Chapter 128

Chapter 128

◎The Consequences of Poor Parenting◎

Dai Yuanjiang never expected that this return home would first cost him his father, and then his mother.

His father fell from a height while repairing roof tiles and pierced his head. Dai Yuanjiang refused to give up, determined to save him no matter what. They underwent several major surgeries, but due to years of overwork and a weak constitution, his father ultimately didn't make it.

In the effort to save his father, Dai Yuanjiang exhausted all the savings he had accumulated from years of work, took out loans from various loan apps, and even maxed out his credit card, but still couldn't bring him back.

The moment the doctor declared his father's death, his mother, unable to bear the shock, suffered a sudden heart attack.

At that time, everyone was crowded in front of the operating room, grieving the loss. Dai Yuanjiang didn't notice his mother until he saw her collapsed in a chair, already unconscious.

On that day, he lost both his parents. He didn't know how he got through that period, feeling utterly dazed. Even the funeral was handled by relatives and neighbors.

His family had always been poor. His parents, who had little education, relied on manual labor to make a living. Despite this, they always gave him the best they could afford, putting him through college.

From a young age, Dai Yuanjiang had been told that once he got into college, life would get better, as if college was a ticket out of poverty.

But when he actually got into college, he realized it wasn't the end of hardship. Even after graduating, he might end up with a job paying just three thousand yuan a month.

To make money, he took on all sorts of grueling and menial jobs. During school, when he couldn't find many part-time jobs, he focused on night shifts delivering food. After graduation, he couldn't land a job related to his major. The finance industry was already saturated, dominated by elites and those with strong connections.

As someone from the countryside, without exceptional intelligence or extensive connections, he couldn't find a relevant job. In the end, he settled for delivering packages, because unlike food delivery, package delivery offered social security benefits once he became a formal employee.

Though he had complaints about his life, he was also content. Seeing his savings grow, he felt closer to his goal of bringing his parents out of poverty.

But all of this ended in early summer. All his hopes and motivation for the future were shattered.

He couldn't stop working; he still had a pile of debts to repay. When he returned to his small, shabby rented room, Dai Yuanjiang felt a deep sense of loss and desolation.

After cleaning and tidying up the room, he washed the food and water bowls for his parrot named Xiao Hui and refilled them with fresh grains. Sitting outside the door, he gazed blankly at the sky.

It was late, and his parrot still hadn't returned. Dai Yuanjiang didn't pay much attention. The parrot wasn't one he had raised from a young age; it had been wandering outside for who knows how long and had some survival skills.

He had been away for so long, and the food and water had run out. To avoid starvation, the parrot must have ventured out to find food on its own.

On the table, there were several gold items like earrings and necklaces, apparently brought back by the parrot during its time outside.

But now, seeing these items, Dai Yuanjiang felt a strange fear. He even wondered if he was being punished for taking others' belongings.

Yet he also thought that his parents' deaths might have been coincidental, just bad timing. There's no such thing as karma.

Thinking about his debts and maxed-out credit cards, which totaled over a hundred thousand yuan, he realized that relying solely on his job to repay them would be a never-ending cycle of interest.

Dai Yuanjiang decided to have the parrot assist him a bit longer. Once the debts were paid off, he would never engage in such activities again.

But after several days, the parrot still hadn't returned. Dai Yuanjiang began to feel uneasy. Having taken a long leave, even though some of it was unpaid bereavement leave, he had barely worked this month.

As a package deliverer, his income was based on a base salary plus commissions. This month, his earnings wouldn't even cover the interest on his debts.

After melting the gold items the parrot had brought back into gold beans, Dai Yuanjiang went out to look around the neighborhood, hoping to find the parrot.

Several more days passed without any sign of the parrot. Dai Yuanjiang didn't overthink it, assuming the parrot had flown away because he had been gone for too long, or perhaps it had been taken in by another kind-hearted person.

He thought it might be for the best. If the parrot didn't return, it would cut off his reliance on such shady methods, allowing him to focus solely on earning money to repay his debts.

But that day, while wandering around the neighboring community hoping to catch a glimpse of the parrot, he overheard a harsh-tongued old woman sunbathing in the fitness area, talking to the elderly folks around her: "My grandson was actually doing a good deed. That parrot had stolen jewelry from so many people in our community and injured more than one person. It even made the news. That day, the parrot tried to snatch the jade pendant from my grandson's neck. Kids don't have a sense of control, and the bird was small. It was an accident that it got killed. How can you blame my grandson? He was actually doing the community a favor!"

Even if the Xu family didn’t mention what happened at the kindergarten that day, there were other children present. When these children went home and talked about it, the incident spread, prompting many people to approach Grandma Lin, saying that the child is still young and can still be saved if properly disciplined now.

