Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
An’an’s face was covered in tears, she covered her mouth with her hands so that she wouldn’t make any sound.
Her heart was aching so much seeing him in such a state.
She wanted to help him with his pain, but there was nothing she could do.
The only thing she could do was watch him suffer without having any idea of how to help.
“Hello, Miss An’an, I’m Li Si. An Xi and I are from the same village as Yan Zi,” said Li Si.
An’an sniffled and wiped away the tears on her face. She looked at Li Si and replied respectfully, “Hello.”
Li Si looked in Lu Yan’s direction. “Miss An’an, has Yan Zi ever told you about his childhood?”
His childhood?
Lu Yan was adopted by Lu Jinwen from the beggar’s den when he was in his teens. She never knew anything about his past and Lu Yan never mentioned anything about it to her.
An’an shook her head. “No.”
“Many things have happened to Yan Zi but since he has never told you about them, I’m not in any position to divulge his matters. But I can tell you something about him.
“There’s no such things as fairytales on this earth. Yan Zi wasn’t some illegitimate child from a wealthy family, and he doesn’t have any kind of prestigious identity like one of those young masters. He is just an ordinary child who grew up in a village.
“Yan Zi’s father had passed away when he was only nine years old. His father was a thief and murderer, he had robbed someone and a soldier had witnessed him committing the act. And so, his father killed that soldier and was subsequently caught and sent to jail. He had only served a few months of his sentence before he passed away in jail. Yan Zi didn’t even have the chance to see his father for the last time.
“Yan Zi’s mother was just an ordinary housewife who was illiterate and she could only earn some money by helping others with some needlework. When the news of Yan Zi’s father’s passing was spread to the village, Yan Zi’s mother instantly became a widow. The village wasn’t as innocent as we all thought it would be, it’s just that we can’t see the hidden evils of it.
“When Yan Zi came home from school one day, he saw with his very own eyes, his mother was in bed with the village head. Yan Zi’s mother then jumped into the river and committed suicide after being caught red handed by her own son. From that day onwards, Yan Zi became an orphan.
“After that incident, Yan Zi quit school and became a beggar. He was totally unkempt and that situation of his lasted for a few years. The only good thing that happened to him was Lu Jinwen’s appearance. Lu Jinwen brought him back to the Lu family and adopted him. I’m sure that Miss An’an is aware of everything that happened subsequently.”
An’an gaped at Li Si. This was her first time hearing about Lu Yan’s past and she didn’t know… she didn’t know that he had such a past.
Everything seared through her mind, she stood there, at a loss on how to react.
Lu Yan had been rebellious his entire life and even after being adopted by the Lu family, he was never able to fit into the high society. He was still involved in the underworld, fighting for the piers and even his college degree was fake. He had never studied for a degree.
Oh that wasn’t right, he actually had gone to college. He would pick a few days in a month to bring his underlings into campus. He drove a Bentley that was worth millions of dollars when college students didn’t even own cars at that time.
The 20 year old Lu Yan wore a white tee shirt, holding a cigarette in one hand and the other was holding a black trench coat over his shoulders. Center partings were the in thing last time and he walked around campus just like a gang leader, with many underlings following behind him.
Many of his schoolmates would run outside to just catch a glance of him, especially the girls. They would all stand on their toes to peek at him, their faces all flushed red.
He was mature since a long time ago and would flirt with girls at a young age. When he lifted his head and looked at the girls peeking at him from upstairs, he would just whistle.
The girls were all shocked, their hearts palpitated.
The principal and dean would always have a headache once they saw him on campus. If it wasn’t for Lu Jinwen, they would have closed the doors in his face and not allow such a gangster to appear on campus.
He was undermining the school practices!
He was attending an elite school previously and his female schoolmates were all beloved daughters of distinguished families.
Li Si looked at An’an and smiled. “Miss An’an, this is Yan Zi. He doesn’t have a distinguished family background and don’t just judge him by the cover. Even though he seems to be normal now, you two are from vastly different worlds.”
An’an froze. She suddenly realized why Li Si was telling her so much. He was probably paving the way for his last sentence.
“What’s your intention in saying all of this?” An’an asked.
Her eyes were even more lustrous after crying. Li Si knew for a fact that she was an intelligent girl.
“Miss An’an, Yan Zi and you are from vastly different worlds. If the two of you really get together, you’re going to be tired and for him, even more so. He probably won’t be able to give you whatever your heart desires and you’re not going to be able to understand what he is going through. And so, I hope that you’ll leave him.”
An’an understood his words, he was trying to encourage them to breakup.
She used to be able to just ignore all of those people encouraging them to breakup, but Li Si was different. He was Lu Yan’s best friend. He had known Lu Yan since he was a child.
An’an smiled. “Li Si, how do you know what kind of world I live in and how do you even know what my heart desires?”
Li Si froze.
“My brother is Gu Mohan and it is only because of him that I can enter the socialite circle in the Capital. There are many wealthy heirs chasing after me and I have many different options available.
“But you probably don’t know this. I’m an illegitimate child. My mother only conceived me after getting drunk and having an affair with someone else. You probably don’t know this either, but I was born with leukemia and I was given away to human peddlers when I was six years old, by my mother’s husband. You probably don’t know that when Lu Yan kicked open the door to save me, I wasn’t even wearing any clothes and those peddlers were hitting me with a whip…”
Li Si’s gaze softened, and he looked at An’an in a daze.
An’an didn’t look in Li Si’s eyes anymore, she turned her head and looked in Lu Yan’s direction and muttered, “I’m not who you think I am, I am not someone in the ‘higher class’. You may not understand this, but we belong in the same world. No one knows that only he can provide what my heart desires.”
Li Si looked at her, he knew that he had clearly failed in trying to break them up. She hadn’t agreed to leaving Lu Yan and he could see the determination in her set jaw and clear eyes.
Although Li Si felt bad for her as he heard her parentage and past, his intentions remained unchanged. He still felt that Lu Yan and An’an weren’t compatible.
That was because, An’an still didn’t know Lu Yan’s real identity.
Li Si wasn’t trying to get An’an to pity Lu Yan by telling her about Lu Yan’s past. Lu Yan didn’t need anyone’s pity. The only thing Lu Yan deserved was everyone’s respect.
He was just like an eagle that should be free to fly around, never to be burdened by anyone. He should never have any weaknesses.
But now, a girl named An’an had become his weakness.
And she was going to cost him his life.
Lu Yan was already heavily burdened. This girl should never cause him to have even more burdens.
