Chapter 76: Past Life (1): He died the day before his birthday. [The Blade]
At the end of August, temperatures remained stubbornly high.
At five o'clock in the morning, as soon as it was light, Luo Yunqing also got up.
After washing up, I grabbed my keys and went out to buy groceries.
The market isn't far away; it's only a ten-minute walk.
"Good morning, Xiao Luo!" The fishmonger at the entrance shouted loudly as soon as I entered the market.
Fortunately, Luo Yunqing was already used to it and replied with a smile, "Uncle Zhou, good morning."
"How about it? Want some crucian carp for soup?"
Luo Yunqing stood in front of the large plastic basin, carefully selecting one. She pointed to a piece that wasn't very big, but would make good soup, just enough for two people.
The boss quickly grabbed the fish that was nimbly wagging its tail, put it in a black plastic bag, and handed it over.
After paying, Luo Yunqing continued walking inside. She bought a piece of soft tofu to make soup, a piece of beef brisket, and then went to her usual vegetable stall to pick out some tomatoes and cucumbers.
As I was selecting them one by one, I heard a surprised voice beside me.
"Hey? Auntie. Is that a ring on your hand?" The owner of the mushroom stall next door leaned over and, noticing the conspicuous gold ring on the vegetable stall owner's hand, jokingly asked, "Did Uncle Zhou buy that?"
As he spoke, he raised his chin toward the door.
The vegetable stall owner couldn't hide his smile: "Yesterday marked our 20th wedding anniversary, and Old Zhou insisted on following those young people and buying a ring. What a waste!"
"What a waste! This shouldn't be done, don't you think, Xiao Luo?"
Luo Yunqing has lived in the neighborhood for almost five years and always buys groceries at this market, so she knows all the stall owners she frequents.
After he finished picking out the cucumbers, he had them weighed by the shopkeeper. His gaze fell on the gold ring that was flashing under the lamp, and he nodded.
"Look, even Xiao Luo says so."
"Okay, okay."
The boss couldn't argue with that, so he quickly agreed.
Fortunately, business started coming in next door, so the conversation ended there.
"Tomatoes and cucumbers, that'll be 8.3 yuan in total." After weighing them, the shopkeeper rounded down the price: "8 yuan it is."
Luo Yunqing took out a ten-yuan banknote.
"Okay, here's ten yuan." The shopkeeper took it and took out two coins from the small plastic basket to give him change.
A dazzling gold ring with a coin was extended towards Luo Yunqing, who stared at it for a long time.
"What's wrong?" The shopkeeper looked at the ring on his hand with a puzzled expression. "Is something the problem?"
Luo Yunqing quickly snapped out of her daze and shook her head.
"Oh!" The shopkeeper suddenly remembered the man who had come with him to buy groceries before. "Speaking of which, you and your partner have been together for five years now, right? When are you planning to get married?"
“He’s not.” Luo Yunqing quickly waved her hand, her voice growing softer and softer: “He’s not my boyfriend.”
"Not a partner?"
"No, we..."
"Oh dear, it's been years, and you're still lying to your auntie." The shopkeeper assumed he was just shy. "Your auntie isn't that kind of old-fashioned person. Besides, you can get a marriage certificate, right? Listen to your auntie, get the certificate first, and we can talk about the wedding later..."
Luo Yunqing pursed her lips and forced a smile.
After being talked to by the shop owner for quite a while, I left the market at nearly six o'clock, when it was already broad daylight.
More and more people are gradually appearing on the streets.
Steam rose from the steamer baskets at the breakfast stall.
Luo Yunqing then bought two shumai and two vegetable buns, planning to cook some porridge when she got home.
For lunch, I'll make tomato and beef brisket, cucumber salad, and a crucian carp and tofu soup.
I walked and thought along the way until I reached the crossroads. I stopped to wait for the green light and looked up slightly to see the gold shop diagonally across the street.
On the exterior poster, the spokesperson elegantly raises her hand, which is adorned with a ring, to show it off.
Luo Yunqing vaguely reached out his left hand and met the light from a distance, but soon, the cars waiting for the green light started moving one after another, and he quickly put his hand down and followed along to cross the road.
When I got home, the sun had already risen, shining into the small but well-maintained courtyard.
Luo Yunqing first took the groceries she bought to the kitchen, then went to the master bedroom door and gently knocked twice.
"Come in."
"You...you're awake."
I pushed open the door and went in. Sunlight streamed through the undrawn blackout curtains and fell directly onto the bedside.
The person in bed had already sat up, turning their head to look at the green plants placed by the window. "The sun is shining brightly today."
"I'm sorry, I forgot to close the curtains."
Luo Yunqing hurriedly went to the window.
Just as he was about to pull it up, someone called out to him, "It's alright, let the sun shine in."
Pei Yanli then asked gently, "What do you want for breakfast?"
"I bought shumai, steamed dumplings, and vegetable buns. I'll also cook some millet porridge." As he spoke, he walked to the bedside, lifted a corner of the blanket, put one of the person's hands on his shoulder, and in one go, lifted the person into the wheelchair. "I'll push you to wash your face first."