It made it seem like her grandson was beyond redemption.

Feeling that this development was greatly affecting her grandson's reputation, Grandma Lin went around telling people that the parrot was a robber, and her grandson almost got robbed, which is why he accidentally killed the bird with a heavy hand, not intentionally.

Only Xu Ruirui and Lin Kaiyuan, the two little accomplices, knew the specifics of that day. Their families had strictly warned them not to talk about it outside.

Although it was Lin Kaiyuan who did it, being linked to such a cruel and extreme child would harm their own reputations, so they wouldn't voluntarily talk about the incident.

As for the Xu family, they didn't want to ruin another child's life over this incident, nor did they want to make enemies. Ruirui is their only precious child, and they often worry that not giving gifts to the teacher might result in biased treatment in kindergarten. Now, they dare not confront the Lin family and just want to stay away.

They can’t risk provoking a family that raises such a monstrous child. If retaliation were to occur, the adults wouldn’t be afraid, but the child is still young and can't be watched 24/7.

Last time, over such a small matter, Lin Kaiyuan retaliated, not stopping at throwing insects but also dragging Ruirui to watch him decapitate the parrot. This behavior is horrifying, and the thirst for revenge is overwhelming. They simply can't afford to gamble with such a risk.

If they can’t face them, they’ll steer clear. So they said nothing, keeping their distance from the family, hoping never to have any interaction with them again.

As Grandma Lin kept saying in the neighborhood that her grandson almost got robbed and that's why he killed the bird unintentionally, many actually bought her story, especially those who had been robbed. Though they found it somewhat cruel for the child to kill the bird outright, children don’t know their own strength, and after all, it's not their own child.

Dai Yuanjiang stood there, listening to Grandma Lin repeatedly tell the story, with a proud expression, as if her grandson had performed a heroic act, and he clenched his fists slightly.

So his parrot, Xiao Hui, was dead, not flown away or adopted by some kind person. Thinking of the gold ornaments on the table earlier, a deep wave of sorrow engulfed him.

Xiao Hui was just a bird; it didn't understand anything. It only knew these things could be traded for food. Maybe, before its death, it was still busy fetching things from outside to trade for worms.

But someone killed it.

If there’s karma, why hasn’t it struck him? Clearly, everything was because of him, his warped ideas, his stealing others’ gold ornaments for money.

Yet he remains unscathed. His father is gone, his mother is gone, and even Xiao Hui was killed by someone.

Dai Yuanjiang stared at the old woman, his eyes becoming increasingly hollow.

Xiao Hui could pick up money and gold ornaments, but not jade pendants.

When borrowing money, it was quick and easy, but when it came to debt collection, there was no courtesy. Debt collectors even called his company, and Dai Yuanjiang was questioned by his supervisor several times. If it weren’t for his borrowing so much money to treat his father’s illness and drawing so many debt collectors, the company would have fired him long ago.

But this can’t continue. Even if he delivers packages tirelessly every day, it's not easy to pay off so much debt.

Moreover, they considered Dai Yuanjiang's specific situation. With too much debt outside, if he had any malicious intentions toward customers’ packages, it would affect their courier company.

In the end, even though they knew it was a bit cruel, the higher-ups still convinced Dai Yuanjiang to resign.

The company offered compensation, but it only provided a brief respite from the debt collectors.

Dai Yuanjiang sat at his doorstep, drinking beer and looking at the towering buildings outside, wondering what the meaning of his life was. In just one month, he had lost everything, everything.

The bell for the end of class rang, and sharp laughter and noise came over. The kindergarten, not far from him, had let out, and he could see a crowd of parents squeezing at the kindergarten gate to pick up their children.

He used to fantasize about his future life, bringing his parents over, finding a wife, having a child, letting his parents take care of the child, and he and his wife working to support the family, not seeking great wealth but just a modest and peaceful life.

But now, all this has become a distant dream. He doesn't even know how to get through tomorrow.

At around four o'clock, the kindergarten had already let out, and many parents were taking their children home. Grandma Lin didn't force Lin Kaiyuan to go home early and even said to a little boy nearby, "Weiwei, why go home so early? Play with Xiaoyuan for a while."

Weiwei's mother held onto her son, who wanted to go to the small park, and said with a smile, "We're going out to eat today. We need to go home early to change clothes and then head out. We won't play with Xiaoyuan today. Weiwei, say goodbye to Xiaoyuan."

The little boy waved to Lin Kaiyuan and then skipped along with his mother, asking, "Are we going out to eat? I want to eat KFC!"

Weiwei's mother grabbed her son's hand, nodding in agreement, "Alright, let's go eat KFC."

Seeing them walk away, Grandma Lin grumbled, "If you don’t want to play, fine. It’s not like anyone’s desperate for it."

