Chapter 3, Section 3: "Sister, can I borrow a light?"
He Peiru's first day of part-time work went very smoothly.
The guests who came later were not only kind to her, but even when she was a little unfamiliar with the process, they did not urge her. Instead, they waited patiently with smiles, which made her feel flattered.
This was an experience she would almost never have had when she worked at a tea restaurant, where there was mostly noise and impatient urging.
He Peiru had just changed her clothes and came out when Yu Yin came up to her and walked out together, saying, "You did a good enough job on the first day. From now on, you can come and teach until seven o'clock after school. We'll confirm the weekend schedule on our phones."
"I'm worried I'll be overwhelmed." She pursed her lips. "I can come anytime on weekends."
They walked out of the restaurant in a few steps. Yu Yin saw the sports cars parked on the side of the road and told He Peiru, "The owners of these cars are regulars from the bars across the street or next door. So far, we haven't heard of any strange people."
"However, most of the time you come here after get off work. If you see us, just treat us as a regular customer."
Wuyang has been open for several years, and Yu Yin has seen all kinds of people, so she can naturally tell that He Peiru is nervous.
So I said a few more words to comfort her.
He Peiru naturally understood Yu Yin's intention and told her, "I did see some customers who were going to the bar stop outside this afternoon, and they were quite polite to me."
Yu Yin nodded: "Yes, I thought you could handle it."
It was a compliment, and He Peiru smiled somewhat shyly.
Yu Yin's attitude gave her great confidence. Standing behind the reception desk, she found the bustling bar and the quiet restaurant in stark contrast. Standing in this completely different world, she was filled with curiosity about everything around her.
This once again confirms that things around us are developing in a positive direction.
On the bus, He Peiru received a call from Feng Shiqi.
“Peiru, should we ask your grandfather if he would be willing to help you apply for academic assistance?” She called at the perfect time, trying to keep the conversation brief. “If he is willing, you can have a much easier time.”
He Peiru knew that she could apply for funding for book purchases every academic year, but she had mentioned it to He Zhong before, but nothing came of it, which meant she had never applied.
She replied, "It seems my grandfather might not..."
Feng Shiqi tried to persuade him, saying, "My mom said that she and a few neighbors talked to the social worker about him. Surely he wouldn't refuse to help you with such a small matter."
He Peiru and He Zhong had a very bad relationship to begin with, so it seemed that He Zhong's refusal was something she had expected. So she relented and said, "Okay, I'll try asking him when I get home tonight."
He Peiru looked at the information sent by Feng Shiqi on her phone. She met all the conditions listed in the spreadsheet. The trouble was that not only did she need her guardian's signature, but the aid could only be sent to her guardian's bank account.
These stringent conditions immediately dissuaded her from the idea.
He Peiru got home half an hour earlier than usual.
It was rare that He Zhong wasn't drinking tonight, and the look he gave her was less disgusted than usual.
His somewhat gentle attitude made her decide to try asking, "Grandpa, could you help me apply for student aid?"
The next second, He Zhong switched back to that familiar expression. He snorted and said, "Don't dream about it. I'm not going to sign for you. Apply for funding? I'd be ashamed if you didn't."
Sure enough, it was because she believed that He Zhong would change that she had those illusions just now.
Why did she think she could change He Zhong with just a few words?
He Peiru remained silent, clenched her fists, and returned to her room, never mentioning anything related to the grant application again.
She can always continue to rely on herself.
-
Yu Yin knew about He Peiru's situation, and since it was a part-time job, she made an exception and paid her a salary once a week.
Two or three weeks passed in the blink of an eye. She became more and more skilled at her part-time job and finally saved enough money to buy books.
Only after depositing the money into her bank account did He Peiru finally feel completely relieved.
With summer vacation approaching, her classmates were excitedly discussing their holiday plans, and He Peiru only hoped that her work at Wuyang would go more smoothly.
During break time.
He Peiru and Feng Shiqi were discussing math problems when their homeroom teacher walked up to them and whispered, "I just received a notification that the new semester's financial aid has been deposited into your guardian's account. You can check if you've received it when you get home."
She pointed at herself in astonishment and asked, "My sponsorship?"
"That's right." The homeroom teacher nodded and told her, "According to the submitted documents, it was applied for by your guardian."
He Peiru was stunned for a moment, and only came to her senses after being reminded by Feng Shiqi. She quickly replied, "I understand, thank you, teacher."
The homeroom teacher turned to inform the others, and Feng Shiqi immediately said, "Could the teacher have made a mistake?"
"I don't know." He Peiru was still a little dazed. "Grandpa wouldn't apply for these things, would he? Last time I asked him, he said applying for financial aid was shameful..."
Feng Shiqi had heard about it and suggested, "Why don't you just ask him tonight? That way you'll know if it's true or not."
I'll ask tonight.
He Peiru was more inclined to believe that the homeroom teacher had made a mistake, so she didn't take it too seriously.
-
I pushed open the door to my house late at night.
He Zhong sat on the sofa with two cases of beer he usually drank piled up at his feet, and several lunch boxes filled with various kinds of barbecue on the coffee table.
He Peiru's previously suppressed unease resurfaced in her heart.
She paused, then tentatively asked, "The teacher said my grant has been deposited into your account. Did you receive it?"
