Peach-Orange! – Chapter 175 – If You Can’t Even Like Firmly, How Can You Talk About Love?

Sister Long had essentially ruled the supermarket with an iron fist.

Not just Su Tao. Other employees also had complaints, often being forced to work overtime or having their wages docked for minor mistakes. Her personality was as harsh as her sharp facial features.

Behind her back, the staff frequently badmouthed her, but no one actually confronted her directly.

Li Ran had been among the most mild-mannered.

Even when criticizing Sister Long, she’d always been relatively restrained. Why would she outright say “she deserved it”?

Sure, Sister Long had been overbearing, but not to this extent, right?

Su Tao pressed for details.

Li Ran’s face twisted in displeasure. “Like you, Tao-Tao, I thought she was just a bit harsh. But when the police investigated, guess what they found?”

Chengcheng, standing nearby, blinked curiously and chimed in, “What happened?”

Li Ran explained, “Docking our pay and giving us a hard time was bad enough, but she was actually selling our personal information!

“Remember when we first started at the supermarket? We all signed contracts. Not only did Long Mian tamper with the terms, but she also took all the personal info we provided and sold it online!

“We got off easy. My dad’s a department head at the school, and this street falls under his jurisdiction. You had Dongfang Yang and Si Chen watching your back, so Long Mian didn’t dare mess with us.

“But who knows where she got the idea? She used Yunyun and the others’ info to take out loans worth hundreds of thousands. When the police looked into it, they found debt collectors had already gone to their hometowns to threaten them!”

The thought made Li Ran shudder, her grip on her suitcase handle tightening unconsciously. “That scumbag might as well have been stabbed to death!”

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Then she covered her mouth, laughing awkwardly. “Sorry, that slipped out. If she died, Little Orange would’ve been arrested.”

Arrested….

But Xiaocheng was already gone.

Su Tao pressed her lips together. Her mood, which had improved after chatting with Chengcheng, suddenly turned heavy again.

She knew Yunyun. She was an extremely timid girl who couldn’t even make eye contact when speaking.

She was also the one who’d called Su Tao last time to say Xiaocheng had caused trouble at the store.

So when Xiaocheng went after Sister Long, had she already known about this?

No, that was just her yandere side acting up. Maybe it was just a coincidence. Regardless, her advisor had been hurt the same day!

Noticing Su Tao’s troubled expression, Li Ran asked with concern, “Tao-Tao, are you okay?”

“Huh?” Su Tao snapped back to attention, forcing a smile. “Just spaced out. I’m fine. What about Yunyun and the others now? How are they handling the loans?”

“Long Mian and her uncle were both investigated. They found a lot of illicit money, enough to repay Yunyun and the others. But the leaked info… that’s harder to deal with.”

And it wasn’t just Yunyun. Both Su Tao’s and Li Ran’s information had long been leaked too.

While the internet had no real privacy these days and data breaches were common, having their info sold so blatantly was infuriating.

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Li Ran vented a few more angry complaints before changing the subject. “By the way, Tao-Tao, what happened to Little Orange afterward? Even though she hurt someone, she exposed Long Mian’s crimes. She should be fine, right?”

The mention of Chi Xiaocheng made Su Tao stiffen again.

No one noticed the slight upward curl of Chengcheng’s lips as she watched Su Tao’s expression grow increasingly pained and burdened, like she was enjoying the show.

She stepped in, smiling placatingly. “Oh, Xiaocheng’s totally fine. Dongfang Yang’s got her back.”

Li Ran pressed, “Then where is she?”

This time, Chengcheng didn’t answer for Su Tao. Instead, she gently nudged Su Tao’s arm with her shoulder.

Su Tao forced a smile. “Xiaocheng is… sick. She’s in the hospital.”

“Oh. Well, as long as she’s okay.”

Sensing Su Tao’s discomfort, Li Ran tactfully dropped the subject. She checked her watch and suddenly panicked.

“Ahhh! I talked too long. I’m gonna miss my train! Gotta run, Tao-Tao! See you next semester, bye!”

She hoisted her suitcase and broke into a sprint.

Even as Su Tao waved faintly in farewell, Li Ran didn’t look back.

Like a good friend gradually slipping away because of her mistakes.

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Chengcheng clasped her hands behind her back, leaning slightly forward to peer at Su Tao’s profile with a sigh. “You told me before, right? That your Xiaocheng caused trouble at the store during a yandere episode. But it turns out she wasn’t actually doing anything wrong.

“If this hadn’t come to light, you and the others would’ve been kept in the dark, never knowing how you were sold out. Sister Long could’ve just quit and vanished, leaving you all saddled with massive debts out of nowhere.

“If Dongfang Yang helped you out, you wouldn’t have to worry. But what about the other part-timers?

“And didn’t you complain before? That she disrupted your life, ruined your peace? That you couldn’t stand her yandere behavior?”

Chengcheng’s words came one after another, each making Su Tao bow her head further.

She pressed her lips together, as if indignant yet also making excuses for herself. “Xiaocheng just… happened to stumble onto this. She also hurt my advisor just because of one phone call.”

Then she suddenly looked up. “Chengcheng, you have no idea what it was like back then. Xiaocheng locked me up, kept pressuring me, and then just because my advisor called to ask if I’d finished my thesis—”

Chengcheng: “And then?”

“And then I just muttered that it was annoying, and Xiaocheng went out while I was exhausted and asleep!”

Su Tao spread her hands. “Even if my advisor was pressuring me, she was doing it for my sake! Guiding me, teaching me how to write papers for academic journals… she even told me outright that I had potential and would mentor me seriously, but the process would be tough.

“I agreed! I knew she meant well. Objectively speaking, my advisor was paving the way for my future!”

She was getting flustered, not because she wanted to blame Chi Xiaocheng.

She just wanted to ease the guilt and burden she felt after Xiaocheng’s death.

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—Xiaocheng’s yandere tendencies would’ve ruined her life.

Wasn’t it reasonable for her to have been afraid before?

Wouldn’t anyone be scared in her place?

All that talk about a yandere’s love being one-of-a-kind… those were just words from people online who’d never experienced it!

They had no idea how terrifying that kind of pressure could be.

She just… just wanted to prove she hadn’t been entirely wrong.

This was entirely a subconscious act of self-preservation after losing her bearings.

Avoiding responsibility was, after all, human nature.

Chengcheng sighed beside her, her eyes tinged with disappointment. “But no matter the outcome, your Xiaocheng did all that for you, didn’t she?”

“You just couldn’t accept her extremes.”

“I…”

Su Tao hesitated but ultimately didn’t argue.

Chengcheng checked her phone. “We still have some time. Want to go see your advisor?”