Unconventional [Rebirth] - Chapter 104

Jiang Rui pursed his lips and looked at his mother’s pained expression. He let out a soft sigh, feeling none of the anger or resentment one might expect after being slapped by their father.

In truth, this was a slap he should have received in his past life.

“Dad, please, calm down first,” Jiang Rui said gently. He watched Jiang Jianjun, whose eyes were rimmed with red even after striking his son, his trembling hand now hidden behind his back.

Jiang Jianjun’s throat bobbed as he struggled for words, but he remained silent. Seeing that her husband had no intention of striking out again, Jiang Rui’s mother looked at her son’s swelling cheek with immense distress. She reached out with a trembling hand to touch his face, whispering, “Son… Rui Rui, does it hurt?”

“Mom, I’m fine,” Jiang Rui replied warmly. He gave her a reassuring smile, though the movement made him wince as it pulled at his injured cheek.

His mother’s eyes were swollen; she had clearly cried plenty since hearing the news. Seeing Jiang Rui now, her eyes were so dry and exhausted she could barely keep them open. Noticing her state, Jiang Rui discreetly sent a trace of “cool qi” toward her to help her regulate her emotions and physical strain. Once she calmed down, it would help her fall into a much-needed deep sleep later.

Inside the office, the Dean of Students was breaking out in a cold sweat. The moment Jiang Rui was slapped, the Dean felt as though the invisible aura radiating from the man beside him—Rong Jingtang—was cold enough to cause frostbite. It was late summer, and the air conditioning was unnecessary, yet an inexplicable, chilling gloom had filled the room.

The two school officials shuddered simultaneously. Finally, the School Secretary tremulously invited Jiang Rui’s parents to sit. Had the boy truly done something scandalous, the school would never have remained this polite.

Jiang Jianjun’s posture stiffened. He caught a glimpse of the red handprint on the face of the son he usually cherished above all else, and a wave of intense regret washed over him.

He had heard the rumors the moment he arrived on campus. Over the phone, the school administration had sounded extremely grave, demanding they come at once. Fearing that something terrible had happened to their son so far from home, the couple had shuttered their shop immediately, grabbed the few thousand yuan in cash they had on hand, and rushed to the capital.

They had spent three days on a train, eating the outrageously overpriced meals sold on board. Usually frugal, Jiang Rui’s mother hadn’t complained once; her only thought was to get there faster. Because they couldn’t reach Jiang Rui on his phone, their anxiety had reached a fever pitch. Consequently, hearing the vibrant, young students on campus whispering such foul things about their son had ignited a fuse of exhaustion and rage.

Jiang Jianjun couldn’t quite say if his first reaction to the rumors was relief or fury. Relief that his son was safe and sound, or fury that his habitually obedient child would be so rebellious as to fall for a man.

But looking at the situation now, it didn’t seem like what the students were saying. His son didn’t look like someone caught in a sordid affair. Furthermore, he recognized the two school leaders in the office, which left only one person: the man sitting next to Jiang Rui.

Though he now largely believed Jiang Rui was innocent, Jiang Jianjun remained wary. The man before him looked somewhat familiar, as if he were someone they should know, but Jiang Jianjun weighed his words carefully before asking, “Rui Rui, and this is…?”

Jiang Rui breathed a silent sigh of relief. He didn’t care about the slap, but “Lord Rong” was absolutely livid. If Jiang Jianjun weren’t his biological father, he likely wouldn’t have made it out of this office in one piece.

“Dad, Mom, don’t you remember?” Jiang Rui adopted a relaxed expression. He reached over to tug on Rong Jingtang’s sleeve and playfully poked the man’s cheek. “He’s our old neighbor, Brother A-Jing. You used to adore him, remember?”

Jiang Rui brought up the stories his parents loved to tell. As a child, Jiang Rui had been a little terror, always chasing cats and bothering dogs. Meanwhile, the boy next door—who loved to read, had perfect grades, and excelled at sports—had been the ultimate “prodigy child” other parents compared their kids to. Back then, Jiang Rui hadn’t felt a lick of jealousy; instead, he had been smugly proud that such an impressive “Brother A-Jing” belonged to him.

Rong Jingtang’s eyes lit up. The moment he heard the words “Brother A-Jing,” his entire aura shifted. His dark, brooding expression vanished, replaced by an attempt to look “kind and approachable” as he looked at Jiang Rui’s parents—though he still remained mostly expressionless.

Jiang Rui felt a bit embarrassed; asking Lord Rong to smile in front of people he wasn’t close to was a tall order.

Seeing the look of sudden realization on his parents’ faces, Jiang Rui added with a hint of feigned grievance to his mother, “Mom, remember those extra clothes I had as a kid? I swapped them with Brother A-Jing as souvenirs. I haven’t had the heart to throw them away all these years.”

