Rebirth: He Decides to Lie Flat-Chapter 38 - 035 Cant Avoid in Time (Two updates)
Chapter 38 -035 Can’t Avoid in Time (Two updates)
Chapter 38 -035 Can’t Avoid in Time (Two updates)
Song Jiawen subtly withdrew her gaze and picked up the teapot on the table to pour some for Jiang Yan.
“I had a good feeling about the reading comprehension today. I understood everything.”
Taking advantage of the fact that the dishes hadn’t been served yet, Jiang Yan fished out an English test paper from his backpack and handed it to Song Jiawen along with a pen, “Grade this.”
Having memorized so many words and articles for such a long time, he finally saw some results.
“It’s much better than before.”
After Song Jiawen finished grading his paper, she wrote down a score at the end: 95!
Jiang Yan himself found it incredible that he had scored over ninety.
This test paper had been obtained from Yang Yi by Song Jiawen, and it was much harder than their last quiz.
For the first time, he harbored the hope that he could attend the same university as Song Jiawen. Although he had always said so, he was very clear in his heart that the gap was too great. The most likely outcome was for them to be accepted into universities in the same city.
But if his English improved and the score gap between them narrowed, and he chose a less popular major…
He felt excited just thinking about it, after all, his current academic performance was something he wouldn’t have dared to dream of in his past life.
The monthly test next week would determine the ranking for the grade, and Jiang Yan was looking forward to seeing where he would place at Experimental Middle School.
As for which place Song Jiawen would rank, was there any need to guess?
Now, Zhu Zhen and Zhu Jin would come to her with questions they couldn’t solve, especially in mathematics, physics, and chemistry. Many in their class were aware that the rank of first in the grade at Experimental Middle School was about to change hands.
Before long, the dishes were served. As Song Jiawen picked up her chopsticks, her eyes swept over to the table two places behind Jiang Yan, where a family of three was still eating, seemingly not having noticed Jiang Yan.
Midway through their meal, the family of three finished their food and stood up to leave.
Song Jiawen gazed at the chicken stew in the clay pot in front of her, contemplating. As they were about to pass by their table, she suddenly turned her head to look out the window.
Jiang Yan noticed her action and followed her gaze.
Outside, it had already grown dark, and the broad, bright windowpane served like a mirror, reflecting the image of the family of three passing right behind them.
As the woman passed by Jiang Yan, her body clearly hesitated for a moment, but that was it. She left without looking back.
“Tsk!”
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Jiang Yan turned his head back, casually watching the woman’s almost fleeing figure and chuckled, “Is that really necessary?”
Song Jiawen felt quite sorry. In that rushed moment, she had only thought about keeping Jiang Yan from seeing them and had overlooked that the glass could serve as a mirror after dark.
As a result, she inadvertently made it clear for Jiang Yan to see his mother, a man, and a little boy they brought along.
A very harmonious family of three.
“Why do they treat me like a flood or a savage beast upon seeing me? I never thought of disturbing her.”
Before his dad was incarcerated, he wasn’t short on money. Even when he went to see her stealthily, it was only because he missed her and wanted a glimpse.
He truly asked her for money only after his dad was put away, when he was expelled from Experimental Middle School and was about to go back to his hometown for school; his grandmother had instructed him to ask her for tuition fees.
Once, in this lifetime, he had only asked her for money once.
But it was this one time that made her start to shun him.
“I actually don’t blame her at all for divorcing my dad. My dad was foolishly filial and always prioritized his parents and siblings over his wife and child, insisting on taking care of his extended family first even if his own household was struggling. It’s normal for her to be intolerant and want to split up. I hope she’s been living well after leaving my dad.”
But he never considered that while she was living well, she also wanted to distance herself far from him, wiping her son out of her life without leaving a trace.
Song Jiawen remembered how in the village Old Master Jiang always boasted to others about his eldest son, saying how impressive he was and how much money he had given to the family.
Jiang Lao Tai said that it was normal for him to give money while his second and youngest sons put in effort. Otherwise, having raised him until he was so big, and with him not being around to take care of them, it wouldn’t be proper for him not to contribute financially.
Song Jiawen was quite puzzled, wondering if the old couple was happy about their eldest son giving money, or if they resented that he wasn’t around.
Did they expect him to both give money and be around to take care of them, all the while also being an official to bring glory to the family?
Wasn’t that thinking a bit too idealistic?
Later, when Jiang Yan’s father got into trouble, Jiang Lao Tai cursed up a storm in her courtyard, and Song Jiawen could envision the scene of her spittle flying everywhere even though it was separated by two walls.
Soon after, Jiang Yan returned from the city, and even she, as a neighbor, could sense the earth-shaking change in his status within the Jiang family. What’s more interesting was that those who mocked and derided Jiang Yan with sarcasm were almost all his own family members.
Especially his two aunts, who kept emphasizing to Jiang Yan’s grandmother how poor they were and that they couldn’t afford to send him to school.
She heard with her own ears their intentions of making Jiang Yan drop out and go to work.
Of course, Jiang Yan did not drop out of school; he ran back to ask his mother for tuition fees.
As a child, Song Jiawen actually disliked Jiang Yan quite a bit; every time he returned to the village, he always brought a few of the village boys to trouble her.
She didn’t like to talk, so he would tease her with the chocolates he brought back from the city, offering her one if she would just say a word. When she ignored him, he wouldn’t let her pass, and then she hit him with a brick.
How strong could a child’s strength be?
That brick hit him on the body, and apart from turning blue, it didn’t even break the skin.
Therefore, Jiang Yan didn’t care at all and continued to bother her…
“What are you thinking about? You seem so engrossed.”
This was the first time Jiang Yan spoke to Song Jiawen about his mother because he had already gotten over her. That’s why he could speak so calmly.
But after he finished, he realized that Song Jiawen seemed to be in a daze.
“I was thinking about your childhood, how annoying you were.”
Song Jiawen looked at him, and after saying those words, she felt that those three words were insufficient to express her true inner feelings, so she emphasized again, “Especially annoying!”
The corner of Jiang Yan’s mouth twitched. Why did this girl hold grudges for so long? How could she still remember that after all this time?
“I apologize to you.”
He picked up the teapot to fill her cup, then explained, “Back then when I returned to my hometown, I always liked to bring back snacks that weren’t available there to show off—vanity, I suppose. Seeing their curiosity and eager desire, I felt quite proud. But you never gave them a glance. I did want to leave some for you, but you ignored me, so I found ways to tease you. However, I didn’t get the better of you, did I? Do you want me to take off my shirt now and show you? I still have the imprint of the brick you hit me with on my chest.”
“Pfft!”
Song Jiawen couldn’t help but laugh, “Who are you fooling? You think that’s a tattoo or what?”
Jiang Yan was struck by the fleeting smile that just passed over her face; it was somewhat dazzling. In all the time he had known her, this was the first time he saw her smile so naturally.
Her features, already delicate, became even more captivating when she smiled, like a rose in full bloom.
“Although it’s not a tattoo, you did hit the same spot many times. Did you measure it or something?”
“Yes, yes, I measured it, I did it myself. If you cause trouble a few more times, maybe I could make a hole through you.”
Any displeasure brought on by Jiang Yan’s mother seemed to vanish at that moment, and the atmosphere between the two returned to being natural and peaceful.
