Chapter 62
Before going to Australia, Jiang Mu had worried whether Chris’s family would accept her. But once she arrived, those concerns completely vanished.
Chris had a son and two daughters. When Jiang Mu first landed in Australia, they all put aside their work, gathered their families, and traveled to Melbourne to welcome her. Each of them had carefully prepared a gift to greet this new sister from afar and warmly welcome her into their big family.
They embraced Jiang Mu with genuine warmth, even Chris’s toddler grandson joined in, which melted away the unease and anxiety she had carried in her heart.
During her first three months in Australia, Jiang Mu struggled to adjust. Having never lived abroad, she found the language barrier, the unfamiliar food, and the challenge of building a new social circle all difficult to navigate.
Back then, she was still in touch with Jin Chao. She often messaged him, venting, complaining, or sharing bits of happiness, and whenever he had time, he would chat with her for a while. Whenever she missed him too much, Jiang Mu would pester him to video call, just to see his face. It usually took a day or two, sometimes even three, of coaxing before he’d finally agree. And once the call connected, she’d stare at him on the screen, unwilling to hang up.
In those early days in Australia, her world still revolved entirely around him. But as the school term began and classes became more demanding, their conversations slowly became less frequent.
Jiang Mu majored in Natural Sciences, with a focus on physics and astronomy. Due to the language barrier, her first year of study was incredibly challenging. She often couldn’t understand the basic technical terms used in lectures, and sometimes an entire class felt like listening to a foreign script written in gibberish. This forced her to spend countless extra hours catching up after class.
She attended university in Canberra, and most of the time she could be found either in the library or tucked away in a quiet café, going over lessons again and again to grasp what she hadn’t understood in class. Yet every month, she would carve out a weekend to board a one-hour flight to Melbourne. There, in Chris’s home, she would enjoy brief but precious holidays with her mother.
A few months later, she gradually adapted to life there. She had made a few good roommates, and even those obscure, difficult scientific terms started to make sense. Bit by bit, everything began to fall into place. She was no longer scrambling the way she had when she first arrived in Australia, she had become much more composed when facing challenges that used to overwhelm her.
In her sixth month abroad, Pan Kai forwarded her a news article. It reported that, with the support and coordination of several local customs and public security bureaus, the General Administration of Customs had cracked a smuggling case involving illegally imported auto parts worth a staggering 800 million yuan.
The list of individuals involved included someone identified as Wan XX and his nephew, along with several subordinate employees.
When Jiang Mu read the news, she couldn’t calm down for a long time. She knew all too well that behind this bust lay the life-risking efforts of countless law enforcement officers and ordinary informants.
That very day, she messaged Jin Chao and asked, “Is it all over now?”
Late that evening, he replied with a message telling her he planned to leave Tonggang, perhaps to venture somewhere far away. He wouldn’t be keeping this phone number or WeChat account anymore.
Jiang Mu understood what he meant. He wanted to put a final full stop on the past.
In his final message, Jin Chao told her that once he had settled down in a new place, he would get back in touch.
In the days that followed, Jiang Mu continued her studies while quietly waiting for word from him. That wait stretched on for half a year. Jin Chao never contacted her again. His old phone number had become invalid, and his WeChat account had been deleted.
The following summer, after the semester ended, Jiang Mu came up with a long list of reasons to justify a trip back to China. Although Jiang Yinghan didn’t express much support, she ultimately let her go.
When she set foot again on the land of Tonggang, a whirlwind of emotions surged within her. This time, it was Jin Qiang himself who picked her up from the station to take her home. Along the way, she kept asking about Jin Chao’s whereabouts, but Jin Qiang’s answers were vague and unclear. He simply told her that Jin Chao had gone away to work, without explaining exactly where he’d gone or what he was doing.
When she got home, Jiang Mu asked her father for Jin Chao’s current contact information, she wanted to call him. But Jin Qiang hesitated and stammered, saying he didn’t have it. Jiang Mu sat there trying to make sense of what he really meant, but couldn’t.
It wasn’t until after dinner that Zhao Meijuan quietly pulled her aside and told her the truth that Jin Chao had left for another city a few months ago. Before leaving, he told Jin Qiang that if things worked out, he might never return to Tonggang.
She added that, after all, Jin Chao wasn’t Jin Qiang’s biological son. Over the years, he had mostly lived on his own, and the family hadn’t done much to care for him. Whether he chose to leave Tonggang or never come back, they really had no place to interfere. She hoped Jiang Mu could understand that.
In the end, she gently advised Jiang Mu to focus on her studies abroad, she should focus on her studies. Everyone has their own path, and some things just can’t be forced.
Jiang Mu didn’t stay in China long. During this visit, she went back to Tongren again. But in just over a year, everything had changed. The Speedy Auto and the Golden Triangle Pet Shop were both gone. The storefronts had been torn down and converted into a fast food restaurant. The scenes of the past now felt like nothing more than a dream.
She had reached out to San Lai. Lightning was never found, and after closing the pet store, San Lai also left Tonggang. He, too, said it had been a long time since he’d last heard from Jin Chao.
It was as if, ever since she had left, everyone’s life had been turned upside down. The earth kept spinning, and no one had stayed in the same place.
