Unexpected Second Chance at Love

While Lu Tian immerses in work and Yue Ling makes her way to An Qing, in another part of Imperial, a young man is seen walking the streets of Imperial holding an umbrella.

He wore a navy uniform and carried his school bag on his back as he made his way to school.

His head was down, and he walked past the crowd, not once bumping into anyone.

When he arrived at his destination, he finally lifted his head.

Students wearing the same colored uniform walk past him as laughter sounds from them as they enter the gate to school. However, he doesn't take another step but stares at the school building in front of him.

The rain that dropped onto the ground was like music to the ear, but for anyone who saw him, they couldn't help but feel a sense of sadness.

It was like the rain combined with the young man's expression were a scene out of a movie based on tragedy.

"Jingxu!"

A voice calls out as a car pulls up to the school's front gate in the next moment. Ji Jingxu looks at the school one last time before turning to the owner of the voice.

He sees his energetic friend Zhuang Li.

After sending the driver off, the young man exits the car with an umbrella and walks over to Ji Jingxu.

"Are you alright? Why are you just standing there?"

Ji Jingxu stares at his friend for a long second, then shrugs his shoulder with indifference. It was as if the sad scene of him in the rain had never happened.

"It's nothing."

He walks towards the school gate but accidentally bumps into a group of young men wearing the same uniform as him.

One member of the group turns around to see who has bumped into him. Seeing that it was Ji Jingxu, one corner of his lip curls up into a sneer, and he scoffs.

"I was wondering who it was that bumped into me. It was none other than the freeloader of the Ji family."

Ji Jingxu stares at the young man with a face void of any emotions. He looked unbothered by the young man's words, but unlike him, Zhuang Li's expression darkens.

He (Zhuang Li) took a step forward but was stopped by Ji Jingxu.

Seeing this, the young man laughs in ridicule.

"Pathetic. Why are you even here? Are you out of food? Is that why you come to school every day?"

His words sound, and his group of friends didn't forget to chime in a historical laugh.

Ji Jingxu glanced from one person to another before stopping at the young man he bumped. He contemplated whether he should retaliate or just act like they didn't exist.

For him, fighting with this group was easy since he trained with the soldiers at the Ji Mansion every day. He even learned a few new tricks on how to win against a group.

However, after careful thinking, he looks away from each person.

"Zhuang Li, let's go."

He ignores the group of people laughing and walks through the gate to school.

Zhuang Li was fuming with anger, but seeing Ji Jingxu feign ignorance, he decided to do the same. He catches up to his friend and heaves a sigh.

"Why do you even put up with them? They deserve a beating for always looking down on others."

Ji Jingxu stares ahead as he walks towards the school. His thoughts remain unreadable at the moment, but if one were to pay attention, one would see his tightly clenched fists.

It was a sign of how much he was holding back his anger.

"This much, I can take in."

His voice sounds after a long moment, and Zhuang Li looks at him in confusion.

"Why are you even holding back? You have a grandfather and an older sister who treasures you. One word and those idiots would be dealt with in seconds."

Ji Jingxu smiled, but his smile didn't reach his eyes. His friend was right. If he told his grandfather or Yue Ling, he would never have to see those people again.

However, he doesn't want to be a nuisance with everything that is happening.

He always told his grandfather and older sister that school was good for him. However, they do not know that life at school was never easy for him.

His only friend at school is Zhuang Li, while others look down on him for being the adopted son of the Ji family.

He was often bullied, but he pretended everything was fine when he was home with his grandfather.

He doesn't want his grandfather to regret ever adopting him and doesn't want to bring shame to the family. It was the least he could do for Grandfather Ji and Yue Ling by pretending everything was fine.

His smile fades with the rain, and he walks to the school's front door.

"I can't bother them with little things like this."

Zhuang Li sighs as he watches his friend walk away. He could never understand why Ji Jingxu is so stubborn when it comes to asking for help from his family.

When will the Ji family know that Ji Jingxu's school life is not so great?

He shakes his head and turns back to look at the group of young men still standing by the gate. He scoffs at them then sticks his tongue out as his eyes roll up before following Ji Jingxu.

The young man that looked down on Ji Jingxu was rendered speechless. He grew agitated and wanted to beat up Zhuang Li, but one of his friends grabbed his arm, stopping him.

"What the hell?! Why are you stopping me?!"

"Are you crazy?"

His friend utters in a low voice, then signals with his head to the side of them.

"Don't you see that people are surveilling?"

The young man turns to look in the direction his friend had pointed out. He sees the car Zhuang Li had exited from and held in his anger.

If he or his friends had made a move on Ji Jingxu or Zhuang Li, whoever was in the car would have come out to stop them.

He glares at the school where Ji Jingxu and Zhuang Li had gone, and his face turned black.

"After school. We'll catch them off guard and teach them a lesson. Even if we get only one of them, I'll make sure they can never stand up anymore."

He declares in a threatening voice and enters the gate. He will make Ji Jingxu pay for ignoring him and Zhuang Li for taking him lightly.

So what if they are from military families?

His family is just as influential and is highly respected in Imperial.. No one ever dares to go against him or his family.