The moment the words left her mouth, Cen Jin knew that beyond her compassion, this was also an impulsive act of defiance and a grand gamble—with Wu Fu as the target of her spite.

The person he had coldly abandoned would receive the highest treatment from her hands. She couldn’t control her fixation, attempting to show her strength to her husband through this.

On her way here, Cen Jin had no clear idea how to help Li Wu. Perhaps after traveling a thousand miles, she would only end up looking at this pitiful child and giving him some cash.

But now, she had changed her mind. She would help him thoroughly.

Objectively speaking, her situation was worlds apart from the youth’s, but she felt they were tied to the same rope, sharing the same fate and breath—both cast aside by Wu Fu. Li Wu was suffering guilt by association because of her.

Only when he succeeded academically would the imbalance in her heart be corrected, proving she was the ultimate winner.

However, regardless of her motives, Cen Jin’s decision went beyond rational thinking.

Not just Aunt Li, even she was somewhat surprised.

So when the middle-aged woman stared at her in shock, she didn’t mind her exaggerated reaction at all.

Aunt Li finally came to her senses, confirming her intention: “You mean you came today to take Li Wu to study in the city?”

Cen Jin paused, then nodded.

“What?” the aunt found it absurd: “Why?”

Cen Jin’s ring finger tapped lightly on the table edge: “I’m his sponsor, it’s my obligation.”

The aunt said: “Well, I’m his aunt and his guard…” she suddenly couldn’t remember the term, stumbling: “Guardian!”

Cen Jin said: “That’s why I’m asking for your consent.”

“What gives you the right,” the woman’s politeness made the aunt raise her voice: “Just give you my child because you say so? Who are you? Stop paying school fees but want to take the child away? Dreaming! There’s no such good deal. Our Li family has a perfectly good boy, he’s not disabled, and can’t just go with you because you say so. Dream on.”

Cen Jin frowned imperceptibly: “Then I’ll have to take back Li Wu’s grandfather’s card. The card was specially opened by my husband and me, the money in it is only for their living expenses and school fees. The contract clearly states support for Li Wu until university admission. If the recipient drops out without special reasons, I have the right to reclaim that card.”

The aunt’s face reddened: “Where’s the contract? Just your word?”

Cen Jin thought briefly: “I left in a hurry today and didn’t bring it, but Chief Yan has a copy and should be at the village committee.”

The aunt gritted her teeth secretly: “How will my son and I live after giving it to you?”

“However you lived before, that’s how you’ll live after. Li Wu hasn’t been with you since childhood,” Cen Jin tried to maintain a good tone: “Like you said, with him gone, there’s one less mouth to feed and clothe.”

The aunt stuck out her neck: “My nephew is young and strong, shouldn’t he help the family?”

Cen Jin admired her patience: “Do what, and how much, there should be limits. Your child is already eight, yet still needs to be fed—is that necessary?”

The aunt snorted loudly: “I knew it, this boy is very calculating, and must have complained a lot to you.”

Cen Jin laughed: “He doesn’t even have a phone, how could he complain to me?” Her smile quickly dropped: “I have eyes, I can see.”

Aunt Li rolled her eyes, still not giving in: “Let my nephew go with you for free? Impossible.”

Cen Jin’s eyelashes lowered, then raised: “Tell me, how much do you want?”

“Is this about money?!”

“If not money, then what?” Cen Jin couldn’t be bothered to be nice anymore, speaking frankly: “If you treated Li Wu as family, as your child, you’d support his education. Our sponsorship money is more than enough for tuition—isn’t it enough to offset his food and drink? You, as his aunt, just want to keep him tied up at home like a dog to use, squeeze out all his value. Education means nothing to you, but for Li Wu, it’s his only chance to rise above his circumstances. I can’t stand seeing a good child being wasted like this, I want to help him, that’s all.”

“What right do you have!” Aunt Li finally dropped all pretense, shouting: “You think I can’t stop you? Kidnapping children? Think you can snatch other people’s children just because you have some money! Who do you think you are? Is this the quality of city people?”

Though her words were crude and she argued until red-faced, to Cen Jin she was just a paper tiger putting on airs: “If I were kidnapping, I wouldn’t be sitting here. Tomorrow I’ll contact a lawyer to come, we’ll go through the previous contract carefully. Either I advance part of the money and take Li Wu now, or you follow the rules and return the bank card to me.”

