Chapter Ninety-Three: Mommy & Auntie (Part Four)
Dining room.
"I'm late, I'm late." Qi Rui walked quickly to the booth by the window and casually tossed her handbag onto the seat. "Sorry to keep you waiting."
“Not long.” Tang Wanru slowly sipped her tea, glanced at her watch, and said, “About one hour, twenty-five minutes, and sixteen seconds.”
Qi Rui broke out in a cold sweat: "It's my fault, it's my fault. That client this afternoon was too difficult to deal with. I'll treat you to this meal."
"Do I look like I'm missing out on this meal?" Tang Wanru said casually.
Qi Rui's eyes darted around. "So what did you want to see me about today?"
"Is Sister Qi Jing settled in Pu City, M Country?"
Tang Wanru didn't mince words with her childhood friend.
"Yes," Qi Rui nodded.
Qi Jing is her second older sister, who has been married and settled in the United States for over ten years.
"Why did you suddenly ask that..." Qi Rui paused halfway through her question, "Was it for Xiao Jie?"
If it were just a trip to the US, Tang Wanru wouldn't have sought out her second sister. The only reason Tang Wanru would do her a favor is probably for her younger sister.
"Um."
“I’ll contact her when I get back tonight and we’ll arrange a time for you to come to my house,” Qi Rui said.
They live in a time zone with the United States; nighttime there is daytime, and only their home landline has international calling privileges, so they can only help make calls at night.
After the matter was finished, the dishes that Tang Wanru had ordered in advance were served.
The two were eating when they suddenly heard a gasp from the booth behind Qi Rui, "What?!"
Qi Rui loved watching the excitement, and whenever she heard a commotion, she would peer back.
A small bamboo curtain was added between the booths in the restaurant, so you couldn't see behind you and could only hear a little noise.
Are you serious?
It was the same woman's voice that had just exclaimed.
"Hmm." A cold, indifferent reply.
The voice sounded familiar, and Qi Rui subconsciously parted the bamboo curtain.
Sitting directly in Qi Rui's direction was a girl of seventeen or eighteen years old. She had a sweet appearance, and her demeanor and attire suggested that she came from a wealthy family.
The girl looked anxious, and her eyes were a little red.
Upon seeing this scene, Qi Rui immediately imagined a melodramatic emotional drama.
Turning her gaze back to the person opposite the girl, Qi Rui saw that the person had their back to her, so she could only see their back. The person had short, neat hair, but judging from their slender figure, they should also be a woman, and they seemed somewhat familiar.
As the waiter brought the food over, the person turned her head, and Qi Rui saw her profile.
this.
Qi Rui was surprised.
She immediately turned her head and mouthed something to Tang Wanru.
"Your sister."
Tang Wanru was speechless. What was wrong with meeting Ran Aijie? As for Qi Rui, she was acting like a secret agent meeting with underground party members, even when they were talking.
Qi Rui leaned over the table and moved closer to her, her tone gossipy, "Your sister made a girl cry."
After she finished speaking, she turned her head to the side and eavesdropped on the sounds behind her.
Ran Aijie has always been cold and aloof since she was a child. Qi Rui never imagined that one day she would be able to get gossip about her love life.
Tang Wanru frowned.
The booths are separated only by a bamboo curtain, and if you listen carefully, you can hear the sounds from next door.
Is it because of me?
After the waiter left, they heard the girl's voice again.
"No," Ran Aijie said succinctly.
"Then why don't you apply to CUHK? Even if you don't like me, don't gamble with your future." The girl bit her lip, as if she had made an important decision. "At worst, I'll just stop pursuing you."
"It has nothing to do with you, Su Yang."
"Then why?"
"I don't want to go abroad."
"Don't want to go abroad?"
"You want to stay at the university?"
Ran Aijie didn't say anything.
She not only didn't want to go abroad, she didn't want to study anymore either.
"You're not going to graduate school?!" Su Yang's voice rose in surprise. "Are you crazy?!"
She and Ran Aijie were classmates in the gifted youth program. For people like them, the best way out was to go abroad to study at the top universities in their respective fields. What difference was there between graduating with a bachelor's degree and ruining their future?
Not to mention the girl opposite Ran Aijie, even Qi Rui was extremely shocked when she heard her words.
She looked at Tang Wanru with a puzzled expression.
Half an hour ago, Tang Wanru asked her to help contact her second sister, which clearly meant she wanted to prepare for her sister's trip abroad. How come her sister has no such intention at all?
