Just that, he had always thought they were the same—he was lonely in this world, and she was in another world. One day she would come back, or one day he wouldn’t be able to wait any longer and would go searching for her...

In fact, since the beginning of the year, he had started planning to go abroad within the next few years, even though he knew how vast and crowded the world was.

But not long after, she had already returned.

She looked at him with a very unfamiliar gaze.

Then she told him that she was already married.

If someone had once made her no longer lonely, shouldn’t he actually be happy for her?

But Ian Mitchell sadly realized that he didn’t have that kind of magnanimity.

He minded.

He minded that her heart had drifted away.

Mason Scott continued to breathe softly and evenly.

Ian Mitchell gently tucked in her blanket, got up, and left the room, closing the door behind him.

The late November night was already biting cold. Even in the bustling city of A, there were only a few pedestrians left on the streets.

Hugh Wilson sat by the window in a 24-hour teahouse, watching the man walking toward the teahouse from outside. Even with the cover of night, the man’s handsome appearance and outstanding presence were not diminished in the slightest. Although Hugh Wilson had expected that the person Mason Scott couldn’t forget must be exceptional, Ian Mitchell’s excellence still exceeded his expectations.

A man like this must have been outstanding even in his student days. How did Mason Scott manage to win him over back then?

If he and this man had been at C University at the same time, who would have won? Once a prominent figure at C University himself, Hugh Wilson silently evaluated.

If that had been the case, maybe he would have met Mason Scott first, and perhaps everything would have turned out differently.

But then again, even if he had met Mason Scott during his university days, his proud and arrogant younger self probably wouldn’t have taken a liking to her.

Fate really is a mysterious thing.

While Hugh Wilson was lost in thought, Ian Mitchell had already sat down across from him.

“I thought you were going to be late.”

“I’m always punctual,” Ian Mitchell said calmly, briefly glanced at the drink menu, and handed it back to the waiter. “Maojian tea, thank you.”

The waiter took the order and left.

Hugh Wilson looked at him and suddenly asked a startling question: “What will it take for you to give up?”

This rather provocative question did not make Ian Mitchell lose his composure as Hugh Wilson had expected. He remained expressionless: “Mr. Ying, I don’t think that question has any real meaning.”

“Talking to a lawyer is really a headache.” Hugh Wilson leaned back with a wry smile, fingers interlaced. “Mason Scott doesn’t seem to have mentioned me to you.” His tone was certain; the situation in the lobby earlier had already made Hugh Wilson aware.

“She really hasn’t said much.” Previously, he hadn’t let her talk about it, and later Mason Scott probably didn’t dare to bring it up. As for himself, he seemed to have subconsciously postponed the issue indefinitely.

That was actually out of character for him. But when it came to Mason Scott, there were always surprises.

Hugh Wilson smiled, his thoughts drifting away. After a while, he asked, “Would Lawyer He be interested in hearing my side of the story?”

Ian Mitchell looked up.

“Since I’m here, of course.”

However, as the fragrance of tea wafted around them, Hugh Wilson fell silent. Those things—perhaps he really didn’t know where to begin...

Chapter Eleven Hugh Wilson

Seven years ago was the turning point in Hugh Wilson’s life—the year of his greatest hope and deepest despair.

At that time, Hugh Wilson, who was studying abroad at S University in California, came from an ordinary rural family. Because of his poor family background, even though he had excellent grades while studying at C University, he had never considered studying abroad. Back then, the math prodigy favored by many professors in the department had a simple dream: to find a well-paying, stable job, bring his parents to live with him, then get married, have children, and live a peaceful life.

But that dream quickly burst like a bubble.

On the eve of graduation, his girlfriend of three years broke up with him, her attitude both sad and resolute.

Hugh Wilson was caught off guard and couldn’t understand, especially after hearing that she had already been closely involved with the son of the department head for some time. On top of his disappointment, there was a trace of anger.

“Hugh Wilson, let’s just say I’m the one who’s wronged you.” Facing his questioning, his girlfriend was also full of pain. “I used to think too simply about society. Only when I started job hunting after graduation did I realize that no matter how capable you are, without connections, no one takes you seriously. You know about my application to stay at the university, but do you know how much I’ve suffered? You can’t help me at all. He’s not as good as you in any way, but at least he can help me hold my head high in front of those arrogant old women in the department...”

