TAO | Chapter 83

Wei Xiaochi adjusted the crooked strap of his backpack before looking up at Jiang Zhan. “I didn’t go home yesterday, so I have to go back today.”

Jiang Zhan, on the other hand, was totally self-assured. “So what if you don’t go back? She’s not even your real mom—she can’t control you.”

Wei Xiaochi mumbled, “You can’t say it like that.”

Jiang Zhan frowned, clearly not reassured. “Is she good to you? Does she ever bully you?”

Wei Xiaochi replied, “It’s… okay.”

Jiang Zhan’s brow furrowed deeper. “‘Okay’ as in good or bad? Just give me a straight answer.”

Wei Xiaochi scratched his head awkwardly. Jiang Zhan was the kind of person who was straightforward to the extreme—he couldn’t stand ambiguity.

But the world wasn’t black and white. Most of it was shades of gray, and so was Fang Yuan. It was hard for Wei Xiaochi to label her as simply “good” or “bad.”

“Well…” Wei Xiaochi chose his words carefully. “Her energy is limited. She has her own biological kids, but she treats me alright. She’s never deliberately made things hard for me.”

Jiang Zhan gave his judgment: “Then she’s not that great!”

Wei Xiaochi: …

Jiang Zhan asked again, “That grandma of yours still living at your place?”

Wei Xiaochi didn’t know why he was asking that, but he nodded.

Jiang Zhan: “Didn’t you tell me before you don’t get along with her? Then why is she still freeloading at your house?”

Wei Xiaochi was shocked by his use of the word freeloading. “She—she just doesn’t get along with me. She’s really close with my dad.”

“You don’t get along with your stepmom, your grandma doesn’t like you, so what are you still doing living there?” Jiang Zhan turned away. “I’ve got plenty of rooms at my place.”

Wei Xiaochi was speechless, caught off guard by what he was hearing.

He didn’t have much of a father-son relationship with Wei Dongjia, and yeah, living at home was suffocating. He had imagined that one day he’d be kicked out, or that once he got into college, he’d reduce his time at home.

But he never thought about leaving home now—let alone moving in with Jiang Zhan.

They were only eighteen, still in high school. In their parents’ eyes, they were just kids. How would Jiang Zhan’s parents ever agree to that?

So he didn’t take it seriously. He only said, “My grandma doesn’t like my mom, not me. We don’t really have personal issues.”

Jiang Zhan whipped around, clearly annoyed. “What are you even trying to say?”

Wei Xiaochi tugged at the seam of his pants, then slowly let go. “We’re still young. Didn’t you say we’d live together in college?”

Jiang Zhan kicked the tree next to him, sulking. “College is college. That’s then. This is now. One doesn’t cancel out the other.”

He looked like he was one step away from dragging Wei Xiaochi back to his “den” and locking him up for good.

Seeing how serious Jiang Zhan was, Wei Xiaochi felt like someone had smacked him on the head. Everything felt light and dizzy, his heart thudding like mad.

He asked nervously, “Why are you suddenly talking about me moving in with you?”

Jiang Zhan replied like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “You said you’re not happy at home, right? If you’re not happy, then move out. I have so many rooms—what, you think there’s no space for you?”

Wei Xiaochi’s throat was dry. He licked his lips. “I never said I wasn’t happy living at home.”

Jiang Zhan kicked the tree again, more annoyed now. “One minute you say this, the next you say that—I don’t even know which version is real.”

Wei Xiaochi stood behind him like a kid who’d done something wrong.

After a long pause, he tugged at Jiang Zhan’s sleeve. “Don’t be mad. Let’s wait until we’re a bit older.”

Wait until after the college entrance exam. Wait until they had some autonomy. If he moved into Jiang Zhan’s house now, what would Jiang Zhan’s parents think of him?

Forget about Jiang Zhan’s parents—even at their age, who would believe they could really last?

The Jiang family may love and spoil Jiang Zhan, but when it came to something this big, they might not be so indulgent. This wasn’t some little prank—it was a matter of their entire future. No way they’d let them mess around.

Jiang Zhan looked at Wei Xiaochi. “So did they bully you or not?”

Wei Xiaochi shook his head.

Jiang Zhan: “You’re doing part-time work because your family’s poor and you have to help out financially?”

Wei Xiaochi nodded.

Jiang Zhan clearly didn’t believe him. He squinted at Wei Xiaochi, trying to catch any signs he might be lying.

