Chapter 60
"I'm not a liar!"
When Xu Gui said this, his tone was very sincere, but it was clear that words were ultimately powerless. Li Ya's expression only looked more embarrassed, rather than believing him.
Seeing this, Xu Gui couldn't help but show a hint of regret.
“Even liars say they’re not liars…” Xiaomin, who had somehow gotten close to them and overheard their conversation, said this with an air of conviction, “That’s how it’s always portrayed on TV.”
Xu Gui: "..."
“But Teacher Li, my sister really isn’t a liar, she’s a really good person,” Xiaomin added, speaking up for Xu Gui. “I can vouch for her.”
Li Ya smiled. Her smile when facing Xiao Min was much more natural and relaxed than when she faced Xu Gui. However, she only smiled for a few seconds before she suddenly realized that something seemed off.
"Aren't you Xiaomin's aunt?" she couldn't help but ask Xu Gui.
Upon hearing this, Xu Gui replied without changing his expression, "Oh, I specifically asked her to call me that, it makes me seem younger."
Li Ya looked at her suspiciously—from Li Ya's perspective, no matter how you looked at it, Xu Gui seemed to be full of flaws and doubts.
Listening to the two of them, Xiaomin seemed to realize that she might have said something wrong, so she quickly hid away with her friends.
“…I know you want a divorce.” Xu Gui changed the subject. “I also know why you married Kang He in the first place.”
Upon hearing this, Li Ya's usually calm expression finally changed.
In that instant, it was as if she had suddenly grown thorns all over her body, and she looked at Xu Gui with a wary and sharp gaze.
"How did you know the reason I married him?" she asked.
Xu Gui seemed oblivious to her hostile gaze and said calmly, "Didn't I say I'm a diviner? Of course, I calculated all of this. Otherwise, how would you know such private matters? We've never met before, have we?"
Upon reflection, Li Ya realized that this was indeed the case; it was the first time she and Xu Gui had met.
“I even know that you didn’t just almost get into the National Ballet of China, but you were already selected. You were just one formality away from becoming a member of the National Ballet of China,” Xu Guiyou said.
"It's a pity that when you went back to City A to handle the formalities, you were in a car accident and your leg was crushed by the car, so you could no longer take on the various training sessions offstage."
At this point, Xu Gui's tone became somewhat regretful—even outsiders would feel sorry for Li Ya if they heard this.
When Li Ya heard this, her hand on the table trembled slightly, and she simply clenched it into a fist.
Xu Gui is right.
Outsiders only know that Li Ya almost got into the National Ballet of China, that's what she and her family say to the public. But what they don't know is that Li Ya had actually passed the National Ballet of China's audition and was just one step away from becoming a dancer in the troupe: completing the membership application.
However, just as Li Ya returned to complete the formalities, she was hit by a car on the side of the road. The car ran over her right leg, causing irreversible damage.
Although her right leg injury did not affect her daily walking after the difficult rehabilitation and healing process, her right leg became extremely fragile and could no longer support long periods of training.
There are no shortcuts in dance. To succeed, you have to train day after day. If you don't train for even a day, your body will rust and it will be difficult to maintain a normal level.
Even the best dancers in this industry practice every day without interruption.
Now, however, Li Ya's legs can no longer bear the burden of training.
So, after three years of pain and struggle, Li Ya had to accept the fact that she could no longer dance.
Hearing Xu Gui's words, her thoughts seemed to return to that hot and painful summer. She forced a smile and said, "Did you calculate this too? But that's all in the past, I've already forgotten about it."
Have you really forgotten? I don't think so, do you? Xu Gui's expression conveyed this message.
Li Ya looked away.
Xu Gui suddenly said, "What if I said that the accident wasn't actually an accident, but rather something deliberately orchestrated, a man-made disaster?"
“…What do you mean?” Li Ya turned her gaze back to Xu Gui.
Xu Gui asked, "Haven't you ever wondered where your parents got the money to buy your brother a house, and where they got the money to open such a big dance class for you, since your family isn't exactly wealthy?"
"You should know that although City A is not as wealthy as the capital, it is still a first-tier city, and housing prices are not low."
As he spoke, Xu Gui's gaze swept around the dance class, the meaning of which was self-evident.
