When Evan Lin heard Joy Zheng speak, a swirl of emotions welled up inside him. He lowered his head, recalling all the times he’d let her down—each time she’d just brush it off with a few gentle words, hiding her disappointment. “Mom, I’m sorry. I was such a screw‑up before. I always let you down.”
Joy Zheng rubbed Evan’s head with one hand and sighed. “Silly kid, as long as you try your best, Mom will never be disappointed.”
“But Mom feels sad too. I never managed to give you a complete family, or a good environment to grow up in. Even at night, you could hardly get any peace and quiet to do your homework.”
Every night, there was always noise next door at Evan’s place.
Helen Cai, the neighbor, ran a mahjong parlor. Most of her customers came at night—factory workers and their friends, finally getting a break after a long day. When they played, it was always loud and rowdy.
Helen Cai knew her parlor disturbed Evan’s family, so she’d often bring over snacks and little gifts, trying to make up for it.
“Don’t blame Auntie Cai next door. She runs that mahjong parlor just to get by. She’s not like me—I’ve at least got my job at the school. If she shut down, Auntie Cai wouldn’t have any income.”
As if she could read Evan’s mind, Joy Zheng rubbed his head again, tousled his hair, and gave him a playful glare. “Honestly, when’s the last time you washed your hair? It’s all greasy.”
“Hey, I just got back.” Evan sighed, listening to Joy’s nonstop nagging. The feeling was almost surreal, like a lifetime ago.
Back then, Evan always thought Joy was annoying—she’d talk his ear off about every little thing, never letting up.
But now, hearing her voice, Evan just felt warm inside. Yet when he caught sight of the white hairs at her temples, his heart ached all over again.
“Oh right, are you hungry? Didn’t you use to love lamb skewers? Come on, let’s go get some. It’s not every day you come home—we should have something good.”
Evan hurried over to help Joy push her bike. They left the complex and headed for the snack street. Joy ordered Evan a pile of lamb skewers, but for herself she just got a plain plate of fried noodles—no meat, no sausage, nothing. Only after Evan insisted did she reluctantly add a single egg.
Evan tried to hand her a skewer, but Joy just said she didn’t like them and told him to eat more. The truth was, lamb skewers were expensive—she just couldn’t bear to spend the money on herself.
“Mom, next time I’ll buy you a house—a big one, so you can live comfortably.”
Evan took a bite of lamb skewer, looked at Joy, and said it with a straight face.
“What are you always thinking about, kid? If you really want to buy me a house, then study hard. There’s only one year left. No matter what, you can’t give up.”
“Mom believes you can get a great score.”
Joy clenched her fist. “Jiayou!”
After making the gesture, Joy couldn’t help but laugh at herself. Wrinkles creased her face, the years showing through.
Once upon a time, she was just a girl too.
But that girl became a mother. The years slipped by, and as she watched Evan Lin grow from a wobbly toddler to a big kid, she herself aged with every passing moment.
“Jiayou!”
Evan grinned wide.
After eating, they headed home. Joy Zheng took out the bedding and sheets, making up Evan’s bed.
Evan’s room wasn’t big—just fifteen square meters. Once you squeezed in a bed and a desk, there was no room for anything else.
Sitting on the bed, leaning against the wall, Evan looked around his room. The walls still had Slam Dunk posters stuck up—back in those days, Slam Dunk, Dragon Ball, and Saint Seiya were all the rage.
Evan used to imagine he was Seiya, born with a sacred mission to protect Athena. For that mission, he could keep getting stronger, always leveling up.
But that was just a kid’s fantasy, after all.
Now, though, fantasy had become reality.
Now, Evan Lin was way beyond any version of Seiya from back then.
His desk was piled high with books, most of them old and worn. There was even a cassette player—Joy Zheng had bought it for English practice, but Evan ended up using it for pop music.
He turned off the lights, and darkness filled the room.
Outside the window, starlight flickered in the night sky.
The Three Maiden Spirits slowly appeared, floating in front of Evan.
“Master, all the rats have been cleared out, and the leaks and drafts are fixed.”
The spirits stood to the side, looking at Evan with awe in their eyes.
“Mm.”
Evan just gave a quiet response, his eyes never leaving the window.
All sorts of emotions drifted through his heart, but his gaze stayed silent and still.
From next door, Evan could hear the sound of mahjong tiles, mixed with women’s excited shouts and a few curses.
Winning brought joy, losing brought frustration. But that’s just how it is—the daily grind for ordinary people.
This kind of life used to feel so close to Evan, and yet so far away.
The next morning, Evan woke up at five thirty.
Lately, Evan’s body clock had him waking up at five thirty almost every day.
He got up, brushed his teeth, and headed out.
Not many people were up this early.
Evan ran two laps around the playground, then jogged along the foot of a nearby green hill.
Whitewood County wasn’t prosperous, and with mountains all around, it was hard for the town to develop.
But it was a major transit hub—country folks passing through on their way to the city—so the population was still pretty big.
The morning air was fresh, and for once Evan’s mind felt calm.
After running for an hour, he bought two breakfasts and headed home.
When Evan got home, Joy Zheng was already up and starting breakfast. She looked surprised to see him back so early. “I thought you’d still be asleep. Up so early?”
“Of course—I’ve got to stay fit. Here, Mom, I got you something to eat.”
Joy nodded. “That’s right, health comes first. No matter what, you always have to take care of yourself.”
“Oh, by the way, Hank Chu came looking for you yesterday. He asked when you’d be back. If you’re free today, you should go see him.”
“It’s been a while since you two caught up, hasn’t it?”
Joy ate breakfast, thinking about it, then looked at Evan and spoke slowly.