Lin Kaiyuan rolled his eyes and dashed over to the slide. Just as he climbed up, a man appeared beside him and asked with a smile, "Did you kill that parrot?"

Lin Kaiyuan ignored him, slid down the slide, and then climbed back up the stairs.

Dai Yuanjiang said, "That parrot stole from me once too. If you killed it, you’ve done me a favor. How did you kill it? Are you sure it was the same parrot that robbed people?"

Lin Kaiyuan, irritated by the questions, snapped back, "It was a gray parrot. I wrenched its head off—that’s how I killed it!"

Dai Yuanjiang chuckled, "Oh, so you wrenched its head off, huh?"

Seeing a man talking to her grandson, Grandma Lin hurried over, "Who are you? What are you telling my grandson?"

Just as Lin Kaiyuan was about to slide down again, Dai Yuanjiang seized his clothes, yanked him off the slide, and hurled him to the ground.

Grandma Lin shrieked and lunged forward, but Dai Yuanjiang pushed her aside. Seeing Lin Kaiyuan trying to get up and run, Dai Yuanjiang grabbed his collar again, choking him and slamming him back onto the ground.

But that wasn’t enough for him. Watching the crying Lin Kaiyuan, Dai Yuanjiang, with a twisted expression, kicked him hard in the head, "You killed the bird! You wrenched Xiao Hui’s head off! You killed Xiao Hui! You murdered it!"

Dai Yuanjiang, like a man possessed, kept kicking Lin Kaiyuan on the ground. Grandma Lin screamed and tried to pull him away. The security guards in the neighborhood heard the commotion and rushed over, but by then, Dai Yuanjiang had already kicked Lin Kaiyuan’s head countless times.

Grandma Lin was sobbing uncontrollably, gasping for air. Some fathers picking up their kids rushed over to help, while many children playing nearby screamed and ran away in fear.

Dai Yuanjiang didn’t fight back, just stared blankly at Lin Kaiyuan, who was lying on the ground unconscious and twitching, as others pinned him down.

Ji Nanxing couldn’t help nodding off during history class and ended up falling asleep until the bell woke him up.

Yawning as he sat up, he saw the test papers being passed from the front to the back and was momentarily confused, "History homework?"

Xiao Ye chuckled, "You’re still groggy. Next is math, and we’re going over the test papers. What do you want for dinner? If we’re having stir-fry, we can order ahead so we don’t waste time waiting after class."

Xiao Ye then started listing the menu, "How about some poached fish? They use blackfish here, not basa. And some stir-fried kidney—didn’t you say you were craving it the other day…"

Ji Nanxing took out his phone to check the time and noticed several unread messages on his communication apps. He instinctively tapped to clear them, only to find the neighborhood WeChat group exploding with messages.

Clicking in, he saw several pictures being posted.

Xiao Ye leaned over, "Whose messages? So many, it’s flooding the screen."

Ji Nanxing, "From the neighborhood chat. Remember that kid we saw earlier? It looks like he got beaten up. Not sure how serious the injuries are, but he was just sent to the hospital."

Xiao Ye looked at the photo of the man being pinned down, "Was it him? Any idea why?"

Ji Nanxing shook his head. Soon, someone posted a video. The video started when the man grabbed Lin Kaiyuan’s clothes and slammed him down. The man’s face was twisted with rage, and he was slamming Lin Kaiyuan down with brutal force, along with the repeated kicks to the head, clearly aimed at killing him.

Listening to the man’s words as he beat Lin Kaiyuan, Xiao Ye said, "He’s ranting about someone killing a bird. Last time, this kid buried a sparrow alive. This time, he probably killed someone’s pet bird, and now they’re seeking revenge."

Ji Nanxing shook his head. The video was clearly zoomed in from a distance, so it was blurry. Even with his abilities, Ji Nanxing couldn’t read the situation clearly from such a fuzzy video, so he couldn’t determine the exact reason.

"Maybe. That day, the kid seemed like he was courting disaster."

Xiao Ye, recalling the boy who had buried a sparrow alive without a care, frowned slightly, "Will it be fatal?"

Ji Nanxing said, "I only see trouble, not a death sentence. He probably won’t die."

Seeing Ji Nanxing still scrolling through the group messages, Xiao Ye covered the phone screen, "You warned them, but they ignored it. It’s out of your hands now. Let’s look at the menu. I’ll order ahead so the food is ready. After dinner, we can take a walk before evening study."

Ji Nanxing smiled, put down his phone, and turned to check out the menu on Xiao Ye's phone to place an order.

Lin Kaiyuan didn’t die, but a six-year-old child taking such a hard hit to the head from an adult was seriously hurt and rushed to the hospital for emergency care.

