Chapter 13

Chapter 13

The scarf around his neck had been a gift from Yan Xue. Its fabric was soft and comfortable, the knitting dense, clearly a high-quality item.

This morning was the first time he had deliberately worn the scarf to see Yan Xue.

Bai Kongshu’s left hand hovered, half-closed, for a long moment, a sudden emptiness welling up inside him.

When he first arrived last month, Yan Xue had been incredibly attentive to him, giving him money and presents, which he couldn’t push away even if he wanted to.

Although he initially felt it was improper for them to associate so closely, given Yan Xue was a married woman, he had still slowly grown closer to her in this backward rural village, his heart aching with loneliness.

Before, they had met in secret almost every night, chatting for a while, hidden from the villagers.

But now, it had been nearly four days since they last met. Yan Xue hadn’t sought him out in four days, and he felt as though he had been forgotten.

This morning, he’d heard about what happened with Liu Hui and Yan Xue that day, and he’d come to check on them, taking advantage of the heavy snowfall to avoid being seen.

Watching Yan Xue walk ten meters ahead, Bai Kongshu suddenly felt as if something that should have belonged to him was slipping from his grasp.

It was as if some unseen force was no longer under his control.

His pale face narrowed slightly, and he hurried to catch up to them, speaking gently, “Yan Xue, are you going out in this weather for something urgent? Can I help you?”

Yan Xue frowned and turned, seeing the man behind her pursing his lips, as if he had something to say but couldn’t.

“Thank you, Teacher Bai, but we’re fine, no need for help. Do you need something else?”

“I…” Bai Kongshu bit his lip, then closed it seemingly dejectedly, sighing, “Never mind, I’m fine.”

Yan Xue paid him no mind, wondering what trick he was trying to pull, and just wanted to leave quickly.

“Oh, well, we’ll be going then.”

“…Xue’er, wait.”

They had taken two more steps when Bai Kongshu called out to her again.

This time, he called her “Xue’er”. Each syllable pronounced by Bai Kongshu with such tender, lingering affection that Yan Xue’s entire scalp tingled with awkward discomfort.

She turned, ready to say something harsh.

But when she turned, she saw Bai Kongshu standing pale and helpless, a bitter smile on his face, a hint of redness in the corners of his eyes.

“Uh…”

With the man standing there, looking so frail, like a sickly person, she found it hard to say anything cruel.

Besides, in the book, it was Original Yan Xue who had constantly clung to this Teacher Bai. Although the man was a philanderer with questionable morals, it wasn’t Yan Xue’s concern.

So, after a pause, she tried her best to be patient and asked, “Teacher Bai, if you have something to say, please just say it clearly, all at once.”

Bai Kongshu clenched his fingertips, a surge of hatred rising in his heart. He had seen Yan Xue’s retreating back two or three times today.

The initial annoyance he felt about her fawning over him was gone, replaced by fear: a fear that he would ultimately lose everything.

He was even more afraid that he would have nothing by his side during his year of teaching here.

Thinking this, he coughed twice, making himself appear even more pathetic and sorrowful.

“I wanted to ask, did I do something to make you angry? Why wouldn’t you open the door for me when I was at your house this afternoon? Or… was not opening the door not your decision?”

His words were loaded with implied meaning.

Snow had fallen all night, reaching mid-calf height. Bai Kongshu, tall and slender, wore a camel-colored overcoat, his ear tips frozen crimson.

He saw Yan Xue freeze, and he immediately felt he had won.

Then, his gaze darkened as he looked at the small boy to Yan Xue’s left, who was pretending to be calm but biting his lip until it was purple, and he sneered inwardly.

He had always known these two children weren’t Yan Xue’s biological offspring, and he also knew Yan Xue beat them every day.

Normally, he might have felt a shred of pity, but since this child had obstructed him today, he would just enjoy the show.

Wei Siao glared at Bai Kongshu with hatred, clenching his jaw tightly. He knew he was definitely doomed today.

He had secretly seen Yan Xue and this man “dating” outside the door several times before, and the money Father gave them had all been given to this man by Yan Xue.

But he hated these morally corrupt adults, who had no shame while his father was away.

“What are you doing, Siao? Your lips are almost bitten through. Open your mouth.”

Wei Siao froze. The woman in front of him was looking at him gently, while simultaneously patting his hat.

Bai Kongshu also froze. He frowned, barely believing his eyes, pinching his palm and feeling his pupils constrict a few times before he finally calmed down.

Yan Xue thought for a moment before realizing Wei Siao’s unusual, guilty behavior along the way.

It turned out that Siao hadn’t let this person in when she was in the kitchen earlier.

She smiled at Wei Siao, then bent down to meet his eyes, saying seriously, “The place where others knock is my home, and it’s also your home.”

“Of course you can make decisions about your home. If you don’t like this person, of course you can decide not to let him in.”

“And no matter what decision you make, mom will stand behind you and support you.”

Wei Siao blinked, thinking his ears were playing tricks on him.

He stared at Yan Xue for several seconds before swallowing and stammering, “That’s… my home? I can… make decisions?”

“Of course! Because mom believes Siao is a very good boy. You won’t make wrong decisions casually. For example, today’s decision was very correct. Don’t open the door for strangers.”

Behind them, Bai Kongshu’s face slowly grew uglier.

When he heard Yan Xue call him a stranger, his face completely fell.

The inexplicable hatred in his heart amplified infinitely, and his expression twisted.

He took a few deep breaths and secretly composed himself, but only after Yan Xue turned away again.

Bai Kongshu wanted to say something more, but Yan Xue didn’t give him a chance. She simply pulled the two little ones closer and gave Bai Kongshu a cold look.

“Bai Kongshu, I only called you Teacher Bai because of your profession, but now it seems you don’t deserve it. I advise you not to come looking for me again, or I don’t know if you’ll be able to go back in one piece next time.”

Yan Xue found the man disgusting to look at for another second, so she finished speaking and quickly left.

She hadn’t expected someone in such a sacred profession to have such schemes, even involving children.

Truly despicable.

“Mom… if you don’t like him, why did you give him money and a scarf before…?”

Yan Xue was engrossed in her anger and only processed the question two seconds later.

What???

The Original Yan Xue’s money was all given to that white scumbag???

Even that scarf was a gift from Original Yan Xue???

No wonder that scumbag kept fiddling with his scarf, pretending to be frail. He wanted Yan Xue to see the object and think of him?

The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. Yan Xue told the two little ones to wait obediently where they were and not move, then turned to chase Bai Kongshu.

One minute later.

Bai Kongshu, lost and disheartened, stumbled slowly through the snow, heading toward his own home.

A cold wind swept through, and the biting chill soaked into his back, making him shiver involuntarily.