Chapter 8: Redemption (Part 2)

Chapter 8: Redemption (Part 2)

On Sunday morning, Mom gave Li Su twenty yuan and told him not to stay cooped up at home, but to take Li Shuo to the park.

Li Shuo was delighted, and he took Li Su's hand as they ran together toward the park.

Mom shouted from behind: "Don't fall!"

After sending the two children out to play, Mom planned to give the house a thorough cleaning.

She put away the toys in Li Su's room and was about to change the bedsheets.

Knock, knock, knock.

The sound of knocking came at the door.

Thinking it was Li Su and Li Shuo returning, Mom went to open it.

"Why are you back so soon? Did you run out of money?"

The door opened.

Outside stood two men in black suits, along with a middle-aged man in his fifties.

The man's every move was polite, like an aristocrat, which made Mom feel a bit uneasy.

"Uh, who are you?"

The man gave a slight bow to Mom: "Hello, Madam Li. I am the butler of the Song family. May I ask if young Master Li Su is at home?"

.

At a roadside stall near the park entrance, Li Su bought two candied hawthorn sticks and handed one to Li Shuo.

"Let's go skip some stones."

Li Su often played in the park from morning till night, and he'd already done everything fun there was to do.

He used to have five or six little friends, and even without exciting games, just hanging out together made him happy.

But now Li Su was alone, and he wasn't really in the mood to play.

Sitting on a rock by the stream, Li Su licked the candy shell off his hawthorn stick while feeling for stones on the ground.

He picked one that felt comfortable in his hand and threw it flat across the water.

Plop—plop.

It only skipped twice.

Li Shuo giggled beside him.

Li Su angrily jabbed Li Shuo with the bamboo skewer, but Li Shuo didn't flinch despite the pain.

"I'll find a better stone for you, big brother."

Li Su stopped poking him, and only then did Li Shuo crouch down and start seriously looking for stones.

"Big brother, this one's great!"

Li Su took the stone Li Shuo handed him. It wasn't flat at all, but pointed at both ends, not the usual shape for skipping stones.

"This kind won't work."

Li Shuo said seriously: "They will. If it's not good for skipping, I'll eat it!"

Li Su laughed at Li Shuo's remark and was determined to prove to him that this stone was no good.

He stood up, swung his arm, and wore the same serious expression as Li Shuo.

"Watch this!"

Li Su hurled the stone fiercely.

Thud!

The stone hit the water and sank straight down.

"See!"

Li Su, triumphant, went to tease the "ignorant" Li Shuo.

"Go pick it up and eat it!"

Unfazed, Li Shuo laughed twice, then rolled up his pant legs and waded into the water to find another stone.

Watching from the bank in delight, Li Su directed Li Shuo to also catch the fish swimming in the stream.

Suddenly, something flew and hit Li Su hard on the back of his head. Li Su stumbled forward, nearly falling into the water.

Li Shuo caught him with quick reflexes.

"How dare you come out in broad daylight?"

"I heard twisted psychos live in the dark."

"Hey, Hero Li, oh no, I mean Bear Li."

"Hahaha!"

Li Su steadied himself and turned to look.

It was the same group of kids who used to play hide-and-seek with him.

Four or five of them stood not far away on the bank, tossing small stones in their hands.

Li Su touched the back of his head and felt a little dampness.

He hadn't yet checked if it was blood.

Li Shuo quickly crouched down and stood back up, then shot out like an arrow.

Li Su shouted, but failed to stop Li Shuo.

Li Shuo held a sharp, long stone in his hand and lunged at the boy who had just made fun of them.

The others were scared and fled in all directions.

The boy was knocked to the ground, and Li Shuo's hand, clutching the sharp stone, was already close.

Whether he intended to shove the stone into the boy's mouth or poke his eyes out, the tip of the stone hovered right above his face. The boy gripped Li Shuo's arms with all his strength, using all his strength to hold him off.

"Are you crazy! Are you trying to kill me!"

Li Shuo turned a deaf ear, his grip tightening with even more force.

The boy was terrified, crying and pleading for mercy.

But Li Shuo paid him no attention.

He started shouting for Li Su instead.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Li Su, I was wrong! Please, I don't want to die! Tell him to stop!"

Li Su was already stunned.

Though he knew Li Shuo often got into fights at school, and fought fiercely, seeing it firsthand still shook him.

The ruthlessness in Li Shuo was completely different from the Li Shuo he knew.

The boy was so scared he peed himself, kicking his legs wildly.

Li Su rushed over unsteadily to Li Shuo, grabbing his hand to stop him.

"What are you doing? Didn't you promise me you wouldn't fight anymore!"

The boy yelled, "He's trying to kill me!"

Li Su's heart raced, and he simply grabbed Li Shuo around the waist and pulled him back.

After Li Shuo was dragged away, the boy scrambled away and fled, shouting as he ran.

"They're freaks, they're psychos! They want to kill people!"

Li Su was furious. He picked up a random rock and chucked it at the running figure.

The stone hit the boy's back, making him stumble and fall, but he quickly got up and ran even faster.

"Damn it!" Li Shuo muttered under his breath.

