Chapter 56 Conflict
The New Year is almost here. This year, my mother called me unusually early, her tone undeniable:
"Xiao Rui, come back early for the New Year." After a pause, he added very naturally, "Xiao Lin... come back too."
On the other end of the phone, before I could even say "hmm", Lin Yan, who was eavesdropping with his ears perked up, suddenly lit up his eyes!
The corners of his mouth were so wide that they almost reached his ears. I doubt he could jump up and shout "Mom" on the spot!
He nodded desperately at me, silently mouthing: Go back! Must go back!
All right. With this guy around, at least the New Year won't be too boring.
Lin Yan drove at lightning speed, and was in such a good mood that he almost hummed a little tune.
Finally, I arrived at the familiar residential complex and saw a figure standing at the door from afar. It was my mother.
It was so cold, why was she standing at the door looking around instead of staying indoors?
After parking the car, Lin Yan and I walked over carrying bags of New Year's goods.
"Mom? Why are you standing outside? It's so cold." I asked in confusion.
When my mother saw us, there was no special expression on her face. She just kept her eyes on Lin Yan for a moment before she spoke in a lowered voice: "We have guests at home."
"Who is it? It's New Year's Day." I was a little surprised.
"Your uncle." My mother uttered these two words in a calm tone, but there was a barely perceptible hint of...disgust in her eyes?
My head buzzed, and I almost thought I had misheard: "Who? My uncle? Chen Jianguo?!"
A sense of absurdity washed over me. "Didn't he say he'd never have anything to do with us again? How dare he even come to our door?!"
Thinking of the hardships my mother went through to support this ungrateful uncle's education, and the subsequent behavior of him and his family, I felt furious.
Lin Yan gently touched my elbow and whispered, "Ruirui, calm down. If your uncle finds out that I'm your boyfriend..."
"He found out!" I became even more furious, and my voice unconsciously rose a little, with a hint of deliberateness. "I wish he knew! Let him see, what's wrong with having a son? You still don't need to 'find a wife'! I'll piss him off to death!"
Lin Yan smiled, a smile that was a bit cunning and comforting: "Don't worry, I have a way. Go in first and watch me operate."
When I pushed the door open and entered the room, I saw a middle-aged man sitting on the sofa. He was wearing an ill-fitting suit and had slicked-back hair. It was my "honorable" uncle Chen Jianguo.
After not seeing him for a few years, he had gained a lot of weight, and the last bit of elegance on his face had been replaced by a commercial look.
My father sat next to me, looking a little embarrassed, smoking silently.
"Hey, Xiao Rui is back? Who is this?" When Chen Jianguo saw us, he immediately put on the attitude of an elder and looked at Lin Yan with a critical look.
"My friend, Lin Yan." I said in a cold tone.
"Hello, uncle." Lin Yan smiled gently and with an impeccable attitude. He placed the high-end gift in his hand on the coffee table and said, "It's just a little token of my appreciation."
"Oh, a friend." Chen Jianguo stretched out his tone, his eyes flicking between Lin Yan's obviously expensive coat and my equally expensive down jacket, then glancing at the beautifully wrapped gifts. He said sourly, "Young people these days are really generous in making friends. Xiao Lin, right? What do you do? Is your family well-off?"
Lin Yan seemed not to notice the sour taste in his words. She still maintained a decent smile and a gentle tone, but her words were like a needle wrapped in cotton: "Just an ordinary student. Not as good as you, uncle. I heard that your cousins are very promising. Is it time for your eldest cousin to go to college? Which prestigious school is he in?"
Chen Jianguo's face froze for a moment.
His spoiled eldest son, who refused to continue studying after graduating from junior high school, is now an apprentice at a car repair shop. This is a perfect match.
"Well... well... kids, everyone has their own path..."
Chen Jianguo was vague, trying to change the subject, and then he put on his elder airs, "Xiao Lin, young people should be more down-to-earth. Don't be extravagant just because your family has some money. You should also choose your friends carefully and don't let some... questionable people lead you astray."
He glanced at me meaningfully.
Lin Yan's smile remained unchanged, but his eyes grew a bit colder, and his tone became more "humble": "Uncle is right. However, the most important thing in making friends is sincerity. I'm lucky to have met a friend like Xiao Rui, who has such noble character and excellent academic performance. Speaking of which, I heard that my uncle's education was also entirely supported by my mother's hard work. This deep sibling love is really touching. It's rare to find a brother who knows how to give back like this nowadays."
