That afternoon after school, Zhuang Zi’ang walked out of the school gate and, out of habit, gnced at the bus stop. But his heart felt empty. The significance of 6:10 had long since faded; without you, this world had lost all its color.

  A white sedan was parked by the roadside, and its license pte looked all too familiar.

  Zhuang Zi’ang’s emotions were in turmoil—he even thought about leaving right then. He wasn’t ready to face his father yet, and with his illness becoming more evident, his secret was no longer something he could hide.

  “Zhuang Zi’ang, I’ve been calling you—why do you keep turning your phone off?”

  Zhuang Wenzhao stepped out of the car.

  “I just haven’t felt like answering calls tely,” Zhuang Zi’ang replied, taking a half step back.

  “Someone from the vilge called me. They said you went back to your hometown over the weekend and even brought a girl with you—must be the one you had rice noodles with st time, right?”

  Zhuang Wenzhao’s tone was serious.

  “Yes, that’s what happened. So what?”

  Zhuang Zi’ang met his father’s gaze steadily. He was far stronger now than he’d ever been, no longer trying so hard to please his father. And as for Little Butterfly, there was nothing to hide. With death looming, shouldn’t he at least savor the taste of love?

  Zhuang Wenzhao, however, was far from pleased with the defiant look in his son’s eyes, and he unched into a torrent of scolding:

  “Look at you—still in school and already dating! And dragging a girl back to our hometown—aren’t you ashamed to bring disgrace on the family? I’d even like to ask your homeroom teacher: do top students spend all their time messing around with girls?”

  In the past few days, Zhuang Wenzhao had received several calls from his hometown. An old friend had teased him that he was about to be a grandfather. But once he got the full story, his anger knew no bounds. Dating while still in school—what nonsense was that? And parading a girl around in our hometown? It was an outright disgrace.

  After his father had vented his anger, Zhuang Zi’ang calmly said,

  “I’m already eighteen. I’m an adult now—I know my limits.”

  “Even if you were eighty, I’m still your father and I’d always have a say!” blurted Zhuang Wenzhao.

  “Have you ever listened to anything my grandfather said?” retorted Zhuang Zi’ang.

  Stung by his son’s words, Zhuang Wenzhao instinctively rolled up his sleeves, as if itching for a fight. The quarrel between father and son at the school gate soon drew a crowd of onlooking students.

  “Zhuang Zi’ang, always topping the css and yet you talk to your dad like that!”

  “Do you think top students are dating just like the rest of us?”

  “If I had his grades, I’d dare ride on my dad’s shoulders every day!”

  In the past, Zhuang Zi’ang would have cared deeply about such gossip. But now, it didn’t matter.

  “I’m not really dating,” he decred firmly. “I just brought a friend home to visit grandma and grandpa. And if you’re coming all the way to school for this, it shows you’ve got too much time on your hands—maybe you should spend some of it educating Yuhang!”

  “Since when did you get so chummy with that girl? Tell me honestly—is it because you like her?”

  Zhuang Zi’ang paused for a moment before replying with resolute certainty, “Yes. I really do like her.”

  A real man shouldn’t be afraid to admit his feelings. For an eighteen-year-old, having a crush is as normal as anything. The students watching were abuzz with whispers:

  “Wow, even the top student is just like us—his head’s full of thoughts about girls!”

  Feeling the weight of so many eyes on him, Zhuang Wenzhao lost face and, red with anger, retorted, “A girl who can’t even behave herself and shamelessly runs around with you? She’s probably not from a proper family!”

  “Shut up!” Zhuang Zi’ang exploded. “I won’t let you speak ill of her!”

  In his eyes, Little Butterfly was pure and fwless—and he would not allow anyone to tarnish her reputation.

  Seeing the fierce determination burning in his son’s eyes, Zhuang Wenzhao felt a twinge of fear. What was so special about that girl that she was worth defending so passionately?

  “Zi’ang, this isn’t right—how can you speak to your father with such disrespect?” Qin Shun couldn’t help but interject.

  “This is between a father and his son,” Zhuang Zi’ang replied coldly.

  “You…” Qin Shun was so angry that she could barely find the words.

  Ignoring the stares of the surrounding crowd, Zhuang Zi’ang fixed his gaze on his father and let out years of pent-up emotion:

  “I truly like Little Butterfly. People should be with the ones they love.”

  “I’m not like you. You never even loved your own wife—getting her pregnant and then dragging her into a shotgun wedding…”

  “That miserable, five-year, chaotic marriage must be something you’d rather forget, wouldn’t it?”

  Stung by the harsh words, Zhuang Wenzhao stepped back uncertainly.

  “Zhuang Zi’ang, do you know what you’re saying?”

  Undeterred, Zhuang Zi’ang stepped even closer, his eyes burning with resolve. He pointed at Qin Shun and said,

  “As for my Aunt Qin—you probably don’t like her either, do you?”

  Enraged, Zhuang Wenzhao roared, “What nonsense are you spouting?”

  “You—a remarried man with a stepchild—can only settle for any woman you find! You don’t really love her, which is why you always use work as an excuse to avoid coming home.”

  “Dad, you’re in your forties—you’ve never known what it truly means to love someone!”

  Zhuang Zi’ang’s words were harsh, perhaps even too much. But when he looked at his mother—who braved wind and rain, boring alone with no one to lean on—he couldn’t help but feel indignant.

  Why didn’t you think things through before remarrying?

  Those words struck a raw nerve with Zhuang Wenzhao. Unable to tolerate it any longer, he raised his hand and spped his son.

  Zhuang Zi’ang staggered and fell hard to the ground.

  Already suffering from a serious illness—and still weakened by yesterday’s fever—his body was too frail to get up.

  Qin Shun shrieked, “Wenzhao, just leave! Family matters should not be aired in public!”

  “For someone this rebellious, even beating him to death wouldn’t be too excessive,” Zhuang Wenzhao fumed, his anger far from spent.

  A sleek bck luxury car pulled over at that moment.

  Lin Mushi leapt from the vehicle and rushed over to help Zhuang Zi’ang. “Are you okay?” she asked.

  Zhuang Zi’ang shook his head slightly. “I’m fine.”

  Lin Mushi gred at Zhuang Wenzhao. “How can you still hit him? Don’t you know he’s already—”

  “Mushi, don’t say it!” Zhuang Zi’ang interrupted sharply.

  Looking up at his father with desperate eyes, he decred, “My life was given by you. If you beat me to death, I won’t owe you anything anymore.”

  His gaze was filled with despair, and his voice was achingly mournful.

  Moved by the sight, the onlookers softened. They’d always envied the high-achieving Zhuang Zi’ang, unaware of the sorrow he carried within.

  Every bone in his body ached as if breaking, his mind was a haze, and his eyelids grew heavier with each passing moment.

  Faces around him blurred and twisted. Then, his legs buckled, and the world spun out of control.

  “Zhuang Zi’ang, are you okay?” Lin Mushi cried in arm.

  She quickly signaled the driver, and soon he was helped into the back seat of the car and rushed to the hospital.

  For a moment, Zhuang Wenzhao stood frozen, then resumed his stream of curses.

  “For someone this unruly, a sp shouldn’t cause any real harm.”

  On the drive back, Zhuang Wenzhao’s mood was as dark as a storm.

  Sitting in the front passenger seat, Qin Shun suddenly asked, “Is it true what they say—that you never really loved me?”

  Irritated, Zhuang Wenzhao snapped, “Love? That’s something children fuss about. At our age, we just muddle through life—settling for what we have. Love is like a ghost; everyone’s heard of it, but no one’s ever seen it.”