Chapter 33

In the evening, Lu Yan helped Shen Kuo out of the infirmary.

She walked very slowly, every step cautious, afraid of hurting Shen Kuo’s injured leg.

At first, Shen Kuo felt a bit awkward with his arm draped over her shoulder, and his normally indifferent face showed an unusual teenage shyness.

But Lu Yan insisted, placing his hand on her shoulder and supporting his tall frame as they walked out of the school gate.

She was wearing a thin chiffon white shirt. His arm rested on her shoulder, and he could clearly feel her slender frame.

Girls were always delicate, and he didn’t dare put too much weight on her, so all his strength was supported on his right leg.

Lu Yan could feel Shen Kuo’s restraint and comforted him, saying, “Don’t worry, I may look thin, but I’m actually quite strong.”

“Really?”

His voice was low and gentle.

“Lu Zhen can’t even beat me.”

“He lets you win.”

“No way! That guy plays dirty! He’s got no gentlemanly manners.”

Shen Kuo quietly listened to her chatter, his heart warmed as if basking in the spring sunlight—very comfortable.

Zhong Kai anxiously waited at the school gate. As soon as he saw them, he hurried over to support Shen Kuo. “As soon as I got the news from Little Yanyan, I closed up my stall and rushed over here. Oh, my Brother Shen, seriously… it was just a game of basketball, how did it turn into this?”

“How did it turn into this? Isn’t it because some people are asking for it?”

A loud, arrogant voice came from behind. Lu Yan turned around and saw He Wuren and a few others coming from behind a Chinese parasol tree, their faces twisted with malicious smirks.

They had lost the match, and now, harboring anger and frustration, they were waiting for Shen Kuo to come out, intending to take their revenge by taking out his leg.

Lu Yan immediately stood in front of Shen Kuo, eyeing them warily.

“What do you want to do?” she demanded.

He Wuren’s eyes locked on Lu Yan and refused to look away. The young girl had red lips, white teeth, delicate features, and skin even more supple and fair than most girls her age—she was extremely beautiful.

He Wuren looked down at Shen Kuo’s worn-out basketball shoes and immediately assumed he was poor. He had never expected the girl to be so pretty.

His displeasure grew, and he spat out the straw he had been chewing before walking toward Shen Kuo.

Shen Kuo pulled Lu Yan behind him and said to Zhong Kai, “Take her away.”

Zhong Kai wasn’t going anywhere. He stood in front of Shen Kuo, saying, “Brother Shen, it was these guys who did this to you, right? Damn it, I was looking for someone to deal with, and they just showed up.”

He Wuren grabbed Zhong Kai by the collar and kicked him. Zhong Kai, with more strength, grabbed him by the waist and slammed him hard against the wall.

Several boys rushed forward, surrounding Shen Kuo. In the chaos, Shen Kuo turned around and fiercely protected Lu Yan, taking several punches to his back.

Lu Yan was tightly enclosed in his arms and wasn’t injured.

At this moment, Lu Zhen and a few others came out of the hot dog stand. They saw the commotion and, holding their hot dogs, came over to watch.

When they saw that the one being beaten was Shen Kuo, Lu Zhen felt a bit pleased. However, when he turned his head and noticed that the one doing the beating was He Wuren, his expression changed. Then, he saw that Lu Yan was also involved in the mess, and Lu Zhen instantly lost his temper.

“Damn it!” He threw his hot dog aside and stormed into the crowd like a whirlwind, landing a few wild punches that forced the boys away from Shen Kuo.

“Dare to touch my girl! You want to die?” He charged through the crowd like an angry bull, landing heavy blows, and the boys were quickly overwhelmed.

Someone called the police, and soon, sirens blared as the police car arrived.

Seeing things going south, He Wuren turned to run, but the officers jumped out of the car and apprehended them, not letting anyone get away.

Lu Zhen squatted down to check on Lu Yan, holding her face and looking her over with extreme concern. “Are you okay? Did you get hurt?”

Protected by Shen Kuo, Lu Yan didn’t suffer a scratch. She didn’t have time to worry about herself and immediately turned to check on Shen Kuo’s injuries.

“How is it? Does it hurt?” The girl was heartbroken.

Shen Kuo shook his head and wiped the dirt off her face with his sleeve. “It’s just a few punches, like an itch. I can handle it.”

“What about your leg? The wound was just bandaged, did it reopen?”

“No, don’t worry.”

Seeing that the splint and bandage were intact, Lu Yan was slightly relieved and helped him up. “Take it slow. Don’t walk, I’ll call a car for you to go back later.”

