Time Flows Like Water, Forgetting Each Other in the Rivers and Lakes

"What did you just say?"

Cindy Guan thought her ears were playing tricks on her. She stared wide-eyed at Evan Lin, utterly shocked.

Whether at home or outside, no one had ever spoken to Cindy Guan like this. Even families bigger than the Guans, like the Zhengs, had to treat the Guan family with respect because of their prowess and Guan Hongxuan's reputation.

"We're here because Jason Zheng invited us—he's the real Zheng family member. He hasn't said a word, so what gives you the right to tell us to get lost?"

Cindy Guan gritted her teeth, glaring at Evan Lin, her eyes full of resentment.

The bespectacled guy and the pretty girl next to her snapped out of it at Cindy's words. They all fixed their eyes on Evan Lin, ready to argue back.

"Get lost."

Evan Lin swept his gaze across them and spat out a single word.

That single word hit them like a hammer, pounding fiercely on their hearts. Their faces went pale, and a wave of unease swept through them.

The group stared blankly at Evan Lin's face. After a long moment, the pretty girl finally snapped out of it and nervously tugged on Cindy Guan's wrist.

The three of them left in silence, none daring to glance at Jason Zheng lying there.

"Who the heck is that guy? I’ve never heard of him before!" Once they slunk out of the Zheng Estate, the bespectacled guy was still shaken, his heart pounding with fear.

That last word—"Get lost"—still echoed in their ears, leaving them rattled to the core. It was just a simple word, but it made them feel like staying there even a second longer meant certain death.

"Didn’t you hear what Jason said? Those two are just here to mooch off the Zhengs, probably distant relatives or something. But that guy is weird—he really made Jason collapse with just one sentence."

The pretty girl thought back to the scene, still puzzled: "If Jason hadn’t suddenly fallen, he’d probably have stomped that guy to death by now."

After speaking, she turned to look at Cindy Guan, who was silent, and asked anxiously, "Sisi, are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Cindy Guan shook her head.

Evan Lin’s attitude had infuriated her, but right now, it was clear none of them could take him on. They had no choice but to swallow their pride and back down—for now.

"What happened today isn’t going to end that easily."

Cindy Guan turned and took a long look at the Zheng Estate, her mind replaying Jason Zheng’s sudden collapse. No matter how hard she tried to remember, she couldn’t figure out what went wrong.

Inside the estate, it didn’t take long for someone to find Jason Zheng and Frank Chang collapsed on the ground. They hurriedly helped them up and rushed them to the hospital.

Joy Zheng watched the scene and sighed. "Xiao Yi, why don’t we go find somewhere else to stay for now? When your grandparents get back, we’ll return to the Zheng family."

"You just slapped Susan Xu and Jason Zheng. I doubt they’ll let this go so easily."

Joy Zheng was full of worry.

Being back in her old home, the Zheng family felt more and more unfamiliar to Joy Zheng.

The bigger the family, the fiercer the internal strife. Susan Xu didn’t welcome her, and Joy knew exactly why—so she kept enduring it.

But as far as Joy Zheng was concerned, she could handle hardship and humiliation herself—she just couldn’t bear to see Evan Lin in danger.

"It’s fine, Mom. Just show me around—I’ve never been to the place where you grew up."

Evan Lin smiled, offering Joy Zheng a bit of comfort.

Seeing this, Joy could only give a bitter smile, shake her head, and lead Evan Lin on a walk around the estate.

"Back then, there weren’t all these villas—this was just a mountain. Later, your grandpa decided to level the whole thing for the Zheng family’s estate. He planted some trees and grass on the mountain, and if I remember right, there was even a pond fed by mountain streams, full of fish."

"As for your grandma, she’s always loved gardening. Outsiders might say she’s sharp-tongued, but she’s the classic ‘knife mouth, tofu heart.’ You’ll understand once you meet her."

Joy Zheng and Evan Lin walked the length of the Zheng Estate. Sometimes, Joy would stop and take a long look at a familiar spot, her eyes full of nostalgia.

Time is like flowing water—places you thought would never change always end up different, even the ones that once felt so familiar.

It’s just like the person you loved when you were young—so sweet and devoted you wished you could grow old together. But in the real world, most beautiful love stories end with people parting ways, forgetting each other in the ‘jianghu’ of life.

Evan Lin listened quietly, rarely interrupting.

Evan had never imagined Joy Zheng came from such a complicated family. It made him realize just how much courage and responsibility it took for her to leave it all behind, move to Whitewood, and devote herself to raising him.

Looking back on Evan’s years in Whitewood, every family holiday must have been agony for Joy Zheng, facing that cold and empty home.

Evan let out a long breath, watching Joy walk ahead of him—sometimes smiling, sometimes lost in thought. His own feelings grew complicated.

"You have two uncles and two aunts. The woman you hit earlier—Susan Xu—is your eldest uncle Leon Zheng’s wife. The Jason Zheng you fought is your uncle’s adopted son, treated like his own."

"Now that the elders aren’t home, I’m worried they’ll try something against you. I’ve seen everything I needed to here, and toured the estate enough. Let’s go find somewhere else to stay, just in case trouble comes our way."

Joy Zheng walked nearly half a circle around the Zheng Estate before stopping and turning to Evan Lin, bringing it up again.

"I brought you back this time so you could see your mother’s home. But even more, I wanted to let you choose for yourself."

"When your grandparents return, you can choose to stay in Oceanport. The Zheng family could make your future much easier—you wouldn’t have to go back to a small place like Whitewood."

"To be honest, I was too selfish back then—I only thought about myself, never about you. If you weren’t already grown and capable, I probably wouldn’t have brought you to Oceanport at all."

Joy Zheng sighed, her eyes full of worry. She looked at Evan Lin, hesitating: "Xiao Yi, do you blame me for the choice I made back then?"