Jiang She returned home in the evening and reported the course completion to Jiang Qifeng.

Jiang Qifeng was in the bathroom taking a shower, but as soon as he saw it was Jiang She’s call, he immediately turned off the water and answered.

It was rare for Jiang She to call him; usually, it was the other way around.

He also blamed himself for being so self-centered back then with Shen Qing, owing Jiang She too much. This caused Jiang She to become distant and not close to anyone.

“Ah, Teacher Nian has gone back, right? Alright, as long as you gained something from it.”

Jiang She leaned against the window, his eyes slightly squinted. The night breeze blew through the window screen, brushing his face, lifting his hair, and making his eyes feel a bit dry.

He lazily hummed an “mm.”

Jiang Qifeng tossed a towel over his shoulder, his palm bracing against the sink, and took a deep breath. “Your mom even called me to ask about your progress. When she heard you moved up to 300 rank, she was really happy.”

Upon hearing this, Jiang She couldn’t help but sneer.

He believed that his mother’s happiness was genuine. Shen Qing was a person with a strong sense of pride; her pride came not only from herself but also from those around her, anyone connected to her.

She would be happy if she handled a major case well. She would be happy if her ex-husband was a successful businessman. She would be happy that Jiang She was no longer a failure and had progressed 300 in ranks. She would even feel at ease if her niece’s child got a perfect score in first-grade Chinese.

Even if she raised a parrot that could speak better than other parrots, Shen Qing would still feel a sense of accomplishment. Even if it was just a bird, it shouldn’t be a foolish one.

Jiang She was no different from the parrot. When he embarrassed her, she thought it would be better if he wasn’t her son—worthless, not inheriting any of her good traits. But when he succeeded, she still felt it wasn’t enough to praise him.

However, Shen Qing wouldn’t put any more effort into him. She let him grow freely, and when he grew crooked, she blamed him for the branches that shouldn’t have been there.

Jiang Qifeng sighed. “Your mom has a thin skin and is too shy to call you. Has she offended you again recently?”

Jiang She’s gaze turned cold, and he bit the soft flesh in his mouth, answering nonchalantly, “No.”

Even if she had offended him, it had been over a month ago when Shen Qing slapped him at the police station. After that, they hadn’t contacted each other.

Of course, he didn’t need her to contact him.

Jiang Qifeng said, “Anyway, I’m free here, and your mom’s free too. If you have nothing going on, come back and stay for a few days. After all, we’re the ones who care about you the most.”

He then pressed the shampoo bottle, squeezing a bit of it into his hands.

Jiang She tilted his head, brushing the hair that had fallen over his eyes to the side, and his Adam’s apple bobbed slowly.

“I’ll let you know, I’m going to take the exams for Tsinghua and Peking University.”

Jiang Qifeng almost slipped and fell in the bathroom.

Jiang Qifeng: “…”

Although the improvement of 300 in ranks in the last monthly exam sounded exaggerated, it was because the students who falls behind the 300 ranks were so useless. A single point could push through dozens of people, and they didn’t know anything. They were the ones who couldn’t even score 300 points.

For Jiang She, as long as he answered a bit more, his score would improve dramatically.

Jiang Qifeng was happy, but his happiness was rational. He thought that as long as Jiang She could attend a reputable university in the future, that would be good enough. If it didn’t work out, they could send him abroad for some extra credentials.

Right now, Jiang She was ranked 700th in his grade, a vast gap away from Tsinghua or Peking University.

Over 700 places, and yet he was so excited about it?

Jiang She noticed that Jiang Qifeng hadn’t said anything and gave a self-deprecating smile.

He lowered his head slightly, his neck curving into a graceful arc.

With one hand in his pocket, a faint crease appeared at the corner of his eye, and he softly said, “I also want to be by the side of the people I care about.”

He no longer needed to adjust his relationship with Jiang Qifeng and Shen Qing. What was lost in the past could never be regained.

So, he wouldn’t move back home; it would never give him any comfort.

Only Chu Tao was the one he couldn’t let go of, and he didn’t want to leave him.

A few hours earlier…

Chu Tao had held him, sleepily rubbing his cheek against Jiang She’s neck, mumbling, “Jiang She, don’t your parents care that you’re drinking?”

Jiang She lifted his chin, looking into his damp eyes and his flushed, warm cheeks, feeling parched.

“Not everyone is like your parents.”

Chu Tao’s parents were the complete opposite of his own—one was overly strict, the other completely indifferent.

Chu Tao felt uncomfortable with Jiang She lifting his chin, so he turned his head to avoid his hand, rubbing his chin against his collar like a little dog.

“Mm, your mom isn’t good to you.”

He was slow to respond, his eyes still lowered, and he didn’t look up.

At that moment, what he said could only be the truth.

Jiang She tugged at his lips, unable to stop himself from rubbing Chu Tao’s hair. He chuckled, “You really are drunk.”

Chu Tao raised his hand to fix his messy hair, his breath carrying a faint scent of alcohol. His eyes were bright and dark, clear and captivating, even in the dim night.

