Chapter 69 – The Rebellious Adopted Son (4)

Curiosity is human nature. When Xie Ting heard what Uncle Wang said, he instinctively turned his head to take a look.

With just one glance, he saw a photo frame placed at the very top of the box. As if sensing something, Xie Ting lifted his head and stared at his dad.

Uncle Wang had also walked over to Xie Hui by then and picked up the photo frame at the top.

More than ten years had passed. No matter how well it had been preserved, the photo had still faded somewhat. The man in the photo wore a short-sleeved military green shirt and was grinning broadly at the camera, showing a mouthful of big white teeth.

This was the first time in his memory that Xie Ting had ever seen his father. His eyes instantly turned hot.

“This was taken the year your dad had just enlisted. He was on a break and went out with us to take some pictures. At the time, he said…”

Uncle Wang tried to recall, but his voice caught as he spoke.

“He said he wanted to show this photo to his kid one day, to let him know that his dad was once a pretty boy too.”

Later on, after all the sun and wind from training, even the fairest face grew rough.

There weren’t many photos left behind by Xie Ting’s father—just eleven in total. All had been carefully stored by the Client in that locked room. Almost every week, he would clean it thoroughly after the child had left for school.

When Xie Ting was young, he had poor health and often cried. Since he was too young to remember anything, it was strange that every time they let him look at his father’s photo, he would immediately quiet down.

Xie Hui picked up the bottom-most photo frame and handed it to Xie Ting. Seeing the boy’s hands tremble as he took it, he said softly:

“You broke this one when you were three years and two months old. You’d just come back from the hospital with a high fever. Even though the fever had subsided, you still cried at night. But when you were holding your dad’s photo, you wouldn’t cry anymore. You were so little back then, couldn’t hold it steady, and dropped it once. That corner chip happened from that fall.”

The Client never replaced that frame. He’d thought that once the child was grown, he’d tell him about it, and it would become a fond memory.

Uncle Wang still remembered that time too. He had helped transfer the child to another hospital, not sleeping for several days, afraid something would happen to Xie Ge’s kid.

Raising a child took tremendous care and effort—especially when they’re young. Xie Ting had been a mischievous boy. Once, when Xie Hui was cooking, he climbed a tree and ended up breaking his leg. Back then, Xie Hui carried him to the hospital every day.

He never once scolded Xie Ting, only blamed himself for not keeping a closer eye on the child.

That was also when the resentment Uncle Wang had held deep down—because Xie Ting’s father had died saving Xie Hui—finally dissipated.

Thinking of the Client’s past, Xie Hui’s emotions were also stirred. He coughed, trying to clear his throat, but his voice still came out hoarse.

“Before your dad died, he told me, if he’d known he wouldn’t make it back, he should’ve… should’ve taken more photos, so that even if you missed him, you’d at least have something to look at.”

Uncle Wang had been present back then too. Hearing Xie Hui say that now, he couldn’t hold back his tears. It wasn’t being sentimental—it was just impossible not to cry.

None of them ever regretted what they’d done. If given another chance, they’d make the same choices. That didn’t mean they missed their comrade any less.

The best-preserved photo was one they’d taken together. At the time, someone had even joked, “If we die one day, the photo they’ll put on the urn will probably be this one.”

Xie Ting clutched those frames tightly in his arms. From what his dad and Uncle Wang said, he could piece together the image of a father he had never met.

“This is a letter your dad and mom wrote back in the day.”

Back then, electronic devices weren’t yet widespread, and most communication was done by letter.

The box had initially only contained letters Xie Ting’s mother wrote to his father.

Later, after Xie Hui retired, he went to Xie Ting’s father’s hometown. At that time, Xie Ting’s grandmother was already very old, with no strength left to raise a child, but still holding on with sheer will.

Xie Hui took care of her in her final years and helped raise Xie Ting.

Despite his care, her health was too poor. She passed away within a year. Xie Ting’s mother had died from illness. At the time, his father was on a mission and had no idea his wife had passed.

When the mission ended and he returned, hearing his mother recount his wife’s last words, he locked himself in his room for two days without food or water.

In the end, the whole family was gone, leaving only Xie Ting behind—lovingly raised by Xie Hui.

After handling the old lady’s funeral, Xie Hui brought Xie Ting to the city. All the letters and mementos from the village house that had belonged to Xie Ting’s parents were sorted and brought along.

They were placed carefully in a box and preserved so well that the writing on the pages was still clearly visible.

From those letters exchanged between his father and mother, Xie Ting could feel their deep love for each other and for him. It was as if the words pierced right through the pages and into his soul.

Every single sentence seemed to tell him—your parents loved you. Loved you so, so much.

After the letters and photos, the next things Xie Hui brought out were the medals stored in another box.

These weren’t just Xie Ting’s father’s medals—there were also his grandfather’s. After his grandmother passed away, Xie Ting rarely returned to that old house, only occasionally going back to clean up.

Children get sick easily, and it wasn’t convenient to reach a hospital from there. Life had to go on, and the post-retirement job Xie Hui got came with great benefits.

Besides, Xie Ting had to go to school, and every parent wants the best for their child. It was only natural to assume that education in the countryside couldn’t compare to the city.