Tang Wanru's eyebrows were furrowed tightly together.
She recalled the conversation in the study a few days ago, but she thought they had already reached an agreement by then. She didn't expect Ran Aijie to have this plan.
Tang Wanru took out some money from her bag and placed it on the table, saying to Qi Rui, "You can pay the bill in a bit."
She stood up with a sullen face and went to the booth next door.
Qi Rui wanted to stop her, but didn't dare.
Tang Wanru was absolutely angry.
Less than two seconds later, Qi Rui heard Ran Aijie's panicked voice, "Sister?!"
When Tang Wanru stood by the table with a dark face, Ran Aijie immediately guessed that her sister had heard everything they were saying.
Ran Aijie, who hadn't trembled at all when speaking on stage in front of thousands of students, panicked.
Tang Wanru glanced at her quietly, said nothing, and turned to leave the restaurant.
"Sister!" Ran Aijie quickly got up and caught up with her.
Su Yang was also taken aback when he saw this scene.
For four years, Ran Aijie's emotions were as stable as a flat horizontal line. Neither people nor pressure, nor any external factors could cause her to fluctuate. This was the first time she had seen a look of tension on Ran Aijie's face.
"Please pay for this table as well."
A bright voice interrupted Su Yang's thoughts. She came back to her senses and saw a beautiful face that matched the voice.
Outside the restaurant.
Tang Wanru went straight to her car after leaving the house. When Ran Aijie chased after her, she was just opening the car door and getting in.
"Sister," Ran Aijie called to her.
Tang Wanru didn't reply and got into the car, followed by Ran Aijie.
"Let's go home," Tang Wanru said to the driver, then closed her eyes to rest.
Ran Aijie's lips twitched slightly before she pursed them again.
They returned home in silence.
"Xiaoru and Xiaojie are back?" Seventh Sister-in-law was a little surprised to see them return at this time. "Have you eaten yet?"
"have eaten."
Tang Wanru casually responded, took off her coat, and went upstairs.
"What's wrong with Xiaoru?" Seventh Sister noticed that Tang Wanru was unhappy and looked at Ran Aijie who came in from behind.
"It's alright." Ran Aijie followed her upstairs.
Watching their retreating figures, one after the other, Seventh Sister-in-law seemed to understand something and muttered to herself, "Did they have a fight?"
Second floor.
Ran Aijie followed Tang Wanru into the study.
Tang Wanru leaned against the desk, arms crossed, looking at her scrutinizingly. "Give me a reasonable explanation."
Ran Aijie's lips trembled slightly, but she didn't speak.
"So you can graduate early and work at Tang's?" Tang Wanru asked.
"Mmm," Ran Aijie responded softly.
It wasn't just to help the Tang family, but also to stay by her side.
"Didn't I tell you I didn't need it? Why did you still do it?" Tang Wanru frowned, her expression stern.
"sister……"
Tang Wanru interrupted her, "Ran Aijie, do you know what this choice means?"
Different choices lead to vastly different life trajectories.
Ran Aijie bit her lip. "I know, sister. I'm an adult. I made my own choice, and I won't regret it later."
"No regrets." Tang Wanru was amused by her words.
"You don't regret it." She straightened up and took a step forward, meeting the gaze of the person who was a head taller than her. She looked up and met her eyes directly. "Did you ask me what I thought? Didn't you ask if I needed it?"
Tang Wanru's eyes were deep and thoughtful, as if she wanted to see into her heart.
Ran Aijie's pupils dilated in shock.
knew.
Her sister knows.
While Ran Aijie was still in shock, Tang Wanru took a deep breath.
She woke up when Ran Aijie called her on New Year's Eve.
She originally intended to continue pretending to be asleep, waiting for Ran Aijie to get close so she could suddenly wake up and tease her.
But Ran Aijie got too close and her breathing became too rapid, and Tang Wanru could feel it.
When she realized what she was about to do, Tang Wanru was shocked, but in addition to the shock, there was also an indescribable emotion.
It was this emotion that made her continue to pretend to be asleep, letting things unfold as they would.
It wasn't until the firecracker exploded that she regained her senses.
She didn't sleep well on New Year's Eve either; she thought about many, many things.
She and Ran Aijie are sisters in name only.
Ran Aijie wants to pursue further studies and achieve greater success; the Tang family cannot be a shackle binding her.
She absolutely cannot be.
