Chapter 22

He had ultimately failed to protect her.

And he did regret it.

Zhao Pingjin spoke up, "If your family needs any help, just let me know."

In all of Beijing, there probably weren't many people who could get such a promise from the young master of the Zhao family. Xi Tang only responded politely, "Thank you."

Silence fell between the two of them.

The words Zhao Pingjin had kept hidden in his heart for so many years, words he had held back for so long, finally slipped out: "Investigating your background back then was something my mother did inappropriately."

Xi Tang seemed somewhat incredulous. She was stunned for a moment, as if she had only just heard him clearly. Yet, she simply smiled and shook her head. Her nature was still the same. She was more receptive to kindness than to harshness. Between the two of them, as long as he was willing to lower his head even slightly, she would always give him more and more tolerance and love. "I never asked my mother about it later because I figured it out myself. I can't control the affairs of the previous generation. All I know is that my mother never left me. She was a dedicated and responsible mother. I have nothing to be ashamed of. It's just that when I was young and naive, I felt like I should be inferior because of my family background. I don't feel that way anymore."

She spoke very implicitly, yet very clearly.

Zhao Pingjin had assumed that every girl in the film school would be as proud as a peacock, especially someone as talented and full of dreams as Huang Xitang. He hadn't understood back then why such a cute and lively girl like Huang Xitang would suddenly become so petty, so prone to crying, and so annoying. Now, looking back, he realized it was simply because she had felt particularly insecure during that time. Zhao Pingjin felt a pang of guilt too. He might have loved her back then, but he hadn't been patient enough to truly understand her.

Zhao Pingjin asked, "Is your mother your biological mother?"

Xitang rolled her eyes, "We look so alike."

Zhao Pingjin said, "What about your father?"

Xitang shook her head, "I don't know. My mom never talked about it."

Zhao Pingjin offered kindly, "Maybe your father is still alive. Should we look for him? I can help you find him."

"Sure," Xitang smiled at him, "When I die, you can look for him. Maybe I'll want to see him that day."

Zhao Pingjin was touched, but couldn't help but frown slightly. He had never seen a woman with such a strong personality. What good would it do except for inviting more trouble?

Zhao Pingjin said, "Xitang, I've never looked down on you."

Xitang replied, "It's none of your business. It's my problem."

She never mentioned again the difficulties and humiliations her family had caused her, nor did she bring up the hurtful things they had said when they broke up. It was as if she had completely let go of the past.

Zhao Pingjin suddenly asked, "Is that guy still chasing you?"

Xitang was taken aback, "Who?"

Zhao Pingjin narrowed his eyes, "That guy surnamed Zheng, the one who confessed to you in your classroom."

Xitang recalled the recent rumors and explained, "Nothing is going on between us."

Zhao Pingjin's calm voice carried a hint of coldness, "If he comes to find you again, tell him—he'll never have a chance."

Xitang smiled.

That year, she was a junior and had just started dating Zhao Pingjin. Zheng Youtong had confessed to her in the drama classroom, presenting her with a large bouquet of roses. Xitang had been so surprised that she had stammered, "Ai, Zheng Youtong, don't do this—I have a boyfriend."

Zhao Pingjin, who had come to pick her up from class that day, had been furious when he saw this scene. He had stormed in and grabbed Huang Xitang's hand. He had spoken politely but with a mischievous grin on his face, "Ai, classmate—sorry to trouble you, but this girl is already mine."

Zheng Youtong, young and impetuous, had pointed at Zhao Pingjin's nose and cursed, "Xitang, you should stop hanging out with these rich kids from Beijing. I'm telling you, they just like to play with girls, they'll never be sincere."

Zhao Pingjin had pushed him away, "Ai ai, who are you calling names?"

Zheng Youtong had rolled up his sleeves and lunged forward, and it looked like they were about to fight.

Huang Xitang had pulled him away.

Unexpectedly, Zheng Youtong's prediction had been somewhat accurate.

That was many years ago.

Xitang and Zhao Pingjin walked back along the riverbank.

On the way, they saw Xiaodidzhu (Little Landlord) walking back from the market with his baby in his arms, followed by his new wife.

Xitang waved, "Xiaodidzhu!"

Xiaodidzhu's wife saw them from afar and walked closer, her face full of excitement and curiosity, "Sister, is this your boyfriend?"

Xitang introduced Zhao Pingjin, "He's my friend, he's here to visit."

Xiaodidzhu's wife greeted them warmly, "Where have you been? Have you booked any tickets for the attractions? I can book them for you through our hotel's partner travel agency, it's cheaper."

Zhao Pingjin replied, "We just arrived yesterday, we haven't had time to go anywhere yet."

Over there, Huang Xitang pulled Xiaodidzhu aside and asked, "Has the police station found anything?"

Xiaodidzhu placed the child in his wife's hands and shook his head.