Lu Zhen watched his daughter’s overly anxious expression and found it odd. When did they become this close?

A strange sense of crisis rose in his chest. He couldn’t shake the feeling that… Lu Yan wanted to be Shen Kuo’s daughter.

The police took everyone back to the station for questioning. After learning the details of the incident, they immediately contacted He Wuren’s school.

At the same time, Lu Jian, who had rushed over, thought it was another trouble caused by Lu Zhen. Upon seeing him, he immediately lifted his leg to kick.

“Brat, have you caused trouble again?!”

“I didn’t!” Lu Zhen protested.

Lu Yan immediately stepped in front of him. “No, this wasn’t Lu Zhen’s fault. He was protecting me.”

The police quickly intervened and explained the situation to Lu Jian.

Upon learning that both his son and daughter had been hurt, Lu Jian was enraged and demanded that the police take strict action.

Because He Wuren was already an adult and was an outside basketball recruit hired by the school, the police detained him. His identity as a professional basketball player was likely ruined due to his involvement in the fight.

After leaving the police station, Lu Jian’s driver drove the car over and said they would first take Shen Kuo home.

Shen Kuo shook his head and coldly replied, “No need.”

“Anyway, thank you for protecting my daughter. This time it was sudden, but next time I’ll visit you in person to properly thank you.”

Lu Jian rarely showed such courtesy, even mentioning a personal visit, which was a great favor to Shen Kuo, especially considering it involved his beloved daughter.

Shen Kuo replied, “It was just a small favor. You don’t need to worry about it.”

Zhong Kai helped Shen Kuo to the street and flagged down a taxi.

“Shen Kuo, you… take good rest,” Lu Yan said anxiously. “I’ll come to see you tomorrow.”

“Mm.”

He turned around and gave her a lingering look, and soon the taxi drove off.

Lu Jian looked at Shen Kuo and said, “Your classmate doesn’t seem easy to get along with.”

Lu Yan explained, “His personality is just like that.”

The driver pulled up, and Lu Yan and Lu Jian got in the car, but Lu Zhen remained standing by the side of the road, not moving.

“I’ll walk back,” he said.

At this moment, it had started to drizzle lightly. Lu Jian, sensing his rising anger, snapped, “What’s this about? Get in the car!”

“No, I’ll walk back.”

From the frustrated look on his father’s face, Lu Yan could tell he was starting to throw a tantrum.

“Lu Zhen, I won’t argue with you this time, but don’t push your luck. Can’t go one day without causing trouble, huh?”

Lu Zhen glared at him, fuming, “In your eyes, I can never do anything right. When something happens, your first reaction is to blame me. Even when it’s someone else’s fault, it’s still mine. Whatever I do is wrong!”

“I don’t have the time to argue with you. Get in the car!” Lu Jian shouted.

“I won’t!”

“If you don’t get in, don’t come home!”

“Fine, I won’t come home. I don’t even care about that house anymore!”

Lu Yan hurriedly got out of the car, grabbed Lu Zhen, and whispered, “Dad, whatever you have to say, let’s talk about it at home. Don’t do this in the middle of the street…”

“I have nothing to talk to him about!”

Lu Jian pointed at Lu Zhen, trembling with anger. “I can’t believe how uncouth you’ve become! How did I end up with a kid like you!”

“Don’t talk to me about manners. You raised me, but did you ever teach me?”

Lu Zhen angrily said, “When I was eight, you divorced my mom. Did you ever ask me how I felt? I wanted to stay with her, but you disagreed and even fought her for custody. You took me, but once you had me, did you ever care for me? From childhood until now, whenever I got into trouble, all you did was scold me, but you never asked me why I did it!”

Lu Jian trembled, collapsing into the car seat. He looked at Lu Zhen in disbelief, his slightly purple lips parted as if to say something, but after a long pause, he said nothing.

The light rain, like falling goose feathers, soaked Lu Zhen’s shoulders. The bright red basketball uniform stood out even more, like a flame burning in the heavy rain.

After venting, Lu Zhen’s emotions finally calmed down. Lu Yan pulled him up and got him into the car.

On the way back, Lu Jian remained silent, smoking the whole time.

Lu Zhen frowned, brushing the smoke that surrounded Lu Yan’s face. He opened the window and said, “Stop smoking.”

Lu Jian immediately put out his cigarette.

This was the first time he had listened to his son, and for the first time, he felt that… his son had suddenly grown up.

At least, he knew how to care for the girl next to him.

After arriving home, Lu Jian went straight to the study.

Lu Yan watched his father’s retreating figure and suddenly felt a bit sorry for him. Parents of this generation, for the most part, didn’t really know how to be parents.

