Chapter 124 Gift
"If I wanted to mess up the art exam, I wouldn't have even taken it. For over six months, I've been practicing and studying like crazy, and how could you just say I wasn't paying attention? Yes, you and my dad finally put down all your work to be with me, but this is the first time in nearly eighteen years!"
Ren Limeng's lips trembled slightly, and her voice was choked with sobs, but she still stared straight at Wu Murong with red eyes, and her sonorous voice carried the same question.
She has been exhausted for more than six months, with too many things weighing on her mind and unable to confide in others. Most of the time, as soon as she opened her eyes, she was only thinking about practicing her acting or taking advantage of the free time to look at a few questions. From early morning to the early morning, she didn't even leave herself the opportunity to have an emotional outburst.
This was the first time after the selection that Ren Limeng could not hold back her tears. Facing Wu Murong's puzzled face, Ren Limeng's tears rolled freely in her eyes and finally flowed slowly down her cheeks.
"Okay, okay! So you think I've been pushing you! ...It's all my fault?"
Wu Murong's chest heaved violently. She stared at Ren Limeng intently. "You've been holding these words in your heart for a long time, haven't you? How old are you, yet you're so arrogant? Ren Limeng, I've always been gentle and kind to you because you're preparing for the college entrance examination. Do you know how to be grateful? Don't push your luck. Look at what you've done this year. If you're so capable, why did you ruin your costume at the auditions? Go and act! You didn't even cherish your admission spot, and now you're telling me you'll give it your all!"
Wu Murong's questioning became louder and louder. She gritted her teeth, raised her right hand, and swung it fiercely towards Ren Limeng's face. The flames of anger burned in her eyes, and endless disappointment and heartache were intertwined in the depths of her eyes.
"What did I do wrong this time?"
Ren Limeng's pale palm finally rested against her mother's right palm. She tightly grasped Wu Murong's forearm, raised her head, ignored the tears sliding down her cheeks, her eyes full of stubbornness that refused to admit defeat.
"I got first place in the country. Isn't that what you and my dad wanted? What else do you want? In your eyes, is the tryout thing something you'll never get over? No matter how hard I try, you keep bringing up the tryout! It's been all this time, and have any of you ever asked me why? From the time the incident happened until now, besides scolding and beating me, what else have you done? Have you ever... cared about what I think?"
Ren Limeng clearly felt a strong downward force when she grasped her mother's arm. During the silent stalemate, both of them seemed to have exhausted all their strength.
Although Ren Limeng did not intend to tell her parents everything about Li Chuyue, she did not want to avoid the issue at first. She racked her brains to think of how to explain to her parents her inexplicable "madness" backstage before the game, but in fact, no one asked her the reason.
Her parents seemed to concede that she was under too much pressure, acting recklessly and without regard for the consequences. Perhaps no one cared about her "hardships" at all.
Later, every time Wu Murong brought up the past, Ren Limeng became more and more lazy to explain. However, with every fierce accusation from Wu Murong, Ren Limeng could not help but ask herself, is the path she has chosen really the right one?
Or, she never made a choice at all and just followed the routine...right?
Ren Limeng chose "Peach Blossom Fan" for the art exam not out of a momentary impulse as Wu Murong thought, nor was it to disgust her parents. She just thought about it carefully and simply believed that this sad play was more suitable for her than "The Female Prime Minister" and was equally competitive.
Playing two roles, male and female, which are completely different, is full of challenges and can also fully demonstrate her abilities. This is her best choice.
Even if Wu Murong disagreed, this was her art exam. After Ren Limeng tried her best many times but failed, she finally gave up trying to persuade her mother. She told herself over and over again that maybe she should make this decision herself.
"Peach Blossom Fan" is her own creativity and hard work, which is a fair preparation. She wants to give it a try without relying on her parents. Can she succeed in the path of Huangmei Opera?
There was clearly a positive outcome in the end, but why did things suddenly go wrong?
Ren Limeng didn't know, just as she couldn't fully understand the anger and pain on Wu Murong's face at the moment, why after a perfect first place, they still couldn't be happy and relieved?
Ren Limeng stared at Wu Murong, who was full of anger, and suddenly curled up the corners of her mouth. There was too much helplessness and sadness hidden in the bitter smile, but Wu Murong was completely immersed in her own emotions and did not notice this unusual arc at all.
In the past six months, Ren Limeng rehearsed "The Female Prime Minister" over and over again every day as her mother requested, and also took time to practice every detail of "Peach Blossom Fan", trying to figure out the different emotions and actions of the male and female protagonists. She insisted on staying up late every day to review the cultural subjects. No matter whether it was the first place in the art exam of the drama academy that had already been settled, or the result that almost doubled or tripled the ranking, it was never just a trivial achievement.
She is so tired.
"Li Meng, Dad knows you work hard and you're amazing, but... have you ever thought that if you hadn't hidden it from us, you wouldn't have to work so hard."