These words were like slapping Chen Jianguo in the face repeatedly!
After he was admitted to university, he was not grateful to my mother, the sister who paid for his education. Instead, he felt ashamed and despised her because she was just a high school teacher and could not help him at all. Later, they completely fell out over some distribution of interests.
Chen Jianguo's face turned the color of liver. He stood up suddenly and pointed at Lin Yan's nose: "Who do you think you are?! An outsider is pointing fingers and making sarcastic remarks here?! Young people nowadays are so disrespectful and have no manners at all!"
The atmosphere in the living room instantly dropped to freezing point.
My father looked at Chen Jianguo who suddenly exploded in surprise, and then looked at Lin Yan who had a calm face.
"Outsider?" I couldn't hold it in any longer. I took a step forward and stood in front of Lin Yan. My voice wasn't loud, but it was very clear, with a resolute determination. "Chen Jianguo, listen carefully! He's not an outsider! He's my partner! He's my boyfriend!"
This sentence was like a bomb, exploding in the small living room!
Chen Jianguo opened his mouth and his eyes were wide open, as if he had been struck by lightning. He didn't react for a long time.
My father seemed to be under a spell. The cigarette in his hand fell to the ground with a "click". He looked at me in shock and confusion, then looked at Lin Yan, as if he was meeting us for the first time.
“Wh…what?!”
Chen Jianguo finally found his voice, piercingly sharp. He pointed at me, his fingers shaking, then turned to my mother and yelled, "Sister! Did you hear that?! Your son! The son you've raised for over twenty years! He...he's a disgusting homosexual! A fucking fag! He's having an affair with a man?! You're not going to do anything about it?! Are you waiting for him to get sick and die?!"
My mother had been watching coldly, but finally took action.
She stood up, walked in front of Lin Yan and me, and faced Chen Jianguo.
Her expression was the coldest I had ever seen, her eyes were as sharp as knives, and her voice was not loud, but it carried a strong sense of oppression:
"Chen Jianguo, I told you not to call me sister. We're no longer related. Whoever my son wants to be with is his freedom, and it's none of your business to spout such filth here! I have to ask you, we agreed to never have anything to do with each other again, so what exactly do you want to do by coming here with such a flattering face today? To borrow money? Or to take advantage of someone else?"
"You...!" Chen Jianguo was choked by my mother and couldn't speak, his face turned red and white.
He turned to me again and cursed: "Chen Rui! You little bastard! You are such a disgrace! You have brought shame to our Chen family! For giving birth to a thing like you..."
"Enough!" A loud shout suddenly rang out, drowning out Chen Jianguo's shouting.
This honest man, who is usually taciturn and even cowardly, is now like an enraged lion, his face flushed red and veins on his forehead bulging.
He stood up suddenly, pointed at the door, and said in a voice that was trembling with anger, but unusually loud: "Chen Jianguo! Get out of here! Now! Right now! Get out of my house! Don't ever set foot through this door again!"
Chen Jianguo was completely dumbfounded.
He probably never dreamed that this brother-in-law, who always had little presence, would get so angry with him for "this kind of thing".
He looked at my father who was furious, then at my mother whose eyes were as cold as frost, and then at me who was standing in front of Lin Yan with a stubborn face. Finally, he glared at Lin Yan fiercely, cursing him with dirty words like "psychopath", "a family of lunatics", "just wait for your descendants to die out", etc., then he grabbed his bag and slammed the door and left in embarrassment.
"Bang!" The loud sound of the door closing echoed in the living room.
The world is finally quiet.
However, another more suffocating silence quickly spread.
My father was breathing heavily, his chest heaving violently. He slowly turned around, and his eyes, which were red with anger, looked straight at Lin Yan and me with great confusion, hurt and disbelief.
I finally realized it belatedly—
It's over! My dad doesn't even know about Lin Yan and I! I was so busy arguing with my uncle that I forgot about my own dad!
Lin Yan reacted the fastest, and immediately took a step forward, lowering his posture very low: "Uncle..."
"Don't call me uncle!" My father interrupted him suddenly, his voice hoarse, his eyes piercing Lin Yan like knives, "So those things you gave me before... cigarettes and alcohol... you... you have bad intentions! Are you trying to kidnap my son?!"
Lin Yan: “…”
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