Chapter 6
When Zhou Tiancheng and his friends arrived home, it started to rain heavily. The calm and sunny day turned into a sandstorm and thunderstorm in the blink of an eye. That day was Zhou Tiancheng's birthday.
Zhou Yue often felt that the season a person was born in indicated that person's background to a large extent. Kang Xingxing's birthday was at the end of the year, and she was as cold and silent as a frozen mountain. Her birthday was at the end of August, and she was as warm as a burning maple leaf. Her mother's birthday was in early spring, and she was full of energy. She would die if she didn't have fun for a day, and she would die if she didn't fight with others for a day. She also rarely slept. Her father was as gentle as sunshine and as harsh as a sandstorm, and as tricky and weird as the weather in the north at the end of October.
"Oh! Your mother is not here." Zhou Tiancheng put Zhou Yue down from his arms. She looked up at her father, but saw that he had no smile on his face. Cold water droplets flowed out of his hair and into the collar of his black shirt.
"Go open the umbrella." He casually reminded, brushed his wet hair, and put the still warm peach cake in his hand into the kitchen. He was never picky when buying things, and didn't care whether people could finish them or not. He just swept across the glass counter from left to right, buying everything. He bought a big bag, and when he put it on the dining table, there was a dull thud.
Kang Xingxing went to the balcony and opened the oil-paper umbrella. Raindrops rolled all over the ground. Zhou Yue followed him. She followed Kang Xingxing wherever he went now. The two of them packed up their umbrellas and came out of the balcony. Zhou Tiancheng had already opened the refrigerator and put the towel he had wiped his wet hair on around his neck.
"Okay," he joked with a smile, "I'll see what's in the fridge and make whatever I can."
This was the first time Zhou Yue could remember that his father had celebrated his birthday at home. It was the end of October or the beginning of November, and it wasn't that hot in Guangzhou. In his words, "I can finally breathe!" So this time of year was when he would run to Guangzhou the most frequently. He would run until the end of the year, and might not even come back before the New Year.
She threw her schoolbag into the bedroom. Kang Xingxing was already lying on the desk doing homework with the desk lamp on and a serious look on his face, but she could guarantee that he would come out to find her soon.
She ran to the living room, took out the remote control from under the coffee table as if she knew the place, turned on the TV, and tuned it to the cartoon channel. "Sailor Moon" hadn't started yet, and commercials were being inserted.
"Is your mother always like this?"
Zhou Tiancheng was beating egg whites in the kitchen, holding the bowl in one hand and throwing the eggshells into the trash can with the other. He was casually stirring the bowl with chopsticks, and his voice was only loud enough for you to hear if you stood next to him. The advertisement for 999 Pi Yan Ping was playing loudly on TV, and the two scratching boys were chattering, completely drowning out Zhou Tiancheng's voice in the kitchen.
"Ah?" Zhou Yue knelt beside the coffee table, supporting her head with her hands, waiting eagerly for the advertisement to pass. Outside the window, the sky was covered with dark clouds, as dark as midnight, and dense raindrops were hitting the glass.
"Come here and talk." His voice suddenly rose, as cold and heavy as the dark clouds outside the window. Zhou Yue quickly got up from the ground and ran to the kitchen door, but saw that his face was relaxed and smiling, not angry at all. He was nimbly chopping potatoes into pieces and then into shreds. He supported himself with one leg and stretched out the other, standing in a typical Northeastern 28-step stance. He asked slowly, "Is your mother always like this? Why didn't she come home so late?"
Zhou Yue held onto the kitchen's sliding door frame and thought seriously for a moment, "Well, I won't come back until the first episode of Sailor Moon is finished."
Dai Yan didn't come home early. The two children were familiar with the way home, so they went home by themselves every day. The key was hung around Kang Xingxing's neck. As soon as he opened the door, Zhou Yue rushed in, threw away her schoolbag, threw herself on the sofa, turned on the TV, and lay on the sofa like a mermaid princess, watching cartoons with her head propped up. From time to time, she picked up a juicy grape from the fruit bowl and put it in her mouth, stuffing it so full that her mouth was bulging. She laughed while watching. Kang Xingxing would not stay in the bedroom for a while and would come out with his homework book and a small stool. He would silently lie on the coffee table at her feet and do his homework. After finishing, he would read a book.
Every time she finished watching an episode of cartoons, during the long wait for the commercials, she would hear the thud of high heels stepping onto the last concrete step, the dust flying high in the air, and then the clatter of a bunch of keys against the security door, and then Dai Yan would stand at the door and shout, "Yueyue, come help Mommy get something!"
Zhou Tiancheng raised his hand and glanced at his watch. "Okay, I got it. Go ahead."