At the mention of “lawyer,” the aunt was terrified, her aggression instantly deflating by half, nearly standing in panic: “What lawyer? You want to sue me?”

Cen Jin pressed her lips lightly: “If necessary, it’s not impossible.”

“I don’t think that’s necessary,” the aunt’s eyes darted around, her half-raised bottom firmly returning to the chair: “I’m just a country person, can barely read, who knows if I’ll get cheated.”

Cen Jin sat at ease: “Then you say, how to handle this.”

The aunt looked sideways, contemplating for a moment, then peered over to ask: “So if you take Li Wu to the city, how much can you give us two? My nephew is only seventeen.”—Her practiced bargaining tone was no different from haggling over livestock.

Cen Jin felt the irony: “How much do you want?”

The aunt thought for a moment, uncertainly: “Thirty thousand?”

Cen Jin pulled out a sneer, saying nothing.

The aunt’s scalp tingled: “Who knows if he’ll ever come back.”

Hopefully not, Cen Jin prayed for the boy in her heart, but blood ties are hard to break, so she could only compromise: “That’s up to him.”

“Ah—? How does that work, just abandon us?” the aunt counted on her fingers: “Isn’t that like giving him to you for free? Building a new house costs more than that.”

Cen Jin took out her phone, placing it casually on the table.

The aunt’s hair stood on end: “What do you mean? Going to call someone?”

“Either a lawyer or Secretary Cheng,” Cen Jin raised her phone, listing options: “Miss Cheng should still be on duty, I can have her witness this. What do you think?”

“Now you’re threatening people, like a bandit.”

Cen Jin casually glanced at the screen, she had given enough patience: “It’s almost eight, I still need to go back.”

The aunt, estimating that this woman had deep pockets and wasn’t good to mess with, didn’t want a hard confrontation. Thinking to pocket the immediate benefits first, she pretended to be generous: “Thirty thousand it is then. We’re uneducated, can’t read big characters, whatever you say goes. I can’t match your sharp mind, I’ll take this loss.”

Cen Jin smiled slightly: “Good that you understand.”

The aunt’s teeth itched hearing this, angry but not daring to speak.

Cen Jin got through to Cheng Lixue, briefly explained the situation, and then handed the phone to Aunt Li before getting up to find Li Wu.

The house’s soundproofing wasn’t good; Li Wu had heard at least eighty percent of what they said outside.

So he was somewhat distracted, only solving half of a big problem.

Until Cen Jin knocked on the door, he only then seemed to wake from a dream and put down his pen.

“May I come in?” the woman asked.

Li Wu hurried to open the door for her.

As soon as their eyes met, Cen Jin frowned: “It’s so dark, can you see the words?”

Li Wu said: “I can see clearly.”

“You might already be nearsighted.” Cen Jin didn’t believe him, muttering as she walked in.

Li Wu followed behind, his gaze passing over the woman’s shoulders and back. Her figure was slim yet carried a hint of pride, like an elegantly growing white lotus, only to be admired from afar.

He consciously kept a large distance.

Li Wu’s math materials were spread on a low table with an uneven wooden stool in front. This height would be suitable for a four-year-old practicing writing and drawing, but for Li Wu, it was like cutting off a tree’s branches and roots and forcing it to grow in a miniature flowerpot.

Cen Jin sat down, moved aside the pen, and looked down at his writing.

Li Wu’s ears suddenly reddened.

Cen Jin’s gaze didn’t linger long on the paper, instead raising her eyes to look at him: “I want to take you to study in Yi City, are you willing?”

Li Wu rarely smiled, his brows easily gathering dark clouds. His voice was rough: “Need to give aunt thirty thousand yuan, right?”

“So you heard everything,” Cen Jin clasped her knees, curving her lips slightly: “What else can we do? It’s impossible to study properly here. Selling you for such a small profit—do you still want to stay with an aunt like this?”

Her friendly attitude delivered harsh words—all undeniable facts.

And what she called an insignificant amount was an astronomical figure to him.

“The education at Yi Middle School is much better than here. I plan to have you board there. No need to transfer your household registration or school records to avoid trouble. You’ll live at school, I’ll cover tuition and living expenses, and you just focus entirely on studying. I think this is what you want most too.”

