Lesson on Loyalty!

"Of course, Mom," Wang Xiao had replied, his face the picture of sincerity. "Respect women. Got it. Anything else?"

____

Later, as she reflected on the situation, Xinyue Zhilan couldn't help but feel deeply frustrated. Learning about Wang Xiao's past actions—drugging a girl when he was just twelve—had sent her into a spiral of disbelief.

What kind of twelve-year-old even thinks of something like that?

Her mind kept circling back to the same question: What went wrong? She prided herself on being a good mother, firm but fair, supportive yet disciplined. And yet, here was her son—a man who, even as a child, seemed to teeter on the edge of morality.

But what could she do now? It was in the past, and no amount of scolding could change it. The damage was done. If only she knew what he was up to now, she'd extend that lecture to a couple of years at least.