Jiang Rui’s mother completely put her worries aside. She had always known her son played with girls as a child, and while he had been inseparable from Rong Jingtang, she figured younger children were always drawn to older ones. Back then, they thought Rong Jingtang was an orphan lacking family affection, so they had been especially kind to him. Jiang Rui used to stay at the Rong house, and Rong Jingtang often came over to their place for dinner.

“Oh, it’s A-Jing…” His mother’s voice was full of nostalgia. Looking at Rong Jingtang’s poised figure, she said kindly, “My, you’ve grown into such a handsome young man.”

Jiang Rui was only sixteen or seventeen, having skipped grades to enter university. In a normal family, a boy that age would still be a child leaning on his parents. To be close to a childhood playmate was natural, yet he had been maliciously slandered by others at school.

Realizing the truth, Jiang Jianjun’s expression became complicated. He watched his own hand open and close; he wanted to reach out and touch Jiang Rui’s face, but being naturally unexpressive, he ultimately sat back down in silence.

Jiang Rui understood his father’s actions perfectly. Having lived a second life, he now understood the things that had baffled him in the past.

Nothing in this world is closer than the bond of blood. In his previous life, even when he had come out and stayed with Ye Wenbin—and even when he faced imprisonment—the relatives he had argued with still fought tooth and nail to get him out. He hadn’t deserved it, yet they did it simply because of that blood connection.

His heart softened. He stood up, took two steps forward, and grasped his father’s hand. For the first time across two lifetimes, he held his father’s hand with genuine filial devotion. “Dad, look at you,” he said softly. “You’ve traveled three days—you must be exhausted.”

Both parents were showing the physical toll of the journey, especially the middle-aged Jiang Jianjun.

Seeing that his son bore no grudge over the slap, Jiang Jianjun trembled slightly. He looked at the fair-skinned, well-behaved boy crouching before him and finally couldn’t help but sigh. “Dad was wrong. Does it still hurt?”

He rubbed Jiang Rui’s cheek with his rough hand. He realized that aside from when Jiang Rui was a toddler, the two of them had rarely shared any physical affection. He felt a surge of relief and pride that his son hadn’t turned rebellious or resentful over a single mistake.

“It hurts!” Jiang Rui teased. Seeing his father’s flustered look, he burst into a laugh. “So, as compensation, you have to treat me to dinner tonight.”

Jiang Jianjun finally relaxed completely. Seeing Jiang Rui’s eyes crinkle with laughter, he repeated “Good, good” several times.

At this point, the two school leaders—who had been treated as invisible—finally found a chance to speak. The Secretary walked over with a solemn expression and spoke respectfully to Rong Jingtang. “Mr. Rong, the school will absolutely not tolerate such malicious incidents. We will conduct a thorough investigation immediately to ensure justice for both of you.”

Rong Jingtang adjusted his cufflink and said nothing, making it clear he had no interest in small talk.

Jiang Rui rolled his eyes inwardly and gave the Secretary a graceful way out. “The student responsible was likely just confused. Once the truth is out, perhaps we should give them a chance.”

According to school regulations, an incident with such a negative impact usually resulted in expulsion. And naturally, no other school would take a student expelled from a prestigious century-old institution like Peking University. Jiang Rui’s suggestion wasn’t out of the kindness of his heart.

If Ye Wenbin were expelled, he might create more rumors, claiming Jiang Rui used his “backstage power” to ruin him. This would lead the uninformed to keep believing his lies. But if he stayed at the school…

Jiang Rui smiled ironically to himself. Ye Wenbin had always maintained the image of a high-achieving, aloof “Prince Charming” from a wealthy family. Though he was now gaunt and his expensive clothes hid a mess underneath, some delusional girls still mistook it for a “melancholic, brooding” vibe.

Jiang Rui didn’t want to turn Ye Wenbin into a martyr. If pushed too hard, Ye Wenbin might lash out in desperation, which would be a nuisance. Instead, he wanted Ye Wenbin to watch as everyone he once looked down upon—including Huai Qing and Jiang Rui himself—lived lives a thousand times better than his.

For a man of Ye Wenbin’s petty character, seeing those he hated succeed would cause him to constantly compare himself to them, rotting away in “what ifs” for the rest of his life. He lacked the drive to actually achieve anything new; he would simply wither away in jealousy.

Jiang Rui lowered his gaze to hide his thoughts. It wouldn’t be hard to arrange.

The school wouldn’t actually expel someone over a forum post anyway; a formal demerit was already a significant punishment. After his parents spoke with the Secretary about his academic progress, Jiang Rui led them back to the apartment he had rented outside the campus.

He had joked about his father buying dinner, but what he really craved was his father’s signature braised noodles. Since the dish took over an hour to prepare, Jiang Rui convinced his exhausted parents to rest first. The adrenaline from their earlier anger had faded, leaving them drained. After a few parental reminders, they headed into the bedroom to sleep.