Divorced at fifty, I embarked on my path to success.

Mei Yusheng shed tears of heartache, while Xiao Shitou pursed his lips, a stubborn look in his eyes.

"Poor child!" Mei Yusheng carefully held him in her arms, her tears wetting his small shoulders.

"I'm fine!" Little Stone's boyish voice held a barely perceptible softness. "Sister, don't cry."

Mei Yusheng wiped away her tears, took him to the pharmacy to buy ointment, gently applied it to him, and placed the ointment in his hand: "Go back and apply it regularly, it will get better soon."

She couldn't help but remind you, "Even if your dad and stepmother find out when you get back, don't talk back if they scold you. Pretend to be very obedient. If they hit you, just run out and find your sister. Don't suffer in silence, understand?"

He was then given his home address.

She really wanted to tell him that even if it was just pretending, she should act obedient until she grew up.

Little Stone nodded very seriously.

"If you get hungry in the future, just tell your sister, and she'll bring you something to eat." Mei Yusheng gazed solemnly into his eyes. "Promise your sister you'll never steal again."

Little Stone nodded very seriously again.

From then on, Mei Yusheng would bring food to the school gate almost every noon to wait for Xiao Shitou, watch him finish eating, say a few words to him, and then leave.

She discovered that Xiao Shitou especially loved the three-delicacy pork buns she made, so she often made them for him after that.

She often bought him stationery and other similar items, but dared not buy him clothes, shoes, or socks, for fear that his stepmother would find out and cause trouble.

This went on for more than half a year. One day, she took dumplings to find Little Stone, only to find that he was gone.

Even the school teachers didn't know why he suddenly stopped coming to school. Back then, telephones weren't common, so they couldn't contact his parents in time.

Mei Yusheng was so worried that she couldn't sleep at night. She regretted not asking Xiao Shitou where his home was. She had asked her teacher and many classmates, but no one knew.

They said that Xiao Shitou transferred to the school a year ago. He is withdrawn and doesn't usually interact with his classmates, always keeping to himself.

She continued to bring food to school every day at noon, but she never saw him again.

Later, Mei Yusheng met Yue Jiangting, and then she was busy getting married, having children, working frantically every day, and then moving house. Gradually, she forgot about the little boy.

"Where did you go? Why didn't you tell me beforehand?" Mei Yusheng was immersed in the joy of reunion, and she was very happy that Xiao Shitou had grown up so well, but there was still a hint of complaint in her tone, "Do you know how worried I was for a long time? Sometimes I even had nightmares about you..."

"Dreaming that I was beaten to death by my dad?" Qin Chu joked with a smile. Because of Mei Yusheng, that tragic experience did not leave too much of a shadow on his heart.

Mei Yusheng secretly rejoiced: "You described it so horrible, it's not unreasonable for me to have such associations, is it?"

“Yes, that’s certainly possible.” Qin Chu smiled gently. “My uncle took me away.”

Qin Chu's eyes darkened as he drifted into memories: "My dad and mom divorced because of my uncle. My uncle had a tough time in the army back then, and my mom would send him things whenever she had a spare moment. She would also make him cotton-padded clothes and knit sweaters. Often, my dad wouldn't have them yet, but she would give them to him first. Over time, my dad became jealous and thought that my mom liked my uncle more."

"At the time, I thought Dad had misunderstood. It wasn't until I grew up that I realized he had cheated on me first and was deliberately picking a fight with my mom." Anger welled up in Qin Chu's eyes.

"My uncle got into military academy and was assigned to a government agency after graduation. He found out about me and, while my dad and stepmother weren't home, he secretly took me away. Because it was so sudden, I didn't have time to tell you. I'm sorry!"

Qin Chu looked apologetic: "I was young then, and I was afraid my dad would come looking for me, so I didn't dare to send you letters. A few years later, I went to university and made a special trip back to my hometown, but you had already married and moved away."

"You went back to look for me again?" Mei Yusheng asked in surprise, and couldn't help but pat him on the shoulder. "At least you have a conscience!"

Qin Chu smiled at her, her eyes sparkling like stars: "Sister, I recognized you the moment I saw you, but you have no recollection of me at all. You have no idea how heartbroken I was!"

Mei Yusheng didn't respond to his words, then suddenly remembered something, her expression turning serious: "I'm asking you, why do you know how to pick locks and open safes, you..."

"Are you trying to ask if I disobeyed you and did something illegal again?" Qin Chu chimed in, his eyes gleaming with mischief, as if he were that little boy from back then.

Mei Yusheng's face darkened, and his expression turned serious.

"Sister, don't worry, I haven't gone astray!" Qin Chu held Mei Yusheng's hand affectionately and said solemnly, "I've always remembered what I promised you, I'd rather starve than steal anything again."

Mei Yusheng's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, settled down, and she touched his face tenderly: "No, when you're hungry, go ask someone for food first. If no one gives you any, you can steal. But you can't steal money, do you understand?"

Qin Chu nodded with tears in his eyes: "I understand!"

"Why didn't you let me see when you opened the safe? Did you think you could guess the password?" Mei Yusheng recalled that Qin Chu's gaze towards her had been rather strange at the time.

"I..." Qin Chu's eyes darted away, "I don't want you to see my practiced movements, even if it's to help you, I don't want you to make wild assumptions."

Mei Yusheng thought to herself, "I've already started making wild assumptions!"

"By the way, why did you lie and say your name was Little Stone back then?" Mei Yusheng's aggressive gaze pressed in again.

“At that time, I was very resistant to my father and did not want to use the name he gave me, Qin Zhixun. I felt like a superfluous little stone that no one liked, which was casually thrown on the roadside and trampled on by people.”

The sound of the rain suppressed the bitterness in his heart, and he regretted bringing up his painful past.

Suddenly, she realized that Qin Chu was already a mature man in his forties and a successful person. How could she still treat him like that helpless little boy?

Then he laughed and said, "Look at me, what am I worrying about? You're already a famous writer. You know what? I'm your biggest fan!"

Qin Chu gave a shy smile: "Really? You like my writing?"

"Of course! I'm proud of you!" Mei Yusheng gave him a thumbs up.

"By the way, you still haven't answered me why you know how to pick locks and open safes, and why you seem so professional at it!"

Qin Chu's expression stiffened, and he said with a wry smile, "In order to write my first detective novel, I went to prison and met some prisoners. It was one of the master thieves who taught me."

"The Divine Thief! When was that book written?" Mei Yusheng asked in astonishment.

Qin Chu nodded.

Mei Yusheng was filled with emotion. Indeed, novelists are all talented, no, they are all polymaths, they dare to learn anything!

"Knowing that you're doing well and have grown into such an outstanding person, I feel at ease." Mei Yusheng wiped the corner of her eye.

"Sister, you don't have any more worries now, right? You can stay here now, right?" Qin Chu pressed on with his question.

Mei Yusheng was pulled back to the cruel reality by his words. She was stunned for a moment, then nodded: "Okay, I'll stay here. Luckily, I met you. It seems that God is not too cruel to me. I met you when I was desperate."

"Sister, you can settle down here from now on. I'll take care of those things for you." Qin Chu breathed a sigh of relief, her expression visibly relaxing. "Just do what you want, whatever you want to do, without any worries. Leave everything to me, I won't let you suffer any losses."

Mei Yusheng's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, suddenly felt grounded. She knew that Qin Chu and Qin Zhan had the ability to help her escape the quagmire of that marriage.