0092: Holding Hands

“Then we’ll be on our way.” After chatting a few more minutes, Xu Lin and Li Bin also prepared to leave.

“Okay. Take it slow.”

“So, are you not going home today?”

Xu Lin looked at Ma Zhiyu and asked. In truth, what this guy feared was not only the trouble at hand, but also his parents.

“I... I’ll go back. I’ll go back later. But please don’t tell them. They’re already exhausted enough.”

Ma Zhiyu seemed to want to say more, but in the end he only managed that one sentence. Xu Lin, however, felt oddly pleased; this guy was not entirely without conscience after all.

“Your parents actually care about you. Didn’t you notice the certificate hung in the shop?” Li Bin added from the side as well.

“I can see it. I’ve always seen it. I understand. Even if they don’t say it out loud, deep down they still hope we’ll work hard and study well.”

“But my mother’s back is no good, and the treatment last year cost several tens of thousands. Even though our family isn’t doing too badly, my father is already planning to buy me a house.”

“If I keep going and end up taking the college entrance exam, all of that together would definitely be more than they can bear. With a loan on top of that, and even harder labor, I can’t stand to see it.”

“Besides, my grades aren’t good anyway. Stopping here is not so bad. I can go work and earn money, and bring the family a little less burden.”

As Ma Zhiyu said this, Xu Lin and Li Bin finally understood. He was not ignorant of everything; on the contrary, he knew everything, which was why he had become like this.

“But since you understand all that, then treat them well! Talk to them more, communicate more. Keeping everything from them like this is what really hurts them.”

“They definitely won’t be happy just because you want to help them by quitting school and drifting into society.”

This was Xu Lin’s final advice to him. Whether he listened or not was his own business.

In a lifetime, a person will face many choices. One cannot rely on others to point the way forever; in the end, one always has one’s own decision to make.

Xu Lin and Li Bin left the internet cafe, and Li Bin’s face was also solemn.

“What’s with you? Why the long face?”

“Xu Lin, this matter... should we call the police? Before Ma Zhiyu gets too deeply involved, that woman will only be in there for a year or two once she’s locked up.”

“That might be for his own good, but would Ma Zhiyu appreciate it?”

“But we can’t just let him go down the wrong path.”

“Li Bin, you don’t believe me either? A few more days. I’ll find a solution.”

“You’re serious?”

Li Bin was doubtful. He had known Xu Lin for so many years, and had never heard him say his family knew any remarkable people.

But after reading so many novels, he also knew there was always the chance that someone was merely hiding their true abilities, pretending to be weak while actually having powerful connections.

After parting ways with Li Bin, Xu Lin glanced at his watch and saw it was already past six. He immediately sped up, pedaling toward home.

But when he reached an intersection, unwilling to wait at the red light, he was about to turn right and take a slight detour when he caught sight of a familiar back in the cafe across the street.

There was also another figure seated opposite, somewhat familiar as well. After thinking for a few seconds, he suddenly reacted and frowned.

That graceful figure was Teacher Su, and the fellow beside her was the same Jia Qing he had seen last time. Why were they drinking coffee together?

Teacher Su had said herself that she wanted to escape her misery. Could it be that the man was pestering her, and he was supposed to go over and help or not?

He looked down at the school uniform he was wearing and could only sigh. How was he supposed to help in this? But then he saw Su Qingwan’s expression turning rather unpleasant.

His heart softened at once. Everyone at home was precious to him, after all. So he rode straight to the storefront selling sportswear beside the road.

He parked his bicycle, went inside, waved his bank card, and in two minutes spent three hundred yuan on a set of sports clothes. He put them on and headed straight across.

Entering the cafe, which held only a few customers, Xu Lin immediately heard the sound of two people talking not far away.

“Jia Qing, I already have a boyfriend now. Didn’t you see him last time?”

“And besides, you clearly don’t like me, so why are you bothering me? Your family has money—there’s no shortage of girlfriends for you to choose from.”

“Don’t say that. How could I not like you? I’m just not good at expressing myself. I figured we’d be getting married sooner or later, so I ended up paying less attention and being less romantic.”

“Besides, our families get along so well. Tell me what I’m doing wrong, and I’ll change it for you.”

As Jia Qing said this, Su Qingwan only looked at him coldly, disgust rising in her heart, and she was about to stand up and leave.

Jia Qing immediately reached out to grab her arm, but the next second a hand clamped down hard on his wrist and stopped him.

“Hey, hey! Keep your hands to yourself!”

Su Qingwan and Jia Qing both froze. Looking up, they saw a handsome young man standing there, a mocking look on his face as he stared at Jia Qing.

Su Qingwan was somewhat surprised. She did not know why Xu Lin had suddenly appeared here, but the feeling was wonderful; somehow, he was always behind her.

In an instant she lightly hopped back and hid behind Xu Lin. Jia Qing’s eyes reddened. He lunged with a violent tug, but just as he exerted force, the other party let go.

With a thud, his head snapped backward against the seat behind him. Though there was sponge padding, it still hurt a little.

“Damn it, what the hell do you mean?”

“Why are you harassing my girlfriend?” Xu Lin narrowed his eyes and put on a look that said he was not to be trifled with.

Su Qingwan found it rather amusing. Xu Lin, who was usually so quiet and reserved, now looked like some street thug. Truly, a man who had acted before.

Jia Qing was full of rage, but he was no longer the man he had been in his younger years. He had not exercised in five or six years, and even a paunch had begun to show. Dealing with this little punk would be pointless.

Still, since this brat was acting like a hooligan, he could just start with his father and the Su family. Let’s see if I can’t pin you down. If I can’t, then no one else can.

He stood up, brushed off his clothes, and said, “Young man, you’re still so young. Why do you have to act so shameless? No manners at all.”

“Mr. Jia, this is someone else’s cafe. You’re the one shouting here and trying to get physical with my girlfriend, and you say I have no manners? That’s hilarious.”

“...”

Jia Qing’s eyes bulged instantly. He was almost ready to throw a punch, but in the end he held himself back and turned to Su Qingwan.

“I hope you’ll think carefully. A proper match matters most. Surely you don’t think some boy with no house and no car can give you happiness?”

“I have a house. My own. Not my parents’.”

Though he was only casually meddling, Xu Lin still said it that way, following his shameless logic that what belongs to my wife is also mine.

“Fine! Fine!”

Jia Qing spat out the words “fine” several times in succession, then turned and headed straight for the door.

The two young women by the counter in the distance also let out a breath of relief. They had been afraid it might really come to blows, and that would have been troublesome.

But Xu Lin suddenly realized something: that bastard still hadn’t paid. The first time he met him, Xu Lin had paid for him too. What a disgusting person.

“Xu Lin, why are you here?”

“I visited a classmate and was on my way home when I saw you. Since that guy was pestering you, I figured I’d help out.”

“Then your clothes?”

“I bought them across the street. I haven’t even taken the tag off yet. It’s tucked inside my collar.”

“Hahaha, you really are something. But... thanks.”

She stared at Xu Lin like that, and Xu Lin looked back at her, then gently took her hand.

It was not a particularly intimate gesture, yet it was the closest contact the two had ever had in public, after all, there was still a layer of pretense between their identities.

But at that moment, a police car pulled up outside. Xu Lin and Su Qingwan both froze, and Xu Lin remarked,

“What, is holding hands a crime too?”

Hearing that, Su Qingwan burst out laughing, her body swaying with the force of it as she leaned into his arms.

But the next second, a long, slender leg stretched out from the police car. Su Qingwan, who had still been laughing a moment before, suddenly froze and hurriedly straightened up.