Chapter 20: Tumultuous Journey - His Desires Were Never Fulfilled
Qin Man sat back on the bench, took out a bottle of mineral water from her bag, and drank it down.
Having just been jostled on horseback, Qin Man was already feeling unwell. The cold water slid into her stomach, causing spasms that made her gasp for breath.
Qin Man's face flushed red with suppressed rage, which Jiang Xuchi noticed. He took out a glass of room-temperature water from his bag and handed it to her.
"Drink this."
Qin Man felt extremely uncomfortable, so she took the drink and drank several mouthfuls.
The water was still warm from being kept in the bag, and drinking it made me feel much better.
“I remember you loved riding horses when you were little.” Jiang Xuchi sat down beside her.
Hearing him mention the past suddenly struck Qin Man as odd. "When we were kids?"
"Back then, you also loved watching an American cartoon."
Qin Man's lips twitched. "...That was so long ago."
She loved watching the Little Pony cartoon when she was little, so she longed to ride horses.
At that time, Qin Chen had just reached the age to take equestrian lessons, so she clung to him and asked him to take her to the horse farm.
She's so young, she can only ride the club's miniature ponies.
But she felt that the miniature horse was too short and not handsome enough, so she threw a tantrum and pestered Qin Chen to take her to ride a handsome black horse.
Qin Chen got annoyed and lifted her onto the horse like a chick, impatiently telling her to hold on tight to the saddle.
Her brother slapped her, and the horse neighed and charged forward uncontrollably.
Qin Man cried out in surprise.
The horse didn't run at all like she had imagined!
Her legs couldn't keep her balance at all, and the horse's back swayed so much that she felt like she was about to fall off at any moment.
She was so scared on the way that tears and snot streamed down her face. It was probably the most embarrassing time she had ever been in her life. After they came back, Qin Chen pinched her cheeks and laughed so hard he couldn't catch his breath.
That was one of the shadows in Qin Man's life. Later, she was afraid of riding motorcycles, partly because of this, also thanks to Qin Chen.
Qin Man finished reminiscing, and her gaze towards Jiang Xuchi grew even colder.
This guy is just as awful as Qin Chen.
No, it's even worse!
Jiang Xuchi met her gaze calmly, and after two seconds, he reached out and touched her eyelashes.
Qin Man turned her head away, "What?"
"You're covered in dust; anyone who didn't know better would think you'd been rolling around in the horse farm."
Her eyelashes were covered in dust, which made Jiang Xuchi's hands itch to touch them.
Qin Man subconsciously rubbed her eyes, then hissed as the sunscreen stung her eyes, and began to tear uncontrollably. But the more she rubbed, the more her eyes stung, which annoyed her.
Jiang Xuchi then took out a pack of wet wipes from his pocket, turned her chin with one hand, and covered her with a cool sensation.
Qin Man closed her eyes tightly and obediently let him wipe her for a while. When she felt his breath getting close, her whole body stiffened and she couldn't move.
The wet wipe quickly cleaned up her irritation, and she finally dared to open her eyes and see the deep, dark eyes so close to hers.
Jiang Xuchi is indeed handsome.
It looks even better when zoomed in.
Qin Man reached out and shoved him away abruptly, her face flushed red. She stammered, unsure of what to say. She couldn't possibly say thank you, but she also couldn't bring herself to curse him.
You're going to ruin my makeup.
Jiang Xuchi smiled and threw the wet wipe into the trash can next to him, then turned around and looked her over carefully a few more times.
"Where did you get this makeup from?" he asked without a smile. "So you came out with me wearing makeup?"
"..." Qin Man pointed to her eyelashes, "I put on mascara."
"Anything else?"
“And of course, lipstick…” Qin Man had barely finished speaking when Jiang Xuchi’s fingertip was already pressed against her lips.
His fingertips lightly rubbed her lower lip twice, leaving a red mark that extended to the outer edge of her lips.
Qin Man stared at him with bright eyes, not embarrassed by her disheveled appearance at all. The smudged lipstick did not affect the arrogance in her eyes, which remained bright and radiant.
Jiang Xuchi's eyes darkened slightly, and he said calmly, "It's spent."
"Whose fault is it?" Qin Man slapped away Jiang Xuchi's inexplicable hand, wiped her lips and said, "I'm not playing with you anymore, I'm going home."
...
After her equestrian lesson, Qin Man changed back into her own clothes, walked out of the club, and hailed a taxi while scrolling through her phone.
A message from Jiang Xuchi appeared in the pop-up window above. Qin Man swiped it away and continued watching short videos while waiting for her ride.
She wasn't really interested in watching those videos; she just wanted something to distract herself at that moment.
