Zhong Yinghong and Xia Xi chatted for a while, and the whole time was filled with an awkward atmosphere, and both of them felt a little uncomfortable.
One was feeling heavy-hearted, the other nervous.
Zhong Yinghong put the teacup on the coffee table and suggested leaving.
"I sent a message to Xu Yanfeng. He will be back soon." Xia Xi stood up and unknowingly, sweat broke out on his back. "It's almost eleven o'clock. Why don't you stay for dinner..."
Xia Xi realized that he had said the wrong thing and his voice stopped abruptly.
She said this as if she was the owner of the house and Zhong Yinghong was a guest.
Xia Xi pursed her lips and frowned slightly.
"Let's talk about it next time." Zhong Yinghong walked towards the entrance.
Xia Xi tried to persuade him to stay a few times, but seeing that he was determined to leave, she didn't say anything more.
Hearing the sound of the door opening, Aunt Zhang hurried out of the kitchen, her hands still stained with water: "Why are you leaving, Madam? I'm just preparing the food. Why don't you stay for lunch? Mr. Xu should be back soon."
"No."
Zhong Yinghong smiled faintly, with an elephant-gray bag slung over her arm. She took one last look at Xia Xi and entered the elevator with full of suspicion.
Watching the elevator door slowly close and Zhong Yinghong's figure no longer visible, Xia Xi leaned against the wall as if exhausted.
Aunt Zhang saw that she looked unwell, so she held her arm and asked with concern, "Are you okay? Is your stomach still uncomfortable?"
Xia Xi shook his head.
*
Half an hour later, Xu Yanfeng finally arrived home, carrying some pastries wrapped in old-fashioned brown paper. He casually threw his car keys into the wall cabinet in the entrance hall, changed into slippers and walked in.
Looking around, he did not see Zhong Yinghong.
"Where is my mother?" Xu Yanfeng asked.
The living room was quiet. Xia Xi lay on the sofa, leaning back like a salted fish, looking hopeless. Meanwhile, Ziheng was reading a book in the circular sunken lounge area, intensely focused.
No one answered, so Xu Yanfeng asked again.
Xia Xi supported herself on her elbows and slowly sat up, looking at him blankly: "Why are you back so late? She's gone."
Xu Yanfeng raised his arms and shook the bulging brown paper bags in his hands. "Don't you know that the pastry shop is far away? It takes a long time to drive there. Today is the weekend, and there are many people lining up. It took quite a while, so I came back late."
“…”
Xia Xi didn't know what to say about him.
Silence stretched on for several seconds before Xia Xi spoke: "Didn't you see the message I sent saying 'Come back soon'? It's already this late, and you're still thinking about pastries."
Listening to her finish her words one by one, her voice seemed a little tense, Xu Yanfeng found it funny: "My mother scolded you?"
"No." Xia Xi recalled the tone of his mother's voice. It was quite gentle, soft and gentle from beginning to end, like a breeze blowing past his ears, without any sense of oppression.
"Did my mother give you a hard time?"
"No."
"My mother is targeting you?"
“No.”
"That's all." The smile on Xu Yanfeng's lips spread all the way to the corners of his eyes. "It doesn't matter whether I come back or not."
“…”
Lunch wasn't ready yet. Xu Yanfeng found an oval white porcelain plate, unwrapped the pastries, took out two pieces of each, placed them on the plate, and handed it to Xia Xi: "Eat less. This stuff is hard to digest."
Xia Xi shook her head, not in the mood to eat.
"You want me to feed you?" Xu Yanfeng picked up a piece of chestnut cake and brought it to her mouth. "I bought it from far away, please give me some face."
Xia Xi was a little embarrassed, tilted her head, took it from him, and took a bite: "Why don't you ask me what your mother and I talked about?"
Xu Yanfeng calmly analyzed: "First, you definitely won't acknowledge our relationship. Second, you won't tell my mother about Ziheng's background. Then the conversations between you will only be the most ordinary ones, such as 'What's your name?' 'What do you do for a living?' 'Where is your home?' Am I right?"
Xia Xi was speechless. He was right about everything he said.
"My mom must be full of questions right now," Xu Yanfeng said, pulling out his phone. "I'll give her a call."
Xia Xi pressed his hand, and when his eyes glanced over, she retracted her hand: "What are you going to tell her?"
Xu Yanfeng threw three words at her: "Tell the truth."
"How could you tell her the truth? Aren't you afraid of making her sick? Besides, you and I are not dating, so I'm not lying to her. She didn't ask if Ziheng was your child, so of course I wouldn't tell her."
"Why are you so nervous?" Xu Yanfeng raised his hand and rubbed her head. "You think my mother is too fragile. She is not easily angered. If she knew she had a grandson, she might send the household registration book to me tomorrow."
“…”
Xia Xi watched him dial the number.
There was no answer.
Xia Xi's heart jumped up, and he felt that he was doomed. His mother must be angry and didn't even answer his calls.
Xu Yanfeng didn't think too much about it and called again.
This time, the phone rang only a few times before Zhong Yinghong picked up. Her voice was not as gentle as usual, but rather vague: "Hello, Afeng."
Xu Yanfeng glanced sideways at Xia Xi beside him, not intending to let her hear his conversation with his mother. He walked to the window before speaking, "Why didn't you wait for me to come back?"
"What do you think?" Zhong Yinghong seemed to have just found her normal flow with her son, and she spoke clearly, "Ever since you and your dad had a quarrel over your marriage during the Chinese New Year, you haven't been home much. I wanted to visit you today, so I called your assistant beforehand. Knowing you weren't at the office, I went straight to your place. Who knew I'd see a strange woman in your house? I wasn't prepared at all. She...she has a child. She said you weren't dating, do you think I'd believe her?"
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