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Ye Wenyu even asked excitedly, "Jiang Zhiming, what are you doing here?" Logically speaking, today is only the third day of the Lunar New Year, and the university winter vacation is until after the Lantern Festival. At this moment, Jiang Zhiming should be in his hometown, celebrating the New Year with his parents. After all, in the hearts of Chinese people, the Spring Festival is not officially over until the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.

Jiang Zhiming smiled wearily and slowly sat down opposite her.

Ye Wenyu sensed something might have happened, so she slowly sat down. Across the reading table, she carefully observed Jiang Zhiming and noticed that he was pale, had dark circles under his eyes, seemed unhappy, and was very tired. His clothes were wrinkled, as if they hadn't been washed for many days, resembling pickled vegetables.

What exactly happened?

A big question mark rose in Ye Wenyu's mind.

As she sized up Jiang Zhiming, he gazed back at her. She looked at him with curiosity and joy, while he looked at her with sadness and weariness. They stared at each other in silence, neither speaking. Ye Wenyu soon noticed that Jiang Zhiming's eyes were gradually filled with heartache as he looked at her.

She lowered her head. He felt sorry for her, but no, she didn't need his pity!

Jiang Zhiming broke the silence first, asking softly, "You didn't go home for the New Year?"

Ye Wenyu paused, then looked up, smiled slightly, and although she felt some pain inside, she tried to sound nonchalant as she casually said, "I'm doing very well." Her expression was also indifferent.

She doesn't need anyone's pity; that would make her feel like a homeless stray dog.

Jiang Zhiming recalled that she had once told him that she was the most pitiful person in the world because not only was her family very poor, but her parents had also divorced when she was young.

Now, she is unloved and homeless.

Jiang Zhiming nodded, understanding why she wasn't going home. For children from divorced families, once their parents divorce and remarry, they lose their home. Their mother's new home isn't their home, nor is their father's new home; they become homeless.

Like a leaf that has fallen from a tree, it can only drift away with the wind from now on.

He gazed at Ye Wenyu with pity, thinking that this must be why she didn't go home for the New Year and treated the girls' dormitory and library as her home.

Ye Wenyu didn't want Jiang Zhiming to look at her with such tenderness; she couldn't bear such a affectionate gaze. Therefore, she immediately changed the subject and asked him, "What about you? It's only the third day of the Lunar New Year. You should be celebrating the New Year at your hometown. Why didn't you go back after you got to school?"

Jiang Zhiming's expression froze, the pity on his face disappeared, replaced by pain. He slowly said, "My mother is sick."

What? Ye Wenyu suddenly raised her head.

This was truly unexpected. In her previous life, she knew nothing about Jiang Zhiming, nor did she know what kind of family he came from or what kind of people his parents were.

Therefore, in this life, she was very shocked to hear the news that her mother was ill.

Ye Wenyu looked at Jiang Zhiming, her face filled with shock.

Jiang Zhiming wiped his face with his large hand and said in a hoarse voice, "I went home as soon as winter vacation started. The whole family was happily preparing for the New Year, but my mother fainted on the stove during the Little New Year. It was very sudden, and we were not prepared at all. At first, we thought she might have fainted because she was too tired from preparing for the New Year, so we didn't take it seriously and just sent her to the village clinic."

Ye Wenyu quietly looked at Jiang Zhiming. He looked so sad and tired; things must not be that simple.

Jiang Zhiming kept his head down, occasionally glancing up at her with eyes redder than a rabbit's, as if he had finally found someone to confide in. He said softly, "But the next day, my mother fainted again. We got worried and took her to the best hospital in our county that night. The hospital did a full physical exam and said it was breast cancer—" His voice trembled as he said this. The word "cancer" seemed infinitely magnified, like a demon baring its fangs at him.

He stared at Ye Wenyu across from him, feeling as if he'd been punched in the nose, tears welling up in his eyes. They were pitiful people, who could have huddled together for warmth, but harsh reality had forced them apart.

I see!

Ye Wenyu also began to look at Jiang Zhiming with sympathetic eyes. She thought that although she was suffering, at least her parents were still healthy.

How unfair God is! Jiang Zhiming has endured far more than his peers.

She gently comforted him, saying, "The cure rate for breast cancer is very high now. Did your mother have surgery?"

Jiang Zhiming nodded and said to her, "They sent her to the best hospital in S City. The doctor back home said that S City is the best place to perform this kind of surgery."

Ye Wenyu realized why Jiang Zhiming had already appeared at school on the third day of the Lunar New Year; it turned out he had brought her mother for surgery.

That's right, when it comes to medical care, S City is definitely the best.

While everyone else was celebrating the Spring Festival, he was enduring the greatest pain of his life.

Jiang Zhiming continued in a hoarse voice, "The doctor said I need surgery, followed by radiotherapy and chemotherapy. If my recovery goes well, she might be able to watch me graduate from university and get married and start a family."

Ye Wenyu immediately replied, "Definitely!"

Jiang Zhiming seemed to have suddenly developed a severe throat ailment. He said in a hoarse voice, "My family is really poor. We've already accumulated a huge debt to support my university education, so we don't have the money to pay for my mother's surgery. But I love my mother very much. She's been so good to me. Although I'm not capable, I can't just watch her die. I want to find the best doctor to perform the surgery on her, so I brought her to S City."

Ye Wenyu nodded and asked with concern, "How is it now? Has the surgery been done?"

Jiang Zhiming nodded and said, "It's done well, a great success."

Ye Wenyu finally felt relieved. She breathed a sigh of relief and said softly, "Then you don't need to worry so much."

Jiang Zhiming nodded slightly again. He suddenly raised his head, his expression even more pained, and slowly said, "Do you know where I got the money?"

It seems that for him now, his mother's illness is not the most painful thing; the real reason that makes him sad is what comes later.

Ye Wenyu was stunned. Jiang Zhiming suddenly looked up at her, but Ye Wenyu kept her head down, reading her book. Jiang Zhiming said, "When I was worried about money, Lin Tingyue called me and asked what I was doing during winter break. She said she was traveling in France. I had no choice but to tell her the truth, and then she offered to help me. She said her Lin family knew the best specialists and doctors in Shanghai, and she would arrange everything. Later, when my mother went to S City, went to the hospital, and had surgery, she helped me with everything, including lending me the money for the surgery." So that's how it was.