Chapter 132 Honesty and openness are the foundation of a lasting marriage...

In previous years, on the anniversary of her father's death, Zhu Liushuang would stay at the company until very late, using overtime to numb herself. If it happened to be a day off, she would try her best to avoid everyone and find a quiet place to hide.

The long-standing relationship between mother and daughter had led to a tacit understanding. The mother never asked her to return to her hometown to pay respects to her father on this day, so Zhu Liushuang "comfortably" became an ostrich, burying her head and licking her wounds alone.

This year is no exception.

She only called her mother once in the morning to ask when she would return. They chatted for about ten minutes, but she didn't mention a word about her father, Zhu Xiangdong, until the call ended.

But this year is an exception.

He Ming was now by her side.

Previously, Zhu Liushuang had many worries and dared not reveal the cause of her father's death. But now, she felt that she had to tell him.

Since they have decided to walk the road ahead together, mutual honesty is the primary bond to maintain their marital relationship.

Although she worried that He Ming might develop different thoughts about her and her family because of this incident, she was even more afraid that one day he would hear gossip from others, which would deepen the rift between them.

Rather than that, it would be better for her to tell him herself.

With heavy and complicated feelings, she sent He Ming a WeChat message: 【Senior, are you coming home for dinner tonight?】

He Ming was probably busy, and it took him half an hour to reply to her message: "I have an online meeting with clients in Shanghai this evening, I don't know how late it will end. Eat by yourself first, don't save any food for me."

Staring at the text on the chat interface, Zhu Liushuang felt like someone being subjected to slow slicing. The later she expected to return home, the more intense her inner torment would become.

【Okay! / I love you. I have something to tell you. Come back soon.】 She sent him a "kissing" emoji with a straight face.

The phone buzzed, and He Ming's reply followed: [Definitely/Heart]

On the WeChat chat screen, everything appeared calm; cute emojis and affectionate words masked heavy worries. But off-screen, two people sat with furrowed brows.

Zhu Liushuang naturally had no idea that she was not the only one with a solemn expression and restless mood at that time.

On the other side of the city, Zhonghe Accounting Firm.

Several members of Audit Team Four are preparing materials for the online meeting this evening.

Ever since receiving Zhu Liushuang's WeChat message, He Ming had been feeling uneasy. He could roughly guess what she wanted to tell him on such a special day.

Even though he had prepared himself mentally, he was still a little uneasy, afraid that he might accidentally give himself away.

The light on his phone screen gradually dimmed until it went completely black, but he still couldn't shake off his agitation. The documents in his hand blurred into double images in his vision, so he simply got up and walked over to Gu Xufeng.

He tapped twice on the table, and Gu Xufeng looked up in response: "Old He, what's wrong? You look so pale."

He Ming, unusually, lied and said, "My stomach isn't feeling well... Can the three of you handle the meeting this evening?"

"The materials are almost ready. I've been with this project from start to finish, so there shouldn't be any problems..." Gu Xufeng assured him.

"Okay, thank you for your hard work. I'll leave work half an hour early today."

"It's nothing, if you really feel bad about it, treat us to dinner next time!" Gu Xufeng grinned cheekily, adding with a witty remark, "If you ask me, why don't you just invite Zhu Liushuang along?... You two have been together for a while now, don't keep it a secret!"

"Okay, let's all have a meal together after the year-end bonuses are paid." He Ming nodded thoughtfully.

Once the topic turned to year-end bonuses, Gu Xufeng couldn't stop talking. His eyes lit up, and he completely forgot about He Ming's "stomach ache." Fortunately, Lin Hui happened to come in to ask something, and the conversation about "how much year-end bonus this year" was quickly brought to an end.

Time seems to pass faster when you have something on your mind.

As evening approached, He Ming handed over the compiled materials to Gu Xufeng and gave him a detailed explanation before leaving work early.

As the car drove out of the underground parking garage, snowflakes suddenly began to fall from the gray sky. Tiny ice crystals pelted against the car window with a crackling sound... This frigid weather inevitably reminded him of a winter day more than a decade ago.

It was in this dim light that he received news of his mother's death.

Suppressing the throbbing pain in his heart, he glanced at his phone. Six o'clock in the afternoon... Zhu Liushuang should be home safely by now, right?

But today was a special day, and He Ming was worried about her.

