The slap landed squarely on Cheng Ye’s face, and the skin flushed red at a visible speed.
Mother Cheng’s right hand froze midair. She was stunned, a trace of worry appearing in her eyes. “X-Xiao Ye, I thought you would dodge. Mom didn’t mean to…”
Cheng Ye looked at her indifferently. “Ms. Xu, sign it.”
She had felt a bit guilty for hitting him, but hearing his words, her anger surged again. “Xiao Ye, when will you learn to be obedient? Do you resent me because I was absent for fifteen years of your life?!”
Cheng Ye’s gaze remained calm as he repeated, “Sign it.”
Grinding her teeth, Mother Cheng snatched the pen and the agreement from Father Cheng’s hand, signed her name irritably, and threw it back to him, her face filled with frustration.
She didn’t believe Cheng Ye could survive on his own after leaving the Cheng family. Sooner or later, he would come back and beg her for forgiveness.
Seeing her signature, Cheng Ye felt an inexplicable sense of relief. He shifted his gaze to Father Cheng. “Mr. Cheng, your turn.”
Father Cheng exploded with anger. “You made a mistake, we’re disciplining you, and you still refuse to accept it?! Cheng Ye, think carefully. Without the Cheng family, you are nothing!”
He raised his hand to slap Cheng Ye, but Cheng Ye grabbed his arm and shoved it away coldly.
Too lazy to argue further, Cheng Ye said, “Sign it.”
Hearing this, Father Cheng trembled with rage. “Trying to provoke us by acting tough?! Once you leave the Cheng family, you won’t even be able to survive! Don’t say I didn’t warn you!”
His chest heaved violently. Convinced Cheng Ye was only bluffing, he decisively signed his name.
Eldest Sister Cheng Wei looked at Cheng Ye’s cold expression and sneered. “Cheng Ye, do you think the Cheng family is a place you can come and go as you please? Do you really think we’d beg you to come back? What a joke!”
Second Sister Cheng Zhirou nodded in agreement. “Sis, he’s just trying to threaten us, making his insignificant existence known.”
“Mom, Dad, don’t be angry at him. He’s not worth it!” Third Sister Cheng Shiyan finally snapped out of her daze. Cheng Ye had always tried so hard to please them. How could he really leave so easily?
She laughed lightly. “The Cheng family has businesses all over the country. Don’t come crying to us when you can’t even find a job. That would be a real joke.”
Hearing their daughters, Father Cheng and Mother Cheng gradually calmed down.
Cheng Ye remained expressionless. He took one copy of the agreement back from Father Cheng, leaving the other two in his hand.
Under everyone’s stunned gaze, Cheng Ye turned around and walked into the villa’s living room. Murmurs immediately broke out among the guests.
Not long after, Cheng Ye reappeared at the entrance, dragging a suitcase, walking straight toward the courtyard gate without looking back.
A faint sense of unease rose in Mother Cheng’s heart. Just as she lifted her foot to stop him, Cheng Fenghao suddenly tugged at her sleeve. “Mom, my stomach hurts.”
Her attention shifted instantly. She hurriedly called for the family doctor. “Besides your stomach, is there anywhere else that hurts? We’ll get a scan done later…”
The scene descended into chaos once again. Everyone focused on Cheng Fenghao’s condition, completely forgetting about Cheng Ye, who had just left.
…
It was August in the capital. The sun blazed overhead, the air thick and stifling.
Cheng Ye sat in the back seat of a taxi. As the car entered a narrow alley, he rolled down the window. Dense trees and red brick houses slid past his view. Occasionally, the cries of street vendors drifted into his ears, full of everyday life.
After getting out, he rented a small room nearby. Once he settled his luggage, he went out, walked straight, then turned right into a small alley, arriving in front of an old clinic steeped in age. A gentle breeze stirred the windows, making them creak softly.
An elderly woman walked out from the entrance. Around seventy years old, she smiled warmly upon seeing Cheng Ye, her face lighting up with joy. “Xiao Ye, I made your favorite celery and beef dumplings. Come in and eat while they’re hot.”
Cheng Ye’s nose tingled with emotion.
The old woman wasn’t related to him by blood. When he was a child in the orphanage, he often snuck out to play. One day, peeking through a half-open window, he saw her performing acupuncture on a patient inside the clinic.
Fascinated, he came back again and again, watching her perform cupping, acupuncture, and bone-setting treatments.
Over time, they grew close, and he developed a deep interest in traditional medicine.
