Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Tian Ruan rolled clumsily off Yu Jingmo, the crisp scent of pine needles wafting over, mingling with the subtle sandalwood scent from his wrist.

Yu Jingmo sat up, his brow creasing slightly as he looked at Tian Ruan’s leg. "You..."

Tian Ruan’s numb limbs slowly came back to life, but the moment he moved, he yelped. "My leg... What’s wrong with my leg?"

"Sprained," Yu Jingmo said, gripping Tian Ruan’s slender, slightly swollen ankle.

Tian Ruan wailed, his eyes brimming with tears as he stared at his leg. "Why am I the one hurt and not you??"

Yu Jingmo replied, "I’m not a porcelain doll that breaks at the first fall."

"That’s not scientific," Tian Ruan muttered in disbelief. "Pull up your pant legs and let me see."

Yu Jingmo ignored him and instead extended a hand. "I’ll carry you."

Hopping on one foot, Tian Ruan climbed onto Yu Jingmo’s broad back.

Yu Jingmo carried him with rock-steady steps, stepping over the muddy terrain until they reached the main road. In the distance, the Rolls-Royce’s front end was buried in a collapsed earthen wall, white smoke sputtering weakly from it.

The driver staggered out from the passenger side door, coughing as he shouted, "Sir, ma’am, are you both alright?"

Yu Jingmo, still carrying Tian Ruan, walked toward him with unshakable steadiness. "We’re fine."

Tian Ruan eyed Yu Jingmo’s legs suspiciously. "You’re really okay? Your legs don’t hurt?"

"Do you want me to be hurt?"

"...No," Tian Ruan grumbled, annoyed. Was he taking over Yu Jingmo’s injury plotline? This was such a scam.

Since the estate wasn’t far, Yu Jingmo called the butler, instructing him to notify the bodyguards to secure the scene and report the incident to the police.

The doctor gave Tian Ruan’s foot a no-nonsense crack, snapping the dislocated bone back into place. Tian Ruan let out a sharp cry and instinctively chomped down on Yu Jingmo beside him.

The pain lasted only a moment, and Tian Ruan quickly released his grip, leaving behind a ring of teeth marks, already bruising, on Yu Jingmo’s wrist.

Tian Ruan stammered, "...Sorry."

Yu Jingmo said coolly, "You’re the first person who’s ever dared to bite me."

Tian Ruan shivered. "I’m sorry."

Suddenly, Yu Jingmo reached out and squeezed Tian Ruan’s squishy cheek. "Now we’re even."

The butler beamed warmly. "So *adorable*, you two~"

"..."

Yu Jingmo remained expressionless as he withdrew his hand and headed to wash his hands in the bathroom.

Security cameras caught a man dressed entirely in black, wearing a cap and mask, loitering shiftily near the entrance of *Deyin High*.

The security guard came out once, and the man seemed to exchange a few words with him before pretending to leave, only to slink back and make a beeline for the underside of Yu Jingmo’s Rolls-Royce to sabotage it.

The driver had been gone—missed it completely.

"Mr. Yu, we’ll handle it," the police assured him.

"Thanks for your help." Yu Jingmo personally saw them out.

The autumn wind swept fallen leaves in the courtyard. Tian Ruan sighed, "Winter’s coming for the king."

Yu Jingmo glanced at him. "You know it's the Wang family?"

Tian Ruan hesitated. "I was just making a metaphor. Which Wang family are you talking about?"

"Wang Peng Gaofei."

Tian Ruan pressed his lips together to suppress a laugh. "A four-character name—pretty Mary Sue."

Yu Jingmo didn’t respond. The number of characters in the Wang family's name didn't matter—they'd soon be gone anyway.

The butler, also surnamed Wang, shook his head repeatedly upon hearing their discussion. "What a disgrace to the Wang name."

About a week later, Su City's media rushed to report that the Wang family had collapsed, exposed for tax evasion. Left with nothing but an empty shell, they couldn’t cover hundreds of millions in yuan in unpaid taxes. The Wang family members were hauled off to jail, their followers scattering like rats abandoning a sinking ship.