After washing him up, Luo Yunqing went to cook porridge.
I reheated the slightly cold shumai and vegetable buns, and also fried two eggs.
He was one, and Pei Yanli was another.
One is fully cooked, and the other is half-cooked.
I had tried a soft-boiled egg out of curiosity before, and I always found it sticky and not tasty at all, but Pei Yanli liked it very much.
They said they got used to the food when they were studying abroad.
That's great.
You can study abroad.
He's never even been abroad...
The disappointment lasted only a few seconds. Luo Yunqing shook the thoughts out of her head, fried the eggs and put them on the table, then turned on the TV in the living room and tuned it to the news channel.
After doing all that, we pushed the person to the restaurant to have breakfast.
“I didn’t know before that Aunt Yang and Uncle Zhou have been married for twenty years.” He held his bowl of porridge, eating while glancing at the person across from him cautiously: “Uncle Zhou gave her a ring.”
The chopsticks on the other side paused.
Luo Yunqing lowered her eyes little by little, then smiled again: "She said it was a waste, but she was really happy inside. When she left, she even gave me an extra cucumber."
"Xiao Luo."
"Um?"
"I……"
"Next, please watch this city news flash." The news anchor's voice blared abruptly, "Yuanyin Technology, once a giant in artificial intelligence, has officially declared bankruptcy yesterday due to mismanagement and five consecutive years of losses. The Pei family's main business has now completely collapsed..."
Yuan Yin went bankrupt!
Pei Yanli took two quick breaths, her ears ringing, her grip on the chopsticks tightened, and her head began to throb more and more.
"Mr. Pei?"
A hand reached down to his forehead.
Seeing that his expression was off, Luo Yunqing quickly put down her chopsticks. "Are you feeling unwell? I'll take you to the hospital."
Hearing his voice, Pei Yanli's face, which had turned deathly pale, recovered slightly. She quickly told him, "Turn off the TV."
That's strange, isn't he usually the one who loves watching the news?
Especially the financial channel.
Luo Yunqing was puzzled but did as he was told. Seeing that he didn't seem to be feeling unwell, he sat back down and continued eating.
It was just a little too quiet without the TV background noise.
He hesitated, unable to find a good topic... "By the way, tomorrow is...my birthday, is there anything you'd like to eat?"
Pei Yanli: "Shouldn't a birthday be about what you want?"
"Me?" Luo Yunqing rummaged through the empty bowl of porridge, burying her head. "I don't really want anything."
"Then let's buy a cake, don't you like sweets?"
"good!"
Luo Yunqing nodded vigorously.
After we finished eating, we cleared the dishes and put them in the sink.
Pei Yanli suddenly called out to him, "Xiao Luo, next year... take the college entrance exam again."
The topic changed so suddenly that Luo Yunqing didn't react for a moment. "W-what did you say?"
"The college entrance exam." Pei Yanli turned her wheelchair to him, looked up, and said, "You're very smart. It would be such a waste to give up like this."
"But I'm already 25."
"You're only 25, your life is just beginning."
Even so, Luo Yunqing was still resistant, "Then what about you?"
"I can manage basic self-care."
That's a lie.
He can't even stand up, he can't even go to the toilet, how can he take care of himself?
"Xiao Luo, go take the college entrance exam and go back to university."
Pei Yanli was particularly concerned about his dropping out of school a few years ago, but even if he hadn't dropped out, the construction industry was already in a slump.
"Mr. Pei..." With him staring at her for so long, Luo Yunqing had no choice but to bite the bullet and agree, "Alright, alright, I'll go take the college entrance exam."
Pei Yanli breathed a sigh of relief and locked herself in her study to practice calligraphy that morning.
If Luo Yunqing hadn't knocked on the door to remind him that he needed to use the restroom, he probably would have held it in again, not even worried about damaging his kidneys.
After I finished using the restroom and escorted the person back to the study, the phone on the table lit up. It was the man named "Chen Zhao".
A quick glance at the chat revealed that the latest message was a document.
Luo Yunqing didn't look at it for long. She closed the door and prepared lunch, making a pot of milky white fish soup.
"The soup is very delicious."
People who rarely drink water usually drank a whole bowl of fish soup.
Luo Yunqing smiled and her eyes crinkled: "If you like it, I'll go buy it again tomorrow."
"Okay." Pei Yanli slowly stirred the soup with the spoon, then said, "This afternoon... I'll go for a walk."
"A walk?" Luo Yunqing nodded and replied, "Okay, okay, I'll go with you."
“Aren’t you still carving?” Pei Yanli politely declined his offer to accompany her. “I went out alone last time, just around here, it was fine.”
…………
Around four o'clock in the afternoon, Luo Yunqing saw him off at the door.
I followed him for a while, still worried, until I reached the end of the road and turned the corner. Seeing that he was still turning his wheelchair by the side, I breathed a sigh of relief and went home.
