Chapter 66: The Rebellious Adopted Son (1)

Before Xie Hui arrived, the client had just received a call from the boy’s homeroom teacher. She reported that the boy was disobedient in junior high school, even dyeing his hair in multiple colors, which severely affected the class’s image.

The teacher also mentioned his grades—within just two months, he had plummeted from the top of the grade to the very bottom.

If his performance in the next semester’s entrance exam remained this poor, he wouldn’t be able to stay in his current class.

Xie Hui watched as the boy sat there with his shoes still on, carelessly stepping onto the sofa. A vein on his forehead twitched.

The client had a short temper, so he couldn’t help but scold him when he saw this behavior. Even someone as patient as Xie Hui found it hard to tolerate watching dirty sneakers, fresh from the outside, trampling the couch.

Sometimes, only when you truly treat someone as your own child do you dare to scold and discipline them. You correct them because you don’t want them to grow up without manners.

If the client didn’t consider the boy his own, he could’ve simply let him grow up however he wanted, indulging him without correction, just fulfilling his responsibility until the mission ended.

But at this stage, the boy was already going through a rebellious period. On top of that, he believed the client was responsible for his biological father’s death, leaving him an orphan. This resentment, combined with teenage rebellion, clashed against the client’s rigid and uncompromising nature, only making things worse.

“It wasn’t me who called your homeroom teacher—she called me.”

Upon hearing this, Xie Ting sneered mockingly and continued shaking his leg in a careless manner. He lazily responded with an “Oh” and then prepared to lie down.

“Then tell my teacher that I’m done with school. Once I scrape by and finish junior high, I’ll go work in a factory where they provide food and housing.”

“I already told her that, but no matter what I say, she won’t take me seriously. She thinks I’m joking.”

From the client’s memory, this homeroom teacher was responsible and dedicated. Even though Xie Ting had fallen to the bottom of the class, she still went out of her way to convince the principal to keep him in her class, determined to guide him back on track.

Xie Ting was failing miserably in every subject except for math—the one subject his homeroom teacher taught. He always scored full marks on math exams, as if getting anything less would make him feel guilty toward his teacher.

This was a tricky situation for Xie Hui. The hardest problems to solve were the ones without clear right or wrong answers. There was no way to make everyone happy.

“Coincidentally, summer break is coming up. I’ll take you somewhere. Once we return, if you still feel the same way, I’ll respect your decision.”

Seeing the fleeting look of surprise on the boy’s face, Xie Hui immediately understood—he wasn’t truly trying to ruin his future. That was the best-case scenario. As long as Xie Ting hadn’t given up on himself, Xie Hui was confident he could pull him back onto the right path.

The reason he dared to say this was because he already had a solid plan to change the boy’s mind.

“Fine, but you said it. Then I won’t bother taking the final exams. Waste of time.”

Xie Ting propped one foot up on the sofa and glanced at Xie Hui’s reaction from the corner of his eye.

“No. Until we’ve done what we need to do, you must behave like a good student.”

Xie Ting frowned and sat up, grabbing his school bag. Standing in front of Xie Hui, he scowled impatiently and muttered, “Got it. Just this once.”

After speaking, he stomped back to his room and slammed the door shut, making a loud noise.

The client’s job had been arranged for him by his former superior when he retired. The salary was average, but the benefits were good, and most of his colleagues were old comrades from the military. Taking leave was relatively easy.

Especially when his superior learned the reason—helping to educate Xie Ting. Without hesitation, he approved two and a half months of leave.

No one wants to witness tragedy unfold during a mission. Survivors live with guilt, carrying a heavy burden that can feel worse than death itself.

After carefully analyzing the situation, Xie Hui knew there was no real solution to this problem. The truth was that Xie Ting’s biological father could have survived—but he died saving the client.

From Xie Ting’s perspective, the client was the one who took his family away from him.

This kind of knot couldn’t be untangled. But fortunately, the client wasn’t asking Xie Hui to resolve the past—only to make sure the boy grew up properly. No matter what, he couldn’t let things play out as they did in the original timeline.

A boy who had once been the top student of his grade ended up working in a factory, losing an arm due to a machine malfunction.

In the original world, when Xie Ting insisted on dropping out, the client had tried everything to change his mind, but nothing worked. Their family became a laughingstock in the neighborhood.

When Xie Ting refused to go to school no matter what, the client beat him—so hard that he even broke a belt in the process. Afterward, in a fit of regret and frustration, he worked himself into a hospital stay.

While the client was hospitalized, Xie Ting quickly found himself a factory job.

After the final exams, he arrogantly placed his report card—scoring all zeroes—right in the middle of the living room, ensuring the client would see it as soon as he got home from work.

That day, Xie Hui returned very late. He hadn’t even had time to cook, so he brought back takeout for Xie Ting.

As he unlocked the door and changed his shoes, he noticed the report card sitting on the shoe rack. He paused for a moment before tucking it into a cabinet and knocking on Xie Ting’s door.

