Redemption from the Abyss: The School Beauty Insists on Pulling Me Out of the Mire

Thick, dark clouds had gathered in the sky, and rumbling thunder sounded, as if brewing a belated outburst.

Xie Wang had no idea how long he had been running.

All I could hear was the sound of the wind, my father's greedy roar, the whispered laughter of my classmates, and Jiang Yue's vicious words.

What if you get a perfect score?

So what if we get a spot in the national competition?

As long as Xie Zhengyang appears, as long as that rotten family still exists, he will always be a rat in the gutter, forever unable to wash away the musty smell on him.

He didn't want Su Qinghe to see it.

I didn't want those usually clear and clean eyes to see him in such a disheveled and wretched state.

Unbeknownst to him, he had run to an abandoned park by the river.

The area is overgrown with weeds, and the river water laps against the banks, making a muddy sound.

Xie Wang was exhausted.

He leaned against a dead tree, slowly slid down, curled himself up into a ball, and hugged his head tightly.

"Boom—"

A thunderclap exploded.

The rain poured down.

The icy rain instantly soaked his school uniform, extinguishing the last faint flame in his heart.

Just then.

The sound of hurried footsteps pierced through the rain.

"Thank you, Wang!"

It was a slightly breathless, yet still resolute voice.

Xie Wang froze.

He knew who it was without even looking up.

But he didn't dare to look up.

"roll!"

Xie Wang roared, his voice hoarse and particularly shrill amidst the sound of rain, "Don't come any closer! Get out!"

The footsteps didn't stop.

Instead, they're getting closer and closer.

Until a pair of white sneakers, soaked by the rain, came into his view.

Su Qinghe stood in the torrential rain.

She ran so fast that her hair tie came undone, and her soaking wet long hair clung to the side of her face.

That once impeccably clean school uniform was now covered in mud, making him look disheveled, but his eyes shone with an astonishing brightness.

She looked down at the boy huddled on the ground.

"Why did you run away?" Su Qinghe asked.

"Can't you see?!"

Xie Wang suddenly raised his head, his eyes red and his face covered in rain, indistinguishable between tears and rain.

He pointed at himself and roared hysterically:

"I'm a joke! My dad was a gambling addict! A scoundrel! His blood flows in my veins, and I'll never get rid of that stench of rottenness in my entire life!"

"Su Qinghe, you live in the clouds, what do you know? Don't pretend to pity me! I find it disgusting!"

He wanted to use the most vicious words to drive her away.

I want to preserve the last bit of my pitiful self-respect.

however.

Su Qinghe did not move.

She didn't even frown.

She just watched him go crazy, watched him break down.

After he finished yelling, he was too exhausted.

She just moved.

Instead of using an umbrella, she squatted down and knelt on the muddy grass.

In that instant, she fell from the clouds into the mud.

Su Qinghe reached out and, ignoring Xie Wang's attempts to dodge, grabbed his collar, forcing him to close the distance.

Their noses almost touched.

Breaths mingled, filled with the damp, cold air of rain.

"Finished yelling?"

Su Qinghe's voice was cold, yet it carried an undeniable power.

"Xie Wang, listen to me clearly."

She stared into his eyes and spoke slowly and deliberately:

"You got 150 in math and 100 in physics. Even if everyone else wants to give up on you, I won't."

You are ranked 68th in the grade.

"You are Xie Wang."

She loosened her collar and cupped Xie Wang's cold, damp face in her hands.

The fingertips were warm, like a branding iron, so hot that Xie Wang trembled all over.

"You are Xie Wang, not Xie Zhengyang's son."

"You can't choose your birth, but you can choose your path. Mud stains are on your body, but you can wash them off. As long as your bones aren't rotten, you're clean."

Xie Wang was stunned.

In those bloodshot eyes, all the hostility and defensiveness crumbled inch by inch at that moment.

He bit his lip hard until he tasted blood.

No one had ever told him these things.

Everyone says, "Like begets like."

Only Su Qinghe told him that he was clean.

"But... I don't deserve it..."

Xie Wang's voice choked with emotion, finally revealing a childlike vulnerability, "Su Qinghe, I'm so dirty..."

"I don't mind that you're dirty."

Su Qinghe took out the clean white handkerchief.

Even though she was already soaked by the rain, she still carefully wiped away the mud and tear stains from Xie Wang's face, bit by bit.

The movements were as gentle as if wiping a dusty treasure.

"As long as you don't see yourself as worthless, no one can trample you underfoot."

The last line of defense collapsed completely.

Xie Wang could no longer control himself.

He leaned forward abruptly, his forehead pressing heavily against Su Qinghe's shoulder.

Su Qinghe did not push him away.

She reached out and gently patted the boy's trembling back.

Let the torrential rain wash over them, let the souls of two different worlds embrace tightly at this moment.

……

The roadside not far away.

Uncle Zhong, the old butler, stood quietly, holding a black, straight-handled umbrella.

He witnessed the entire process.

They saw their usually cold and aloof mistress, who would even frown if there was dust on her shoes, kneeling in the mud, holding a dirty young man.

Uncle Zhong sighed.

He worked for the Su family for thirty years, watching Su Qinghe grow up. He knew how lonely the young lady was, and he also knew how cold that seemingly perfect Su family villa was.

Perhaps this is the temperature the young lady needs.

Uncle Zhong did not interrupt until the boy calmed down a bit before he went over.

The footsteps were very light.

"Miss."

Uncle Zhong held the umbrella over their heads, shielding them from the wind and rain.

His voice was respectful and calm, as if he had seen nothing, yet also as if he understood everything.

Xie Wang froze, instinctively wanting to let go and push him away.

But Su Qinghe held his back, preventing him from moving.

Su Qinghe raised his head, his eyes regaining their usual coldness, but there were a few bloodshot veins in his eyes.

"Uncle Chung."

"The car is over there."

Uncle Chung did not ask, "Who is this wild boy?"

He simply handed her a dry towel and said gently:

"The rain is too heavy; you'll easily catch a cold. Let's get in the car first."

Su Qinghe took the towel and placed it directly on Xie Wang's head, rubbing it haphazardly a couple of times.

"Let's go."

She grabbed Xie Wang's wrist and pulled him up from the ground.

Xie Wang was like a puppet, letting her lead him around.

Through his wet bangs, he looked at the old man in front of him and the Maybach parked on the side of the road.

It was a symbol of power and wealth.

It is also Su Qinghe's world.

Previously, he would avoid this at all costs, feeling that it was an insult to him.

But now, the warmth of the girl in his hand made him not let go.

"Where to?" Xie Wang asked in a hoarse voice.

Su Qinghe did not answer.

She opened the car door and shoved him into the back seat of the warm, dry luxury car.

Then he got in himself, slammed the car door shut, shutting out the wind and rain.

"Go to my apartment."

Su Qinghe said to Uncle Zhong in front of him, "It's not the old house, it's the music room by the river."

Uncle Zhong started the car and glanced at it in the rearview mirror.

The boy was huddled in the corner, clutching the young lady's handkerchief tightly in his hand, but his eyes were always following her.

"Yes, miss."

Uncle Chung smoothly turned the steering wheel.

The Maybach cut through the rain, carrying the young man who had just experienced heartbreak and rebuilding, heading into the unknown night.