Chapter Forty-Three
Yu Youyi was frustrated and irritated from practicing the piano: "What does it have to do with me whether you come or not!"
As he spoke, he slammed his hands down on the piano keys, the piano emitting a piercing noise that tore a hideous hole in what seemed like a warm family scene.
You Congxi silently mourned for a second for the piano-playing older sister who had shielded him from harm, ignored You Youyi's provocation, and continued to lean against the door, looking at You Youyi calmly. As You Youyi's gaze gradually calmed down, he curled the corners of his mouth.
You Youyi had a bad feeling.
She stood up abruptly, trying to stop You Congxi from saying anything more.
The next second.
You Congxi waved his phone and announced, "I sent it to your mom."
Yu Junya valued You Youyi's etiquette education the most. Although she didn't know why You Youyi was still like this after so many years of teaching, You Youyi smashing the piano was no less than pulling the tiger's tail and disturbing Yu Junya's head - it was enough to give this little madwoman You Youyi a hard time.
You Congxi was amazed by her own Chinese language skills; a simple complaint had actually used the technique of intertextuality... She applauded her own literary talent.
You Youyi plopped down on the ground.
It started rolling around.
Rolling around like a compass.
A 360-degree roll without any blind spots.
It rolled around and howled.
You Congxi watched for a while with her arms crossed, and then remembered a skit from a Spring Festival Gala one year. There was an old lady who was trying to scam people by rolling around on the ground like that, doing things like clockwise and counterclockwise. She lifted her legs back and forth like she was pedaling a bicycle, and she spun around like a top. It almost made her laugh to death.
Now, watching this live performance again, You Congxi feels utterly bored, like chewing someone's spat-out gum—tasteless and even disgusting.
Too lazy to watch the compass spirit's tantrum any longer, she put her hands in her pockets and walked out, where she met Yu Junya, who had rushed over after seeing the video.
That look was hard to describe; it was as if she had finally lost her temper and glared at her. You Congxi walked out casually, but it seemed more like the look of a well-bred little madwoman who had been caught in her madness by the elegant You Congxi and was now furious.
You Congxi gracefully sat down at the dining table, staring wide-eyed at You Yuanming, who came out of the kitchen to serve the dishes.
After placing the dishes on the table, You Yuanming asked with a stern face, "Why didn't you greet your father before coming home?"
"Didn't Aunt Yu tell you?" You Congxi ignored him.
"Does someone else's greeting have the same effect as you greeting them in person?" You Yuanming said, displeased.
"Oh," You Congxi said.
You Yuanming was so angry he almost choked. He pointed at her, trembling, and finally, fearing he would die of anger, he snorted coldly, turned and sat down: "Is this how you talk to your father!"
"Hmm," You Congxi said.
She flipped through the photos Qu Qi had sent her. There were a table full of people, but she only recognized a few from the Chinese language group. Her gaze unconsciously fell on the figure in the very center, but after a moment, she looked away as if waking from a dream.
Depend on.
So annoying.
You Congxi forced herself to turn off her phone and throw it aside. The resentment that had been brewing since she stood in front of this house gradually fermented. She felt that she could soon turn into an evil sword immortal and kill the whole family of three.
You Yuanming was throwing a tantrum, but You Congxi couldn't hear him. Even when cultured people curse, they quote classical texts, which are incomprehensible to them.
It wasn't until Yu Junya rushed over to save the day that You Yuanming calmed down. You Congxi breathed a sigh of relief and rubbed his aggravated ears.
Following behind, You Youyi had red eyes and her lips were pouting so much they could hold an oil bottle. She pulled out a chair and sat down, looking much more obedient after being disciplined.
There were four people at the table, three of whom had dark expressions. You Congxi thought it would be good to have someone paint a picture of "The Last Supper".
Then she must be Jesus.
Jesus looked around—why are there three Judas?
You Congxi amused herself and laughed a few times, which made You Youyi glare at her. You Youyi then turned to Yu Junya and complained, "Mom! You Congxi is making fun of me!"
Yu Junya slapped her on the back, the slap sounding heavy but light. She turned to You Congxi and smiled, her face a little embarrassed: "Xiaoxi, don't hold it against your sister, she's still young."