As she spoke, Cen Jin suddenly wanted to laugh. She found herself not at all like a qualified persuader, more like the head of a pyramid scheme. But she didn’t know what would be appropriate, after all, this youth seemed stubborn yet simple in temperament, not the kind of person who could make changes carelessly and immediately.

Li Wu heard but didn’t speak, standing quietly like a thin, long shadow.

“Li Wu?” Cen Jin looked at him for a moment, tentatively calling: “Or do you want to think about it more, and I’ll come back in a few days?”

“No need,” he finally spoke, much more firmly this time: “I’ll pay you back.”

Cen Jin relaxed, smiling: “I know.” She didn’t like the current atmosphere and broke it: “With interest?”

Li Wu asked seriously: “How much?”

Cen Jin paused, guilt growing: “Silly boy, can’t even tell when I’m joking. Just pay me back with your college entrance exam results.”

Seeing the youth about to speak again, Cen Jin interrupted: “Aren’t you going to pack?”

Li Wu rarely showed animation appropriate for his age, asking in disbelief: “Now?”

“Of course,” Cen Jin stood up, looking around: “I don’t want to come to this place a second time.”

—

Living under others’ roofs, Li Wu didn’t have much luggage, not even enough to fill one bag, weighing less than his backpack.

Cen Jin happened to have five thousand yuan in cash, withdrawn from the bank before coming. She had planned to give it to Li Wu but ended up using it as a deposit to stop his aunt’s sharp tongue.

The middle-aged woman counted the money with a beaming smile, her mud-stained nails particularly eye-catching against the pink bills.

An hour later, in the mountain village’s quiet night where only dogs could be heard barking, Cheng Lixue was forced to act as a third-party witness, reading the temporary contract Cen Jin had written word by word for everyone to hear.

When it came time for the three to sign and fingerprint, she still felt uneasy and called for them to pause while she phoned Chief Yan for his opinion.

Chief Yan was somewhat surprised and spoke separately with Cen Jin, Aunt Li, and Li Wu.

After understanding the whole story, this grassroots cadre could only sigh helplessly and make an exception to approve this matter.

The remaining twenty-five thousand was directly transferred from Cen Jin’s phone to the aunt’s account.

With Secretary Cheng supervising, Aunt Li was also reassured. Before leaving, she perfunctorily reminded Li Wu of a few things before returning home, not forgetting to make some sour comments about how he was going to live a good life now.

Li Wu just listened silently, then watched her leave.

Finally getting peace, Cen Jin felt greatly relieved, her posture relaxing somewhat. She pressed the trunk release button from afar, gesturing for Li Wu to put in his luggage.

Li Wu suddenly stopped, his eyes dazzled by the suddenly flashing brilliant taillights.

The youth’s heart suddenly burned hot—his unremarkable backpack and the woven bag in his hand seemed like a desecration in comparison.

After hesitating for a moment, he carefully placed them in the corner.

He turned back to look at Cen Jin, asking if she could wait for him a while, he wanted to go somewhere else.

Cen Jin twirled the car keys back into her palm: “Where?”

Li Wu said: “Grandfather’s grave.”

Cen Jin paused, jerking her chin toward the gate: “Go ahead, I’ll wait here.”

Cen Jin got into the driver’s seat, watching the youth turn and leave. He walked faster and faster, finally breaking into a run, gradually melting into the night.

Cen Jin was completely liberated. She yawned tiredly, stretching her limbs, every muscle in her body exhausted to the extreme.

…

Afraid of keeping Cen Jin waiting too long, Li Wu ran back.

Li Wu knew every path in the mountains by heart; even in the pitch-dark night, he could move as if on level ground.

The round trip took just over ten minutes.

Turning into the courtyard, Cen Jin’s car was still there, like a bright, clean snow house in the wilderness.

Li Wu’s heart inexplicably calmed, even his breathing growing lighter.

His steps gradually slowed as he walked forward.

The reading light was on inside the car, the light warm-toned, neither too bright nor too dim. The woman leaned against the seat, head tilted, eyes slightly closed. Her sleeping face behind the glass looked particularly peaceful, like a flawless doll in a display window.

Li Wu didn’t knock on the window, didn’t even move anymore, just stood outside, quietly waiting.

As the wind flowed past, he noticed Cen Jin’s half-open window beside her.

The youth walked over, stopping with his back to that wide opening. He gazed toward the distant, blurry dark mountains, almost holding his breath as if protecting a candle flame.