So he pulled over and called her.

The mechanical beeping sounded exceptionally clear in the enclosed carriage. He dialed several times, but no one answered.

His brow twitched, and his heart suddenly tightened.

Was she stuck on the road? Or...?

No, she was probably just busy and didn't hear her phone ring. He Ming forced himself to calm down and stop overthinking, but when he started driving again, the car sped up to the speed limit.

We sped all the way to Chunhua Lane.

Zhu Liushuang never called back.

He Ming parked his car with a worried expression and went straight to the basement. There were designated parking spaces for electric bikes in the community. He scanned the bikes one by one and finally found the one he recognized among the colorful array of electric bikes.

fortunately!

He breathed a sigh of relief, and his heart, which had been hanging in suspense, was finally at ease.

Since the electric scooter was charging, it meant she had safely returned home. With that thought in mind, he quickly returned to the elevator and headed straight for the fifth floor.

It was rush hour, and the elevator was crowded. Just as he stepped inside, a middle-aged woman pushing a stroller rushed over. The baby inside was crying loudly. Normally, He Ming might have stepped out of the elevator to give up his seat. But right now, he only found the baby's crying noisy and disruptive.

The middle-aged woman and her stroller were left outside by the slowly closing elevator doors, and the world was finally quiet. A few minutes later, the elevator stopped on the fifth floor, and He Ming strode out.

The aroma of food wafted through the hallway, mingling with the gloomy snow and wind, adding a touch of warmth to this winter night.

He didn't linger at the door before entering the password and going inside.

Strangely, the entire room was shrouded in thick darkness and eerily quiet.

The motion-sensor light in the entryway flickered on dimly. He Ming paused, then tentatively searched for Zhu Liushuang's figure: "Liushuang... are you home?"

A sudden rustling sound of fabric came from the sofa. He turned his head sharply, his gaze falling on a dimly lit corner. There, a blurry figure was curled up, the woman's knees bent, her body folded into a baby's position.

He hadn't even seen her face, yet he was certain she was crying. A sudden, sharp pain shot through his heart, as if a hand had suddenly reached out and gripped it.

He Ming bent down to change his shoes, then touched the central control switch on the wall.

"Don't turn on the light—" Suddenly, the woman's voice pierced the darkness, tinged with a hint of pleading, "Senior, don't turn on the light..."

His fingers froze in mid-air as he stared intently at the frail figure.

After a long while, he finally took a step and walked towards her step by step in the dim light of the entrance hall.

————

Zhu Liushuang did not expect He Ming to return so early.

She had expected him to get home at least by nine o'clock after the meeting. But in fact, he was only half an hour later than her.

She spent the day in a daze, and after leaving get off work on time, she hurriedly rode her bike to Chunhua Lane.

The weather forecast said there was a 50% chance of snowfall that night, and as soon as she drove into the gate of the community, it started to snow lightly.

Too lazy to put on a raincoat, she simply drove into the underground garage in the snow.

By the time I took the elevator back to my warm and cozy home, the snow outside had become quite heavy.

She stood on the balcony in a daze for a long time, perhaps because the scenery evoked memories, and her expression gradually became dazed.

She vaguely remembered that it was snowing in Gucheng the year her father had the accident. She and her mother sat on the lakeside from day to night, and then from night to day again. Their hands and feet were frozen, and their eyes were bloodshot. What they finally saw was her father's swollen, unrecognizable body and the wailing and cursing of the other victims' families.

She and her mother naturally cried too, their bodies trembling and their teeth chattering. But even so, they dared only shed tears silently, afraid that the slightest sound they made would arouse the hatred and disgust of others.

Memories flooded back like a tidal wave, and Zhu Liushuang instinctively reached for her phone.

Hidden in her phone's photo album is a secret album that requires a password to open, containing all the photos of her and her father from childhood to adulthood.

From beginning to end, there were only about ten pictures in total, and the last one was a portrait of my father.

Back then, digital cameras were a luxury for ordinary working-class families, so they naturally couldn't afford one. Only on Zhu Liushuang's birthday would the family go to a photo studio to take a few pictures as a memento. Her father didn't like having his picture taken, so most of their group photos only featured her and her mother.

“Dad…another year has passed, I miss you so much…” she murmured, stroking the kind-faced middle-aged man in the photo.

