After Grandma Li finished dressing Chen Zimo’s wound, she asked him to stay and have a meal at the clinic.
Chen Zimo thought for a moment and agreed.
Soon, Su Qing walked in carrying two lunch boxes.
But at this moment, Su Qing had returned to her usual appearance at school, with the birthmark on her face, large black-rimmed glasses, and a slightly hunched posture.
As she arranged the delicate dishes on the table, Chen Zimo’s eyes lit up.
Before he even spoke, a rich aroma reached his nose.
The dishes were clearly cooked to perfection, and their presentation was exquisite.
Grandma Li introduced them warmly, “This is my granddaughter Su Qing. This is Chen Zimo. You young people should get to know each other.”
Chen Zimo raised his eyebrows and said, “Grandma Li, you may not know this, but Su Qing is my class monitor.”
Hearing that her granddaughter and Chen Zimo were classmates, Grandma Li’s smile grew even wider.
“Oh! What a coincidence!”
At this moment, Su Qing no longer carried the silence she had at school, nor the timid fear she showed when being robbed.
Her voice was as clear as a lark’s song.
“Grandma, some classmates asked me for protection fees earlier. It was Chen Zimo who stopped them.”
Chen Zimo replied, “You stood up for me this afternoon and testified that I didn’t cheat. We helped each other. We’re even.”
Su Qing’s cheeks flushed red, and she lowered her head again, saying nothing more.
Grandma Li looked at the two of them with a knowing smile. She could sense that her granddaughter’s attitude toward Chen Zimo was different from how she treated other boys.
“Zimo, my Su Qing is very obedient. Help Grandma take good care of her.”
Chen Zimo took a big bite of food, nodded, and looked at Su Qing as he said, “Beautiful Su, are you still planning to cap your score at 600 in the exam the day after tomorrow?”
Su Qing’s head shot up. A trace of surprise flashed in her star-like eyes.
“You know I control my score?”
“But aren’t you doing the same?”
Chen Zimo shook his head. “I was controlling my score, but that was in the past.”
“This time, I’ve left the Chen family and have nothing more to do with Gu Xiaoxiao, my so-called fiancée. I don’t need to worry about my family’s feelings anymore. I’m going to give it my all.”
When Su Qing heard that Gu Xiaoxiao was his fiancée, her gaze dimmed instantly.
But when she heard he was going to give it his all, she raised her head again. “You’re going to give it your all?”
A faint smile curved at Chen Zimo’s lips as he looked at the “ugly” Su Qing and said in a tone that was half teasing and half proud, “Su Qing, do you dare to compete with me? Whoever wins gets the other to agree to one request.”
Hearing this, Su Qing immediately thought of the moment earlier when Chen Zimo had seen her true appearance. Her small hand shrank back instinctively, and she was about to refuse.
Su Qing immediately turned to Grandma Li. “Grandma, how can you agree for me?”
Then she turned to Chen Zimo. “Grandma, you don’t understand. Chen Zimo and I are different from other classmates.”
Grandma Li reached out gently and patted Su Qing’s head. “Qing’er, Grandma knows your concerns. But young people should have a bit of spirit, shouldn’t they?”
“Grandma is old. One day, I will leave you.”
“All Grandma hopes is that one day you will open your heart and do what you truly want to do.”
“You won’t leave me, Grandma!” Su Qing’s eyes reddened.
Grandma Li stroked her head again and smiled. “Qing’er, Grandma’s greatest wish is to see you get married and hold my great-grandchild one day.”
“If you never take that step, then even when Grandma dies, I won’t be able to fulfill my wish.”
A blush climbed all the way to Su Qing’s ears.
“Grandma, how can you say such things in front of others? It’s so embarrassing.”
“Although Chen Zimo doesn’t count as…”
Seeing Su Qing’s girlish shyness, Grandma Li waved her hand decisively. “Qing’er, since you’re not speaking, I’ll decide for you.”
“Zimo, it’s settled. Grandma hopes you give it your all.”
