Chapter 3

Chapter 3

If I wanted Teacher Lu and my dad to get married, I first had to plant a seed in their hearts, sparking an interest between two people who were originally strangers.

This required a bridge-me. I had to pull the strings from both ends.

My dad’s side would be easy to handle; the real challenge lay with Teacher Lu.

To get Teacher Lu interested in my father, I first had to earn her favor and trust myself.

So, building on my previous efforts, I began to look after Chen Zhen with even more meticulous care.

I observed how the mother and daughter interacted at school and proactively stepped in whenever help was needed. I took on every menial task imaginable, as long as it involved Chen Zhen.

However, there were limits to what I could do regarding her personal care since we were different genders. Instead, I focused more on chatting with Chen Zhen, getting her meals, and explaining schoolwork to her. Whether she actually understood was beside the point; I was mainly doing it for Teacher Lu’s benefit.

Teacher Lu was suspicious of my excessive diligence, but I had already prepared for that.

I told her that Chen Zhen looked very much like a cousin of mine whom I had looked after since childhood. Unfortunately, after my parents divorced, I had lost touch with my relatives on my mother’s side. Now, seeing Chen Zhen felt like seeing my own sister, and it gave me a sense of warmth and familiarity.

This answer served two purposes: it informed her that my father was divorced and planted the psychological suggestion of a sibling-like bond.

I also mentioned how much I loved Geography and Teacher Lu’s teaching style. Seeing how hard things were for her, I said I simply wanted to help out however I could. Besides, since I sat right behind Chen Zhen, it was only natural to lend a hand.

I was a good student, and Teacher Lu already had a high opinion of me, so her suspicions were quickly dispelled.

In turn, Teacher Lu began to look out for me. When she came to check on Chen Zhen during breaks, she would chat with me for a few minutes. If she prepared snacks for Chen Zhen, she’d bring a portion for me too. During self-study periods, she would invite us both to her office to do homework, and she even took me to her home for dinner a few times.

I felt a long-lost sense of being cared for, and my heart swelled with joy. Even though I was at school, it felt like being home.

Teacher Lu was gentle and kind, and she was beautiful too. While I called her “Teacher” out of respect, in my heart, I already thought of her as my mother.

To make Teacher Lu like me even more, I studied harder than ever. My grades skyrocketed, jumping from the top ten in class to the very top spot.

I pretended to love Geography, putting in a lot of extra work and frequently visiting Teacher Lu to ask questions. Over time, the pretense became reality, and I even won an award in a Geography competition.

Teacher Lu praised me for being clever and perceptive. As she spoke, she let out a soft sigh, her gaze falling on Chen Zhen, who sat with her head bowed, fiddling with a pencil.

I knew she was comparing Chen Zhen to me. I loved the feeling of being compared.

Chen Zhen was incredibly slow, both in her studies and in daily life. Something other children could learn in minutes might take her months.

It was impossible to tell whether her silence with her head down meant she wasn’t listening, didn’t understand, or understood but simply didn’t want to respond.

She couldn’t be motivated, nor could she be discouraged. She was a pool of stagnant water, undisturbed by any ripple. No matter what fell into her, it would never create a splash; it would only sink into the dark depths, lost forever.

Her response didn’t matter to me because I was just putting on an act. But Teacher Lu was different; she truly wanted Chen Zhen to get better.

For years, Teacher Lu had shown extreme patience, repeating things over and over, teaching her again and again.

But there were also moments of total breakdown.

I once peered through the office window and witnessed Teacher Lu hitting and scolding Chen Zhen. She slapped her palms, pinched her ears, and shook her body violently, crying and screaming-

“Look at Mommy! Are you even listening? Say something!”

“Why? What did I do to deserve this? What am I supposed to do with you…”

“Why is everyone else normal, but you have to be like this…”

Chen Zhen didn’t even try to hide. She just wailed, her face contorted into a bizarre, eerie expression that looked utterly abnormal.

This scene played out in slow motion before my eyes. I looked at the mother and daughter with a sense of mock-pity, wishing this moment would last a little longer, just a bit longer, so I could engrave it in my mind and savor every detail.

Look closely: Teacher Lu’s expression was a cocktail of complex emotions-pain, despair, helplessness, and resentment…

She was excellent and hardworking, earning the title of Special-Grade Teacher before she was even forty. Teachers of her caliber usually had happy families, successful children, and lived in high-end complexes. Yet, she was divorced, raising an autistic child alone, and living in a dilapidated old apartment building.

The school honored her, and the media reported on her; the word “strong” was never missing from the headlines. She possessed so many wonderful qualities, yet none were as defining as her “strength.” Everything else was overshadowed by it.

But wasn’t being strong a burden in itself?

