Yu Anning and Qi Wenyuan had a very good relationship; they were childhood sweethearts. Yu Anning often visited the Qi family home, which had a large collection of books that she would often become engrossed in reading. Qi's father was very kind and knowledgeable, and he would even recommend books to her.
However, Qi's mother didn't like her very much. The sensitive Yu Anning noticed this, but she was still young and didn't know how to read between the lines. She still went to Qi's house every day to play with Qi Wenyuan and look at his collection of books. But she never ate at Qi's house, even though Qi Wenyuan and Qi's father always invited her warmly. Yu Anning never accepted and went home as soon as it was time to eat.
By the time she reached the first year of junior high, Yu Anning had blossomed into a beautiful young woman. The neighbors in the alley praised her for her beauty and charm, and even joked about her and Qi Wenyuan, saying that they were a perfect couple, childhood sweethearts. Yu Anning would blush with embarrassment every time, but her grandparents would just laugh it off and take it as a joke.
But when Yu Anning looks back now, she can sense that her grandparents were actually interested in him. The Qi family was a family of scholars. It seems that Qi Wenyuan's grandfather was a great lawyer who made a lot of money and acquired a lot of property. Several of Qi Wenyuan's uncles were abroad, and only his father stayed in China to take care of his grandfather. He suffered a lot during those years.
Therefore, Qi Wenyuan's uncles felt guilty and grateful towards his father. As soon as the turmoil subsided, they contacted Qi Wenyuan's father and said that all the properties in China belonged to his family. They said that they were doing very well abroad and often sent money and goods.
Therefore, Qi Wenyuan always had some unusual things, such as Walkmans and Polaroid cameras. Yu Anning saw Qi Wenyuan using them in the 1970s, as well as tape recorders, all of which were sent back from abroad by Qi Wenyuan's uncles and aunts. Yu Anning's eyes were opened to new things.
But Qi's mother's gaze towards her became increasingly unfriendly. Yu Anning didn't understand what she had done wrong, so she gradually reduced the number of times she went to the Qi family. However, she couldn't resist Qi Wenyuan always coming over to play, and occasionally she would go to the Qi family to play as well.
One day, Qi's mother took the initiative to find Yu Anning and invited her to her house. Yu Anning thought Qi Wenyuan was home, but when she arrived, she found that neither Qi Wenyuan nor Qi's father were there, and she knew that something was wrong.
Sure enough, Qi's mother spoke in a condescending manner. Yu Anning couldn't remember the exact words, but the gist was that she was just a poor, ordinary girl living in a tenement. Even though her parents were university professors, they were insignificant in Qi's mother's eyes because she had planned for her son to study abroad and marry a well-matched heiress from a prestigious family.
So, the sentence that Qi's mother told Yu Anning to be self-aware and stop bothering her son was the one that left the deepest impression on Yu Anning.
“A young girl should always have a sense of shame and not be too shameless. You are a smart girl, and a good drum doesn’t need heavy beating. I won’t say any more. I don’t want to see you playing with my son again.”
Qi's mother spoke in a light and casual tone, sitting and manicuring her nails without looking at her. The scene immediately reminded Yu Anning of a scene on TV where a mistress was disciplining a maid. She was an ignorant maid, while Qi's mother was the mistress.
Yu Anning, who had a strong sense of self-respect, couldn't stand it at the time and immediately retorted, "It's your son who keeps coming to play with me. If you're so capable, then you should control your own son. Don't worry, I won't step into the Qi family's door again. You should also control Qi Wenyuan and make sure he doesn't come to my house again."
At that time, Yu Anning also hated Qi Wenyuan. After that, she avoided Qi Wenyuan. Later, her parents took her and her younger brother home. She didn't meet the boy again until high school, but Yu Anning still deliberately avoided Qi Wenyuan. She didn't want to be humiliated by that woman a second time.
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