novelraw Chapter 62: The Weak Dad (End)
Chapter 62: The Weak Dad (End)
That day, Qi Sheng got off work as usual. However, when he arrived at the school gate, he saw someone he hadn’t expected.
Although Lin Hui had spent a lot of money on maintenance over the years, age, combined with an unhappy life and a worsening temper, had still left its mark on her looks. Qi Sheng looked at his ex-wife, who had obviously dressed up for the occasion. He originally planned to just drive away, but she walked straight over and blocked his car.
After driving to a more secluded area, Qi Sheng looked at his silent ex-wife and took the initiative to ask, “What do you want?”
Seeing that she still wasn’t speaking, he added, “If there’s nothing, I’ll drop you off at the next intersection? Xiao Jin is still waiting for me to go home and cook dinner.”
Lin Hui, seeing that he was trying to send her away, forcibly suppressed her temper and lowered her voice, saying, “I… I just wanted to see how you two are doing. I heard some news about Xiao Jin. He’s achieved so much; you must have worked hard all these years.”
Qi Sheng nodded and said, “It has been tough, but Xiao Jin is a good kid. I don’t have to worry about him much anymore.”
Lin Hui was at a loss for words and quickly changed the subject, asking, “Has Xiao Jin mentioned me at all over the years?”
Qi Sheng answered calmly, “He’s been busy. He was busy with college entrance exams and training before, and the past few years haven’t been easy either. University studies require real effort to succeed. But he’s very mature now — even with training and competitions, he never neglected his schoolwork.”
Lin Hui forced a smile, feeling awkward. “Really? That’s good. The kid’s finally grown up.”
Qi Sheng nodded. “Mhm. If there’s nothing else…” Hearing the clear hint in his words, Lin Hui bit her lip, stewed for a moment, and then unwillingly asked, “It’s been so many years. You’ve poured all your attention into raising our son — have you never thought about your own life?”
Qi Sheng’s expression remained unchanged as he said, “I’m fine on my own. My son is filial. He spends time with me whenever he can. When he gets married someday, I’ll be close to retirement. I’ll have time to travel around and won’t feel bored.”
Seeing his calmness, Lin Hui directly asked, “Do you still have feelings for me? After all these years, you must’ve had plenty of people chasing you. Yet you chose to stay single — isn’t that because…”
Qi Sheng glanced at her and said plainly, “After the divorce, I made a clean break with the past. I stayed single simply because I had no interest in starting over. Believe it or not, it’s up to you.”
Lin Hui hadn’t expected him to be even more heartless than she was. Seeing how composed he was made her angry, and she questioned him: “You still blame me for being too ruthless back then, don’t you? I did it all for the sake of our son! I was with you for so many years. Think about it: if not for the boy, would I have ended up divorcing you? You were too indulgent with him! I only wanted what was best for him!”
Qi Sheng looked at her and calmly said, “So you’re saying that if I had agreed back then to send our son to a youth correctional school, you wouldn’t have divorced me?”
Lin Hui quickly nodded. “We had so many years of marriage! If I had despised you, I wouldn’t have insisted on marrying you in the first place. And yet you were willing to divorce me just to spoil our son!”
Lin Hui looked at him with grievance and added, “I admit my education methods back then were problematic. But how was I supposed to know he had a talent for gaming? I was just worried he’d waste his life! How many geniuses are there in gaming anyway? Most kids who are obsessed with games end up doing nothing with their lives. Why couldn’t you understand my concerns?”
Qi Sheng looked at his ex-wife and, for a moment, felt himself almost swayed by her words. But he laughed and countered, “If our son had ended up being an ordinary person, and I remained just a teacher earning a fixed salary, would you have come looking for us today?”
Seeing Lin Hui stunned and about to argue again, Qi Sheng continued, “We lived together for so many years. I know how you think. There’s no need to say things neither of us believes. Let me be clear: reconciliation is impossible. As for our son, when you’re old, he will fulfill his duty and provide for you financially, but there’s no need to hope for anything beyond that.”
Lin Hui finally dropped the pretense and, furious, said, “Qi Jin is my son too! Why shouldn’t I be able to spend the money he earns? He’s half mine after all! I want to see him — I’ll see if he dares to deny I’m his mother!”
Qi Sheng sneered and said, “The money he earns belongs to him. As for you being his mother — have you forgotten the terms of the divorce agreement? You haven’t paid a cent of child support all these years, nor have you visited him even once. What face do you have to come asking for his money? If he still sends you living expenses in the future, it’s only because he’s a decent son. Don’t push it, or you’ll end up completely estranged from him.”
