Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
"Oh." Seeing that Qinglan was fine, Grandma was overjoyed and hurried to the dining table, handing a bowl of rice to Qinglan. "Good granddaughter, eat."
"I'm not your granddaughter, okay? Liu Jiawei is your grandson; I'm your granddaughter from your daughter's side," Qinglan retorted.
"Oh, oh, oh, alright, granddaughter from my daughter's side," Grandma quickly nodded in agreement.
Because Jiawei had the surname Liu and she had the surname Qing, when they were young, the villagers teased her by saying she didn't have the Liu surname and that she wasn't one of the people from Liu Family Village, so she couldn't live there. She went home to tell Grandma, who didn't know how to respond and said she was the granddaughter from Liu Family Village.
Later, whenever the villagers said she wasn't one of them from Liu Family Village, she would say she was the granddaughter from Liu Family Village and could live there.
At this moment, Qinglan brought up this joke to cover up her sadness from having just cried.
At the same time, she wanted to tell her father that she didn't know what had just happened and that she hadn't been unhappy a moment ago.
Or perhaps her earlier unhappiness wasn't because of him.
When Liu Xiuzhen came down from upstairs, Qinglan had already started happily eating her meal.
After Liu Xiuzhen came down, Grandma began to serve the food, and Qing Shusheng also moved a chair to sit at the dining table.
Under Qinglan's cover, Qing Shusheng's family finally calmed down and began to have lunch.
However, at An Shaojie's home, things remained unsettled throughout the afternoon.
After Qing Shusheng left Bai Cuifen's house, Bai Cuifen forcibly pulled An Shaojie back inside, but his anger had not subsided.
He sat on a bamboo chair in their living room, still holding a kitchen knife in his hand, his eyes red and bloodshot.
Bai Cuifen was in the room, lying on the bed crying.
Shaw Min stood by Bai Cuifen's bedside, sobbing as she wiped her tears; the earlier scare still left her shaken.
"Mother!" Shaw Min gently called out.
Bai Cuifen lifted her head from the pillow, her eyes misty as she looked at Shaw Min. "Shaw Min, you and An Shaojie go eat first. The sweet potatoes are steamed in the big pot, and the dishes are warming in the small pot. Take them out and eat with An Shaojie. You need to eat before going to school. I'm not hungry right now; I'll eat later."
"Okay." Shaw Min nodded gently and walked out.
Shaw Min entered the kitchen, took a large clay pot from the cupboard, lifted the lid of the big pot, and steam rose from the hot Sweet Potatoes. She filled a bowl with Sweet Potatoes and carried it out, then brought two bowls of vegetables warmed in hot water from the small pot—one bowl of bok choy and one bowl of potatoes.
At twelve years old, Shaw Min had a thick black braid tied with a red ribbon hanging down her chest. She wore an oversized red floral cotton jacket and green cotton pants, moving back and forth between the living room and the kitchen like a little adult.
After setting the table, Shaw Min squatted down in front of An Shaojie.
"Come on, An Shaojie, listen to your sister. Put down the knife, eat your meal, and then we can go to school together." Although her voice still held a hint of childhood, her tone was mature and gentle.
An Shaojie tugged at Shaw Min's hand resting on his arm and glanced at her.
Seeing Shaw Min's swollen eyes from crying, her delicate face, and her soft gaze made An Shaojie's heart soften like stone turning to clay.
He slowly loosened his grip on the knife, and Shaw Min quickly took it from him, walking into the kitchen to place it on the cutting board. After thinking for a moment, she felt uneasy and took the knife off the board again, looking around for a hidden spot to conceal it.
When she returned from the kitchen, she took An Shaojie's hand and led him to the dining table, stuffing a Sweet Potato into his hand before picking up his bowl and adding some vegetables to it.
"Eat." An Shaojie nodded, tears streaming down his face.
"Sis, when I'm not home in the future, don't let that person come into our house again." An Shaojie raised his eyes; mentioning that person made him angry again.
"Okay, I understand." Shaw Min nodded in agreement.
"I know you know; you're just too soft-hearted." An Shaojie looked at Shaw Min but hesitated to say more.
He felt he had many things to express but didn't know how to articulate them. This phrase was something Bai Cuifen often said to Shaw Min at home; he had learned it and finally had a chance to express it. However, he felt that this phrase alone did not fully convey Shaw Min's soft nature or everything he wanted to remind her about.
