Chapter 57-Part 1

Ji Ran couldn’t quite grasp her feelings; she just felt an intense, unbearable pain, as if her heart was being gripped tightly by an invisible hand, making even breathing difficult.

One sentence from him made her feel an overwhelming sense of sadness.

Ji Ran used to wonder why she had parents like hers. Did Ji Qingli love her? Ji Ran didn’t feel it. But apart from being selfish, Ji Qingli wasn’t entirely negligent towards her. At most, he was like many fathers, not very attentive to his children.

As for Pei Yuan, Ji Ran believed she must have loved her. However, Pei Yuan was too strict with her, structuring her life as if it were a rigid schedule, not allowing a single misstep.

This kind of love gave her no freedom and felt suffocating.

But at the very least, she thought she was still cared for.

And Shen Zhi? He lived alone in that big house because no one there cared about him. Ji Ran hadn’t asked seriously, but it seemed he was only brought back to the Shen family after he grew up.

His stepmother tolerated him on the surface due to his father, but in private, she was eager to drive him mad.

As for his father, if he truly cared about him, how could it have taken so many years to acknowledge him?

Compared to her, Shen Zhi lost his family much earlier.

After hanging up the phone, Shen Zhi sat quietly on the sofa. Though he wasn’t emotionally sensitive and had a lot of feelings to process, every visit from Shen Jiming still affected him.

Each appearance of Shen Jiming reminded him of the selfish bloodline flowing within him.

It was incredibly annoying.

Unable to resist, Shen Zhi leaned forward, took out a cigarette from under the coffee table, and lit one. He wasn’t addicted to smoking; he just couldn’t help but want to smoke a couple when he was upset.

Today, the sky was gloomy, and the wind was strong. Outside the window of the high-rise building, the cold wind howled as if trying to force its way in. The whole room was warm, yet Shen Zhi wore a thin sweater.

He couldn’t help but think that it must be very cold in Jiangdu now.

Jiangdu City, being by the sea, had a biting cold wind that cut to the bone every winter. Shen Zhi was actually very afraid of the cold. He had been cold-sensitive since childhood, and every winter, his little feet would crack from the cold.

When Yuan Sheng was not having an episode, she would always sleep with him, holding his little feet in her arms to keep them warm.

Unlike the North, the South didn’t have central heating and only had air conditioners and space heaters. However, his grandparents were old, and the only old heater they had was placed in his grandparents’ room by Yuan Sheng.

She had mental issues and couldn’t work like a normal person, but she wasn’t foolish.

When Shen Zhi first left Jiangdu, he often cried to go home.

But then Cheng Hui had a fierce argument with Shen Jiming after he returned from Jiangdu again. She didn’t hold back and argued with Shen Jiming right in front of Shen Zhi.

Pointing at Shen Zhi, she said, “He was never going to be grateful, and you keep sending him back to the Yuan family. Did you ever think about my feelings?”

Cheng Hui thought she had won over Yuan Sheng by taking Shen Jiming and securing her place as Mrs. Shen.

But fate was ironic, and in the end, she had to raise Shen Jiming and Yuan Sheng’s son.

Even though Yuan Sheng wasn’t in front of her, she had to see Yuan Sheng’s son every day.

Shen Jiming felt she was being unreasonable and helplessly said, “I can’t stop her from seeing her own son, can I?”

But this remark infuriated Cheng Hui completely. She looked at Shen Jiming and Shen Zhi and sneered, “You both better not regret this.”

No one expected Cheng Hui to go crazy enough to go to Jiangdu to find Yuan Sheng.

Yuan Sheng had been living well for the past few years, regularly seeing doctors and taking medicine. Her mental condition had improved significantly, but Cheng Hui’s visit triggered her again.

When Shen Zhi found out, he rushed home like a madman.

That day, he truly wanted to kill Cheng Hui. But Cheng Hui, still holding a victorious posture, looked at him and said with a light laugh, “I told you you would regret it.”

Just as she finished speaking, Shen Zhi suddenly stepped forward and grabbed her neck with both hands, squeezing hard.

At first, Cheng Hui tried to call for help, but within seconds, she found she couldn’t even open her mouth. As she struggled, she saw the ruthless determination in Shen Zhi’s eyes.

If not for the timely intervention of the housekeeper, who screamed and called the driver for help, Shen Zhi might have succeeded. They managed to pull him off her.

When they were finally separated, Cheng Hui’s face was beet red, and she couldn’t stop coughing. As air rushed back into her lungs, they ached painfully.

Shen Zhi stood opposite her, exceptionally calm.

He looked at Cheng Hui with a blank expression, staring at her with a cold and stubborn gaze.

Even when Shen Jiming arrived and angrily scolded him, Shen Zhi remained indifferent.

Because he needed to protect Yuan Sheng.

His mother.

In a low voice, Shen Zhi said, “If you dare to disturb her life again, I will kill you.”

He definitely would.

After that incident, Shen Zhi rarely returned to Jiangdu. Yuan Sheng had already sacrificed many years because of him. If she hadn’t chosen to give birth to him, would she have had a completely different life?

Sometimes, when he missed them too much, he would sneak back.

Once, he saw Yuan Sheng painting in the community garden, with his grandparents quietly sitting beside her, watching. The scene was so beautiful.

So beautiful that it made his eyes sting.

He wanted to walk over, to tell them he missed them, to say he wished they could always be together.

Sometimes he hated how slowly time passed because he wanted to grow up quickly.

So he could protect the people he wanted to protect.

Shen Zhi glanced at the cigarette, now burned to the end between his fingers. He reached out and crushed the butt in the ashtray, then took out another from the pack.

After twirling the lighter in his hand, Shen Zhi pressed it gently, and a flame flickered to life.

Just as he was about to bring the cigarette to the flame, a crisp ‘ding dong’ sound rang out.

The doorbell.

Shen Zhi glanced at the door, intending to light the cigarette, but the doorbell rang again.

He let out a cold laugh, thinking it was Shen Jiming who hadn’t given up and had sent his assistant again. This wasn’t the first time he’d done this.

Shen Zhi stood up and walked to the door, twisting the handle to open it.