Standing Next To You-Chapter 37: The Burned Bridge

But with the passage of time and reflection, she realized that neither Mrs. Bang nor anyone else was responsible.

The burden rested on her shoulders alone—for arriving too late, for abandoning her grandmother, for prioritizing her own desires.

Now, as these thoughts resurfaced, Bei Sangyun understood that the true fault lay with her, her inability to act sooner, to be the support her grandmother needed.

Bei Sangyun composed herself to forget the past that wouldn’t happen ever again. She bowed politely at Mrs. Bang.

"I appreciate your care for me in the past, and for looking after my grandma. If you ever find yourself in need of assistance, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us."

After writing down her phone number, Bei Sangyun handed the slip of paper to Mrs. Bang. "Consider this our token of gratitude. Whether it’s financial or a favor, I’m committed to repaying what we owe."

Mrs. Bang’s grip tightened on the slip of paper, a touch of bitterness mingling with the gesture. Accepting the number would mean their relationship would transform into one of mere acquaintances, neighbors bound by an unsettled debt. The warmth of their past interactions would fade, replaced by a sense of obligation.

Yet, what other option did she have? She was, after all, one of those who had inadvertently contributed to Bei Sangyun’s departure from the village. She could only be glad in the fact that Bei Sangyun appeared not to hold her accountable.

"...Very well. Take care on your journey," Mrs. Bang replied, her voice tinged with a hint of melancholy.

Bei Sangyun and Grandma Bei left the village under the eyes of everyone in the village. When they passed by the big empty villa, Bei Sangyun paused and looked silently at the gate.

"So this place is abandoned too, huh."

Grandma Bei pulled on Bei Sangyun’s hands, "Why were you so cold toward Mrs. Bang? The Bang family has always shown us sincerity. Are you using money to show superiority now that you have enough?"

"Was I cold? I gave her my number and assured her she could seek help from me. Is that being cold?"

Bei Sangyun replied, genuinely confused. She was sincere in her gesture. If it was in the past, many businessmen would have clamored to get her personal number. They would be overjoyed at the prospect of receiving a favor in return from her.

She did not even put any limit on Mrs. Bang’s favor. She said that she would cater it to the best of her abilities- either it was money or an unfavorable request. It was her sincere gratitude for her.

"You! Have you picked up that habit from those wealthy people around you? Do you believe she’d be happy with money? You little scamp," Grandma Bei’s reproachful tone returned.

Bei Sangyun tilted her head, clearly perplexed. Had she inadvertently done something unnecessary?

"A few days after you left the village, Mrs. Bang came to me and asked why she was not seeing you around." Grandma Bei started to reminisce. "Mrs. Bang is especially good for you so I told her the truth—that you had left to live with your father’s family. She was a bit sad but she was happy that you finally got to be reunited with your family.

"Aside from her, no one knows that you left the village. But an incident happened afterward. That young master-" Grandma Bei paused and changed her words. "Anyway, a rumor spread that you left the village because of the previous incident. I don’t know how they came to that conclusion but they thought that you left the village because of the bad rumours about you regarding the previous incident. Mrs. Bang also believed in that rumor and she visited me afterward, asking me where you are and wondering if she had hurt you too."

Bei Sangyun halted. She did not know that such thing happened after she left. That’s why Mrs. Bang looked at her as if she was guilty of something.

"Did she misunderstand me?" Bei Sangyun asked. Mrs. Bang must have thought she was still angry at her because of the previous incident.

"Many people would think that way. Anyway, don’t be too cold at her next time."

"...Okay." Bei Sangyun nodded.

....

Bei Sangyun rented a tricycle and left for the town. They rode the bus to go to the next city.

Meanwhile, the crowd still hadn’t dispersed. Their topic was the Bei family.

The little girl of that family returned and took her grandma away. She did not meet anyone except Mrs. Bang and left quickly.

They gossip about how good and rich Bei Sangyun looked and what kind of life she had lived. Did she become a young miss of the rich family?