Upon hearing this, Li Ya pursed her lips and said, "You may have misunderstood. The money I used to open the dance class was compensation from the driver who hit me."
Xu Gui asked, "Do you really believe what your parents said?"
Li Ya's breath hitched, and she subconsciously said, "Of course I believe them."
But at this moment, her mind was actually a bit confused, and she couldn't help but start recalling what happened when she was in the car accident.
At that time, she was devastated by the news that she might not be able to continue dancing in the future. Her mind was in a daze, and her parents helped her with everything.
Looking back now, I have almost no memory of the driver who hit me, only some things my parents relayed to me:
"This driver was quite responsible; he not only brought you to the hospital but also paid your medical bills."
"The driver didn't show up, but he and the insurance company paid you two million. With that two million, even if you can't continue dancing, you can live a comfortable life. Once your leg is healed, your aunt will find you a partner from a good family, and then you can have a big, healthy son. I don't know how many girls would envy that kind of life?"
"This driver was quite kind. This was just an accident; nobody wanted it to happen. Xiaoya, don't overthink it."
...
Li Ya suddenly realized that she had never met the driver who caused the accident. All the information about the driver was relayed to her by her parents. What kind of person the driver was, what his attitude was, and how much money he ultimately paid were all told to her by her parents.
According to her parents, the driver who caused the accident was "kind" and "generous," but how come such a kind person never came to visit her even once?
Li Ya's mind was in a mess.
“Of course, you can choose not to believe what I say and continue to believe your parents,” Xu Gui said, then changed the subject: “However, I suggest you go back and ask your parents what exactly happened in your car accident.”
"Did they take money from someone else and turn a blind eye to this, or did they want to keep you around and were happy to see you unable to continue dancing, so they went along with it? After all, your brother is useless. He's not even married yet, but his heart has already turned to the woman. They're getting old and they definitely can't rely on this son anymore."
Since they couldn't rely on their son, what could they do? They could only rely on their other child. However, at this time, their other child also wanted to leave them, saying that she was going to the capital to pursue her career.
So what should we do? We can only try to keep the child.
Xu Gui said softly, "...Do they say that girls shouldn't pursue careers? When they reach a certain age, they should find a good family to marry into, have a son with their husbands, and live a happy and harmonious life. Isn't that better than going to the capital to dance?"
In that instant, Xu Gui's voice reached Li Ya's ears, and it overlapped with the voices of her parents from many years ago—Xu Gui said the same words as her parents back then.
At that time, her parents, who believed that everything they did was for her own good, did not want her to leave City A to go to the capital to dance. They preferred that she stay in City A and stay by their side rather than dance.
They felt that getting married and having children was the right path for her.
Li Ya closed her eyes and said, "Don't say anything more. No matter what the truth was back then, so much time has passed. I don't want to bring it up again. I don't care at all anymore."
Xu Gui looked at her and said with some curiosity, "Sometimes, I think you humans are really strange. Even though you still have wounds on your body, or even wounds that have rotted, smelled bad, and are festering, you still deceive yourselves and tell others, and deceive yourselves, that the wounds have healed."
It's as if telling yourself that the wound has truly healed? But in reality, the wound is still there, and it continues to fester and rot.
"...If you just harden your hearts and cut open this lump of rotten flesh, squeeze out the pus inside, although it will be very painful when you cut the flesh, once you get through that period of pain, the wound will eventually heal slowly."
But if you leave a festering wound untreated, it will never heal.
Li Ya understood what Xu Gui meant. She shook her head and said, "You don't understand. Not everyone can be so heartless as to reopen this wound, because once you reopen it, you might find that the wound is much bigger than you imagined, to the point that it's unbearable."
She murmured, "I'm not sure if I can endure the pain of having my flesh cut out..."
Xu Gui nodded, indicating, "I really don't understand." After all, although she is now human, her time as a human is still very short compared to her time as a tortoise, so it's normal that she doesn't understand.
“But I still feel that you can’t build something new without destroying it. Only when you are ruthless enough to dig out that rotten flesh can the wound heal. And…” Xu Gui looked at Li Ya and asked her, “Teacher Li, are you really willing to live like this for the rest of your life? If this is your choice, I will respect it, but I feel it is a bit of a pity.”
