Chapter 30

“No!” Madam Fang hurriedly denied it. “He didn’t complain about you. He praised you!”

“Praised me?”

To say he was not surprised would be impossible. Fang Han looked incredulous. He truly could not imagine what part of him Jiang Zao could possibly praise.

Rather than make random guesses, it was better to ask directly. Fang Han looked at his nervous mother. “What did he say?”

Madam Fang could not quite grasp her son’s attitude toward this matter, so her answer was rather cautious. “Teacher Jiang said your organizational skills are very strong. This gathering was arranged entirely by you and another classmate, and he was very satisfied.”

After Fang Han heard this, although nothing changed on his face, he could not help thinking in his heart, Satisfied my ass. Not a single one of the routes he and Song Jintong had arranged had been followed. They had only wandered around that snack street the whole time.

Seeing that he did not seem averse to it, Madam Fang relaxed a little and continued, “He also said that you scored full marks on the last exam and were first in the class. He said you’re very smart, and if you study properly, you will definitely achieve good results.”

A cold smile surfaced at Fang Han’s lips. Jiang Zao really could lie with his eyes wide open. Everyone knew the grades had been falsified. For him to say this to his mother—was he considering the parent’s feelings and deliberately saying nice things, or was the other party simply afraid of trouble and casually saying a few pleasant words to brush things off?

Although that was what he thought in his heart, when he saw how happy his mother looked [bailiantales.com]because he had received praise from a teacher, Fang Han still lowered his eyes and restrained his mocking emotions.

It seemed Madam Fang had not spoken this much with her son in a long time. Once she started, she could not stop. “Teacher Jiang also said you have a lot of prestige in class, and your classmates all listen to you—hehe, I remember you were the king of children from when you were little. No matter where you went, you had the ability to gather a bunch of little followers. You would lead them everywhere to be mischievous and cause trouble, giving people endless headaches.”

“But when you grew a little older, you became very well-behaved. We didn’t have to worry about your school matters at all, and your grades were always among the best. Do you remember that when you were in elementary school, you were always the class monitor?” As Madam Fang spoke of the past, her gaze turned nostalgic. “Every time I went to a parent-teacher meeting, the teacher would especially praise you. The parents of other students were also very envious of me and asked how I taught you. Hehe, at that time, I felt so proud.”

As if immersed in that old period of time, the light on Madam Fang’s face gradually became dazzling. Her smile was quiet and happy.

“How wonderful those days were.”

She said it like a sigh.

But Fang Han’s expression gradually turned ugly. By the time he heard that sigh, he gritted his teeth and said, “But all of that was destroyed by you with your own hands!”

Those words, woven from anger and hatred, jolted Madam Fang awake from the past she had been immersed in. The rosiness on her face rapidly faded, and paleness once again occupied her no longer young features.

“Ah Han…” she called timidly.

Fang Han stared at her. “All these years, the women outside him never stopped. He even hooked up with my classmate’s mother. You clearly knew all of this, yet read the original at bailiantales.comyou still helped him hide it from me! If I hadn’t accidentally run into him cheating with another woman, how long were you planning to hide it from me? For the rest of my life?”

“I…” Madam Fang mumbled.

Having had enough of how she always hemmed and hawed whenever this topic came up, Fang Han bit down on his molars and said hatefully, “You’re always like this. As if you’ve suffered some enormous grievance, but you still refuse to say anything. Do you think people will praise you for this? Those so-called social elites who have nothing better to do will only laugh behind your back, laughing that you’re weak. You carry the title of Madam Fang, yet you’re like a puppet, letting others manipulate you however they like!”

Madam Fang’s head hung very low. The identities of the two had reversed. Under her son’s stern accusations, she looked like a helpless child.

“He’s so filthy. Don’t you find him disgusting? Have you never thought of divorce?” Fang Han’s eyes were bloodshot, and his voice was hoarse. The immense unwillingness in his words—no one knew whether it was for himself or for the mother before him, who never spoke of her grievances. “Are you that attached to the title of Madam Fang?”

Fang Han’s entire body was trembling from agitation, while Madam Fang across from him merely continued to lower her head and remain silent.

Unable to bear seeing her cowardly appearance, Fang Han turned his head away and closed his eyes in frustration at her failure to fight for herself.

The silence made one’s heart tremble. Fang Han gritted his teeth, preparing to tell her to leave, but Madam Fang let out a very soft laugh, full of self-mockery.

“How could I… not have thought of it?”

Madam Fang’s tone was no different from usual. She was like when she used to read stories to Fang Han as a child, speaking softly and gently. “The first time I discovered he was cheating was when I was pregnant. [bailiantales.com]At that time, I was very angry and had already made up my mind to divorce him. But when I informed my family of this decision, not a single person supported me.”

“Your grandfather and uncle told me that if I divorced, the family business would be affected, and they forbade me from divorcing.” Madam Fang said, “Your grandmother felt very sorry for me and told me I had been wronged. But then she said men are just like this. As long as he still knows to come home, that is enough. Even for the sake of the child, I had to keep living this life.”

Fang Han’s face turned pale little by little.

“Even my best friend…” Madam Fang gently took a breath. “She also said that even if I divorced, changing to someone else might not necessarily be better. Better to turn a blind eye and just make do.”

Madam Fang lifted her head. On her plain face hung a calm smile without waves. “They were right to laugh. I really am cowardly. Under circumstances where no one supported me, I didn’t even dare take one step out. I didn’t dare walk into the unknown alone.”

