Worlds Apart | Chapter 18 | The Cost of Responsibility | Novela.app

Jiang Tong spent the entire journey home drafting a resignation letter on his phone. When Jiang Bei opened the door, she was startled by his expression. "Ge, did you get into a car accident on the way back?" "If I were in a car accident, who would take you out to have fun?" Jiang Tong let out a short laugh and lightly pinched her cheek. "Go put some clothes on. We’re going out for a big meal." Jiang Bei gave a cheer and padded back into the room to find an outfit. As she ran, her thin nightgown outlined the graceful lines of her developing figure. Her long, pale legs were straight and bare, making Jiang Tong’s head spin slightly. *I need to have a talk with Beibei during dinner,* Jiang Tong thought. She was a young woman now; there should be boundaries between men and women, even at home. How time flew. As he waited by the door, his gaze was drawn to the family portrait on the wall. The photo had been taken before he went abroad. His mother hadn't been sick yet, and she was newly married to his stepfather, her face radiant with a bright, breezy smile. He and his sister stood in the back row, uncomfortable with the photographer’s long lens, their expressions as tense and awkward as prisoners entering a jail cell. Back then, Beibei had been as thin as a twig, sporting a short "duck-tail" haircut and tanned skin; standing next to Jiang Tong, they looked like brothers. Now, no one would ever mistake her gender again. Jiang Tong watched her, but in his heart, he still saw her as the little child who followed him around with a runny nose, begging for candy. Xiao Fengtai was the same age as her. The boy’s face suddenly surfaced in his mind—his burning, restrained gaze, the elegant and sharp lines of his features, and those thick, dark brows that arched across his forehead, ensuring no one would ever truly mistake him for a pretty girl. When he spoke to Jiang Tong, he often tilted his chin up slightly, adopting an arrogant and cold demeanor to hide the turbulence in his eyes. If he were to pinch the boy's face, would it be as delicate and soft as Beibei’s? "Ge—" Jiang Tong jolted. The girl had lunged at him, the unique, sweet fragrance of a young woman enveloping him. "I'm ready!" Jiang Tong was a man of his word and took Beibei to a well-known local restaurant for steak. The restaurant was located inside a museum, decorated in a European style with well-trained servers. Because it was a public facility subsidized by the government, a luxurious yet elegant atmosphere managed to coexist with an affordable menu. Beibei looked ill at ease after taking her seat. While the waiter was taking their order, she leaned in and whispered, "Is this place really expensive?" "Don't worry," Jiang Tong smiled. "I can afford one meal." "I'm serious. If it's expensive, let's go somewhere else." His sister stared at him earnestly with her large, dark eyes. "Saving that money could do a lot of useful things." Jiang Tong crossed his hands under his chin and looked her up and down. "Like what?" Beibei blushed, her eyes darting away. "Nothing... it's nothing..." "Did something happen at home?" Jiang Tong’s smile gradually faded. "When I called Uncle last time, didn't he say everything was fine?" Beibei hurriedly clarified, "No, no, everything at home is truly fine!" "It's... I have something I want to buy myself." "I was going to find a good time to tell you," Beibei lowered her head, nervously rubbing the edge of her napkin, her voice as thin as a mosquito's buzz. "Ge... I want to buy a new laptop." "I'm participating in the Model United Nations at school, and I often have to organize materials and prepare PowerPoints. My classmates all use MacBooks. I'm using the laptop you left behind—it's bulky and noisy. Now that summer is here, they don't want to sit with me because they say my computer gives off too much heat." Seeing him remain silent, Beibei explained in a panic. "I don't need a MacBook. I just want a lighter computer. I’ve already looked at a model; it’s not very expensive." "I have 1,500 yuan in New Year's money. Could you lend me a little more? When I get to university, I'll work part-time and pay you back." She looked at him pleadingly. "Ge—I don't dare tell Uncle. Just help me, please." Jiang Tong took a deep breath, forcing the stinging heat in his eyes back down. "I thought it was something serious. You scared me to death." "We'll go buy it right after dinner," he smiled at Beibei. "Your brother has made a lot of money from his part-time job lately. I'll buy you a MacBook." The unexpected answer left the girl overjoyed. she let out a small cheer and, regardless of the gazes of those around them, jumped up from her chair to hug Jiang Tong. "Ge is the best to me!" She was too young, too immersed in her own joy to question what kind of part-time job would allow the habitually frugal Jiang Tong to spend a fortune on a new laptop without hesitation. Jiang Bei trusted Jiang Tong more than she trusted her parents. Thus, she took his unusual generosity as a matter of course; her brother could always find a way, and her brother was always right. For the rest of the meal, Jiang Tong maintained a steady smile, listening to Beibei chatter about interesting things at school. Before leaving the restaurant, Beibei got up to go to the restroom. Jiang Tong took out his phone, opened his email drafts, and stared at the finished resignation letter. Before entering the house earlier, he had just finished typing the final line: "Kind regards." The subject line was set, and even the email addresses for Xiao Fengtai and Lu She had been entered. As long as he pressed send, everything could end before it spiraled off the tracks. Xiao Fengtai might continue to act out for a while, but he was young and wealthy; there were too many beautiful and lovely things in this world waiting for his favor. He would gradually forget Jiang Tong and return to his high-and-mighty life. And Jiang Tong himself... "Ge, what are you looking at?" Beibei asked curiously as she returned to her seat. "It's nothing major. Give me a minute to reply to a professor's email," Jiang Tong said calmly. He lowered his eyes and, starting from the sign-off, deleted the resignation letter word by word. Then the subject line, then the email addresses. He closed his email and walked out the door, arm-in-arm with Beibei. Their reflections appeared on the glass door: the man was tall and upright, with a conventional side-parted haircut and old-fashioned rimless glasses. He was handsome in a very law-abiding way—the image of a "Mr. Nice Guy" who would immediately vanish into a crowd. *What does Xiao Fengtai like about me?* Jiang Tong wondered. Perhaps it was like someone who had grown tired of delicacies and occasionally craved a bit of plain congee to clear their palate. The young master was used to seeing extravagant and beautiful people, so he was deceived by Jiang Tong's appearance, projecting a plot from a third-rate art film onto him. He likely thought Jiang Tong was noble, kind, and refined—someone who struggled through the mortal world with unyielding strength, a "white lotus" rising unsullied from the mud. *You're a scumbag,* he told himself in his heart the moment the night wind hit his face as he pushed open the door.