What a pity?
It's a pity that such a life, as beautiful as a flower, even in its withering, remains so quiet and beautiful. It would be such a shame if one day it finally collapses and crumbles into dust.
"..."
Li Ya didn't say anything.
The atmosphere between the two was somewhat silent and heavy, but Xu Gui remained calm and composed, appearing quite at ease, as if she herself had not been the one who had just brought up the heavy topic.
For some reason, seeing her like this, Li Ya suddenly felt a sense of relief from her heavy heart.
“Oh, right.” Xu Gui suddenly spoke up again. She looked at Li Ya and said, “If you want a divorce, this period of time might be a good opportunity.”
Li Ya came to her senses and gave a bitter smile. She shook her head and said, "It's not that simple. My parents won't agree to let me get a divorce."
"It's not like your parents are marrying Kanghe. Does it matter whether they're willing or not?" Xu Gui asked. "Shouldn't your own thoughts be the most important thing?"
Li Ya was taken aback.
"In short, if you want a divorce, this is the best time. You can start preparing today. But there's one thing you might need to be mentally prepared for: your husband may disappoint you greatly."
Her words were somewhat meaningful.
Li Ya didn't understand what it meant for her husband to disappoint her so much... She didn't have many expectations of him in the first place, so how could she feel disappointed?
*
When Kang He came out of the dance studio, he saw that only his wife, Li Ya, was sitting outside, holding her phone and looking somewhat dazed and confused.
"Where is Miss Xu?" Kang He looked around.
Li Ya: "She's already gone."
Kang He was surprised and couldn't help but ask, "Didn't she say she wanted to enroll the child in classes?"
Li Ya didn't repeat what Xu Gui had said, but only said, "They just came to see the conditions here, and haven't decided whether they want to enroll in the class yet."
Upon hearing this, Kang He pursed his lips and said, "I saw that she brought three children, so I thought I would at least get one child. I was so hospitable to them... Ouch, my foot hurts so much."
He sat on the stool, grimacing, and took off his right shoe and sock, revealing his toes that had been hit by the ornament. Then, he was dumbfounded.
"...Is my toe broken?" He looked at Li Ya in bewilderment.
Li Ya's attention wasn't on him; she was still somewhat dazed. It wasn't until she heard his words that she reluctantly gave him a glance, and then she saw that Kang He's second and third toes on his right foot were drooping softly.
Li Ya: "Is your toe broken?"
Kang He had already started cursing. He did feel a lot of pain when his toes were smashed, and he almost cried from the pain. However, the intense pain subsided after that, so he never expected that his toes would actually be broken.
So what do we do now?
"The hospital, I need to go to the hospital..."
...
When Xu Gui left the dance class, he took Qiao Qiao with him.
Li Ya didn't forget to call Qiao Qiao's mother, Miss Xue. Miss Xue was a little confused when she heard the title "Aunt Xiao Min". When she heard that this aunt wanted to take Qiao Qiao away, her first reaction was to refuse.
On the one hand, she didn't know this "Aunt Xiaomin" at all and was a little wary; on the other hand, she had paid for the dance class, and at the very least, the child had to attend all the classes every day so as not to waste the money.
However, Xu Gui said, "Miss Xue, I have something to tell you about Qiao Qiao. It's very, very important. If you're worried about Qiao Qiao's safety, then you don't need to worry at all. My surname is Xu, and my name is Xu Gui. Xu is the Xu in 'Yanwu Xu' and Gui is the Gui in 'Guiqu'. If you search online, you'll definitely find information about me."
After hearing this, Miss Xue actually searched for the name "Xu Gui" and found a lot of information about him.
"You, you're a celebrity?" Miss Xue asked, sounding somewhat surprised.
Xu Gui said proudly, "That's right! So Miss Xue, you don't need to worry about Qiao Qiao's safety. In addition, I will be live streaming later, and you can see for yourself whether Qiao Qiao is safe."
A celebrity contacted me, saying they wanted to talk to me about Qiao Qiao...
Miss Xue hesitated for a few seconds before nodding in agreement: "Alright then... Teacher Li, then my Qiaoqiao will leave early today."
