“Anyone else” — Lu Yicheng, though helplessly amused, fully respected his son’s wishes. He took his phone and stepped out of the room, giving the two of them an entirely private space for their call.

At this hour he had no desire to go to Du Yu’s or Wang Jiangfeng’s room either. The rural retreat was perfectly safe, but he also couldn’t leave a young child alone for too long. After thinking it over, he settled himself on the steps at the end of the corridor. Too much had happened today — so much that even he felt somewhat off-balance. But simply sitting here doing nothing felt like a waste of time, so he unlocked his phone and continued logging his daily vocabulary practice.

He had always kept up this habit.

Unlike many young men who disliked English, he couldn’t say he either loved or hated it — he simply wanted his vocabulary to be as broad as possible, so that he could move through foreign research materials with ease. Only today was different from every other day. Usually, no matter what happened, nothing could break his concentration once he sat down to study. Today…his mind had wandered at least several times.

In frustration, Lu Yicheng pressed his fingers to the bridge of his nose.

Inside the room, Lu Siyan operated his watch-phone and dialed Jiang Ruoqiao’s number.

At that very moment, Jiang Ruoqiao was sitting at her small desk, polishing the personal introduction section of her resume.

She saw the name on the incoming call display and the corners of her mouth curved upward, a faint, soft smile already in her eyes. She pressed answer immediately and put it on speaker. She set the phone beside her tablet, a warm cup of milk sitting within reach.

The night had begun in chaos and was ending in calm.

And now, this phone call from her son made the whole atmosphere that much warmer.

Jiang Ruoqiao rested her cheek in one hand. Though she responded to the call, her eyes remained on the computer screen. “Siyan — still not asleep at this hour?”

Lu Siyan’s bright, clear voice came through the phone: “It’s not even bedtime yet, Mama —” he hesitated for a moment, then summoned his courage and asked: “Mama, did they hurt you?”

Jiang Ruoqiao smiled despite herself. “How am I supposed to answer that?”

“Just tell me the truth,” Lu Siyan said, very earnest. “Mama said — even if you’d lie to everyone else in the world, you’d never lie to me.”

Jiang Ruoqiao paused, thought about it, and in the end told him the truth. “I’m not sure if ‘hurt’ is quite the right word. From the outside, it probably looks like I was wronged, but I personally feel… alright.”

Because Jiang Yan had long since stopped being someone she cared for.

She had a very strong instinct for self-preservation. The moment someone hurt her — or showed even the first signs of it — she would quickly pull back all of her feelings.

Once the feelings were gone, whatever that person did simply couldn’t touch her.

So her closest friend’s words held a certain truth. She had never truly, completely, without reservation, loved anyone. It seemed she was simply built this way — even with the grandparents she loved most in the world, she couldn’t bring herself to let go entirely.

She had grown used to this version of herself, and used to this way of living, and had no plans to change it in the future. Yet somewhere in the back of her mind, she didn’t want Siyan to be the same way. Perhaps that was simply what it meant to be a parent…

She could taste life’s sweetness and bitterness and sourness and joy — just in smaller doses than most. She only ever got a little sip. But for her child, she hoped he would be able to taste everything fully, recklessly, without holding back.

Lu Siyan seemed to half-understand. “So Mama, you’re not unhappy?”

“There’s still some of that,” she admitted. Coming face to face with that scene and then confirming that the story was still playing out the way it was — that hadn’t exactly been a pleasant realization. “But not as deep as you’re probably imagining. I’ll probably feel better in a few days — see, I can still talk with you right now.”

“Oh!” Lu Siyan relaxed, but still felt fiercely indignant on Jiang Ruoqiao’s behalf. “Still, they were really so terrible and awful, going around hurting Mama like that!”

Jiang Ruoqiao smiled and pressed her lips together. “Alright, let’s not talk about them — they’re such a dampener on everything. Where’s your daddy?”

Lu Siyan brightened. “So that means Daddy is not a dampener for Mama, right?”

Jiang Ruoqiao: “…”

This child was alarmingly good at finding angles!

She genuinely couldn’t argue back, but not arguing back somehow felt strange too.

“Okay, I take back that question,” Jiang Ruoqiao said.

Lu Siyan pouted. “You can’t take it back — my ears already heard it. Anyway, Mama, why did you leave today?”

Jiang Ruoqiao thought for a moment. “There were a few reasons. Let me tell you one that nobody else knows — alright?”

“Ooh! Tell me, tell me!”

“I have a very important interview tomorrow,” Jiang Ruoqiao said. “It’s a company that reached out with an email while the power was out — the HR manager contacted me to reschedule.”

The owner of the restaurant had introduced her to a businessman who ran several companies.

She had been in contact with that businessman’s secretary, who had made an exception and arranged an interview for her.

The original time had been set for the day after tomorrow, but they’d sent another email asking to change it — she had written back quickly to confirm.

