Chapter 363: Chapter 362: I’m the One Feeling the Heartache Now...

She grumbled to herself...

’Where does he get all this "it has to be you" nonsense? Not everyone is some love-struck fool with a one-track mind. If I fell for that so easily, Zhou Mochen wouldn’t even be in the picture. Going by first come, first served, I would’ve set my sights on Xi Zirong.’

Of course, she couldn’t say that out loud.

Xu Su only dared to complain in her head. Hearing her words, Zhou Mochen’s lips curved into a faint, unreadable smile as he calmly asked, "Is it high?"

"..." Xu Su fell silent. His smile unnerved her a little. With a look of sheer determination, she said, "Don’t look at me like that. I’ll work hard!"

Her expression was so determined, she looked like she was about to swear an oath.

’Work hard to make it so it has to be you...’ 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Zhou Mochen let out a helpless laugh and couldn’t resist patting her on the head.

’I really want to tell her that this isn’t like studying for an exam,’ he thought. ’Matters of the heart aren’t something you can ’work hard’ at. They’re beyond your control.’

But in the end, he just smiled and, without a word, took her hand and started walking back.

In the darkness, his smile was indistinct, yet it made Xu Su feel inexplicably sad.

She didn’t know why she should feel sad, nor did she understand why Zhou Mochen was smiling like that.

...

After lunch the next day, Xu Su said goodbye to her family and headed back to Chang City with Zhou Mochen. Seeing them leave, Li Tingting’s family also set off, following behind.

Chen Shumei, however, saw what her daughter and son-in-law were up to and looked a bit embarrassed. She chose to stay at her family’s home instead of tagging along.

Zhou Mochen didn’t care about the car following them. He’d spent the last few days in the countryside unable to hold his Susu while they slept. During the day, in front of the Chen Family elders, he couldn’t even be close to her; they had to be secretive just to hold hands.

Their evening walks were the only time they had to themselves all day. After a few days of this, Zhou Mochen was thoroughly fed up.

Now that they were finally heading back, he was in such a good mood that he wouldn’t have cared if a car was following them—he wouldn’t have cared if Li Tingting’s family of three were sitting right in his own car.

Xu Su glanced at their intertwined fingers and tried to pull her hand away. When she failed, she couldn’t help but pout. "This dirt road is all bumpy. Can’t you drive with two hands?"

"Don’t worry, your man’s driving is top-notch." Zhou Mochen steered effortlessly with one hand, even finding a moment to turn and smile at her. "Susu, I can finally hold you when we sleep tonight."

"..." Xu Su was speechless. She squeezed his hand and said, "Stop in Kang County for a bit when we get there. I want to go to First High School to see my sister."

She had promised Chen Ni she’d visit her at school before she left, and she couldn’t go back on her word.

In truth, even if they hadn’t made plans, Xu Su would have made a special trip anyway.

Chen Ni was currently a junior in high school and would be a senior in the fall. Following the trajectory of her previous life, she should have already met that Little Huang Mao from the barbershop by now.

’I just hope Chen Ni actually listened to me,’ she worried. ’Surely, after all my nagging, she wouldn’t let a delinquent like Little Huang Mao talk her into skipping the college entrance exams to run off and have his baby?’

She remembered her past life, when Chen Ni had married and given birth to three children, one after another. Her husband, Little Huang Mao, was getting older but had accomplished nothing. That was bad enough, but he also cheated on her and was abusive—he checked all the boxes.

How could Xu Su possibly be at ease without seeing things for herself?

This was the sister she had grown up with. They were close in age, and though not related by blood, they were closer than real sisters. In comparison, Xu Su’s own brother, Xu Yang, wasn’t worth a single hair on Chen Ni’s head in her eyes.

In her past life, when Chen Ni had decided to give up on the college entrance exams, Xu Su had been at university in Beijing. At the time, she was lost in the misery of being Zhou Mochen’s kept woman. But when she heard the news about Chen Ni, she couldn’t even spare a thought for her own suffering and made a special trip back to Chang City to try and talk sense into her for a long time.

But in the end, she couldn’t get through to her love-addled sister, leaving Xu Su so angry she could only cry.

Ignoring the protests of her parents and her sister, Xu Su, Chen Ni stubbornly went ahead with the marriage, believing that love alone was enough to live on. Later, no matter how bitter her married life became, she was too ashamed to tell Xu Su about her struggles.

At that time, the two sisters were far apart—one in Beijing, the other in Kang County—and each was dealing with her own hardships. They didn’t keep in touch often. On the rare occasions they did speak, Chen Ni would always put on a brave face, never letting on how miserable her life had become.

It wasn’t until later, at Grandma Xu’s funeral, that the truth came out. Little Huang Mao, the grandson-in-law, didn’t even show up. Xu Su’s aunt berated her daughter harshly, and by the end of it, mother and daughter were clinging to each other, sobbing.

Only then did Xu Su realize just how miserable Chen Ni’s married life was.

And so, Xu Su once again began urging Chen Ni to get a divorce. But that good-for-nothing Little Huang Mao had finally managed to secure a family; why would he be willing to let go? The guy wasn’t an idiot. If he got divorced, where else would he find a sucker who could earn money, manage the household, and put up with his beatings?

Looking at her three children, Chen Ni herself hesitated, unable to bring herself to do it.

The final straw came when Little Huang Mao, after failing to get money from her again, got violent. He caused Chen Ni to fall down the stairs, breaking her wrist. After that, Xu Su couldn’t stand by any longer and personally returned to Kang County.

She didn’t waste any words. She simply had her bodyguards break all four of Little Huang Mao’s limbs, leaving him bedridden for over half a year. After that vicious beating, he agreed to the divorce without a single protest and never dared to bother Chen Ni again.

Thugs and hooligans like him just need a good beating. If one isn’t enough to teach them a lesson, then give them another.

’I hope Chen Ni listened to my warnings this time,’ she thought. ’Otherwise...’

Thinking of these events from her past life, fury flashed in Xu Su’s eyes. Her hands began to itch with the urge to hit someone.

Zhou Mochen had been to Kang County First Middle School once before, two years ago. Back then, Xu Su had deliberately messed with him by ordering him an explosively spicy bowl of malatang. He had an excellent memory; this time, without any directions from her, he navigated with ease and parked in a spot on the street near First High School.

Diagonally across the street was the same hole-in-the-wall malatang place Xu Su had taken him to two years ago. It looked completely unchanged. Zhou Mochen gazed at it from a distance, a smile playing on his lips. "Back then, I pestered you every single day. Was I really annoying?"

"..." Xu Su followed his gaze, and the memories came flooding back. For a moment, it felt as if a lifetime had passed.

In just two years, so much had changed. She remembered how much she’d hated Zhou Mochen back then. In her heart, she detested his tyranny, his arrogance, the way he pressured and coerced her. She hated him so much it made her teeth ache, and she was convinced that no matter how cruelly she treated him, it would never be enough. After all, he had brought it all on himself.

But now, returning to this place, Xu Su actually felt a pang of regret. ’Why didn’t I treat him better back then?’ she wondered. ’Why did I have to be so cruel to him?’

’And now I’m the one who feels bad for him...’

Xu Su frowned in frustration, unsure how to respond to him. Instead, she just put on her mask and pulled him through the gates of First High School.

It was almost three in the afternoon, so classes were in session, and the campus was quiet. The guardhouse at First High School was practically for show; they walked right in without so much as a greeting.

Kang County First Middle School had both a junior high and a high school division. Xu Su had spent three years here, and she was familiar with every blade of grass and every tree. Following her memory, she made her way to the building for the high school juniors and began searching for Chen Ni’s classroom.