Shaw Min bit her lip and lowered her head.
"Actually, An Shaojie, you... Uncle San..."
Although Qing Shusheng is the sixth among his siblings, he ranks third among the brothers, so the people of Liu Family Village habitually call him "Third Uncle." Since Qing Shusheng is one or two years older than An Bingwen, Bai Cuifen taught Shaw Min and An Shaojie to address him as "Third Uncle" according to Han ethnicity customs from a young age.
"Stop mentioning him," An Shaojie slammed his chopsticks on the table, startling Shaw Min into silence.
What Shaw Min wanted to say was that An Shaojie misunderstood Third Uncle; it wasn't Third Uncle who bullied Mother.
The situation was like this.
Today, Shaw Min got home from school before An Shaojie. Upon arriving at the door, she saw Mrs. Xiang's youngest son loitering outside her house.
Mrs. Xiang's youngest son is a lazy and foolish man with a thin, pointed face and bulging eyes. He causes trouble in the village almost every day, often bothering young wives and maternal relatives to take advantage or make crude jokes. However, due to his unattractive appearance and laziness, he is not well-liked.
Today was his mother's birthday, and several of his married sisters returned home to celebrate with their already settled brother. After a few drinks at the birthday feast, he went around the village showing off.
When he reached Bai Cuifen's house and saw her alone at home, he had ill intentions and walked in to harass Bai Cuifen.
Shaw Min rushed inside to pull him away. The frail little girl, combined with Bai Cuifen's unexpected fear and anxiety, made them no match for this brute, especially since he had been drinking and was emboldened by it.
Desperate and helpless, Shaw Min ran to the door to call for help.
Just then, Qing Shusheng was carrying a load of firewood and passing by the west bridge of the village.
Qing Shusheng was originally strong; after chopping wood on the mountain and carrying it down, he felt a bit warm and had unbuttoned his cotton coat.
Hearing Shaw Min's cries for help, Qing Shusheng immediately dropped his load and rushed across the bridge into Bai Cuifen's house, just in time to see that rogue harassing Bai Cuifen.
Furious, Qing Shusheng shouted loudly, startling the drunkard awake.
He was just a lazy fool without much courage normally; Qing Shusheng's roar sobered him up. When he turned around and saw Qing Shusheng—the strongest person in Liu Family Village and its greatest protector of Bai Cuifen—he was instantly terrified and fled.
At that moment, An Shaojie returned home from school. Upon reaching the front door, he saw Shaw Min standing there dazedly and asked her, "Sister, why are you standing here? Where's Mother?"
Shaw Min seemed to wake from a dream. "Oh, oh, Mother's in the room."
She completely forgot that in Bai Cuifen's room, there was An Shaojie's least favorite person, Qing Shusheng.
Seeing that Shaw Min's situation was not right, An Shaojie rushed into the room, peeking into Bai Cuifen's room, where he saw Bai Cuifen disheveled and crying on the edge of the bed.
Qing Shusheng stood beside her with his collar open, whispering some explanations.
Recalling the villagers' gossip, this scene made An Shaojie furious and ashamed.
He didn't have time to put down his backpack and headed straight for the kitchen, grabbing the kitchen knife from the cutting board, charging towards Qing Shusheng.
Bai Cuifen noticed a figure flicker at the door.
At that moment, Shaw Min also entered the room and called out at the door, "An Shaojie."
Bai Cuifen realized that the figure she had seen earlier was An Shaojie.
She understood all too well An Shaojie's hatred for Qing Shusheng.
Seeing this scene today and An Shaojie disappearing without a word made Bai Cuifen immediately aware that something was about to happen.
Bai Cuifen jumped up from the bed, grabbed Qing Shusheng, and ran to the door.
Sure enough, An Shaojie was approaching them with a kitchen knife in hand.
Seeing An Shaojie come out of the kitchen with a knife, Shaw Min reacted quickly and rushed forward to hug An Shaojie from behind.
Taking this opportunity, Bai Cuifen pushed Qing Shusheng outside and shouted, "You need to leave." She then stepped forward to hug An Shaojie herself.
An Shaojie dragged Bai Cuifen and Shaw Min while roaring as he chased them out the door.
What followed was what Qinglan saw when she ran out of her house.
Although Shaw Min knew the whole story, looking at the still furious An Shaojie, she ultimately swallowed her words of explanation, thinking it would be better to clarify things another time.