I went back to the workshop to continue carving; there was still a little bit of the wooden rabbit I hadn't finished yesterday.
Once this is done, I'll cook some noodles tonight and make a cold noodle dish. Last time I made a sweet and sour version, and Pei Yanli ate it all in one go.
Let's go buy some more strawberries later.
Pei Yanli liked it the most.
Luo Yunqing smiled with pleasure, her carving movements becoming faster and faster as she blew away the wood shavings.
At this moment, the person who was originally just wandering around the neighborhood came to the jewelry store and took out an invoice to give to the clerk.
"Mr. Pei." The clerk checked the order form and took out a velvet red box. "The pair of gold rings you ordered here a month ago are ready. Would you like to try them on?"
Pei Yanli opened it, looked at it, and then closed it.
"No need, thank you."
The gold ring was taken away quickly.
Instead of going back immediately, he took a taxi to the city center.
The driver was a nice guy; he didn't refuse to take him because he was disabled, and he helped him with everything, so Pei Yanli gave him an extra twenty yuan as a tip.
"It's nothing, it's all what we should do."
That's what she said, but you could tell from her tone that she was extremely happy.
Upon arrival at their destination, they not only helped them get out of the car but even escorted them to the building entrance.
The once-glorious Yuanyin Technology Building now has only a few people left, with only the finance department undergoing bankruptcy liquidation.
Pei Yanli covered her head and bit her lip tightly, then took out the access card she used to use and went straight up to the 28th floor.
The elevator doors ding! Open.
They happened to run into Pei Hengzhi and Song Xuechen.
"Second Uncle!"
When they met again after five years, Pei Hengzhi panicked and subconsciously avoided his gaze.
"This is the company you went to such lengths to snatch from me." Pei Yanli gripped the wheelchair tighter and tighter, looking around and choking back tears. "Since you snatched it, you should at least keep it!"
The facts are there, and Pei Hengzhi has no way to refute them.
Seeing this, Song Xuechen stepped forward and asked, "What are you doing here? Are you here to interrogate me?"
"Shut up!" Pei Yanli gasped for breath, her voice unusually sharp. "Do you even have the right to speak here?!"
Song Xuechen's face paled slightly. But seeing him sitting awkwardly in the wheelchair, he quickly straightened his back.
He's no longer the second master of the Pei family, so what's there to be afraid of?
“I have no right to speak, and neither do you. Do you still think you're the same Second Master Pei you used to be?” Song Xuechen didn’t need to think much to know his purpose. “You’ve long since lost your shares. Even if the company goes bankrupt, you won’t get a single penny.”
"Ha!" Pei Yanli laughed angrily, pointing at him and looking at Pei Hengzhi: "Let's not talk about the past. Xiao Heng, do you know that the shares you transferred to him all ended up in the Song family?"
Pei Hengzhi was stunned and turned his head.
"Pei Yanli, what nonsense are you talking about!" Song Xuechen panicked instantly and grabbed Pei Hengzhi's hand. "Aheng, don't listen to him."
"I'm talking nonsense?" Pei Yanli opened the file on her phone. "In the past five years, the Song family's assets have increased dozens of times. You dare to say that you didn't do it! You and your brother who isn't related to you by blood..."
Before she could finish speaking, Song Xuechen suddenly rushed forward and snatched the phone.
"Pei Yanli, are you out of your mind and acting crazy here!"
"You're the one who's crazy." Pei Yanli held the phone behind her back and grabbed his wrist with all her might. "You drugged me, stole Pei's shares, committed incest with your nominal brother, and even... harmed Xiao Luo!"
"Luo Yunqing!"
"Two years ago, you were the one who went to the hospital and told Dean Qu that Xiao Luo slept with the boss to get treatment for her, right?! It caused his most important family member to feel guilty and hang herself. Song Xuechen, you deserve to die!!"
A chill ran down his spine as his fingernails dug into his flesh.
Song Xuechen's heart sank suddenly. She tried hard to break free, but she couldn't shake them off no matter what she did.
Then, another voice rang in my ears: "You can't escape. I've already called the police. They'll take what you gave me for Xiao Luo's birthday celebration."
"Pei Yanli!" Song Xuechen cried out, "Aheng, he said he's going to sue you with those share transfer contracts! He's already called the police!"
…………
Two minutes later.
A figure flew out of the window on the 28th floor and fell straight down.
A loud bang echoed outside the empty building of Yuanyin Technology, a spray of blood bloomed on the ground, and the orange-red sunset instantly turned gray.
All I could hear were screams.
With her last bit of strength, Pei Yanli turned her head and, before the light source completely disappeared, saw only two rings floating in a pool of black water.
"Xiao Luo... Xiao, Luo..."
I haven't celebrated your birthday yet.
————————
In his past life, Pei Er was given drugs that caused mental instability for two years; it's unwise to judge his actions with normal thinking.
The perspective then changes to Pei Er's.
That's right, it's from his perspective.
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