She didn't want to stay with Jiang Xuchi anymore, afraid that she would become even stranger.
Qin Man went home and took a rare bath, lying in the bathtub listening to music.
On the other side, the Jiang family.
Jiang Xuchi rarely returned to the old house tonight. As soon as he entered, he frowned because of what his father was loudly scolding him.
In the living room, Jiang Chengxing, Jiang Shuhai's good-for-nothing son, was annoyed that his wife was arguing with him again about their two illegitimate children. He yelled, "Can you please stop bringing this up?! You've driven Achi away! My dad's here too, and you're driving him crazy!"
"What are you doing? Are you trying to curse me to death?!" Jiang Shuhai shouted angrily from the side, his cane thumping on the ground.
Jiang Chengxing retorted, and in a fit of rage, swept away a crystal vase placed nearby.
Crystal shards scattered across the ground with a crackling sound, each piece reflecting the cold, lifeless atmosphere inside the room.
Jiang Xuchi walked over the shards to his mother, first bending down to pick up the torn photo album beside her, cleaning it up and placing it aside, then helping his mother to stand up straight.
Zhou Xiaoyan sniffed, not wanting to lose her composure in front of her son. She raised her hand to tuck her messy hair behind her ear and smiled at Jiang Xuchi: "Achi's back! I'll ask Auntie to heat up your food."
"Mom, why don't you sit down and rest for a while?" Jiang Xuchi led his mother to the sofa. "I'm going to talk to Dad."
"Never mind, I'll go back to my room to change and then come down to have dinner with you." Zhou Xiaoyan glanced at Jiang Shuhai, then looked at Jiang Chengxing again, and wearily got up and went upstairs.
Jiang Chengxing was still angry. When he saw Jiang Xuchi, he snorted coldly twice through his nose.
"You brat, you finally know how to come back."
"Just came back to see my mom."
Jiang Chengxing was even more annoyed by his son's indifferent attitude. Ever since the two illegitimate children were brought home, no one in the family liked him, which made him even more frustrated.
"If you continue to talk to me like that?"
Before Jiang Xuchi could speak, Jiang Shuhai had already struck Jiang Chengxing in the lower back with his cane.
"Get out of here! I need to say a few words to Achi!"
Jiang Chengxing gritted his teeth, glanced at his father, and left the living room with a gloomy face.
"Grandpa, is there something you need?"
Jiang Xuchi was called back by Jiang Shuhai tonight. He sat opposite his grandfather, drinking the tea that his aunt had just brewed.
Jiang Shuhai had high hopes for his grandson, feeling that he had inherited his temperament from him, rather than from Jiang Chengxing, that good-for-nothing. Moreover, his features were very handsome. Good-looking children always receive more love, and it was no surprise that Jiang Xuchi was treated this way.
Jiang Shuhai slowly began, "I heard from Zhou Yao that you brought Qin's daughter with you to your horseback riding lesson today?"
Jiang Xuchi placed the teacup on the table with a crisp sound.
"Qin Man?"
"Is he/she your classmate?"
"Now we are in one class."
Jiang Shuhai sighed, "Do you know if Qin Weiguo, her father, has gotten into trouble?"
"I roughly know."
"So what are you doing with that girl from the Qin family? Dating? Grandpa isn't against you dating too early, it's just that she's no longer suitable..."
Jiang Xuchi smiled faintly and continued, "It's not really appropriate, after all, her family is about to go bankrupt."
"It's good that you know." Jiang Shuhai suddenly frowned, as if he had just thought of something. "Achi, are you holding a grudge?"
"Um?"
Jiang Shuhai suddenly laughed, realizing that Jiang Xuchi was just a young man who had just come of age, and it was understandable that he had some lingering resentment about the past.
"That's true, what child doesn't hold grudges, especially someone like you? Just stop playing around and focus on your studies, and don't hold the girl back."
Jiang Shuhai thought she knew this grandson well, but after those few probing words, she felt that the boy didn't like her that much.
He also knew that this kid had been close to the eldest daughter of the Qin family since childhood and had suffered a lot of bullying.
Kids will always care about things from the past to some extent. If he wants to get revenge, then let him go.
...
Jiang Xu didn't explain much. After chatting with the old woman for a few more minutes, he went to the restaurant for dinner with his mother, who had changed her clothes.
While eating, Jiang Xuchi was still thinking about what his grandfather had just said.
From a grudge-holding perspective, yes, he has held a grudge against her for so many years, and he wants to get back at her for every single one of them. As for what kind of grudge he holds...
Perhaps it's because his desires were never fulfilled.
*
Qin Man had a dramatic dream all night and felt dizzy when she woke up.
She packed her schoolbag, put on her school uniform, and went downstairs. When she passed Qu Lan's room, she found it was a little too quiet.
