Chapter 8

Zou Yan was three years my senior at T University.

He was a prodigy, winning a gold medal in the physics olympiad and getting fast-tracked through his education. He swept up every award at T University before heading to MIT for his PhD, as everyone expected.

Back then, our classmates used to say I was the female version of Zou Yan.

I also thought I would follow that same path, step by step.

In my final year of university, I had asked Zou Yan for advice on my MIT application, and he was incredibly helpful.

We had so many video calls back then that I even felt things were heading in a romantic direction.

But just before the admission decisions were released, I withdrew my application.

He called me, furious.

“I heard you took a job at a tutoring agency to make some quick cash. Is that true?”

“The golden years for research are fleeting. Especially for a woman, you’ll have to divide your energy when you get married and have kids later. Lin Zhixia, do you have any idea how to value your own talent?”

I had a sinking feeling that he was right.

The field I wanted to enter was making breakthroughs every year. If I waited a few years, I might be left behind completely.

I didn’t want to make this choice.

We lost contact after that.

Three years had passed in a blink.

…

Zou Yan happened to be back in the country for spring break, so we met up for a late-night meal.

He pulled out a chair at the barbecue joint, his long legs cramped in the small space, and said, “I’ve been wanting to apologize to you, but I didn’t know how.”

“Back then, I had no idea what you were going through. I just questioned your choice and got angry with you. Thinking back on it, I sounded like such a condescending old man.”

He was wearing a dark blue hoodie and gray sweatpants, a timeless student look.

His eyes were sincere.

For a moment, it was like I was back in the lab, meeting him for the first time. The years that had passed felt like an illusion.

I finally spoke.

“My family was scammed out of 1.5 million.”

“My mom said it was the money she had saved for me to study abroad. I told her I’d get a scholarship, but she didn’t believe me. She was asking around everywhere about currency exchange and ended up getting targeted.”

During that time, my parents were constantly lost in thought, replaying the scam over and over.

If I had gone for my PhD with a scholarship, that financial loss would have been a constant shadow over them.

I was worried about their mental state if it continued.

And for me, that was their retirement money. With it gone, I felt a hollow void inside me.

I did the math. With my T University credentials, I could tutor for 1,000 an hour. The agency would take 400, I’d get 600. Four hours a day meant 2,400 a day. I could earn it all back in less than two years.

The work was easy, the money was fast, and it was legal.

Starting my studies two years later didn’t seem so bad…

I had never told anyone this, not even Cheng Yedu.

Zou Yan spoke slowly.

“So, now… is everything resolved?”

I grinned and nodded.

Saving money was faster than I’d thought. Less than six months after I started, I had built a reputation. The agency raised my rates, and my cut got bigger.

After checking inflation data, I started to feel that 1.5 million wasn’t enough. Why not save up 2 million?

Once I hit 2 million, I would quit.

A few nights ago, watching my bank account balance inch closer to 2 million, I felt a sense of relief and satisfaction I had never known.

I finally understood why people online say that “paying off debt” is the second most dopamine-inducing activity after “making love.”

Zou Yan said, “That’s incredible. It’s like you were enduring hardship for a greater goal.”

I had kept this bottled up for so long. Finally saying it out loud was another kind of release.

It really wasn’t that bad, though.

During that time, I managed to win over Cheng Yedu and unlock a whole new life experience.

The kind of handsome guy I used to only dream about while scrolling through pictures online was now living under the same roof with me.

Even the days spent saving for the future were full of flavor.