Shaw Min's attempt to defend Qing Shusheng annoyed An Shaojie, prompting him to put down the chopsticks he had been ready to eat with and grab two Sweet Potatoes from the bowl instead. He slung his backpack over his shoulder and, without waiting for Shaw Min, sulked out the door to school alone.
At the bridge at the east end of the village, Qinglan was still waiting there.
As soon as An Shaojie's figure appeared, Qinglan straightened up, nervously tugging at her backpack straps.
In the past, she waited for An Shaojie here every day and had never felt this nervous.
No! It wasn't just nervousness; there was also a sense of panic.
An Shaojie walked closer, step by step approaching her.
When An Shaojie reached her side, Qinglan stepped forward to greet him.
Previously, Qinglan would never have done this. She always waited for him to walk past before silently following behind him.
This time, despite her initial nervousness and panic, she inexplicably gathered the courage to approach An Shaojie.
"Brother Shaojie!"
Qinglan's timid voice startled An Shaojie. He looked up, as if suddenly awakened from a dream, staring blankly at Qinglan standing in front of him.
Although he had seen Qinglan from afar and knew she was waiting for him, he was preoccupied with his own thoughts and still simmering with unexpressed frustration. Thus, he felt somewhat dejected and annoyed, lowering his head without realizing he had walked right up to her.
He abruptly stopped in his tracks, leaning back slightly as he raised his head.
Seeing that it was Qinglan blocking his path, he immediately furrowed his brows tightly. His gaze turned cold, like a sharp star piercing into one's heart; his thin lips were like two razor blades—cold and sharp.
She had never dared to approach him before, yet this time she suddenly jumped out from the roadside to block his way and even had the audacity to call out to him.
Did she not know what had just happened? But she clearly did because he had seen her earlier.
How dare she provoke him at this moment?
She actually smiled?
However, when Qinglan saw his expression, the smile on her face instantly froze.
"I'm sorry, Brother Shaojie, I didn't know, my Father... I..." In the chilly wind, Qinglan shivered violently, her lips trembled as she spoke incoherently, and she involuntarily took a step back.
It was better if she didn't mention her Father.
Well, since you already know the good deeds your Father has done, you still smile and block my way. Are you here to watch my joke? Are you here to humiliate me?
An Shaojie's temples throbbed violently, the veins on his neck bulged as if they were about to explode. His eyebrows stood up one by one, his teeth clenched tightly, and his left hand was tightly clenched into a fist while his right hand alternated between clenching and forcefully opening.
Qinglan lowered her head and took a step forward again.
"Brother Shaojie, my Father..."
"Slap!" Before Qinglan could finish her sentence, a loud slap struck her face.
Qinglan instinctively covered her face with her hand.
Her face burned with pain.
After a long time, Qinglan finally raised her head and looked at An Shaojie, tears streaming down like broken pearls.
"Why did you hit our Qinglan!"
Suddenly, Liu Xiuzhen appeared out of nowhere, rushing between An Shaojie and Qinglan like she had gone mad.
She pulled Qinglan's hand away from her face.
Five red fingerprints were clearly imprinted on Qinglan's face.
Looking at her Mother filled with love and anger, Qinglan's tears of grievance poured down once again.
Although Mother usually scolds her, she has never been willing to hit her. At this moment, Qinglan looked at Liu Xiuzhen and realized that no matter how well she did or how kind she was to others, in their eyes, she was like a straw. No matter what mistakes she made, in Mother's eyes, she was always her beloved treasure.
Liu Xiuzhen slowly turned around, gritting her teeth as she stared at An Shaojie.
Suddenly, her hand shot up high.
"Slap!"
An Shaojie's face was struck to the side by a resounding slap from Liu Xiuzhen.
"Why are you hitting my daughter? She has been so good to you since she was little! If you have the guts, go hit the person who deserves it," Liu Xiuzhen shouted angrily, raising her hand again.
Qinglan was so frightened that she froze.
"Mother!" Qinglan suddenly rushed forward and grabbed Liu Xiuzhen, crying out, "Don't hit Brother Shaojie. It's my fault; I provoked him."
"You silly girl." Liu Xiuzhen turned back to Qinglan, shouting in anger, hatred, and love.
Qinglan raised her still-red face and glared at An Shaojie with tear-filled eyes.
An Shaojie's face remained turned to the side; his clenched fists had already relaxed as he stood stubbornly without moving. He did not cover his face like Qinglan did.
Comment 0 Comment Count