Chapter 2

At this point, I was stunned.

My first reaction was that Mrs. Wilson was making it up.

In my eyes, Adam was a good kid who was poor but ambitious. He studied hard, wanting to change his fate. He was also very respectful to me, always politely calling me "Miss Lily" whenever I came to tutor.

He wasn't one to just take without giving back. Every time I brought him milk and fruit, he would blush and refuse, even washing them clean and insisting I eat some too.

Adam and I got along very well. Otherwise, given how often Mrs. Wilson delayed paying the tutoring fee, I wouldn't have stayed on.

Or you could say, the reason I persisted in tutoring him all this time was entirely for Adam's sake.

[Don't use the child as an excuse. I want to talk to Adam.]

I replied to Mrs. Wilson like this, and the next second, a video call came through from the other side.

Adam's face appeared on the screen.

"Adam, is what your mom said true?" I asked.

"Do you think I'm not teaching seriously and just wasting time?"

Even at this moment, I believed Mrs. Wilson was making things up. I couldn't believe this would be Adam's thoughts.

But to my surprise, Adam nodded.

"I said it. There's no point in holding back anymore," he said.

"I only ranked ninth in the class this time. My deskmate also has a tutor, so how come he can get first place?"

"My grades are improving so slowly, you must not be teaching wholeheartedly. The fact that I could go from the bottom to the top ten in the class shows that my IQ is high, so it must be a problem with your teaching method."

"And your fee is so expensive, but the results are so poor. Luckily I've found someone cheaper now, otherwise I would have been fooled by you and had to endure who knows how long?"

Adam's eyes were full of complaints and contempt, as if I were some unforgivable criminal.

I couldn't believe it. "Adam, what are you talking about? You know very well that every time I tutor you, I bring you good food - bread, milk, fruit. When have I ever missed a time?"

"The things I buy already exceed $10, more than the daily tutoring fee! I'm practically paying to tutor you. How can you say this about me?"

Adam raised his eyelids slightly, very dismissive of what I said. "Who's the fool in this world? If you were really losing money, would you be willing to teach me?"

"You bring me milk and fruit just because you want to make money from my family for a long time. You want to see me every day, so you're nice to me and treat me well."

"You think I can't see through your tricks?"

Hearing him say this, my heart went completely cold.

If Mrs. Wilson had misunderstood me, I could still tolerate it. But Adam's words completely pierced my heart.

I tutored him without wanting anything in return. I just wanted to help him.

Because I had once suffered from poverty, and it was kind people who helped me successfully get into college. I know how important education is, and now that my family's situation has improved a lot, I wanted to pass on that kindness.

But this is the questioning I face.

It turns out that the obedient and polite Adam from before was just "enduring humiliation."

It turns out that my kindness to him, in his eyes, was seen as a way to make money.

My lips trembled with anger. The young man in front of me seemed so unfamiliar, I could hardly recognize him.

"Oh my, you just had to push it," came a familiar voice from the phone, mocking and arrogant.

"Just admit you're making dirty money. You had to confront Adam, and now look, you're the one who's embarrassed."

"You have no self-awareness at all."

I couldn't mistake that voice—

It was my roommate, Jessica.

How could she be at Adam's house?

I suddenly remembered that not long ago, Jessica had repeatedly asked me which family I was tutoring.

"What's there to be so secretive about? Just tell me. If there's one student in that neighborhood, there must be others who need tutoring. Let's go teach students together."

"Hey, how much do you charge per day for tutoring? Tell me for reference."

I didn't want others to know about Adam's status as a low-income student, so I didn't answer.

But unable to resist Jessica's persistent questioning, I only told her the neighborhood where Adam's family lived.

"There are indeed quite a few middle and elementary school students in this neighborhood. You can ask around if any other families need tutoring."

Tutoring at Adam's house was by no means a lucrative job. It meant going out early and returning late every weekend, and not making a penny in the end. It was all out of the goodness of my heart.

But Jessica kept asking about it with great interest.

Just two days ago, she suddenly stopped asking. I had just thought things had quieted down, but I didn't expect she was waiting for me here.

"So the cheaper tutor you mentioned, who only charges $6 a day, is her?" I asked directly.

There was a moment of silence on the other end, then Mrs. Wilson spoke up righteously, "Yes, it's her. What about it?"

"She's $4 cheaper than you! That's several meals for us! Only you, this black-hearted student, would make so much money off us."

"Miss Jessica is truly kind-hearted, serving us!"

In the video frame, Jessica waved at me smugly.

I didn't understand where her hostility towards me came from. This was a completely unprofitable job. Even $6 wasn't enough for round-trip transportation and meals for the day.

That's right, Adam's family lived in a rather remote area, and tutoring for a whole day didn't include meals. Every time, I had to find a snack stand at the entrance of the neighborhood to grab a quick bite.

Since Jessica liked it so much, she could have this "lucrative job."

I wanted to see how much money Jessica could make after all this trouble.

I also wanted to see how much of a breakthrough Adam could achieve with Jessica's tutoring, without my tailored study plan!