Zhou Yue ran into the living room. The cartoons hadn't started yet, of course, but Kang Xingxing had already unloaded his belongings. Dai Yan had knitted him a sweater, a patchwork of red, green, and blue. It wasn't aesthetically pleasing, simply to use up her endless yarn. The sleeves were too short, but Kang Xingxing loved it anyway and never took it off. The lights were off in the living room. He lay on the coffee table, swaying back and forth like a furry black worm with many spots.
"Gorilla, did Mommy forget Daddy's birthday?"
Zhou Yue lay on the balcony and looked out. The street lights were on, and they looked like misty moons in the rain, and could not be seen clearly.
"No," Kang Xingxing raised her head and answered honestly, "Auntie Dai Yan might be busy."
"Mom, come back soon..." Zhou Yue retracted her gaze and looked into the night. She wanted to tell her mother that Dad was celebrating his birthday at home. She was anxious for her mother. In the past, Dai Yan would call Zhou Tiancheng on every birthday. The red receiver was pressed against her beautiful face, complementing her red lips. In the silent air, there was only the cold and long busy tone of "beep-beep-beep".
But today was different. Zhou Yue looked back at the kitchen. Zhou Tiancheng's face looked even paler under the orange light. A tall and thin figure in a black shirt stood sideways to her, throwing the vegetables into the wok to stir-fry. He frowned and coughed violently because of the fumes.
That's my real dad, not the dad on the phone. If you call him, he'll look over and ask with a gloomy face, "What's wrong?"
Zhou Yue looked at the cold street again, and this time she saw her mother under a red umbrella, which looked like petals drifting in the rain.
"Mom is back!" She turned and shouted towards the kitchen, but the range hood was too loud and Zhou Tiancheng didn't hear her. She looked downstairs excitedly again, and then she saw another umbrella, black, hidden in the night. The person holding the umbrella shook it inadvertently, and the water on the umbrella reflected the dim light of the street lamp, and it stuck to the red umbrella for a long time before it separated and retreated into the darkness.
Young Zhou Yue felt something was a little weird, but some instinct prevented her from mentioning it to her father. She ran to the door, and soon the sound of high heels came from the corridor. The staff building was low, with only five floors at the highest, and she lived on the third floor. The rain made the sounds in the corridor clearer. When the sound of high heels was close to her ears, Zhou Yue couldn't wait to tiptoe and open the iron door bolt.
"Yueyue?" Dai Yan was putting away her umbrella and was surprised to see the door open. She had no makeup on her face, her curly hair was wet and stuck to her fair skin, and she was holding a polka-dot box tied with a ribbon in her hand.
Kang Xingxing came over silently at some point, took Dai Yan's umbrella and walked towards the balcony. Dai Yan handed the box to her daughter, and glanced towards the kitchen while changing her shoes, "Is your dad home?" There was no joy or surprise on her face, nothing at all. Her eyelids were drooping, and she looked a little tired.
"Yes! Dad is celebrating his birthday at home!" Zhou Yue nodded heavily, and when she looked down, she saw the cake in the box. Zhou Tiancheng's zodiac sign was rabbit, and on the white cake, a little rabbit was lifelike, with a body made of cream, a beard decorated with chocolate, and red eyes made of cherries.
Dai Yan didn't say anything. The kitchen range hood stopped, and the house suddenly became quiet. Zhou Tiancheng didn't come out. Zhou Yue didn't know if her father heard her mother come back. Instead, Dai Yan walked into the kitchen in her slippers, her red skirt brushing against her calves, bringing out a scent. As she walked, she said, "Are you home? I thought you were gone."
Zhou Yue brought the cake into the kitchen. She was short, so she could only put the box on a chair by the dining table. When she turned around, she saw her mother leaning on the stove with both hands and smiling at her father. "I bought a cake after all, from Holiland. Don't you like Holiland cakes? Want a piece?"
Zhou Tiancheng was serving food with his back to Zhou Yue, so his expression couldn't be seen. After a while, he said slowly, "Let's eat first."
"Okay." Dai Yan smiled, took the plate from his hand and brought it to the dining table. She glanced down at Zhou Yue and said, "Ask your brother to come over for dinner."
Zhou Tiancheng felt full after a few bites at the dinner table. He put down his chopsticks and sat on the sofa in the living room, crossed his legs, and switched to the news channel with the remote control. One bad thing about him at home was that he had to watch the news without fail. Zhou Yue saw him change the channel from a distance, and he lowered his head in frustration, with his eyebrows drooping.
But she still hopes that her father is at home, because her mother will be happy when her father is at home, and not being able to watch cartoons is a necessary sacrifice.
"It will be replayed tomorrow during the day." Kang Xingxing observed her expression while holding the bowl, and whispered in a hoarse voice, "I'll help Yueyue watch it."