Dai Yuanjiang was hauled off to the police station. He confessed right away: "My dad’s dead, my mom’s gone, I’m drowning in debt, and after I got back from my hometown, my job fired me. That kid killed my parrot. Do whatever you want with me—even give me the death penalty."

The situation was bad—malicious assault—but it wasn’t a death penalty case.

Dai Yuanjiang had already thrown in the towel. He had no money to pay up, just his life to give. A guy with nothing left to lose didn’t care anymore; at least in jail, he’d get three square meals.

The Lin family rushed to the hospital after getting the call. Lin’s grandma was still in shock; it all happened so fast, and she hadn’t snapped out of it yet.

Soon, cops showed up to check on the kid’s condition, since how bad the injuries were would decide how serious the case was.

Lin Kaiyuan’s dad was livid: "If anything happens to my kid, I’ll make that guy pay with his life!"

Lin Kaiyuan’s mom, her eyes red from crying, asked, baffled: "Why? Why’d he hit my kid? My kid didn’t have anything against him."

Lin’s grandma suddenly stood up and blurted out, "Is it the Xus? Is that guy from the Xu family? It’s gotta be them! They’re probably getting back at my grandson over that kindergarten thing!"

The cops said, "We’ve already got the story. He said it was because Lin Kaiyuan, your grandson, killed his parrot. Lately, his parents died one after the other, which really messed him up and made him unstable. Then your grandson killed his pet parrot, and that pushed him over the edge."

Lin Kaiyuan’s dad whipped around to look at his mom. Lately, she’d been blabbing about the incident to anyone who’d listen. Even though Lin Kaiyuan had tortured and killed a parrot to scare his classmates, she’d tried to save his rep by saying the parrot was the one tied to a recent gold heist, hoping to change how the neighborhood saw him.

She’d been bragging at home about how fast she’d acted, proud of how she’d turned the neighborhood’s opinion of Lin Kaiyuan around. If she hadn’t been running her mouth all over the place, how would that guy have known it was her son who killed the parrot?

When she heard the cops’ explanation, Lin’s grandma was floored. She suddenly remembered the young guy who’d said killing fish and birds was a sin that would come back to bite you.

Her eyes burned with hate. She didn’t think there was anything wrong with her or her grandson. She was sure it was that rotten kid who’d cursed her grandson, and now her grandson was hurt and in the hospital—it had to be because of the curse.

She wanted to rush back to the neighborhood, find where that boy lived, and demand answers.

Lin Kaiyuan’s dad stopped his mom, listening to her curses, feeling completely drained.

Lin Kaiyuan’s mom, though, couldn’t hold back anymore and shoved her mother-in-law away: "If you want to know who’s to blame for Yuan Yuan ending up like this, it’s you! Since he was little, he’s been into killing fish and birds. I told you not to let him, but you wouldn’t listen. You said he’d grow up to be a doctor and not to crush his nature! Now look what’s happened. What others said wasn’t wrong—doing too much evil will catch up with you sooner or later. You want to demand an explanation? What explanation? That we shouldn’t have crushed his nature and let him do evil? You’re the one who hurt Yuan Yuan! If you hadn’t stopped us from disciplining him, if you hadn’t bawled like we were killing your grandson every time we scolded him, would Yuan Yuan have turned out like this? If he’d been a good, obedient kid, would he have ended up in this mess?"

The thought of her son’s condition filled her with rage, and she started shoving her mother-in-law hard.

Lin Kaiyuan’s dad grabbed his wife: "Stop it, we’re in a hospital. Cool it!"

Lin Kaiyuan’s mom shoved her husband away and walked off, crying her eyes out.

She blamed her mother-in-law, but she blamed herself too. That was her own flesh and blood, her precious child. If she’d been tougher, more decisive, and disciplined him right from the start, her son wouldn’t have turned out like this, bringing on such a deadly disaster.

But it was too late for second thoughts.

Lin Kaiyuan didn’t die; quick emergency care saved his life. But the doctor’s words sent the Lin family into despair: "Because of the severe blow to the head, there’s major brain damage. We won’t know how bad it is until he wakes up, but brain damage usually means things like nerve problems, behavior and consciousness issues. With where Lin Kaiyuan’s injuries are, there’s also a chance of epilepsy and other symptoms. All in all, it’s not looking good. You, as parents, need to brace yourselves."

Lin’s grandma passed out right then and there.

Xu Ruirui’s family only found out about the incident after getting back from work and seeing a crowd downstairs in the neighborhood. They heard that a few kids had been playing downstairs at the time and were scared out of their wits.

Xu’s mom rushed upstairs and video-called her dad right away. Seeing her son playing puzzles with his little cousin, full of energy, she smiled in relief and said to her son on the video, "Be good and listen to Grandpa. In a few months, Mom will come get you."