Li Ya: "Okay."
After Xu Gui and Miss Xue hung up the phone, Li Ya looked at Xu Gui suspiciously and asked, "Didn't you say you were a fortune teller? How did you become a celebrity?" She had overheard Miss Xue and Xu Gui's conversation.
Xu Gui: "Ah, well, one is my main job and the other is my side job. We're both doing it to make money, so it's not shameful."
Li Ya: "Really?"
As soon as Xu Gui and the others left, she searched Xu Gui's name on her phone and discovered that Xu Gui really hadn't lied to her. Xu Gui was indeed a fortune teller—she watched videos edited by Xu Gui's fans about Xu Gui telling fortunes for people.
In the video, she didn't make any mistakes in her calculations. If that's the case, then what she said about herself... Li Ya's expression was somewhat dazed, which was the scene Kang He saw when he came out.
At this moment, Xu Gui had already led the four children downstairs.
The cameraman remained crouched downstairs. In late July, the sun was incredibly strong and hot. Around noon, it felt like a giant furnace, making the area below sweltering. He could only hide under a tree.
When he saw Xu Gui and the others come out, he quickly grabbed the equipment and ran over.
"Are you alright?" the cameraman asked.
Xu Gui: "What could be wrong? Ugh, it's so hot!"
She had just stepped out of the building into the sun when she quickly retreated back inside, clutching the fish tank. Her movements were incredibly agile, like a cat that had been scalded by the heat.
Xu Gui was bewildered: the temperature wasn't this high when she went upstairs.
The person filming said, "I saw in the weather forecast that it's 33 degrees Celsius today, and the body temperature will be even higher. It seems like summer has really arrived."
Xu Gui looked at the dazzling sun with a very serious expression on her face—as a Xuan Turtle living in a place with a humid climate all year round, even now that she has become human, she does not like such hot and dry weather.
She felt that leaving the turtle out in such weather was a very immoral thing to do.
Seeing her standing there motionless with such a serious expression, the photographer immediately felt a pang of anxiety, wondering if something had happened after Xu Gui and the others went up. He couldn't help but ask, "Teacher Xu, what's wrong?"
Xu Gui said seriously, "I feel like the sun wants to kill me!"
The cameraman: "..."
Xu Gui hugged the fish tank and refused to leave the building. She was very worried, which led to them running into Li Ya and her husband, who were also coming downstairs. Li Ya was a little surprised to see Xu Gui and her husband there.
When Kanghe saw Xu Gui, he felt a phantom pain in his toes. The pain from being hit by the ornament seemed to spread from his toes again, a sharp, throbbing pain.
"Why are you still here?" Li Ya asked.
Xu Gui hugged the fish tank, looking somewhat aggrieved: "The sun is too strong."
Li Ya glanced outside and her lips twitched slightly. "The sun is indeed quite strong, but if you don't leave now, the sun will get even stronger and the temperature will rise. It will be even more uncomfortable if you want to leave then."
She could tell that Xu Gui seemed to really hate this kind of sunny weather. Just now, when they were in the dance studio, he was full of energy, but now he looked like all the moisture in his body had evaporated, and he looked a bit wilted.
Upon hearing Li Ya's words, Xu Gui's expression turned somewhat terrified. She glanced outside and asked, "Will the temperature rise further?"
Li Ya glanced at the time and said, "It's only 10:30 now, not even the hottest time of day yet. It'll be the hottest time of the day at midnight."
Upon hearing this, Xu Gui stood up abruptly, turned to look at the paparazzi, and said, "Let's go now."
I haven't figured out how to persuade her to follow me on camera yet: ? ! !
"Okay!" he replied excitedly.
Xu Gui greeted Li Ya and left with the four children. As for Kang He next to Li Ya... oh, is anyone there? Why didn't she see him?
*
It's really hot outside. The temperature wasn't even this high yesterday. It's like the weather suddenly turned into sweltering heat overnight. The photographer commented, "This year is actually not bad. In previous years, the temperature in June would already be approaching 34 degrees Celsius!"
Fortunately, it was much more comfortable once I got into the taxi. The car was air-conditioned, and the cold air made me shiver as soon as I got in, and the heat around me dissipated quickly.