In the older generation’s view, children were meant to be raised, not taught. They didn’t have the modern educational concepts. As long as the children were fed and clothed, that was seen as fulfilling their responsibility.

Tonight’s outburst from Lu Zhen made Lu Jian gradually realize that his child wasn’t really rebellious and numb, he also had sensitive feelings and craved his parents’ attention and understanding.

Lu Zhen sat cross-legged on the bed, sulking. Lu Yan brought over a clean white towel and wrapped it around his head from behind, wiping it haphazardly.

“My dad is so wronged,” she said.

Lu Zhen turned his head away, his eyes a little red.

Sometimes, that’s how it is—when no one comforts you, it’s fine, but when they do, it makes you feel even more wronged.

Lu Yan squatted behind him, propping herself up to carefully dry his hair, then sat next to him. “Actually, well…”

“Don’t play the mediator,” Lu Zhen rubbed his nose, interrupting her before she could finish. “This time, I won’t compromise. If he doesn’t apologize to me, I won’t forgive him.”

Lu Yan sighed.

She said it like that, but Lu Zhen knew deep down that getting Lu Jian to apologize wasn’t going to be easy.

Parents back then had great authority, and even if they were wrong, they were still right. Apologizing to children was unthinkable.

“Actually,” Lu Yan continued, not finishing her sentence, “I used to hate you.”

Lu Zhen turned his head to look at her, disbelieving. “I could never do such a thing. No way.”

Lu Yan smiled and tossed the towel at him. “Oh, now that you’re a kid, you understand it was a messed-up thing to do. Back then, you seemed pretty confident, saying that whatever parents do is right, and whatever kids do is wrong.”

“I… I’m doing this for your own good!” Lu Zhen tried to defend his dignity as a father, arguing, “You little brats don’t understand anything.”

“Oh, oh, oh, for my own good.” Lu Yan smiled slyly. “Then why did you get angry at Grandpa Lu Jian today? Wasn’t he just concerned about you, and did he do anything wrong?”

Lu Zhen didn’t expect this little girl to set a trap for him, waiting for him to fall into it. He waved his hand and defended, “It’s completely different, not the same thing.”

“How is it not the same, Dad? You’re being such a hypocrite.”

“You don’t understand.” Lu Zhen got angry again, turned around, and crossed his arms, ignoring her.

Lu Yan rubbed his head, stood up, and went back to her room.

That night, Lu Zhen came out of his room and noticed the light in Lu Jian’s study was still on. He hesitated, walking over slowly. He pressed his face against the gap in the door and saw his father sitting at the desk, holding an album of him and his sister from their childhood…

Lu Jian furrowed his brows, his expression still stern, just like when he handled work.

However… Lu Zhen clearly noticed the faint moisture in his father’s eyes.

“Parents don’t know the love of their parents until they have children.” Now that there was suddenly this little girl in his life, Lu Zhen put himself in his father’s shoes and realized that the resentment and frustration he had been holding in his heart were actually… being relieved.

Parents and children aren’t born enemies, and understanding each other isn’t that hard.

—

Shen Kuo’s leg healed very quickly. Not long after, he was able to walk independently without needing crutches. He didn’t like using them, they made him feel like a cripple.

Lu Yan said, “When you injure muscles and bones, it takes 100 days. His left leg needs full rest to recover properly. You don’t want him to have lifelong problems, do you?”

So, despite not liking it, Shen Kuo still used those crutches, coming and going around campus every day.

There were always people who liked to watch the drama at school, and the more outstanding a person was, the more easily they would attract gossip.

“Look at him, so impressive usually, and now he’s a cripple.”

“The top student is now a cripple, how miserable.”

“Do you think he’ll be a cripple for life?”

“Heh heh heh.”

—

Shen Kuo’s steps faltered for a moment, but he didn’t turn around and continued walking forward.

These ignorant people weren’t even worth him glancing at, let alone wasting time on them. Shen Kuo’s time was precious, every second was a bargaining chip for his future.

He walked with the crutches for a few more steps when suddenly, a commotion came from behind. The sounds of male voices cursing followed:

“Watch where you’re going, you idiot!”

“Sorry, didn’t see you.”

A clear, melodious voice rang out, and Shen Kuo stopped in his tracks. Turning around, he saw Lu Yan, dressed in blue overalls, riding her bicycle, appearing in the midst of the group of boys.

She had just bumped into one of the boys who had spoken rudely, and the bicycle tire had scraped his shin, leaving a scratch.

