ATLAS TRANSLATES

Tao Zhi didn’t stay with Jiang Qi Huai for too long.

After learning about those things, she just wanted to see him, to look at him, to tell him that she would always be here.

After meeting him, Tao Zhi hesitated, feeling there was no need to tell him these things. She didn’t want to bring any more unnecessary, unhelpful pressure to Jiang Qi Huai.

She would just pretend she didn’t know anything.

As for Tao Xiu Ping’s reaction, it was within her understanding.

Tao Zhi was quite confident she could convince Tao Xiu Ping. After all, from childhood until now, no matter what it was, Tao Xiu Ping would almost always go along with her wishes, defaulting to any decision she made.

She returned home wearing Jiang Qi Huai’s coat. Just as she got out of the car, she saw Ji Fan jumping back and forth repeatedly at the entrance of the residential complex, bouncing around everywhere.

She closed the car door, and Ji Fan happened to look up.

The young man frowned, looking impatient: “Been waiting for you for ages, why are you so slow.”

Tao Zhi glanced at him: “Why did you come out?”

“Dad asked me to come find you. He was going to come himself, but didn’t want to argue with you about this again today,” Ji Fan looked her up and down, noting the jacket that obviously didn’t belong to her, raising an eyebrow, “Went to secretly tattle?”

Tao Zhi also raised her eyebrows: “If you were so worried about me tattling, why didn’t you come along?”

Ji Fan waved his hand, walking into the complex: “No interest in being a third wheel. Though I pretty much know where his house is now, it’s around where you suddenly got off during the sports meet, right?”

Tao Zhi’s footsteps paused: “Does Dad know too?”

“…Old Tao isn’t an idiot,” Ji Fan sighed, “He’s the one who dug up everything about Jiang Qi Huai, detailed like a job resume and biography, how could he not know such a small thing? Plus that house seems to be rented, his family can’t afford to buy a house in the capital.”

He finished speaking and looked at Tao Zhi.

The young girl appeared completely unconcerned, and Ji Fan continued: “Anyway, you think as long as our family has money to buy, it’s fine.”

“It’s just that I might need to wage a long battle with old Tao,” Tao Zhi said, then suddenly hooked Ji Fan’s neck and pulled him down, asking worriedly: “Little Ji Fan, just to be safe, I still need to ask – you’re on my side, right?”

Ji Fan was pulled down into a bow, and said honestly: “To tell the truth, I plan to stand on Dad’s side.”

Tao Zhi bared her teeth and squeezed his neck: “Say! That! Again!”

Ji Fan coughed twice, struggling to duck down: “I’m being honest! Although I don’t get along with Jiang Qi Huai for certain reasons, objectively speaking, he is pretty good. If his family is just poor, I think it’s fine for you to date him. That guy works so hard, his circumstances won’t be bad in the future.”

“But after seeing those things today, I actually don’t really support it anymore,” Ji Fan escaped from her clutches, unusually serious as he looked at Tao Zhi and said, “Old Tao’s thinking might be a bit cruel and selfish, but he has his reasons. Simply put, how much ability does our family have? We’re just an ordinary family with slightly better circumstances. Tell me, with Jiang Qi Huai’s scumbag father, can old Tao put him back in prison or make him disappear without a trace? He can’t do either, right? This isn’t a TV drama where he can make someone vanish from this world in ten seconds. That’s impossible.”

Tao Zhi lowered her eyes without saying anything, and Ji Fan continued: “So the only thing old Tao can do now is try his best to protect you, to keep you away from these uncertain factors. Jiang Qi Huai is innocent, also a victim, but everyone will consider their own family first, not someone else’s child. This is human nature.”

“If your own beloved child grows up and likes the son of a parasitic murderer, think about it – if it were you, could you support it? No matter how selfless he is or how much he respects your wishes, this kind of thing – no parent could accept it.”

“Plus old Tao has always been the rational type, you should know that after all these years.”

Ji Fan’s voice suddenly lowered: “He loved Mom so much, but back then between Mom and his career, didn’t he still choose his career in the end? Maybe for him, love was never a necessity in life. How can you expect him to suddenly change his mind when the protagonist becomes you?”

It’s impossible.

Tao Zhi couldn’t think of a single word to refute.

What Ji Fan said was the truth. Tao Zhi was stubborn – once she decided on something, she would charge forward regardless of consequences. This personality trait was completely inherited from Tao Xiu Ping. Ji Jin used to joke that in their family, the boy’s personality wasn’t like their father’s, but the girl’s was.

Whether you call it determination or stubbornness, anyway, once she made a decision, even if there was a mountain blocking her path, Tao Zhi would insist on carving out a road through the mountain.

Tao Zhi had originally decided to argue reasonably with Tao Xiu Ping later, rehearsing the draft in her mind three thousand times, but Tao Xiu Ping never came to talk to her about this matter again.

He acted as if nothing had happened, going about his business as usual, which made Tao Zhi even more uneasy.

