boyutpedia Chapter 442 Growing to Become a Better Self
Chapter 442 Growing to Become a Better Self
The fact that everything was figured out so quickly is thanks to the security camera that the owner installed at the store entrance.
Because of its proximity to the school, the hair salon became common knowledge in the neighborhood.
Many of Li Shaoqing's classmates knew that he worked at a hair salon.
However, he didn't say exactly where he worked. When classmates asked him before, he only said that he was helping an uncle watch the shop for a while.
Throughout the entire incident, Li Shaoqing was unconscious and was an innocent victim.
However, due to the prevailing opinion, the accusation of "gathering people for sexual misconduct" was still pinned on him by some people who were unaware of the truth.
It wasn't his fault at all; he didn't do anything...
But when he met those whispering glances, Li Shaoqing still felt like he was being pointed at by everyone.
He could only try his best to ignore those people and grit his teeth to prepare for the exam.
He thought that as long as he got into high school and got away from here, everything would be fine.
The only positive aspect of this incident might be that the boss gave him a sum of compensation.
Knowing his situation, the boss didn't hand the money over to his parents, but secretly gave it to him.
This money, plus what he had saved before, was enough for him to finish high school.
When the exam results came out, he was admitted to his desired high school as he had hoped.
Sure enough, his 'parents' disagreed with him going to school and kept complaining about being poor, saying that the family had no money to support his education.
They also said that after raising him for so long, they haven't seen him contribute anything to the family; all he does is ask them for money.
They said that studying was completely useless and just a waste of time.
They say that even college graduates can only wash dishes after graduation, and they might as well just find a job...
They said a lot.
Unfortunately, Li Shaoqing was determined to study, and no one could stop him.
Seeing that he insisted on going to high school, his 'parents' finally uttered one sentence.
"Your family has no money. If you want to go, you'll have to figure it out yourself. Don't expect your family to give you a single penny!"
When disappointment accumulates, you become numb.
Although Li Shaoqing had no hope, hearing such words again still brought a bitter feeling to his heart.
He packed a few clothes, grabbed his schoolbag, and left home.
Although he had enough money to attend high school, he still chose to commute to school so he could save more money to prepare for university.
Fortunately, there were only five classmates from junior high who were taking the high school entrance exam with him. They were all top students, quiet and reserved, and focused on their studies.
Without the rumors or strange looks, Li Shaoqing had a much more comfortable high school life than before.
He was a day student in his first and second years of high school, and he found a job as a manager at an unlicensed internet cafe, working the night shift.
The night shift is very relaxed, mostly with regular customers. You just need to pay them and turn on their phones. If no one is looking for you, you can sit at the bar and take a nap without the boss saying anything.
At first, Li Shaoqing was a little unaccustomed to it and often dozed off during the day. But he gradually got used to it and even developed the skill of falling asleep instantly during breaks.
Senior year of high school is very important and crucial, so Li Shaoqing dared not slack off and quit his job at the internet cafe to live on campus.
After a year of hard work, he successfully got into the university he wanted to attend.
After receiving the admission notice, Li Shaoqing did not go home, but took the high-speed train directly to the city where the university was located.
University life was as he had imagined: easy and comfortable.
He chose finance as his major, and while the coursework was somewhat challenging, it wasn't too difficult for him.
In his spare time, he went to look for a job as usual.
After finishing his studies, he still has plenty of time to find several part-time jobs at the same time.
He originally thought that his life would continue like this, and that it would get better and better, brighter and brighter, according to his plans and goals.
He thought he could become a successful person in the future. Then, he would go back and ask those 'parents' if he had taken the wrong path!
However, just as he was about to graduate...
Someone called and said he wasn't his parents' biological child.
They say he was maliciously switched by his current parents.
He also said that his parents' son, the one raised by his biological parents, ran away abroad with money from his biological parents' company.
In a daze, Li Shaoqing felt as if his life had become a huge joke.
His lifelong persistence and determination to prove himself to his parents... have all become a joke.
He returned to his birth family and met his biological parents.
Their situation is now very bad because of their adopted son's behavior.
His biological mother fell ill and needed a bone marrow transplant. He silently underwent a matching test, and the result was a match, but his mother refused to accept it... and passed away not long after.
Meanwhile, the family company was forced to declare bankruptcy, and the father, unable to accept it, chose to commit suicide by jumping off a building...
Oh, and he also has a younger sister.
But after learning this devastating news, my younger sister was in a car accident on her way to leave school and became a vegetable...
During that period, he was in a daze for a long time, which caused him to suffer repeated setbacks at work.
But he only has his sister left, and for her sake, he must pull himself together.
After all, he only had this one relative left.
Su Zijing learned what happened next.
To earn money, he worked night shifts at a voice chat room and daytime as a waiter in a restaurant. He even went to take a technician certification exam...
It wasn't until he met Su Zijing and got the job that he finally felt at ease.
He glossed over many of the hardships he endured from childhood with just a single sentence.
But Su Zijin knew.
These were never trivial matters to him; they were scars etched into his very bones.
Those sleepless nights he tossed and turned, and the hardships he endured alone, which he laughed through, have long left indelible marks on his heart.
She gazed at his profile as he calmly recounted his story, and her heart trembled slightly.
Despite the hardships he has endured, he has remained true to his original aspirations, his edges have not been worn down by the passage of time, nor has he become indifferent due to the coldness of the world...
What lies hidden in his eyes is not the gloom of the past, but rather a light that has become clearer after weathering the storms, like stars that have been washed away, still shining with unwavering enthusiasm for life and a steadfast commitment to purity.
At that moment, Su Zijing's eyes suddenly reddened, and her fingertips involuntarily lifted slightly.
After hesitating for half a second, she finally carefully covered his hand that was resting on her knee.
His knuckles bore thin calluses from years of travel, but his palms were unexpectedly warm. Her fingertips gently brushed against the raised callus, as if soothing a past unknown to anyone.
True strength is not about being invincible, but about having a sincere heart and treating the world that has treated you harshly with gentleness, even after you have been wounded.
Xia is like this, Mu Yan is like this, Mo Ke is like this, Yu Shan and He Yu are like this, A Qi is like this, A Ling is like this...
So, Shaoqing is one of them too.
They all had their own different hardships, but they all persevered and grew into better versions of themselves.
"From now on, you'll have me."
Su Zijing gripped his hand tightly and assured him,
"Shaoqing, as long as you don't leave me, I, Su Zijin, will never abandon you."