Normally, she would just give a perfunctory reply when it came to visiting Congxi, but today she didn't say anything, she was in a bad mood, and she didn't even bother with the pretense.
Yu Junya stiffened slightly, while You Youyi added fuel to the fire from the side: "Why is Mom You Congxi ignoring you?"
You Congxi almost burst out laughing.
You Yuanming slammed his fist on the table: "Have you all gone too far?!"
A moment of silence fell over the dining table. You Yuanming took a few deep breaths and stared intently at You Congxi: "It's one thing if you don't come or contact us normally, but it's not easy for the family to get together, and what are you doing causing trouble here? If you don't want to stay, then get out! You turn this house upside down as soon as you arrive, and no one is happy except you!"
Yu Youyi was so startled that she hiccuped; it was the first time she had ever seen her loving father speak so loudly.
Yu Junya frowned and poured You Yuanming a glass of water, gently comforting him, "Calm down."
You Yuanming took the cup, took a sip of water, and felt his boiling anger subside a little. He glanced at You Congxi, who hadn't said a word, and said, "Apologize to your Aunt Yu."
Yu Junya quickly waved her hand and said that they were all family and there was no need to be so particular.
You Yuanming became even angrier upon hearing this: "You treat her like family, but she might not feel the same way!"
You Congxi remained silent.
After a while, just as You Yuanming was about to slam his fist on the table in anger, You Congxi made his move.
She stood up, the chair leg scraping against the floor with a soft thud.
"Aunt Yu, I'm sorry," You Congxi said to Yu Junya.
Yu Junya was startled.
“I shouldn’t have refused to cooperate with your performance when you were trying to smooth things over and take sides. I shouldn’t have stolen You Yuanming’s attention from You Youyi. I shouldn’t have disturbed your family of three’s life. I shouldn’t have failed to provide a guarantee that all the family property would go to You Youyi and that I wouldn’t fight her for it.” You Congxi bowed slightly. “I’m sorry.”
Yu Junya's expression instantly turned ashen, as if she had swallowed a fly.
You Congxi turned around and said to You Yuanming, whose face was as black as the bottom of a pot, "Dad, I'm sorry."
You Yuanming tried to stop her to prevent her from saying something that would give him a heart attack, but he was too late.
“I shouldn’t have entered the house without first paying my respects to you. I shouldn’t have failed to fulfill your wishes and let you enjoy the happiness of family life by being kind and filial to Yu Junya and You Youyi. I shouldn’t have failed to cooperate with your act of fatherly love. I shouldn’t have been born into this world so that you would think of my previous failed marriage the moment you see me.”
You Congxi bowed again: "Dad, I'm sorry."
You Yuanming clutched his heart, gasping for breath, and pointed at her, unable to utter a single complete sentence.
You Youyi couldn't understand what they were saying. She had been practicing the piano for a long time and her stomach was growling with hunger. Taking advantage of the argument that seemed inexplicable to her, she picked up her chopsticks and quietly ate some food.
You Yuanming couldn't control the older ones, but seeing the younger ones eating carelessly, he got angry and, without thinking, raised his hand and threw his chopsticks at You Youyi, who was eating with her head down.
This was aimed directly at You Youyi's face; given the force and speed of the throw, it would probably tear two beams out of the frame.
*Smack*
The chopsticks fell onto the marble table with a crisp sound.
You Congxi lowered her hand, and her rapidly swollen palm felt like a needle piercing her numb shell, giving her a sudden urge to cry. But the next second, that urge disappeared, leaving only a deeper weariness.
You Youyi was stunned for a few seconds. Before she could swallow the food in her mouth, she looked at You Congxi, whose expression was not clear beside her, and then at You Yuanming, whose expression was very rich in front of her. After a few seconds of reaction, she burst into tears.
The crying was like a battle cry. Yu Junya was the first to strike, slapping You Yuanming across the face. It sounded much more forceful than when she slapped You Youyi earlier: "You Yuanming, you bastard! Even tigers don't eat their cubs, and this slap is aimed at killing my daughter!"
You Yuanming regretted throwing the chopsticks as soon as he did, but being slapped by his wife in front of You Congxi made his anger, which hadn't subsided, rise up again.
Whoosh!