So there were multiple reasons she had come back, and this was one of them.

Lu Siyan was genuinely puzzled. “But aren’t you still in school?”

Jiang Ruoqiao laughed. “No choice — I need to earn money to feed you, my little money-eating monster.”

Then she immediately realized she had committed a very common parenting mistake. How could she say something like that to a child? She herself had always hated when her own mother said things like “I do everything for you” or “if it weren’t for raising you, my life wouldn’t be like this”…how was it that now that she was a mother herself, she had unknowingly said something so similar?

She quickly backtracked: “Well — it’s not really like that either. You don’t spend nearly as much as I do. If you’re a little money-eating monster, then I’m the big money-eating monster.”

That was actually quite accurate.

She really did spend more herself…

“I’m working not just for you — honestly, more than anything, it’s for myself.” Jiang Ruoqiao kept going, uncharacteristically rambling, trying to correct herself. “This kind of work experience will also go on my future resume. The money I earn goes to both of us, because… I’m actually quite good at spending money. Just think — my morning coffee and croissant alone runs over thirty yuan every day, not to mention new clothes every season, plus skincare and makeup — all of that adds up.”

When she actually tallied it up like that — wow, she really was an absolute money pit.

Lu Siyan burst out laughing. “Mama, I know all of that already!”

“You do?” Jiang Ruoqiao raised an eyebrow.

“Of course!” Lu Siyan said. “Daddy said so before — Mama needs to eat good food, wear pretty clothes, have nice bags, and I need lots of Lego, and lots of healthy food, and a really good school — and that’s what motivates him to work hard and earn money!”

Jiang Ruoqiao: “?”

“No — that won’t be necessary,” Jiang Ruoqiao said. “Little guy, stop trying to sell me on your father. I’m not interested in dating anyone right now. Understood?”

Sealing her heart away.

Temporarily not interested in relationships (for the next three months).

Lu Siyan: “Yes, Madam!”

The two of them had a natural rapport — one threw out a line, and the other caught it effortlessly. After more than ten minutes of chatting, Jiang Ruoqiao’s mood had lifted completely.

After Jiang Yan’s mother brought Lin Kexing back to the city, they didn’t return to the Lin estate, but instead checked into a luxury hotel.

Lin Kexing moved through it all in a daze.

Jiang Yan’s mother led her inside, closed the door, and spoke gently: “Kexing, the reason I haven’t taken you home is that I’m worried about frightening your mother in the state you’re in. Your mother has been very busy lately, as I’m sure you know — she has a great deal to handle every day, and there’s a charity gala next month that she’s throwing herself into, the way she always does, overseeing everything herself. When I left, she was still at work, and she looked exhausted.”

Lin Kexing raised her head, eyes still vacant, a flash of guilt crossing her face. Unable to find words, she managed only a choked, halting reply: “I also don’t want my mother to find out.”

Something this humiliating — if her mother found out, her parents would be so disappointed in her. They would think she was a terrible person.

Jiang Yan’s mother let out a quiet sigh. “If your mother weren’t so busy, I truly would tell her. Kexing, your mother loves you deeply and cares about you enormously — she simply has her own difficulties, and on ordinary days, you should pay more attention to her. In that household, the two of you are closest to each other. There are many complications in a prominent family — she can’t be too involved in your older brothers’ affairs, but she can’t be completely uninvolved either; finding that balance is a delicate business. On top of that, there’s all the socializing with the other wives to manage. Your mother used to be a carefree, worry-free person — and now she truly is… so much more tired than before. Sometimes she’ll say to me that if she had married an ordinary man, a man with a simpler background, her life might have been far more comfortable.”

At that, Lin Kexing felt her guilt and remorse deepen even further.

It was true. Her mother had it so hard, and yet everyone only saw the glamour of being Mrs. Lin. But she knew — her mother wasn’t truly at ease in that household.

They say stepmothers have it difficult. Her mother and her two older brothers maintained an outwardly harmonious relationship, but it was just surface. If her mother paid no attention to them, her father would blame her. If she got involved, the brothers would feel she was overstepping.

If this matter reached her mother’s ears, her mother would be completely overwhelmed.

She lowered her head and said, “Auntie, I beg you — please, please don’t let my mother find out. She has so much to carry already, and I don’t want to trouble her over something like this. I’ve done nothing to help ease her burden as it is.”

Jiang Yan’s mother hesitated and struggled with herself, but under Lin Kexing’s repeated pleading, she reluctantly conceded. “All right, all right. I won’t say a word.”

Once Lin Kexing’s emotions had settled somewhat, Jiang Yan’s mother finally asked: “So what exactly happened?”

Lin Kexing bit her lower lip and said nothing.

Jiang Yan’s mother tried a more casual approach: “Did Ah Yan have an argument with his girlfriend and frighten you?”

Lin Kexing’s hands twisted together, fidgeting helplessly.

