He thought he could get some guidance or understanding from his parents. You see, such a young child, even though he doesn't understand what that feeling is, his intuition tells him that his situation might not be handled well in his environment.
And indeed, the beatings, verbal abuse, and discrimination brought Fu Wei to the brink of collapse. His mother grabbed his hand, pinched the flesh of his hand, and called him a pervert, saying that a pervert had emerged from her belly; his father said he would have someone take him to see that kind of doctor…
"I'm not going! I'm not sick!" Fu Wei struggled to break free from his father's large hand and fell to the ground. He didn't think he was sick.
"What do you want to do if you don't go!" His mother had never treated him so fiercely before. She looked at him as if he were an enemy, a monster. Fu Wei was stunned. For the first time, he was afraid of his parents. It was a fear that came from the bottom of his bones. They were his biological parents, but their faces were as terrifying as ghosts and gods.
For the next few years, he lived in hell. During the time he was confined to the "hospital" for "treatment," he was on the verge of collapse every day, and then he slowly grew up in this collapse...
Gradually, he realized what he needed to do to escape: disguise himself as a "normal person." Sure enough, during the time he was a "normal person," his meals returned to normal, and the terrifying electric shocks stopped.
"Have you gone home?" Zhao Qing asked him. Fu Wei nodded. He had gone home.
It was the first time Fu Wei had seen his home in many years, but he was so different from the man he had been then. That day, he lay on the soft bed, but he couldn't fall asleep. As soon as he closed his eyes, his limbs ached, and he heard the wails of his "kind" in his ears. His mind was filled with images of the corpses that had been carried out and disappeared into the unknown.
For eight years, he didn't know how he survived and grew to this age.
He became "normal," but his parents showed no joy. In his absence, a new life was born into the world. That little life is seven years old this year; it was born the year after he left.
The little boy's name was Fu Yu. He had a bad temper and didn't call him "brother" when he saw him. Instead, he asked him directly, "Are you that pervert?" The words of such a small child were like a knife stabbing straight into his chest. His mother said, "What's with that expression? Is what he said wrong? It's already good enough that we brought you back. If it were any other family, you would have died out there."
Fu Wei suddenly began to doubt whether this person was really her mother.
In the days that followed, he seemed to exist yet not exist. No one paid attention to him, and no one mentioned him. He lived like a transparent person in this house. He knew what the term was: emotional abuse.
This went on for two years. Fu Wei turned twenty and Fu Yu turned nine.
Yesterday was Fu Yu's birthday. Many people came to his house, all of them his classmates, to celebrate. He used to have such lively birthdays, but not anymore. The festivities outside didn't belong to him; he was practically nonexistent. He stayed in his room, waiting for the commotion downstairs to die down so he could check the refrigerator to see if there was any leftover cake.
He writes novels online, indulging in beautiful dreams through the fantastical worlds he creates. Because he's not allowed to leave the house, the internet is his only connection to the outside world. He met several people like him, and they found solace in each other through their writing.
The house was quieter that evening. Fu Wei went to the kitchen, wanting to find something to eat, and sure enough, there was some cake left in the refrigerator. Fu Wei took it out, but suddenly a small force came from behind, and he stumbled twice, bumping his back against the wall.
"That's my birthday cake, you pervert, don't touch it!" Fu Yu shouted at him, grabbed the tissue box from the table and threw it at him, then came forward to hit him again.
Fu Wei was annoyed. He just wanted to find something to eat, but Fu Yu treated him like this. The狰狞 (zhengning - ferocious/hideous) looks his parents had given him before he left home, the eight years of living hell he had endured, and the way his family had treated him during the two years he was back home…
He pushed away the person who was throwing a punch at him. Fu Yu almost fell over and clung tightly to his clothes. He only reached out to pry Fu Yu's hand away when a teacup smashed into his forehead.
The mother pulled Fu Yu into her arms and held him tightly, looking at him as if he were an enemy—that familiar look...
"You monster! What are you going to do to your brother!" That's what she yelled at Fu Wei, her voice cracking by the end, and Fu Yu howled loudly in her arms.
His father grabbed a broom and swung the wooden handle straight down at him. Fu Wei took two blows before managing to swat the man away and escape outside. Blood blurred his vision, and he staggered as he ran, not knowing where he went. He only saw this overpass in the distance and thought he could stay under it for a while to avoid the wind and rain before coming here to hide.
They both knew what happened next.
Zhao Qing looked at him and touched the area covered by gauze: "You're really pitiful."
Because she raised her hand, her wide sleeve slipped down a bit, revealing large, unsightly bruises underneath.
Fu Wei saw this and said, "You're in a terrible situation too."
Zhao Qing lowered her hand, somewhat displeased: "I can still go home, can you?"
Fu Wei fell silent, and Zhao Qing felt a pang of regret. She added, "But I can't go back for a while. I need to find a job and bring some money back with me before she'll let me in."
Fu Wei remained silent, so Zhao Qing continued, "I used to live here when I was kicked out. You can come with me, and we can look for jobs. You can also take some money back with you, and maybe they'll let you in."
“They don’t lack money,” Fu Wei finally spoke. “They want me dead.” Actually, Fu Wei wasn’t even sure if his parents would let him in if he were a corpse. Maybe not, Fu Wei thought. The monster’s corpse might make them sick too. It would probably be cremated, and the ashes would just be thrown somewhere.
“Then you can come with me to find a job. Once you have money, you can support yourself.” Zhao Qing said again, starting to plan the future for Fu Wei: “You’re already twenty. I heard from my teacher that eighteen is considered an adult. You can support yourself.”
"And what about you?" Fu Wei asked. "Can't you manage on your own?" Although she didn't know Zhao Qing's situation, judging from Zhao Qing's words and the injuries on his body, Fu Wei could guess that he wasn't doing well.
“I have a home!” Zhao Qing’s tone was somewhat forceful. From her expression and tone, Fu Wei could tell that the other person seemed to have a strange obsession with the word 'home,' as if she was deliberately emphasizing it.
"Do you have it?" He suddenly laughed with a hint of sarcasm, and malice surged in his eyes.
Now it was Zhao Qing's turn to remain silent.
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