Lin Hui gritted her teeth, furious, but still insisted, “I must see him today. I’ll talk to him myself.”
Seeing her determination, Qi Sheng didn’t argue. He directly called his son and asked him to come over.
He booked a private room and sent the address to his son, then picked up the menu and started ordering dishes.
At this point, Lin Hui no longer paid any attention to Qi Sheng. Although she had been insisting she wanted to meet Qi Jin just moments ago, now that the meeting was about to happen, she couldn’t help but feel embarrassed and awkward.
This feeling became even more intense when Qi Jin arrived.
The young man who walked in simply gave a low “Dad” in greeting, then quietly sat down next to Qi Sheng without saying another word.
The atmosphere became especially quiet, with only the sound of Qi Sheng pouring tea.
Looking at the two silent people, Qi Sheng spoke first, “Let’s just eat here today. Whatever you have to say, just say it.”
Unfortunately, even after waiting a long time, Lin Hui still didn’t open her mouth. Qi Sheng couldn’t figure out what she wanted to do. It wasn’t until all the dishes were served that she remained silent.
Qi Sheng raised an eyebrow. Could it be that his ex-wife had finally learned to feel embarrassed?
He didn’t wait for her reaction any longer and simply picked up his chopsticks, ready to eat.
Unexpectedly, just as the atmosphere turned quiet, Lin Hui suddenly grabbed her bag and ran out.
Qi Sheng put down his chopsticks and sighed, only to hear his son softly say, “Dad, was I being too harsh just now?”
“Hmm?” Qi Sheng looked at him, wanting to hear what he had to say.
Qi Jin seemed a bit powerless. “I just couldn’t bring myself to call her, and I didn’t know what to say to her, I…”
“Alright, no need to force yourself.”
“I’ve already told her that when she’s older, you’ll give her a living allowance on time. If you want to visit her, you can, but you don’t have to feel any burden about it.”
Hearing this, Qi Jin finally relaxed, nodded, and said, “I’ll listen to you.”
After that, the two didn’t discuss the earlier matter again. Over the years living with his father, Qi Jin sometimes even felt—perhaps a little heartlessly—that the two of them living alone was better. Though the resentment toward his mother had faded somewhat, he could never truly feel close to her. The current arrangement suited him just fine.
In the following two years, the Whirlwind team saw some roster changes. They earned a third-place and a second-place title — although they didn’t reclaim the championship, Qi Jin’s fanbase continued to grow.
Then, a new mobile game exploded in popularity domestically, and that year, Whirlwind not only won the mobile game championship but also clinched the championship in War Battle.
Qi Jin’s name became known even to those who didn’t play games. Every day during his livestreams, countless fans spammed comments and virtual flowers. A dedicated group of looks-based fans even begged him daily to shoot more commercials.
One afternoon, Qi Sheng had just finished a class and was surrounded in his office by a few students asking questions. As he was explaining something seriously, he heard a commotion outside the door.
Qi Sheng frowned. Did he just hear his son’s gaming ID?
He didn’t think much of it. These days, students were obsessed with livestreams. Many of the students he taught were fans of his son. Some even neglected their homework just to chase after Qi Jin’s streams. Qi Sheng was fully aware of it, but he pretended not to know.
Two students who were waiting in line behind the others suddenly seemed to realize something. They quickly said to Qi Sheng, “Teacher Qi, we just realized we didn’t prepare our questions properly. We’ll come back another day!”
The other one echoed the same, and after saying so, they both ran out excitedly.
The few students still in front looked confused. But when they turned around, they immediately saw their idol. Without caring that it was a staff office, they excitedly screamed, “Jin Dynasty God!”
Qi Jin walked in carrying a lunchbox, smiling bitterly. Originally, he just wanted to show some filial piety, but now it seemed he was causing trouble for his dad.
After Qi Jin’s visit, Qi Sheng’s fame at school grew even more. Previously, students praised him for his lively teaching style and handsome appearance. Now, he was simply known as “Jin Dynasty God’s Dad.”
“Teacher Qi, could you please open a tutoring class at home? Math is too hard, and I want to study it all day long!”
During a relaxed moment in class, a boy in the back row suddenly raised his hand and said this, prompting a chorus of agreement from the rest of the students.
Qi Sheng chuckled and replied seriously, “The Ministry of Education has publicly stated that public school teachers are not allowed to run private tutoring classes. If you like math, save your questions and ask them after class.”
The boy wasn’t discouraged and continued asking, “Then can I go to your house to study? I have so many things I don’t understand, and I just can’t ask them all after class!”
Qi Sheng raised an eyebrow and smiled, “If you don’t understand, just practice more exercises. I’ll assign you a few extra test papers in the future!”
