Chapter 12 Five Million
This was the second time I saw Qin Zhimin's mother.
Same as six years ago. Noble. Composed.
"Sit."
She nodded at me and smiled.
"Miss Song."
"Auntie, just call me Song Sheng."
"Song Sheng." Madam Qin nodded. "You are very different from what I imagined. At least I once thought you would be a smart person."
I did not understand what she meant.
"Years ago, you knew your place and asked me to take Qin Zhimin home. I think from then on, you should have known you and our Qin Zhimin were not people of the same world."
"But I did not expect that after a few years, you would no longer see yourself clearly."
"Auntie, what exactly do you want to say. Say it straight."
Madam Qin looked down and turned her phone screen toward me.
"This girl is the marriage match my husband and I chose for Qin Zhimin. She is now a piano professor at Jiangcheng University. She suits Qin Zhimin very well. What do you think?"
The phone was on a video. From the angle, it looked like a hidden shot.
In a high-end restaurant, Qin Zhimin sat eating with a girl.
The camera shifted. I saw the girl's face. It was Jiang Qingyao.
My heart sank. Had Qin Zhimin not said Jiang Qingyao was the family's arrangement? Had he not said there was nothing between them anymore?
Seeing my face go blank, Madam Qin shut off the phone, smiled, and held out a bank card.
"Six years ago I gave you Five Hundred Thousand. You did not take it. Today I give you Five Million. I hope you will accept it. I hope even more that you will not appear in front of my son again and disturb his life."
I smiled and pushed the card back.
"Auntie, six years ago I called you in secret. It was not because I knew my place. It was only because I was kind. I did not want Qin Zhimin to lose so much because of me. If that made you look down on me even more, it only shows you are not a well-mannered person."
"As for this Five Million, take it as a wedding gift for your son."
When I finished, I ignored Madam Qin's ugly face and the look that seemed about to turn angry, and walked straight out of the cafe.
On the street, my mind was a blur.
I did not understand why Qin Zhimin had lied to me. Was it to pay me back for betraying him then?
The weakness he showed me, was that also just to make me drop my guard?
A taxi stopped in front of me. "Miss, where to?"
I got in as if something pulled me. The third time the driver asked where I was going, I gave the address of Jiangcheng Prison.
It had been more than a year since I last came to see Guan Mo.
He did not look much changed.
"It is not even the weekend. What made you come see me?"
"I am leaving this place."
Guan Mo did not look surprised. "Did you get into the school you wanted?"
I nodded. "You get out in one more month. I left you some money, under the sofa in the shop. The key is in the flowerpot behind the air conditioner's outdoor unit."
Guan Mo owned the Tattoo Shop.
"All right. Safe travels."