Jiang Zhan wasn’t normally a meticulous guy, especially when it came to family stuff—he always gave people the benefit of the doubt.

But earlier that afternoon, Han Ziyang had casually said something that started to shift Jiang Zhan’s view.

In Han Ziyang’s eyes, Jiang Zhan had always been the coolest guy alive. Still was. After all, who else had the guts to collect recyclables and make it a school-wide event?

Across the whole of No. 2 High, only his bro Zhan could pull that off.

But lately, his cool bro was getting way too down-to-earth. It was kind of throwing Han Ziyang off. So finally, he couldn’t hold it in anymore and asked, “Is Wei Xiaochi’s family, like… really poor?”

Who else could get Jiang Zhan to help collect trash and do part-time gigs on weekends? No one but Wei Xiaochi.

Just how bad were things at home if a high school student had to use his rest days for such tough jobs?

Han Ziyang’s comment made Jiang Zhan think. And once he started thinking, a lot of things started to click. Especially what Wei Xiaochi said last night—it just didn’t sit right.

He had a biological mom he didn’t talk to. A grandma who didn’t like him. A dad who remarried and had twins.

This whole family setup was… complicated.

But even so, Wei Xiaochi absolutely refused to admit he was suffering at home. Still, Jiang Zhan saw the tension on his face and locked onto it like a hawk.

“What’s with that expression? Are you lying to me?” Jiang Zhan stared at him without blinking, catching every micro-expression.

Wei Xiaochi stammered, “Y-You staring like that is making me nervous.”

Jiang Zhan shot back, “If you’re not lying, why’re you nervous?”

Wei Xiaochi: “Even if I’m not lying, I’d still get nervous with you staring like that!”

Okay, that part was actually true. Anyone would feel uncomfortable being stared down like that—classic weak-psyche response.

Jiang Zhan didn’t know what to say to that, but he still wasn’t willing to let it go. “Then prove it. Let me stay at your place for two nights.”

Wei Xiaochi looked at the tall, handsome alpha in front of him and called his name softly, “Jiang Zhan.”

The moment he heard it, Jiang Zhan instantly dropped all his attitude, standing there quietly with a faint sense of unease.

Wei Xiaochi’s eyes were calm, like a deep, bottomless lake. He said quietly, “Just take me home.”

Jiang Zhan opened his mouth but only managed to reply with a soft “Mm.”

—

Neither of them spoke the whole way back.

When they arrived at the gate of Wei Xiaochi’s building, Jiang Zhan looked at the run-down apartment complex, then quickly glanced away and didn’t bring up the idea of staying over again.

He just asked, “Tomorrow’s Saturday. You figured out where you wanna work yet?”

Wei Xiaochi didn’t answer. Instead, he asked, “Are you really planning to apply to a school near J University?”

His tone was unusually serious.

Jiang Zhan gave him a shy little side-eye. “Didn’t I already say we’re gonna rent a place together? How many times you want me to say it, huh?”

Wei Xiaochi: …

He was trying to have a serious conversation about their future, but Jiang Zhan looked like he thought they were flirting.

“Then let’s look for a half-day job,” Wei Xiaochi said cautiously, testing the waters. “In the afternoons, I’ll tutor you. Is that okay?”

Jiang Zhan: “Mm.”

Wei Xiaochi hesitated, then shared what was on his mind. “I want you to see some improvement by the end of this term.”

Jiang Zhan: “How much improvement?”

Wei Xiaochi thought for a moment. “At the very least, every subject should be passing. And next term, I’ll be a bit stricter. Can you handle it?”

There was a pretty big gap between their family backgrounds, and Wei Xiaochi wasn’t sure if Jiang Zhan’s parents would ever accept him.

But just like Jiang Zhan said—if there’s a problem, solve it. And the only way Wei Xiaochi could think of to close that gap… was to help Jiang Zhan improve his grades, get into a good university.

At the very least, he wanted to show Jiang Zhan’s parents that they made each other better.

He wanted them to work hard together—for a future they could share.

⸻

Author’s Note:

The “puppy” (Jiang Zhan) has pretty much finished his first round of character development. He’s still gonna level up more, of course. But now it’s time for Chi Chi to start growing.

His family issues will be resolved—don’t worry. Hehehe.

I will make it satisfying for you guys.

Wait—I shouldn’t make promises like that. Let’s keep it realistic: you’ll be 90% satisfied. 😏