Chapter 12 I Can Support You
Jing Rong had downgraded her sports car from a Ferghana-class BMW to a scooter, while the entire afternoon was spent on a leisurely drive. The further northeast she drove, the more familiar the scenery became, yet Jing Rong's heart grew heavier. She had only been away for sixteen days and five hours, yet it felt like a lifetime ago. Everything here felt both familiar and unfamiliar to her. The original city was where she had grown up, and the roads were still lined with rows of maple trees. In autumn, the whole world was immersed in a romantic atmosphere. But the old lady who had knitted sweaters in the sun at the intersection every day last month was no longer there...
With mixed emotions, Jingrong drove slower and slower. Bicycles whizzed past, carrying children returning home from school, and endless laughter.
Jing Rong felt a little melancholy, and suddenly had a feeling that things and people had changed. It had only been a short time since she last came back. She had been away for four years before that, and when she returned to this city and this area, she didn't feel strange at all - although she knew it was the same place, she couldn't find a sense of belonging.
"I'm sorry, miss, driving is not allowed in school!"
An unfamiliar voice interrupted Jingrong's thoughts. When she came to her senses, she found herself at the gate of F University. The children coming and going were looking at her with strange eyes. This experience was magical. More than ten days ago, she could drive her car in and out of the school gate at will. The security guard would always greet her with a kind smile. But now, she didn't even have the qualifications to go in.
The responsible security guard paused after seeing the slightly distraught look on the face of the beautiful girl driving the fancy sports car, then asked, "Miss, how can I help you?"
As if by some strange coincidence, Jing Rong asked, "Excuse me, is Professor Jing here?"
"Professor Jing?" The security guard frowned, trying to recall who this "Professor Jing" was, but he couldn't come up with an idea. He could only say, "There's only a new teacher here, Professor Jing. I wonder if the young lady is..."
"No, Professor Jing from the Chemistry Department, don't you know him?"
Seeing Jing Rong's anxious look, the security guard thought again and shook his head: "No, I know all the professors in the school, but there is indeed no professor named Jing..." As he was speaking, a boy happened to pass by. The uncle called out to the boy, "Hey, classmate, which department are you from?"
"Department of Chemistry."
"Then is there a professor named Jing in your department?"
The boy frowned and thought for a moment, then shook his head. "No, the surname Jing is very rare. As far as I know, there's only one teacher named Jing in the school who just arrived not long ago, but he's from the School of Economics and Management."
Jing Rong asked again: "Is it a female teacher?"
"No, it's a male teacher."
After getting this answer, Jing Rong's face suddenly turned ugly, but he didn't hold on to the enthusiastic uncle and boy. After thanking them, he left F University with a bit of loneliness.
At this moment, Jing Rong felt it was ridiculous. The whole world was playing a joke on her. This ridiculousness was even more unacceptable to her than taking a roller coaster and changing from a Chinese girl to a Korean girl. There was no Jing Rong in this world. Everything about Jing Rong and around Jing Rong seemed to have been wiped out. She didn't exist at all... No, that was not right. This was not her world at all. It was not where she should be.
The thought was but a fleeting one before the disgusting voice rang out again. Xue Jingrong had appeared three times before. While the first two times weren't exactly friendly, Jingrong didn't have much negative emotion towards her, aside from aversion. If she were to describe the relationship between Quan Zhilong and Xue Jingrong, it would be like Zhou Yu fighting Huang Gai, one willing to fight, the other willing to be beaten. Quan Zhilong was clearly not a good man, so who could Xue Jingrong blame for clinging to him? This time, however, Jingrong felt absolutely disgusted by the voice.
"So, do you want to go home? I thought you could hold out for a while longer, tsk tsk, so-called principles are just like this..."
"Shut up!" Jing Rong tightened his grip on the steering wheel. A new thought flashed through his mind, but he heard Xue Jingrong's smug voice again: "You want to die with me? Come on, I should have died a long time ago anyway. It's not bad to have someone to accompany me now. It's just a pity that your elderly parents in that world..."
Jing Rong slammed on the brakes. No matter how good the car's performance was, she had just pushed the horsepower almost to the limit. The speed was too fast to stop immediately. The tires rubbed against the ground, making a loud sound. The sports car slid a long way before finally stopping. Jing Rong didn't say anything, and Xue Jingrong was also silent. In the quiet car, the ringtone of the incoming call seemed fresh and loud. Jing Rong paused, but still pressed the answer button: "Secretary Lin, what's the matter? No, I'm fine now... You said that Mr. Fang wanted to invite me to dinner? Um... Okay, I have no problem, you can ask him to contact me directly... You asked me where I am? I'm in Yangpu District now... No need to send someone to pick me up, I know the way, just send me the address... Okay, that's all for now, goodbye."