Moreover, Ran Aijie is only eighteen years old and hasn't met many people. Perhaps his feelings for her are just dependence and habit. Ran Aijie will meet many more people in the future.
If we let her go, what if she comes back?
Let's talk about it when she gets back.
She thought.
Tang Wanru originally didn't want to bring things to light and wanted everything to develop naturally.
But Ran Aijie wanted to give up her future for her, which was something she couldn't accept.
Tang Wanru tightened her grip on her fingers, hardening her heart. "Whether you go abroad or not is your own choice, I won't interfere, but I can tell you clearly, I will not let you come to Tang's."
Ran Aijie's expression froze.
She opened her mouth, but didn't say anything more.
She knew Tang Wanru too well; her reaction was enough to show that there was no room for negotiation on this matter.
Sure enough, the next second she heard Tang Wanru say, "Whether you stay or not, the result will be the same."
Her rejection was too obvious and too resolute.
The color drained from Ran Aijie's face in an instant.
Her sister found out about her feelings and rejected her without hesitation.
Tang Wanru's heart tightened, but she didn't dare to linger and pushed open the door to leave the study.
She clutched her chest and hurried back to her room. The moment the door closed, she seemed to lose all her strength and slid down against it.
*
Beijing International Airport.
The spacious airport terminal was bustling with people; some hurried along with their suitcases, while others bid farewell to their lovers.
After checking in, Ran Aijie took her ticket and walked out of the queue.
My heart felt heavy; I didn't feel the excitement that my classmates had for their first trip abroad.
Even though I knew it was impossible, I couldn't help but scan the hall with my eyes, and unsurprisingly, I didn't see the figure I wanted to see.
"What are you thinking about?" Su Yang patted Ran Aijie on the shoulder.
"nothing."
Ran Aijie looked away and glanced back at the students who were still checking in.
Su Yang looked around and pointed to the east, "The security checkpoint is over there."
Five people went to PKU this year: besides her and Su Yang, there were three other male classmates.
"A few grown men like us are worried about getting lost, let's go first." Su Yang took her hand and headed towards the security checkpoint.
Ran Aijie didn't move, but glanced at her hand sideways.
"I already told you I'm not pursuing you anymore. What's wrong with being best friends and holding hands? You're so stingy." Su Yang muttered as she let go of her hand.
She kept her word and really didn't plan to pursue Ran Aijie anymore, but she still really wanted to be friends with her.
Ran Aijie didn't say anything and turned to go through security.
She couldn't guess Su Yang's thoughts, but she didn't want to keep him hanging on, so she wouldn't give him unrealistic hopes.
Just like her sister treated her.
Thinking of this, Ran Aijie gave a wry smile.
On the other side of the hall.
Tang Wanru kept watching Ran Aijie's back until she passed through security and disappeared around the corner of the stairs.
Passengers traveling to Puerto Rico on flight CA1910, please proceed to gate 08 immediately.
...
One year later.
Jiangcheng Hospital.
"Xiaoru." The urgent voice pulled Tang Wanru back to reality.
Her gaze returned to Qi Rui, whose face was filled with anxiety.
"Are you not hurt anywhere?" Qi Rui examined her carefully.
Some time ago, a worker at the Tang family factory accidentally lost his hand due to improper operation. Out of humanitarian concern, the Tang family provided compensation.
Having tasted the benefits of the compensation, this family recently had another son, who works at the factory, 'accidentally' break his leg.
This time, however, the Tang family did not offer any compensation.
The factory installed surveillance cameras after the last accident, and the footage showed that the person deliberately stretched out his leg when the crane was falling.
Given such blatant extortion, the Tang family naturally refused to pay any further compensation.
The man was unwilling to accept his broken leg and failed to extort any money, so he went to the Tang family with a knife in his pocket.
"I'm fine, Ji Xin stopped him." Tang Wanru's voice trembled.
When the man swung his knife at her, Lin Jixin stood in front of her and shielded her.
Lin Jixin was her college classmate. They weren't very close in college. Tang Wanru only remembered that Lin Jixin had good grades and received scholarships every year in school. She also heard that Lin Jixin had a good personality.
Later, they met at the Tang family business, where Lin Jixin was assigned to be her secretary because of her outstanding work ability.
As they were talking, the operating room door opened.
Lin Jixin, with her shoulder bandaged, was wheeled out by a nurse.
Tang Wanru rushed over, "How are you?"
"It's nothing serious, the doctor has already taken care of it," Lin Jixin said with a reassuring smile.
Tang Wanru felt even more guilty because he was injured because of her.