Upon hearing this, the boy let out a wail, causing the whole class to burst into laughter.
Since they couldn’t find a way to get close to Qi Jin, the students all flocked to his livestream, spamming the chat. That night, during Qi Jin’s stream, the screen was flooded with [Want to study math with my idol]!
The fans who didn’t know the background were confused — what kind of joke was this? But once they found out that their idol’s father was none other than the famous author of the essential Mathematical Analysis Workbook for high school students, they went wild.
Nowadays, the math analysis textbook published by Qi Sheng had become a must-have tool for countless high schoolers. Every day, innumerable students struggled through it, loving and hating it at the same time. To suddenly discover that their idol was so deeply connected to this notorious book — the internet exploded.
[Hahaha, never thought that the math god and gaming god are actually father and son! Next time I watch a stream, I can righteously tell my mom I’m cultivating my math skills!]
[In the daytime, I revolve around the dad; at night, I revolve around the son. I never thought one day my proud dragon self would be defeated by a father-son duo!]
[Defeated by the father and son duo +1.]
…
At first, the atmosphere was still fairly normal. Most people were joking around, spamming the barrage with “For my idol, studying math all day is worth it!”
But suddenly, a group of academic overachievers (study gods) rushed into the chat, and the tone of the stream changed completely.
[Sorry, math is my strong suit, haha. Does this make me a qualified fan of the idol?]
Even some top-achieving girlfriend-fans joined in on the fun.
[Hubby, I score 130 on every math exam. Won’t father-in-law like me a lot?]
The academically weaker girlfriend-fans couldn’t sit still anymore — what’s so great about being good at math!
Well, actually, it was pretty great, because the top-performing girlfriend-fans started showing off their scores.
[Scoring 140 every time here. Idol, hurry up and marry me!]
…
A bunch of top scorers started competing with their grades in the chat, while the academically weaker girlfriend-fans began to whimper: chasing my idol is too hard! The love rivals are too strong! Math is really too hard!
Qi Jin looked at the lively barrage but didn’t dare say anything… because he wasn’t good at math either…
Lin Hui ultimately never remarried. Even though Lin’s mother introduced several potential matches, Lin Hui didn’t like any of them — either she thought they didn’t earn enough or that their looks and temperament were nowhere near Qi Sheng’s. In the end, even her mother lost patience with her and stopped interfering.
At first, Lin Hui drowned her days in alcohol, but unfortunately, after years of lavish living, her savings were nearly depleted. She was forced to find a job again. Already close to fifty years old, there weren’t many good opportunities left for her. In the end, she had to take a low-paying job, exhausting herself daily, only to return to an empty, lonely home.
Her temper grew worse and worse. Besides drinking to drown her sorrows, she couldn’t help but start reminiscing about Qi Sheng’s past tenderness.
That man would always have a hot meal ready, waiting for her to come home. He would patiently comfort her about troubles at work, would coax her good-naturedly when she was upset, would occasionally surprise her with gifts, and would wait outside her hotel early when she had late shifts.
That man…
Why hadn’t she seen his goodness back then? Why hadn’t she been more gentle to her son when he was still little? Clearly, her son was a great kid apart from his studies.
Maybe because of the last bit of pride she had left, Lin Hui never tried to seek out Qi Sheng again. She only occasionally went online to check news about Qi Sheng and Qi Jin.
Due to long-term alcoholism, when she turned sixty, Lin Hui fell gravely ill. She lay unconscious in bed for a long time, and when she finally regained a bit of consciousness, she struggled with her last strength to call an ambulance.
Later, during the surgery, when a family member’s signature was needed, Qi Sheng found out about the severity of her illness. He hired a caregiver for her but rarely stayed to accompany her himself, though he occasionally reminded his son to visit when he had time.
During her final surgery, Lin Hui, in a semi-conscious haze, seemed to catch fleeting glimpses — her own child jumping from a tall building, the man she once loved being hit by a car…
A surgery that should have ended smoothly suddenly took a turn for the worse. The doctor regretfully told Qi Jin that there was nothing more they could do. In her final moments, the only thing Lin Hui managed to say was a faint, “I’m sorry.”
Qi Sheng later learned from the system what Lin Hui had experienced in her final moments. After a sigh of emotion, he focused on comforting his son.
Fortunately, Qi Jin’s child had grown sensible. Seeing his father feeling down, the little one acted silly, made jokes, and bustled around to cheer him up. Before long, Qi Jin had almost completely let go of Lin Hui’s shadow.
Back in the system space again, after purifying his emotions and resting for a day, Qi Sheng looked at his steadily increasing points, smiled, and decided to enter the next world.