Soulmate

As soon as he got back to the small courtyard that he called home, he changed into a lighter blue hanfu with white cloud patterns then began to cook dinner with whatever he has left in the pantry. It wasn't easy living without his parents.

In fact, he had to live with his paternal aunt because his hometown was far from the academy but she wasn't the type to always be at home so he had to manage his living alone. He was in charge of cooking dinner since his aunt doesn't have the time to do so. They used to live in a bigger residence in Tao Yuan city but due to financial issues, they had to move to this small residence on the outskirts of the city but it was not so bad since it is close to the Academy and the rent wasn't as costly as the previous estate. The landlord was a kind-hearted man after all.

While Jun Tian was in the middle of cooking, he heard the front gate opening so he instinctively held a cleaver knife as he walked out of the kitchen just in case it was an unwelcomed person who has entered. However, he puts the knife down with a dumbfounded look as soon as he saw his paternal aunt putting away some goods into the pantry.

"Good evening, second aunt." Jun Tian greeted her. "Aren't you supposed to be back later in the night?" He asked her then walked back into the kitchen, continuing to cook dinner for the two of them.

"I've finished my work early. How was your day at the academy?" She spoke in a delicate yet sad tone.

His second paternal aunt, Chen Liu Qin used to be the most sought-after woman in the entirety of Yun Xia Kingdom, just one spot behind his first aunt. The two sisters were rare beauties from prominent clans who are well-versed in the four arts and excelled at anything a man can do.

And even though the Chen has eventually fallen from grace and lost their aristocratic titles, his aunt was still the dream wife of many young masters back then. Nevertheless, the venom clamors of a jealous woman is a poison more deadly than a mad dog's tooth.

Chen Liu Qin was disfigured by another young lady of some high-ranked clan. Jun Tian felt a heart wrenching pain whenever he saw his aunt. She was the most beautiful woman he has ever seen but due to someone else's jealous heart, her face was scarred for life and she could not even fight back because that person was related to the imperial family.

Life is indeed a cruel joke to the powerless.

"Good." He lied.

His aunt has already enough burdens on her shoulders. She has to work as a makeup artist for courtesans of many brothels in Tao Yuan city but many mistaken her for a courtesan herself so her reputation has always been slandered by the common people. Jun Tian doesn't want her to worry about him as he really doesn't want anyone to be burdened by his own problems.

People might think that he was stupid for not seeking help but can't a person at least try to work things out on their own and not always depend on others? Everyone has his or her own circumstances so he will to get stronger on his own to defend himself!

He briskly finished cooking dinner then bid goodbye to his aunt as he headed off to work. Since she couldn't possibly give him any allowance as she was already kind enough to let him be a freeloader at her estate, he asked her if her could work part-time in order to save up a little bit of money and she agreed to his proposition as long as it doesn't affect his academic life.

Luckily, Mr Zhang, the owner of the old dumpling store down the alley, lets Jun Tian work at his place from evening to midnight. Even though he didn't earn much since it wasn't a full time job, it was already good enough since he could save up a bit here and there. Despite the late shift, he didn't have to do much either, he was simply working as a waiter and Mr Zhang is a nice old man so it's not like he's going to make Jun Tian carry a bunch of heavy boxes around but sometimes the youth do insist on helping the old man carrying things.

That night, the dumpling stall wasn't as crowded as usual so Jun Tian managed to finish all of his homework for tomorrow while waiting for customers. It was quite boring working a night shift, especially since the other waiter took a sick leave so Jun Tian looked outside of the store to distract himself.

The weather was cloudy but streams of moonlight occasionally peeped through the passing grey clouds, illuminating the tenebrous, starless sky and dimly lit the small street.

As he stared through the endless night, he abruptly caught a glimpse of a familiar figure passing by. It was the girl who stole his heart away. The moonlight accentuated her ethereal beauty, making her presence even more alluring. Chen Jun Tian could still remember her bright violet eyes that remind him of the pleasing purple horizon after the red star of the day disappears. And her long luscious silver hair cascading down her slender figure was a sight that he could never forget.

"Excuse me?" A middle-aged woman cleared her throat so his gaze quickly shifted from the mysterious girl to the person in front of him.

"How may I help you, madam?" Jun Tian quickly scanned the street again but there was no trace of the violet-eyed girl anymore.

"Just so you know, I've been here for a while now." The woman rolled her eyes as she pointed to a couple of items on the menu. "Good grief, young people these days sure aren't attentive. Whatever, I want a plate of potstickers and a dozen steamed dumplings on the go."

After taking the middle-aged woman's orders, he lets out a deep sigh since he missed his second opportunity to talk to the mysterious violet-eyed woman. The first time he saw her was at his maternal older cousin's wedding a couple of years ago. There were a few complications so he went out for a walk around the old mansion's garden and that was when he saw her sitting alone under a white marble gazebo next to a large lotus pond. It was love at first sight.

At that time, he really wanted to talk to her but he couldn't muster up enough courage to do so and little did he know, one of his cousins was already him dragging back towards the wedding reception. Jun Tian tried to look for her after that night but he couldn't find any lead about her. He even asked his older married cousin but the latter said he doesn't know anyone that fits the description.

Jun Tian eventually gave up on his silly little search but he didn't expect to see her again as she appeared right in front of his very eyes. Unfortunately, fate's playing a sick joke on him and he lost his chance to talk to her once again. If it wasn't for that middle-aged woman, he might leave the store and talk to the violet-eyed girl.

However, at the end of the day, he would think to himself that even if things often go wrong and never the way he planed it and sometimes it's hard trying to cope with it, he doesn't think he should give up so easily at the challenges that come his way.

Even if people find him weird or strange, even if they look down on him or bully him, he refuses to be someone he is not. Even if I doesn't fit in with the rest of his peers, he refuse to admit to false-self syndrome. Even if he doesn't play along with society's norms, he refuses to live a life of lie. And even if it means he might get hurt along the way, there's always beauty in struggles.

Chen Jun Tian is sure that one day everything will fall back into places and even if he lost his chance with that girl again, there's still a small flame of hope burning deep inside of his heart, wishing that he might find her again because he just knew from the first time he sets his eyes on her that she was his soulmate.