“So I listened to them and didn’t continue making a fuss. And after that incident, he did indeed behave himself for a while. I thought things were developing in a better direction.” Madam Fang continued, “But not long after you were born, I once again discovered him interacting with other women. Only then did I understand that he hadn’t become well-behaved. He had only become more careful.”

“At that time, I had some postpartum depression. That incident was a severe blow to me. One late night, I couldn’t sleep. Thinking about my life up until then, I suddenly felt that everything was meaningless, so I walked to the window.” Madam Fang looked at Fang Han, whose face had already turned deathly pale, and smiled. “But I didn’t jump, because at that moment, you, who had always slept very deeply at night, suddenly cried. You cried so hard it tore at the heart. I walked over, and you stretched out your little hands toward me, wanting me to hold you.”

“I picked you up. You were so small, so light. I felt you were so fragile. I thought, if you didn’t have my protection, would you be able to grow up well?” Tears shimmered in Madam Fang’s eyes. “So I made a decision. At the very least, I had to become your support and not let you be as helpless as I was.”

“Mom…”

Fang Han’s voice trembled, but he only called this one word and had nothing more to say. A storm was brewing in his eyes, no one knowing when it would sweep over everything.

Perhaps feeling the heaviness of the atmosphere, Madam Fang switched to a lighter tone. “Ah Han, look at Mom’s life. Doesn’t it resemble those games you play? At every stage, there are missions to complete. The mission of being a daughter, the mission of being a wife, and now, the mission of being a mother is to protect my child well.”

Fang Han’s lips moved, but in the end, he said nothing.

Madam Fang smiled again. “Ah Han, no matter whether you resent me or not, I still hope you will be well.”

“Your complexion is very bad. Rest.” Madam Fang stood up. “I’ll go out first.”

Madam Fang picked up the tray. Just as she was about to leave through the door, Fang Han’s hoarse roar sounded from behind her. “But games have rewards!”

Madam Fang stopped.

The sound of footsteps was hurried, making muffled noises on the soft, thick carpet. Fang Han came in front of her and questioned her. “What did you get?”

Madam Fang lowered her head and gripped the tray tightly.

Her wrist was grasped hard by the teenager’s broad palm, forcing her to lift her head. Her eyes were red.

Fang Han looked at her. He had forgotten how long it had been since he had carefully looked at his mother’s face. It seemed that he had always only given her a casual glance before turning his head away in disgust. Only now did he discover that his mother had aged a great deal. She was not young and beautiful, nor was she radiant and dazzling, but she was as kind as ever, pouring all her gentleness toward this unruly son of hers.

Everything from the past appeared vividly before his eyes. What he had felt, what he had ignored, what he had hated, what he had been unwilling about, what he regretted deeply—all five flavors mixed together.

Taking a deep breath, Fang Han suppressed all other emotions and said in a firm tone, “I’ll be your reward!”

Madam Fang widened her eyes.

“I’ll stand by your side. I’ll be your support. I’ll take you away from here.” Fang Han made the promise one word at a time.

“Ah Han…” Madam Fang’s lips trembled.

Then Fang Han lowered his head again, carrying a hint of pleading. “It’s just that I don’t have the ability right now. Can you wait for me? Wait until I become strong. I will definitely take you away! When that time comes, you can do what you want to do and go where you want to go. You won’t need to care about other people’s gazes. You won’t be anyone’s wife, nor anyone’s mother. You will only be yourself. So… can you wait for me?”

Silence.

After waiting for a long time without receiving a response, Fang Han mocked himself in his heart. Perhaps he had already disappointed her long ago. Someone as unruly as him—who would believe his promise?

Fang Han’s strength gradually loosened. His hand slid down as he released her.

“Sorr…”

At the same time he spoke, low sobbing also entered his ears. Fang Han lifted his head in astonishment and saw his mother weeping so hard she could not speak.

“Mom…” Fang Han called blankly.

She wiped her tears with one hand, then reached out with the other to gently touch his face. Choking with sobs, she said, “Ah Han has grown sensible.”

She took a deep breath and revealed a gentle smile. Her eyes were full of light, as if she had gained a new life.

She nodded and said, “All right. I’ll wait for you.”

The first thing Jiang Zao saw when he woke up was Rong Jingcheng’s smiling eyes.

“Xiao Zao, good morning.” Rong Jingcheng greeted him ​read the original at bailiantales.com​in a very good mood. “Did you sleep well last night?”

Jiang Zao closed his eyes again and said, “You try being held in someone’s grip the whole time you sleep and see if you can sleep well.”

Rong Jingcheng argued, “It wasn’t a grip. It was a hug! I was afraid Xiao Zao would be scared sleeping alone on such a big bed, so I kept holding you.”

“Hehe.” Jiang Zao said without sincerity, “I truly thank you so much—I’m getting up. Can you let go?”

“No.”

Not only did Rong Jingcheng not let go, he instead hugged him even tighter. He chuckled softly. “Xiao Zao is very energetic here. Are you going to take care of it?”

The place pressed against him rubbed slightly, and the heat transmitted over was just as scorching.

Rong Jingcheng pressed close to Jiang Zao’s ear, his warm breath brushing past his ear and neck.

“Want to do it together?”

Those vague and ambiguous words entered his ear, roaming along his spine like an electric current. Jiang Zao looked at the man right before him. Rong Jingcheng’s eye color was very light, as if he had some foreign blood, and this point was [unauthorized copy]also verified by his features, which were more three-dimensional and profound than others’.

Those eyes always reflected Jiang Zao’s image.

Jiang Zao closed his eyes, his lashes trembling faintly.

Author’s Note:

Shh—