She couldn’t figure out what new tricks this old special agent was brewing up, no matter how hard she wracked her brains.

She simply put this matter aside for now, focusing all her energy on exams.

At the beginning of January, the test results came out.

This time the exam papers were generally a bit harder than last time. Tao Zhi’s total score remained unchanged at 580, but her rank in the grade improved slightly by more than ten places.

Before the exam, she had been incredibly anxious, as if every test was a battlefield, and in every battle she was rushing to prove something. But now, Tao Zhi suddenly felt calm again.

Compared to some things, grades were really the simplest and most honest thing.

Whatever you put in, it would give back exactly that much – fair and calm, unlike everything else.

In this world, there were so many things where you tried so hard yet couldn’t see any reward or light.

And Jiang Qi Huai had been struggling day after day in such facts, refusing to accept fate.

Tao Zhi’s nose suddenly felt a bit sour. She turned her head to look at the boy sitting at the desk behind her.

Noticing her turn around, Jiang Qi Huai looked up.

Tao Zhi propped up her head, quietly looking at him, lost in thought about something.

Jiang Qi Huai closed his test paper.

The slight sound brought Tao Zhi back to her senses. After a brief daze, she showed a smile, lowered her body lazily onto his desk, and looked at him.

Jiang Qi Huai was stared at by her for a while before asking: “What are you looking at?”

“Looking at my handsome first-ranked boyfriend,” Tao Zhi said straightforwardly.

“…”

Ji Fan couldn’t stand this blatant display of affection. He rolled his eyes and made a cutting motion across his throat with his hand.

Tao Zhi completely ignored his existence. She reached under the desk, secretly and stealthily tapping his knee with her fingertip.

Jiang Qi Huai’s hand followed hers under the desk.

Everyone in the classroom was discussing the recently released scores. Li Shuang Jiang was running frantically between two rows of desks, howling with regret for carelessly filling in two answers wrong on the answer sheet. These small actions under the desk went almost unnoticed.

Tao Zhi fumbled around slowly until she caught his fingers.

She held his fingertips and gave them a gentle squeeze, then winked at him.

Jiang Qi Huai pressed his lips together.

During this period, although Tao Zhi had tried her best to appear no different from usual, the girl was obviously quieter than before.

Gone was her previous noisy and energetic self. Most of the time, she would just space out while looking at him.

The unease in Jiang Qi Huai’s heart spread bit by bit.

He was actually a very selfish person. Perhaps due to nature or instinct, from childhood until now, he seemed to lack the quality of “kindness.” In any situation, as long as it didn’t involve himself and Jiang Qing He, he could remain a cold observer.

And with Tao Zhi, even though he knew it was wrong, even though she had already seen such a scene, he still didn’t dare tell her anything.

Jiang Qing He was his relative, his family, a bond connected by blood, but Tao Zhi wasn’t.

Just as she could come close, she could also choose to leave.

A slightly sinful and dark psychology was at work. Jiang Qi Huai didn’t have the confidence that after knowing everything, after knowing about him and the pack of wolves tied to him by unbreakable blood relations behind him, Tao Zhi would still be willing to smile at him like she did now.

He had very, very few things, so even if there was just a tiny possibility, he didn’t want to take that risk.

He wanted to be selfish one last time, just a little, wanted to desperately hold onto that light that squeezed through the cracks.

Tao Xiu Ping wasn’t just putting on a show of not asking anymore. After that night, not only did he not mention it again, he barely even restricted Tao Zhi’s actions, except for the evening curfew.

Several times Tao Zhi wanted to talk to him about this matter, but she could never quite bring herself to open her mouth.

If they discussed it, there was a high probability it would be opposed.

But not talking about it was like having a bomb buried there, not knowing which day the fuse would be pulled and it would explode.

On Saturday evening after tutoring class, she sent Jiang Qi Huai a message in advance.

He also had tutoring on Saturday and would return very late. Tao Xiu Ping wasn’t home that evening, and Ji Fan had gone out to eat and play with his friends from his former school. With no one watching her, Tao Zhi couldn’t sit still alone. She decided to go to Jiang Qi Huai’s house to keep Grandpa Jiang company for dinner.

The old man stayed home alone during the day, and Jiang Qi Huai was the type to keep to himself, so it would be boring with no one to chat with.

She said goodbye to Auntie Zhang, specifically chose a bright-colored jacket to go out, and took a taxi over.

When she got out of the car it was after five in the evening. At this time Grandpa Jiang probably hadn’t started cooking yet. Tao Zhi went to the nearby convenience store to buy some beef and fruit, then carried the bags into the small alley.

The area around Jiang Qi Huai’s home had a stark contrast in scenery compared to Tao Zhi’s neighborhood. The buildings weren’t tall, about five or six stories, and every few shops on the street had a long, two-person-wide alley.

Icicles hung from the walls, and old bicycles and high-stacked cardboard boxes were buried under thick snow.