Xu Gui looked at the fish in the tank. Perhaps affected by the temperature, the goldfish didn't seem as lively as before and sank to the bottom of the tank. Xu Gui then put one of his fingers into the water.
Whoosh!
The little goldfish swam up from the bottom and touched Xu Gui's fingers with its cool mouth. Its tail swayed, like the colors of the sunset flowing in the fish tank, and it seemed a little more lively than before.
"Is the little goldfish alright?" The two children came over, very concerned about the little goldfish's condition.
Xu Gui said, "It's nothing. It's probably just a bit dizzy from the heat. It should be much better now."
Xiaomin and Qiaoqiao were relieved: "That's good."
The two little girls were sitting side by side, and now they were crammed together with Xu Gui to watch the fish. Luckily, they were small, otherwise Xu Gui might have been squeezed to death. As for the photographer and the two little boys, they were naturally in another car.
They were heading to Qiaoqiao's house. The four children lived in the same community, not far from where Xu Gui set up his stall. Otherwise, they wouldn't have run into Xiaomin and the other two children for two consecutive days.
About twenty minutes later, the car drove into the residential area and parked in front of the building where Qiaoqiao and her family lived.
Perhaps because she was bringing "guests" home, Qiao Qiao seemed very excited from the moment the car entered the community. After getting out of the car, she was even more eager to lead Xu Gui and the others upstairs.
“I live on the sixth floor!” she said in a cheerful voice.
Hearing her say that, the other three children chimed in, saying:
"My home is on the third floor!"
"My apartment is on the eighth floor!"
"My apartment is the tallest, on the eleventh floor!"
Actually, all four children are quite well-behaved and quiet, but when they are together, Xu Gui still feels like there are a hundred ducks quacking in his ears, especially in the elevator.
Once they got off the elevator, the children led the way for Xu Gui and the others. When they arrived at Qiao Qiao's house, they started banging on the door.
"Grandma, it's me! Open the door!" Qiaoqiao shouted.
Click!
The door opened, revealing Grandma Qiao's loving face. Upon seeing her beloved granddaughter, she instinctively smiled first, and then, upon seeing Xu Gui and the others, she warmly invited them in.
“…I’ve already heard from Mingyue that you are all her guests, but Mingyue is still at work and won’t be back for lunch until then. You’ll have to wait at home for a little while,” said Grandma Qiaoqiao.
Xu Gui: "It's okay, we have plenty of time."
Qiaoqiao was very much like a little hostess. After Xu Gui and the others came in, she didn't even put down her schoolbag before busying herself getting their shoes. After they sat down, she went to pour them water.
In short, she didn't seem to be doing any complicated work, but she looked extremely busy, constantly running around.
After the four children ran off to play in Qiaoqiao's room, Qiaoqiao's grandmother sat down next to Xu Gui and the others. She first glanced curiously at the camera equipment placed beside her, and then asked, "Is there something you need from our Mingyue?"
"Oh right, how did Qiaoqiao end up coming back with you?" The old lady suddenly remembered this.
Xu Gui pondered for a moment and said, "We came here because of Qiao Qiao. There are some things we'd like to discuss with Miss Xue about Qiao Qiao."
Grandma Qiao asked curiously, "When?"
Xu Gui smiled and said, "Let me talk to Miss Xue first, and then she can decide whether or not to tell you."
Grandma Qiaoqiao became even more curious: "What's going on? Why are you being so secretive?"
Xu Gui smiled but didn't say anything.
"Speaking of which, what do you do?" Grandma Qiao asked again, pointing to the camera that was filming. "What's that thing?"
Xu Gui: "My main job is fortune telling, and my side job is being a celebrity."
The person filming nearby exclaimed: "Teacher Xu, didn't you get your main job and side job mixed up?!"
"Fortune telling? Celebrity?" Grandma Qiao was a little confused and couldn't connect the two words together at all.
However, she was a very open-minded and magnanimous person. Upon hearing Xu Gui's profession, she didn't show any strange expression, but simply asked with some curiosity:
"Are you an accurate fortune teller?"
"Absolutely accurate!"
Xu Gui spoke with pride and confidence.
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