Compared with his mother Wu Murong's blunt and cold sneer of "You asked for it", his father Ren Shunan's attitude was much gentler when he walked into Ren Limeng's room alone to communicate with her after returning home.
The moment they looked at each other, Ren Limeng could feel the heartache in the eyes of her father sitting in front of her, and she could also feel... the disapproval that could not be hidden.
"Dad, do I have a choice?"
Ren Limeng's voice was a little hoarse. Her soft voice was as quiet as the dark night outside the room, with a hint of helplessness and powerlessness.
"...You should have trusted us more. At the very least...you should have been honest with us instead of letting your mother suddenly find out from someone else that you lied to her. You did the wrong thing."
"Didn't I express that?"
Ren Limeng smiled sarcastically, her deep eyes did not waver at all. She stood straight and looked at her father who looked helpless.
"You all... just don't value my ideas."
Ren Limeng didn't know whether she was crying or laughing. Her eyes were dim and calm, and her soft voice was directed directly at her father. She was also facing the fact that she was most reluctant to admit but could not escape.
"Many things can't be calculated that way, Li Meng. You're still too young to understand your mother and I's painstaking efforts. You might find it annoying to hear us say we're doing this for your own good, but the world isn't black and white, and we don't have it as easy as you think. This is both our first time being parents. If there's anything you've misunderstood, Daddy apologizes, okay?"
Ren Shunan stood up, quickly grabbed a handful of tissues from the desk, and gently handed them to Ren Limeng, whose face was already covered with tears. Ren Limeng took the tissues, put them on her face, and silently hid all her expressions.
As if this could cover up the sadness and disappointment she felt at the moment, her shoulders drooped as if she had lost her strength, and the corners of her mouth silently turned downwards into a painful arc.
Her father has always been good at smoothing things over. He has already apologized to her, so shouldn't she also apologize to her mother for hiding the truth from them?
Even though Ren Shunan didn't say a word, Ren Limeng immediately realized what her father was planning.
But she didn't want to apologize. She was wrong in this matter, but her mother was also wrong. Ren Limeng was unwilling to admit her mistake.
"Your birthday is next week, isn't it? Look, this is a costume Mom and Dad made for you. Your mom and I secretly sewed every stitch. We've been learning for almost two years. Even when your mom and you were arguing the most, she never forgot about it when she returned to her room. You're Mom and Dad's only precious daughter, so how could we not value you? It's just... sometimes we value you so much that we inevitably forget that our Li Meng isn't a baby anymore."
Ren Shunan gently touched Ren Limeng's head, lowered his head to pick up the gift box bag that was placed at his feet after entering the room, and his gentle tone was filled with calming power.
Ren Limeng paused while wiping her tears, threw away the tissue that was completely soaked with tears, and quickly took out a few pieces of paper to cover the tears on her face, and wiped her wet palms. She looked at her father somewhat at a loss, her fingers rubbing in the air repeatedly, and finally, her hands slowly took the gift box.
When she opened the gift box, exquisite Huangmei opera costumes appeared before her eyes, as if time had stood still. Even though she had seen countless sets of various costumes and was immersed in infinite sadness in the last second, Ren Limeng's entire attention was unconsciously attracted by the gorgeous costumes in front of her, and her focused eyes were full of admiration and disbelief.
The costume has a bright red base and is made of top-grade brocade fabric. The neckline and cuffs are ingeniously designed, and the delicate outline of the cloud pattern is outlined with gold thread. Ren Limeng gently touched the delicate texture and warm luster in front of her eyes, as if she could touch the tenderness and seriousness of her parents when they outlined it stitch by stitch.
The dress is embroidered with delicate peony embroidery patterns, with layers of lifelike petals. Silk threads weave through the satin like dragons, quietly outlining the veins of the petals. Every stitch is precise and delicate. The golden ribbon is looming, shining brightly under the light in the room, adding more gorgeousness and nobility to the entire costume.
"Is this... for me?"
Her eighteenth-birthday present?
It was so unexpected. Ren Limeng stared at her father's gentle eyes and eyebrows in a daze. Her mind suddenly went blank. Her parents were busy all day long, how could they have time to sew such delicate clothes?
After years of studying opera, Ren Limeng can tell the quality of each costume at a glance, and can also feel the care and value of this gift.
Her fingers unconsciously stroked the costume, and when she saw the slight wrinkles on the costume, she immediately loosened her grip. At this moment, it was difficult for her to convince herself that her parents did not value her.
She could feel the love overflowing from every stitch, which softened her heart, which she thought had been hardened for a long time.
Even though she knew that her father's decision to take out this costume in advance was a complete "sugar-coated bullet", Ren Limeng still convinced herself because of his thoughtfulness. Just as her parents said, she was a daughter, and it was no big deal for her to bow her head.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
