She was his only warmth in this world. Without her, he would be left with only hatred for the Gao family and perhaps a life filled with sorrow.
His hands by his sides slowly formed tight fists, veins bulging on the back of his hands.
Why would heaven toy with him like this? Besides his mother, what else did Jiang Xiangyang have? She was his only concern, his only warmth.
Thin water vapor spread into his eyes, leaving his gaze blurry and sad.
The man walked heavily past Jing Xin, slowly approaching his mother. He spread his arms to hold her tightly. Jing Xin watched, overwhelmed with sadness, as he held her carefully, afraid she would disappear if he loosened his grip.
If she were extinguished, his world would be darkness.
His thin figure appeared helpless under the blazing sun, sunlight penetrating his body but failing to dispel the gloom in his heart.
A tear silently slid down, rolling along his cheek into the corner of his lips, its bitter taste spreading. Jing Xin suddenly felt heartbroken, with a shallow yet sharp pain striking her.
Chapter Fourteen: Rumors
The calendar turned to August, and the long summer vacation had ended.
Jing Xin leaned by the window, watching new students carrying bags below, realizing she had bid farewell to her naive freshman year and the so-called “newbie” stage.
She remembered when she first entered A University, holding expectations for her new life and uncertainty about the future. She worried her introverted nature might make classmates unwilling to associate with her. Contrary to her fears, both male and female classmates liked her. Shan Shan said enviously, “It’s because you have a class beauty’s face and are so good at studying!”
She was not considered a smart child, just very hardworking, spending most of her spare time reading. In her senior year of high school, society advocated against rote learning, but Jing Xin disagreed. If she hadn’t studied hard, how could she have entered a top-tier university? Ultimately, everything comes down to scores, where the result often outweighs the process.
Later, she discovered that by immersing herself in books, she had overlooked many societal aspects. She sometimes felt disconnected, not knowing trendy colors, popular internet slang, or which novel authors were in vogue.
