Chapter 632: Chapter 630: The Kindhearted Father (Part 9)
After the incident, the Commissioner did not tell Zhuo Qiaoqing about it. For a girl her age, this kind of thing is hard to talk about, especially considering the family situation.
She tried her best to hide this secret, but her heart gradually twisted. Every time Ran Zhengfeng ignored her, it twisted even more. She grew to hate the orphanage and Wei Yue, both of which Ran Zhengfeng cared about.
She could no longer be a good student and at most only pretended to be obedient in front of Zhuo Qiaoqing.
But she couldn’t keep up the act for long, and her grades reflected her state.
That time, after Zhuo Qiaoqing took the students to a competition, she returned home and had an unpleasant argument due to Ran Zhengfeng’s plan for the house, which kept her from noticing anything wrong with the Commissioner. By the time she noticed, many things could not be undone.
The Commissioner still did not tell Zhuo Qiaoqing what had happened at that time. Zhuo Qiaoqing, meanwhile, was determined to divorce Ran Zhengfeng, thinking that maybe after she left, Ran Zhengfeng did something that caused their daughter’s drastic change in personality and the decline in her academic performance.
It did have some relevance to Ran Zhengfeng. Their family all worked at the same school, and they had only one car. Ran Zhengfeng and Zhuo Qiaoqing would alternate in driving, but they didn’t always go home together.
If someone had to stay at school for a long time, they wouldn’t drive home, but whoever drove had to take the child.
After Zhuo Qiaoqing took the students to a competition, the Commissioner went home with Ran Zhengfeng. But at that time, Wei Yue was sick and hospitalized, and almost all of Ran Zhengfeng’s thoughts were with Wei Yue.
That day, the Commissioner got into Ran Zhengfeng’s car and was told it was Wei Yue’s birthday. They would first pick up a cake from the bakery before going to visit Wei Yue in the hospital. Jokingly, Ran Zhengfeng asked the Commissioner if she had prepared a birthday gift for Wei Yue. In the past, on her birthdays, Wei Yue did prepare gifts for the Commissioner, but she never appreciated it and had no interest in being friends with someone who took all her father’s attention.
So for Wei Yue’s birthday, she would not prepare a gift.
This time was no exception. The Commissioner said she wouldn’t go, nor would she prepare a gift for Wei Yue. They weren’t close and not even friends.
Ran Zhengfeng felt she was being unreasonable and petty, and the two argued fiercely in the car.
The Commissioner said she needed to go home and do her homework and asked to be taken home first, but Ran Zhengfeng, still angry, thought she was being unreasonable. Although he didn’t tell her to get out, he insisted on first going to the hospital as planned.
The Commissioner couldn’t bear the situation any longer and immediately opened the car door and got out.
It was this act of getting out of the car that led to the incident. She encountered a group of hooligans, one of whom was a rich second-generation heir named Ma Zihou, notorious for bullying and harassing others. The Commissioner was forced into a car, given alcohol, and ended up in a daze, which eventually led to the tragedy.
In fact, before she was forced into the car, another group of people nearby witnessed the scene. One of them was someone she knew, named Du Tianyu, also from the orphanage and even helped by Ran Zhengfeng in the past. However, he just glanced over and indifferently turned away, with no intention of helping.
This Du Tianyu was on Wei Yue’s side, often feeling indignant for Wei Yue, thinking the Commissioner was too cold and unfeeling towards her, and harbored dislike for the Commissioner and her mother.
Perhaps seeing her being taken away made him feel it was the lesson she deserved.
The Commissioner deeply remembered his face and never forgot it her entire life. She thought even if he didn’t rush to help, at least reporting it to the police was the right thing to do, wasn’t it? She held onto some hope, but obviously, it was in vain.
Many years later, Du Tianyu regretted his actions from back then, feeling guilty and constantly trying to make amends to the Commissioner. However, no matter how much he tried or how humbly he compensated, the Commissioner felt no gratitude, only hatred.
Besides her mother, she hated the world, hated Ran Zhengfeng, hated Wei Yue, and hated the orphanage.
After her beloved mother left, her mind was filled with destruction. However, with her limited ability, she failed and ended up with a self-inflicted end. This, in turn, seemed to make Ran Zhengfeng appear pitiable. People said that luckily his kindness wasn’t in vain; even if his biological daughter failed, he raised a group of understanding children who were filial. It made his life worthwhile.
After that day, the household seemed to regain some peace.
Zhuo Qiaoqing had left, and Ran Zhengfeng couldn’t bring up money matters anymore.
On Sunday, he borrowed some money from a friend, but it was far from enough for Wei Yue’s treatment. He thought it best to wait until Zhuo Qiaoqing returned to discuss further.
In the morning, Ah Chen sat in the back seat as Ran Zhengfeng drove her to school.
In the afternoon, Ah Chen again sat in the back seat as Ran Zhengfeng drove her home.
Probably because of the previous outburst, Ran Zhengfeng had been behaving recently and didn’t mention taking Ah Chen to visit Wei Yue in the hospital.
Zhuo Qiaoqing called Ah Chen every day to check on her and ensure she wasn’t being bullied, only resting assured when she knew she was okay.
In fact, during the Commissioner’s time, Zhuo Qiaoqing was the same, but things were hidden from her.
When class was over, Ah Chen was discussing problems with classmates sitting in the front row, fully blending into the student life of her age, with nothing visibly different. She didn’t suddenly understand everything but was slowly improving based on the Commissioner’s academic standing.
Her desk mate was a very cute girl and one of the few who understood the Commissioner, named Chen Yijia.
Chen Yijia was from a wealthy family but had her share of troubles. Her mother passed away when she was young, and she now had a stepmother, with step-siblings born to her father’s new wife. Although wealth wasn’t lacking, some things money couldn’t make up for.
Perhaps because of this, Chen Yijia, though cheerful and lively on the surface, was quite mature and had a knack for considering problems from various angles.
However, Chen Yijia didn’t finish high school here. During the summer before her senior year, she went abroad. What happened afterward, the Commissioner didn’t follow up much, since her own life was in shambles.
But, if someone could hold a place in the Commissioner’s heart, Ah Chen would consider staying attentive, just in case. It would be ideal if there were no problems, but if any arose, she’d be willing to lend a hand.
"Why are you looking at me? Have you suddenly realized your sexual orientation is off? Do you find me beautiful and have a crush on me?" Chen Yijia waved her hand in front of Ah Chen, jokingly.
Ah Chen snapped back to her senses, grabbed her hand, and threw it aside, "High schoolers should watch less of that sort of thing."
"Hey, hey, hey, you really have no sense of humor," joked Chen Yijia, wrapping an arm around Ah Chen’s shoulder. "Don’t worry, I’m straight, as straight as an arrow."
Ah Chen chuckled, "Me too."
But she pretended to scrutinize Chen Yijia, "With you, I’m not so sure."
