole body felt dispirited.
She had been wondering whether upperclassman Crawford would show up, and now Claudia had clearly informed her that he would be present...
Every girl at that age would have at least one crush, and even if Bianca refused to admit it out loud, she knew what it was very well.
She shook her head and did not want to be immersed in her thoughts any longer.
Even if she happened to bump into upperclassman Crawford, they would probably meet eyes and nod at each other for a second. It was a huge school ground, and there were so many girls who admired him in the past. She was just the unnoticeable one who hid behind the junior high wall and the most inconspicuous. Content property of NôvelDra/ma.Org.
After gathering her thoughts, Bianca resumed her work.
Inside an ordinary Chinese restaurant outside the City Center Fourth Ring road.
Allison Tanner was starting to lose count of how many cups of tea she had drunk. Almost half of the pot was empty before Kevin Rayne finally showed up. 1
Kevin opened the private room door and entered it.
The waiter went in as well and placed the menu inside. "What would the two of you be having today?"
Allison was about to say that they were not ordering before Kevin picked up the menu and ordered three dishes, a soup, two bowls of rice, and a bottle of chilled Coke.
The waiter responded, "Please wait a moment," before heading out of the room.
Allison grew irritated by looking at the filthy dining environment. She restrained her voice before pointing at the watch and asked him, "Can't you see what time it is? You can't afford to waste my time, Kevin Rayne!"
"My family's keeping an eye on me. It’s my fault... for being late." Kevin told Allison the truth. 1
When Allison heard his excuse, she almost chuckled out loud.
"I did not expect this from you. After so many years, you're still useless, Kevin Rayne." Allison looked at Kevin's worn-out face. "I just can’t imagine what kind of woman would marry you. You have no ambition whatsoever. I was beginning to think that the only thing you could do in life was deceiving the young naive me.”
Kevin sat in an upright posture the whole time.
The man already had his one foot in the grave. But this ex-wife of his was still stomping on his self- esteem. It was reasonable to say that it was the right call to avoid this aloof ex-wife. 6
However, for today, he had something to ask of her.
"Let's get to it then. The house in my hometown's about to get demolished soon. That house is one- third of yours. So, I'm here to ask for your opinion. If you want money, how much is the appropriate amount?" When Kevin spoke, his eyes did not dare to look at Allison.
Allison was still dazzling in this day and age. Her beauty was well- conserved, and one could barely tell her actual age.
She was the second wife of the previous leader of a listed company, T Corporation. Allison managed to marry herself into a wealthy family, and she often appeared in major newspapers with her husband.
Kevin still remembered the first time he saw a photo of his wife and another man printed in a newspaper.
He was on the construction site on that said day. He looked at the paper absent-mindedly and was unaware of the danger unfolding in front of him. The workers had shouted for him to move aside, but his eyes were imprinted on the newspaper. It was too late to avoid the crane, and his left ear was almost smashed.
Kevin could never get over Allison. She was his beautiful first love and the first woman he married.
The house in Luojiazhen was a two-story building in a dire state. The developer offered to pay the corresponding compensation before the demolition.
The owner of the house had to sign the papers to receive compensation.
When they got married twenty-five years ago, Allison's name was added to the housing grant. Allison did not mention it when they got a divorce, and no one brought up how the house was divided.
If it were not because of the developers pressing on him to sign the papers, Kevin would not have looked for Allison at all.
Allison looked at Kevin, who was sitting on the opposite side, and quickly turned away. The last time the two met was more than a year ago.
"I could hardly remember Luojiazhen anymore."
Allison opened up her red lips and said, "How much is the compensation per square meter for the demolition in that small town? That place is a ghost town. Will the developer compensate you two thousand to three thousand per square meter? Would I even receive hundreds of thousands after splitting it? Or did I overestimated?"
Kevin had calculated that Allison would receive about two hundred thousand.
Allison looked at him, mockingly and sympathetically at the same time. "I don’t want any money for the demolition, but I will sign the contract for you. The compensation is not even enough for me to buy a limited edition leather bag. Keep the money for your current wife.”
Kevin gave it a thought and took out the contract he brought, then pushed it to Allison together with a pen.
Allison picked up the pen and quickly signed the papers. She wanted to solve it as soon as possible and never again want to have a connection to this man in the future.
"Done," Allison placed the pen back on the contract and pushed it in front of him while picking up her bag to leave.
Kevin also stood up and stretched his hand arms out to stop her. "Alli, as for Bea... I've been alienating her for a while now as you told me last time that you want her to live a better life." 1
Allison recalled the incident and asked, "She's back?"
Kevin nodded in reply. 1
'Then, do as I said for now. First of all, it doesn't matter if she has a boyfriend now, I'll introduce another one to her. Don't worry, she's my flesh and blood. I’d never harm her." With that, Allison left the ordinary
restaurant in disgust.