A group of police had come to Xiaodidzhu's largest hotel a while ago and caught a drug dealer from one of the rooms. They said the hotel was guilty of harboring criminals and the Industrial and Commercial Bureau immediately came to seal it up, ordering them to suspend operations. It had been almost two weeks now, and the case had not yet been resolved.

Xiaodidzhu's wife was also anxious when she heard this, "Yes, sister, we were clearly wronged, but nobody would listen to us. They just refused to let us reopen, no matter what we said. I heard that the new hotel across the street is owned by the father-in-law of one of the leaders in the police station... Our hotel has been around for so long, and none of our guests have anything bad to say about our food. All our customers come to us for our reputation. Now that we've lost our business, they've all gone to the new hotel. I'm so worried!"

Xitang comforted her, "Maybe you should wait a little longer."

Zhao Pingjin listened casually to their conversation, while reaching out to tease the baby, "How old are you?"

The baby drooled and, unable to speak, slapped Zhao Pingjin's face with a giggle.

Xiaodidzhu's wife was distracted by the child and laughed too, "He likes you. Xiaobao, come on, call uncle."

Zhao Pingjin took out his wallet and pulled out a stack of cash, "I came here very suddenly this time and didn't expect to meet Xitang's younger brother. I didn't bring any gifts for the baby, and I don't have much cash on me. Here, buy the baby some toys."

"Aiya—how can that be—" Xiaodidzhu's wife politely tried to refuse, following traditional Chinese etiquette.

Xitang looked over and saw that the stack of money was quite thick, probably a thousand or two thousand. She smiled at the baby, "Xiaobao, take it. Thank you, uncle. Uncle has plenty of money."

Zhao Pingjin turned and glared at her.

Xitang smiled with pursed lips.

Zhao Pingjin stuffed the money into her hand, "I've come from Beijing, Xitang. Thank you for taking care of me."

The little landlord, who had been talking to Xitang, stopped abruptly.

He looked at Xitang, his expression completely changed. With the instinct of a wild beast, he let out a low growl, "Niennie?"

Xitang hesitated for a second.

In that split second, the little landlord had already moved, slamming a fist hard into Zhao Pingjin's face.

Zhao Pingjin instinctively dodged, but accidentally bumped into the little landlord's wife's arm. The woman instinctively raised her hand to protect the child in her arms, and as the two men were politely pushing the stack of banknotes back and forth, it suddenly flew out.

A pile of red banknotes scattered on the ground.

Zhao Pingjin was knocked back a few steps by the punch and almost fell.

The little landlord charged forward again, savagely grabbing Zhao Pingjin's arm and punching him hard in the abdomen.

Xitang finally came to her senses, rushed forward to grab his hand, and shouted loudly, "Stop it, Xiaodidzhu! It's not him! He's not!"

The little landlord's eyes were bloodshot as he glared at Zhao Pingjin and roared, his words slurred and unintelligible. He flipped and lunged again, his mouth full of unintelligible words.

Zhao Pingjin dodged left and right, taking several more hits.

His wife was completely dumbfounded. She stood there for a while, not knowing what to do, before the baby started crying loudly.

Xitang quickly called out, "Take the baby back to the house. I'll try to calm him down!"

Zhao Pingjin was knocked to the ground.

No matter how hard Xitang tried, she couldn't pull the enraged little landlord away.

Zhao Pingjin rolled on the ground a few times before finally shouting angrily, "Huang Xitang, tell this little mute, if he doesn't stop, I'm going to hit back!"

The little landlord pounced on him and beat him up, roaring and muttering incomprehensible words. He said something about his mother and the hospital, and how someone had wronged him.

With all his brute strength, Xitang couldn't pull him away. Tears started streaming down her face uncontrollably, and she sobbed uncontrollably, her heart filled with anxiety. "No, no, it's not true."

Just a small opening, and those past events came flooding back, overwhelming her. She couldn't control her emotions.

Xitang turned her head and covered her face, sobbing uncontrollably.

The little landlord immediately stopped and pushed Zhao Pingjin away, turning to wipe the tears from Xitang's face, "Niennie, don't cry, don't cry."

Zhao Pingjin lay on the ground, his hair and clothes disheveled. One of his contact lenses had fallen out, and his vision was blurry. He was stunned for a moment, "What did he say? What died?"

No one answered him.

Zhao Pingjin slowly sat up and saw the woman squatting on the ground, her face buried in her knees, sobbing uncontrollably. The little mute squatted beside her, muttering to her.

After a long time, Xitang wiped away her tears, picked up the money on the ground one by one, and stuffed it into Zhao Pingjin's hand, "Go back to the hotel."

The three of them stood up shakily, only to see the whole street come out to look at them. Xitang's own mother had also come out and was standing far away in front of her house.

When Xitang saw her face, she felt a chill run down her spine. Her mother, who loved her the most in the world, was looking at her coldly, with no expression on her face.