Dai Yan buried her head in her food.
After dinner, Dai Yan cut the cake and gave a piece to each of the two children. She gave the piece with the rabbit to Zhou Tiancheng and brought it to the coffee table in front of him. It took him a long time to take his eyes off the TV. He straightened up, poked a piece with a fork and put it in his mouth, chewing slowly. He didn't praise it nor say it was bad. It was as if he had no sense of taste. No matter how delicious the food was, he would have an expression of disgust and would chew for a long time before swallowing it.
Zhou Yue and Kang Xingxing also sat on the sofa. Zhou Tiancheng asked the two children to sit next to him. Dai Yan sat on the single sofa and ate melon seeds. The TV was broadcasting a Hong Kong and Taiwan news:
"The official opening of the Beijing-Kowloon Railway, with a total length of 2,553 kilometers, runs from Beijing west to Shenzhen and extends to Kowloon, Hong Kong. It will have a profound impact on maintaining the stability and prosperity of Hong Kong and Macao and promoting the peaceful reunification of the motherland.
Jiang Jide, the head of the Jiang Group and a wealthy businessman in Hong Kong, returned with his wife and children to attend the celebration and once again donated to the mainland..."
"Heh," Zhou Tiancheng chuckled as he sipped his tea. "A Zhejiang native living in Hong Kong, how could he not have done some filthy things that would have wiped out his descendants? Seeing that Hong Kong was about to return to China, he ran back to show his loyalty so that he could make more money in the mainland later."
Zhou Yue didn’t understand what her father was saying. She just felt that the grandparents on TV looked very kind, and the two uncles standing next to them...it’s not right to say two uncles, it should be one uncle and a brother, and they were also very handsome.
Especially her brother, the red mole between his eyebrows looks like the red dot the teacher drew on her forehead when she was performing in kindergarten.
"Look, gorilla," she patted the back of Kang Xingxing's hand, "Is this big brother handsome? Is he Grandpa Jiang's grandson?"
"No," Kang Xingxing waved her hand seriously, "This brother is also Grandpa Jiang's son, the second son."
"But he doesn't look like Grandpa Jiang's first son. He's much younger."
Zhou Yue carefully compared the appearance of "uncle" and "brother". Uncle was very tough and handsome, like a European or American, with wheat-colored skin and a healthy white teeth when he smiled. But brother was completely beautiful. He didn't smile, and his long eyelashes half covered his eyes. He slowly glanced at the people in the audience and stood behind Grandpa Jiang, Grandma Jiang and Uncle Jiang. He didn't look like a member of this family.
"Hmph." Dai Yan, who had been silent all the time, suddenly laughed. She leaned against the armrest of the sofa, lowered her head, and used her fingertips to pick the melon seeds in her palm.
Zhou Tiancheng paused as he blew the tea away, then slowly blew away the hot steam from the cup. "Have you washed the bowl?"
The voice was very soft, but Dai Yan heard it and knew it was directed at her. However, she did not seem angry at all. She left the melon seeds in the fruit bowl, stood up, put on her slippers and walked to the kitchen.
Zhou Tiancheng drank half a cup of tea and put the glass on the coffee table. The bottom of the cup made a clicking sound. He continued to watch the news calmly. He did not put the remote control in Kang Xingxing's hand until the news was over. "You guys watch it. Don't let your sister watch costume dramas." After saying that, he stood up and walked to the kitchen. He took out a cigarette case as he walked, and the lighter made a crisp sound. White smoke filled the dark living room.
The rain had subsided. The kitchen window was open, and raindrops were dripping on the rusty iron window frame.
Zhou Tiancheng moved a chair and sat by the window. White smoke drifted into the night outside the window and into the dense rain and fog. He put one hand on the back of the chair and crossed his legs to watch Dai Yan wash dishes.
"The weather is getting cold. We have to leave in a few days." He looked out the window and slowly exhaled a puff of smoke.
"Yeah." Dai Yan was scrubbing the pot with a steel wool while facing away from him.
"The luggage is ready. I'll come back the day after tomorrow to pick it up and leave."
"Um."
Zhou Tiancheng turned his head to look at her. The light was gentle, and her long eyelashes cast a shadow on her face. But a malicious smile hung on the corner of his mouth. "Bring more condoms."
"Is there nothing to sell in Guangzhou?" Dai Yan kept working, holding the pot under the faucet to rinse off the foam. "There's nothing good in Guangzhou that they don't have. The quality is also good. Just buy some to use. Just don't bring back dirty ones."
"Don't worry about that. I won't touch anything dirty." Zhou Tiancheng leaned back in his chair, smoking a cigarette and laughing, "But I don't have the time to buy it. You should think about the consequences carefully."