"I need to go to the emergency room for an IV drip in a bit. Go pay the fees and pick up your medication." The nurse handed the receipt to Tang Wanru.
"I'll go," Qi Rui said, offering to take over.
Emergency room.
After confirming that Tang Wanru was alright, Qi Rui paid the bill and left. Tang Wanru felt bad, so she stayed to keep Lin Jixin company.
"Manager Tang, I'm fine. I'll go back by myself after the IV drip is finished," Lin Jixin advised Tang Wanru.
"No need to persuade me anymore, I'll go with you." Tang Wanru made the decision in one sentence.
Lin Jixin could only smile helplessly, "Then I'll have to trouble Manager Tang."
"I should be thanking you."
Having worked together for several years, Tang Wanru had long been accustomed to her good temper, but now she felt that this person's good temper was a bit silly.
If I hadn't shielded her from the bullet, she wouldn't have gotten hurt. Taking care of her was just what I was supposed to do; it wasn't a problem at all.
Tang Wanru thought that once Lin Jixin recovered, she would raise her salary, but it seemed that raising the salary alone would not be enough to repay this favor.
Sometimes she could sense that Lin Jixin seemed to have a bit of a crush on her, but Lin Jixin didn't show it obviously and didn't do anything too outrageous, so she pretended not to know.
Lin Jixin is capable and conscientious in her work. Tang Wanru's attitude towards her has always been that as long as Lin Jixin doesn't overstep her boundaries, she won't fire her.
As she was thinking this, she heard Lin Jixin say, "If it were someone else today, I would have saved them too, so don't feel guilty."
Her tone was sincere, and her ears were red as she spoke, which made Tang Wanru think she was even more foolish.
For some reason, Tang Wanru suddenly thought of Ran Aijie.
He's a fool who would give up his future for her.
Tang Wanru sighed inwardly.
After this incident, Lin Jixin remained the same as before and did not ask for anything because she had saved her, but Tang Wanru paid more attention to her instead.
Lin Jixin clearly remembered all her preferences and habits, and always arranged everything in an orderly manner, which not only saved her a lot of effort at work, but also made her feel exceptionally comfortable to be with.
Their relationship remained lukewarm until one day, when they went on a business trip together, she fell ill from exhaustion, and Lin Jixin took care of her tirelessly for several days.
Tang Wanru softened.
However, before she made a decision, she flew to the United States.
Sunset.
The campus of Princeton University.
Ran Aijie was sitting on a bench under a tree reading a book when suddenly, everything went black before her eyes as a pair of hands covered her eyes.
She sighed helplessly, "Su Yang."
Su Yang let go of her hand with a grin, but she didn't leave. Instead, she immediately bent down and hugged Ran Aijie's neck.
Ran Aijie froze, and she raised her hand to grasp Su Yang's wrist.
"Hey, hey, don't pull her away, she's looking over here." Su Yang hurriedly lowered his head and whispered in her ear.
Ran Aijie paused, turning her head to look in the direction of the teaching building.
A group of students who had just finished class walked out of the teaching building, and one of the tall girls kept staring in their direction with a dark expression.
This person is Su Yang's ex-girlfriend. Despite cheating on him, she kept pestering him, which annoyed Su Yang to no end. So he came up with a plan to pretend to be a couple with Ran Aijie to make her give up.
The soft sunset filtered through the tree canopy, casting dappled light and shadow.
From a distance, the scene under the tree looked exceptionally harmonious.
Tang Wanru watched as the two got up from the bench, chatting and laughing as they left hand in hand.
She slowly turned around, left Princeton, and returned to her home country.
*
The roar of airplanes swept overhead, pulling Tang Wanru's thoughts back from memories of many years ago.
My vision gradually focused, but my mind was still a little dazed.
The tree is still the same tree, but the surrounding environment has changed completely.
With a soft sigh, Tang Wanru turned around.
He stopped as soon as he took a step.
Not far behind, beyond the shadows of the trees, stood a person.
The person stood tall and straight against the light, their face somewhat blurred by the interplay of light and shadow, yet conveying a sense of both familiarity and strangeness.
The wind rustled through the treetops, making the canopy whisper, just like that evening thirty years ago.
Author's Note: I'm not used to writing angst, and this extra chapter about Mommy and Auntie was really heartbreaking to write, so it was a bit slow. Please don't mind. I've put the sweet moments of the little wife at the end, and I hope everyone can be as sweet and beautiful as them.
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