"You don't expect me to sponsor you, do you? Don't be so naive." He Zhong looked up at her and sneered. After a while, he continued, "Since you want to study and you live here, and I haven't even asked you to pay rent, can't you even find a way to get some money?"
He Zhong's words were full of scoundrel-like behavior, and He Peiru's blood pressure suddenly rose, making it difficult for her to breathe.
She couldn't accept this fact, and could only be thankful that she had kept the money she earned from part-time jobs safe; otherwise, if He Zhong had found it, it would probably have already ended up in his pocket.
This fact cast a shadow over her, yet she felt helpless about it.
Worried that Feng Shiqi would be furious if she found out, He Peiru told her about her conversation with He Zhong the next day when she returned to school.
As expected, Feng Shiqi gritted her teeth in anger, her brows furrowed: "Could it be that those people who hang out with your grandfather taught him to do this? He really went too far!"
He Peiru held the newly issued report card in her hand. Even though the results showed how excellent she was, she felt utterly bored.
She sighed: "Maybe."
She had tried very hard to use her grades to dissuade He Zhong from making her drop out of school.
The reason He Zhong didn't want her to continue her studies was that he felt it wasn't worth it.
In other words, no matter what she does, it's all in vain.
Feng Shiqi's mood also became heavy, and she suggested, "It seems that the school has the right to recover the funding. Why don't you talk to the teacher and see if there's any way?"
“Even so…” She bit her lip hard, feeling powerless about the matter. “Besides getting it back, there doesn’t seem to be any real punishment for him.”
“Then remember to deposit the money you earn from your part-time job in the bank, don’t let your grandfather…” Feng Shiqi understood this principle perfectly well, so she could only try to find a solution for her, “He took it away.”
She opened her schoolbag and glanced at it, then replied, "I have my wallet with me, I'll deposit it after school."
After nearly a day and a night of processing, He Peiru believed she had concealed the truth well and thought that He Zhong's actions would no longer harm her.
But when she went to the park after school, she felt lost and confused about the road ahead, as if she had lost her goal.
She changed into her work clothes in a daze. While busy greeting customers, Yu Yin took a moment to come over and said, "I need you to help out in the kitchen today. The colleague who is in charge of preparing the tableware has taken leave."
Just then, He Peiru was worried that she might not be able to control her emotions and would not be able to properly entertain the guests.
She nodded: "Okay."
He Peiru changed into an apron, just like before, and took the dishes piled up in the kitchen to wash them again.
Apart from employees from other shops who occasionally walk by, almost no one else ventures into the back alley.
At this moment, the tranquility was amplified infinitely, and He Peiru's tears poured down uncontrollably, the despair that arose made her feel helpless.
He Peiru felt like the string in her heart was about to snap at any moment, and it seemed impossible for her relationship with He Zhong to improve.
An extreme thought popped into her head through her blurry vision.
He Peiru didn't want to be bothered by these things anymore.
Reality was suffocating her; she fumbled in her pocket and pulled out the lighter her father had left her.
It felt heavy in my hand, and my father's English name was engraved on it.
The lighter was something He Peiru found while sorting through her parents' belongings. She had kept it neatly arranged all these years, but had only taken it out a handful of times.
For some reason, she started carrying it with her at all times during this period.
Her rationality had been replaced by impulse. She looked around, her mind swirling with a growing multitude of thoughts.
-
Gu Zhaoqian gently pushed open the back door of the bar. He had been overwhelmed with troubles lately, dealing with the provocations from his father's illegitimate children.
Just when I finally had a chance to catch my breath, an acquaintance I ran into at the bar had to bring up the very thing I didn't want to talk about.
He circled around for a while before finally pushing open the slightly ajar door, hoping to smoke a cigarette to relieve his anxiety.
He looked around the dark and dirty back alley, a cigarette dangling from his lips. Despite his annoyance, he couldn't find a lighter even after searching all his pockets.
We had to borrow a light from someone else.
It seems that when luck is bad, nothing goes right.
Just as Gu Zhaoqian was about to turn around, he caught a glimpse of a petite figure sitting on a low stool not far away, with a stainless steel basin next to her piled high with bowls and plates.
The dim light in the back alley fell precisely on these tableware pieces, refracting them into starlight.
He stopped out of curiosity.
The girl was clearly unaware of his presence and, oblivious to his presence, attempted to light a dirty tissue with a lighter.
Even though the spark and the paper were so close, her hand remained frozen in mid-air.
It seemed like hesitancy.
Gu Zhaoqian immediately came up with two guesses.
In any case, he should have stopped the girl from doing this.
Having made his decision, he interrupted the girl's actions, saying, "Sister, can I borrow a light?"
The girl was startled. Gu Zhaoqian couldn't see her expression, but he felt her body turn slightly and then freeze, as if she were looking him up and down.
After a while, she simply tossed the lighter over, saying, "No need to return it."
There was some distance between them, and Gu Zhaoqian could barely catch it.
He wasn't kind enough to pry into the details; he took the cigarette and lit it, the smoke making it even harder for them to see each other's faces clearly.
He waved the lighter in his hand and said, "Thank you, I'll keep this for you for now."
A note from the author:
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Here they come! The beginning of their story.
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