From the moment he entered high school, he had set his sights on getting into the best medical university.
But after returning to the Cheng family, all he could think about was how to fit into that household. He lost interest in studying and let his academics fall apart.
Later, after he was thrown out and hospitalized, the old woman couldn’t reach him for days. Worried, she went to the orphanage to ask about him. Upon learning he was in the hospital, she prepared a lot of food and rushed over, only to be struck by a car on the way and die on the spot.
It was a pain he could never forget in his previous life.
After that, the clinic closed, and he was forced to work in a factory just to survive.
Because of her death, he never had the courage to pursue his dream of medicine again.
Back when he lived in the orphanage, conditions were poor. When he first met her, he was thin and smaller than other children his age.
Fearing he was malnourished, she cooked different dishes for him every day. Whenever he visited, he would always eat his fill.
But the orphanage had strict rules. When he couldn’t sneak out, she would pack food in insulated containers and personally deliver it to him.
She had never married, nor had children. She dedicated her entire life to traditional medicine.
Knowing he shared her interest, she patiently taught him and even bought him medical books.
“Xiao Ye, don’t just stand there. Come eat the dumplings.” Song Ranqiu looked at him in confusion. “Did you argue with your family?”
“No. We get along well.” Cheng Ye didn’t want her to worry. He always shared good news, never bad. As she pulled him inside, he followed.
On the left was a counter for dispensing medicine. On the right were three clean beds for patient treatment, along with a few scattered small tables and stools.
Song Ranqiu pushed open the inner door and led him to the backyard. After walking a bit further, they entered the main room. On the table, steaming dumplings gave off a rich, inviting aroma.
“Eat while it’s hot. Grandma has to go out for a consultation.” Song Ranqiu reminded him, “I’ll bring you some snacks when I come back.”
Cheng Ye’s throat tightened. “Okay, Grandma. Be careful.”
After she left, Cheng Ye finished the dumplings and washed the dishes.
School would start tomorrow for the final year of high school. After paying next month’s rent and this semester’s tuition, he had little money left aside from basic living expenses.
Before that, he needed to earn money.
Cheng Ye opened a job recruitment app, planning to find part-time work. At that moment, he received a message in his class group chat from his homeroom teacher, tagging everyone.
[The final year of high school is here. Everyone should focus and not slack off. There will be a physics competition this Sunday. All students must participate. I’ve already registered you. Students who rank in the top 20 of the senior year will receive different amounts of incentive bonuses. Prepare well.]
Attached was an image with detailed information about the competition, along with an electronic document titled “Key Concepts and Typical Problems in Physics Competitions.”
Cheng Ye enlarged the image. The first prize was 20,000 yuan, while the twentieth prize was 500 yuan.
If he could win first place, he would not only have extra money but could also buy gifts for Grandma.
With that thought, he opened the electronic document, which had over six hundred pages.
His eyes casually swept over the contents, then he slowly closed them. The information he had just seen appeared vividly in his mind.
Anything he glanced at, he could remember completely, even without deliberate effort.
A true photographic memory.
In his previous life, he had wasted this gift, consumed by emotional turmoil within the Cheng family, leaving no energy for studying.
There was less than a week left until the competition. Though time was short, he was skilled at integrating knowledge. Handling the flexible and complex problems of the physics competition would be more than enough.
Back when he graduated middle school, he had ranked first and entered the capital’s best Yahua High School, in the same class as Cheng Fenghao and Chu Xiyan.
But later, his grades had plummeted.
Fortunately, there was still time. The college entrance exam hadn’t arrived yet. Everything could still be changed.
Cheng Ye quickly finished going through the entire document. He stood up and went outside the clinic to see if Grandma had returned.
“Excuse me, is anyone here?” A sweet, clear girl’s voice, carrying the heat of the summer air, drifted into the clinic.
Cheng Ye opened the inner door and saw a graceful, well-behaved girl standing outside.
Her features were delicate, her skin extremely fair. Beneath her slender, elegant neck, her beautiful collarbones were clearly visible, giving her an alluring yet pure charm.
She wore a peach-pink floral dress with thin straps, paired with snow-white sandals studded with rhinestones.
Two light blue butterfly hair ties bound her hair into twin ponytails that fell in front of her shoulders. In the warm breeze, her long black hair fluttered gently.
Cheng Ye’s heart skipped a beat.
Wasn’t this the factory owner’s daughter from his previous life?
Why was she here?