One Life, One Incarnation, Beautiful Bones

33

Shi Yi leaned against the edge of the window, listening as he continued to clarify this event of the past.

Approximately eight or nine years ago, when Zhousheng Ren was still a young child, he had gone onboard a gambling ship with his father and mother. This gambling ship belonged to the Zhou family. At the time, the Zhou family had been taking the lead to coordinate the business transaction of allocating the rights to an ore deposit for which ownership had not yet been claimed. And it was on this ship that, after her intentions had been discovered, Xiao Ren's mother was given her punishment of death by the family clan.

At the time, in order to not bring about a negative effect on Xiao Ren, the illusion of a "death by accidental means" was created.

But as Xiao Ren gradually grew older, he naturally came to know some of the truths.

And so, on the topic of "ghosts among the living," he had chosen to remain silent.

Shi Yi was stunned by Zhousheng Chen's description of his own family, but she chose not to delve much deeper.

When she linked up in her mind all the things of his past, she increasingly felt that the environments in which they each lived were completely different worlds.

"In some aspects, I do not belong to the Zhou family," Zhousheng Chen stated. "When this whole matter is done, everyone and everything will return to their original trajectory."

"So, you actually don't want to inherit the control of the Zhou family?"

"I have absolutely no intention of doing so."

Near him, someone was saying something in a language she did not understand. It sounded like it was work-related.

Shi Yi did not speak again, and they ended this conversation.

Outside the window, the wind was blowing rather forcefully, creating swirls on the surface of the waterways and whipping up the clothing of passengers inside the fishing barges. The subsequent sounds of laughter and loud voices rang out.

She thought to herself, she understood what he meant.

If it could be said that in both lives, Zhousheng Chen's belief and desire were to reverse the course of development so that there would be fewer families that would endure misfortune, then hers could be summarized much more simply: she believed in him, and she would always stand by his side.

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The next evening was the last round of the competition finals.

Xiao Ren had said that he wanted to watch, and Shi Yi had told him in a completely serious tone that he would not receive special treatment. For instance, he could only come by himself into the competition area and sit in a corner in the seats reserved for the media. She had thought that this proud boy would not want to comply with those terms, but contrary to her expectations, he still came, alone and even carrying a book. Since Shi Yi was sitting at the judges' table, most of the time, she could not watch or take care of him, and only when the competition was over did she finally have an opportunity to check on him.

She had not expected that a quick glance at the book in his hand would discover teaching material written in a foreign language.

She did not look through the content of the book in detail, but her eyes swept over familiar formulas. It was physics.

"You want to study physics in the future?" Finally, Shi Yi could see in him traces of an ordinary person.

"Mm-hmm." Xiao Ren nodded his head, closed the book, and set it down flat on his lap.