Reborn: I'll Never Fail My Childhood Sweetheart Again

Chapter 544 - 206: How About Letting Qin Shiqing Get Along Peacefully with the Other Girls?

The two-month summer vacation is about to end, and soon it will be time to return to school.

Zhao Lixia, who usually let her son fend for himself, suddenly became diligent again. Every meal turned from simple pickled vegetables to hearty dishes, wishing to fatten her son up by five pounds before he headed back to school.

Sweet and sour pork, sweet and sour fish, quick-fried shrimp with eel, pineapple chicken stir-fry... there was even a large platter of hairy crabs.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t the best season for eating hairy crabs just yet.

"Nine female and ten male" is considered the best timing, meaning eating female crabs in the ninth lunar month and male crabs in the tenth. The crab roe and paste are at their most succulent and tasty during these times, offering peak flavor.

It’s only the end of the seventh lunar month now, not even August.

No choice, her son was about to attend school and couldn’t wait until September or October in the lunar calendar.

"Wow, there’s crab, awesome!"

Su Zelin grabbed a crab and started eating, only to have Zhao Lixia smack his hand with a spatula.

"Ms. Zhao, what’s wrong with me having one first? According to the principle of gastric conservation, if I eat one now, I’ll naturally eat one less at dinner later!"

He spoke with great gusto.

He couldn’t understand why Empress Dowager always stopped him from stealing food. Isn’t it tastier to eat it fresh out of the pot?

What wrong have I done?

"What principle of conservation, you little rascal! You’ve come up with a bunch of nonsense for your sneaky eating! I don’t care about your excuses, stealing food is simply unacceptable!"

Zhao Lixia’s attitude was firm.

For such a vile act as sneaky eating, zero tolerance was necessary!

Unfortunately, despite efforts from childhood to adulthood, it seemed unstoppable. Su Zelin’s hands had been hit by spatulas countless times, yet he never learned whenever he entered the kitchen.

This left the Empress Dowager quite helpless.

He’s already a manager at a large company, yet still doesn’t show any maturity.

Always sneaking food—who on earth did he inherit this trait from?

Just then Old Su walked into the kitchen, his eyes lighting up upon seeing the platter of bright red cooked crabs on the counter.

"Oh, we got hairy crabs tonight. It’s been a while since I had these!"

Saying this, he casually grabbed one, broke open the shell, and devoured it, still commenting: "Pity the roe isn’t quite fat enough, not quite there yet!"

Alright, the answer was found.

Looks this came from me, but the sneaky eating? Clearly from his dad!

How dare they complain about the food while sneaking it! Do they want to live dangerously!

"You two, father and son, get out of here!"

Granny Su roared like a lioness from the east, raising her voice by fifty decibels, causing the whole house to shake.

Both father and son grabbed a crab each and scrambled away in haste.

"Call Shiqing over for dinner. She’s home alone today!"

Zhao Lixia shouted angrily from the kitchen, addressing Su Zelin.

The errand of inviting the neighbor girl to eat was something he always did from a young age.

Even when inviting Zelin over for dinner, Qin Shiqing was sent over.

"Got it, Mom!"

Su Zelin nibbled on crab as he left the house, thinking to himself.

School was starting soon; better discuss the return date with her first.

Since every new school term was New Era’s peak season, Su Zelin usually left a day or two earlier than others.

Upon reaching next door, he found Qin Shiqing watering the roses in the yard.

These flowers bloom from May to September each year, with warmer places like Qiongzhou State and Guangdong Province seeing blooms starting around April, lasting about half a year from the onset of spring.

It was already nearing September, at the end of the blooming season. The roses, which had once filled the garden in clusters, had almost all withered, leaving behind only one valiant bloom, standing proud and displaying its final beauty.

With so few left, they had lost their ornamental value, yet Qin Shiqing carefully tended to it, as if it were an old friend.

She gently caressed the rose, mumbling softly as she watered it, "It’s okay, I’m still here with you. When spring comes next year, you and your little companions will bloom again, and we’ll meet once more!"

Su Zelin paused, gazing at her graceful figure, his heart filled with swirling thoughts.

Soon enough, Qin Shiqing and I would be juniors.

It’s been more than two years since I was reborn!

The march of time is always silent, quietly slipping away unnoticed. With the passing of spring and advent of autumn, youth ends in an instant.

A thousand splendors can’t outshine the fleeting years; beauty ages, powerless against swift time.

The flowers faded, but they will bloom again next year.

But what about when one’s youth has passed?

In my previous life, Qin Shiqing and Huang Panpan lost over ten years of their youth because of me.

Returning to my high school days, I thought I could enjoy this most beautiful period.

But I quickly realized that the days until graduation, entering society, and facing life’s different crossroads weren’t so far away.

Suddenly, Su Zelin felt afraid, causing the hairy crab in his mouth to lose its savor.

Before being reborn, he had repeatedly asked himself in his heart.

If time could reverse, could the past me do better? Could the regrets of the past be released?

If I can let go, then my heart will feel at peace.

If I can’t let go, then countless knots will form in my heart.

He thought he could do better, but now his belief wavered.

He truly couldn’t let go.

Even if the clock returned to its original position, it was no longer yesterday.

The emotional entanglement between him and Qin Shiqing might have been a thing of the past, but the memories and attachments got stuck at the soul’s core as time flowed backwards. Su Zelin couldn’t pretend like nothing happened.