Before leaving this time, Jiang Mu had a long conversation with her father. She encouraged him to take Jin Xin to see a therapist. She was still young, and avoiding the outside world now would only make it harder to reconnect later in life. Jiang Mu didn’t know whether her father would truly listen, but she hoped that this half-sister of hers would have an easier path in life.
Leaving this land once again, her heart heavy with regret, disappointment, and a heart full of longing. But she had to return to her own path and keep moving toward her future without daring to pause.
Life resumed its usual rhythm once she was back in Australia. The longer she spent with Chris, the more she noticed how different he was from her father. He was endlessly patient with her mother. When Jiang Yinghan vented her frustrations, he would listen attentively, sometimes shooting Jiang Mu a helpless glance, but always waiting until her mother had finished before trying to talk things through. He never missed a holiday, big or small, without ordering a beautiful bouquet for her mother. He remembered every birthday, anniversary, and special occasion in the family, always inviting everyone over for a meal in advance.
Every time Jiang Mu returned to the home Chris shared with her mother, she was met with fresh flowers in the vases, spotless windows letting in warm light, and soft, pristine carpets underfoot. No matter when she visited, the house was always tidy and orderly.
Gradually, she let go of the resentment she once held about her parents’ divorce. After spending a year in Tonggang and another year by her mother’s side, she came to understand life wasn’t so much about right or wrong. Life is long, and everyone stumbles forward, step by step, until they meet the person who’s truly right for them.
Chris had lost his first wife early, and his children were all very filial. In return, they treated Jiang Yinghan with the same respect and warmth. Every time they came home, they brought her scented candles and decorations she liked. They frequently mailed snacks and treats to Jiang Mu, far away in Canberra.
Before Thanksgiving, Jiang Mu practiced cooking Chinese dishes with great effort to host the family. Her Australian siblings were full of praise for her cooking, asking if she cooked often.
Before leaving China, she hadn’t even made a proper meal once. But people change, nothing stays the same forever. She used to be such a picky eater. Now, with no one left to indulge her, living alone at university forced her to eat anything and everything.
In her teens, she had refused to wear glasses for the sake of beauty. She not only put on glasses but also grew out her hair, shedding the naivety of her girlhood. She became more mature, more composed, and more independent. Yet she never returned to her home country again.
Over the years, she had her share of admirers, some foreigners, some Chinese. Even Chris’s youngest daughter’s friends had asked for her contact information. Jiang Mu didn’t deliberately close herself off. She tried going on a few dates and having dinner with a couple of boys.
But she never really felt present. She couldn’t help comparing those boys to Jin Chao. She knew it wasn’t fair, but her mind couldn’t help it. During meals, they wouldn’t cut her tough steak the way Jin Chao used to. When they went out shopping, they didn’t adjust their pace for her the way Jin Chao always had. Even when she was clearly exhausted, they didn’t seem to notice, and some still insisted on going to play basketball afterward.
She knew these weren’t real flaws, not enough to disqualify someone. But still, she kept arguing with herself, unable to let go of this stubborn standard. If a man couldn’t measure up to Jin Chao, she refused to settle.
Then, in her sophomore year, she joined the astronomy club and met Gu Zhijie. It felt like fate. They were at the same university, studying in the same field. Gu Zhijie had just arrived from China for graduate studies, having completed his undergrad at the Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics (NUAA). When Jiang Mu learned he was from NUAA, she was thrilled.
If she hadn’t suddenly found out about her mother’s illness back then, she most likely would’ve ended up at NUAA too. It had always been a lingering regret.
Had it not been for her mother’s sudden illness, she would likely have gone to NUAA herself. Missing that opportunity had always been a regret, so discovering Gu Zhijie’s background made her feel an instant connection.
Even more coincidentally, they were both from Jiangsu; she was from Suzhou, the other from Huai’an. Meeting a fellow Jiangsu like that in a foreign land, felt like a rare connection long overdue.
The second time they met was at the university library. Jiang Mu was taking notes, completely absorbed in her work. When Gu Zhijie saw her, he walked over and sat down across from her. Jiang Mu didn’t look up, still focused, until Gu Zhijie leaned in slightly and joked with a smile,
“You’re working so hard. You must be one of the motherland’s finest young talents.”
Jiang Mu looked up and saw it was him. She smiled.
It was during that encounter that they finally exchanged contact information. As Gu Zhijie was leaving after checking out some books, his gaze lingered on her pen and he asked suddenly, “Can I take a look at that?”
Jiang Mu lowered her eyes and handed him the silver pen in her hand. Gu Zhijie took it, holding it up and examining it for a moment. Jiang Mu asked, “Do you know anything about pens?”
Gu Zhijie smiled as he returned it to her and asked, “Was it a gift?”
Jiang Mu took the pen back, her smile faint and tinged with bitterness. “My ex.”
“Were you two together for a long time?”
Jiang Mu paused, her expression a little blank, then replied, “One week.”
Gu Zhijie looked a little surprised. “He gave you this pen after just a week of dating? The TianGuan crest is gold-plated, and so is the nib with an arrow-feather design. Your ex must’ve been pretty well-off, huh?”
Still waters run deep. As spring faded into autumn, Jiang Mu gazed out the window at the falling leaves, lost in thought.
He hadn’t been wealthy at all.
He’d simply given her the best of everything he had during his hardest times.