“Hugh Wilson, I don’t want my pride to be worn away bit by bit by the trivialities of life over the years. Maybe you’ll be successful in the future, but how many years will that take? By then, my youth will be gone. Even if the hardship ends, what’s the point? I don’t want to live with my head down. You can’t protect my dignity. Hugh Wilson, I still love you, but I’m sorry, I’m just too proud.”

Hugh Wilson was left speechless.

He didn’t sleep at all that night. The next day, with bloodshot eyes, he called his parents. He had decided to apply for a scholarship and go to the United States to study.

Hugh Wilson left quickly. On the day he left for the US, his classmates came to see him off, but his girlfriend didn’t come. Unlike his classmates, who were indignant and reluctant to part, Hugh Wilson remained calm throughout. But no one could have guessed how much ambition was hidden beneath his calm eyes at that moment.

Life as an overseas student in California was even harder than back home. The unfamiliar environment, frequent part-time jobs, and heavy academic workload made him lose a lot of weight in a short time, but at the same time, his horizons broadened greatly. Hugh Wilson’s attention gradually shifted to the booming Internet industry.

His solid foundation in mathematics made his research in computer technology much more efficient. Unlike the prevailing trend of building web portals at the time, Hugh Wilson was interested in information search. After a year and a half of hard work, he lived up to his reputation as a genius and independently developed an optimized search algorithm. However, this algorithm had a flaw: it required many other optimization algorithms to work together, so at first it didn’t attract venture capitalists. Only a well-known web indexing company wanted to buy it at a very low, almost insulting price. Hugh Wilson knew that what he had was worth far more than a few tens of thousands of dollars, but he didn’t have time to wait for a better opportunity. The long-term exhaustion and pressure made him seriously ill, and after he recovered, his meager savings were completely depleted.

Desperate, Hugh Wilson had a wild idea. He used his last bit of money to place an ad in an influential Chinese-language newspaper, explaining his situation and seeking investment from fellow Chinese.

But reality quickly disappointed him. In ten days, he received only one phone call, and it was to curse him as a shameless, despicable fraud who was disgracing the Chinese people. Just as he was about to give up and sell his algorithm to that company, he received a letter from N City. Inside was an unsigned note and five hundred US dollars. The handwriting on the note wasn’t pretty, just a few simple words, making it impossible to tell if the sender was male or female.

Hello.

I saw your plea for help in the newspaper. Enclosed is $500. It’s not much, but I hope it can help you hold out until you find real investment.

Five hundred dollars—a drop in the bucket—but it reignited Hugh Wilson’s fighting spirit. That money got Hugh Wilson through the toughest two months. During that time, he finally developed the supporting algorithms, and soon after, he received his first million-dollar venture investment.

The times made heroes, and Hugh Wilson undoubtedly caught the best opportunity. A few years later, when he sat in the president’s office of SOSO listening to the asset appraiser tell him how much he was worth, even he found it unbelievable.

If it hadn’t been for that five hundred dollars, he might have ended up as just an outstanding technician. Hugh Wilson had once thought about finding the person who had helped him, but quickly gave up. In such a vast world, the letter didn’t even have a name—there was really no way to start looking.

Not long after, that person appeared before him on their own.

One day, a former classmate from S University came to visit him and brought a letter for him.

“This person probably didn’t know you’d left school, so they sent the letter to our department. I saw it and brought it to you.”

The handwriting on the envelope looked familiar.

Hugh Wilson excitedly opened the letter.

Mr. Ying:

Hello, I don’t know if your address has changed, or if you still remember me. About three years ago, you placed an ad in the newspaper asking for help, and I once sent you five hundred dollars. It’s really hard for me to say this, but if you’re financially able, could you return the five hundred dollars to me? I know this is an unreasonable request, so if it’s difficult, just forget it.

I’m really sorry.

Mason Morgan

Mason Morgan.

Hugh Wilson silently repeated the name in his heart.

He finally knew this person’s name.

He glanced at the back of the envelope—the letter had been sent a month ago.

If she hadn’t reached the end of her rope, she wouldn’t have written such a letter with so little hope.

Hugh Wilson didn’t care that his classmate was right there; he immediately dialed the number left in the letter. After two rings, a soft female voice answered.

The next day, Hugh Wilson flew to N City.

They agreed to meet in a park. It was early spring, the season of tender green. From a distance, Hugh Wilson saw a Chinese girl sitting on a bench, wrapped in a scarf. She seemed a little cold, so she kept rubbing her hands with the scarf.