So, the Client packed everything from that old house in one go and brought it to their current home. In that locked storage room, everything had been carefully arranged and preserved.

Xie Ting gently traced the box containing the medals with his fingertips, and the more he looked, the more he wanted to go back and give his former rebellious self a good beating.

After everything had been shown, Xie Hui patiently packed the items away again, one by one.

Because whether it was for the Client or for this child, these were honors worth respecting—and preserving well.

Old Wang left early before it was over—he just couldn’t hold back his emotions. He was afraid he’d embarrass himself by crying in front of the kid, so he found an excuse and went home.

Xie Ting and his dad sorted everything out together. This time, they didn’t lock up that little room.

…

During dinner, at the table, Xie Ting promised his dad:

“Dad, I swear I’ll never be as willful as I was before. I’ll definitely study hard.”

Xie Hui gave him some food, smiled, and nodded.

“Mm, I believe you.”

That night, when he got back to his room, Xie Ting pulled out his textbooks and started studying seriously.

The things he used to ignore completely—he now treated with great care. He’d heard… that if your eyesight was too bad, you couldn’t join the military. Starting today, he was determined to protect his eyes well.

Fortunately, his fight with his dad hadn’t lasted long, and he hadn’t had time to do real damage to his health.

The phone his dad bought him—he had stubbornly refused to use it before, thinking it was a betrayal to his birth father to use anything bought by his adoptive one. He’d hidden it away in the cabinet, never even looking at it.

Xie Hui didn’t ask the kid to help with the dishes. After finishing the housework, he went back to his room, grabbed clean clothes, and took a shower.

Lying in bed afterward, he thought of what had happened in the original storyline—how Xie Ting had dropped out of school and gone to work in an electronics factory, only to lose an arm due to a machine malfunction.

Back then, the client had stood helplessly in front of the operating room, begging some vague, distant god to save the kid. He had knelt and knocked his head against the hallway floor, pleading with the doctors to save Xie Ting, saying the boy was still so young and had a whole life ahead of him—he couldn’t go through it with only one arm.

He even wished, if there really were gods, that he could trade his own life to let the child keep all his limbs.

Now, looking at how the kid was behaving, he probably wouldn’t do something so stupid anymore.

To Xie Hui, refusing to study was one of the dumbest things a person could do. Sure, people could take different paths and still succeed—but for an average family’s child, studying well was definitely the smoothest road.

Before Xie Hui could even look into tutoring options, Xie Ting’s homeroom teacher called. She asked if Xie Ting had time—if he did, she’d like him to come to her house so she could help him catch up on the lessons he’d missed.

Xie Ting’s homeroom teacher was excellent. She looked strict and didn’t smile much, but the number of awards she had could fill an entire wall.

After confirming with Xie Ting, Xie Hui personally brought a few pieces of fruit and dropped him off at her home.

He had considered bringing something more valuable, but Xie Ting had told him his teacher hated that sort of thing. She had even scolded parents before, telling them not to try underhanded tricks—she treated all students equally.

So Xie Hui just bought some fruit. Only after arriving did he realize the teacher lived in an upscale neighborhood—clearly well-off.

The teacher accepted the fruit but told Xie Hui, with a cold face, not to do that again. She just couldn’t stand seeing a good kid go to waste.

Aside from the subject she taught, the teacher also helped Xie Ting catch up on the rest of his courses.

Xie Hui returned to his job. It was a pretty relaxed position, with steady pay and, best of all, no stressful office politics.

After expenses, he could still save a decent amount. He had no intention of starting another business—he just wanted to live a peaceful life from now on.

Once Xie Ting was pulled back from going down the wrong path, his grades returned to the top of his class. Every weekend, he went jogging, calling it “physical training.”

All throughout middle school, Xie Ting consistently ranked in the top three. After getting into the city’s best high school, he pushed himself harder than ever.

One weekend, when Xie Hui was off work, Old Wang from next door came by with an old hen his mom had brought from the countryside.

He didn’t really know if it was good for health or not, but it definitely tasted better than store-bought chicken. He just wanted Xie Ting to have a taste.

As Xie Hui was preparing the chicken, he could see Xie Ting at his desk through the window, hunched over and working on exercises.

His teacher hadn’t assigned much homework. What Xie Ting was doing were extra problems he’d bought himself—studying with a focus that didn’t match his age.

“Why don’t you go out and play some games with your classmates or something? You’re always just studying.”

Xie Ting paused with his pen in hand, stood up, and walked to the window. Leaning on the sill, he called out to his dad:

“Dad, while others are playing games and watching videos, I’m grinding through more questions. I’ll crush my classmates with pure hard work.”

“After all, your son’s aiming for the National Defense University. How can I talk about dreams without putting in the effort, right?”

Xie Hui had mentioned once, on Xie Ting’s birthday, that his father had just missed the cutoff for the National Defense University by a few points and had been so angry that Xie Ting’s grandma gave him a good beating.

Ever since hearing that, Xie Ting had become obsessed with studying, like he was possessed.

“Well then, work hard and study.”

Xie Hui shrugged helplessly. Since it wasn’t affecting the boy’s health, he might as well let him be.

Not that Xie Ting needed any reminders—he already knew better than anyone how precious his body was.