Mother Jing’s eyes gleamed with greed. “Yes, yes, yes, that’s exactly the loan! Didn’t they say it’s granted to anyone whose family is impoverished? You borrow the money too, to relieve the burden on the family. Good child, mother knows you are the most obedient one.”
Excited and thrilled, she clamped her hand tightly around Jing Jiaxi, terrified that he would run off.
Jing Jiaxi lowered his head to wipe away his tears, pushing off Mother Jing’s thick, powerful hand.
He lifted his head and stated calmly, “The student loan merely waives or reduces tuition fees; it’s simply a matter of paying the money later. You cannot withdraw cash from it.”
Father Jing’s brow furrowed, his gaze filled with displeasure. “Then even if you don’t need to pay tuition, you still have to contribute to the household expenses, right? You’re already eighteen and an adult. From now on, hand over three thousand to the family every month.”
“I don’t have it.” Jing Jiaxi’s tone was flat, rendering a cold refusal.
“You don’t have it?! Then why did you buy such an expensive cell phone! What a waste of money!” Seeing his cold, detached face, Father Jing felt a surge of rage, but he ultimately remembered the objective of his visit.
Father Jing paused, lowering his voice to pitch an idea to Jing Jiaxi: “Don’t you college students use stuff like Huabei? And aren’t there so many loan platforms? Can’t you just borrow it out to use first?”
“I won’t borrow it.”
Jing Jiaxi stepped back two paces, scanning the parents who had raised him. Their faces were plastered with anxiety and exasperation.
Jing Jiaxi suddenly had a flash of inspiration, and a realization dawned upon him.
“Heh, is it because Jing Jizu went gambling again? Is my hundred and fifty thousand scholarship still not enough to fill the hole? Forget about the past loans, but now, I won’t pitch in a single cent for him!”
Jing Jizu had previously dropped out of school for a year, during which he became addicted to gambling. Father Jing and Mother Jing had smashed their pots and vats, selling everything to help him settle his debts.
During his early childhood, whenever Jing Jiaxi received a certificate of merit, his parents would happily pick him up and kiss him.
But as they gradually grew up, the gap between Jing Jizu and him became wider and wider, and the gaze his parents directed at him turned fierce and harsh, as if he had personally robbed Jing Jizu of his belongings.
Back then, he was young and assumed it was his own fault, so he desperately tried to please his parents and younger brother.
He brought home all the cash prizes from his examinations, and during middle school, he attended an elite school that waived all tuition fees and provided scholarships.
The school’s uniforms and meals were highly expensive, but the scholarships awarded could originally cover those costs.
However, because all the money was handed over to his parents, he could only wear the old school uniforms and eat free soup soaked with steamed buns in the cafeteria.
Only by doing this would his parents praise him for being sensible and filial, and they would even show him some care when they received the money.
Simultaneously, Jing Jizu utilized all of his parents’ savings to purchase the latest cell phone models and a motorcycle.
Jing Jiaxi assumed his parents were merely biased, but still harbored love for him deep down.
Until one day, he returned home from work only to see Jing Jizu pinned to the ground by a massive crowd of people, while his parents knelt on the floor, bitterly begging them not to chop off Jing Jizu’s hand.
Seeing Father Jing and Mother Jing begging, those people produced a loan-shark contract for them to sign, stating that the money Jing Jizu lost from gambling would be repaid with this.
No matter how ignorant Father Jing and Mother Jing were, they knew that once they saddled themselves with high-interest loans, it would be difficult to repay, so they refused to sign no matter what.
Streaming with tears and a runny nose, Jing Jizu begged his parents to save him, causing Father Jing and Mother Jing’s hearts to break with agony.
With a thud, Mother Jing dropped to her knees before Jing Jiaxi, begging him to sign the contract to save his younger brother.
Father Jing also knelt down, recounting how well he had treated him since childhood, weeping with tears and a runny nose as he begged him.
Jing Jiaxi was only sixteen years old that year. Having just entered high school, how could he possibly withstand his parents kneeling and crying to beg him?
Under the harsh threats of those people and his parents’ pleas for help, Jing Jiaxi signed the single contract he regretted most in his life.