Then she leaned slightly closer to Chen Zimo’s ear and whispered, “Zimo, Grandma hopes you win. Do your best.”
Even though she spoke softly, at such a small table Su Qing heard everything clearly. She could not help but protest softly, “Grandma…”
A trace of a young woman’s charm began to show.
After finishing the meal, Chen Zimo planned to visit the orphanage to retrieve his household registration booklet so he could apply for a passport, and also to see the younger brothers and sisters there.
Now that he had money, he could not forget where he came from.
After withdrawing 100,000 yuan from the bank and taking two bus transfers, Chen Zimo arrived at Cixiang Welfare Institute.
There were more unfamiliar children now and fewer familiar faces.
Chen Zimo knew that the missing children had either been taken home by their parents or adopted.
There was nothing he could do about that. He could only silently hope that those adopted or reunited children would not encounter strange and cold-hearted relatives like he had.
When Director Grandma Zhang saw Chen Zimo arrive, she was overjoyed. She hugged him tightly, her eyes nearly filling with tears.
“Zimo, how could you be so heartless? Ever since you went back to the Chen family, you’ve never come to see Grandma again.”
“Why didn’t Zhang Xiaoming and Chen Tianrong come with you?”
“You’re so thin! Why are you thinner than when you were in the orphanage?”
“You’re all skin and bones! Did the Chen family mistreat you? Tell Grandma, and I’ll go find them!” You are reading on g.com, the official source.
Chen Zimo’s eyes reddened as well.
He felt a deep sense of belonging to the orphanage.
But after returning to the Chen family, they had said the children from the orphanage were dirty and lacked manners. They forbade him from going back.
He had even stopped contacting Zhang Xiaoming and Chen Tianrong, his childhood friends.
He felt deeply ashamed.
“Grandma Zhang, I won’t do that again. I’ll come see you and the children often.”
“Next time, I’ll definitely bring Zhang Xiaoming and Chen Tianrong with me.”
Grandma Zhang was not satisfied with his evasive answer.
“Zimo, what exactly is going on with your body? And what about the wound on your head? If you don’t explain clearly today, Grandma won’t let you leave the orphanage.”
Chen Zimo had no choice but to tell her about severing ties with the Chen family.
After hearing everything, Grandma Zhang sighed. “What kind of people is this Chen family?”
“They treat the adopted son like a treasure, yet after finally finding their biological son, they treat him like this. Are they even human?”
Chen Zimo remained silent. He had been reborn, so he knew exactly why Chen Tinghao and Lin Jiangxue treated him this way, but he could not say it aloud.
He changed the subject and took out 100,000 yuan, handing it to Grandma Zhang.
“Grandma Zhang, I have money now. Of course I have to think of the orphanage and these lovely younger brothers and sisters.”
“Don’t worry. Guard this place with peace of mind. From now on, I’ll donate 100,000 yuan to the orphanage every month so the children can eat better and grow up healthy.”
Grandma Zhang did not ask where the money came from, nor did she doubt his words. In her heart, she simply felt sorry for this child she had watched grow up, hoping that all the children she had raised would grow up healthy and become useful members of society.
She hugged Chen Zimo again, her eyes red.
“Zimo, Grandma knows you’ve suffered. If the Chen family doesn’t want you, Grandma does!”
“I’ve kept your room for you. If you ever feel upset, come find Grandma. Don’t think Grandma is old. I’m quite capable, you know!”
Chen Zimo nodded repeatedly.
He was not the first orphan to leave the orphanage. Under Grandma Zhang’s careful guidance, many of the children who grew up there had achieved great success.
As far as he knew, there had once been a billionaire who tried to buy the orphanage. There had been all kinds of harassment and unreasonable demands.
In the end, Grandma Zhang, fed up with it, made a single phone call. Not only did that billionaire personally come to apologize, he also donated 1 million yuan to renovate the orphanage.
That moment had truly shocked Chen Zimo…