He looked at Jiang She, his eyes curving innocently, and said naively, “It’s okay, I can love you for them.”

Jiang She was momentarily stunned, seeing Chu Tao in such a dazed state. His heart softened for a moment, but he couldn’t help but lighten the mood. He gently slid his finger over his nose, “You haven’t felt much love yourself, have you?”

He had always lived in the shadow of Chu Xingning, treated as a pitiful side character, never the first one that everyone will thought of, never the first one to be loved. He didn’t even get a chance to question it before he had to grow up in a hurry.

But Chu Tao folded his hands together, holding the light air carefully, and cautiously offered it to Jiang She, “Mm, just this little bit, I can give to you.”

Jiang She was silent for a moment before hoarsely saying, “Okay.”

The scattered lights before him became fragmented, colorful, and blurred.

After hugging enough, Chu Tao felt light-headed. Once they got home, he went straight to the bedroom without saying a word to anyone, burying himself in the blankets and falling asleep within minutes.

Friday was usually the time he was the most exhausted. All the accumulated fatigue of the week would release at this point, and with the added alcohol from today, he even forgot to wash off the smell of barbecue on his body.

Song Mian and Chu Jiangmin were sitting on the sofa eating fruit, watching as Chu Tao headed straight for the bedroom. The door closed with a soft thud, and there was no further movement.

Song Mian held a strawberry in her hand, staring at the bedroom door for a while in silence. She turned to Chu Jiangmin and asked, “Do you smell a barbecue scent, and beer?”

Chu Jiangmin’s sense of smell wasn’t that sensitive, and he responded, confused, “Really? I don’t smell anything.”

Song Mian furrowed her brow, leaning forward a little, and softly said, “Tao Tao said he was kept by the teacher to review, right?”

Chu Jiangmin nodded, “Yeah, a special session. He’s the only one in his class who did well on the exam, and he improved so much in the last monthly test, it’s reasonable for them to take extra care of him.”

Song Mian slowly shook her head, deep in thought. “Which teacher is so kind, willing to stay until 9 pm to review with him? And this isn’t the first time. It seems like he always comes home late on Fridays.”

Chu Jiangmin was a bit unsettled by what she said but still tried to persuade her, “Tao Tao has been quite well-behaved recently, and his grades have improved so much, which means there’s no problem. Don’t be so suspicious.”

Song Mian stood up and tiptoed toward Chu Tao’s bedroom.

Chu Jiangmin softly called after her, “What are you doing?”

Song Mian turned her head and gestured for him to be quiet. Then she pressed her ear to the door of Chu Tao’s room, listening carefully for any sounds inside.

Chu Tao slept very quietly, and there was no noise from inside. But as she got closer to the door, the faint smell of alcohol seemed to have gotten stronger.

She could understand if it was late, and Chu Tao had eaten at school or maybe got tired of the cafeteria and went out to buy food—barbecue could be a possibility.

But why would there be the smell of alcohol?

It didn’t make sense. Chu Tao didn’t like drinking at all, and they didn’t allow their kids to drink outside.

Though this rule mainly applied to Chu Xingning, they didn’t enforce it as strictly with Chu Tao.

Song Mian’s doubts deepened, and she couldn’t help but try to open Chu Tao’s door.

She wanted to ask him why he had been drinking and who he had been drinking with.

Click.

The lock clicked, but the door wouldn’t open.

Chu Tao had locked it.

Even after coming back and falling straight into bed without bothering to wash his face, he had instinctively locked the door.

Song Mian froze for a moment.

Since they were young, she had always been able to enter her two son’s rooms freely—sometimes to clean, sometimes to bring fruit. The door always had a lock, but it was more of a decoration; it had never been effective before.

But now, it was.

Song Mian felt a bit flustered, and this anxiety surpassed even the unease she felt about Chu Tao’s drop in grades.

She turned back to look at Chu Jiangmin, who met her gaze. His eyes were also filled with confusion.

“Maybe he didn’t notice he locked it.”

The words were said with little conviction. After speaking, he lowered his head and grabbed a cigarette from the coffee table.

Song Mian thought for a moment, and this wasn’t the first time Chu Tao had locked his door at home.

He spent more and more time avoiding his parents. When he used to throw tantrums, occasionally locking the door, Song Mian wouldn’t mind, but now that it had become a habit, she was starting to feel uneasy.

“Tao Tao has really grown distant from me,” Song Mian rubbed her face, and the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes seemed a little more pronounced.

Chu Jiangmin lit a cigarette, took a gentle puff, and sighed, “He’s grown up, not like when he was younger.”

Song Mian didn’t respond to him but murmured to herself, “The pressure has been too much lately. Maybe things will get better after the college entrance exam.”

Inside the room, Chu Tao, who had fallen into a deep sleep, had no idea that his parents had been standing outside his door for so long.

In the middle of the night, he lay on his back in bed, limbs spread out, his clothes wrinkled from being pressed.

Feeling a slight chill, Chu Tao frowned and muttered in his sleep, “Jiang She, lend me your school uniform.”