What’s fun to do in Rong City?
Xie Qian’s request stumped Wen Ying.
It was 2004, not 2019, so her options were limited.
Take Xie Qian to Du Fu Thatched Cottage or the Sichuan Provincial Museum?
They offered cultural enrichment but lacked excitement.
Besides, Xie Qian could visit those places without her as a guide.
Rong City Amusement Park?
Before the arrival of larger parks like Guose Tianxiang or Happy Valley, Rong City Amusement Park was the go-to weekend destination. Wen Ying wasn’t unfamiliar with it. Before her middle school exams, she’d gone there with classmates, got soaked in the rain, fell ill, and bombed her English test due to a fever. Without her rebirth, she’d have followed the same path this life.
In her past life, that experience soured her on the park. She never returned. By 2008, larger parks emerged, and Rong City Amusement Park closed, replaced by a commercial center and marine park.
She considered the amusement park briefly but crossed it off. It wasn’t about bad memories—most visitors were parents with kids or young couples. Going with Xie Qian, without Qin Jiao or others, felt awkward.
She needed somewhere fun, novel, and not too noisy.
A place popped into her mind, one she thought Xie Qian would enjoy.
“I’ve got it. Bring your phone tomorrow. When we meet, you’ll see where we’re going.”
“Alright,” Xie Qian agreed without hesitation.
They set a time and place to meet on Saturday after school on Friday. Before leaving the classroom, Qin Jiao approached, asking if Wen Ying was going to the night market street on Saturday. Wen Ying, feeling a bit guilty, said, “I’ll go Sunday. Got something on Saturday.”
Qin Jiao didn’t press, mentioning she and Wang Shuang would check on the renovation progress.
With school starting, no one could focus entirely on “Shrimp King.” They managed by taking turns, ensuring someone showed up daily. Wen Ying had made a rotation schedule.
Feeling guilty, Wen Ying was reassured by Xie Qian’s calm response. “I’ll go with Wen Ying to the shop on Sunday to check the renovation. I need to confirm details with the workers myself.”
Qin Jiao, straightforward, didn’t sense anything odd.
Though Xie Qian and Wen Ying lived in opposite directions, their close friendship was known. Not working together would’ve seemed stranger, making Qin Jiao suspect a fight.
Xie Qian walked Wen Ying to the bus stop, watching her board before heading back.
As he stepped onto his bike pedal, his phone buzzed in his pocket.
Checking it, he saw a message from an unknown number: “Zhao Dong went to Beijing to meet Mr. Xie.”
Xie Qian deleted it, his expression cold.
Mr. Xie was, of course, his father, Xie Jinghu.
As his father’s business grew, he’d become harder to reach. That Zhao Dong managed to meet him wasn’t surprising—Xie Qian could guess why.
Outsiders thought Xie Jinghu doted on him, but Xie Qian knew his father’s heart had shifted. The mother and two children abroad, unrecognized by the Xie family, likely made Xie Jinghu feel they were wronged.
Xie Qian and Zou Weijun, acknowledged by the family, were deemed selfish for not tolerating those “可怜” outsiders. Xie Jinghu, siding with the “underdog,” gradually leaned their way.
If not for his uncle Xie Yuping’s firm stance, Xie Jinghu might not have brought the other woman home, but her son and daughter would’ve long appeared as Xie family heirs. Once someone crosses a line, their limits erode. Initially, Xie Jinghu hid the affair, but when it couldn’t be concealed, he resorted to shamelessness.
He neither divorced Zou Weijun nor cut ties with the other woman.
His excuse was vile: the children were innocent.
Children don’t choose their birth, but adults choose whether to bring them into illicit relationships.
If Xie Qian and Zou Weijun accepted the “innocent children” excuse, the next step would be those children entering the family.
Instead, they were exiled abroad, barred from returning. Xie Jinghu must be furious.
Unable to confront Xie Yuping, he asserted “fatherly authority” over Xie Qian.
Meeting Zhao Dong, Xie Jinghu likely intended to use him as a pawn.
Driven by ambition, what wouldn’t Zhao Dong do to climb the Xie family’s ladder?
Xie Qian considered calling his uncle Xie Yuping but opted for Jiang Youjia instead.
“Brother-in-law, free tonight? Let’s meet, just us. Don’t tell Cousin.”
Jiang Youjia felt uneasy.
Not telling Lin Lin—another Zhao Dong issue?
Xie Qian no longer lived with them but seemed to have eyes on Jiang Youjia’s every move.
Jiang Youjia quickly clarified, “Zhao Dong sent me a big gift two days ago. I didn’t take it, nor the one before. I’m done with him, truly. I’ve cut ties!”
“…”
Xie Qian paused.
Was he that scary?
Or had his cousin disciplined Jiang Youjia again?
“Zhao Dong went to Beijing to meet my dad.”
Jiang Youjia grasped the gravity immediately, no longer hedging. “Name the time and place. I’ll be there!”
That turtle Zhao Dong had some nerve, bypassing the Jiangs and Xie Qian to reach Xie Jinghu!
The Xie family was still the Xie family, but Xie Qian and his father were at odds. Zhao Dong, that turtle, knew how to exploit gaps. If he caused more trouble, Jiang Youjia would catch flak from his wife.
Jiang Youjia wished for a time machine, even a basic one, to go back two months and avoid meddling.
No, two months wasn’t enough—back to before introducing Xie Qian to the Zhao siblings.
No Zhao siblings, no sticky mess.
Still not safe enough. Better to go back before meeting Zhao Dong abroad, avoiding their friendship entirely. Then the Zhao siblings wouldn’t have met Xie Qian.
The more Jiang Youjia thought, the further back he went. To be truly safe, he shouldn’t have studied abroad at all.
—
While Jiang Youjia cursed “that turtle Zhao,” Zhao Dong was busy deceiving a young girl.
Wen Ying, an old soul in a young body, was hard to fool, but Shu Lu was an easy mark.
After school on Friday, Shu Lu had a surreal evening.
Cai Youlun personally drove her to Rong City’s most upscale mall, to a teen fashion brand where she was the only customer. Seven or eight salesgirls fawned over her, picking outfits that transformed her look.
After buying clothes, Cai Youlun took her to another store for a bag.
Shu Lu had only seen this brand in magazines and movies, never in real life. Not in her hometown, nor in Rong City, not even at the provincial key school, did students carry such luxury!