Dai Yan chuckled softly, wiped the water off the pot with a cloth, and placed the pot on the stove. She leaned on the sink with both hands and remained silent for a long time. She looked up and let out a long sigh, "Whatever you want, Zhou Tiancheng. I'm tired. I can't fight anymore and don't want to fight anymore. Anyway, in two years, I'll be old and ugly and my fate will be the same. It's better to take my daughter away and make room for someone else. It will make you happy and it will make me happy too."
"Haha," Zhou Tiancheng bit his cigarette and laughed until his eyes narrowed into a line, "Can you support yourself and make room for me? And you're bringing a girl with you..." Then he stood up and walked behind her, grabbing the back of her neck and kneading it, "Dai Yan, it's easy to get pleasure in the moment, but the days ahead are long. Don't say harsh words and don't do anything drastic."
As soon as she finished speaking, Dai Yan turned around suddenly, slapped his hand away, and threw her wavy hair into the air. She cursed shrilly: "Why are you wasting so much time talking, you idiot! If you need more, I'll buy you a box tomorrow! Don't come back if you can't use it all!" As she spoke, she rushed out and Zhou Tiancheng grabbed her hair.
Zhou Tiancheng usually walks and talks lightly, giving the image of a dandy young man who has ruined himself with play. But at this moment, he half-lifted the woman in the air with one hand, carrying her like a piece of clothing, grinning from ear to ear, and rushed into the bedroom with big strides, slamming the door.
Zhou Yue was wrapped in Kang Xingxing's arms, looking at the closed door through his nose. Dai Yan's crying, cursing and dull, rapid thuds came through the wall. The floor under the sofa was shaking and it took a long time for the vibrations to stop.
The rain stopped and cicadas were chirping outside the window. After a long time, the door opened and Zhou Tiancheng came out. His naked back looked like it was coated with a layer of fine silver powder in the darkness. He stroked his wet hair and walked straight to the bathroom.
It was a long time after that before Dai Yan came out. She walked with the help of the wall, looking as if she was sleepwalking. She was wearing an ankle-length nightgown with long sleeves, but it still couldn't cover the bruises on her neck.
None of them looked at the two children on the sofa, and the two children didn't dare to move.
Zhou Tiancheng came out of the shower, wearing a white vest and flowery shorts. He moved a chair to the kitchen, then grinned and took Dai Yan's hand, pulling her out from the corner and making her sit on the chair.
The balcony and kitchen windows were open, the wind blew back and forth, and her hair fluttered in the wind.
"Why did you spend that money? Those useless guys in the hair salon don't have my skills?" Zhou Tiancheng smiled, a cigarette in his mouth. His wet black hair hung down in front of his forehead, making his face look pale. His peach blossom eyes were rosy. He stood in a 28-step stance, took the iron tongs at home and burned them over the fire several times. He deftly lifted Dai Yan's hair, clamped and curled it, then slowly pulled it back. When he let it go, it became a tight curl. With a light flick of his fingers, it became fluffy and elegant. He then moved slowly, pinched the tip of the iron tongs and permed the broken hair on her temples. After perming, he used his hands to pull it. After it cooled, he put it close to her ear and sneered, "Look at your white hair. You've already become an old turtledove. There are still two years left."
Dai Yan let him play with her and just stared out the window in a daze.
Kang Xingxing waited until Zhou Tiancheng and Dai Yan fell asleep before taking Zhou Yue to the bathroom to wash up. Zhou Yue stepped on a small stool and lay down beside the sink to brush her teeth. She looked at her little face in the mirror, her mouth full of toothpaste foam, and spoke to Kang Xingxing vaguely: "Xingxing, do you think Daddy loves Mommy?"
Kang Xingxing didn't say anything, just half-opened her mouth stupidly, and untied her pigtails bit by bit. Her jet-black hair fell on her shoulders, and then she combed it with a plastic comb, as if she was serving a delicate flower.
"Alas... You won't understand even if I tell you, kid." Zhou Yue spat out the toothpaste foam, rinsed her mouth, and bent down to wash her face while sighing heartbrokenly like a love-struck heroine in a TV drama.
Kang Xingxing wiped Zhou Yue's face with a towel, picked her up from the stool, and then spoke: "If I were Uncle Zhou, I would never let Aunt Dai Yan cry." After saying that, he looked at Zhou Yue's confused little face in the mirror, raised his chin and smiled proudly.
Many years later, Zhou Yue, who was imprisoned in a villa halfway up the mountain, often recalled what Kang Xingxing said that night. The baby's crying was endless in her ears, but only his words were clear, every word, even the broken sound caused by the hoarseness in his throat was clear: "I won't let Yueyue cry." Equally clear was his dark red smiling face and his quickly drooping eyes.
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