After hanging up the phone, the smile on Jing Rong's face faded completely. She leaned her head slightly against the seat and stared blankly ahead. Not long after, the phone rang again. It was a text message reminder. Jing Rong remained motionless. After a while, she seemed to suddenly come to her senses and looked up at the air in front of her with indifferent eyes: "I don't want to see you appear, I don't want to hear any sound from you, no matter what I do, you can't interfere."
"No problem, but I also have a condition. You must succeed within one year."
"You've spent countless years trying to accomplish something, and now you're asking me to do this. Do you really think I'm a god?" Xue Jingrong paused, then taunted, "Could it be that you can only hold on for a year?"
"You don't need to know this." Xue Jingrong's voice became cold, the kind of indifference that was lifeless. "Finish it sooner rather than later, it will be good for both you and me."
Jingrong was not interested in Xue Jingrong's change. She said indifferently, "You should keep your promise."
After half a second of silence, the schizophrenia-like feeling finally disappeared completely. Xue Jingrong fell into a deep sleep for the nth time. Jingrong knew that this time was different from the previous times. If Xue Jingrong was a timed alarm clock before, now she had removed the battery of the alarm clock and would never have to worry about her ringing. This was not because Xue Jingrong trusted Jingrong, but because she knew that the meaning of home to Jingrong was the same as that of G-Dragon to her. This was the only thing in their lives that they could not and could not afford to gamble with.
Jing Rong remained silent, looking out the window for a long time, and finally couldn't help but smile bitterly. She felt like she had made a deal with the devil, just like the mermaid and the witch, but the mermaid was pursuing true love, and what she was going to do was to use all means to destroy someone's love. It was so despicable that she even hated herself - thinking like this was a bit hypocritical. If she was really noble, she should not accept such a deal.
But she wants to go home.
Everyone has the right to choose to love and be loved. Every love should be a beautiful scenery in life, rare and precious, pure and beautiful. Follow your heart, without worldly prejudices or endless calculations. True love cannot be obtained through forceful means.
Jing Rong's thoughts were interrupted by another ringing call. She picked up the phone and whispered, "Hello."
"Honey, guess who I am?" With her signature baby voice and sweet tone, there was no need to guess. Jing Rong paused and asked, "Is there anything wrong?" As soon as she finished speaking, she immediately realized that she was a little too cold and quickly added, "Sorry, I had to go on a business trip and didn't have time to tell you..."
——If it were any other time, Jing Rong would applaud himself for his “dedication”.
G-Dragon used his childhood sweetheart's phone to call his girlfriend, thinking that he would be treated differently. His girlfriend was still cold to him before he heard the voice, but when he finished speaking, she immediately became enthusiastic, and her tone of apology was full of sincerity - most songwriters are delicate and sensitive, and G-Dragon is even more so. After noticing this subtle change, G-Dragon almost couldn't control his joy - this was a completely unfamiliar feeling for G-Dragon, different from the excitement when meeting his first love. There is some restraint in the adult world, but it is precisely because of this restraint that the moment of heart-beating seems even more rare.
Quan Zhilong was silent for too long, Jingrong thought he was angry, and couldn't help but speak again: "I'm sorry..."
Before he could finish his words, Quan Zhilong interrupted him: "It's okay, dear. Sometimes I'm even busier than you."
As long as she's not angry, Jing Rong felt relieved and nodded, asking, "What do you want to talk to me about?"
"I just wanted to ask if everything is going well over there." Quan Zhilong found the best explanation for Jingrong's inconsistent attitude. Without waiting for Jingrong to speak, he said, "I'm just a little worried about you. It's nothing, really. Just finish your business over there and come back."
At this time, Jingrong didn't know what to say, so he just said "Oh". Quan Zhilong felt that he had done the right thing, and he was fresh in the face of this kind of earnest role. He continued to advise: "But don't try too hard. It would be best if you can solve the problem. Even if you can't, it doesn't matter." Quan Zhilong remembered that when Xue Jingrong was not his girlfriend yet, she would complain to him, such as the topic of having a stepmother and a stepfather. He used to just listen to it, but now when he thought of his girlfriend having such a father, he became dissatisfied and said, "Don't be afraid of your father. If he doesn't care about you, I can still support you."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