"A young miss? Dream on. If she became the young miss of a rich family she should have come with a car and with many expensive things on her. Did you see that she came here with nothing? She was not even wearing a pretty dress. If her skin is not so white, she would not look that different than us!"

A young woman said loudly. She was a bit annoyed by how the villagers exaggeratedly praised Bei Sangyun’s pretty face and assumed that the latter must be a young miss from a wealthy family.

She was not so different than her. Why was everyone praising her? What made the women of the village any less admirable?

"I think so too. We wouldn’t have noticed that it was Bei Sangyun if she did not look like her mother in the past. She really came with nothing but clothes. I think she just took her grandma just to live in another village."

"Let’s just be happy that we don’t have to live with that stubborn old woman. The land around their hut is also good. I want to try building a pigpen there."

Many people were also concerned about this.

"Psst, Mrs. Bang, what did Bei Sangyun give you?" a curious voice piped up from the crowd.

Mrs. Bang cast an icy gaze in the direction of the nosy questioner before decisively closing her door, putting an end to the discussion.

....

A little later, a car parked in front of the village, and a tall handsome young man came down.

"Where is she?" He asked the group of young men who were waiting for him at the entrance of the village.

"Brother Cheng, she already left the village. We tried to stop her but she....but she couldn’t be stopped." the lanky young man said.

Brother Cheng, Cheng Li, sighed in regret, "Already? Have you talked to her then? Did you explain what happened back then?"

The lanky young man lowered his head shamefully, "I couldn’t...I am sorry Brother Cheng."

Cheng Li was frustrated, "You did not even apologize? This might have been our only opportunity to make amends, yet you allowed it to slip through your fingers!"

The lanky young man also felt sorry, "...She just left and I couldn’t explain anything."

The lanky young man felt wronged. He wanted to talk to Bei Sangyun but the latter’s gaze was frightening. Before he knew it, he already let her go.

How could he muster the courage to talk to someone with such an intimidating stare? It was as if her gaze alone could suffocate him.

She was even scarier than the young master.

Cheng Li wanted to explode. He had been looking for Bei Sangyun to explain the misunderstanding in the past and the bad things he and his friends had done.

He thought he could find her as he looked from town to town. But he could not find her in the countryside. Until the young master left the village, Cheng Li did not have any clue as to where Bei Sangyun had gone to.

They could not ask Grandma Bei properly because that old woman would always shoo them before they could speak.

They had no choice but to look blindly. That’s why when the rumor spread that Bei Sangyun returned, his friends contacted him immediately.

Fortunately, he was in the nearby city because he visited his family who relocated to the city. He thought he could arrive in time to meet her, but no matter how fast he drove, he was still too late.

It seemed that he wouldn’t be able to mend his relationship with the Young Master.

Cheng Li sighed in frustration.

After graduating and entering the Capital, he learned that the Young Master’s identity was bigger than he thought.

The Chuan family was known and invisible in the countryside, but in the Capital, they were just common among the wealthy families.

What’s the bigger deal was the Fei family whom the Chuans managed to latch onto- one of the powerful legendary families who everyone was fearful of.

A country bumpkin like him was already fortunate enough to become childhood friends with one of the young masters of the Fei family. Many wealthy people would have fought hard to be in his place.

As he delved deeper into the realities of the upper echelons, Cheng Li recognized the Young Master as his pathway to success. It was a chance to partake in the opulent world he had only glimpsed.

However, before he could fully seize that opportunity, he had already set his bridges ablaze.

The frustration that gnawed at him was born from the knowledge that he had squandered the very path he had yearned to tread.

Cheng Li glared at his foolish childhood friends- the ones who burned the bridges.

As he thought, getting acquainted with foolish and good-for-nothing people would only bring harm to him.

"Look for anything that can lead me to her. If you don’t find anything, don’t call me. I don’t have stupid brothers like you."

....

A/n: Cheng Li is the chess champion kid, and the leader of the group of teenagers who were part of Bei Sangyun and Fei Chuan’s childhood. Appeared in Chapters 13, 14, 15....