She had watched Lin Kexing grow up and knew all her small habits and tells. This one told her everything she needed to know. Composing herself inwardly, she said: “When I came over just now, I didn’t see Ah Yan’s girlfriend anywhere. I imagine she must have left in a temper — otherwise she wouldn’t have gone without greeting me.”

Lin Kexing quickly explained: “No — she left, she went home. That’s why she didn’t know you were coming, Auntie.”

“She left?” Jiang Yan’s mother was genuinely taken aback. The situation was more serious than she had imagined.

Lin Kexing gave a small nod. “So please don’t blame her. She didn’t know, and besides — everything that happened today was entirely my fault.”

Eventually, under repeated questioning, Lin Kexing finally let slip a few details.

Jiang Yan’s mother pieced it all together and finally understood what had happened.

She was genuinely astonished.

But she also understood — this was a serious incident. There were benefits and drawbacks: the benefit being that Jiang Ruoqiao would initiate a breakup; the drawback being that if Ah Yan learned of Kexing’s feelings…

Lin Kexing said, reproaching herself: “It’s all my fault. I had feelings for Jiang Yan —”

Jiang Yan’s mother startled sharply and immediately cut her off. “Kexing, how can you blame yourself? Don’t say that.”

The time wasn’t right.

She couldn’t know about Kexing’s feelings yet, and neither could Ah Yan. The moment either of them found out, things would no longer unfold in the direction she had in mind.

Lin Kexing looked up at her. “Auntie…”

In this moment, Jiang Yan’s mother’s expression shifted to one of burning indignation. “I am so disappointed in Ah Yan. How could he treat you like that? He shouldn’t have drunk so much, and he should never have mistaken you for someone else. Kexing, don’t say another word — he’s so much stronger than you!”

Lin Kexing hesitated. “Auntie, it wasn’t —”

“Are you about to say you’re taking all the blame on yourself?” Jiang Yan’s mother’s face was a picture of maternal concern. “Don’t worry — I will see to it that you get proper justice for this. You’ve always thought of Ah Yan as a brother, and the two of you have always been so close. And now because of him — Kexing, tell Auntie honestly, are you hurt by this? Are you upset? If you are, I will discipline him. I’ll tell him to move out, and from now on, even during holidays, he’s not to come back. As long as you don’t want to see him, I will make sure he never appears in front of you again.”

She continued: “That’s what we’ll do — tomorrow I’ll have him pack his things. He can fend for himself. He will not be allowed to see you, not ever. Kexing, does that sound alright to you?”

Lin Kexing froze.

To never see Jiang Yan again?

No. No, that couldn’t happen.

She wanted to watch over him. She wanted to see him happy. And it was precisely because of this that she hated herself so deeply for ruining his relationship.

If she could never see him again… the mere thought of it made Lin Kexing feel as though her chest were being suffocated in waves — a breathlessness that spread to every corner of her body, making it impossible to breathe.

Yes. If Jiang Yan ever found out how she truly felt about him, he wouldn’t want to see her anymore either. He would look at her with disgust.

And if Auntie found out…would she also think her despicable and beyond redemption? Auntie had treated her with such love, like a daughter of her own.

She could never let them find out.

Not a single person could ever know.

Lin Kexing’s gaze slowly grew calm and resolute. She shook her head. “I don’t blame Jiang Yan at all. He was just drunk. I don’t blame him.”

A brief, fleeting smile passed through Jiang Yan’s mother’s eyes.

Good. That was how it should be.

She would handle the rest herself.

On the other side.

Lu Yicheng was still sitting on the steps at the corridor entrance, working through his vocabulary log, when Jiang Yan returned. He looked completely disheveled.

Jiang Yan was carrying a small bag, and inside it, something glimmered. Lu Yicheng glanced over and recognized it — a jar full of fireflies, common in the summer heat.

Jiang Yan hadn’t expected to run into Lu Yicheng at the corridor entrance. His voice came out rough and low: “Why are you out here?”

Lu Yicheng replied evenly: “Siyan’s on the phone with his mother. I came out to get some air.”

“Ah.” Jiang Yan looked down at the bag in his hand, his expression tinged with bitterness. “Originally I had this plan — I was going to bring Ruoqiao out here and make her a little ‘lantern’ out of these. She would’ve loved it.”

He didn’t know what else he could do.

He couldn’t get back to the city right now.

And calling her was impossible — she had blocked him.

Lu Yicheng simply watched him quietly, but even he hadn’t noticed it himself: his hand had tightened around his phone.

Lu Yicheng was a man of few words. Back in the dormitory, whenever the other three discussed this kind of thing, he had never once taken part.

A silence settled between them.

Jiang Yan looked down. The grass blades he had pushed through catching fireflies had left faint, thin cuts across the back of his hand. Then, abruptly, he asked: “Lu Yicheng — do you think I was truly in the wrong?”

—