Chasing You Like a Tenacious Falcon

Kong Mingze, speaking up to this point, suddenly relaxed and smiled, "Ah, next I should talk about how my family opened a hot pot restaurant!"

Quan Zhisui resumed eating her snacks.

Zhuge Ying asked, "You said your family never won the lottery, right?"

"Right!" Kong Mingze nodded. "My parents are honest people. They didn’t get much education and were always frugal. Back then, we were poor, and they saved every penny. There’s no way they would’ve spent money on lottery tickets!"

"A bowl of rice, worth five million!"

Quan Zhisui: "That’s so like him."

"Not quite! He didn’t give it on the spot!" Kong Mingze’s eyes lit up as he spoke. "He gave it three years later."

This piqued Quan Zhisui’s curiosity. "What happened during those three years?"

Kong Mingze: "A lot happened. After the kidnapping incident, Wei Shixu stopped going to school and disappeared for three years. I didn’t see him again until junior high."

As he spoke, he grew excited, gesturing animatedly.

"I always knew Wei Shixu was something else. When he was 10, he did have a lot of pocket money, and his family was wealthy, but there’s no way he could’ve just pulled out five million like that. That’s an astronomical sum!"

"But three years later, at 13, his status had transformed from being the eldest grandson of the Wei family to the sole heir of Wei Jingsan."

Quan Zhisui: "Wei Jingsan?"

Kong Mingze: "Wei Shixu’s grandfather, the wealthiest man in Liangxi Town, Wei Jingsan!"

Quan Zhisui raised an eyebrow. "What an impressive figure."

Kong Mingze continued, "Wei Shixu spent three years pushing all those relatives out of the Wei family’s inner circle, turning them into marginal figures. Meanwhile, he became the second master of the Wei family estate. That huge mansion had only two owners—him and his grandfather."

Quan Zhisui admired it but couldn’t quite imagine it. "How did he do it? Did he kill someone?"

Kong Mingze was startled. "Of course not! I didn’t ask him for the specifics. Those were three very dark years, and I didn’t want him to relive them."

Just ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‍hearing about it was enough to make one’s heart race. What were the processes and methods behind it all?

Only Wei Shixu knew how much hardship he endured.

Quan Zhisui suddenly smiled. "The Diamond Path."

"What?" Kong Mingze didn’t understand.

Quan Zhisui’s gaze deepened. "His family—his Diamond Path."

Great suffering often comes from those closest to us, because outsiders can’t harm the core. Every leap and transformation is about breaking free from these cages.

Her own family was also her Diamond Path—either she could walk away or she could break through.

Wei Shixu spent three years breaking through.

What about her? She was still trapped...

If only she could end it all at once! Quan Zhisui narrowed her eyes, lost in thought.

Zhuge Ying asked, "So, if there’s no one left in that family he dislikes, why does he choose to live on campus at Liangxi High? He even donated money to renovate the dormitory."

Kong Mingze: "He once said that school is the easiest, purest thing in the world. I think he just likes the atmosphere there."

Zhuge Ying sighed. "What kind of trauma would make him feel that way?"

Kong Mingze: "Anyway, after that, his financial flow increased, and he returned to school. That’s when we reunited."

"When I saw him again in junior high, you have no idea how happy I was!"

"And though he didn’t show it on the surface, the very next day, he handed over five million! My parents had never seen so much money in their lives. They were completely stunned!"

Zhuge Ying: "So, you became best friends?"

"Yup!" Kong Mingze nodded emphatically, then frowned. "But Wei Shixu’s personality changed a lot. He became very... dark... dark..."

"Brooding," Zhuge Ying added.

Kong Mingze: "Yes, exactly! The trauma from his childhood made it hard for him to be happy. Betrayal by his closest family and malice from strangers made it impossible for him to open up to others. So, apart from me, he had no other friends."

"From then on, I started acting cheerful and sunny, trying to mimic the way he was before he turned 10, hoping to remind him of his original self."

"But it didn’t work. Maybe I’m just not good at it—I didn’t capture the essence. He stayed the same." Kong Mingze scratched his head. "Ironically, I ended up becoming genuinely cheerful and made a lot of friends."

Zhuge Ying smiled. "That probably had something to do with your family’s improved financial situation, right?"

Kong Mingze’s eyes lit up. "Exactly! After that, my parents never worried about money again. Our hot pot restaurant took off. We opened the first branch in junior high, a second one the next year, and now, in my senior year, we’ve gone chain-wide!"

"Once our family’s finances improved, I didn’t feel the pressure of academics anymore. All I wanted was for Wei Shixu to be happier. He did smile occasionally, but those moments were rare."

Zhuge Ying commented, "So, you two saved each other."

Kong Mingze fell silent for a moment before shaking his head. "He saved me. I couldn’t save him."

Zhuge Ying countered, "What about that bowl of rice? Have you forgotten?"

Kong Mingze still shook his head. "He repaid it! And a bowl of plain rice without any seasoning—how could it be worth five million? He gave too much."

Then, Kong Mingze looked directly at Quan Zhisui. "Quan Zhisui, you know, when you transferred here and broke Zuo Zichen’s arm on your first day, I immediately thought you and Wei Shixu could become friends—the best kind!"

Zhuge Ying nodded, giving him a high-five. "Funny, I thought the same."

Quan Zhisui’s expression remained indifferent. "Sorry, but we can’t be friends. We’ve already cut ties."

Kong Mingze grew anxious and pressed on. "Quan Zhisui! Just take pity on him. I can tell he really cares about you and wants to be friends! Those few days he spent with you, he was genuinely happy!"

Zhuge Ying nodded again. "For a while, Wei Shixu’s eyes were glowing."

His fondness was practically overflowing!

Quan Zhisui’s gaze turned cold and unfeeling. "Why should I pity him?"

Kong Mingze: "..."

Quan Zhisui: "I grew up an orphan. Everything I had—food, clothes—was charity from my master and senior brothers. I grew up on a mountain and had never tasted seafood before coming to Liangxi Town."

"After arriving in Liangxi, the Zuo family bullied me, humiliated me, and tried to put me in my place! I didn’t even have warm clothes to wear."

"My biological father is also using me. He refused to sign my special talent application, trying to ruin me! I’ve spent over a decade practicing martial arts, and now I have to catch up with the academic demands of a top high school."

"I need to figure out what my father is trying to use me for, and I have to push myself to get into a good university to escape the Zuo family’s control. I don’t have enough time."

"Is my life not pitiful enough? I’m exhausted. I don’t have any extra kindness to spare for him."

Wei Shixu’s life was indeed tragic and pitiful, but his suffering is over.

Quan Zhisui’s suffering has only just begun. She still has her Diamond Path to break through!

After saying all this in one breath, both Kong Mingze and Zhuge Ying fell silent.

Quan Zhisui gathered the snack wrappers. "I need to go back and do my homework."

Kong Mingze opened his mouth but ultimately said nothing. He had no reason or right to argue.

"Goodbye," Quan Zhisui said as she left.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Watching her retreating figure, Zhuge Ying hesitated, then sighed.

Wei Shixu and Quan Zhisui...

Both are so pitiful!