How could she not want to? She was only ten years old when her father passed away, a time of innocent joy and naivety.

After her father passed away, her and her mother's lives became a mess.

For a long time, she hated him.

She resented him for rigidly adhering to the rules and refusing to let the disruptive passenger off the bus. If he had been more flexible, perhaps the disaster wouldn't have happened. Her father was safe and sound, and she was still that carefree girl, wholeheartedly protected by her parents.

But there aren't that many "what ifs" in the world!

Zhu Liushuang left the photo album with tears in her eyes and threw herself onto the sofa.

Since He Ming hadn't returned home yet, she let herself immerse herself in the bitterness of missing her father.

She had always spent every anniversary of her father's death like this. She would cry her heart out, then sleep soundly, and when she woke up the next day, she was still the strong, fearless Zhu Liushuang. Still the sensible, obedient, and understanding daughter in her mother's eyes.

The man's heels brushed against the marble floor, the soft "tap tap tap" sound growing closer and closer to her.

Soon, a section of the seat next to me sank in.

Although she had her head down, she could clearly sense his approach. The man's strong, powerful arm quietly climbed up her back and then slowly wrapped around her shoulders.

“Liu Shuang…” he called to her in a low voice.

The only light in the entryway went out, plunging the entire house into complete darkness. Zhu Liushuang lifted her head from her knees, her eyes vacant as she asked him, "Back so early? Was the meeting over?"

"Yes, it's finished," the man said calmly. "You told me to come back early, so why wouldn't I listen?"

He spoke his sweet words with such seriousness that Zhu Liushuang's gaze found its focus upon hearing them.

"It's not like I'm some kind of powerful person..." She composed herself and said seriously, "Senior, do you know what day it is today?"

"What day?" He Ming asked knowingly.

Zhu Liushuang paused for a moment and said, "Today is the anniversary of my father's death. Sixteen years ago, in the winter, he died in a traffic accident."

He Ming didn't reply or turn his head to look at her. He simply patted her back silently after she finished speaking. Then, he gently turned her head so that she could lean on his shoulder.

His broad shoulders steadily supported her heavy and confused head.

Zhu Liushuang leaned sadly on his shoulder, like a lonely bird with nowhere to land nestled in the embrace of a branch.

"Missing your uncle?"

"Do you know how that accident happened?" she asked, seemingly unrelated to the question.

"Do you want to tell me?" The man didn't urge her to continue.

Zhu Liushuang nodded silently. In the darkness, they couldn't see each other's expressions, so she could tell him all the old stories buried deep in her heart without any reservations.

"I want to—" she said, mustering her courage.

"Hmm, how did that accident happen?"

“How did it happen? Well, that has to start from the beginning… My dad was a bus driver. He was awarded the title of ‘Smooth Driving Craftsman’ for several years in a row, and even received a bravery award one year…” She recalled with difficulty, speaking very slowly, “Then, the bus broke through the median and fell into the lake. January and February are the coldest months in Gucheng. Falling into the lake, of course, meant certain death. All eleven people on the bus perished…”

The story wasn't long, and she recounted it in several broken segments. Each time she touched on a painful spot, she choked up and couldn't speak. This harrowing tale had drained her of so much energy; after finishing, she was like a dried-up well, left only with the strength to gasp for breath.

The woman's hoarse voice gradually faded, and the sounds of breathing rose and fell in the darkness.

He Ming's heart was breaking, yet he forced himself to calm down. He wrapped his arms around her neck, gently stroking half of her cheek. He knew she was looking for an outlet for her emotions, so he remained silent.

“Senior, do you think my dad did anything wrong? He killed ten passengers on the bus… The passengers’ families surrounded my mom and me, calling my dad a murderer and demanding we pay for it with our blood! But… my dad is dead too. He only had one life; how can he possibly make up for it all…” Zhu Liushuang sobbed, her voice growing increasingly agitated. “To tell you the truth, I hated him too. I hated how honest he was, how inflexible he was, how he just left, abandoning my mom and me to be scorned by everyone…”

Just before she was about to lose control of her emotions, the man, who hadn't said a word the whole time, turned around and hugged her tightly.

-----------------------

Author's note: Hurdles that seem insurmountable still need to be overcome. [Chin resting on hand] Hugs to the two little bitter melons.