She had no choice but to be strong. She had endured until now out of a heavy sense of responsibility, but after half a lifetime of pouring out her heart and soul, she could see no hope in her daughter.
It would be one thing if she were just simple-minded, but she should at least be able to call out for “Mom,” right?

But there was nothing. She was just a block of wood-no emotions, no brains.

A child like that, even if she is subjectively innocent and harbors no ill intent, is essentially a vampire. She endlessly drains her mother’s blood, injecting it into a diseased body with no future, dragging her mother down into the abyss along with her.

From the moment this child was born, her mother’s life was destined to be a tragedy. Teacher Lu hadn’t allowed herself any other options; she was determined to see this difficult path through to the end.

I sympathized with Teacher Lu from the bottom of my heart.

In the office, Teacher Lu held Chen Zhen and wept uncontrollably. After she finished hitting and scolding her, she was overcome with remorse, incessantly berating herself and apologizing over and over.

Chen Zhen had let out a few dry wails while being hit, but she quickly returned to her expressionless state. She remained motionless as her mother held her, not uttering a single word.

Suddenly, her eyes shifted mechanically, casting a gaze toward me outside the window.

Then she pulled her lips back into a grin, as if she were laughing.

That look and that smile came so suddenly that they made me shudder.

In that instant, I suspected she understood everything.

I felt depressed for a few days after that, and I didn’t speak to Chen Zhen for several days either.

As long as I didn’t seek her out, she wouldn’t remember me. She always sat bolt upright, facing forward. Her back never touched the edge of my desk, and not a single strand of her hair ever fell onto it. She gave me nothing but a silhouette-one that was clearly within arm’s reach, yet felt incredibly distant.

Later, I went to Teacher Lu to ask about some problems. Seeing how exhausted she looked, I offered a few words of concern.

She couldn’t help but pour out her bitterness and hardships, before finally saying, “Why am I telling a child like you all this?”

After a moment’s thought, I comforted her. “Every child is a gift. Perhaps Chen Zhen has talents in other areas that just haven’t been discovered yet. She’s actually very observant. Even though she doesn’t respond when you talk to her, she takes it all in. She knows how much you love her; she just doesn’t know how to express it. She’s already improved so much compared to before. Things will only get better from here; you have to have faith.”

Teacher Lu sighed. “He Jia, you’re a good kid. To be able to console someone like this at such a young age… your parents raised you well.”

I took the opportunity to say, “That’s all thanks to my dad. He’s very busy now and only gives me money, having no time to look after me, but that’s not a failure of duty. He did all the hard work early on. He spent time with me since I was little, teaching me how to conduct myself and how to be independent and strong. My dream is to become a man like my father.”

I doubt my dad could have ever imagined being praised like that even in his dreams.

After that, I frequently mentioned my dad, whether intentionally or not. I glossed over the reasons for my parents’ divorce and conveyed information-some true, some half-true-about his high level of education, his success as an entrepreneur, and his sense of responsibility. It was all to mislead Teacher Lu. I admit, I am a selfish person.

Teacher Lu had a very good impression of my dad, so that side was settled.

As for my dad, I didn’t put in too much effort. I just mentioned a few things simply: that my geography teacher was a divorcee with a daughter and had it quite rough; that she cared about me a lot; that my grades were so good now because she kept encouraging me; that my award in the geography competition was all thanks to her guidance; that her cooking was delicious, and so on.

My dad took the hint and said he would make a point to thank Teacher Lu during the parent-teacher conference. That side was settled too.

I had laid all the groundwork I could. As for whether they would hit it off when they met, I couldn’t guarantee that, but I thought the possibility was high.

Knowing my dad’s character, he would like Teacher Lu as soon as he saw her. My dad’s physical appearance was also decent enough; he would clean himself up before the parent-teacher conference so he wouldn’t look too greasy. Teacher Lu would likely find him agreeable as well.

Soon after, it was time for the parent-teacher conference.

During the meeting, only the teachers of the core subjects spoke; teachers of elective subjects did not participate.

After the meeting, my dad specifically went to Teacher Lu’s office to express his gratitude. He even gave her a box of very expensive hand cream, claiming he had brought it back from a business trip.

Teacher Lu was also very polite. She praised me a bit but didn’t accept the gift.

They chatted for about half an hour.

I peeked at their expressions from outside the office and felt like there was a spark. In the end, they exchanged contact information, saying it was to facilitate future communication regarding my studies.

That night, my dad said he planned to ask Teacher Lu out for dinner over the weekend to discuss my academic progress.

A few days later, I heard Teacher Lu tentatively asking Chen Zhen outside the office door: “Would you like to have a father?”

I was overjoyed.

They had indeed hit it off. Everything was moving in the direction I wanted.

But the adult world is never that simple. Marriage is a serious matter, not child’s play.

In particular, I had overlooked one crucial point-

My dad didn’t know that Chen Zhen was sick.