Shu Lingchen was in the fourth grade when it happened.
A bunch of bullies at school had cornered him, mocking him for not only being fatherless but also for “cursing” his own mother to death. They claimed he was born under a jinxed star, and that anyone who dared to get close to him would meet with pure misfortune.
They threw his backpack into a muddy ditch and tore his textbooks to shreds.
Beaten and bruised, Shu Lingchen curled into a tight ball on the ground, burying his head in his hands and pressing his palms hard against his ears, desperately trying to shut out their razor-sharp words.
In his dazed state, he vaguely remembered being bullied like this back in kindergarten. Back then, his mom had stepped in like an absolute boss and chased them all away.
But now, there was no one left to protect him.
Right then.
A young, delicate girl’s voice cut through the air.
It was Chu Lin.
Chu Lin was the ultimate star student, the teacher’s pet. The bullies were terrified of her snitching, so the moment she gave them a stern warning, they all scattered in a panic.
“Lingchen, are you okay?”
She gently helped him up from the cold ground.
Shu Lingchen blinked his blurry eyes open. The first thing he saw was a clean, fair, delicate little face looking down at him, her eyes filled with genuine worry and care.
The afternoon sun beamed directly from behind her, tracing her silhouette in a warm, golden halo. In that exact fraction of a second, she burned herself like a beacon of pure light right into Shu Lingchen’s dark, gray world.
Chu Lin used wet wipes to patiently clean the filthy ditch water off his backpack, then took some clear tape and mended his ripped textbooks page by page.
“It looks a little ugly. Lingchen, I really did my best,” she said with an apologetic pout, sticking her tongue out.
Shu Lingchen shook his head vigorously, cradling the taped-up books in his hands as if they were the rarest treasures on earth. “No! You did an amazing job. It’s better than a brand-new book. Chu Chu, thank you.”
Then, she smiled at him.
“You silly dummy. You need to learn how to be strong from now on. What if someone tries to bully me one day? What are you gonna do then?”
Shu Lingchen had promised her right then and there, with absolute gravity: “Don’t worry, Chu Chu. I will definitely grow up to be strong. From now on, I’ll be the one protecting you!”
“Deal.”
“Auntie Chu and Chu Chu have just always been there for me, taking care of me,” Shu Lingchen continued, staring down at his bowl. “One time, in the middle of the night, I came down with a massive fever. Auntie Chu literally carried me on her back all the way to the hospital in a torrential downpour.”
“My fever broke, but Auntie Chu ended up with chronic health complications because of that storm. Her body became incredibly frail. Anytime she does any heavy lifting, her condition flares up. She has to rely on a super expensive specialty medication just to have enough energy for daily life.”
Shu Lingchen looked up at Shu Shu, his fingers tightening around his spoon. “…Mom, Auntie Chu and Chu Chu… they’ve been genuinely good to me.”
Shu Shu didn’t say anything for a long moment.
How should she put it?
On paper, this was a highly touching story of childhood salvation. She finally understood exactly why Shu Lingchen looked at the Chu family through such a ridiculously thick, holy-saint filter.
But the Chu mother-daughter duo in Shu Lingchen’s head, and the real ones Shu Shu had witnessed with her own eyes, were two entirely different species.
If they were truly that saintly:
Why on earth would they make Shu Lingchen move out to a dingy rental while they lived large in his luxury penthouse?
Why would they scheme day in and day out to drain every single penny of his monthly allowance, casually watching him live like a destitute beggar?
These were absolutely not the actions of good, kindhearted people.
Something was wrong. Something was seriously off.
“Mom?” Shu Lingchen noticed his mother was completely lost in thought. “What are you thinking about?”
Shu Shu propped her chin on her hand. “I was just thinking… if Chu Lin is so incredibly good to you, why do you guys act like total strangers at school? Barely anyone even knows you two associate with each other. Plus, when she hears other people calling you a toad trying to swallow a swan, she doesn’t exactly stand up for you, does she?”
“I was the one who asked Chu Chu to pretend she doesn’t know me,” Shu Lingchen muttered, his lips twisting into a self-deprecating smirk. “My grades are trash, and I’m basically a thug. Walking next to me would completely ruin her reputation as a straight-A student. Liking her and treating her well… that’s entirely my own one-sided choice.”