Before leaving home, Qin Man hesitated for a moment, then went back upstairs and knocked on Qu Lan's door.
No one answered.
Qin Man simply opened the door. The curtains were drawn, and the room was dark and gloomy. The pungent smell of perfume swept in, causing Qin Man to sneeze several times.
Before she could react, she saw Qu Lan kneeling on the floor, her body pressed against the edge of the bed.
Qu Lan, seemingly unsure of what to do, took out all the perfumes and sprayed them all over the room, filling it with various fragrances. Meanwhile, she lay there unconscious.
Qin Man was so frightened that she immediately cried out, "Mommy! Mommy! What's wrong?! Wake up!"
Qin Man walked to Qu Lan's side, patted her face first, and then remembered something and quickly leaned over to listen to her heartbeat. She could still hear it, and it was still in time.
She didn't know why Qu Lan had fainted, so she called 120 in tears and kept holding Qu Lan and crying until the ambulance arrived.
She didn't go to school that day; instead, she accompanied Qu Lan to the hospital.
"Anxiety-induced hyperventilation leading to respiratory alkali poisoning, and drug poisoning." The doctor looked at Qin Man with a sigh, holding the report.
"You still need to have your thyroid checked further. Don't worry too much for now; your blood test results are normal. Also, pay more attention to your mother's mental state; it seems she deliberately overdosed."
Qin Man took the doctor's prescription to Qu Lan's ward.
Qu Lan, still on an IV drip, had already woken up and was staring at her with a pale face.
"Manman, am I alright?"
When Qin Man saw that Qu Lan was awake, her mind went blank. She grabbed Qu Lan's hand and accused her, "Don't you want me anymore? I'm still here! Why did you take so many pills?!"
Qu Lan didn't say anything, turned her head away, and sighed briefly.
Qin Man suddenly noticed that Qu Lan, who had always taken good care of herself, had many fine lines around her eyes, and even a few gray hairs at her temples. She also looked much thinner.
Qu Lan is a full-time housewife who has been pampered since childhood. She only suffered all the hardships in this one year.
She was psychologically unbalanced and developed anxiety disorder, even experiencing hallucinations, constantly feeling that she was still living in the days when she was a rich wife.
Please don't leave me.
Qin Man squatted pitifully beside Qu Lan's hospital bed, looking at her, but she didn't say the words in her heart.
Qu Lan looked at her daughter and reached out to touch Qin Man's face. "My daughter is so beautiful."
Of all the daughters born to other wives she had ever seen, none were as beautiful as Qin Man, and even if they were, none had such delicate eyes as Qin Man.
How could she be so heartless as to not give her such a beautiful daughter the life she wanted most?
Qu Lan closed her eyes wearily.
As the sun set, Qu Lan fell asleep again, and Qin Man went over and drew the curtains of the private hospital room.
Qu Lan needed to stay at this private hospital for a few days to recuperate, and the medical care was quite expensive.
But no matter how expensive it is, she has to spend the money. Qin Man is afraid that Qu Lan will be left unattended and will want to commit suicide.
On her way home from the hospital, Qin Man dialed Qin Chen's number.
"Hello?"
No matter what time it was in New Zealand, Qin Chen would always answer Qin Man's call, but he would also hang up very quickly.
Qin Man said in a flat tone, "Mom has been admitted to the hospital."
There was a pause on the other end, followed by a question: "What illness?"
"Intentionally overdosing on medication."
"Isn't that just courting death?"
Qin Man suppressed the urge to berate him and said sarcastically, "You know it's suicide."
There was silence on the other end of the phone.
This time, it was Qin Man who hung up the phone first.
Because she saw Jiang Xuchi appear in her field of vision.
As the sun dipped below the city skyline, spreading layers of evening glow, Jiang Xuchi, dressed in his Xilai High School uniform, watched her from a car parked beside him.
"You didn't go to school today."
His voice is still as annoying as ever.
Qin Man was too lazy to pay attention to him. She didn't want to tell him what had happened today, and she didn't want to say anything. She was annoyed and planned to ignore him and walk past him.
Jiang Xuchi reached out and hooked her arm, pulling her inward—Qin Man lost her balance and almost fell on him.
"do what!"
"We're going to take promotional photos tonight, forgot?" Jiang Xuchi didn't ask her why she wasn't at school, but instead brought up the photo shoot, "The student council booked a studio shoot for us tonight."
"..."
Qin Man had completely forgotten about it because, in order to cooperate with the pre-event publicity work for the charity gala, the two people dancing on the gala stage needed to be photographed in a way that resembled a magazine cover.
It will be published in the student council's newspaper.
God knows the students at school don't even read that lousy newspaper.
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