Many people couldn’t stand Jiang Ren’s lawless behavior. They said the Jiang family had abandoned him and was grooming a new heir. Young Master Jiang had become a pauper.
When someone provoked him, Jiang Ren didn’t hold back, beating him until his mother didn’t recognize him. The next day, the school publicly criticized Jiang Ren. He stood among the crowd, drowsily bored.
Then the following day, Jiang Ren drove a sports car to school.
The rumors collapsed on their own. Even though he had been driven out of his home for unknown reasons, he was still quite wealthy. This year, the Jiang family donated to Seventh High, proving that Jiang Ren hadn’t been abandoned.
Meng Ting told him, “June 18th, at Swan Cottage in B City.”
He lowered his eyes, his fingers pausing for a moment.
Then, as if nothing had happened, he stuffed his gloves back into his pocket. “Mm, got it.”
Seeing her still standing there, looking at him cautiously, he found it amusing. “What’s wrong? Not leaving yet? Can’t bear to part with me?”
Meng Ting thought he was shameless. She said, “Of course not.”
She was just thinking that he must have a reason for not wanting to go home.
However, he said carelessly, “Alright then, remember. You should go home now, it’s hot outside.”
When Meng Ting got home, she ran into Shu Lan, who was going out.
Shu Lan had put on makeup, with pink eyeshadow at the corners of her eyes and upturned eyeliner. She wore ultra-short shorts, her fair thighs exposed, giving her a mature look that didn’t match her age.
Shu Papa wasn’t home. If he were, he would certainly scold her furiously.
Shu Yang had gone out; he was impressive. Meng Ting understood immediately. He was now tutoring math to younger children on weekends.
No one was watching Shu Lan. Meng Ting saw her but just bent down to change into slippers. She didn’t say a word to Shu Lan.
If she wanted to court death, let her be.
Shu Lan left with a parasol.
When she returned at night, she shot Meng Ting a vicious glare.
Meng Ting was cooking in the kitchen. Summer was hot, and Shu Papa and Shu Yang came home late; they were all working hard. If she cooked at home, they wouldn’t have to work so hard. They could just reheat the food when they got back at night.
Meng Ting saw the hateful look Shu Lan gave her.
But she didn’t care. The kitchen was hot, and it was summer; she was very warm.
Meng Ting untied her apron.
She divided the food into two portions, then took her own to the table to eat. She had made fish-flavored eggplant and tomato eggdrop soup.
Meng Ting turned on the fan, washed her hands, and ate quietly.
Shu Lan washed her hands and came over, dumbfounded.
Meng Ting sat at the table, her long lashes lowered, sipping soup with a small spoon. However, the small amount of food was only enough for one person. Shu Lan hadn’t spoken to her in a long time but couldn’t help asking, “Where’s mine?”
Meng Ting said, “I didn’t make any for you. If you want to eat, make it yourself.”
Shu Lan could hardly believe what she was hearing. Her voice rose, “You cooked but didn’t make any for me?”
Meng Ting found it amusing: “Why should I make any for you? You have hands and feet.”
Seeing that she wasn’t joking, Shu Lan was so angry smoke almost came out of her head. She didn’t want to go to the hot kitchen to cook, so she said defiantly, “Fine, I won’t eat then. I don’t care anyway, it’s not a big deal.”
With that, she went back to her room, slamming the door with a bang.
From start to finish, Meng Ting hadn’t looked at her. In her previous life, she had lost too much. Unable to overcome psychological factors, she didn’t dance, and only this ungrateful sister was most important in her life.
She was gentle to the world, even after being burned. She had never hated anyone or blamed anything. Meng Ting actively practiced English and was full of expectations for the latter half of her life. After saving money for two or three more years, she could pay the down payment for a house. In the future, she could find an honest man who wouldn’t mind her appearance and live a good life, but Shu Lan had let go of the rope.
Shu Lan owed Meng Ting a life.