Plates and food, along with a glass turntable, crashed to the floor. The mess, the shattering sounds, and the wailing filled the spacious room. The warm light overhead still shone faithfully, reflecting off the family photo frame hanging on the wall, momentarily blinding You Congxi.
You Youyi sat on You Yuanming's lap, and the three of them laughed so hard their eyes were almost closed.
"If you don't want to live together, then get a divorce! What are you doing all day?!" You Yuanming roared.
Then came the woman's shrill scream: "Fine, let's get a divorce! Let me tell you, You Yuanming, if it weren't for Youyou, I would have quit living with you a long time ago!"
After crying herself to sleep, You Youyi picked up the last remaining cup and took a sip of water.
You Congxi took one last look at the family photo of the three of them on the wall, then turned around, changed her shoes, opened the door, and left.
Before the heavy door closed, You Congxi heard You Yuanming's voice: "If you want Youyou to become the second You Congxi, then you should leave!"
Click.
The doors closed tightly. You Congxi buried her chin in her collar and stepped into the elevator.
She was immediately hit by the chilly razor blade fan as soon as she stepped out of the building.
She buried her nose in her collar and quickened her pace.
You Congxi sighed, her left hand, which was tucked in her pocket, feeling a little hot. She regretted that she had stopped You Youyi so decisively. She should have let You Youyi get a beating at least once. Since she was always provoking her, she deserved to be taught a lesson.
It's getting cold, and there are very few pedestrians on the roadside late at night. Even the cars on the main road are driving very fast, as if they are in a hurry to go home, snuggle into their blankets, warm up, and play on their phones.
You Congxi was also cold. She felt that she was really unlucky. She had lost face during the day, and not only did she not get a meal at night, she was also forced to witness the scene of a family of three breaking up.
unlucky.
She kicked a small pebble in front of her, but it was too dark and the streetlights were dim, so she couldn't see whether the pebble flew far away or was right at her feet.
This reminded her of the slap Yu Junya had given You Yuanming across the face earlier.
She suddenly felt a strong urge to call Jing Ling.
As I pulled my phone out of my pocket, a cold, sharp wind instantly chilled my still-warm hands.
You Congxi hissed and laughed, her fingers a little stiff from the cold. It took her a long time to open WeChat. She scrolled around for a while but couldn't find Jing Ling's chat box, so she had to go back and search for her name from the top.
After struggling for a while, she finally managed to open Jing Ling's chat box before her fingers completely froze. With trembling hands, she clicked on the voice call. You Congxi listened to the waiting tone in her ear, found a relatively clean curb to sit down, put her hands in her pockets, and held her phone between her shoulder and ear.
While waiting, she stamped her feet. The wind wasn't strong, but it blew incessantly, like a dull knife cutting into flesh, chilling her to the bone.
After waiting for an unknown amount of time, just when You Congxi thought she wouldn't be able to answer the phone today, the waiting tone in her ear suddenly stopped, followed by Jing Ling's "Hello".
"Who is it?" Jing Ling asked.
It's obvious they answered without reading the notes. Are they busy?
You Congxi composed himself and said, "Me."
Jing Ling took two seconds to react before saying, "Xiao Xi, it must be very late where you are. Why aren't you asleep yet?"
You Congxi sniffed, whether from the cold or something else, and said, "I went out to eat, I just finished. How have you been lately? Are you very busy?"
Jing Ling said "Not busy," then paused, lowered his voice and said something to the person next to him. You Congxi only heard "David."
There was obviously a brief argument on the other end, but it quickly fell silent. You Congxi listened quietly until Jing Ling, with barely concealed exhaustion, asked her, "Is there anything else?" You Congxi replied, "No," and hung up the phone.
She took her phone off her shoulder and put it in her pocket. The streetlights overhead were malfunctioning and flickered every few seconds, casting a dim, yellowish glow. She stared blankly at the lit windows of the building across the street.
A car sped past, the sound of its tires rolling over the ground bringing her back to her senses.
Everything that happened today left her extremely exhausted.
She pulled her legs up, hugged her knees, and slowly, slowly, buried her head in them.
It's so cold.
She thought.
The cold wind continued to blow incessantly, masking the faint sound of the phone vibrating in my pocket.
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