“What?”

A grumpy voice came from inside before the door was flung open. Xie Ting stood there, scowling.

“I got home late and didn’t have time to cook. I brought you your favorite braised chicken.”

Xie Hui opened the takeout container and grabbed a pair of chopsticks from the kitchen.

The client seemed like a rough and straightforward man, but in reality, he remembered all the small details about the boy’s habits.

For instance, although Xie Ting loved restaurant food, he absolutely hated using outside chopsticks—whether disposable or not. But he had no such issues with the takeout container itself.

“Oh.”

Xie Ting walked over to the sofa, picked up his chopsticks, and started eating from the takeout box. Halfway through, he remembered what this man had said before and tilted his head back to ask,

“You haven’t forgotten what you told me before, have you? About taking me somewhere, and after that, you wouldn’t be meddling in my business anymore.”

Xie Hui was in the kitchen, filling the kettle with water. He placed it on the base and switched it on before stepping out to answer.

“I haven’t forgotten. Pack your things tonight. Our flight is at noon tomorrow.”

It was precisely because of this matter that Xie Hui had returned so late.

He had no way to resolve this child’s emotional struggles. If he put himself in Xie Ting’s shoes, he wouldn’t be able to either.

If this kid realized that he held feelings of affection and attachment toward the client, he might even see it as a betrayal of his father. The guilt would make him gradually suppress those feelings, which would only lead to greater rebellion.

So Xie Hui wasn’t in a hurry to deal with this matter yet. Right now, at this critical time, the most important thing was to keep the kid focused on his studies.

“You couldn’t have told me earlier?”

Hearing Xie Hui’s words, Xie Ting nearly choked. After coughing twice, he instinctively retorted.

“Is telling you now too late?”

After the water boiled, Xie Hui poured himself a cup and then poured one for Xie Ting, leaving it to cool.

Seeing Xie Hui’s righteous attitude, Xie Ting gritted his teeth and squeezed out a response.

“No, it’s not late.”

“Good. Remember, no electronic devices or snacks.”

After giving this instruction, Xie Hui went back to his room to pack. He hadn’t packed his own things either. The main reason for the rush was that he was worried the summer break wouldn’t be long enough. If they delayed any further, it might affect Xie Ting’s studies.

The sooner they went, the sooner they could return. If Xie Ting wanted to study after coming back, he could still enroll in a tutoring class.

The next morning, after breakfast, they took a taxi to the airport. Once on the plane, Xie Ting put on an eye mask, making it clear he didn’t even want to say half a word to Xie Hui.

He had already prepared himself for complete self-destruction after this trip, so he couldn’t even be bothered to ask where they were going.

Even if this man was taking him straight to the underworld, he wasn’t going to change his mind.

This time, their destination was Sichuan. Xie Hui had made arrangements in advance.

Upon arrival, they spent a night at a hotel. Xie Hui went out to buy some supplies, packing them into a large hiking backpack, and also bought two sets of clothes for Xie Ting.

Unfortunately, when they returned to the hotel, Xie Ting showed no appreciation at all, tossing the clothes aside and refusing to take them.

Xie Hui, unlike the client, didn’t get angry. He simply picked up the clothes and put them into his backpack.

It didn’t matter if Xie Ting didn’t want to wear them now—he was sure that soon enough, the boy would be begging for them.

Early the next morning, Xie Hui woke Xie Ting up, checked out of the hotel, and took him to their destination.

It was only a few days into the summer break in July, and Xie Ting was already being dragged to this place. He was only wearing a relatively thin jacket, and when they arrived, he zipped it up to the top in the freezing cold.

Even in this season, Mount Jiajin was still covered in thick snow. Seeing the place, Xie Ting frowned and couldn’t help but entertain an absurd thought—

Was this man so fed up with him that he brought him here just to beat him up in the snow and then bury his body?

“I heard from your father that your grandfather was also a soldier, unlike me, an orphan who grew up in an orphanage. If not for the country’s policies, I wouldn’t have even been able to afford school.”

“Because I was an orphan, and since your father and I had the same surname, he took care of me a lot after we enlisted together.”

“Sometimes, I even thought… no matter how you look at it, it would’ve made more sense if I had been the one to die back then.”

As they walked, Xie Hui spoke about the past. These were the client’s most genuine, deeply buried thoughts.

He had no family or romantic partner—his death wouldn’t have mattered. If he had died, it would’ve been enough if just two comrades occasionally remembered to visit his grave.

The client had always been too strong-willed. No matter what, he never wanted to tell Xie Ting about the hardships he had endured. As a result, in Xie Ting’s memories, his father lay buried underground while the client seemed to be living carefree.

Standing in front of a memorial monument, Xie Hui turned around to look at Xie Ting, who was already panting heavily after such a short walk. His voice remained steady as he said,

“I didn’t bring you here for anything else—I just wanted you to walk the same path your grandfather once walked.”