However, Shu Papa had repaid Meng Ting a life.
They were even. But this didn’t prevent Meng Ting from disliking her. After washing her bowl, Meng Ting returned to her room and saw the crystal shoes. She carefully put them in a box, along with the ballet dress she had worn when she was thirteen or fourteen.
Shu Lan was so hungry by midnight that her vision blurred.
She gritted her teeth in hatred, remembering that she hadn’t removed her makeup. She sneaked to the bathroom to take it off, looking at her ordinary self in the mirror. She hated Meng Ting so much. After Chen Shuo, Shu Lan had secretly gotten a new boyfriend.
Her new boyfriend was also from the vocational school, called Zou Sheng, but he had some money.
Her lipstick was a gift from Zou Sheng.
Today, Shu Lan had a date with him, and he asked her, “Is your sister that school beauty from Seventh High?”
Shu Lan was displeased.
Zou Sheng smiled, “Alright, don’t be angry, I’m just curious. I heard she doesn’t wear skirts. Could it be true that her legs are injured?”
He was just trying to start a conversation.
The first time he saw Meng Ting, she was under a tree at Seventh High in the sunset, holding a few books and waiting for someone. She was as beautiful as a painting.
Meng Ting kept a low profile. Most boys at the vocational school only knew about Shen Yuqing from Seventh High. When Zou Sheng saw Meng Ting, he was stunned by her beauty.
However, when he saw Jiang Ren approach her, he backed off.
No joke, who dared to mess with this big shot?
But this didn’t stop him from asking Shu Lan about her.
Shu Lan was about to say no, but as the words reached her lips, she said regretfully, “Yes, when she was young… she was burned. Her legs are full of scars.”
Zou Sheng showed a disgusted expression.
Shu Lan was happy for a moment, but couldn’t help thinking. Why wasn’t it true? It would be good if it were true. It would be even better if not only those beautiful legs were burned, but her face was ruined too.
This malicious thought crossed her mind for an instant. In the end, she didn’t dare to think about it further.
When He Junming found out that Jiang Ren was going back to B City, he was stunned.
He still remembered when Jiang Ren came to H City alone last year, with an air of indifference about him: “The old man kicked me out, I’m not going back anymore.”
He Junming cursed inwardly.
At that time, he thought, who was Jiang Ren? Even in a place like B City, full of hidden talents, he was called Young Master Jiang, a domineering figure. How could he have fallen out with Chairman Jiang?
Chairman Jiang loved his elegant wife and also liked his only son. How could he have driven Jiang Ren out?
Although Jiang Ren often clashed with Chairman Jiang during his rebellious phase, he respected this father in his heart.
The night Jiang Ren first arrived last year, his eyes were pitch black, and his mood was very bad. Something big must have happened for him to come to H City.
Later, Chairman Jiang swallowed his pride several times and asked him to come back, but Jiang Ren laughed coldly and mocked him, leading to fierce arguments between father and son.
He Junming knew Ren Ge’s personality. He found it surreal that he suddenly wanted to return to B City.
He Junming teased, “So Young Master Jiang has come to his senses? Going back to inherit the family fortune?”
Jiang Ren cursed with a laugh, “Get lost, I’m just going for a few days and then coming back.”
He Junming thought for a moment, then boldly asked in a low voice, “Is Meng Ting going?”
Jiang Ren’s eyes softened: “Mm.”
He Junming thought, no wonder!
Their group chatted coarsely, openly, and boldly, not caring if others overheard. But the next day, someone said that Jiang Ren was going back to B City.
Everyone was amazed.
That was the Jiang family! They all thought the Jiang family had an illegitimate son and had given up on the already ill Jiang Ren. Who would have thought he could still go back?
Shen Yuqing regretted it so much her intestines turned green.
If she had known that Jiang Ren was still the Jiang family heir, she would never have agreed to break up at that time!
So when Jiang Ren drove to the airport, she was waiting early.