The thugs from society harassed the household from time to time, and his parents’ initial guilt and comfort transformed into subsequent beatings and scoldings.
“It’s all because of you, you jinx! Borrowing money, borrowing money! All the family’s money has been lost because of you!”
“You are nothing but a curse! You’ve ruined our family’s peace!”
Every time the loan sharks arrived, Mother Jing would strain her throat to curse Jing Jiaxi, and Father Jing would frequently beat him after getting drunk.
No matter how endless his grievances were, Jing Jiaxi could only weep silently in the dark. Relying on the shred of affection from his early childhood parents, he supported himself until now.
His daily learning occurred strictly at school. After school dismissed, while other classmates took cars to tutoring sessions and training classes, he would ride the bus to rush off to various part-time jobs.
When Jing Jiaxi caught his breath beneath the exhausting labor, he merely felt fortunate that he attended an elite school that dismissed early, allowing him to work a few extra part-time jobs.
Not only did he have a generous scholarship, but he could also avoid living on campus, saving a sum on accommodation fees.
However, in certain establishments, he was even required to sacrifice his physical modesty.
Jing Jiaxi didn’t understand at first, but later when someone started groping him, he realized what kind of place it was and used every ounce of his strength to flee.
Yet Father Jing and Mother Jing merely scolded and lamented over the reduction in his wages.
Jing Jiaxi didn’t tell them what kind of work it was. He thought that if they discovered selling his body could yield such a massive sum of money, they might immediately deliver him onto those people’s beds.
Fortunately, his efforts did not go to waste, and upon graduating from his senior year of high school, he finally passed the examinations into his dream university.
The prize money awarded to him from various sectors of society allowed him to completely clear that debt, which had weighed heavily on his spine and forced him to bend his back.
Recalling the various events of the past, Jing Jiaxi hardened his heart and said, “I will not give you any more money in the future. I will no longer concern myself with Jing Jizu’s affairs. Whether he lives or dies has nothing to do with me.”
He had cleared the debt, and had also cleared the debt of gratitude for his parents raising him.
Upon hearing this, Father Jing’s eyebrows shot straight up. “You ungrateful white-eyed wolf! That is your younger brother! You can actually bear to watch his hands and feet get severed?!”
“Hasn’t all the money been paid off!” Even the most good-tempered person has a limit, and Jing Jiaxi yelled out.
Father Jing paused due to his rare outburst of anger, realizing he was startled by a weak child, which subsequently triggered an even greater explosion of fury.
“You animal! I shouldn’t have raised you to this age! You money-losing asset!”
He raised his massive hand, about to strike across.
Seeing him raise his hand, Jing Jiaxi froze in his tracks. The shadow of being beaten during his childhood blanketed his mind, his legs and feet turning soft, leaving him with no choice but to cover his head with both hands.
The shadow loomed overhead, yet the slap failed to descend.
Jing Jiaxi raised his head with extreme caution, only to see a tall, broad back blocking the front of him.
It was Fu Qianyu!
Recognizing him, Jing Jiaxi suddenly felt a wave of security in his heart.
Fu Qianyu intercepted Father Jing’s hand, executing a counter-thrust with force that caused Father Jing to stumble back several paces.
He had practiced martial arts since childhood, so fending off a middle-aged man was more than simple.
Fu Qianyu stepped forward to wrap his arm around Jing Jiaxi. Since Jing Jiaxi’s legs were already soft, he naturally collapsed into his solid embrace.
“Are you alright?”
“I’m fine…” Whether the sun was too intense or his emotions were overly volatile, Jing Jiaxi felt a bit dizzy, gripping the man’s shoulders tightly.
Fu Qianyu lowered his head, seeing the boy’s eyes brimming with tears of grievance, yet he still stubbornly pursed his lips, feeling light as a feather and devoid of weight in his embrace.
Father Jing eyed the man who had suddenly emerged with vigilance.
The man was expensively dressed and exuded an extraordinary aura, looking nothing like an ordinary person.
“Who are you! Who gave you permission to meddle in our family affairs!”