Tao Zhi walked through the long alley to the building entrance, hearing some sparse sounds ahead.

She peeked around the bicycle shelter and saw two figures in front.

A white-haired old man lay curled up fallen in the snow, with another person crouching in front of him.

At first glance, Tao Zhi thought someone had fallen and another person was helping, until she recognized the old man as Grandpa Jiang.

And the other person crouching beside him was that man from before, wearing a black down jacket. The man was cursing and swearing while his frozen hands kept searching inside and outside the old man’s clothes.

Tao Zhi almost instinctively took half a step back.

Her shoe made a soft “crunch” sound stepping on the fluffy snow. The man instantly turned his head, his eyes cold and sinister under the streetlight.

It was different from fighting at school, completely different from those small troublemaking scuffles. Tao Zhi realized this in an instant.

Before her was an adult criminal. In his eyes, Tao Zhi couldn’t feel even a trace of anything called humanity, only crazy and obsessive desire.

Her whole body seemed frozen in place, blood congealing, teeth chattering uncontrollably.

She casually put her hand in her pocket, fingers trembling so much she could barely hold the phone inside.

Jiang Zhi looked at her with interest for a few seconds, then recognized her: “You’re that little girl from last time?”

Tao Zhi bit her lip hard, trying to make her voice sound steady: “I’ve already called the police, they’re about to arrive. Leave right now.”

“Oh,” Jiang Zhi sneered coldly, “I’m so scared.”

“You can just say what you want,” she tried her best to stall for a little time, “There’s no need to hurt people.”

“I’m handling family matters, what’s it got to do with you? Little girl, don’t try to play hero when there’s nothing wrong.”

In the snow, Jiang Qing He let out an extremely weak, painful moan. He tried to get up supporting himself on the ground, struggling very weakly.

Jiang Zhi turned back again. He used his knee to pin down the old man’s arm restricting his movement, covered his mouth with his hand, voice hoarse: “You old bastard, why don’t you just give up quietly!”

Jiang Qing He bit down hard on his hand.

The man let out a painful scream: “Ah—”

In the dim environment, Tao Zhi couldn’t see his movements clearly, could only hear the muffled sounds of down jacket and flesh colliding.

Jiang Qing He turned his head with effort, his gaze meeting hers in that instant, and Tao Zhi saw his eyes clearly.

He was crying.

The gentle and kind Grandpa Jiang, who would cook delicious chicken wings for her, who would laugh heartily listening to her talk, who loved reading books and playing chess.

He was the most precious person in Jiang Qi Huai’s life.

Tao Zhi gritted her teeth hard, no longer thinking about stalling for time. She acted almost without thinking, suddenly running over.

The two bags in her hands were thrown to the ground as she charged straight forward, using all her strength to kick that person away, then ran to the old man’s side, struggling to support him as she tried to walk forward.

Caught off guard, Jiang Zhi was kicked and fell into the snow. He struggled to get up while cursing a string of profanities. Tao Zhi alone couldn’t bear the weight of two people. She fell sitting on the ground, watching the man approach step by step.

He looked down at her from above: “I’m only looking for this old man, don’t want trouble, so don’t give me any trouble either. Get out of the way.”

Tao Zhi held Jiang Qing He tightly, throwing herself on top of him to shield him with her body, staring at the man without moving.

Jiang Zhi clicked his tongue, seeming to suddenly become irritated. His whole person started losing control as he raised his foot and said viciously: “Your look, how is it exactly like that dead kid—”

Tao Zhi closed her eyes.

“Just the same—”

Sharp and heavy pain crashed into her back and head along with the cursing. Her arms were pulled at, but she wouldn’t let go no matter what, like an unyielding wall, stubbornly shielding the old man without moving.

The fruit spilled out of the bags, large bright red strawberries crushed underfoot, juice seeping into the snow, staining it with small patches of light red.

The metallic sweet taste of blood spread in her mouth like rust. Tao Zhi clenched her teeth hard, counting the seconds one by one.

At some point, she vaguely heard chaotic footsteps from the alley entrance. Police sirens came near and far. The man’s lost rationality seemed to suddenly return. He stepped back twice, then ran away in panic.

Cursing, struggling, sirens and footsteps – all sorts of sounds mixed together in chaos. Tao Zhi raised her head with effort and saw someone running towards her.

That person very gently and carefully picked her up. Familiar scent enveloped her as Tao Zhi sniffled, fingers tightly gripping his sleeve as she said urgently: “Grandpa, Grandpa…”

“Grandpa is fine,” the young man’s voice was hoarse, his breathing somewhat rapid. His warm palm rested against her face, fingertips trembling uncontrollably, “Zhi Zhi is fine too.”

Tao Zhi relaxed, letting out a long breath. She smiled, but as her mouth tugged, pain spread all the way to her ears: “I promised, didn’t I? I’ll protect you.”

Very softly, she whispered: “I’ll protect A Huai and everyone important to A Huai.”