On a midsummer day, she had carefully dressed up, with light makeup, wearing a super short skirt, looking youthful and beautiful. She was originally very pretty and knew how to dress up much better than Shu Lan. Standing there, quite a few people looked at her.
Jiang Ren couldn’t travel with Meng Ting.
Meng Ting was going with all the other H City contestants, with tickets sponsored by the sponsor. While waiting for the plane, he bought a bottle of mineral water to drink, tilting his head back and drinking half the bottle in a few gulps, his Adam’s apple bobbing.
The action was unrestrained and wild.
He was originally handsome, actually quite good-looking.
When Shen Yuqing found him, she walked over with small, elegant steps: “Jiang Ren!”
Jiang Ren looked over.
For a moment, he couldn’t remember who she was.
When he did, he cursed inwardly. Damn, this woman was his dark history.
When he came to H City, it was when he hated his mother the most. Shen Yuqing was almost the same kind of person as his mother. He just wanted to see if this type of person could lower their noble head for money.
The fact proved that money was very attractive.
Unfortunately, his father, Chairman Jiang, didn’t understand.
Shen Yuqing said with restraint, “Can we start over?” Although she said this, her tone naturally carried a hint of arrogance.
Actually, in her heart, she looked down on Jiang Ren.
Was he handsome? Not to the extreme, but rather the kind with a very manly aura. He attended a chaotic vocational school and made a bunch of lowly friends.
His temperament was unrestrained. The first time Shen Yuqing insisted on going out with him, they ended up eating late-night snacks and drinking beer at a roadside stall.
The rough, jovial atmosphere there nearly drove Shen Yuqing crazy.
She had dated rich second-generation boyfriends before.
They would take her to high-class places for dates, with steak and violins. But what about Jiang Ren? How was he any different from a hoodlum?
Moreover, Jiang Ren never said sweet words, never hugged her, never kissed her. He had a bad temper and was said to have some psychological issues.
Occasionally, when he looked at her with a mocking gaze, Shen Yuqing felt like a joke. But Jiang Ren was truly generous, more generous than any man she had ever met. So Shen Yuqing hesitated between finding someone better, after all, Jiang Ren had been abandoned by the Jiang family, and being unwilling to give up his generosity.
Shen Yuqing sought reconciliation, her eyes pitifully pleading, but her chin slightly raised.
Jiang Ren screwed the cap back on the bottle and smiled. This woman took herself seriously.
He knew he wasn’t outstanding, so he wasn’t good enough for Meng Ting.
But who did Shen Yuqing think she was?
He said, “Get lost. When did I ever start anything with you?”
Shen Yuqing held back her anger: “Weren’t we boyfriend and girlfriend before?”
Jiang Ren sneered: “I never touched you, but you sure touched my wallet.”
Shen Yuqing: “…!”
Jiang Ren threw the water bottle, hitting the trash can perfectly. He didn’t look at her and boarded the plane. On the plane, he seemed somewhat lost in thought.
The look in Shen Yuqing’s eyes was both ingratiating and contemptuous. Jiang Ren wasn’t stupid; even this kind of woman looked down on him. Let alone Meng Ting.
He always had a sense of unreality.
Being able to go watch Meng Ting dance was the first time he hadn’t been rejected. He had shot a perfect ten in shooting and climbed 70 meters with swollen, painful arms. In exchange, he got a slight nod and a look of pity from her under the street trees.
Moreover, he had a dark history.
The more Jiang Ren thought about it, the more irritated he became.
He lowered his gaze to look at his hands. The long, strong fingers were no longer swollen, but the scars remained.
Damn, could it be that Meng Ting was just sympathizing with him?
Jiang Ren used to be glad that Meng Ting was different from his mother. But for the first time, he couldn’t help thinking that it would be good if Meng Ting also liked his money.
In his almost eighteen years of life, after understanding what it meant to like someone, he felt a bit of the innocence and sadness typical of his age.
At least if he had something she liked, she would be with him.