“In other words, she doesn’t actually like you back?”
“Chu Chu is an exceptional girl. She said she just wants to focus entirely on her studies right now, and she’ll only consider romance after graduation.”
Shu Shu scoffed internally.
She just wants to focus on her studies, yet she has no problem focusing on your wallet?
Clear as mud. She wouldn’t explicitly say she liked him, nor would she explicitly reject him. She just kept him at arm’s length with vague excuses while comfortably spending his money and living in his luxury apartment.
Yet Shu Lingchen immediately defended her: “I’m the one who insists on spending money on her! Chu Chu has never once asked me for cash. She is not a materialistic girl!”
Shu Shu: “…”
Open your eyes, kid, she’s practically reaching her hand directly into your pockets!
Shu Lingchen’s eyes burned with fierce determination. “I’ll wait. I’ll wait until the day Chu Chu graduates, and then I’ll officially confess to her!”
“Wow.” Shu Shu gave him a completely blank stare, slowly raising a sarcastic thumb. “Look at you drop those heavy romantic lines at such a tender age. My son is quite the tragic, devoted lover boy~”
What an absolute dumbass.
A textbook, brainwashed dumbass.
Looking at her son’s face, which was practically glowing with pure, naive hope, Shu Shu felt like she was staring at a prized pig waiting for slaughter. She had a strong, sinking suspicion that Shu Lingchen had been systematically fattened up for a thirteen-year long con by the Chu family.
“It’s getting late. Go to sleep, you have school tomorrow.”
Shu Shu stood up, tossed the two empty bowls into the dishwasher, and walked back to her bedroom.
Instead of lying down, she pulled out her phone and started tapping away. Within thirty seconds, a new notification popped up:
“Dear Black Gold Member, are you absolutely certain you wish to adjust the trajectory of this trust fund insurance plan to a 99.99% loss rate?”
Without a shred of hesitation, Shu Shu typed: “Positive.”
The response was almost instantaneous: “Understood. The operation is complete. The projected payout for this insurance fund next month will be: 200 RMB.”
Shu Shu spun her phone on her fingertips, leaning back against her plush pillows.
It looked like it was time for a biological mother to personally teach her little idiot son a crucial life lesson.
The title of this lesson?
A relationship without financial stability is nothing but a handful of loose sand.
Shu Shu glanced at the calendar. Today happened to be the very last day of the month.
A slow smirk spread across her face. She tossed her phone aside, switched her lamp to sleep mode, buried herself under the duvet, and drifted off to sleep.
The Next Day.
Throughout the entire morning, during every single class break, Pineapple Boy watched Shu Lingchen stare at his phone. He was tapping, refreshing, closing the app, and reopening it over and over again, a look of pure, unadulterated horror frozen on his face.
Shu Shu completely ignored him, acting like she saw nothing.
It wasn’t until lunchtime when the bell finally rang and everyone flooded out toward the cafeteria that the tension broke.
Shu Lingchen remained glued to his seat, entirely motionless.
When Pineapple Boy asked him to grab food, Shu Lingchen just waved him off, claiming he wasn’t hungry. Left with no choice, Pineapple Boy and the rest of the lackeys headed out first.
Shu Shu walked over and stood by his desk. “You only ate a tiny sandwich this morning. No way you’re not hungry right now.”
Hearing her voice, Shu Lingchen scanned the classroom first to ensure everyone was gone. Only then did his face collapse into a tragic, tearful sob. “Mom… I’m ruined. My insurance fund completely crashed. My allowance for the entire next month is only two hundred bucks!”
Shu Lingchen’s current bank balance sat at exactly twenty-eight cents. He had been banking on surviving until tomorrow when his fresh monthly allowance of fifty thousand RMB was supposed to hit. Instead, he got hit with a catastrophic liquidation notice first thing in the morning.
He was literally traumatized.
“Is that the fund I set up for you a long time ago?” Shu Shu leaned in to peer at his phone screen, feigning utter shock. “Oh my gosh, it really is. Wow, look at that chart… it’s greener than the Incredible Hulk.”
Shu Lingchen looked like he was about to weep actual tears.
“Mom… I’m gonna have to eat dirt.”