Li Su had never heard Li Shuo swear before and was taken aback.

Li Shuo seemed to realize he'd slipped up, quickly wiping the fierceness from his face and staring blankly at Li Su, unsure what to do.

"Bro, are you hurting?"

Li Su looked down at Li Shuo's hand, the one gripping the stone, now red and raw.

"Your hand's all cut up and bleeding, and you're worried about me?"

Li Su pried open Li Shuo's hand, finding a gash on his palm, with sand stuck to it.

Li Su gently blew the sand off, but Li Shuo reached with his other hand to feel the back of Li Su's head.

When he felt the lump from the hit, Li Su let out a sharp breath from the pain. Li Shuo pulled his hand back; there was nothing on his fingers.

"It's not bleeding," Li Shuo said.

Li Su shot Li Shuo a helpless glance, stood up, and pulled Li Shuo to his feet.

"Let's head home. Mom'll take care of your wound."

Li Shuo stood frozen.

"Mom'll know I got into another fight."

Li Shuo wasn't afraid of Mom knowing he fought; he was afraid she'd connect the fight to him going out with Li Su, and then forbid him from going out with Li Su again.

He'd already lost the right to go in and out of Li Su's room.

"Brother, let's go to the hospital. Your head's hurt too."

.

"Has PTSD, keeps having nightmares, constantly on edge, hasn't gotten better in over two months."

"When he wakes up from a nightmare, he always calls for Li Su. Whenever he's anxious, just saying Li Su's name calms him right down."

"Psych meds always have bad side effects. He's the Song family's key heir; he can't have any physical harm..."

.

"So you're saying Li Su is the cure for his trauma."

Mom and the man sat across from each other across the dining table.

The man's composure stood in contrast to Mom's nervousness.

"Yes, madam. I believe Li Su also suffers from some degree of post-traumatic stress disorder. Perhaps the two children together can overcome their fears and dispel the nightmares."

Mom was deeply opposed.

His goal was to take Li Su, to save that poor, troubled kid.

Of course, she wouldn't agree.

Even if that kid didn't mean harm, Li Su's experiences and the harm was still real. She was a mom; she didn't have time to forgive him, so how could she send her kid back into harm's way?

The man knew Mom wouldn't agree to such a request, but he came ready and was set on getting his way.

He pulled a file from his briefcase and handed it over.

"Please take a look, madam."

Mom took it reluctantly and opened it.

It was a contract, and it had a lot of fine print.

She read it for a long while.

It employed Li Su as Song Wuyi's tutor buddy, to transfer him to a fancy private school.

During that time, it would pay for everything: tuition, living costs, meals, room and board.

The deal was for six years, until Song Wuyi turned eighteen, when the contract would expire.

Mom couldn't find words for a long time.

The man spoke persuasively, "Madam, as far as I know, Li Su attends a regular public elementary school with mediocre teaching standards, and his academic performance is poor. Moreover, he's in a bad spot at school—kids shun him, teachers overlook him. There's no way he'll get into a good middle school by himself."

"As a mother, you must prioritize your child's future. Whether for Li Su's mental health or his future development, accepting this contract is all gain, no pain."

"We will take responsibility for the harm Li Su has suffered. During the contract period, we will hire the best nutrition team for his meals, conduct regular check-ups, and fully care for his health."

"You should have heard of this elite school. It offers a continuous program from elementary to high school, with top-tier national faculty and tuition of 400,000 yuan a year. Every student comes from a prominent family. Li Su will have access to the most elite social circles, broadening his horizons and knowledge in ways that staying in the Li family could never cultivate."

Mom's eyes quivered, as if struck by something falling from the sky.

She couldn't bring herself to accept, but she couldn't refuse either.

"Mrs. Li, we are not taking your child away from you. As a live-in study buddy, he'll only stay with the young gentleman during school terms. On holidays, winter and summer breaks, we'll send him back."

"You can think of it as sending Li Su to a boarding school."

Every word the man said emphasized how 'good' this was for Li Su.

Mom could find no reason to refuse.

She could sense Li Su becoming more withdrawn, going out to play less and less. She worried more about his mental health than his studies.

After Li Shuo got into a fight and she learned the whole story, she finally understood everything Li Su had been dealing with.

Over the past few days, she had been contemplating switching Li Su to a different school, weighing the school environment and the teaching quality.

But no matter how much she thought about it, she couldn't figure out how to provide a safety net for Li Su's life.

In her eyes, Li Su was a fragile vase, already cracked, vulnerable to shattering with the slightest blow.

And she had no way to reinforce it, only able to cradle it carefully and keep it safe.

She often hated her own ordinariness, blaming herself for not taking better care of him and for not being able to pave the smoothest path for his life.

Her son,

her flesh and blood,

the sole purpose of her life.

Mom was silent for a long, long time.

Keeping Li Su would leave him covered in dust.

Sending him away would gild him.

This was no choice for hesitation.

"Alright, I agree."

The man gave a satisfied smile.

"I hope you haven't made a hasty decision, Mrs. Li. Keep this contract and review it at your leisure. I'll come back another time. If you still give the same answer then, I'll take Li Su with me."