“With so many people, you say you didn’t see?” The boy, infuriated, shouted, “Who would believe that?”

Lu Yan blinked innocently, “I didn’t see ‘people,’ I only saw a bunch of barking beasts. Oh, is that you?”

As soon as she spoke, the boy who was bumped into turned beet red with anger, veins bulging on his neck.

Lu Yan was clearly looking for trouble. Not only did she bump into him, but she also called him a beast. Who could stand that?

Shen Kuo walked forward, pulling Lu Yan behind him. His expression remained cold, his eyes icy.

These boys usually feared Shen Kuo. Even though he was injured now, they would only gossip behind his back, too afraid to confront him directly.

Let alone the fact that Shen Kuo was ruthless when it came to fighting—he would show no mercy—and with his status as the top student, the school would undoubtedly side with him in any dispute.

Any conflict with him would always end up being to their disadvantage.

“I’m not going to fight with a cripple, don’t want people saying we’re bullying the disabled.”

“This time, consider yourselves lucky.”

The boys scattered, and Lu Yan picked up a stone from the ground, throwing it at them angrily. “Who are you calling names? If you have the guts, don’t run!”

Shen Kuo suddenly grabbed her wrist, applying just enough pressure to make her drop the stone she was holding.

Lu Yan was confused. “You…”

Shen Kuo looked at her, his gaze soft but filled with helplessness and affection. “There’s no need to do this for me.”

She was the first girl to speak up for him, and the first to pick up a stone and fight for him… Shen Kuo was touched to the core, but he also didn’t want her to do such things.

Lu Yan’s nature was like that—impulsive and quick to anger, to some extent, she had inherited that trait from her father. But she also had a clear sense of love and hate.

She wiped the dirt off her hands and said, “I just don’t like seeing others bully you. They’re like that, and so is Lu Zhen. Whoever bullies you, I’ll deal with them!”

Shen Kuo took her hand, pulled out a tissue, and gently wiped the dust off her hands. Lowering his gaze, he asked softly, “Why?”

“Huh?”

His dark, deep eyes stared at Lu Yan. “Why do you treat me well?”

Lu Yan blinked. This question… she had never thought about it before.

Is there really a reason to treat someone well?

The two of them were so close that Lu Yan could even feel the warmth radiating from his body. Strangely, her earlobes turned slightly red.

“I… I’m good to Lu Zhen too,” she diverted the conversation, feeling extremely nervous.

“You know, it’s not the same.”

He’s your family, I’m not.

Shen Kuo gazed at her, seemingly unwilling to let this go easily.

Of course, Lu Yan knew it was different. How could it be the same? Her care and patience with Lu Zhen were entirely out of familial love, the kind of bond between a father and daughter who rely on each other.

But with Shen Kuo…

Lu Yan couldn’t explain it. At first, she felt guilty and wanted to do something nice for Shen Kuo on Lu Zhen’s behalf. But gradually… it seemed like it wasn’t just guilt. Somehow, something had quietly crept into her heart.

It couldn’t be… that she liked him, could it?

Lu Yan was startled by this sudden thought.

She wasn’t a naïve little girl who didn’t understand anything. In her previous life, during high school, she had liked a handsome boy in her class, so she knew what it felt like to like someone.

At eighteen, Shen Kuo was silent and restrained. After hiding all his sharp edges, he was still dazzlingly handsome, too attractive to look away from.

A handsome boy who didn’t even realize it, talented and hardworking—how could she not like him?

Under Shen Kuo’s intense gaze, Lu Yan felt her thoughts of a young girl seemed impossible to hide. He was so perceptive, did he already sense it before the slow-witted her had realized it?

If she liked him, then so be it. What was there to be ashamed of, or to hold back? Lu Yan wasn’t the type to be coy. She gathered her courage and said to him:

“Shen Kuo, actually, I feel like I might…”

Before she could say “like you,” Shen Kuo suddenly interrupted, averting his gaze. “Forget it, I was just kidding.”

Lu Yan caught a fleeting glimpse of some kind of inner turmoil in his eyes.

“But…”

“It’s getting late, we should go back.”

Shen Kuo pursed his lips and, leaning on his cane, walked away slowly.

Lu Yan stared at his retreating back, furrowing her brow. She called out, “You were the one who asked first!”

What was the meaning of that “just kidding”?

Shen Kuo heard her frustrated question but didn’t dare to turn around. It felt like his heart had been thrown into a bottomless cold abyss, sinking, endlessly sinking…

Yes, he had asked first. Yes, he had started to care. Yes, he had slowly approached her, trying hard to attract her attention…

But in the end, he didn’t have the courage.