Only one son, Wang Badan, was jumped by unknown attackers, leaving both legs crippled. He abandoned his wife and children, fleeing abroad—vanished without a trace.

This pawn was also a hidden danger, evident from the author's naming style—Wang Badan (literally "bastard").

Yu Jingmo hired a private investigator to look into it, but Tian Ruan knew that soon enough, Wang Badan would return, attempting to take Yu Shang hostage for revenge—though, of course, the end result would only serve to advance the main couple's relationship.

With plot armor in place, Tian Ruan wasn’t worried about the protagonists. He should be more concerned about himself—already caught in the early stages of a conflict, with danger threatening his life.

He needed to escape this mess.

That evening, Yu Ti and Yu Shang returned together.

The moment Yu Ti saw Yu Jingmo and Tian Ruan, she gasped, "Uncle, Uncle Tian! Why didn’t you tell me about the car accident?"

"It was nothing serious," Yu Jingmo replied succinctly.

"Good people get lucky. That Wang family... yada yada..."

Yu Ti was dressed in De Yin High School's uniform—a white blouse and blue skirt, her hair tied in a high ponytail. Her baby-faced features bore no makeup, glowing like sunshine.

Tian Ruan couldn’t help but glance at her a few more times, reminded of the female classmate who had confessed to him.

"Uncle Tian, what are you looking at?" Yu Ti, parched from talking, gulped down a large glass of water. "Do you like my outfit?"

Tian Ruan quickly said, "That’s a cute outfit."

As soon as he spoke, Yu Jingmo side-eyed him.

Tian Ruan: "...I don’t mean I want to wear them. Just complimenting."

"It’s fine if you want to."

"I don’t." Tian Ruan’s face turned pink with annoyance.

Yu Ti chimed in, "Uncle Tian, I have several sets of uniforms—you can borrow one!"

Tian Ruan brushed them off and headed to the dining room.

Yu Ti stayed for dinner, rambling on endlessly about amusing school incidents even if no one responded. Yu Jingmo and Yu Shang showed little interest, but Tian Ruan was all ears—only to suddenly sink into gloom. He could never return to his school days...

Wait… really?

If I go to school, wouldn't that mean I can escape the drama of wealthy family politics??

Tian Ruan grew increasingly excited as he realized this path might actually work. The original story was a second-chance school romance, with two-thirds of it taking place in high school. Aside from a few key plot points, the rest of the time was carefree.

So the question was: how could Tian Ruan return to school?

Only Yu Jingmo could help him.

Early the next morning, Tian Ruan got up, put on the clothes the designer had sent him earlier, applied some fragrant moisturizer, and put on his sandalwood bracelet. He checked himself in the mirror—energetic and youthful.

He went downstairs and, just like any other morning, took a walk outside before coming back for breakfast. Liu Ma had made his favorite pan-fried pork buns (*shengjian bao*) as usual.

After breakfast, Yu Shang grabbed his leather schoolbag and was heading out for school.

Even the schoolbags at Deyin Academy were seasonally themed. The autumn bag was a caramel brown color scheme, complementing the crisp white uniform and giving it the elegant look of birch bark.

Tian Ruan finally understood where his envy came from: "Wait a second."

Yu Shang turned around, puzzled. Yu Jingmo happened to be putting on his brown-gray coat, ready to head to work. He walked over to Tian Ruan and casually said, "Stay at home. Don’t wander off."

Apart from visiting Sha Meijuan in the hospital, Tian Ruan hadn’t gone anywhere these days. He automatically responded, "I know... Wait, I have something to say."

Yu Jingmo’s piercing gaze turned to Tian Ruan—neither distant nor particularly warm.

Tian Ruan took a deep breath. For the sake of going to school, he went all out. He managed to produce two shaky tears: "Darling, I want to go to school too."

Yu Jingmo froze: "...What?"

Tian Ruan: "Husband, I want to go to school."

The usually composed Yu Shang’s expression fell apart.

Though Yu Jingmo didn’t crack, he looked like he'd been struck by lightning.